This outline is not one-size-fits-all by any means. It assumes that the convention meets a certain scale to have features such as an HQ table, prize support, etc. Hopefully it will give you inspiration or food for thought. If you want to add suggestions or your own nuggets of wisdom, please share!
If you want to see how the professionals do it (150 tables+) then check out the Bay Area Pathfinder Society team. You will see how a monumental task is broken down into manageable bits in a practical (and humorous) manner.
Finally, thanks again to Evan Whitefield for his support and advice!
I. Pre-Con Phase
A. 3-6 Months Out
1. Contact your Venture-Captain
a. Identify organizers, as in who will play a role in the planning/execution
b. If more than one organizer is involved, identify area of responsibility
c. Outline the scale of the event you would like to coordinate
2. First Organizer Meeting
a. Set goals & objectives
b. Assign area of responsibility
c. Keep it brief
3. Contact Convention Staff
a. Identify yourself to the con staff
b. Establish who oversees tabletop gaming/RPGs
c. Identify PFS wants/needs
i. Number of tables per slot
ii. Qualifiers for free GM admission/comped badges
iii. If PFS presence is big enough, request a HQ table
d. Determine convention hours of operation
e. Request an event form/template
f. Determine the deadline for making schedule changes
g. Determine housing options
4. Send out a “Save the Date” notice to:
a. Local PFS discussion group
b. PFS Grand Lodge messageboard
c. State PFS website
d. Facebook
5. Request a Warhorn site
a. You can flesh it out later, it is just a placeholder for now
B. 3 Months Out
1. Second Organizer Meeting
a. Review “Lessons Learned” from previous convention (if applicable)
2. Compose a PFS Schedule
a. Create slot times
i. Keep it easy to remember, like 9/2/7
ii. What time do you expect people to wake up again?
iii. PFS scenarios really need 5 hours minimum
b. Use a 4:2:1 spread (low/mid/high tier offerings)
i. for each high-level (7-11) scenario, offer
ii. two mid-level (3-7, 5-9) scenarios, and offer
iii. four time as many low level (1-5) scenarios
iv. historically high-level scenarios draw the fewest players
c. Consider offering modules, but be wary of the time constraints
d. Consider offering a convention Special event
e. Got enough tables to qualify for Paizo con support?
3. Contact Local Event Organizers
a. Request their help with promoting the con
b. Ask for GM assistance
c. Request they hold off on offering new scenario releases for the next two months
4. Push to Recruit GMs & HQ Volunteers
a. Collect volunteers’ Paizo ID & e-Mail connected to accounts
5. Flesh out Warhorn site with full schedule
6. Solicit community feedback on schedule
a. The community will often identify overlooked issues
7. Mass e-Mail with links to con website & Warhorn
8. Develop or delegate an event flyer for local stores & gamer haunts
9. An army marches on its stomach!
a. Map out local restaurants
b. Collect food delivery menus
c. Put it all into a binder available at HQ
C. 2 Months Out
1. Create Event on Paizo’s PFS Events page
2. Request Paizo Con Support
a. Provide Paizo IDs & e-Mail for GM scenarios
3. Request local prize support
4. Social Media promotion
5. Finalize your schedule
a. Submit finalized events to convention staff
b. Update Warhorn
c. If you can’t get all your events covered, don’t wait too long before dropping them
d. Check convention website to make sure what they post is accurate
D. 1 Month Out
1. Third Organizer Meeting
a. Finalize con prize distributions events (boons, books, local prizes)
2. Post event flyers at public locations
3. Assess GM needs via e-Mail
a. Confirm their schedules
b. Did all GMs receive their scenarios?
c. Do any GMs need printing done?
d. Do any GMs need resources loaned?
