With the craziness of work and the start of winter basketball for the girls, I had scratched off last weekend's Mepacon. But as I was recovering from chauffeuring everyone around all day Saturday, I made a resolution to at least make it on Sunday.
After some scheduling snafus, the good folks at Mepacon were on the outside of the Scranton Hilton looking in, and scrambled to find a new venue for their Fall con. Enter the Mountain Laurel Resort and Spa, conveniently located off of I-80 and I-476 (NE Extenstion of the PA Turnpike) in that gaming mecca of White Haven, Pennsylvania.
That might be the middle of nowhere for most gentle readers, but for me it's 12 miles away away from my house. The last time I attended a con that close was Mepacon 2 in Wind Gap back in 2001.
I loaded the girls into the car, grabbed a huge breakfast at the White Haven Diner and found the resort, which I've always known as the weird driveway behind the Wawa.
Regular readers (and wargaming fans) will understand when I say that the Mountain Laurel is smaller version of the Lancaster Host with smaller versions of the Host's problems.
It was a nice, middle of the road, Poconos resort at one time that no one spent time or money for proper upkeep.. until recently. The new owners are on a renovation kick. Some portions are finished and are beautiful, others are a work in progress. Unlike the Host, the construction has not turned the convention space into a claustrophobic set right out of old Doctor Who episodes.
I quickly registered ($15 for 9-6 on Sunday, not bad for inflation), and we ventured off to check out the Dealers, catch up with old friends, and perhaps get into a game or two.
We immediately ran into my friend George and his daughter Sam, and all three girls ran off to play Twister and Jenga, provided by the con staff to entertain young and old.
I'll be honest, most of my morning at the con involved keeping tabs on the girls (when I have to pay for their registration, they get a little more freedom), saying hi to everyone, and shooting the breeze with George. Not my most productive convention, but time and money well spent.
The Mountain Laurel: Once the remodel is done, it's going to be a nice place, and unlike the Host, the facilities during construction still seem bearable. It's never going to be an epic sprawling con like HMGS or the regional cons, but I don't think the attendees or the staff want that. Heck, there were people upset with the less than 30 minute additional drive time from the old site in Scranton (For the Lehigh Valley crowd, it's a 10 minute shorter drive from Easton and 20-25 from Allentown. Once the renovations are complete, I can completely see a full weekend of fun for even the non-gaming members of the family with horseback rides, disc golf, boating, and even a spa for the long-suffering wives and moms. It could be long-suffering mundane wives and moms or, wives and moms suffering from bad die rolls,
Food Options: Oh, to be an urban con again. The old convention sites of the Scranton Hilton and even the old River St hotel have made the convention a tad bit lazy. A small, but vocal, group of attendees worried, not of the room quality, or the amenities, but the lack of Uber Food and other delivery services in the area. In reality, two pizza shops in White Haven proper would drive the five miles to deliver, but usually turnpike exits aren't known for their Tibetan Barbecue. Beyond the hotel restaurant (didn't get a review from anyone), there's three fast food joints and another restaurant/bar within walking distance.
AND A FREAKING WAWA.
I complain about many Philly institutions, but I would never disparage a Wawa. I'm certain there are bigger and better convenience stores across the country, maybe flashier or cleaner, but Wawa is systemically the a solid place for the weary traveler, the morning commuter, or even the nearby convention go-er. Now, the lactose-intolerant, Celiac-suffering, raised by wolves Organic dietary population might require some assistance, for the average gamer/drunk college student/average human, it should suit most of their needs.
Events: I wasn't too won over by the unique events. Standard organized play (read: money maker) block, plus lots of "normal" D&D, plus a lot of board games. It's a formula that keeps people coming back for more.
Oh yeah, there was a My Little Pony game, which had a few players in it, so all my work running session after session was not in vain.
Swag: The kids ate a hole in my budget, with their dragon sock puppets and other items going for a a buck or two. I'm behind on most of the board games and RPGs I already own, so I kept things simple: A copy of Decision Games: Border Wars (something I never usually see at the con) and I pillage one dealer's quarter boxes for some undead (and other fantasy) figures. It's not the legendary Saturday night dollar auction, but few things are.
Other stuff: Hanging out on Sunday only means I missed out on the games auction, the raffle, the costume contest, but I did get to see the Play it to Win It results. Outside of their regular board game library is the "Play it to Win it" collection. Attendees can play the game out of the special collection and fill out a slip and collect them separately. At the end of the con, they pull out one of the slips associated with the game and that person wins the copy. Pretty cool stuff with a wide variety of games to choose from.
