Special Events
CSW Expo 2008 will play host to numerous special events, including seminars, playtest sessions, and organized (tournament) play. Please consult the directory listing below of all special activities scheduled. Please submit your special event proposal if you would like to receive consideration to host a special event during the Expo. These listings do not include the many game company updates presented by publishers during our breakfast seminar series.Note: All seminars are held in the Campanile Room. Session scheduling will be forthcoming.
Seminars
Decision Games |
World at War magazine premier World at War: the Strategy & Tactics of World War II is a new magazine devoted to World War II. Like its sister publication, Strategy & Tactics, it will include a game in every issue and 3-4 feature articles lavishly illustrated with maps and pictures and carrying the indepth analytical style of S&T to all corners of World War II. Doc will be presenting finished maps and counters for the first four issues (and artwork for several more issues), and an overview of several of the unique articles that will appear in the first year. |
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Decision Games |
Decision Games company update Decision Games is releasing over twenty games in the next 12 months. Come see the latest releases and get a preview of all the upcoming games and exciting changes going on at Decision Games including the launch of a new magazine/game - World at War. |
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Victory Point Games |
Small-Format Game Publishing: Victory Point Games Sometimes big games come in small packages, but finding a publisher for a small-format game design isn't always easy. Alan Emrich will teach you some of the many ins and outs of semi-professional game publishing that he's learned getting Victory Point Games up and running. |
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| LPS/Against the Odds Steve Rawling, Publisher |
LPS company update LPS Inc, publishers of Against the Odds Magazine, and the upcoming Turning Point Simulations line, will host an interactive talk focused on company news and upcoming plans. |
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| Red Sash Games Ian Weir, Publisher |
Lace Wars series games by Red Sash Games An overview of Red Sash Games' Lace Wars series of operational-level studies. Ian Weir is the chief designer and owner of RSG. |
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| John Kisner, Designer | OCS Roundtable A gathering of Operational Combat Series (OCS) series players. We'll talk about the implications of the new v4 series rules on older games, what we've learned about Case Blue strategy over the past few months, and also about upcoming OCS games that are at various stages of completion: One-map Italy 1944, Two-map games on Barbarossa 1941 and Baltic Gap 1944, the three-map France 1940, and the four-map Beyond the Rhine 1944-45. The emphasis of these is on early and late WWII campaigning, and each will have unique special rules (and some even special scales). It's also a chance for the designers and testers of these games to answer your questions about what historical insights they convey. |
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| Juan Garcia-Zambrano | Cactus Throne: The Mexican War of 1862-67 This seminar will explain the French intervention in Mexico, during the U.S. Civil War, through the display of the wargame "Cactus Throne" from Designer Andy Nunez, published in Against the Odds Issue #15. Game tactics & strategies interspersed with historical references will be discussed. |
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| James Anderson and Barry Setser | An Introduction to PBEM Gaming using CyberBoard Learn about the in's and out's of using Cyberboard for Play-by-Email gaming. James and Barry will provide an overview of this popular gaming application along with tips and best practice approach in creating your own Cyberboard Gameboxes. |
Game Demonstrations and Playtest Sessions
| Against the Odds Paul Rohrbaugh, Developer |
Bradley's D-Day Designer John Prados' follow-on to his acclaimed Monty's D-Day, this game focuses on the US landings at D-Day and subsequent operations to secure Normandy. If you liked ATO's Fortress Berlin, be sure to get in on this playtest session! |
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| Against the Odds Paul Rohrbaugh, Developer |
September's Eagles |
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Clash of Arms |
Battles from the Age of Reason series: Fontenoy, 11 May 1745 The epic Battle of Fontenoy, researched and produced for Clash of Arms' grand and detailed "Battles from the Age of Reason" series. The French army under Maržchal de Saxe faces a combined army of English, Hanoverian, Dutch and Austrian forces under the Duke of Cumberland, across 6 maps with hundreds of colorful, period style counters. At least two serious BAR-knowledgeable players are desired to commit to play the full battle, with room for others too. |
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| Clash of Arms Steve Pancrazio, Designer |
WarBirds - Canvas Falcons Play a scenario from WarBirds - Canvas Falcons. World War I air to air tactical combat. Game will take between one to three hours, depending on the number of players. |
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| ConsimPress Philip Weltsch, Deveoper |
Age of Bismarck Age of Bismarck: The Unifications of Italy and Germany, 1859 – 1871 is a strategic, card-driven simulation which models these great unification campaigns and the nationalistic drives that gave birth to them. The game is now making its way down "Pre-Production Alley" (graphic design effort underway), so now's your chance to experience this game and provide feedback before its release! |
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| Danny Holte, Designer | Supreme Commander, The | ||
| Decision Games | Dai Senso | ||
| Decision Games John Butterfield, Designer |
D-Day at Omaha Beach John Butterfield will host a playtest session of D-Day at Omaha Beach, a company-level simulation for one or two players playing the US forces cooperatively. |
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| Decision Games John Butterfield, Designer |
RAF II John Butterfield will host a playtest session of RAF II, a thorough update of his classic Battle of Britain game featuring British solo, German solo and two-player campaigns. |
