Like any vacation, Gen Con is a mixed bag of mostly fun and minor frustration. Sometimes you roll a 20 and occasionally you roll a 1. This year was a mixed dice bag, but I’m grateful to have the opportunity to visit Indy, enjoy the Con, and hang out with my gaming fam. In this article, I will be addressing the good and the bad parts of the adventure.

The Good

There were a lot of good moments at Gen Con 2022, but for brevity’s sake I’d like to highlight three memorable events: one features an author, another a game store, and the third is the hotel stay.

Elevator Fan Girl

Steve and I are in the elevator going down to breakfast and there’s a sweet, shy man holding a sign that has the Slaying the Dragon book cover. (This book was referenced in an earlier Gnome Stew article-check it out!) I exclaimed and said, “Hey, I’m reading that book!” The man quips, “Hey, I wrote that book!” Ben Riggs probably wanted to fetch his coffee and escape from this elevator fan girl, but he was gracious. Steve and I stopped by his booth several times to have our copy signed, but the elusive Ben was away, so we ended up with a signed book card. That would suffice.

Good Games Indianapolis

We strolled down South Meridian Street, people-watched (lots of cosplay here), and ventured to Good Games Indianapolis. It’s a nifty shop that is much bigger inside than it looks from the outside. I can’t say enough good things about the staff and the merch, as they were friendly and helpful. I left the store with a Bard miniature for a new 5e character, a jumbo D20 die, and a game called Cat Lady.

Hotel

We were lucky in the lottery this year and ended up staying at our favorite place, The Hilton. The staff was also gracious to us and allowed us to commandeer a table and play our annual Saturday night game in their bar area. Check-in and check-out were seamless, and the discounted breakfast was tasty. Also, I had a new haircut, hot stone massage (highly recommend!), and a pedicure.

The Bad

I like to focus on the positive without being too Pollyanna about it. There were only a few blips this con. For us, the bad was due to limited mobility, schedules, and weather.

Limited Mobility

Unfortunately, I am currently experiencing post-op complications which limits my mobility to walk long distances without pain.  So, I couldn’t visit the Con as often as I would have liked. But I made my own fun by getting a new haircut, a massage, and a pedicure. (The spa at the Hilton is terrific! I made new friends there.)

Schedules

  This is the one bad instance that we can control, and moving forward, will do. Steve GMs four games for the Con, and that is awesome and all, but we hardly saw each other. Next year, Steve will either limit the number of games to run, or we will coordinate schedules better, so we have some time to spend together.

Weather

  Luckily, except for the Food Trucks, the Con is held indoors, so we’re not stuck inside on a tropical island. However, it rained most of the weekend, and it made travelling a little more difficult. Other than that, it wasn’t a big deal.

 Did you visit any conventions this year? How were your experiences?