Adepticon 2012- Straight, No Chaser

 As you might have noticed, my Adepticon coverage this year was basically non-existent until now considering my past coverages of the event. You'd think for the 10 year anniversary I'd have been more excited but the combination of personal work related issues forcing me to cancel my LotHS event and some general hobby malaise kept me from really being that overly excited.

My main interest was the 2012 Lord of the Rings Championships, where I brought my re-tooled Cirith Ungol / Mordor army from last years Bilbo's Birthday Bash, back for another go using Games Workshop new Warbands rules. I'll cut right to the punch line. I won the Best Overall "Lord of Middle Earth" Award of the Tournament. No one was more surprised than me, because I rarely win more than 1 game at LotR tournament, and when I won all three games, I figured I'd be up there due to my always high soft scores. I haven't seen the scores yet, but whatever  they were they were high enough that my battle points beat out my paint score, and that has never happened.

I am humbled to be a part of such great community of local players. Games are always fun no drama affairs. When this tournament found itself in the awkward situation of the new books coming out after it was announced but still far enough in advance to create an issue..the organizers decided to allow use of both LoME and the new Warbands books at this event. Even though LoME lists have a distinct competitive advantage over Warbands..every single one of my opponents was running a Warbands lists. I played three awesome guys, and had a good time, So playing in this event was enough for me, winning it, is just a validation that dont always have to go to these things ready to chew nails and shred your rulebook. I am going to write up my games later this week but they were very close affairs and luck was just really on my side.

On Saturday I also did some paint judging and took a whole bunch of photos of the LotR Team Tourney which I am going to run again in separate post. It was also great to see that couple of first time players from the whom I know twin cities who are former WFB tourney players  won the team tourney. Here in the midwest, anyway LotR is alive and well.

I also ran some demos for Warlord Games Hail Caesar on Saturday evening we had a great group of players again more disgruntled WFB'ers in attendance and definitely picked a few more players at least locally as a result. All in all a very productive Adepticon for spending my personal shortest amount of time there ever and as well as spending the least amount of money.

 As for the rest of grand spectacle that is now Adepticon, I dont have much really to say.  There were two big low-lights. Thursday night check in was a disaster because of this stupid Battlefoam bag give away... so people were 750 deep at 5pm to get the free $30 bag they were also still selling in the vendor hall with the same patch you got in the swag bag regardless. As a result of the word FREE (so it might as well have been a free bowl of soup as a man bag for your miniatures) There were a ton of people there before 5pm and it took hours to check in (if actually you waited in line) and the hotel was horribly behind in setting up rooms so everything Thursday as far as I could tell was off schedule..it was pretty much a mess. Since I am of the "waiting in line is for suckers" mentality..I waited until like 9pm when it took 10 mins to check in and got my normal swag bag, which was its usual chock full of great stuff. (Hordes plastic starter, bunch of miniatures, paints, etc)

The Hotel also had the idiotic idea to schedule a wedding in what was last years Flames of War ballroom, in the middle of Saturday Night, This created a weird scene of  Gamers mingled in with a suburban Chicago wedding of cigar smoking sports fans with a bunch of very attractive, dressed to nines, young women (never a bad thing) but the gamers milling around the outside of the ballroom gawking was obvious. I can only imagine whomever paid for that wedding having some choice words for the hotel after that..It wasn't particularly great for Adepticon either as it was just weird.
and ate up valuable gaming space, and clearly made Wedding guests as well as some Adepticon attendees I am sure uncomfortable. It's not like Adepticon doesnt make the Lombard Weston a hell of alot of money every year..they really needed to squeak out the extra dough at the expense of bruised feelings of everyone who is giving you their money?.

Corporate stupidity of the Westin and crass commercialism of Battlefoam aside, our local hobby tournament is now big business. 40K, WFB,, Warmahordes, and the Crystal Brush, where all hugely popular and drawing people in like flies on a popsicle- but the coolest thing , for me anyway is all the other little stuff that goes on there. A lot of little start up vendors there, especially in the demo hall who stayed open late when the main vendor hall inexplicably seemed to close earlier than ever. Tons of demos, board games, old games , new games, games I never heard of going on, in halls and almost every nook and cranny in the place. I applaud all the folks running for all their hardwork and making it whats it become. You cant make all the cool little events happen without the big stuff to pay for it all. So any minor irritants aside, I still look forward to what next year is going to bring,  plus I am the 2012 "Lord of Middle Earth", who else is going to say that, thanks Adepticon!