Penny Arcade Expo Seattle (aka PAX Prime) is back in the Washington State Convention Center this Labor Day weekend (9/3-9/5/2010). Last year PAX Prime sold out a couple of days before the event with 75,000 attendees each day. Decide to attend early, book your hotel soon.
Information on PAX Prime:
www.paxsite.com/paxprime/index.php
RPGA judges and staff ran 1200+ people through the 1-hour delve, 36 Ultimate Delve Tables, 18 sessions for D&D beginners, as well as running 80 rounds of four-hour LFR events during 3-days with a mere 6 play slots. This year will likely feature D&D Encounters events and even more demand for short and new player experiences.
If you are looking to help run RPGA events, please feel free to email me at comixguru@yahoo.com or request to join the following Yahoo Group:
games.groups.yahoo.com/group/PAXRPGAJudg...
We are looking for 40-50 judges for events this year.
Details for judges and a schedule of events usually appears in July. Judge rewards are generous. Past rewards have included free badges, shirts, Wizards product (hardcovers, adventures, tiles, minis, and reward cards), and hotel space for out-of-town judges.
-Robert Altomare
PAX RPGA Senior GM
Thanks Wolfstar.
I'm Curious as to if they will have Ultimate Dungeon Delve Competition this year. I Ask because I cannot find any information debunking or confirming If there is one. I want to register early this year as last year my entire team was required to be on waiting list. So does anyone know if there will be a Ultimate delve this convention?
D&D Dark Sun Arenas: Glory and Blood - Dark Sun Arena Delve: Seven city-states. Seven gladiatorial arenas. One chance at lasting glory. The crowds of Athas await as you compete for their favor and the title of Arena Master! Create your own 1st-level Dark Sun character on-site to earn glory, upgrade your equipment, and master the different arenas in the circuit. Play as often as you like. Each arena fight you win brings you closer to the ultimate prize!
), just wanted to understand how LFR/RPGA signups work.If I get some free time and want to run a game (or delve), do you have a procedure / contact person on the floor I can talk to?
Thanks!
You should also join the mailing list.
I have a tentative Warhorn site up at:
www.warhorn.net/pax-2010/
I expect to add one more LFR event to the schedule.
I'm hoping I get a chance to go this year, Robert - can you help me out understanding how registration for LFR games go? I've bought my PAX weekend badge (and booked a hotel
If I get some free time and want to run a game (or delve), do you have a procedure / contact person on the floor I can talk to?
Best thing to do with the Delve is show up on-site and sign-up for a slot. The delve is largely a show-up and play event. We ran 10+ tables solid through the convention. In addition to this, the Dark Sun Arena event will run the whole convention as well.
I will post location details here when I get them.
PAX Prime 2010 D&D Events
Brand-New to D&D
D&D Learn-to-Play
Have you ever wanted to give D&D a try? Maybe you’ve played a past edition of the game and want to check out what’s new. Our friendly staff will guide you through your first steps in world’s most popular fantasy roleplaying game. We even have a kid-friendly game ready to go too! Stop on by and play through your first adventure. Everything’s provided! 4 hours.
Runs Friday 11 am and 5 pm; Saturday 11 am and 5 pm; Sunday 11 am
New and Experienced D&D Players
D&D Convention Delve: Lair of the Dread Witch
In the deep forest, a place of dark power lies, its corruptive influence seeping into the lands beyond its borders. Can you contain the threat of the dread witch, and stop her rituals before all falls into darkness? A 1st-level D&D convention delve featuring characters from the upcoming D&D Essentials line. Play as often as you like and earn tokens that can be redeemed for prizes! 1 hour per adventure.
Runs Friday 11 am – 10 pm; Saturday 11 am – 10 pm; Sunday 11 am – 2 pm
D&D Living Forgotten Realms: Return to Ravens Bluff
A series of three linked adventures forms a complete mini-campaign suitable for 1st-level characters! If you’re a fan of the Living City, you’ll want to give the mini-campaign a try, and if you’ve never played Living Forgotten Realms before, this is a great place to start! 4 hours per adventure.
Runs Friday 1 pm and 7 pm; Saturday 1 pm; Sunday 11 am
D&D Gamma World: Pax Extraterrestria
Catch a 4-hour preview session of the upcoming D&D Gamma World tabletop RPG—a game where the men are radioactive yetis, the women are telekinetic androids, and you never bring a floppy feet mutation to a fusion rifle fight. Come to try out the highly random character creation and defend Gamma Terra from the alien entity that seeks to destroy all the world's remaining technology. Play with the first finished copies of the game a month before its release, and make your own characters! 4 hours.
