UK Games Expo 2021, NEC, North Ave, Marston Green, Birmingham B40 1NT
Friday 30th July - Sunday 1st August 2021
TLDR: I ran four Fria Ligan games for a total of 27 players at UK Games Expo 2021. It went very well.
So I was in two minds about heading out to a proper face-to-face convention to run my games. I have been running two different Tales from the Loop campaigns on-line via Roll20, as well as lots of one-shots of Alien RPG.
So I took the plunge and offered to run four games, a brand new scenario for Tales from the Loop on Friday and Saturday morning, and Alien RPG on Friday and Saturday afternoon. The games completely sold out in a couple of days.
So with two heavy bags (I do bring a few handouts and props for my games), a COVID passport, and a few cans of cold coffee, I set off early Friday morning to catch my train to Birmingham International and the NEC.
Though I have been travelling for work since May, I was still surprised at how quiet the trains and the Railway Stations were. Most people were also wearing masks but there were a few that weren’t (especially those people that seemed to want to sit too close to me on the train). Entry to the NEC was very efficient as the security staff quickly checked bags and COVID passports to allow entry into the venue. It was hardly a stop as a wrist band was applied to denote that you were checked and up to date.
There weren’t too many crowds at the NEC on entry though I did arrive nice and early in the morning. UK Games Expo was just being held at a few of the smaller halls at the NEC, they weren’t using the Hilton Hotel this year, that saved a long walk from the Railway Station to the hotel.
The RPGs were in the Piazza Suites in the centre of the NEC complex and on signing in officially (and very efficiently) there, I made my way through to my gaming room (Piazza 3).
There were four 6’ tables set with seven chairs each in the room with plenty of space between them all, the other gaming rooms had similar set ups too with plenty of space. As I was running games with seven players for each game, plus I knew there were no more scheduled games in my room this morning and only one additional game in the afternoon slot, I pushed two of the tables together to make a bigger table and to get seven players and myself comfortably around it.
I changed into my 80’s appropriate T-shirt, Wham’s Choose LIFE’, to help with the mood. I laid out the character sheets at each place and fanned out the eight Character Archetype Sheets so that the players could see and choose them. I even made some name places cards so once filled in all the players could see the players’ and characters’ names. I had a stand which displayed the Principles of the Loop, with Char-gen on the back so it can be reversed. Then I got my iPad Pro ready for recording and note taking, my H2 Zoom microphone for audio recording, a selection of casino chips for Luck Points, my dice tray with 20 Tales from the Loop dice, and a few drinks just to keep me going.
Now I will admit that there was some trepidation on my part about running games face-to-face finally after nearly a year and a half without it. Now I don’t often get nerves when running games for complete strangers at RPG Conventions and gaming meets, it is something I have relished and committed myself to for the past two decades, and I do feel more comfortable running games when I have been plenty of preparation (I do have a tendency to over prepare my one-shot games). But I was feeling very nervous and I did feel a little over exposed as I couldn’t hide my stuff beyond the view of a webcam. I was also out of practice of playing at a table.
However when the first three players showed up, they were a group of three together, they were so friendly and enthusiastic I was put at ease. We were joined by a group of four players together before the start time so we got straight into character generation and I started the game.
We all decided to keep our masks on at the gaming table as an additional precaution.
I was running a new scenario for Fria Ligan’s Tales from the Loop game called ‘Timeslips and Sunken Ships’. I haven’t run it before and it is different from my other scenarios as it isn’t based in my home town of Derby, nor is it part of my Tales from the Loop campaign. It is purposely a standalone one-shot.
Also I didn’t have my usual props, maps, cards, slideshow, and handouts; it was just all theatre of the mind.
This Mystery is loosely based on the iconic 1970’s TV show ‘Timeslip’.
It is set in Norfolk in 1980 and the Kids are on holiday in the summer. In one way or another they have relationships with two NPCs, Frank Skinner and his wife, Jean Skinner. Frank is an ex-navy serviceman suffering from shell-shock (post traumatic stress disorder it would be called today) and rules his family and extended circle with an iron fist. He has brought the Kids on holiday to ‘knock them into shape’ as they will be camping in the field next to the hotel the parents are staying in.
Of course as we did character generation some of the Kids are related to Frank and Jean, some being their children and others being nieces and nephews. Part of character generation is working out the relationships between the player characters which is a core part of Tales from the Loop.
We have thirteen year old Jack the Popular Kid with his Hairspray. Rob is the Rocker is the oldest at fifteen with his Sony Walkman with headphones. Fourteen year old Lukas is the Computer Geek with his robot with LED lights. The baby of the group is the Troublemaker Cory aged eleven who has Frank’s Commando Knife. Billy the Jock, who is thirteen, carries his cricket bat everywhere he goes. Ida the Weirdo with her pet rat Calcifir is fourteen. Kafta is the Bookworm is also fourteen and carries his encyclopaedia around with him as casual reference.
