2017 Convention Calendar
Your local convention… and plenty of national ones! ~
GrogHeads Staff, 25 January 2017
A few of these have already passed… sorry – we were trying to get the later-in-the-year dates together, but some of them have yet to be announced. We’ll update this all year long, so keep it bookmarked for reference!
If we missed your favorite – leave us a comment with the link at the bottom, and we’ll get it added.
Siege of Augusta
13-15 January, Augusta, GA
Winter Offensive
12-15 January, Bowie, MD
MMP’s key ‘local’ convention full of all things ASL, other MMP games, and late-night Eurogaming.
Game On!
9-12 Feb, Seattle, WA
An ASL tournament, along with the Hank Award and all sorts of hex-and-counter goodness.
OwlCon
10-12 February, Houston, TX
Hosted by the gaming club at Rice University, this Houston convention includes 100-odd board gaming events, plus at least that many RPG events, as well as minis and LARPs.
StrategiCon: OrcCon
17-20 Feb, Los Angeles, CA
One of three conventions from the StrategiCon guys in the LA area. Heavy tabletop focus with a lot of Eurogames, as well as RPGs, and other fantasy/sci-fi games.
DundraCon
17-20 Feb, San Ramon, CA
It’s RPG-heavy, but does include enough board games to keep you busy all weekend. DDC also includes their own seminar series, with a West Coast edition of the War College.
PrezCon
20-26 Feb, Charlottesville, VA
Over 95 Tournaments and 50+ Demo events, and no additional fees to enter games (i.e., no tickets) – one price pays for all the gaming you can cram in over the convention. They’ve also got the Meeple League for Eurogamers. Dealer room includes GMT, Worthington, and Columbia, among others.
Hammerhead Wargames Show
4 Mar , Newark Showgrounds, UK
50-odd games on a single day, with visitor participation expected. They’ve got a lot more info in our forums, too. It’s a minis-heavy show, but that’s normal in England.
TwisterCon
10-11 Mar, Midwest City, OK (suburb of OKC)
A variety of tabletop games, including a bunch of ACW and AWI, as well as X-Wing minis. Also includes an extensive flea market.
Cold Wars
16-19 Mar, Lancaster, PA
This year’s theme is “A Good Day to Die Hard”. Minis-focused, but also includes a variety of other wargames and game dealers.
GMT East
31 Mar-2 Apr, White Plains, NY
One of GMT’s “house” conventions, featuring a ton of their games.
San Marino Game Convention
5-7 May, San Marino, which is not a part of Italy, just surrounded by it
Wargaming across the pond, with a variety of Euro-focused scenarios and games.
HuzzahCon
19-21 May, South Portland, ME
HuzzahCon is a wargaming-heavy gathering in New England that includes minis and tabletop gaming, tournaments, raffle prizes, and more.
Williamsburg Muster
26-28 May, Williamsburg, VA
A new date this year, but the same wargaming fun. There’s also an additional boardgame area run by TAGS that includes all sorts of non-wargames. This annual wargaming convention is hosted by the Hampton Roads Wargamers.
StrategiCon: Gamex
26-29 May, Los Angeles, CA
One of three conventions from the StrategiCon guys in the LA area. Heavy tabletop focus with a lot of Eurogames, as well as RPGs, and other fantasy/sci-fi games.
KublaCon
26-29 May, San Francisco, CA
Friend-of-Grog and GrogCast guest Anthony Gallela was once heavily involved, and KublaCon gives you and a few thousand friends a weekend of gaming in the Bay area and a dozen-odd dealers in the exhibitor area.
ConSimWorld Expo
27 May – 3 July, Tempe, AZ
CSW Expo guests of honor will include YouTube sensation Marco Arnaudo. This one is all-wargames-all-week Some folks will spend the entire weekend playing one monster ‘grail’ game, and others will just shop and sit through guest speakers and seminars.
ORIGINS
14-18 June, Columbus, OH
Featuring the GrogHeads Central Command – Command Post Wargaming, teaching sessions, tabletop wargames, guest speakers, tactics seminars, and more.
