Subject: Fw: Gamex Report Card - Kinda' long... Scott Alan Woodard wrote in message ... Well, it's over and done and this past Gamex, overall, was decent, but I must comment on a few negatives before I get to the positives... 1) A friend of mine and I re-dubbed the name of the con, "Cancellation Con." Why, you ask? Well, we are gamers in the truest sense of the word. We both play board games, RPGs, wargames and we sometimes LARP (Live Action Role-Play). Out of the 3 events that I pre-registered for, 2 were cancelled and out of the 3 that my friend registered for, 3 were cancelled. Fortunately, we were able to find suitable replacements for these events, but it was frustrating, nonetheless. We both agreed that in order for us to experience some of our favorite games at future Strategicon events, we are going to have to volunteer to run them. At least we know they'll actually be happening!!! 2) Mess. Sunday morning, it looked as though a rock concert had occurred in all of the gaming rooms. Tables, chair and floors were deep with soda cans, cups, fast-food wrappers, paper bags and more. I don't know if this is solely the fault of a number of gaming slobs or a symptom of the apparent decline of the hotel in which the event occurred. Fortunately, those who actually cared (including my friend and I) joined in the cleaning and things eventually looked a bit better. 3) The damn down escalator kept breaking down!!! And last but not least... Scientologists!!! Now before I go offending any members of this organization who may hang out here on the newsgroup, let me make it perfectly clear that the following comments are directed at those who were present at this past weekend's convention. That said... I can almost accept the fact that they are paying for a table in the dealer's room to hawk their wares and giveaway free "Battlefield Earth" posters (heck, there are guys selling videotapes and other non-gaming items there), but what I don't accept is their wandering about the hotel, accosting folks in an underhanded manner. They actually wore badges that read "Motion Picture Industry" (or words to that effect) and handed out free movie passes to "Battlefield Earth". What the gullible takers of said passes failed to realize is that the film was being screened as a Scientology event complete with handouts and a lecture or two (I didn't attend, mind you, but I know their methods). On top of all that, we actually had an RPG interrupted by one of these people: "Sorry to bother you guys, but have you all seen 'Battlefield Earth'?" As a result, I am going to be writing and complaining to the convention staff. Perhaps Scientology is contributing heavily to the con, but there comes a time when someone has to put their foot down. I'd hate to stop going to these cons, but I was quite annoyed this past weekend by all this. Phew... Onto the good things! 1) Lots of German games... I mean it, LOTS! 2) Much to choose from and friendly, patient people in the open-gaming area. 3) Some good deals to be found in the dealer's room and flea market. So there you have it! I had fun, to be sure, but there are definitely some issues that need to be addressed to help improve this con overall. Maybe locals who read this can also consider volunteering to run some events for future Strategicon events. Either way, I'll see you at the next on in September! Scott Alan Woodard ogma01@earthlink.net