Greetings: This is my first post. I have been doing a LOT of reading on here and on BGG. FAQ's, discussions, reviews, etc. I am doing my best to prepare myself for anything that might come up in a tournament that I will be GM'ing next month.

I will be attending PrezCon in Charlottesville, VA for the fourth year in a row at the end of February and I have decided to contribute to the Con by running a Game of Thrones: the Board Game tournament; which has never been held there before (this is the 20th Anniversary of the Con!)

I did not play the first version of the game, but I am sure that I'll run into a few players who have. I am fully committed to the 2nd Edition and agree with everything that FFG changed and I am going to teach demos and discuss things that I will make rulings on before the tournament begins - such as the use of the Tides of War cards and a discussion of the most current version of the FFG FAQ for the game.

Can anyone offer me advice on things to look out for that might cause problems during the tournament, especially for newer players and/or AP-prone players? My goal is to run tables of 6 players each, balancing out any less-than-six player tables to make it as even as possible. If I end up with tables that contain 3 or 4 players, I am going to make sure and point out the ease with which a Baratheon player can quickly win a game and make sure that measures are taken by the other players to prevent this. The six player tables won't need this instruction, so hopefully I'll have more of those.

I am very excited to take charge of this. I hope I can keep games under four hours and hopefully attract a LOT of new players to the game.

If anyone is going to PrezCon or lives close enough to attend, I hope to see you all there! I'll try and get some action shots of the tournament and post them on here.

I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls.

I just wanted to say that's cool!

I'd love to be there for the post-game conversations. This game has made for the most energised wrap-up discussions in our group, especially when new players are present, and for people across multiple concurrent games to get together and chat afterwards would make for a great energy that they'll take home with them.

All the best!

Thanks, Pangoling. I'll try and remember to report back here with how it went. I just hope I can get everyone to understand the intricacies of the second edition before it begins and hopefully get them into the politics of representing a major House on Westeros!

I think I've played around 30 games, some 1st and some 2nd edition, so there are FAR more experienced players than I on these boards. One thing I'd recommend is issuing house card reference sheets (although there's so much to take on board in your first game but it might save some time).

For previous 1st ed players of various or no expansions, explaining ports (inculding Consolidating Power and the A Game of Thrones Westeros card), siege engines, Tides of Battle cards, extra functionality of Dominance tokens and special Raid orders are about all that's required; I think those were the only big changes that aren't immediately apparent (house cards are pretty apparent, and neutral forces work the same, there's just a bucket more of them).

Sorry if I'm stating the obvious…

No - those are great reminders! I knew that I would have to clear the air with players of the old version. As the GM for the tournament, though, I am just going to be blunt before we begin and state the rules exactly as I will be enforcing them. The biggest problem I think I will have will be with old players who will absolutely scoff at the use of the Tides of Battle cards. I will, however, create a special sheet noting the changes from V.1 to V.2. Thanks!

Is there maybe a official Game of Thrones Board Game Tournament ?

If something like that exist - when, where, how often ?

Hope this is the right place to ask this questions.