Next Mepacon is Spring 2020, April 24-26 back at the Mountain Laurel. My birthday is that previous Monday, so I'm thinking of discarding a Viscount Birthday Game Bash and just have everybody come up to White Haven and hang out, game, and be glad. Definitely another blog post about those options coming soon!
After some scheduling snafus, the good folks at Mepacon were on the outside of the Scranton Hilton looking in, and scrambled to find a new venue for their Fall con. Enter the Mountain Laurel Resort and Spa, conveniently located off of I-80 and I-476 (NE Extenstion of the PA Turnpike) in that gaming mecca of White Haven, Pennsylvania.
That might be the middle of nowhere for most gentle readers, but for me it's 12 miles away away from my house. The last time I attended a con that close was Mepacon 2 in Wind Gap back in 2001.
I loaded the girls into the car, grabbed a huge breakfast at the White Haven Diner and found the resort, which I've always known as the weird driveway behind the Wawa.
It was a nice, middle of the road, Poconos resort at one time that no one spent time or money for proper upkeep.. until recently. The new owners are on a renovation kick. Some portions are finished and are beautiful, others are a work in progress. Unlike the Host, the construction has not turned the convention space into a claustrophobic set right out of old Doctor Who episodes.
I quickly registered ($15 for 9-6 on Sunday, not bad for inflation), and we ventured off to check out the Dealers, catch up with old friends, and perhaps get into a game or two.
 |
| The dealers, leading up to the boardgame ballroom. |
I'll be honest, most of my morning at the con involved keeping tabs on the girls (when I have to pay for their registration, they get a little more freedom), saying hi to everyone, and shooting the breeze with George. Not my most productive convention, but time and money well spent.
The Mountain Laurel: Once the remodel is done, it's going to be a nice place, and unlike the Host, the facilities during construction still seem bearable. It's never going to be an epic sprawling con like HMGS or the regional cons, but I don't think the attendees or the staff want that. Heck, there were people upset with the less than 30 minute additional drive time from the old site in Scranton (For the Lehigh Valley crowd, it's a 10 minute shorter drive from Easton and 20-25 from Allentown. Once the renovations are complete, I can completely see a full weekend of fun for even the non-gaming members of the family with horseback rides, disc golf, boating, and even a spa for the long-suffering wives and moms. It could be long-suffering mundane wives and moms or, wives and moms suffering from bad die rolls,
Food Options: Oh, to be an urban con again. The old convention sites of the Scranton Hilton and even the old River St hotel have made the convention a tad bit lazy. A small, but vocal, group of attendees worried, not of the room quality, or the amenities, but the lack of Uber Food and other delivery services in the area. In reality, two pizza shops in White Haven proper would drive the five miles to deliver, but usually turnpike exits aren't known for their Tibetan Barbecue. Beyond the hotel restaurant (didn't get a review from anyone), there's three fast food joints and another restaurant/bar within walking distance.
AND A FREAKING WAWA.
Events: I wasn't too won over by the unique events. Standard organized play (read: money maker) block, plus lots of "normal" D&D, plus a lot of board games. It's a formula that keeps people coming back for more.
Oh yeah, there was a My Little Pony game, which had a few players in it, so all my work running session after session was not in vain.
Swag: The kids ate a hole in my budget, with their dragon sock puppets and other items going for a a buck or two. I'm behind on most of the board games and RPGs I already own, so I kept things simple: A copy of Decision Games: Border Wars (something I never usually see at the con) and I pillage one dealer's quarter boxes for some undead (and other fantasy) figures. It's not the legendary Saturday night dollar auction, but few things are.
Other stuff: Hanging out on Sunday only means I missed out on the games auction, the raffle, the costume contest, but I did get to see the Play it to Win It results. Outside of their regular board game library is the "Play it to Win it" collection. Attendees can play the game out of the special collection and fill out a slip and collect them separately. At the end of the con, they pull out one of the slips associated with the game and that person wins the copy. Pretty cool stuff with a wide variety of games to choose from.
Next Mepacon is Spring 2020, April 24-26 back at the Mountain Laurel. My birthday is that previous Monday, so I'm thinking of discarding a Viscount Birthday Game Bash and just have everybody come up to White Haven and hang out, game, and be glad. Definitely another blog post about those options coming soon!
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