For the second year in a row, I trekked down to Atlanta, Georgia, for DragonCon, this time bringing more friends with me. They've centralized the con more this year, which helped a lot.

The gaming (since this is *rpg*.net) was one of the first places I went. I GM'ed a game of Tribe 8 for Dream Pod 9.

This was where one of the big drawbacks of the con was. With the centralization and moving of a lot of events, a lot of people didn't know where anything was. Most of the volunteers seemed equally confused, and the signs were either non-helpful or non-existant.

However, once things got rolling, everything was great. Con security and staff were all very helpful and friendly - especially when I lost my badge. The food was overpriced, as usual, but there was a food court and a number of restaurants nearby.

A lot of the events were held in the Hyatt this year, as well. This made the elevators extremely crowded - particularly around checkout time. It really sucked carrying tons of bags down 14 floors 'cause no one high up could go down the elevators, and no one on the floor could go up.

Of course, the other events (other then role-playing) is what helps DragonCon be, IMNSHO, the best 'con around. They have concerts - such as GWAR and the Misfits. There are a myriad of events for every fan and every genre. A ton of game companies are there. I got a chance to talk to a couple of people from DP9 for a while (great guys) as well as from Pinnacle (who always rock - particularly since they're from Virginia). SJ Games had their booth guarded by Loren Wiseman, who was nice enought but seemed to be still learning about some of SJG's products.

All in all, DragonCon is well worth the price. Just watch out for beer prices in Atlanta, and if you offer a beer to Ray Bradbury, make sure he has his hands empty to take it. :)

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)