Author Topic: The cost of running a Battletech event, is it worth it? I don't think so  (Read 1091 times)

CrazyPappy

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I will be running an event this Saturday mostly for beginners. I spent hours painting minis, making terrain, preparing scenarios, making 5000 lances, making post on social medias, etc.

I had to buy new mech like the Urban mech for the intro scenario (I have no use for them in my army) and print lots of record sheets. I also bought sheet protectors, pencils with washable ink, dices for the newbies, Hextech terrain when I realized I had up to 20 peoples interested to show up and I had not en ought stuff for all of them. I also paid a printer to print additional maps form the PDF map pack. And I will not probably be able to play as I will have to run the event or play the red team (composed of Urban mechs) against the blue team made of wannaby mechwarriors.

All this with no support form anybody. At least, when I was running paintball events, I was making money. So, I am skiing my self: it is worth it? Probably not.

My advise: if you want to run an event, make sure that, at least, you dont put a penny in it.
Have fun! Remember, variety is the Spice of Warfare!

jackpot4

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My first question is: have you organized an event before for an established group of BT players?

This should gauge your expectations.  If this is your first go at organizing a BT event with no knowledge of players and their commitment, I'll just be direct, while I love your level of effort, you went way overboard. 

Starting out, I would never recommend setting up an event with multi unit forces.  Each player should field one mech and be either a free for all or two teams.  Let's say 20 people show up, you can have 4 teams of 5, two separate tables. 

You need to take notes and sort out player's skill levels, competitiveness, knowledge of the rules, etc. 

There should also be no requirements of paint on yourself or others.  That's a massive level of effort and cost for an unknown outcome. The entire goal of a first event meetup potentially starting a group is just to meet and do something.  Some minis will be painted, some won't.  The basic maps in the starter box is more than enough to just play a game.  You, as an established player are probably going to have 20 or more minis that you already own to bring that can be used by other players without any additional purchases on your part.

I also recommend using a FB group so that you can set up actual attendance polls so people can confirm yes/no they will go.  Trust me, I know that adding a "maybe" option is your worst enemy because you will be waiting until the morning of the event and not see them make a final yes/no selection. 

I'd say to really reduce the pressure on yourself.  You are not paid, you are a volunteer, while you are taking on the role of a GM, there is an expectation that players have resources (maps/minis) available to contribute in some way to help an event go smoothly.

« Last Edit: 22 November 2023, 10:30:25 by jackpot4 »
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idea weenie

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That is an amazing amount of work you did, and I hope the players appreciate at least some of your hard work.

The nice part is that your second campaign will be much easier; the minis are assembled/painted, the maps are printed, the Record Sheets can be reused, etc.

Still, having an assistant would make things easier, if nothing else you can tell them to keep your pizza plate stocked and your drink filled between matches.