The Civilized Guide to Tabletop Gaming, page 14
Get a Display Board or Tray to Easily Move Your Models
Not only is a display board a great investment to show off the minis you’re proud of, it’s also a practical and useful addition to any game that requires more than a handful of models. It also makes it easy to transport them from table to table.
Embrace Your Inner Pickup Artist
In the grimdark present of miniature war games, there is no stranger danger.
Pickup gaming is a staple of many miniature war games (and other games, too). Because they’re often structured to be single-instance, two-player games, they’re built upon the idea of meeting new players. This is part of the culture and community of many war games, particularly those that are most popular.
It may be out of your comfort zone, but don’t be afraid of strangers. The game gives you a common element around which to bond, and provided you keep your gaming etiquette rules in mind as you play, you should find playing with strangers easy and enjoyable. And after your game, they are strangers no longer.
Ditch the Clique
Part of convention gaming is meeting new people; it’s something you can’t do as often in your FLGS. And you’ll never be able to do it playing around your dining room table.
Whether you attend a convention with a group of friends, meet up with some friendly familiar faces, or hit it off with some people in the con, you may feel as though you should travel in a pack as you experience the convention. There’s safety in numbers, after all. But that’s actually very counterintuitive.
I met a group of gamers who were virtually married to each other during a con. They drove down together, they roomed together, they ate together, they took painting classes together, and of course, they gamed together. They played games they were familiar with, as well as tried new games. They may as well have been a chimera (a three-headed beast that moves as a single body) at every table they sat at to game. It made sense to them; they were close gaming friends who played regularly in a gaming den they built together in one of the guys’ basements.
There were three of them, and many games are optimized for four players. So they dominated every table they sat at, which skewed the gaming experience of the person who occupied the leftover seat. And because they played together often, they knew each other well enough to play against each other’s styles of play. For games they all regularly played, they might as well have been playing in their own basement. For games they were trying for the first time, they denied themselves the opportunity to assess the games individually, but instead developed a collective opinion.
This is all bad news for them. The one with the strongest personality tended to hammer his opinion into the others rather than letting them decide for themselves if a game was one they liked. Furthermore, they significantly reduced their chances to mingle and meet other gamers, which is a fabulous byproduct of attending gaming conventions.
Finally, this group of gamers dominated each game they tried together—so much so that it skewed the perception of the game for the other players. Atop the game these three guys were playing, they were also playing a metagame against each other. Being the outside player in this situation often means that players who are within a clique gaming with outsiders will be less thoughtful of those outsiders and will care less about their experience at the table. Adhering to your clique for all your convention gaming experiences could negatively impact someone else’s convention experience. Don’t do that.
Cliques are bad things to begin with, but gaming as part of a clique not only hurts your own gaming experience but also damages the ability for other attendees to make the most of their con.
Instead of gaming in a herd, you’re better off going on your own, mingling with other gamers, and inviting people whom you don’t normally game with to join your table. That’s not to say you can’t play games with friends when you’re attending the same convention, but playing by yourself does give you a better perspective on any given game. It also gives you a chance to talk excitedly about games with your friends on the drive back.
So ditch the clique and instead try going out there and breaking away from the pack. Working as a lone ranger gives you a perspective on games that would work for you and your friends. As well, it lets you have the opportunity to care about the experience of players you aren’t familiar with rather than favoring the enjoyment of your friends (which is understandable, but also avoidable).
And who knows? You may learn a new strategy for beating your friends at your most beloved games.
The Convention Rules about Taking Photos
With the supercomputers in our pockets containing built-in cameras, along with the proliferation of other kinds of digital cameras, taking pictures detailing all the amazing things you’re seeing seems second nature. But before you hit the shutter button, think of the following rules.
If You’re Going to Take a Picture of a Person, Ask Permission
Some people don’t want strangers to take their photos. Some people have taken photos of other people that weren’t in the least flattering to the person, the game, or its community. (If you’re wondering what that looks like, Google “Magic The Gathering cracks.”)
When asking a person if you can take his picture playing a game, be clear to him what your intention is for that photo. If you’re doing it to showcase gaming at the con and/or the interest of people in a favorite game, most people will be okay with it. If you’re taking a photo with or of a personal idol, they’re sometimes fine with that. (Hint: taking photos of Wil Wheaton wandering a convention without his permission is not a good idea; asking him for a photo with you at his booth is.)
If You’re Taking Photos of Crafted Components or Painted Miniatures, Ask Permission
Again, be upfront about why you want a photo. (“I’d love a photo of your Warhammer 40K army because I had a friend tell me your color scheme would never work, but you’re proving him clearly wrong.”) Just remember the rules of handling game components and getting touchy-feely with other people’s games.
