This is my first time at a Gen Con and like Tycho mentioned, I am having a blast! Thornwatch is being demoed in the Lone Shark booth all day and the feedback I've gotten is super positive.
one of the cool new things we are showing off here at Gen Con is the Storyboard system. It's still in development but I am already really excited about it. The idea is that Thornwatch stories will be delivered like comic strips...that you can play. Here is an example.
Obviously this is still just in the sketch phase but you get the idea. The top half of the card sets up the encounter with art, rules, map construction, starting locations, all the stuff you need to get going. Then the bottom half (this will end up being the back of the card) helps you decide where to go next. You can jump right to the final fight if you don't have much time, or you can continue the adventure by choosing one of the two Storyboard options there in the middle. If the Thornwatch fail you are directed to the next Storyboard in that chain. Each time you complete one of these encounters you will flip the card and decide what to do next. I think it has a lot of potential and I can't wait to get back home and keep polishing the idea.
I've had lots of time to check out the rest of the show as well. I ended up buying more games than I think will fit in my suitcase but that's a problem for tomorrow. I went over to the Ascension booth because I loved the VR version of the game they released. I talked to some folks there for a bit and ended up buying Ascension: War of Shadows. Then I hit the Privateer Press booth and grabbed the new Legion of Everblight battlegroup.
As I was walking around I discovered the Kingdom Death booth. I'd heard about the game but had never actually seen it in person. I have to say that it is the most beautiful miniatures game I've ever seen. From the packaging all the way to the models themselves it really is stunning. I was ready to buy a copy but apparently they sold out in the first two hours of the show! I ended up just hanging out in the booth for thirty minutes, drooling over the minis and the artwork.
Speaking of beautiful minis, I also saw an early version of the Dark Souls board game from Steamforged games. I was really impressed with the look of the game and what little I saw of it being played seemed fun and true to the videogame.
The last cool thing I will mention is Artisan Dice. These guys are making dice out of deer antlers, bison horns, Titanium and all kinds of crazy stuff, but I was most impressed with their wooden dice. They were really light and just had a great feel to the way they rolled. The purple heart wood was an especially pretty set of dice.
I have had such a great time at Gen Con the past 2 days. This is my first time here but there's no way it will be my last.
-Gabe out