Once the character generation was done I began to audio record the game. I hope to release it soon as a podcast.
The game started with the Kids having to set up their own camp, Frank would inspect it at 17:00 hours, and ensure their tents were up correctly.
The Kids started to explore their surroundings and caught on fairly quickly about the missing girl. Of course they wanted to explore the spooky ruined Navy Research Station to look for clues, then they split the party with some heading to search the sunken vessel on the beach and the others heading to the library to search out local knowledge and clues there.
Of course when the Loop fires up and the time barrier hit the Kids had to face armed German sailors, a guarded Naval base in a wartime alert status, a crying teenager, knocking open doors with ease, and an explosive reveal.
The players seem to have fun playing their Kids and trying to work out what was going on. I had to rush the ending a little bit as we spent to much time exploring both their characters and the ruins, but it was a satisfying ending.
I broke for my hour lunch after resetting my table ready for my Alien game I was running in the afternoon slot. I also changed into my Weyland Yutani T-shirt and cap so I looked the part for my game.
I had a quick look in the trade hall, I noticed the aisles were wide, giving the trade stalls plenty of space around them. I went in the Opening Gaming Hall where the Food Court was located. The Open Gaming tables were the usual long run of table with chairs either side of the long sides, each playing section was given a two meter space between each section. A few games were playing but there was plenty of space for other games to run. Near the Food Court was the Board Game Library and there were ‘proper gaming’ tables with the sunken middle section put out with four chairs each.
The Food Court was a burger van, a mobile bar, a wrap van, and jacket potato van. I plumbed for the burger van and got a nice large burger with cheese and bacon and chips. That did the job and I was nicely sated.
I had seven players turn up for my next Fria Ligan Alien RPG game called ‘Empty Vessels Make No Noise’, three of the players returned from my morning Tales from the Loop game so they weren’t put off!
Again we kept our mask on whilst playing at the table.
The players picked their player characters as this game I provided pre-generated character sheets. The characters are based on the crew of the ship Lewis & Clark from the film Event Horizon (1996). We had the Captain Miller, Lieutenant Starck, Pilot Smith, Engineer Justin (Baby Bear), Rescue Technician Cooper, Medical Technician Peters (Mama Bear), and Medical Officer D.J.
I issued each player a character sheet, a cover sheet with pictures of the character and their rank, and a folding sheet with their secret Agenda and gear details including their spacesuits. The folding sheet is designed to fold open to reveal their Act II and then Act II when the times comes.
I took the players through the character sheet, explaining the attributes, the skills, how the dice pools work, how to push the rolls, and most importantly, how Stress works in the game. I also assured the players I would go through things in more detail as we came across them in play.
I was also playing a KeyNote presentation on my MacBook,, showing the players key handouts visually, including the Mother style typing mission report. I do get some very public criticism from fellow Con GMs about turning my games into a slide show presentation but the response from the players is positive. They like to see the visuals.
I was also using A3 printed floor plans of the different ships (the players’ ship USAC Lewis & Clark and the UPPS Gromkiy, the titular Empty Vessel) as centre pieces on the gaming table.
The mission started with a briefing from Admiral Hollis;
“Strange readings and troublesome activity have been reported in the Delos system. There is also a Distress Signal that is proving a hazard to all navigation beacons in that sector. Investigate the area on arrival and track down the Distress Signal, silencing it and recover any data and/or launch a rescue mission.”
The player characters have to prep and launch immediately to the Delos system, an area not yet colonised but is contested between the Union of Progressive People and the United States Aerospace Command. The Pilot Smith plots the course and with help from the Navigator Starck they were able to trim a few days off the journey with gaining a few extra successes on their dice roll, after the pilot had to push the roll and gaining a Stress Point due to the first roll failing. After a round of banter the characters go into their cryogenic tubes.
On coming out of cryo they get ready to check where they are and what is the situation. They do discover the source of the distress signal and what follows is the investigation and the dilemma of what they find.
The players did follow the proper procedures, the Captain did lead by example by getting into the thick of it as the rest of the crew explored and investigated. As they tried to work out the mystery all the players took on Stress, with some of the players being very happy to share their discoveries (and the Stress) with each other.
The game came to an end when the crew all got separated on the empty vessel, some locked themselves in the bridge, others trapped in engineering, and the medical team stuck in the cryo chambers. The Captain took on too much Stress and panicked that he tried to shoot his own crew. All the PCs tried to escape the doomed vessel, each taking either an escape pod, or cryo tube, or in the case of the pilot, the sole survivor on the Lewis & Clark.
The players loved the game, many of them haven’t played Alien before though some did own the game. Hopefully some would check out the Fria Ligan trade stall in the Halls.
