Enfilade: The Recovery

Got home from Enfilade right at 7:00 last night.  I know because Mad Men was just beginning.  Even though I was just dying, I managed to stay awake until 10:30 and collapsed.  Not quite enough energy to make a blog post.

Andrew, John, Steve and Brian are ready to begin their short service in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Navy.  It kicked off the weekend for me on Friday night.

I'll have several different posts about the convention over the next couple of days.  Let me just start with: by any measure-personal, community, financially-the convention was a success.  Going into the last month of preparation there was concern about the number of games, but certainly it all worked out.  The attendance, at about 265 plus dealers and staff, was among the highest ever, if not the highest.  Great attendance is super for everybody-vendors, game hosts, and the attendees.  In my first year off the organizing committee in many years

One thing that was great for me was that I didn't serve on the committee. The new guys, Dean Motoyama, Adrian Nelson, and Al Rivers did a really great job, despite a bit of a deficit in the volunteer department.  Jim Denberger managed the Bring and Buy, took in record amounts of money and handled the event really effectively.   Even though I was involved in running games almost every period, I think I enjoyed the convention much more as just a gamer dude.  I'll write a bit more about my games in coming posts, but suffice it to say I had a great time. 

Drank some of Centralia's own magic elixir in the hotel bar several times.  Not to be missed on tap.

Perhaps the best part of any gaming gathering, whether Enfilade or something smaller, is just seeing friends.   It was a great weekend with friends: those I see regularly or least stay in regular contact with, and those I only am in contact with at Enfilade.  I ran games with Dave Schueler and David Sullivan.  Talked into the wee hours with Doug Hamm, and together we plotted with Mark Waddington about War of 1812 ideas.  Saw Joe Waddington who came out on the losing end of an argument with a washing machine and discussed the really important things in life-Ballantine books and beer. No less important are those guys I see only at Enfilade-the White Rock gamers from B.C. are all great guys some of whom I've known for many years and others whose company I enjoy immensely, but hardly know at all.  I hope to make it up to Salute in the spring to see them again.

Joe Waddington and I discussed the really important things in life at the end of the day on Sunday.  That the discussion was mostly about really good beer did not break my heart. 

An important part of any gaming convention experience is shopping.  I managed to sell some items at the Bring and Buy.  Gently used non-essential toys went off to new homes and left some change in my pockets.  I had some items I was really interested in picking up if they appeared in the B and B, but no such luck. I had my eye out for HYW French halberdier and militia types, or some Old Glory Wayne's Legion figures, but none made an appearance.  However in a moment of absolute generosity, Bill Vanderpool passed along most of a pack of Wayne's Legion figures to me.

I did make some investments in existing projects, however.  Monday Knight Productions brought in a bunch of the very nice Bay Area Yards ships, forts and buildings.  Most of the great ship kits were gone by the time I arrived Friday afternoon, but I did pick up some of the remaining items on Sunday.  First on the list was the beautiful Fort Jackson kit that appeared in Patrick Hreachmark's New Orleans game at Historicon last summer.  Very cleanly cast, Fort Jackson is a star fort, usable in other actions.  It comes with guns, and for thirty dollars is an amazing deal.  Given its size and detail, one of the finest pieces of resin casting I've seen. I got some other goodies too, notably the ram CSS Webb, and one of the very inexpensive and also very clean warehouses.  Great stuff and relatively inexpensive.  My other purchase, also at Monday Knight, was to fill out the Galactic Knights goodies I picked up last year.  I got everything I wanted, and now I just need to do something with.  Daveshoe also added to his collection, so now we just need to paint it up and play.

A great convention.  I had a lot of fun, but today it's a good day just to relax.