Toys for Tots 40k Charity Tournament - SUCCESS!

A week ago, I ran what we hope is "The 1st Annual Toys for Tots Warhammer 40,000 Charity Tournament." Planning is already underway for "The Second Annual..." event in 2011.

Turns out, a few other locations also held charitable events that weekend. So we'll see how that impacted our results below. Gamers' Armory in Cary held an event, and SciFi Genre in Durham extended their help by acting almost as a Brother Event where toys were collected and added to the donations from the event I ran at All Fun & Games in Apex. It is rumored that a store in Southern Pines also (independently) held a Toys for Tots charity event. Research is underway in regards to this rumor... Stay tuned for additional details to come...

The opening image of this post shows most of the donations to Toys for Tots received at the event at All Fun & Games. Three additional items were donated after that picture was taken, bringing the number of donations at the AF&G event to 26 items! Not bad for only 6 participants... What is surprising is the number of non-participant donations we received. All Fun & Games donated several games, which is greatly appreciated! 40k gamers who could not attend the event also stopped by, or sent family members, with toy donations. And a number of AF&G customers who saw what was going on proceeded to purchase items for donations along with the items they initially came to the store to get. That was phenomenal - there may have been six participants (plus myself) at the event, but we likely received donations from well over a dozen sources all combined.
The AF&G event ultimately consisted of six players, with what I'm going to say is probably one of the strangest list of armies present at a tournament that I've ever seen:

• TWO Necron armies
• TWO Daemonhunters armies
• One CSM Undivided
• One Tyranids

If you'll recall from THIS POST, the missions used in this event were basically home-made, but followed the recent trend at events where a series of tiebreakers are listed, pretty-much eliminating any "Draw" results. The three primary win conditions were alternately the three main scenario types in the 40k v5 rulebook. Although I did alter the objective-capturing-based missions to dictate where the objectives would be ultimately placed for each game. All three of the secondary conditions (1st Tiebreaker) were largely updates to old rules - capturing Terrain Features, Table Quarters, and Moving into the Enemy Deployment Zone (Recon). The Tertiary objective (2nd and Final Tiebreaker) was Victory Points - yet another homage to the 4th edition missions. VPs followed the system laid out in the current rulebook (pg. 108) but differed only in that a player won this condition if they scored even 0.5 points more than their opponent.

Daemonhunters and Necrons Battle Over 5 Objectives

Following a tiered-scoring system for the win conditions, a possible 60 points was available for Battle Points (3 wins on primary conditions).

Sportsmanship was scored as well, similar to the Battle Points just discussed. Sportsmanship was scored each round by opponent with bonus voting at the end of the day - the third round report form also asked players to list "their favorite opponent of the day." Sportsmanship was scored on a similar scale to BPs, so 60 sportsmanship points would be a perfect score.

In the end, we crowned the three following winners:

Best Overall - Todd Craig, Tyranids

Hive Fleet Craig Fans-Out on the Offensive

The Overall Winner of the event was Todd Craig, or should I say Hive Fleet Craig! Craig wasn't pulling any fancy schmancy hooligans. No, Todd fielded a straight-up Tyranid force of some Monstrous Creatures backed by a handful of Genestealer units. Todd helped show that the Tyranid codex is still a punishing opponent to deal with - that whole "brick to the face" thing often hurting...


Best Sportsman - Barry Wilson, Necrons

Compared to some of us, Barry is a relative newcomer to the game of 40k. However, his Necron force is well though-out, and can deliver on a number of battlefield situations simultaneously.

Best General - Randall Elmore, Chaos Space Marines

Sons of Malice CSM Grab Center Field Early-On, and Never Let Go.

So in all, we had a great day. Participants were very giving with their donations, and many other folks - gamers who couldn't make the event and strangers at the store who saw what was happening and contributed toys on their own - gave to this worthy cause as well.

Above, I eluded to the "Brother Event" at SciFi Genre in Durham. A Shadow Agent of mine, who goes by the handle Russ, attended the 40k tournament in Durham, challenging participants there to donate toys to be included with the items from the AF&G event.

Fifteen toys and games were donated at that event! Combined with the 26 at AF&G, our concerted efforts raised OVER 40 TOY DONATIONS FOR TOYS FOR TOTS!!!!

SciFi Genre Toy Donations - THANKS GUYS!!!

So, in the end, a lot of people had a great day of playing Warhammer 40,000. And they plus a number of other individuals managed to collect 41 toys and games for the Toys for Tots charity here in the Triangle.

THANK YOU ALL!!!! Keep an eye out for next year's event - likely to be held the 2nd Saturday in December. We hope to round up the other local area stores and see how many are willing to host events for this worthy cause!

