Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I interested in setting up a 40k Tournament of my own, what would be involved in organizing such an event? I'm sure that many of the members of this board have attended or ran such events and some input would be appreciated.

Event space

Table tops

Scenery

1+ rules judges

A scoring system to determine your winners.

Scenarios

Painting criteria, and if required, Paint/Appearance scoring criteria

Sports Criteria, if used

Comp Criteria, if used

A system to collect the scoring data and organize it

Entry fee, if charging

Prizes, if giving them out

Enough advertising and communication to get info to the players you'd like to attend.

Players!

A copy of the rulebook that you hopefully know inside and out

A way to answer FAQ's, or a written FAQ from someone else.

A weekend that doesn't suck. I suggest avoiding anything like a holiday, big sports event, etc

Beer for staff.

mikhaila wrote:
Beer for staff.

Can't be emphasised enough! Heck, make it beer for everyone!

A pair players for each round. 1 vs 2 / 1 vs 9 / 1 vs 16.
How many players you will allow
How many rounds
Point limit
Time per round
Type of event; competitive, hobby, mix, wacky, battle point

If running a long tournament, then coordinate a food break. Maybe get in touch with a place and order in bulk and have people pay at the beginning of the tournament. Have the food delivered at the break.

PM me with your email address and I can send you a lot of info about the tourney I just ran.

First prioriry is to line up a venue and date.
Second priority is to have your rules/scenarios/scoring ironed out well in advance and out to the public.
Third is to get the terrain and topers.
Fourth is staffing.

The first two need to be accomplished at least six months prior to the event, especially the second one (so you have some time for community feedback) to give players time to plan. The last two can wait, but should be locked in at least a month prior.

I suggest looking at successful events that run in a style to your liking and examine how they operate.

oh hell, don't order food, you're paying through the nose!)

This weekend I'm serving smoked chicken, sausage gumbo, and some sort of chili. The chicken takes a smoker and some minimal cooking skills. Crockpot food takes zero skill

Large Crockpot.
2 lbs of Jimmy Dean ground sausage
2 lbs black beans (dry).
Chopped onions
Chopped peppers
Can of stewed tomatoes, or chopped fresh tomatoes.
1) Add water to beans and let soak for the day.
2) Brown sausage in a frying pan, breaking it up. Brown up the onions and peppers in sausage grease.
3) Dump everything in crockpot and cook on low for 1-2 days.
4) Put in gallon ziplocks for freezing or easy transport.
5) Reheat day of tournament.

can serve it straight or over rice, biscuits, or floorsweepings.

mikhaila wrote:oh hell, don't order food, you're paying through the nose!)

This weekend I'm serving smoked chicken, sausage gumbo, and some sort of chili. The chicken takes a smoker and some minimal cooking skills. Crockpot food takes zero skill

Large Crockpot.
2 lbs of Jimmy Dean ground sausage
2 lbs black beans (dry).
Chopped onions
Chopped peppers
Can of stewed tomatoes, or chopped fresh tomatoes.
1) Add water to beans and let soak for the day.
2) Brown sausage in a frying pan, breaking it up. Brown up the onions and peppers in sausage grease.
3) Dump everything in crockpot and cook on low for 1-2 days.
4) Put in gallon ziplocks for freezing or easy transport.
5) Reheat day of tournament.

can serve it straight or over rice, biscuits, or floorsweepings.

Thats it I'm moving to Philly, anyone want to employee me when I get there?

To add some actual content to this thread, everything is in the planning, just follow the 7 P's, Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance, and you'll be good.

mikhaila wrote:Chopped onions
Chopped peppers
Can of stewed tomatoes, or chopped fresh tomatoes.

That's too much work. Just add in lots of salsa!

I'm cheap.) Lots of good produce neighbors are happy to dump on me. Peppers and tomatoes especially. But do need to turn some of it into salsa.

Hmm, anyone throw a potluck tournament? Eat then play?

We have always had lunch included in the price ($20 total price) of our Ironman tournaments here in Las Vegas. That is how we pay for the space half to the venu half for the club to hopefully recoup some of the costs of setting it up and buy prizes.

Everyone here has provided great advice. The only thing that I can think of to add is make sure to spend time on the scenarios. If you write them have a friend or two critique them (preferably someone not participating). Whether one write your own scenarios or use scenarios from an old 'ard boyz or off the internet make sure that you fully understand them and try to anticipate the questions that participants will ask.
For every person that actually asks a question there is at least one more person that didn't ask, went ahead and did it wrong, and will mention it later.

ryan3740 wrote:Hmm, anyone throw a potluck tournament? Eat then play?

That implies gamers can cook.)

If you're just starting out I would just try to organize an RTT at your FLGS. That way the space, tables, terrain all should be covered. Or at least partially and you can help them finish it off. Run it as a one day event and keep it small and manageable. When you get comfy with that then expand.

I wouldn't try running a mutli-day GT as your first tournament. That's just insanity.

Thanks for the advice gents. About the only thing I would likely have problems with is getting enough terrain. I barely own enough terrain to cover my own table much less those needed for a tourney.

For those of you that have actually run a tourney, about how do you do financially, do you at least manage to break even?

Make, don't buy the terrain. Pre-made terrain is very expensive. One sheet of high density foam can be bought for about £5 and make enough hills for about 4 tables + sand, glue, green spray paint. Check out pound shops for the cheap soldier sets. Soldiers themselves are often pants, but you can often get trees/fences/sandbags etc you can paint up and mount on hardboard for little cost.

Problem is then storing it all for the next year! Good terrain and nice cloths make for good tournaments - a couple of polystyrene lumps and some cardboard cut outs always leave me cold ...

Costwise I would look to budget for 2 years, so that all the terrain costs etc from year one can be averaged over 2 years. Biggest cost will be the location, but if you are starting small then look at social clubs, village halls etc. They often have a kitchen and you can then have someone doing teas/coffees all day for basic cost.

No one has got rich from running tournaments!

ruminator wrote:No one has got rich from running tournaments! !

Hell, if I could find someone that broke even, I'd shake their hand.)

Firstly, expect to put in a large to impossible number of hours of your time into the tournament, all for free. Then your expenses, which hopefully trickle back in a bit as you run them and pay back the cost of the stuff you bought/made for the first one. Never, ever, consider your time into it, it just gets depressing. Even at a fraction of minimum wage, you aren't getting paid back.)

For scenery, you are best off making your own, which means learning how to do it properly first. A good start is GW's 'making wargame terrain' book. Then go check out various painting/modeling sites. Then experiment and don't rush it. You can take 50.00 in supplies and make awesome scenery, or crap scenery, for nearly the same cost.