Shorehammer Convention Recap 2020
Pimpcron managed to pull off Shorehammer this year!
Hey everybody! It’s been a while since I’ve been roasted, but I figure this article will ignite the ill-informed, morally superior comments that I miss so much. So away we go!
Yes, we still had Shorehammer this year! But of those of you who have been there before would notice it was VERY different in design and operation this year due to obvious reasons. First off, we had to take great care and planning in making sure this event was as safe as it could be for our attendees. In addition, we had ever-changing local restrictions to grapple with. But we did it! So here is my secret sauce on how we did it.
Brand New Design
First off, the location of Shorehammer has very low infection rates, some of the best in the country. But we still had the restriction from our governor of “strongly suggesting no more than 25 in an indoor meeting space”. So instead of 2 giant ballrooms opened up to make a massive ballroom, we rented multiple different spaces in the same hotel and made our personal cap to be no more than 20 people per room. Granted, these rooms normally have a capacity of several hundred people, so 20 people is very small in these spaces.
Then I put the floor plan in a paint program and made layers for each day. Using this, I was able to ensure two things: each room was adequately used each day, and no more than 20 people would be in a room at one time. For instance, the Highlander tournament exceeded our personal capacity for a room and we split it into two different rooms. So multiple events were running in different rooms at the same time, and no more than 20 people were ever in one of these giant rooms.
Brand New Protocols
We made sure that all of our tables were at least 6 feet apart from all others in every direction, and our tables are 5 feet across. So both players would have to hump the table to be within 6 feet of each other. We ended up with 60 bottles of hand sanitizer so that each table had their own, and each attendee got their own pen for the weekend so there was no sharing.
At great cost to us, we bought tiny Purity Seal stickers with different numbers and colors on them. Each day each player had their temperature checked and they would be marked off on our list. They were also given that day’s sticker to prove they were checked and passed. So you could easily look at anyone and see they had that day’s sticker on their badge.
Of course we also strictly enforced mask wearing, and had a ban list for certain types of masks we deem not good enough. We also had extra free masks for anyone who did not come in with an approved mask and needed one. If that wasn’t enough, we bought rapid COVID tests incase anyone failed the temperature checks.
More New Protocols
Our awards show was reformatted so that I did not shake hands with winners or hand them their trophy like other years, we had all the trophies lined up in order and each person would come up and get their trophies. Unlike other years, we did not have our Chill Out Lounge area with rented couches for obvious reasons. We also wiped down all chairs each day incase people touched them. To be honest, it was a lot of work but everyone did a good job of following the rules and we never had to spread people apart or yell at them for masks not being proper.
I had no less than five people tell me the exact same statement at different times. “I’m so happy you had this, I NEEDED this weekend.”
All The Sexy Sponsors
Sabol Army Transport has been a great sponsor of our event for the last couple years and we are so happy to have them. That brand is my own personal favorite, which is why I reached out to them. They donated 3 FULL TRANSPORTS for our charity raffle! They are the original army transport and the most widely used. Check them out, the owner is a great guy.
Gamemat.eu has been a major sponsor for all 5 years of our event. If you’ve been reading my stuff for a while, you’ll notice I bring them up a lot. I own DOZENS of their mats and just as many terrain sets. The terrain sets come prepainted which is a god send for TOs with lots of tables to fill. Once again, one of the nicest companies I’ve ever met and I’m thrilled to partner up with them.
Panhandle3d is a new sponsor of ours this year, and they came out swinging. They were fast, professional, and courteous the entire time. Pandhandle 3d has multiple printers and got my huge order done quickly. They have a huge stock of licensed files and can print hem for you in several sizes. 100% would recommend. Check them out at
The last person I want to mention is Marauder Industries. They were going to be a vendor but had to cancel so without being asked, they donated a huge box of product for the charity raffle. Everybody was drooling over their Auspex Turn and Score Keeper. Go take a look at what they offer because their stuff is really great. Check this out!
It has dials on the back to change the numbers! My friend Mike won this at the raffle!
So I was going to talk about all of our different events, but thought it might be more interesting to hear about all of our changes we had to make. I’m sure there are a few things I forgot to mention, but this is a nice summary.
Okay, here’s your chance, tell me that I’m the worst person ever for still having it. Hurt. Me. (lights a cigarette)
Hey! This article is brought to you by my top-tier Patreon supporter Mike Cowley!
Thanks Michael, smooches!
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Editor’s Note: Please follow all your local health and safety guidelines for gatherings. Stay safe, wash your hands, wear a mask.
