Bidi’s World

The first day at GameStorm was a booming success for me. Today was essentially a chance for those who had preregistered to get an early start. Though I don’t have enough experience to say with any authority, it is my understanding that more gaming conventions these days are having early start days.

On the agenda for this evening there was really only one thing that really caught my eye though. There was a D&D 4th edition demo as well as a demo of the new D&D Mini’s system.

They were both a lot of fun. I think I’ll be using the new mini’s rules going forward for sure. The dynamics just make more sense than they used to. The new rules also fall closer in line with how the RPG mechanics work so your not constantly reminding yourself “5′ step here, no 5′ step there” among other annoyances.

I like the way the 4th edition RPG played out as well. I felt like my special abilities were more accessible due to how often they cycled. This added immensely to the fun factor of playing the game. There will be a bit of a learning curve to it but only because of how unfamiliar some of the new mechanics are and not because they are any more difficult. I think someone coming into the game fresh will have a much easier time of it.

One thing in particular about 4th edition I thin will work very well is how difficulty levels of encounters are now calculated. The new system is much simpler and as such building encounters or scaling existing encounters for odd sized groups looks much easier. I don’t know if I’ll go out and buy a bunch of fresh 4th edition books as soon as they hit the shelf but I will make the move eventually for sure.

• GameStorm 10 (0)
• RPGA Events at GameStorm 10 (0)
• Living Arcanis and Nerdcon 2007 (3)

GameStorm 10 starts tomorow. I’ve been looking forward to it ever since I first heard about it at Nerdcon 2007. I had no idea that there was a decent gaming convention so close to home.

So far I’ve signed up for a D&D 4th edition demo, Shadowrun for beginners, Living GreyHawk for beginners, a beginners Star Wars RPGA game, and of course a Living Arcanis game. I’m also hoping to get in some card games too including a Magic the Gathering and a World of Warcraft TCG tournament.

I know that some of the guys I’ve been playing Living Arcanis with lately are going to be there. My ranger has hit level 4 and is becoming quite deadly with a bow. With some luck we’ll be able to sit down and game a bit. I also hope to make a bunch of new friends as well. This should be a really fun week.

• RPGA Events at GameStorm 10 (0)
• GameStorm 10 - 4th Edition Demos (0)
• Living Arcanis and Nerdcon 2007 (3)

It was with a great deal of will power, I went to my first gaming convention. I had never done such a thing before and knew of nobody into the hobby who could join me. After the great time I had at World Wide D&D Gaming Day though I was determined to make the best of it.

As it was, my worries were unfounded. Nerdcon 2007 was put on by the Clan of the Cave Nerds and ran Friday November 9th till Sunday November 11th. They are a gaming group that plays at Ancient Wonders in Tualatin on the second Saturday of every month. I was beside myself with the hospitality that greeted me there. My original intent was only to spend a few hours there on Saturday. Getting into a game of Munchkin or something simple seemed like a good start. In the end though, it was the longest and funnest two days I’ve had gaming since I was a kid. And that was a very long time ago.

It started out with me asking Ada, the event organizer, questions about the various games that were going on. The setting and system of Living Arcanis perked my interest and they had an introductory adventure planned for that Saturday. One of the other gamers there helped me get a character rolled up and gave me an introduction to the setting. It was at this point Bidimus of the Hinterlands, a ranger, was born.

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• GameStorm 10 (0)
• Hope everyone had a fun “Worldwide D&D Gaming Day” (5)
• GameStorm 10 - 4th Edition Demos (0)