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Council of Five Nations - Adventure Gaming Convention - General Information Overview

Council of Five Nations XXXVI

October 11-13, 2013

General Information Overview


Last Update: Saturday, May 19th, 2013


Council of Five Nations is the SWA's annual gaming convention, held every year on Columbus Day Weekend in October. It is one of the longest-running adventure gaming conventions in the world. We'll be sponsoring our 36th Council on October 11-13, 2013.

Please use the links below to get the most up-to-date info on the status of the convention.

If you have specific questions or requests, please email us at council /at/ swa-gaming.org
(please replace the "/at/" with the standard "@").


Big News for this year: 50% expansion!

Council has averaged 10-15% growth in attendance each year for the past seven years. Because of this wonderful, consistent support from the Northeast Adventure Gaming community, we have committed to lease 50% more space than previous years.  We have big plans to fill up all that square footage.  Not only will we be able to give you a bit more room between tables, but we will also have many more games to offer.  See below for info on some of our signature events. 


We are now looking for Game Masters

The Council preparation machine is up and running!

We are actively looking for Game Masters to run games.

No game convention can exist without folks like you volunteering to run games, and we're no exception.  We'll probably have somewhere between 175-200 events this year, and it'll take a lot of GMs to make that happen.  Maybe you?

We offer some sweet incentives:  Free entry to the con and a special GMs-only T-shirt.

If you're interested in running a game for us, you can find all the details here:

www.swa-gaming.org/CouncilEventForm


The Council of Five Nations Philosophy

Council strives toward the goal of "quality over quantity". We're a medium-sized con, but we try to have top-notch events. We predict an attendance of about 400 this year. As with all the Councils over the years, our goal is a nice balance between role-play games, miniatures, board games and other stuff.

Signature Event: Pathfinder Society RPGPathfinder Society RPG at Council of Five Nations

Pathfinder Society RPGs have done exceptionally well at Council of Five Nations over the past three years.  We offered over 50 tables last year, with several special events and a Pathfinder Battle Interactive.  We are set to do even more with Pathfinder Society RPG action this year.  We will be moving the RPGs into the acoustically baffled GE Theatre for less sound between tables.  We will also be offering many more Pathfinder games, and we've already begun recruting the GMs from around the Northeast to staff those tables.


Signature Event: Star Fleet Battles Patrol TournamentStar Fleet Battles at Council of Five Nations

Council of Five Nations is proud to host the largest, best Face-to-Face Star Fleet Battles tournament in the whole world.  We've been one of the Top Five largest since 2002, and we became the largest about five years ago.  Players from all over the country, and even internationally, travel to Council every year to play against the best.

We're always willing to teach the game to new people. There will be a coupon in your registration packet good for a free game of Star Fleet Battles. Guaranteed to be redeemable any time before 1:00pm on Saturday, and we can probably find someone to train you later in the weekend too.

We have a special page dedicated to our Star Fleet Battles Tournament at Council of Five Nations.  Please click the link to check it out.  We will be updating this page often as more people commit to attending.

You can also keep up on forum discussion at the Star Fleet Battles Open Community site, and at the offical ADB BBS (click "Company-Conventions-Stores-Ideas").


Signature Event:  Conflict of Heroes TournamentConflict of Heroes at Council of Five Nations Adventure Gaming Convention

Conflict of Heroes is an Origins Award-winning game of squad level combat in World War II.  It is very popular among the SWA membership.  We like to say that it has "80% of the feel of Squad Leader, but only 10% of the rules". 

We will be sponsoring our first annual CoH tournament at this year's Council of Five Nations.  We are happy to be one of the first conventions in the US to host a dedicated tournament like this.  Academy Games, makers of Conflict of Heroes, will be provding sponsorship, prizes, and logistical support.

You can follow the discussion about this tournament online at Board Game Geek.



Signature Event:  RPGA Dungeons & Dragons - Living Forgotten RealmsRPGA D&D at Council of Five Nations Adventure Gaming Tournament

We are happy to continue the tradition of RPGA D&D at Council.  We've had a full event track each year for most of the past several years, and we are looking forward to that expanding this year with the expansion of our RPG section in the GE Theatre.

Watch this space for more news and updates.


Signature Event:  Battleground: Fantasy WarfareBattleground Fantasy Warfare at Council of Five Nations Adventure Gaming Tournament

Council hosts one of the largest gatherings of BFW players in the country each year.  We will continue that tradition in 2013.

You can follow the online discussion at the Your Move Games Forums.



