Check Your Inventory: How to Prepare for a Convention

Check Your Inventory: Preparing for a Convention

At the time of this article’s writing, Gary Con is less than a week away, and it’s very exciting! I’m running sixteen hours of events: two sessions of my Deadlands: The Weird West ghost train adventure, and two of my Deadlands: Hell on Earth apocalyptic game! In the moments leading up to a major convention, the number of things you need to do to get ready can be a bit overwhelming, so I hope to use this article to share my own methods not only for being prepared but also for feeling prepared. It’s one thing to have everything you need for an adventure, but another thing to feel relaxed and ready for what your players throw at you, and I’ll cover both sides of that.

Standard Human Stuff

I know it’s cliché, but checklists really help my own peace of mind when getting ready for a convention. I don’t typically stay at hotels near a convention, since there are so many within driving distance of me in Wisconsin, but if you do, making sure you have everything packed outside of your convention stuff is a good start!

There’s no need to go into detail about this; you know what you need: clothes, toiletries, medications, etc. There are a hundred articles out there that discuss that much better than I can. The only thing I have to add is to double-check you have all the toiletries you need. It’s much cheaper to get them at a grocery store or local pharmacy than from those little stores in a hotel: they always gouge you on prices, especially if your convention is in a touristy area.

If you’re flying in, definitely check the TSA rules for carrying liquids if you’re bringing your own shampoo. It’s a real pain, but they’re sticklers for rules, and no one wants to have to buy something twice.

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/liquids-aerosols-gels-rule

Convention Stuff

Now we’re getting to the important stuff: your convention supplies. If you’re playing at a convention and not DMing, you'll have a lot less to worry about! I would just check and see if you need to bring anything to your table, like a character sheet, your own dice, etc, but I’ve found most people at conventions are happy to share. If your convention is in a large area like a hotel, it pays dividends to make sure you know where your games are!

However, if you are a DM, you have a bit more to do. Below is the checklist I use for all the conventions I go to:

• Adventure Text

• Monster/Enemy Statistics

• Pregenerated Character Sheets

• Dice, with plenty of extras

• Pencils

• Pencil Sharpener

• Rule Books

• Battle Map

• Battle Map Markers

• Miniatures

Packing Light

Your list may vary, of course, but it’s always good to double-check and make sure you have everything you need. Peace of mind is important, and lets you focus on the no-doubt awesome game you’re about to run!

Let’s take a closer look at a few items on my checklist here. I typically keep everything in as compressed a space as possible so I don’t have to lug a whole bunch of stuff all over the place. Now I’ve seen people bring in a whole bunch of stuff to run an especially elaborate game, but if you’re at that point, you probably have your own system of organization.

Since my games aren’t all that elaborate, I try to get everything I need for my games into one suitcase. That way, there’s less of a chance I’ll forget something, and it’s easy to cart my stuff around. Frankly, I don’t like to carry a whole bunch of stuff. Typically, I put all of the paper stuff (adventure text, monster stats, character sheets, handouts) in a folder. This not only keeps things organized, but it also doesn’t weigh much or take up much space.

As far as miniatures go, there are several options for bringing your miniatures and keeping them safe while also not having them take up a whole bunch of space. I use a Plano tackle box to store not only my miniatures but also all of my painting supplies. Although I don’t typically bring this to conventions, you can always use it as a primary storage container. Also, strangely, it fits the Savage Worlds book perfectly. Very convenient!

Take A Deep Breath

You’ve got your bags packed, adventure prepared, and your game ready to run. Now it’s time to take a deep breath and relax. Conventions are fun and exciting, but can be stressful. It’s important to remember to have fun...besides, they are games after all, even if you're the one running the game. Just remember: you’ve got this!

- Tanner

Links:

• Plano Tackle Box

• TSA Rules for Liquids, Aerosols, and Gels