Location, Location, Location

A word of warning: being a Tournament Organiser isn't for everyone. There is preparation and work required, and it certainly suits certain types of people. However, if you're looking at this blog, you're hopefully already in the right mindset for it. It requires a good knowledge of the rules and a willingness to sacrifice your chance to play in tournaments in order to run them.

Ever since I started playing, I can remember wanting to go to tournaments and get better. I soon realised, however, that locally we didn't have a great deal of tournaments going on despite the sizable following the game has at our local club. Once the PG program ended, our club set up a small group of people who were happy to try out running an event, in the hope of getting more tournament practice in. I was the first to volunteer to run one, so I looked into what resources were available. I found a few posts on the Privateer Press forums, but (other than the limited information available there) I was at a loss. A few articles about running tournaments for other games were also somewhat helpful, but I was still concerned about not having the things I'd need on the day. I decided that the best option was to compile a list of what I needed to play Warmachine, then expand to what I would need for 8 people to do the same. What resulted? A checklist of stuff that was jumbled, full of duplicates, and things that weren't necessary. Since then, it's been refined to be more concise, but the original is at the end of the post (Warning: it's not an short list!). After running a couple of tournaments, I've come up with a few questions you should ask yourself in advance when planning a tournament.



What format to run?

A Steamroller, a champions event, a masters? There are many different types of tournaments and a lot of choices, but not all will appeal to all players. Finding out what your players would attend can be as simple as asking people on a game night, "would you come to a steamroller/champions/who's-the-boss event if someone ran one round here?" If you get some interest, then you're looking good for a tournament.


Location?

The next step towards running an event is finding somewhere to run it. When I first started running tournaments, our club's weekly meeting place was in a room that was difficult to book at weekends, so I had to find somewhere that we could hire for a day. In the UK, most villages will have a village hall, these are normally perfect for smaller Warmachine events between 8 to 16 players, and some even come with their own tables that you can use. While your local games shop might also be suitable, you may have to go as far as booking a larger space for bigger events and for these you might wish to check out local gaming spaces, hotels, conference rooms, and other similar spaces. I approached a local village hall who were very happy to help. However, this brings me to the next question.



Ticket Price?

Nothing in life comes free, and this was no different. The hall had a fee attached to it (some places require a deposit as well). Sadly, these aren't always cheap (I recall the deposit was around £50 for the first tournament I ran) and nor is room. Due to this reality, it's important to work out if you can, at least, break even from an event before you commit to running it. This usually means deciding on an entry fee, or ticket price for your event. It's important to make clear to your players what the ticket will get them, and also whether refunds are available. My personal preference is that you declare a date (perhaps a week before) for the event, before which refunds are available, but afterwards, refunds cannot be given. Asking your players to pay before the event is also a good way to make them turn up, which is useful in keeping the event running smoothly.



Timing?

Time restraints are another aspect of the event location, some venues will only allow you to book specific hours, others might require you to book the whole day. This is important to consider when running your event. How many rounds you can fit in the day dictates how many players you can handle, if you'd like a single undefeated player. Be sure to check with the person you're hiring from, on what time you can arrive, and what time you must be out by, as these vary from venue to venue. Space and any available equipment are important questions to ask too. It should be possible to view the venue before you book it. Do this, it's very important! Viewing the venue will let you mentally plan out the space, working out the best way to fit tables in. If the venue has tables, you can see if these are suitable for Warmachine as, sadly, not all tables are. You can also see if the venue has a kitchen which leads me to...



Amenities?

Does the venue have a kitchen area to make tea and coffee? Are there shops nearby to buy food from? Are there any fast food places for lunch time? These are things players will want to know about, so a little local knowledge goes a long way. Bringing tea, coffee, milk and sugar are a cheap, but great way to increase the player satisfaction in an event! If they can have a coffee and a chat between rounds, players are sure to want to come again.



That covers most of the initial questions you should be asking, as well as things to check before booking, but if you've got any more questions feel free to pop them in a comment below and I'll do my best to answer them! Next time we'll cover what equipment you'll need for your event.

Shout out to Rob "Pun Master General" McCormick for proof reading, you can read his Khador blog here : avatarofslaughter.wordpress.com

The Original Checklist to play Warmachine:
•Models (no proxies)
•Dice Widgets
•Tokens
•Army Lists
•Tape Measure
•War Room or Cards
•Super Glue
•Pen
•Paper

To be a TO:
•Tables
•Mats
•Terrain
•Clocks
•Players
•Zones
•Boards
•People
•Room
•Space
•Tournament
•Format
•Room booking
•Timings
•Food/Snacks/Drinks
•List Sheets
•Pens/Pencils
•Drywipe Markers
•Extra Objective/Flag Bases
•Spare Tape Measures
•Battery Chargers
•Prize Support
•Rulebook
•Steamroller Packet
•Tracking/Pairing Software
•Scenario Sheets
•Player Sheets
•Blank Paper