If You’re Not Comfortable Articulating the Reason, Don’t Take the Photo
Chances are, if you’re embarrassed by why you’re taking a photo, there’s probably a reason for it. You might be planning to embarrass or mock, which is something we all know from grade school is plain mean.
Similarly, if you have no specific intended use, you’re probably better off not taking the photo. If you want to post it online, be upfront about it, and most people will be okay with it. Otherwise, put the camera away and just enjoy the gaming at the con.
Respect the Right to Decline
If someone declines to give you permission to take a photo, that’s okay. You’ll move along with your life. She has every right to not accede to your request, and that doesn’t mean you can take the photo in secret without her awareness. That’s a total dick move, so don’t think you can pull it.
Ultimately, what happens to the photos (and the depiction of the person/models) is out of the control of the person and in control of the photographer. That can make people uncomfortable for a variety of reasons, so you want to be thoughtful and respectful about it. Otherwise, you might have your camera confiscated because you couldn’t respect someone’s right to politely decline a photo of himself or his stuff. He may have one or many reasons for declining, but it doesn’t matter: Don’t be a creep-shotter when it comes to photo taking.
Read the Photography Rules of the Event
Some events are fine with general photos, but some may have a specific policy about it, especially events where game previews are done incognito.
One event I attended had a very high-profile licensed game to play, but nobody could take photos of it because the art hadn’t yet been approved by the licensor. Even having the game out—which they were doing special for the fan attendees—would have gotten the publisher in deep trouble.
The last thing you want to do is have to deal with lawyers (they make things less fun when they’re working), so be mindful of the photo policy.
In the end, use basic common sense when it comes to photos. It’s not that different than the rules and etiquette you should follow when you game. Be thoughtful, be upfront, and follow the rules.
Be a Good Game Demoee
Demo games are an opportunity for publishers to let people get a taste of a game—it’s like a small bite of a big dish. It helps give people an overall impression of a game while not bogging them down with all the intricacies and nuances of the rules, which would be explained out of context.
When you approach a demo table, take the time to assess the game. Talk to the demoer about the kinds of games you like and don’t like (using the vernacular of game mechanics and play styles). If she thinks the game will be a fit for you, she’ll offer you a demo. If you tell her you don’t like collectible card games and she’s demoing a collectible card game, consider passing on the demo. Your time and the time of the demonstrator are both valuable.
When getting a demo game, don’t expect to play the full rules for it, let alone the advanced ones. This is likely a scaled-down version to make it easy for demoees to experience the game in a short period. The point is for you to get a feel for the game so you can make a more informed decision. Think of it like food samples at Costco—you get a little but it’s not a meal-sized amount.
Feel free to ask questions about the game, but hold them until the end of the demo if you’re looking for general information rather than specific and pertinent mechanics. Let the demonstrator speak, and don’t interrupt her, particularly if she’s running a demo for a group of people outside your level of experience.
Obviously, if you’re familiar with a game, don’t do the demo. It’s really bad form. It takes away time and effort the game demoer can be giving to someone who isn’t familiar with the game. Moreover, if you see the demonstrator skipping rules, do not interject yourself into the game. She’s giving a taste, not a full course.
I once was getting a demo of a miniature war game when a gamer who loves that game interjected because the demonstrator wasn’t using the full rules; he interpreted that as playing the game wrong. He took over the demo and overwhelmed me with rules to the point that I was turned off of the game by the whole experience. While he loved the game, his insertion of himself into the demonstration killed the game for me. Don’t be that guy.
Demos are a way for publishers to let people get a feel for their game. When you’re at a convention, don’t overeat at the buffet of demos. Instead, pick and choose the ones you think will be best for you.
Chapter Ten
Talking about Games Online: Don’t Be a Troll
The Internet can be a pretty scary place. Opinions clash, arguments arise, and people end up comparing other people to Hitler. This tendency toward overgeneralization and rudeness applies to online communities, including communities where the topic of discussion is tabletop games.
At the same time, the Internet can also be a wonderful place where you can learn about various aspects of your hobbies, share your passions, and find kinship with people on the other side of the planet. That’s pretty rad.
Recognizing this dichotomy is one of the most important preconditions for functioning productively on the Internet. Choosing to engage in a community filled with passionate and opinionated people requires a certain discipline and structure so you don’t get sucked into situations where you are propagating your opinions without respecting anyone else’s. It helps you avoid being sucked into situations of incivility. You want to share your knowledge, not argue with strangers.