Unfortunately I didn’t audio record this game session.
With that I broke for the day, the main trade halls were closed but the Open Gaming hall was open all evening. I had a couple of drinks in the bar and headed home on the train.
I was up very early Saturday morning to get the train in plenty of time to get to the NEC. I breezed through the COVID passport check and arrived very early at my gaming table. I set up the table as I had done the day before so it was ready for my next Tales from the Loop game.
I was also wearing another 80’s appropriate T-shirt, this time it was an original ‘Ghostbusters’ logo’d shirt.
I then went to the Wetherspoons pub for a large breakfast to set me up for the day.
I had six players turn up before the start time, with just one no-show player.
Two of the players I knew from my on-line games over the lockdown period but hadn’t met face-to-face before, but all the other players were new to me. It was great to finally see my two players from my on-line games in real life, I could continue the banter and in-jokes.
We decided to play with our masks off whilst at the gaming table today.
I was re-running my Fria Ligan Tales from the Loop scenario ‘Timeslips and Sunken Ships’ again.
I started with the Principles of the Loop and then began character generation. With the addition of the two NPCs Frank and Jean Skinner they all came up with Kids related to them in one way or another. The players were very enthusiastic in getting their Kids relationships together and linking. There was also some great banter between the players as well as they were roleplaying their Kids even as they were generating their characters.
I recorded this session, including the char-gen, for a future podcast.
We ended up with a Troublemaker called Shelly aged 13 with her Bic lighter and fags who was Frank’s step-daughter. Fourteen year old Jaysoon was the Jock, with his Rugby Helmet, who was Frank’s son. His brother, thirteen year old Derik, was the Computer Geek with his hand held computer. Derik’s best friend thirteen year old Benny the Bookworm with his leather bag of books. The Rocker is Alice, fourteen year old cousin of Shelly with her leather jacket and bad attitude. And finally we have Frank’s favourite, the Popular Kid Jason, aged 14, with his diary of secrets and perfect hair.
The Kids were tasked by Frank to set up their own tents that he would then inspect at 17:00 hours. Benny and Derik set to and got theirs up but Alice bullied/tricked Benny into setting hers and Shelly’s tent up for them. Benny did so but only as a teaching experience for Alice. The ‘Ja Jays’ (Jason and Jaysoon) would wait until the last minute to set theirs up and instead went off to frolic in the woods. There they discovered an old WWII bunker and got the rest of the Kids to explore it with them.
What followed is that Kids got lost in the tunnels between the bunkers, got creeped out by moving tailors dummies, discovered ‘Missing Posters’ about a young girl called Sarah, explored a ruined Navel Research Station, and stopped a German sneak raid in full flow.
Just like yesterday’s session I spent too much time allowing the players to explore and try and work out the mystery (with a very heavy dose of banter between the players) and I had to rush the ending a little bit. However it was a very satisfying ending with great payoff for all the player characters.
I was a great game with great players. I think playing without wearing masks at the table was a big help and allowed the players to communicate better with each other and be more relaxed. There was definitely more chatter and more roleplay at the table that made my job as GM far easier and a lot more fun.
I have audio recorded this game session, including the character generation, so I hope to publish it soon as a podcast.
As the morning game overran I just spent my time re-setting for my next game. I laid the character sheets out with the cover sheets, name place cards, folding agenda sheets (with hidden Act II and Act III agendas), a print out of the Panic Table, and the characters’ Talents cards. I also had my dice tray of Alien dice, both base dice and stress dice, and casino chips to give out to represent Stress. I also changed my T-shirt into an Alien themed Nostromo shirt with Weyland Yutani cap.
I did wander the halls for a bit just to stretch my legs and made my way over to the Fria Ligan stall. I checked out the merchandise, but I have most of the books I need except the Colonial Marines book but I have that on ore-order thought hasn’t arrived as yet. I also showed them my folding agenda sheet, but I don’t think they were that impressed with it.
My last game on the Saturday afternoon was my Fria Ligan Alien RPG scenario, ‘Empty Vessels Make No Noise’, another repeat from yesterday’s game too.
I have seven players turn up, one group of five who had their own quirks and idiosyncrasies, and two single players, one who was in my Tales from the Loop game this morning who had returned for more. They selected their characters, I had placed the character sheets out in the setting places, and I began the game.
Again we all decided to take our masks off at the gaming table for everyone’s comfort.
We had the full complement of the Lewis & Clark from the film Event Horizon (1996) - Captain Miller, Lieutenant Starck, Pilot Smith, Engineer Justin (Baby Bear), Rescue Technician Cooper, Medical Technician Peters (Mama Bear), and Medical Officer D.J.
I took them through the character sheet, describing the attributes and the detailing what the skills could achieve. I also went through the dice pool mechanic and how the Stress Points work in game. I also said I would had out casino chips to the players when they took Stress so they would have a physical representation in front of them at the gaming table. I also gave them the folding sheet that had their character’s agendas on them, as well as a card that had the details about their character’s Talent.