UPDATE: Toys for Tots Warhammer 40,000 Charity Tournament

This coming Saturday will mark the "Two Weeks Until Toys For Tots Charity Tournament" milestone. So today, I have some BIG updates to the event. The two big updates are:

PRIZE SUPPORT

and

MISSIONS

But to keep ALL of the info in one place, I am re-posting the earlier details here along with the newly-added details.

Another interesting twist to the subject, though, is that Sci-Fi Genre in Durham is hosting a 40k tournament the same day. Although they are not hosting a Toys for Tots event per se, I have sent an interloper to attend their event, and bring back toys that some of the gamers there are donating to the cause. Tis the season of giving, and I'm glad to hear that folks beyond the event I'm organizing are contributing! THANKS!

Onto the finer details.

TOYS FOR TOTS WARHAMMER 40,000 CHARITY TOURNAMENT

Saturday, December 4, 2010

All Fun & Games. Apex, NC

Call All Fun & Games to RSVP your attendance to the event. You do not have to RSVP, but any walk-ins will be allowed to participate on a first-come/first-served basis after all the RSVP folks. Attendee limit is currently at 18 with the option to increase to a max of 24 players.

Check-in begins at 10:15 a.m. day of event

Games begin at 11 a.m.

Entry fee is "new in package" toy donation(s) to be given to Toys for Tots Foundation (benefiting the Raleigh Chapter http://raleigh-nc.toysfortots.org/local-coordinator-sites/lco-sites/default.asp). "Dig Deep" and give as much as you can - many children in the area wouldn't get a holiday gift if it wasn't for the U.S. Marine Corps' Toys for Tots program!
**SPECIAL OFFER FROM ALL FUN & GAMES: All Fun & Games will provide a 15% discount on any games, puzzles, etc. purchased for donation; there will also be a 10% discount for purchases for yourself. Just inform the store staff at checkout which items you are donating to receive the special discount on them.

Army lists are 1750 points

3 Rounds

2:15 time allotted per round

Random pairings in Round 1; Swiss-style pairings in Rounds 2 and 3

Missions will have primary, secondary, and tertiary objectives (with the Primary being means of determining winner and Secondary and Tertiary objectives acting as "tie breakers" if need be - see details below)

Crown "Best Overall," "Best General," and "Best Sportsman" winners

PRIZE SUPPORT WILL BE AVAILABLE. Over $100 in prize support will be offered throughout the day's event. Prizes will include Best Overall, Best General, and Best Sportsman. Other prizes will also be offered during individual rounds, and as the TO sees fit (in other words, *how* prizes other than "Best X" will be awarded is still To Be Determined).

WYSIWYG required; "Counts As" is acceptable within reason.

Painted strongly recommended, but not required.

EVENT SCHEDULE

10:15 a.m. - begin registration
11:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. - Round 1
1:30 to 3:45 p.m. - Round 2
3:45 to 4:30 p.m. - Food Break
4:45 to 7:00 p.m. - Round 3
7:00 p.m. and beyond - announce winners, brag, commiserate, pack-up, clean-up, etc.

Missions

Deployment	Primary	Secondary	Tertiary
Dawn of War	Seize Ground (Mod.)	Terrain Features	VPs
Pitched Battle	Annihilation	Recon	VPs
Spearhead	Capture & Control (Mod.)	Table Quarters	VPs

Primary. Determines the winner of the game. If someone wins on the Primary Objective, you can stop here; otherwise, refer to Secondary.

Secondary. First tie-breaker. If the primary objective is tied, utilize the Secondary Objective to determine a winner. If the primary objective is tied and the secondary objective produces a winner, you can stop here; otherwise, refer to Tertiary.

Tertiary. Second tie-breaker. If the primary AND secondary objectives are tied, utilize the Tertiary Objective to determine a winner. Since the Tertiary Objective is Victory Points for all missions, simply calculate VPs (pg. 108 of rulebook) and any player with even 0.5 more VPs than opponent wins.

