On this episode, Quarex and Ben talk with Joe Smiddie-Brush, the blood drive chair of the Heinlein Society, who has partnered with Gen Con to arrange for the blood drive, which is entering its 19th year at the convention! Wow!!!

Important links:

• The Heinlein Society
• Gen Con Blood Drive
• The Blood Drive's partner, Dscryb, who coordinates much of the swag for donors
• Donate blood with last year's Gen Con blood drive partner, Versiti!
• The Notebooks of Lazarus Long, by the titular Heinlein himself

And if you're looking to arrange for a blood drive at your favorite local convention (PHIL), you can reach out to Joe at [email protected].

... and if you're going to Origins like Quarex, Ben, and all the other cool kids -- don't forget you can donate blood there too! GAMA even gave us an extra day of gaming, so why not give a little of your blood? (You won't miss it.. that much.)

https://www.originsgamefair.com/blood-drive

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On this episode, Ben and Quarex share their tips and tricks on how to do Gen Con without spending too much money. Topics include travel options to Indy, lodging in and around the situation, food/drink/alcohol, free badges, low cost/now cost events and seminars, and things to do around the city.

Even if you're not the most frugal attendee, you might be able to glean some insights from the combined experience of the hosts.

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On this episode, Ben and Quarex review the conventions we attended thus far in 2025... other than Gary Con, Adepticon, and Awesome Con.

• Congress of Gamers
• Winter War
• GamiCon
• Dreamation
• Gameface Con
• MoComCon
• Unpub Fest
• Kobold Con
• C2E2
• Chaosium Con
• Final 3 Con

Did you attend any conventions during this time that we didn't cover? You can send us a Dreamer Dispatch at the following link!

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On this episode, Quarex and Ben talk with Matt from the Lurking Fears GM Group! Matt regales us with his tales of starting and maintaining one of the best GM in all Conventionry.

• Lurking Fear website (link)
• Publishers they work with (link)
• Sign up to be a GM! (link)

You can also catch a game with them at Origins Game Fair (link to Tabletop Events) and even Gen Con!

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On a day where the fourth might have been with us, the Gen Con event catalog definitely joined in all its Midichlorian glory. When you can find all the events on the official page (link) or the Gen Con 2025 Event DB page (link), your hosts Quarex and Ben picked out some events you'll want to check out:

• The Necromancer's Curse for Fabula Ultima (link)
• Deathwise5E, the Thousand Dollar experience (link)
• Coffee Klatch with Michael A. Stackpole (link)
• Punch Nazis on Mars (link)
• Bees, Beer, and the Hip: a Canadian LARP for Call of Cthulhu (link)
• T2D2 Toys POG Tournament (link)

Your hosts also walk you through the wishlisting process, and event registration process on Sunday, May 18th at 12 noon Eastern.

And don't forget, we have our live podcast recording at 9 pm on Saturday in Lucas Oil Stadium: https://www.gencon.com/events/278485

You won't want to miss it.

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On this episode, your hosts Quarex and Ben discuss the latest phenomenon in gaming conventions -- con cruises! We discuss the why, the whether, and the cruises you can book, including:

• JoCo Cruise
• Dice Tower Cruise
• D3/B3 at Sea
• Congress of Gamers Cruise Session

... and more!

And don't forget that after over a decade of promising, Real ID is taking effect in May! You won't want to miss it, especially if you are flying anywhere between now and Gen Con.

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On this episode, we talk about the conventions you want to know about between May 1 and September 2, including:

Buckeye Game Fest, Midwest Games Fest, Farmageddon, Congress of Gamers Spring Session, Shirecon, Dungeon Con, PAX East, Geekway to the West, OrakCon, Game Market (Chiba City, Japan), Thy Geekdom Con, Fargo CoreCon Halfoween, Balticon, StrategiCon Gamex, Rooks Con, LinCon, ChupacabraCon Gaming Convention, KublaCon, Dream Con, CanGames, UK Games Expo, Magstock, SaltCON Summer, CNY RPG Con, Pyrkon, Game Con, Southern Fried Gaming Expo, Origins Game Fair, SoonerCon, MisCon, MAGE Con, ROSECon, KantCon, Djiversão Offline, BorderCon, 18XXBelgium, Game Con Canada, Dexlite, CONvergence, Shadow Market Shanghai Board Game Exhibition, Dice Tower East, Roswell Galacticon, Crit Hit!, PlayCon, AdventureCon Ironweld, ConnectiCon, Historicon, Gem State Gaming Convention, EGG Con, San Diego Comic Con, Board Game Days, Ropecon, Northwest Tabletop Expo, World Boardgaming Championships, GEN CON GEN CON GEN CON GEN CON GEN CON GEN CON, StarCon, MagWest, Epic Nerd Camp, Once Upon a Con, Phoenix Con, DragonFlight,FallCon, Make a Scene, Reaper Con, SaltCON End of Summer, GrandCon, The Nova Open, WGGCon, Gamers of Summer, Immerse Con, Matsuricon, PAX West, DragonCon.

But also:

• Tabletop Scotland, which technically starts the week after Labor Day but you should attend!
• Quad Cons galore!
• And our new Gritty Game Day feature!

You won't want to miss it!!!

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In the furious vortex of March and April conventions, Quarex and Ben carved out some time in the recording schedule to discuss how you can convince your friends to join you at gaming conventions.

Whether your reasons are selfish, altruistic, or somewhere in between — listen in to learn how to convince your friends and family into entering the lifestyle of gaming conventions.

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On this episode, your hosts Quarex and Ben talk about their time at Adepticon (Milwaukee, WI) and Awesome Con (Washington DC) as members of the gaming media.

We also introduce the Dreamer Dispatch, where if you tell us about your time at a convention, we may read your dreams on a future episode of the show. Drop your Dreamer Dispatches at the following link.

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The 50th anniversary of Origins Game Fair starts June 18, 2025... which is so much sooner than you think! Your hosts Quarex and Ben walk you through everything you need to know now to make the convention the great time it can be, including:

• Badges
• Hotels
• Event Schedule
• Spectacles like the Film Festival
• Events on Stage
• Special Guests

And don't forget our just early enough recommendations for events you should sign up for:

• Motley Kids
• Matinee Adventures
• Kingdoms of Keshanar
• Build a Shadowdark Adventure Live with Kelsey Dionne
• ADGNEPSEF555
• and the event you just can't miss because you'll have to wait until September when we release it—our live podcast recording!!!1!

DON'T FORGET! You can contribute to the oral history of Origins by emailing Matt Shoemaker at [email protected]. (It's so much nicer than hitting him with a shoe.)

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