Attractions
Board game library
Click here to see the list of games that are currently in the SAGA library. In addition, Tony Ewing will be bringing a wide selection of games that have won the Spiel Des Jahres or other awards for attendees to check out and play.
Paint & Take miniatures
Come grab a miniature and spend some time painting with other RinCon attendees! All skill levels are welcome, and all materials will be supplied. Bryan Adamson of HarshMage.com will be on hand to offer tips, tricks, and techniques.
Artemis spaceship bridge simulator
Imagine being the Captain of your own star ship. Come join us with your crew and fly around the galaxy in a star ship, killing bad guys, being amazed by space dragons, and avoiding black holes! Operate the ship together, and defend the sector from evil aliens. Artemis simulates a spaceship bridge by networking several computers together. One computer runs the simulation and the main screen, while the others serve as workstations for the normal jobs a bridge officer might do, like Helm, Communication, Science, Engineering, and Weapon Control. Artemis is a social game where several players are together in one room (bridge), and while they all work together, one player plays the Captain, a person who sits in the middle and tells everyone what to do. Missions launch every hour on the hour.
GIANT games
Just like the classic and award-winning board games, but GIANT! Some favorites include Catan, Carcassonne, Rhino Hero, Kingdomino, Azul, and Codenames. And new for this year, we’ve got Kingdom Builder and the 25th anniversary re-release of James Ernest’s Bitin’ Off Hedz! Check back to see what we’ve got on tap, and sign up to play!
Vendors & exhibitors
Check back – we’ll have the list up soon!
Play-to-Win board games
We’ve partnered once again with Envoy / Double Exposure to bring you a chance to win free copies of games from their featured publishers. When you check out one of the Play-to-Win games from the library, you’ll be entered in a drawing to win that game at the end of the convention.
Open gaming tables
Got something that you’ve been itching to get to the table? Round up a few players and take a seat at one of our open gaming tables on the main gaming floor. Look for the tables with white tablecloths.
Industry special guests
Click here to see our crew of creators and designers. And don’t forget to look at their schedules and sign up to attend their programming.
Bleedin’ Heart Cove
A more ragtag crew of scurvy dogs ye will never see! Bleed’n Heart Cove are a non-profit group of amateur entertainers and pirate enthusiasts, and they’ll be bringing their special brand of shenanigans to RinCon.
Rolling raffles
We’ll have drawings for fantastic prizes all weekend long. More information coming soon!
Captains vs. Krakens
Are you a Captain or a Kraken? All convention attendees will be randomly assigned to one of the two factions. Gain points for your side by donating to the food drive or by winning scheduled games, and help lead your team to victory! There will be a special raffle at the end of the convention for the winning team only.
Community food drive
Once again, RinCon is partnering with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. Bring donations of non-perishable food and personal care items and help them in their mission of feeding the hungry today, and building a healthy, hunger-free tomorrow.
Flea Market
This is always a super fun opportunity to buy and sell some used games! If you want to sell, bring a pile of games priced and ready to go. Looking to buy? Just show up with some cash and hunt for an awesome deal! See sched for specifics.
Programming Tracks
Board games
From time-honored classics to the newest hotness and award-winners, and even sessions run by the games’ creators, check out all the board games we have in our schedule!
Tabletop Role-playing games
Dungeons & Dragons, Call of Cthulhu, Savage Worlds, Shadowrun. World of Darkness, and more – we’ve got it all! We use a muster system – players who have signed up for specific sessions assemble in the hallway next to the RPG hall 10 minutes before the scheduled game times (9am / 2pm / 8pm), meet up with their GM, and go together to their table. But if you haven’t signed up for a session, never fear! Just go to the muster area 10 minutes before the timeslot starts, and find a session that hasn’t filled yet.
Indie RPG Arcade
The Indie RPG Arcade is your opportunity to experience some of the latest and greatest Indie RPGs around. We have a space set aside with tables and staffed with volunteers ready to run a session in a variety of exciting systems, including games like Apocalypse World, Rapscallion, Bluebeard’s Bride, Swords Without Master, Urban Shadows, Blades in the Dark, Weave and many more! Sometimes scheduled slots fill up, or maybe you’re not sure what you want to play. The Indie RPG Arcade gives you the chance to drop by and play new and interesting games throughout RinCon. Just show up at the regular muster hallway next to the RPG hall 10 minutes before one of the RPG start times (9am / 2pm / 8pm) and we’ll get you into an awesome Indie RPG. The event is organized and run by an intrepid crew of motivated GMs, running all the newest and most exciting Indie games out there.
Women’s Space
We at RinCon want to strengthen the community of female gamers, so for a third year we are hosting a programming track where women teach other women some of their favorite games. We use an inclusive definition of “woman” and “female,” and welcome trans women, genderqueer women, and non-binary people who are comfortable in a space that centers the experiences of women. Our goal is to create a relaxing, friendly space where it is possible to express oneself without fear of feeling judged or questioned, where women’s needs and opinions are considered first and foremost, and where women can play games the way they want to and gain confidence as they learn together. And of course we’re all here to share the love of gaming and foster camaraderie! Being able to play games in a welcoming, supportive environment is always the goal of every single space and every single event of RinCon; we are, as always, committed to that ideal. Acknowledging that there are women who feel more comfortable learning or playing games in a female-centered space is just one step we can take to help everyone feel comfortable at all of our events. So come play some games with other amazing women!
Kids’ Cove
Got a mini-gamer in your life? Kids 6-12 years old can participate in games and crafts in this sectioned-off area on the main gaming floor. We’ll have a schedule up soon, so you can chart a course to Kids’ Cove!
Special Events
Pirate Pub
Avast, ye scurvy sea dogs! James Ernest (Cheapass Games, Crab Fragment Labs) hosts an evening of pub games from his capacious catalog, with the help of some other assorted scalawags. You’ll start off with a pile of doubloons, play all kinds of short betting games, and see how large a pirate hoard you can amass. Competition, prizes, and most definitely shenanigans are all on tap at this event!
Murder Mystery
Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of REDRUM! A Pirate Murder MysteryAvast me hearties! Shiver me timbers, there be a murderer at RinCon! Be the swashbuckler what finds the scurvy dog that killed Captain Burning Beard Brady! Join your fellow mateys for a pirate who-done-it as ye try to find the bilge rat who had the motive, means, and opportunity to kill Captain Brady! There be swag, booty, and a prize for the victor!
GMs’ Conference
We’ve got a fantastic slate of speakers this year on a variety of topics related to GM-ing, both in a campaign setting and at conventions. Come hone your skills and participate in the discussion on the fine art of creating an engaging, entertaining, inclusive, and successful roleplaying experience for you and your players.
Envoy board game tournaments
Arizona State Championships
RinCon will be the AZ State Championship for Envoy Tournament Games. Winners at our event get a trophy and a copy of the game, as well as a place in the Regional Finals. See sched for tournament times!
Dodos Riding Dinos
Choose your favorite Dodo/Dino miniature!
Advance with blue or red cards and solve their wacky effects. Some will test your dexterity against your rivals by throwing bananas, flicking dodo eggs or making meteors fall.
The winner of your tournament will get a free badge for Gen Con 2023, a free room share (with up to 3 other players) at an adjoining hotel for 3 nights at Gen Con 2023, and free entry into the first elimination round of the 2023 U.S. National Dodos Riding Dinos Championship (10AM – 4PM on Saturday, August 5).
See sched for the time of the tournament!
Panels & discussions
We’ll have a small number of panels, discussions, and special interactive events:
Diversity and Inclusion in Tabletop Gaming: We need to keep talking about this until we don’t need to anymore. This panel will focus on the many faces of inclusion, what diversity really means, and how to support them at our gaming tables, throughout our events, and in our industry.
Shipbuilding and Worldbuilding: A Discussion of Design – Following a session of his Shipwrights of Marino, prolific game designer and creative force of nature James Ernest will talk about the journey that brought this game and its associated tie-in fiction in the Dew Point universe to fruition. You can expect a deep dive into game design, creative process, and whatever else Mr. Ernest’s twisty brain is currently pondering.
Speed BG Design Event – Kind of like Whose Line Is It, Anyway? for game designers. Watch and participate as our illustrious team of board game designers come up with silly new game ideas from scratch. The twist is that you, the audience, get to add to the fun by submitting concepts, mechanics, and materials along the way that they must then build into the final products. “Sooo, it’s a dice drafting game… about taco trucks that are really a front for DC-based spies… and we’re supposed to incorporate WHAT?!?” Hilarity will ensue, we feel certain!
Dinner and a Design Discussion – Bring your own takeout dinner from one of the venues at Casino Del Sol, and participate in a discussion with RPG designers Mark Diaz Truman and Camdon Wright about a range of topics, including designing for diversity.
Chair massages
Two massage therapists from Casino Del Sol’s Hiapsi Spa will be on hand on Saturday afternoon for 10-minute chair massages. Tips have already been covered, but we’re asking for donations to the Indie Game Developer Network Diversity Sponsorship.