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| Decision Games Doc Cummins, Publisher |
2009 Preview and Playtest of 6 New Solitaire Games Decision Games will be making wargame history by releasing SIX solitaire games in 2009! Doc will give an overview of the games and have playtest kits for most (if not all) of the games. The games include D-Day at Omaha Beach, RAF, Coral Sea (World at War #10), Struggle for the Galactic Empire (a Miranda SF game), Super Hornet Leader and Corsair Leader. |
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| Decision Games Joe Youst, Designer |
Hurtgen Forest Joe Youst will be hosting a playtest of his new design on Hurtgen Forest. This game will cover the Hurtgen campaign as well as be a northern extension of his Wacht am Rhein update. |
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| Decision Games Nathan Kilgore, Designer |
Victory in the West: Salerno | ||
| GMT Games Vance von Borries, Designer |
Barbarossa: Crimea Game series designer, Vance von Borries will be on hand for a playtest session of this much-antcipated release for the East Front Series. |
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| GMT Games Vance von Borries, Designer |
Barbarossa: Kiev to Rostov Game series designer, Vance von Borries will be on hand for a playtest session of this much-antcipated release for the East Front Series. |
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| GMT Games Chris Janiec, Designer |
PQ-17 Game designer, Chris Janiec, will describe mechanics and get players into a demo scenario of this 2-player operational naval game on GMT"s P500 list. |
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GMT Games |
The Battle for Normandy | ||
| GMT Games Rick Young, Designer |
Leaping Lemmings | ||
| GMT Games Michael Resch, Designer |
1914: Twilight in the East, New Scenario Development Game designer, Michael Resch, and a band of hardened playtesters will be playing "The Battles of Lodz and Krakau," a new scenario designed for the game 1914: Twilight in the East (GMT 2007). Time will be available to answer questions and give game-system demonstrations. |
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| Multi-Man Publishing Tony Zbaraschuk, Designer |
Italy (OCS series) | ||
| Pacific Rim Publishing Jeff Tibbetts, Publisher |
Wellington's War | ||
| Richard H. Berg | multiple games | ||
| Sierra Madre Games Phil Eklund, Designer |
Origins, including the unpublished Era IV Expansion Game designer, Phil Eklund, will be playtesting the expansion to "Origins - How We Became Human", a civlization-style game published last year by Sierra Madre Games. "Origins" covers the development of humanity from the Ice Age of 110,000 years ago to today, in turns that are 1000 years each. Date: Saturday, May 31 (all day). |
Organized (Tournament) Play
| Wednesday 8:30am - 6:40pm |
Advanced Civilization (TAHGC) Tournament Host, Michael Day |
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| Thursday 8:30am - 6:40pm |
Napoleonic Wars, The (GMT) |
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Friday |
Here I Stand (GMT) Tournament Host, Michael Day |
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| Saturday 8:30am - 6:40pm |
The Age of Renaissance (TAHGC) Tournament Host, Michael Day |
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| Each day | Down in Flames Aces' Campaigns (GMT) Tournament Host, Michael Lam Throughout the Expo (Tues-Sun) a DIF table will be open where gamers between turns can take a break and play a quick game of GMT's Down In Flames (DIF) card game. DIF is an easy game and its basics can be picked up within a 15-minute session. And if you have three or more players, the novice is usually paired with an experienced player who can help/suggest what to do. Each mission lasts from 15 to 20 minutes on the average, a little longer if more players are involved. Missions can be whenever a couple of players have time (this is great for players waiting between moves). Players don't have to invest their entire time at the con just on this; they can go back to their primary monster game, and continue later if they want. This will be an informal competition where I will have a tally boards (to keep track of kills per player) on the walls so players can see who are the top pilots and as an attraction sort of thing for new comers. At the end of the con, the pilot with the highest kill total is proclaimed "Ace Of Aces", and awarded some sort of prize, usually an aviation book. When a pilot reaches 5-kills, he gets to roll for an ace ability. Abilities like: extra firepower to make more attacks, extra hit points to stay alive, extra ability to hold more cards, extra ability to replenish the card hand faster, etc. Participants from last year with active pilots with experience may continue to fly them to increase their kill total. Kills made last year counts for determining ace abilities but does not carry over for this year's "Ace of Aces" competition. A player selects the campaign and air force he wants to fly in. He could have multiple pilots active (US Army in 1942, Luftwaffe in 1943) at any one time. A pilot can't transfer his kills/abilities between different air forces. This pilot flies until KIA, WIA, MIA or POW'ed (A die roll is made when a pilot is shot down to determine his fate). Players will "enlist" (register) a pilot either in the British, German, Italian, Japanese, Soviet, or US Air Forces. There are 5 time periods to fly in: North Africa Winter 1941, South Pacific Summer 1942, ETO Autumn 1943, the Russian Front Summer 1943, and Central Pacific Autumn 1944. But Wait, There's More! A special 6-to-8 player big bomber mission is being planned to take place on Thursday evening. |
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| Thursday - Saturday | Strike Force One Single-Elimination Grand Tourney This is the all-new, CSW Expo exclusive event that promises to deliver high anxiety and high drama. All attendees are invited for this lightning-fast, SINGLE ELIMINATION Tournament of Strike Force One, published by Victory Point Games. The stakes are high, and there is no consolation prize for taking 2nd Place. In this case, here nothing could be more true -- "To the Victor, Goes the Spoils". Our grand prize winner will score BIG-TIME when it comes to Door Prizes. You will have to see it to believe it. Destined to become an instant CSW Expo classic. The Finals will be held center-stage for others to watch as the action unfolds. Not for the faint of heart.... |