My Tabletop Scotland 2022

With the last Tabletop Scotland event being held in 2019 I had a feeling of apprehension coming into this year's event.

• Not about attendance levels. Our pre-sales had blown the doors off 2019's pre-sales.
• Not about whether people would have fun. Put gamers in front of games and that's largely a given.
• Not about whether our exhibitors would have a positive experience, especially those with us for the first time. Again, put gamers in front of games and other adjacent things then they're going to explore and investigate it, especially if it was something new to them.

The apprehension was one driven by having not done it since 2019, and likely in part due to fatigue thanks to catching COVID post Gen Con.

So what was the apprehension about?

• Was all the hard work put in to prep and plan for the event going to pay off?
• Had I considered every possible scenario and made sure we had an answer to resolve it?
• Did we have enough volunteers? - It's worth noting that there is no such thing as _enough_ volunteers...

Until we opened the doors there was no way of actually knowing.

But there were two other things which I don't think I really appreciated until the event got closer.

1. Was I going to enjoy it?
2. Plus perhaps crucially, would I want to do it again?

To understand number 1, you have to go back to the 2018 and 2019 events.

• 2018 was hard largely because it was the first one we did, but also because this was the culmination of a vision I had which was refined by the others in the team to the point that we knew what the event should be. The problem was that I didn't relax throughout the weekend, which meant I didn't get a chance to savour and enjoy what we'd achieved until afterwards.
• 2019 was hard primarily because we doubled the floorspace and perhaps jumped too soon into that additional complexity. We also had a lot of last minute stuff to deal with.
  As with 2018, I didn't relax during the 2019 con to be able savour and enjoy it.

2022? Well, other than a few tech issues, the occasional decision and some "have we done this?" moments, I didn't actually have anything specific to do during the convention other than chatting to attendees, our charity partners, volunteer & event team, press, guests and exhibitors. In other words I relaxed and was able to enjoy my / our creation. This freedom was largely down to the efforts of the rest of the yellow team and our amazing volunteers, plus of course we'd done it before so certain things just click into place.

The time I was able to spend with folks at the convention was invaluable, especially those friends that I haven't seen since the last event in 2019 and many for even longer. Ultimately the freedom provided me with the fuel I'd been running out of during the preparation.  Which leads into number 2.

To understand number 2, you have to factor in a few things...

• I have a full time job which is very busy at the best of times.
• I was ill from late January through to early May, which was energy sapping. This impacted a chunk of our planning for the con but we muddled through.
• Then I get COVID early August after being at Gen Con.

Alongside those, I think I'd forgotten how much time and effort is spent on planning the convention. In the 2-3 months prior it essentially becomes a 2nd full time job. A lot of that is of my own creation, I obsess over the little things and like to respond to questions immediately. I like to think that obsessiveness helps make the event work as effectively as it does, but who knows right?

As a result, when combined with the above, I felt drained physically, mentally and emotionally going into the convention. All of which had me seriously wondering whether I wanted to do it again.

There's a kind of expectation that Tabletop Scotland will happen every year. An assumed state that obviously we'd want to do it etc etc. I'll be honest and say that it wasn't until the Monday after the convention that I really felt the desire to do it again. That's because everything largely worked as planned, and as a result I was able to relax and even enjoy the convention. But it's also because I've missed doing it, missed the people, missed the thrill of opening those doors and seeing friends old and new come in. 

So, Tabletop Scotland 2023? That's the plan. When we have something to share, we'll share it.

Conventions (and ears) in 2022.

So, as with many things, attending conventions in 2022 have an element of hesitation about them.

Many of us who go to multiple conventions per year can't wait to get back to visiting them, whilst at the same time we're all maybe a little bit apprehensive.

So when this year started I had it all worked out.

• March - AireCon
• June - UK Games Expo
• August - Gen Con
• August - Tabletop Scotland

and anything else was a bonus.

Of course, the best laid plans etc etc...

At the start of the year I developed a lovely (it wasn't) ear infection in both ears. An infection that prove resistant to all attempts to treat through the usual means (I have a long medical history with my ears).

The infection's main impact was pain followed closely by an inability to sleep. Fortunately pain killers exist, unfortunately I needed really strong ones. If you've ever been on really strong pain killers for any length of time, you'll know that when you stop taking them it isn't a pleasant experience...

So January came and went, then February, and March (had to skip AireCon) too. With April approaching and no improvement it became clear (well to be fair it already was) that surgery was the only answer. Now, because of my long medical history with ear issues that's never a simple thing to consider but it was becoming a 'necessary evil'.

As I type this it's the day after surgery and already I can tell a big difference. It's not a long term fix but it'll do for now and means I can now actually have confidence in my plans for going to conventions and organising Tabletop Scotland (the latter was never actually in doubt!).

UK Games Expo - Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th June 2022

For me this will be Thursday 2nd to Monday 6th June purely from a travel and social perspective.

I'm really, really, looking forward to UK Games Expo this year. I've missed the event and the people that I normally see there. Plus it's always a useful event from a Tabletop Scotland perspective.

Gen Con - Thursday 4th to Sunday 7th August 2022

For me this is Tuesday 3rd to Monday 8th August factoring in flights etc. Technically Tuesday 9th August as that's when I get home, timezones huh.

If I am really, really, looking forward to UK Games Expo. You can probably add another 2 or 3 reallys onto that for Gen Con. Returning to Indianapolis after 4 years away and going back with Richard, Simon and of course Greg. The festival atmosphere of the convention and the whole celebration of the hobby that the event has really is special.

The event catalog gets released tomorrow and I am looking forward to planning my Gen Con experience.

If I could only go to one convention every year, and could justify the cost every year, then it'd be Gen Con. No Greg that doesn't mean we're going every year.

Tabletop Scotland 27th & 28th August 2022

Then we have Tabletop Scotland. It's amazing to see so many people excited about our event this year. After 2 years without it, we as a team have really missed hosting it. It seems that our attendees and exhibitors feel the same, which is really special.

We have a lot planned and we really think this will be our best event yet. So if you're in Scotland or can make it to Scotland at the end of August, come to Perth and visit the convention.