This chapter is intended to help you be as awesome on the Internet as you are across a gaming table.
Write Game Reviews That Are Useful
Well-written and clearly articulated game reviews are a key element of sharing information about games with other gamers. As you grow your own library of games, you will develop opinions about games that can help people make decisions for their own collections. There are some ways to write a really great game review that’s useful, whether it’s full of praise or criticism. Follow these rules, and you’ll come off as a brilliant gaming guru rather than an untrustworthy lout.
Recognize there is no such thing as an objective review. Your personal tastes will color your opinions; that’s inevitable. That’s why it’s important to preface the review by being clear about the kinds of games you like. Knowing your tastes and stating them upfront will help better inform people who read your review. If someone recognizes your perspective as similar to her own, the review will be very useful to her. Giving a clear compass of your perspective will help orient any gamer who reads the review.
Talk about both the positive and negative aspects of the game. If you can’t find any negatives, say so and give the game a glowing review. If you can’t find any positives, the game is clearly not to your tastes. Spend the time explaining, using specific examples why this game doesn’t suit you. There are some games that are much beloved and very popular that I cannot stand, and there are games that I adore that just don’t appeal to the vast majority of gamers. The key is to articulate the specific positive or negative aspects about the game.
Use the vocabulary of gaming. After all, you’re writing for people who are familiar with games. Employing gamer terms to describe the type of game and its mechanics (such as those listed within this book) will help other gamers have a frame of reference for how the game plays and what they can expect from it.
If your review gives a rating to the game, take the time to learn what the scale looks like. Generally, top or perfect scores should only go to games that have a very wide appeal, would be an enjoyable experience for most gamers, have intuitive mechanics, and contain other elements that put the quality of the game over the top (including fantastic components, beautiful art, and a compelling theme). These are the kinds of games that will be classics and staples in collections. They may be the kinds of games you pass on to future gamers. Middle-of-the-road scores should be assigned to games that have a narrower appeal, have clunky mechanics that can be overcome by some other redeeming charm, and are games you would bring out for a specific group of players rather than a random mix. Low scores are reserved for games with significant flaws that hinder the game’s enjoyment. They may be poorly designed, so unintuitive they’re exceedingly challenging to learn and teach, or have some detrimental quality that is extremely hard to overlook.
In the end, writing great game reviews not only helps you inform other gamers, but it helps refine your own tastes by crystallizing what you like and don’t like in games. As such, it’s a useful exercise for you as well.
What a Great Review Looks Like
Here’s a sample review of a game called The Others:
Imagine a really fun dungeon crawl game, run by a game master, set in a universe that harkens back to the demon-filled lore of Diablo but is set in the modern day and you have a pretty good sense of The Others. Gamers familiar with the Zombicide series will find a lot of similarities in terms of mechanics (along with the same high-quality miniatures we expect of a Cool Mini game) but enough distinct elements to make The Others feel like a very different game. It plays with four people in about the same amount of time as Zombicide (about two hours, though admittedly less if your GM is particularly clever or bloodthirsty). If you like stunning minis, campaign-style mechanics, and the idea of fighting demons in the present day, you’ll dig this game.
Be Helpful, Rational, and Supportive in Groups and Forums
When talking about games, it’s important to recognize the kinds of conversations that are positive, useful, and helpful to people. This is opposed to the tar pits that quickly catch fire and burn everyone involved in them. The key to keeping things civil online and keeping you from falling into the tar pit is to act respectfully. You don’t have to agree with someone else’s opinion in order to treat it seriously. Here are the four kinds of conversations to which you can contribute positively, with minimal risk of catching on fire.
Give Advice When (and If) People Ask for It
If someone is soliciting gaming advice on a forum, feel free to jump into that conversation. Address the original poster first, rather than responding to the comments. If you choose to engage with other commentators, be respectful of their perspectives while making your own clear. Avoid broad generalizations (“All miniatures-based games suck!” “No one really likes old-style war games”), and never let the conversation descend into personal attacks when there are disagreements in opinion. Speaking of opinions, everyone, including the idiots online (who we won’t call out but will mock in our heads), is entitled to his or her own.
Give Support
If someone is lamenting a loss she suffered or sharing a gaming situation that’s less than stellar and you can sympathize, feel free to post support. Commiserating with other people online is a great way to build a rapport. Similarly, it’s a great way to develop a reputation online as someone who is positive. When you help lift someone up, whether it’s talking her up after she suffered a crushing defeat or providing some insight and personal experiences to give her some perspective that might help her in the future, you’re performing a valuable service that the online community will appreciate.
