Yes, let's meet in January with a few others? I want to broaden my Mage Wars experience (even downloaded OCTGN - gulp!) as I'm concerned my local Brighton meta is adversely constraining the creativity of my builds.
Any other near-London player interested in meeting in January please post here?
(jkselwyn suggested the Mad Hatter in Waterloo where I've played games at before)
As for Dragonmeet, no, I didn't bring Mage Wars. Too bulky to bring on an off-chance.
I played some other games that were UTTER RUBBISH in comparison to Mage Wars.
Lords of War (Blue Box Games) was demo'd extensively (you couldn't have missed it) and has a nice mechanic to differentiate it from Summoner Wars but is bland, little difference really between the 4 factions (Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, Lizardmen). It's all tactics and no strategy and very little customisation. I still bought it (both packs for £20 seemed cheap).
Tash-Kalar: Arena of Legends (Zman Games) was a rubbish boardgame; poor components for £46 (Mage Wars is only £4 more, cheaper on Amazon) and so one-dimensionsal, utterly lacking in flavour in a theme that nobody can relate to. What a waste of my time. It really made me appreciate what an amazing game and what amazing value Mage Wars is.
Might & Magic: Duel of Champions was a PC game I was initially attracted to because the art is beautiful (if a bit samey, probably the same artist). But the mechanics are so simple, like Yugi-oh. Ugh. And the cards are so very derivative. I am surprised Wizards of the Coast haven't sued this French independent. Ho hum.
These disappointments made me realise just how lucky I am to have found Mage Wars and local friends who play it.
I enjoyed some Indy Roleplay Games (Microscope, Fiasco, Dungeon World was the best) which were nice ideas that still need polishing.
But all in all, it just made me realise how I would far prefer to have been playing Mage Wars!