The facility: Proctor's Theatre & Conference Center

Council will once again be held at at the Proctor's Theatre and Conference Center, in the heart of downtown Schenectady, New York. You can learn more about Proctor's, a classic Vaudeville theatre, at their web site (please click here).

Schenectady, New York is:
  • About 3 hours north of New York City
  • About 4 hours south of Montreal, Quebec
  • About 4 hours east of Buffalo, New York
  • About 3 hours west of Boston, Massachusetts.
We had a good experience at Proctor's for several years now.  We've also learned a lot since our first year there in 2007, so things get a little better every year.  The Registration Area is on the main floor, very easy to find.  We have games on three levels (all serviced by two elevators): first floor, second floor, and basement.

Group and Student Discounts

As we all know, the economy has been limping along for a few years now.  We're doing a few things to help make it easier for you to attend a Council of Five Nations weekend getaway:
  1. We are keeping our policy of a $5 discount to everyone who pre-registers in a group of three or more.  Details will be in the pre-registration packet.  So start talking to your friends now!  Carpool to save on gas, and pre-register together to save even more.
  2. We are keeping our discounted entry fee for full-time students.  Kids age 9 or younger still get in free.  All other full-time students get in at half-price.  All students still pay for individual event tickets (most are only $2 each).
  3. We are keeping our very generous GM policy - run an event and get your whole weekend registration fee waived.  GMs only pay for individual event tickets.  If you are interested in volunteering to be a Council Game Master, please click the link for more information.

Logistics

If you want to get a jump-start on your planning, or if you just want to look around...

You can click here to get directions to Proctors, including MapQuest maps.
You can click here to view and download maps and directions for your most convenient parking options.
You can click here to see our suggested hotel options if you need over night accommodations.


Hotels

We have four hotels we are recommending for your out-of-town Council stay, and a campground (surprisingly popular!).  Please check out the page we have dedicated to Council Hotels:

Council of Five Nations Hotels


The Council Discount Auction

The Discount Game Auction is one of our most popular events, and a long-time Council tradition.  It will be happening again this year during the long lunch break on Council Sunday (October 7th), from 2:00-3:00 PM. We'll have over a hundred games and other gaming-related merchandise available.  This is an open, competitive bidding auction. If you've got some games you'd like to sell, this is your chance to do so.  If you've got a few bucks left in your pocket at the end of Council weekend, this is also an opportunity for you to pick up some bargains. If you'd like to sell merchandise at our auction (any Council attendee is welcome to do so), please click here to download the Council Auction Seller's materials in PDF format  (350 Kb). The Auction packet is now updated with newer and better PDF technology.  It's easier then ever to prepare your goods for sale.


Why do you call it Council of Five Nations?

Council of Five Nations Iroquois Warrior Logo
The Native American Iroquois tribes called the Upstate New York area their home. Each autumn, there would be a great gathering of the five (later six) tribes, or nations.  You can click here for the Wikipedia page that gives a lot more information, and related links. 

We call our annual convention The Council of Five Nations in homage to the Iroquois autumn gatherings from long before most of us had ancestors here. This is also the source of the official Council logo, the Iroquois warrior.

Planning way ahead

If you'd like to mark your calendar now, here are the dates for Councils beyond 2013:
  • October 10-12, 2014
  • October 9-11, 2015
  • October 7-9, 2016
  • October 6-8, 2017
  • October 5-7, 2018
  • October 11-13, 2019
  • October 9-11, 2020
  • October 8-10, 2021
  • October 7-9, 2022
  • October 6-8, 2023
Here's an easy way to remember: Council of Five Nations is always Columbus Day weekend.  When you see that national holiday on your calendar, block it off and make sure you're here with us, sharing in our gaming goodness.


Questions or Comments?

You can contact us directly at council /at/ swa-gaming.org (please replace the "/at/" with the standard "@").

You can also call Dave at (518) 464-1977, any day until about 11pm Eastern time.




Council of Five Nations Iroquois Warrior Logo




Curious about the kind of events we've had in the past?

You can click on these links to see the full event listings for the past several years of Council of Five Nations.

When you're browsing, it might help to know the following... 

Councils 20-28 were all held at the Studio of Bridge and Games / Price Chopper Community Room.  Space there was limited, we had fewer time slots, and we averaged around 100 attendees over those years. 

In 2006 (Council 29), we made the jump to a hotel.  We doubled the number of events offered.  It was a great success, and our attendance jumped to over 200.  Councils 30-34 in 2007-2012 were at our current location, the Proctors Conference Center.  Our attendance has climbed to the 300 range in recent years, and we expect in the 400s in 2013, especially with our 50% expansion of space and tables.


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