I arrive on Thursday (10/13) and leave on Sunday (10/16). Here is my schedule for while I'm in town.

Friday 10/14

2:45pm - 3:30pm: Interview with R.A. Salvatore - I'll be sitting down and asking YOUR quesions! Got a question about Drizzt, Neverwinter, or anything else you want R.A. to answer? Well ask them here and I'll use them during my interview!

4:00pm - 5:00pm: Neverwinter Panel - I'll be live tweeting the Neverwinter Panel! Come by and hear R.A. Salvatore talk about Drizzt and his new adventures in Neverwinter!

5:30pm - 6:30pm: Neverwinter Signing - Still don't have enough Neverwinter? Come by and get your book signed by the man himself! I'd pay attention to the twitter channel if I were you. :-D

Saturday 10/15

10:00am - 11:00am: Walking the show floor - I'll be hanging around, just checking out the show! If you see me, say "Hi!"

11:00am - 12:00pm: Gaming Area - Checking out the gaming area! In fact, I might be prepping for something.

12:00pm - 4:00pm: Siege of Gardmore Abbey - This is it! Pay attention to the twitter channel. Why? Because I need players if I'm going to run this awesome session!

5:00pm - 6:00pm: Legend of Drizzt - WHAT?!? You can play The Legend of Drizzt Board Game with me BEFORE it's out? THAT'S CRAZY! Again, watch the twitter channel!

Sunday 10/16

10:00am - noon(ish): Walking the show floor - I leave on Sunday so I'll be spending a little time walking the floor before I head out. If you see me, say Hi!

So there you have it! If you're at the convention please PLEASE find me and say hello. I love meeting fans of Magic and D&D (or fans of me!). I'll also have some Magic decks on me (commander and some Innistrad intro decks) so I'll be ready to throw down in a challenge!

My nights are pretty open since I'm the lone WotC wolf in NY. I'll probably spend a good portion of my nights hitting up some NY sights and exploring the city.

See you at the con!

With Trevor taking on a different role soon and Steve Winter transitioning over to the D&D side of community management I've got many people asking me what's going to happen with me?

Well. Let me answer that for you.

When I 1st started here at Wizards Trevor and I had split the community about 60/40. Trevor would be in D&D, and I would be in Magic. We'd sit down and talk things over on a weekly basis and we would fill each other in on the events, topics, concerns in the communities. That way both of us knew what was going on in both communities. As time went on we both focused on D&D. The Virtual Table was going underway and with my background in QA it seemed like the perfect place for me. 

As more time passed on Trevor was getting deeper and deeper into the D&D communities and I was balancing both D&D and Magic.

Flash forward to when Trevor dropped the bomb that he was leaving. There was plenty of talk of what would happen in Trevor's absence, and what duties would I be left with? Josh and Chuck quickly became the VT superstars and I was becoming more of a "face" for the community. I was at PAX Prime and DDXP with Trevor and we both were representing the community. Then came PAX East and I was the lone soldier. I was put on a panel for D&D, and was there giving out and playing Magic with fans.

Let me be clear when I say Magic, I am not talking about just the paper product. I'm talking about ALL of Magic. That means paper product, Magic: The Gathering Online, and Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers for Steam, PS3, and XBLA. That's a MASSIVE community. Luckily we've got everyone's favorite Crazy Monkey helping us out with some of the digital stuff, but there's still a ton of Magic communities out there.

A decision was made. I would now be "full time" Magic and help support D&D when needed. Magic has a very large community with a ton of great personalities and I'm very excited to be a part of it. As many of you have seen from what I've brought to the D&D communities I plan to do the same for Magic.

One of my biggest strengths as a community manager is my ability to capture the lifestyle of games like Magic and D&D. We've got some amazing articles and Facebook posts for news and announcements so I don't want to just rehash those channels. My job is to not only get the announcements out there, but also to show you the cool things that don't fit in the news/announcements style broadcasts. You want to talk to me about this one time you destroyed someone at Duels of the Planeswalkers? Do it. You want to take me on in a game of Archenemy? Let's rock! I am here to show that not only do I work for the company that makes these games, but I also play them and have the same fun that you do.

For all the friends that I've made in the D&D Community, does this mean we won't get to hang out or talk? Not at all. I'm still very active on Twitter, and I've got lots of awesome Gamma World ideas for my home game. Plus, it's not like I'll be just abandoning you all together. I'll still be keeping up with the communities and reading blogs, websites, etc. I'll be around.

