KublaCon is one of the biggest tabletop gaming conventions in the Northern California Bay Area, held over Memorial Day weekend. This year, the team behind KublaCon expanded with a sister convention, KublaCon Fall. This con was held over Veteran’s Day weekend and replaced GobbleCon as a new November tabletop convention.
While this was technically the first KublaCon Fall, it comes from a team of experienced staff and organizers. So, with that in mind, how was the convention?
Tabletop Gaming
Naturally, the biggest draw for KublaCon Fall was the tabletop gaming, and it had plenty to offer. The biggest gaming room was dedicated to open gaming, with a large library of games for players to peruse and table upon table filled with attendees. There was also a smaller (but still packed) room across the hall and a hallway filled with tables.
There were also rooms set up for specific kinds of games. The miniatures wargaming room, for instance, had large tables covered in detailed dioramas, where players participated in massive battles and skirmishes (covering fantasy, science fiction, and historical wargames). This included a Star Wars: Legion tournament, featuring set pieces from across the Star Wars galaxy.
Game designers also had a chance to show off their works in progress in the Protospiel room. Here, players could sit down to playtest upcoming games and provide direct feedback to the designers. Thus, the designers received valuable feedback, while the players got to enjoy and help shape new games.
Tabletop RPG fans had a few options as well. Several smaller rooms were set aside for scheduled RPG sessions, run by volunteer GMs who wanted to run an adventure. This covered several different systems, including Monster of the Week, Dreamland, Mork Borg, Dungeon Crawl Classics, and much more.
TTRPG players looking for organized play had two fine options as well: Dungeons & Dragons Adventurers League and Pathfinder Society. Both rooms had games running throughout the weekend, whether traveling across Faerun and Planescape or exploring the world of Golarion. While some tables didn’t get a Dungeon Master until the last minute, the organizers worked hard to ensure that no player was left without a game.
While scheduled games typically allowed for drop-in players if there was room, most games were scheduled in advance. Attendees could buy tickets to create their schedules well in advance and reserve a spot for games they wanted to play (although Adventurers League and Pathfinder Society players are used to using Warhorn.net, so the new system caused a bit of a hiccup).
Shopping
People don’t just go to gaming conventions to play games — they go there to buy games too. KublaCon Fall did have some options, although they were somewhat limited.
The Dealer’s Hall was connected to the largest open play room, but consisted of a handful of booths at the far end. With that said, there were some fine options, including both local gaming shops and game designers, as well as a good selection of discounted gaming goods and merchandise.
Outside the Dealer’s Hall was a row of vendors selling their art and other handmade goods. This included pins, paintings, and even perfumes inspired by board games and franchises like Baldur’s Gate 3.
Additionally, a card collector show happened to be in the same convention center that weekend, and KublaCon attendees were allowed free admission. This room was packed with collectors and sellers, although they primarily sold sports trading cards and Pokemon cards. The offerings ranged from reasonably priced low-rarity bulk to graded and sealed high-rarity cards being sold for well above their market value. So it was targeted at collectors willing to spend a pretty penny for a mint condition card their collection needs.
KublaCon also had a flea market on Friday night, allowing attendees to sell their well-loved games, books, and miniatures. While it was only for one night, there was a good selection available to those willing to search and haggle.
While the shopping selection wasn’t the greatest, it’s worth remembering that this is still a first-year convention, KublaCon-adjacent or not. There’s little doubt that as the convention grows, it will attract more vendors and artists.
Food & Venue
KublaCon Fall was held at the Santa Clara Hyatt Regency (connected to but not using the convention center). The location had plentiful parking, and the parking garage was free for convention attendees, in addition to public transit and rideshare options.
(Amusingly, the hotel was just down the street from the Santa Clara Marriott, where conventions like DunDraCon and PacifiCon are regularly held — at least a few attendees remarked on how they almost went to the wrong hotel purely on muscle memory.)
As for food options, the hotel had a restaurant, a cafe, and a snack bar, with a decent assortment of options and varying quality (the restaurant food was great, while the snack bar was mostly edible). Of course, they all had hotel prices, so anyone looking for a cheap meal would have to check elsewhere.
There were several food options within driving distance, and possibly walking distance for those who wanted to get their steps in. The biggest obstacle was finding the time to get a proper and affordable meal between games (or paying for delivery, which was certainly an option too).
What Else?
Attendees who came to KublaCon looking for games to play were not disappointed. There was no shortage of open gaming tables, demos, and RPGs to play. It was somewhat lacking in scheduling outside of that — but that’s not to say it didn’t have anything else.
There were a handful of LARPs for those looking for live action roleplaying games. Similarly, there were eight seminars during the con, including advice for job seekers, a look at the game industry, and a Q&A with the KublaCon Fall team.
The schedule also included events like a Veteran Appreciation Gathering (as is appropriate for Veteran’s Day weekend), giant-sized games, and trading card game drafts, casual play, and learn-to-play events. With that said, the scheduling was absolutely board game and RPG-focused.
Overall, though, KublaCon Fall is off to a strong start. Those who came looking for four days of games did not leave disappointed, and the convention’s turnout and enthusiasm made it clear that the convention is only going to keep growing. So in the years to come, attendees can look forward to more games, activities, and roleplaying.