Mission Objectives

Modified Seize Ground

· 5 objectives – 1 @ center of each quarter (total of 4) and 1 @ center of table

§ Each scattered 1d6+3” prior to roll-off to see who goes first; use little arrow on “hit” but halve distance (rounded up)

· Only Scoring Units may claim objectives; any unit may contest

· Player with most objectives wins this mission objective

Modified Capture & Control

· 3 objectives – 1 @ center of each players’ deployment zones (total of 2) and 1 @ center of table

§ Two Deployment Zone objectives scattered 1d6+3” after roll-off to see who goes first, but prior to deployment of any units; use little arrow on “hit” but halve distance (rounded up)

· Only Scoring Units may claim objectives; any unit may contest

· Player with most objectives wins this mission objective

Annihilation

· As per pg. 91 of 40kv5

Table Quarters

· Person w/ most Scoring Units in a quarter claims it; unit must be completely in quarter to count

· Any units except dedicated transports count for this purpose

· Player with most quarters wins this mission objective

Recon

· Player w/ most Scoring Units completely within opponent’s deployment zone wins this mission objective

Terrain Features

· Person with most VPs in an area terrain feature (which is defined as any terrain feature that is demarcated by a base and is not impassible) claims the terrain feature

· Player to claim the most terrain features wins this mission objective

Victory Points

· As per pg. 108 of 40kv5 (except player wins this condition if 0.5 VPs higher than opponent’s total)

Mission Special Rules (all missions)

Reserves, Deep Strike, Infiltrators, Scouts, Outflank, Seize the Initiative

Toys for Tots Warhammer 40,000 Charity Tournament

This December, DFIR blogger MJ;-) (yours truly) is going to organize his second ever Warhammer 40,000 tournament.

The tournament will be a Charity event to benefit the U.S. Marine Corps' Toys for Tots organization. I've actually been "threatening" to do just this for like the last 4 or 5 years. But I've finally pulled the trigger and followed through on my past threats.

So if you are in the central North Carolina area (or a glutton for a good road trip), then ready your force, pick up some toys for your entry fee, and head on over to All Fun & Games on December 4!

Here's the skinny...

TOYS FOR TOTS WARHAMMER 40,000 CHARITY TOURNAMENT

Saturday, December 4, 2010 at All Fun & Games. Apex, NC

Registration begins at 10:15 a.m.

Entry fee is "new in package" toy donation(s) to be given to Toys for Tots Foundation (benefiting the Raleigh Chapter http://raleigh-nc.toysfortots.org/local-coordinator-sites/lco-sites/default.asp). "Dig Deep" and give as much as you can - many children in the area wouldn't get a holiday gift if it wasn't for the U.S. Marine Corps' Toys for Tots program!
**SPECIAL OFFER FROM ALL FUN & GAMES: All Fun & Games will provide a 15% discount on any games, puzzles, etc. purchased for donation; there will also be a 10% discount for purchases for yourself. Just inform the store staff at checkout which items you are donating to receive the special discount on them.

Army lists are 1750 points

3 Rounds

2:15 time allotted per round

Random pairings in Round 1; Swiss-style pairings in Rounds 2 and 3

Nova Open / BFS style missions (i.e., missions will have primary, secondary, and tertiary objectives with the Primary being means of determining winner and Secondary and Tertiary objectives acting as "tie breakers" if need be)

Crown "Best General" and "Best Sportsman" winners

WYSIWYG required; "Counts As" is acceptable within reason.

Painted strongly recommended, but not required.


EVENT SCHEDULE

10:15 a.m. - begin registration
11:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. - Round 1
1:30 to 3:45 p.m. - Round 2
3:45 to 4:30 p.m. - Food Break
4:45 to 7:00 p.m. - Round 3
7:00 p.m. and beyond - announce winners, brag, commiserate, pack-up, clean-up, etc.

Apocalypse Battle Pictures

I just realized that I hadn't posted here to announce that the pictures are up from Apoc-Eclipse's most recent mega battle. It was held on 5/22/2010 at Game Theory in Raleigh, NC. They very nicely gave up the majority of the store for 12+ hours (accidentially on a Magic release weekend). Thanks guys!

Gallery 052010

Make sure to check out the videos. They give you a great sense of the game.

GAME STORES: Raleigh-Durham, NC, USA

If you live in or near the Raleigh, North Carolina area, or may have to travel here for some reason, this will be your resource to the local gaming stores where you can get your 40k fix. I guess you can consider the Raleigh area to be blessed with a large number of gaming stores. I have been to all of these stores, and I have supported all of these stores. By no means is this a "review" of the various places where you can throw down some 40k, merely a quick-and-dirty rundown of what to expect from them.