Does this mean I won't be at places like GenCon or DDXP? HA! You can't get rid of me that easily. Part of my charm is my "live event" experience. Nothing makes me feel more awesome then hanging out with people passionate about Wizards products. I love to talk with people about our products, play games with them, and when I can, hook up our fans with free stuff. Plan to see me at most major events that Wizards has a presence at. Maybe even a few we don't!

So basically what I'm saying is, things are changing, but also staying the same. Steve is going to completely rock the D&D side of this new community team, and I will do what I can to help and support him. I already know that the D&D community will welcome Steve with open arms and maybe some hugs... and I've warned him about that. 

I look forward to talking about Magic, playing Magic, and still being that guy with all the cool free :censored: at conventions. It's one of the reasons I love what I do.

Follow my real life shenanigans on twitter: @michaelrobles 

EPIC GAME DAY

The title has to be huge, it's EPIC. It was a celebration of just all around geekery. There were board games, role playing games, video games, and even a Magic The Gathering Draft! This was all held at the AFK Tavern in Everett, WA. There was a ton of great games running. Bruce Cordell, Chris Simms, Logan Bonner, and Greg Bilsland were among a few of the GMs running adventures. Many of which were custom made for this event!

Now I've been working on my own long term Gamma World adventure, but being part of the crew that helped start Epic Game Day I wanted to contribute something myself. Thus began work on my Christmas themed adventure.

The feedback I got was awesome. Someone asked me where they could get a copy. I had a small audience that even though they saw what happened, they want me to run them through it since my spots in the game had filled up.

I'm here to show you the 1st encounter and some of what made my adventure a ton of fun to write & DM. I present:

"Christmas at Ground Zero"

A Gamma World Adventure for six level 3 players.

Before we got started I let the players know that since Famine in Far-Go just hit premiere stores that their origins would be 1/2 Base Game, and 1/2 Famine in Far-Go. It made for some interesting origins. Then I gave them some quick background:

The atom bombs have dropped and The Big Mistake has ruined what’s left of the North Pole. This ravaged wasteland is now ruled by a terrifying being simply known across Gamma Terra as “Big Red”. I now present: Christmas at Ground Zero.

I saw a couple of smiles as I began to read my read aloud text:

Twas a cold December morning when the adventurers crashed.

They found an old settlement, and it seemed to be trashed.

Body parts decorate, and cover the floor,

What was once a winter wonderland, is clearly, no more.

The smell of candy canes, burnt plastic, and entrails flow to your nose,

As across your faces the cold winter wind blows.

A bloodied sign points in two directions, “Workshop & Village”.

It’s unclear which direction to go; as everything seemed pillaged.

A villager you see, is being attacked by some creatures,

They look like wolves, but with additional features.

“Help me!” She screams “And I’ll make it worth your while!”

“I’ll give you Omega Tech, which can be quite versatile!”

So now dear adventurers, the choice is yours.

Do you save the villager? Or proceed forward outdoors?

If the adventures decided to save the villager, then they would get rewarded with Omega Tech, if they did not, then they got 1 roll on the Ancient Junk table. Many monsters were reskinned monsters, and some customs built with the Monster Builder program.

Some easy nature and science checks would revel that the wolves had bells on their collars, and tags that read:

"If found, please return to Workshop"

This initial battle is meant to be fairly easy. The players went straight for the wolves and the wolves would forget about the villager. After the adventurers finish off the wolves I had some more read aloud text:

Thank you so much! The villager states;

Those wolves were sent by Big Red! Make no mistake.

He used to be friendly, he used to be kind.

When people stopped believing, they say he lost his mind.

He’s vowed to destroy, the North Pole and beyond.

His followers will stay by his side, they have quiet the bond.

Take with you these toys, you’ll need them ahead.

Go through the village, or you’ll end up dead.

As the villager runs off in the distance, wind starts to obstruct.

She shouts back “Go on! Get moving! Or else you’ll be  FFF… stuck.

Sadly, I must end my preview here. Rumor has I might run this again sometime in the future. So no spoilers for those thinking of taking on Big Red.

... ok. 1 more spoiler:

A village that once held elves and their kin,

Is now dark and scary, as if taken over by sin.

Most of the village has gone on to the hereafter,

When from the trashed houses, you hear sounds of laughter.

“Our trap has been sprung!” Says a mutated elf.

“The fools fell right for it!” He seems pleased with himself.

“You can’t stop Big Red! He’ll make you all pay!”

“He’ll teach those who stopped believing, Christmas is HIS DAY!”

“We’ll stop you right here, we’re hot on your heels!”

When out from the back, come a swarm of Hot Wheels.

Adventurers it’s time! Try not to get shived!

Pull out those dice, and roll for initiative.

Some quick details from the product page:

This product includes: