I was at CONvergence last weekend, which is always a blast. I look forward to CONvergence every year, and it’s always a highlight of my summer. I counted, and this is my 9th CONvergence. While I have attended CONvergence nine times, I always either learn something new or think about something I want to do next year that I didn’t have a chance to do this year. This year, I went to a photo meet-up, won a board game in a raffle, and debuted a new cosplay.

CONvergence is a four-day convention, although I go for three full days and skip Sunday. Sunday is my day where I recharge my social battery. Since I live close to the Hyatt Regency, I don’t reserve a hotel room. With the constant commuting and high energy of conventions, I need a day to unwind. On Thursday, I volunteered at the Twin Cities Geek table like I usually do. I spent four hours talking to geeks and handing out free swag that we received. From my time at the table, I always get people handing me badge ribbons. Badge ribbons are big at CONvergence, and once you get a badge ribbon, you stick it to the end of your badge. I always have several ribbons by the time the convention ends, and usually it’s because I’m talking to people who happen to have badge ribbons with them. Thursdays are the chillest day because I’m only at the con for a max of four hours. I don’t want to get too burnt out too quickly.

Friday is the day I’m at CONvergence the longest. I always arrive in the morning and don’t leave until 11:30 PM or later. After volunteering for Twin Cities Geek, I went to a cosplay photo meet-up. I didn’t start doing this until last year, but at CONvergence, there are several pre-planned cosplay meet-ups. They go for an hour, and it’s where cosplayers can get professional photos taken. Photos are uploaded two or three weeks after the convention ends. This year, I went to the Marvel photo meet-up as I cosplayed Scarlet Witch. I cosplayed as Scarlet Witch at Planet Comic Con this year. The only difference is that I was able to find a copper red wig to wear. There were two other Scarlet Witch cosplayers, and we were able to take a selfie together and have our photos taken. I can’t wait to see how the photos turned out!

Besides the photo meet-up, I played at one of the Badwolf Adventure Studios tables. I tried a new TTRPG that I have never played before called Monster of the Week. I would describe Monster of the Week as Scooby Doo meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The system itself is easy to learn as it utilizes two six-sided dice for every roll. Our table was high energy, and I liked being able to sit back and watch the story unfold. The session was two hours, which flew by. Towards the end of our session, someone came to our table and offered us raffle tickets. I entered to win a copy of Distilled, which is a game I demoed at Gen Con. I was not expecting to win, as I saw the number of tickets in the jar for this game. Several hours later, I got a text saying I won the game! I can safely say that Distilled is a heavy game to lug around for several hours at the con.

After gaming, I went to two panels. The first panel was tips for how to be a good Gamemaster (GM). Five panelists shared their experience with GMing a variety of systems, including one GM who had experience putting together a LARP (live-action roleplay). They took questions from the audience, which helped tailor the discussion to topics the audience would be most interested in learning about. I have always wanted to be a GM, or I think it would be fun to be a GM for one game. If I were to GM any system, it would be Vampire: The Masquerade or Call of Cthulhu. I like Dungeons & Dragons, but as a system, I’m not passionate about telling a story within that system. The second panel was a cosplay-themed panel where panelists discussed their costuming horror stories. This was an easy panel to listen to, and the panelists were knowledgeable but engaging. Some of the stories were hilarious, and the panelists themselves kept it lighthearted.

To end the day, I went to two comedy events: the first featured several comedians with their ten-minute sets, and the second was Vilification Tennis. Vilification Tennis is an event I never miss. It’s where comedians will stand up and insult each other. The insults are downright diabolical. This show is inappropriate, hence why it’s always at 10:00 PM on a Friday. After Vilification Tennis, my plan was to wander the party rooms. However, my wig headache was wearing on me, and I had my new copy of Distilled that I didn’t want to lose, so I left shortly after the show.

On Saturday, I debuted a new cosplay. I had been putting together this cosplay for a bit. I cosplayed Moonshine Cybin from the Dungeons & Dragons podcast, NADDPOD. I am so excited about how this cosplay came together. I’m going to break this down in a later post. After my volunteering hours at Twin Cities Geek, I went to the Geeks Without God panel, which is a live recording of the podcast. Geeks Without God has been a long-running podcast, but I didn’t start listening until last year. This episode was about AI, and the guests included a college professor and someone who works in publishing. I liked hearing the perspective from the professor, as it shows how much has changed since I went to school. They covered a variety of different topics, and the episode itself was fascinating to watch. After the panel, I was exhausted. For next year, I’m going to arrive on Saturday later in the day. I wanted to stay and go to the party rooms, but I was tired. Friday was a long day, I woke up early to get ready, therefore I left earlier on Saturday.

CONvergence was so much fun. Besides arriving later on Saturday, I want to commit to volunteering at CONvergence. As mentioned, this is my ninth CONvergence, and it’s about time that I pay it forward. I won’t miss anything if I volunteer, and for me to enjoy the con for all these years, volunteers made that happen. I’d like to be able to make that happen for someone else. Additionally, I’d love to get back into being on panels. I was a panelist several years ago, and I keep missing the cutoff for signing up to be a panelist. Those are my goals for the next CONvergence and the one after that.