ALL FUN & GAMES
Apex, NC
All Fun & Games (AF&G) is the veteran of the bunch as they have been around the longest. They have survived several moves, and are now located immediately southwest of Raleigh in Apex, just beyond the Cary town limits. AF&G has a large gaming area, and can easily support half-dozen or more games of 40k at the same time. Monday nights are the dedicated 40k night, with a mix of "league" games and "pick-up" games occurring at the same time. However, you can always grab a friend and reserve a table for yourselves just about any time of the week. The store hosts about 4 leagues per year. These leagues always change the format and length to keep things fresh and interesting. The store also hosts approximately quarterly RTT events and have also hosted several past 'Ard Boys preliminary rounds. You can find their website HERE, and from it, you can jump to the calendar that lists all of their events. Their current Planetstrike Campaign League wraps up next Monday (3/8/2010), so I'm sure they'll be rolling out the details of their next league soon (they typically take a few weeks "off" between leagues). They also have a 1500 point 40k RTT scheduled for March 20, 2010 from 10am to 5pm - head over to their calendar and click on the event for the full details!

THE GAME CONNECTION
Knightdale, NC
Of the four stores I'm detailing here, The Game Connection (TGC) has been around the second longest. No, I'm not posting these in age-order (they are alphabetical sans "the"). ;-) TGC is located immediately northeast of Raleigh in Knightdale. TGC also happens to be the "home store" of a great 40k gaming group named The Lords of War. Although gaming space is limited at TGC, if Ron (the store owner) has the room, he'll happily hold you a table to play on. Their dedicated 40k night is on Mondays. The Lords of War will be running a tournament and subsequent league at the store. The tournament is scheduled for March 20, 2010 and participating in it will seed you for a challenge board league "War Without End." Don't worry if you can't make the tourney, though; you can always challenge yourself onto the WWE league board and from there, crawl your way (probably kicking and screaming) up to the pinnacle of the challenge pyramid. Check out the TGC website HERE.

GAME THEORY
Raleigh, NC
Game Theory (GT) is the "newcomer on the block." They opened just over a week ago on March 6 (happy 11th day open, GT), and are located in west-central Raleigh near the intersection of Edwards Mill Road and Duraleigh Road. They have a website HERE; but you'll probably just want to click over to their Meet-Up or Facebook page (I use the former as I refuse to be a "Facebooker"). I checked this store out last weekend and was pleasantly surprised by how nice Rob and Bo (store owners) are (not that ANY of the store owners of these stores aren't, I was just surprised because I had never actually met Rob or Bo before). GT has a moderate area for gaming. As they are new, they are still figuring out which nights work best for various things, and mostly doing things based on who is willing to do what and when. (on a side note, if you're a Warmachine fan, GT has had a couple of VERY successful WM demos the past few weeks - I anticipate a huge WM group to get going there before too long!) To try and top the heavily-attended WM demos, I may just have to talk to Rob & Bo tonight about doing some 40k demos (or *something*).

HANGAR 18 HOBBIES
Cary, NC
Hangar 18 Hobbies (H-18) is also a relative "newcomer" on the Raleigh-Durham gaming scene. Located in south-central Cary, H-18 has been open since November. All of the stores I'm detailing here (obviously) will give you your 40k fix, as well as almost any other type of gaming you may need (CCG, Miniatures, RPG, Boardgames, you name it). But H-18 stands out from the crowd by also having a large selection of Remote Control vehicles. And we're not talking about your Toys R Us type R/C for $10, we're talking SERIOUS R/C "build your own from parts" kind of hobby addiction. The store is limited in gaming space, but Sunday's is their typical 40k day. The scenery they have to play with, though, will absolutely knock your socks off - Kudos to Bryan on his awesome terrain building skills! H-18 is also heavily involved in the SPRING FEVER miniatures gaming convention that occurs in Raleigh every year (most recent one was 2 weeks ago, so you'll have to wait a bit for the next one). Recent discussion on their Yahoo! group site has indicated we can expect a good game of Apocalypse in the near future, once some "balance bugs" are worked out by the organizers. You can find their website HERE, and from there, you can follow them on Facebook (grrr...) or join their Yahoo! Group.

SCI FI GENRE
Durham, NC
Way over there in Durham (OK, so its not like Durham is THAT far from Raleigh - only the airport and Umstead State Park separate the two these days) is one last store I should point out - Sci-Fi Genre. I haven't been to Sci Fi in a while, but I have attended several of their 40k tournaments, which they host almost monthly. Gaming space used to be "moderate", but word on the street is that they have expanded that recently, and it now is much more comfortable. Check out their website HERE, and then head over to their 40k discussion forum HERE to catch up on what's going on in Durham (such as their 40k tournament on April 20).



Like I said, the Raleigh-Durham region is blessed with a good number of very high-quality gaming stores that will help you get your 40k fix (or just about any other gaming need you may be afflicted by). I highly recommend checking out ALL of these stores - one thing I didn't point out is that there (oddly) is little cross-over in the people who frequent these stores, so it is a good way for me to hit them all and really expand my gaming friends and community.