Winner of the GAMA 2012 Outstanding Organized Play!

We of the Dragon's Den are pleased to announce that we are the proud owners of the 2012 GAMA Power Retailing Award for Outstanding Organized Play. Our events manager (Sean "Striderlotr" Banks) and buying manager (Stasi "Dengirl" King) were on hand to receive the reward. For those unable to attend, it was presented during the GAMA Trade Show Dinner on March 13th, at Bally's Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

The Game Manufacturers Association (GAMA) is the non-profit trade organization dedicated to serving the tabletop game industry. The award reflects our success in organizing and running diverse and exciting events in the Poughkeepsie store. This is a national award given by members of the GAMA board, which includes game manufacturers, wholesalers, and other hobby and game store owners.

We are so proud of all our employees who pull together during each of our 1000+ yearly events. Whether it involves the actual running of the events, putting up player lists, the intricate planning of simultaneous compeitions, completing press releases, cleaning the play spaces or simply rearranging the tables and chairs, every employee has proved crucial in one way or another to our continued success. Of course, special thanks must go to Sean for running and planning the majority of events, and to Stasi for writing the winning essay!

Dragon's Den would also like to thank our numerous judges and volunteers who help us run our events (and obviously, they run them well!) Last, but most certainly not least, we would like to thank all of our players. Regular customers who come to our store during any of our events often remark at how kind and polite our player base is to onlookers. New players, be they young or old, are always welcomed into our community, and given every opportunity to learn. Women and men, 10 year olds or 80 year olds, newbies or old-time gamers...everyone of our players is counted individually for what they bring to the table, and as a part of a ever-expanding community. It is our players we thank the most, for being the community that we are confident every store wishes they had.

Thank you everyone for your support, and we hope to announce another award next year!

-Stasi "Dengirl" King

Dystopian War Story Event Play Test

We at the Dragon's Den have been working on a super secret Story Event for Dystopian Wars.  We have begun the write up and have now play tested it out once.  I'm not going to go into to much detail, but I will say that it is exciting and we are hoping to get it posted in the next few weeks.

Well, I have to give a few details, so in a nut shell... It is a attacker/defender scenario using land, sea, and air forces.  We are also incorporating in victory locations... with bonuses for controlling them. 

Designers:

Sean "Striderlotr" Banks
Alex Sherman

Play Testers:

Stan Tyler
Steve Kline
Tom Harding

Hang in there and check back soon as we will be play testing again in the up coming week so we can fine tune the event, then write up the story!

Sean "Striderlotr" Banks

Support Your Friendly Local Gaming Store

OK, I'll keep this simple.

SUPPORT YOUR FRIENDLY LOCAL GAME STORE for Magic!

This Saturday is the Prerelease for a new Magic the Gathering set, Innistrad. I personally think it looks great and I know that while not everyone is a fan on the new 2 sided transform mechanic cards, I give WotC credit for trying new rules and ideas to keep the game fresh! However, that is not the point of this post...

If you do not buy your Magic cards and play in your local game store for these types of events, then you are hurting both yourself and the Magic community has a whole! Why you ask? I'll give you a few simple reasons.

First, your local game store gives you a place to PLAY! You can't play on-line with that great new box of Innistrad you just got off the web at a few bucks cheaper than your local store, can you! Yet, here is your friendly local game store (FLGS) giving you table space to hang out for FNM and many other times during the week. That table space could be replaced with a pool table or a new product line of model train accessories that would make your FLGS money.  Buy your Magic at your FLGS to help your FLGS provide PLAY SPACE FOR YOU!

Second, who is there for you when you need help with your deck or when you wanted to learn how to play in the first place? Yeah, you might have learned from your friends or family but when you really needed unbiased advice on your bud's really annoying mill deck or how do I beat Red Deck Wins, I bet your FLGS was there to help. I'll even bet the guys and gals at the FLGS didn't even charge you to ask those rules questions or help you adjust the mana ratio of your new deck. Go find that service for free on-line! Buying your Magic and playing in FLGS store events helps to keep that resource alive for YOUR FUTURE NEEDS!

Third, your FLGS helps find you new people to play with. Tired of beating your kid brother for the 347th time? Come in for FNM and see if your "unbeatable merfolk" deck does so well against a former state champ. Hey, maybe you get to draft with a Pro Tour player or win one game against the guy who won GP Providence this year. Chances are, these other players won't be dropping by your kitchen table to play with you. Looking to trade an extra Stoneforge Mystic or 4? Well, these guys are more likely to need them than your mom. You might even make some new friends - ones that like playing the same game you play! In short, you get to be PART OF A COMMUNITY!

Last, and this may not mean much to some of you but buying and supporting your FLGS is good for your wallet. The money you spend locally goes back into making your town a better place to live. Maybe you want a job at your FLGS. Maybe your friend already works there. Maybe you like the hot chick who works there (Yeah, they do work at FLGSs and I have pics to prove it!). It would be a real shame if your FLGS closed because johnny internet was $5 cheaper for a box of Innistrad (Bet you forgot to add shipping) and now you have to wait for it to be delivered instead of cracking those minty fresh packs at midnight on release day! In other words, keeping your FLGS strong HELPS YOUR LIFE!

So, when it comes time to buy your Magic, stop and think about the secondary benefit to you and your friends, family and neighbors and SUPPORT YOUR FRIENDLY LOCAL GAME STORE otherwise, you might be home on a Friday Night playing Magic with, I mean by, yourself!

Good Luck with Innistrad!

Dave

PS. Yes, I own a FLGS and may have a biased view BUT, I can prove each of my points objectively so I would love to hear from you folks out there.

PPS. Support Your Local FLGS is a nod to two great James Garner movies done in the 70s, Support Your Local Gunfighter and Support Your Local Sheriff. If you are unfamiliar with these flicks or James Garner, I am sure Netflix can help you out.

Miniature Gaming at the Dragon's Den Part 2

With so many new miniature games being played at the Dragons Den, I figured I should mention that we still have table space on Wednesday and Thursday for mini games that are not listed in the post below.  We do see Warhammer 40K, Warhammer Fantasy, Malifaux, and Flames of War players on those night and sometimes on Saturday.

To continue with some of the new future events, I wanted to add a couple that are out a bit farther.  These may be subject to change, so check our calendar or in the store for more details.

November:

Wednesday nights: Privateer Press (Hordes & Warmachine) Escalation League
                             Infinity Escalation League
Thursday nights: Flames of War Early War Aces
                         Dystopian Wars Escalation League
Thursday November 24: Closed! Happy Thanksgiving
Saturday November 12: Malifaux Tournament
Saturday November 19: Warhammer 40K Tournament
Saturday daily: Open Play


December:

Wednesday nights: Privateer Press (Hordes & Warmachine) Escalation League
                             Infinity Escalation League
Thursday nights: Flames of War Early War Aces
                         Dystopian Wars Escalation League
Saturday December 10:  Privateer Press Warmahordes Tournament
Saturday December 17: Flames of War Early War Tournament
Saturday December 24: Wings of War: Snoopy vs The Red Baron (I hope you all get the reference for the holidays)

Remember that some events might change slightly or be modified, so check with the store or online to make sure you have the most recent information. So now we have made it almost all the way to Christmas break for schools.  We will be planning some other events with the students home for the holidays, so stay tuned for more information as it will be sure to follow... just maybe not for a month or two!

Sean "Striderlotr" Banks