So today I didn’t bring my MacBook but instead used my iPad Pro, facing the players, to show my KeyNote handouts on using my iPhone as a remote control. I also recorded this game session for a future podcast.
I am glad I recorded it as this game was so much fun! The players really brought their a game to the table. We had silly accents, in-character banter, the players were really playing up on their Rival/Buddy allocations and were using their agendas to their best. We had rebellion in the ranks and the characters bickering at each other. The player of the Captain was trying to keep order but the rest of the crew were doing their own things.
When the crew did get to the titular empty vessel and started Act II, I showed them how to open their folding agenda sheets to reveal their hidden agendas for Act II. They were all impressed, and congratulated me on my efforts.
The players did plan to move from one location to another on the vessel as a group, removing the need to split up into smaller groups. The Captain and the Pilot stayed on the Lewis & Clark to monitor everyone remotely. However the very nature of the empty vessel ensure that I got all the player characters split up in different locations in short order. They were actively trying to solve the mystery and investigate what was going on but were starting to get a little overwhelmed.
By the time the Third Act came around most of the players had seven or eight Stress Points, though the Pilot and the Captain had less as they were safe back on the Lewis & Clark. Again the players were impressed with the folding agendas sheet as they revealed their Act III agendas.
Of course in Act III everything goes wonky as the PCs and the players realise how much trouble they were in. Some of the players locked and sealed themselves in the bridge (a common theme this weekend but was avoided by the different groups I ran on-line games for), the Lieutenant and the Doctor were trapped in the cryogenic section, Justin the engineer was in the engineering section on his own, Pilot Smith was at the controls of the Lewis & Clark ready to go, and Captain Miller was in his wobbly captain’s chair trying to find a solution to the situation.
Cooper got away from the bridge in the executive escape pod and was de-Stressed with cold vodka and caviar on tap, following his agenda. The two other characters, Peters and Justin, stuck on the bridge were able to use the hatch of the departing escape pod to do a space walk across the hull to the Lewis & Clark. The other characters, DJ and Starck, were struggling to get out the cryogenic section due to the dilemma of trying to rescue the sleeping crew members. It was all going wrong when the Scanner started bleeping with movement! Suddenly Smith had to get to the controls and Captain Miller was suddenly struck with impotency in his inability to do anything to help his crew!
What a great game, the players were doing excellent American accents, the player of Captain Miller was definitely channeling Lawrence Fishborne. The inter-character banter was so much fun and all the players embraced the whole aesthetic of the game.
This was probably the most fun I had from a one-shot game. Though I was playing with an established group of players but they did welcome and include the other players and myself as GM. From their enthusiasm, silly accents, character motivations, and a coherent plan approaching the mystery, plus the friendliness and inclusiveness of the group, they made this session one of my best. Again playing without wearing masks helped with communication as full facial expressions could be seen and reacted to properly.
The only thing to spoil the session was the fact that the bar manager wouldn’t allow any beers or drinks bought from the bar into the Conference Rooms we were in.
And with that last session, my time at UK Games Expo 2021 came to an end. I had a few drinks in the bar at the end before catching my train home.
So it was a great weekend, finally got to play some RPGs face-to-face. I had 27 players through my games, four repeat players and one no-show. All the players embraced the games and all contributed and got involved.
My biggest regret is that I failed to take any photos of the gaming groups, something I usually do try to do.
Other GMs I had heard that they had a few no-shows too, in some cases the games couldn’t run due to the absences. That’s a shame as there was a large demand for RPGs this year.
UK Games Expo 2021 had the third of the space than the previous shows, using smaller halls and they weren’t using the Hilton Hotel’s conference spaces. Yet the attendance numbers indicated that half the usual number of people attended this year, 18,430 in total, with 10,671 unique visitors.
The COVID passport checks and wearing coloured wristbands, Blue for Friday and Red for Saturday, certainly made everyone feel safer and more confident.
The wide aisles and corridors didn’t feel crowded nor cramped and there was plenty of space at the tables to sit and play. It was a great convention and the mood was cautiously optimistic.
I got to meet up with a couple of my players from my on-line games I haven’t met face-to-face before which was great. On my too few wanderings I didn’t see any familiar faces apart from from the con organisers and volunteers but most of my time was spent at the gaming table.
I am looking forward to next year’s event and will get my games details in earlier to be better organised.
UK Games Expo 2022, NEC, North Ave, Marston Green, Birmingham B40 1NT & Hilton, Pendigo Way, Marston Green, Birmingham B40 1PP
Friday 3rd - Sunday 5th June 2022
#frialigan
#AlienRPG
#TalesfromtheLoop
#UKGamesExpo