4. Repeat Social Media promotion
5. Request extra PFS membership cards from campaign staff, if necessary
E. Two Weeks Out
1. Inventory HQ Supplies (see below)
2. Go shopping!
3. Print HQ stuff
a. Tracking sheets
b. Chronicles
i. pre-fill the event name & event code
c. Boons
i. use premium paper or cardstock to set them apart
ii. pre-fill the event name & event code
d. Current Additional Resources document
e. Sundry items (pre-gens, blank character sheets, table tents, membership cards)
4. e-Mail GMs your “expectations list”
a. Be clear on what you can supply and what they need to bring with them
b. They need to check in with HQ 30 minutes prior to the start of the slot
c. Remind them to complete the tracking sheet before handing it in
i. many forget to record the Prestige afterward
ii. all writing must be legible
d. Explain your prize system
e. Outline the format for running the Special, if applicable
f. You have the final say on any disputes at the table
5. Schedule a meeting to go over Special event with GM volunteers
6. e-Mail HQ volunteers your “expectations list”
7. If feasible, ask con staff for permission to set up a day early
8. Ask con staff about wireless access for HQ
9. Repeat Social Media promotion
F. The Day Before
1. Pack it all up, load into transport
2. Set alarm clock
3. If given early access:
a. Set up HQ
b. Try to position PFS posters close to the convention registration queue
II. Convention Phase
A. On-Site Directions
1. Try to position PFS posters close to the convention registration queue
2. Designate mustering locations with posters/signs
3. Number designate the tables
B. HQ Set-Up
1. Keep clutter to a minimum
a. The more stuff you put out, the more will walk away
2. Prize Display
a. If there’s room, have this area sufficiently apart from HQ to avoid crowding
3. Printer tips
a. Set printer defaults for low-res printing to conserve toner
C. Pre-Slot Prep
1. Assemble the chronicles, tracking sheets, prize tokens with envelopes
2. Assign a veteran player or GM to marshal duties
a. Keep tables running same scenario from being adjacent, if possible
3. Distribute paperwork
D. After everyone is seated
1. Distribute water to GMs
2. Collect tickets
E. Time Management
1. Advise tables of halfway point for the slot
2. Keep on the slowpokes
a. Allow for 30 minutes of paperwork and table clean-up
F. Collect Tracking Sheets
1. Check for legibility and completeness
2. Write the day & slot # at the top
3. Why wait? If wi-fi is available, begin to report the event
G. Post-Slot
1. Clean up tables, replace chairs
2. Counsel slowpoke GMs on better time management
III. Post-Con Phase
A. Hotwash
1. Talk to players and GMs about what worked and what didn’t
2. Don’t be defensive, just listen and try to write down as much as possible
a. Not everyone understands or accepts why things are the way they are
b. Their perspective is their reality
3. Before your memory fades, write down your own thoughts on improvement
B. Clean Up
1. Put materials away in an organized fashion
2. Don’t martyr yourself, recruit some help to break down HQ and carry it all out
3. Make sure that you police the area for trash one last time
C. After-Action Report
1. Make a list of your “Lessons Learned”
2. Solicit feedback from the community
3. Have a final Organizer Meeting
3. Compose a post-con report for the Campaign Coordinator
4. Share feedback & lessons learned with convention staff
D. Reporting
1. If tracking sheets haven’t been entered already, start the process
2. Analyze the scenario demand by tier and save for next year
E. Acknowledgment
1. Publically recognize all your volunteers
2. Share personal stories you heard at the con
3. Cross-post on local board and on Paizo
4. Send ‘thank-yous’ to local prize support contributors
HQ Supply List
Dolly & boxes
Computer w/power supply
High volume B&W printer
Spare printer cartridges
USB cord for printer
Power strip
Extension cord
Painter’s tape (prevents extension cord trip hazard)
Projector, if needed
PFS Posters & Banner
Tape or adhesive strips
Printer paper, deluxe cert paper
Scissors/cert cutter
3-hole punch
Stapler
Spare pens & pencils, pencil sharpener
Spare minis
Spare dice
Spare maps, basic flipmats
Spare Core Rulebook
Spare Bestiary
Wet or dry erase markers
Bottled water
Organized Play paperwork (scenarios, chronicles, boons, etc)
PFS membership cards
Guide to PFS Organized Play
Pathfinder Society Primer
Paperclips
Envelopes
Index cards
Food folder
Sharpie markers
USB drive with all your files saved (in case of laptop death)
Table signs
Posters
Banner
Pain reliever (ibuprofen, acetaminophen)
