GenCon 2011 Wrap-Up: The Acquisitions

Greetings!

This will be the last of my GenCon posts for this year, and I saved the best for last. A lot of folks that do not get to attend GenCon like to know what kinds of things can be found there. Goods, merchandise, giveaways - that kind of thing. I made several acquisitions, and thought I would share these with you. There will be no reviews or anything, but if you have any questions about what you see, leave a comment, and I'll try to find out for you. Remember to click on the smaller picture to see the larger image.

Let's start with the basics. I wanted to pick up something for my fellow players in the Dead Orcs Society. Dice were my go to choice. Koplow makes the best:

I always pick out colors that I think are suitable for my players. I hope these bring them luck.

A lot of folks buy rule books, but I went easy on that this time around. The only rule books I purchased were Mike Shea's rule book set (the SlyFlourish Guides). The other book shown in the photo below is Heroes of Shadow. I didn't buy this one, but won it as a prize during the Dungeons & Dragons trivia contest over at Scotty's Brewhouse.

I'm always hungry for miniatures, and I was kind of expecting (with the assumption at the time, that WotC would not be making miniature sets any longer) the price to be exorbitant. I was pleased to find a couple of Lords of Madness sets for at least a 1/3 off the original retail price. I picked up two boxes worth.

I'm always looking for ways to more easily track conditions and such. Alea Tools fits the bill for such things quite nicely. Their magnetic markers stack neatly, are relatively easy to label, and come in a variety of colors. I picked up both 1" and 2" counters. I'm really looking forward to using these on the tabletop.

I wanted to pick up some Dwarven Forge at GenCon, but the Tavern Accessory Kits I wanted were already sold out. However, the nice gentleman at the booth informed me that they were still available online. As soon as I got back, I ordered two of them. I show them here, because had they been present, I would have bought them at GenCon.

Finally, I want to add a special note about the various giveaways I received at GenCon. There were video games, Magic The Gathering decks, True Dungeon counters and other things available for free in the swag bags given out at the conference. In addition, many of the folks I met at GenCon were busy handing out things as well. I got a cool pack of NPC reaction cards from the fine folks that run KantCon in Kansas City and a nice token from Obsidian Portal.

As I type this, I'm realizing the picture below doesn't include some of the other cool things I acquired at GenCon. I received a great light-up D20 from E. Foley (@geeksdreamgirl) in her role as a representative of ThinkGeek. In addition, I received d20s from @KatoKatonian and Team Chompy gave me a pin for my dice bag! I also received great t-shirts from Brian Patterson (d20Monkey) and Jerry LeNeave (of Obsidian Portal)!  If I left anyone out, let me know! There was so much cool stuff!

Well, kids. That takes care of my GenCon 2011 Wrap-Up. It was one of the best conventions I've ever attended, and it set the bar pretty high for enjoying the convention next. Here's hoping I get to see all of you in 2012! 

Until next time...

Game excellently with one another.