Runs Friday 1 pm and 7 pm; Saturday 1 pm and 7 pm; Sunday 11 am
Some D&D Experience Recommended
D&D Classics: Curse of the Gray Hag
The mists roll in at the village of Nightshade Hollows, where fearful residents are falling prey to a wicked denizen with a terrible secret. Can you unravel the mystery of the town’s curse before you succumb to it as well? A 9th-level D&D adventure with characters provided. 4 hours.
Runs Friday 1 pm and 7 pm; Saturday 1 pm and 7 pm; Sunday 11 am
D&D Dark Sun Arenas: Glory and Blood
Seven city-states. Seven gladiatorial arenas. One chance at lasting glory. The crowds of Athas await as you compete for their favor and the title of Arena Master! Create your own 1st-level Dark Sun character on-site to earn glory, upgrade your equipment, and master the different arenas in the circuit. Play as often as you like. Each arena fight you win brings you closer to the ultimate prize! 2 hours per adventure.
Runs Friday 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm, 5 pm, 7pm, 9 pm; Saturday 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm, 5 pm, 7pm, 9 pm; Sunday 11 am and 1 pm
D&D DM Challenge: Dungeon of Horrors
This DM Challenge is a special one-time event running only at PAX Prime! DMs create a 9th-level adventure harkening back to classic dungeons of yesteryear, bringing their craftiest tricks and traps to bear! Can you conquer their fiendish forces and claim victory? Rate your play experience to determine the best adventure of the evening! 9th-level characters are provided. 4-6 hours.
Runs Saturday 7 pm
Other Events
Three-Dragon Ante Tournament
Come play in a tournament with this fantastic D&D-themed card game! Players will participate in an opening round, and the table winners will form a final round. Decks will be mixed and matched between the original game and the Emperor’s Gambit game. Winners receive prizes! 4 hours.
Runs Friday 7 pm
Castle Ravenloft Board Game Challenge
Explore the secrets of the new Castle Ravenloft board game as you play through one of the many adventures included. The mists of Ravenloft await, and perhaps, with a little luck and some teamwork, you can emerge from Strahd’s castle with your wits and your lives! 2 hours per game.
Runs Friday 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm, 5 pm, 7pm, 9 pm; Saturday 11 am, 1 pm, 3 pm, 5 pm, 7pm, 9 pm; Sunday 11 am and 1 pm
Good summary info for D&D players @ PAX.
D&D PAX Prime 2010 DM Challenge Information
Dungeon of Horrors Rules
Adventure Design
DMs must create an adventure suitable for five 9th-level characters (actual group size may vary from 4-6 players) that spotlights fiendish traps and diabolical puzzles, in the grand tradition of Tomb of Horrors.
The adventure should play in about 4 hours. You should write approximately 4 tactical encounters for your adventure; you must write at least 3 tactical encounters, but no more than 5. Levels for the encounters should not be lower than 7 or higher than 12; you should endeavor to write a total of about 38 levels' worth of tactical encounters (that would parse out into two 9th-level fights and two 10th-level fights).
All but one of your tactical encounters must feature traps, hazards, or obstacles (although they can have monsters in them too). One tactical encounter can feature monsters. Integrating puzzles into some of the tactical encounters is also a good idea. You can, of course, add skill challenges and roleplaying encounters to your adventure to give it a cool story.
Materials
You are expected to provide player characters for players to use for your adventure. The characters should all be 9th level, and you should bring 6 different characters. Make sure to account for a play group of 4, 5, or 6 characters when you write your characters and the adventure.
You are required to bring all materials with you that you'll need to run your adventure - maps/tiles, minis/tokens, player character sheets, etc.
Judging
Each player at your table will be given a form to complete after they finish playing. On the form, they'll be asked to rate you on the following categories:
- Presentation
- Story
- Challenges
- Fun Factor
Rewards
Because we love our DMs so much, and know you put a lot of hard work into your adventure, just for showing others a good time you'll get a recent hardcover book release as a thanks for participating! In addition, the DM with the best overall rating in the categories above will be awarded a SWEET PRIZE, which will be unveiled at the show. It will be cool, I promise.
Just Want to Play?
Players should simply show up 10 minutes before the scheduled start time of the event (Saturday at 7 pm). As long as there's room, we'll match you up with a DM eager to show off their skills, and give you a character to play. If you want to guarantee a spot at a table, you can pre-book by heading to warhorn.net/pax-2010/. For more information on games running at the show, visit sites.google.com/site/ddatpaxprime/.