New this year – a kids-specific program for the under-14 generals-in-the-making!
Historicon
12-16 July, Fredericksburg, VA
Tournaments, seminars and a Hobby University of painting classes and events. Attendance usually runs 3700ish, so there’s plenty of folks to game with. Minis-heavy, of course, but plenty of other games, too.
World Boardgaming Championships
22-30 July, Seven Springs, PA
The BPA’s largest event is the annual World Boardgaming Championships® (WBC) where about 1,500 people from around the world compete to be named champion of their favorite games. By vote, BPA members select the 100 or so games (the “Century Group”) in which competitions are scheduled.
GenCon
17-20 Aug, Indianapolis, IN
It’s the anniversary edition, as they celebrate GenCon 50. Go. Play.
DragonCon
1-4 Sep, Atlanta, GA
Games, fantasy, sci-fi, comics, art & literature, and more… There’s a decent gaming component, but it’s a much more general fantasy and sci-fi convention with a lot of other media thrown in for good measure. And with over 70,000 attendees (you read that right) you should be able to find someone to game with.
Pacificon Game Expo
1-4 Sep, Santa Clara, CA
Up in the Bay Area, you can game a bit over Labor Day weekend, with a Wargamer Boot Camp, and a whole lot of other wargaming.
StrategiCon: GateWay
1-4 Sep, Los Angeles, CA
One of three conventions from the StrategiCon guys in the LA area. Heavy tabletop focus with a lot of Eurogames, as well as RPGs, and other fantasy/sci-fi games.
BuckeyeGameFest
21-24 Sep, Columbus, OH
The Jim Reasoner War Room opens a few days earlier, and they’ve got one of the best check-out-and-play libraries you’ve ever seen. You can also find info on CSW, too.
ASLOK
1-8 Oct Oct, Cleveland, OH
Well, it’s called ASL Oktoberfest, so you can probably figure it’s in October. Anywho… it’s a whole weekend of ASL. Have fun!
Southern Front
6-8 Oct, Raleigh, NC
Minis-focused tabletop gaming weekend from Triangle Simulation Society. Includes a robust number of vendors from the minis wargaming world, too.
EssenSpiel
26-29 Oct, Essen, Germany
The über-con of all game conventions – you and 100,000 of your closest friends all gaming away for a long weekend. Grab your passport and getouttahere!
HonorCon
27-29 October, Raleigh, NC
Built around the David Weber “honorverse” of the Honor Harrington novels, this convention includes a variety of sci-fi gaming, panels, and events.
Carnage Royale
4-6 Nov, Killington, VT
Mainly board games and RPGs, strategy game players will find some lighter wargames, or arrange to meet up friends for a bigger wargame while at the show.
BottosCon
3-5 Nov, Vancouver, BC
The Canadians weigh in with a mixture of wargames, minis, and board games, going on about 10 years of gaming in Vancouver. There’s a game swap, organized events, and a whole of pre-arranged one-on-one matches, as well as plenty of pickup games.
MACE
10-12 Nov, Charlotte, NC
MACE outgrew its original High Point, NC roots and is now in the big city. All manner of tabletop games, including RPGs and board games, are out for the weekend.
San Diego Historical Games Convention
10-12 Nov, get this… SAN DIEGO!
Board games, minis games, whatever… just make it a historical wargame and get to it. Oh yeah, the weather’s not bad, either.
Battleground
TBD Nov, Stockton-on-Tees, UK
Always trying to bring the best selection of both display and participation games to the show, some presented by local games clubs and others by traders demo’ing their wares.
Chat about it below, or in our forums, or hit our FaceBook page >>
http://www.battleatcrossroads.com
AgroWar
1-3 Sep, Branszczyk, Poland
unusual wargame convention in beautifull countryside with kayak and bike trip, barbaque and best dishes of polish cuisine. More info maciej.sarnacki@gmail.com
https://goo.gl/photos/fZmGu72c91SNnb9L9
Cancon – January “Australia day weekend” every year
Wintercon – Mid July every year
In Canberra (The National Capital)
Australia.
http://www.cgs.asn.au