HMGS CYBER WARS 2020: A Virtual Convention 23-26 July 2020

July 15, 2020 | Mitch Reed | Gaming

Like many of you, I am just missing conventions. Many events I looked forward to each year have been canceled due to the pandemic.

Who knows when we will all be able to congregate again.

The folks at HMGS came up with a great idea; why not hold an online convention. That is how got started.

Now a week out, and the event is shaping up to be a good one that features gaming, speakers, shopping, and contests starting Thursday 23 July and concluding Sunday 26 July.

What is an online convention? Well in the case of Cyber Wars it the same experience you would have had if you attended the actual event, minus the hotel beds the crowds, and the inevitable case of Con-Crud. (Con-Crud is not recommended in the age of Covid-19).

For this event, you can play in games that were made to be played online, listen to some amazing speakers, and even “leave” with bags full of toys from the vendor hall without leaving your house. All the FREE events will be online. In most cases, you will not need to download anything to participate in the event.

Roundtable

We here at NDNG jumped on this and we were able to grab a lot of amazing speakers that you can listen to and even ask them those burning questions you have been dying to ask. It took us all of four days to book these speakers; the willingness of the community really made this an easy task. Our speakers cover a wide range of topics and we are lucky to have game influencers, game developers and gamers who support the military. Some of the interesting speakers are;

  • Benerson Little: Author and Historian who specializes on the golden age of piracy and is the historical backbone of games like Blood and Plunder, Oak and Iron and the TV show Black Sails
  • Maj Scott Roach: Wargamer for the Canadian DND who will give a demo of a wargame his team developed on Vassal to game a military response to a pandemic
  • Paolo Paglianti: Besides being one of our best writers, Paolo works for the video game company Slitherine/Matrix and he will talk about all the great and upcoming games from his company
  • Liz Davidson: Liz is the power behind and knows everything about solo gaming. She also hosts an amazing podcast which I have been on
  • Leadership and Developers from Battlefront, Warlord Games, Plastic Soldier Company, and Firelock games, can you say spoilers?
  • Professional gamers like Matt Caffrey (USAF/author “On Wargaming) Phil Bolger (USAF/OSD gaming) and Sebastian Bae who teaches wargaming at Georgetown University

Check out the link to see the times and to reserve a spot or just to check out the events.

Gaming 

What would a gaming con be without games? Cyber Wars will feature two and a half days of gaming that you can do from your living room. I sat down with the developers and they are taking advantage of the fact that the con is virtual and putting mechanics into the game such as fog of war and realistic command and control. If you do not want to play, most of the games will be streamed so you can watch and cheer for your favorite faction/player/entity. To sign up for one of these events just click right . Or talk with the GMs about the gaming events before you commit .

Shopping

Another con staple is the shopping and Cyber Wars has a vendor hall with some big names in attendance and some will offer special convention discounts. If you want to hit the vendor hall just go .  Another staple of HMGS events is Wally’s Basement where you can get some great deal on used games and miniatures, to shop at Wally’s you can click here.

Painting

Like many of you, I have been doing a lot of painting during the lockdown and at times I just lack the motivation to head to my painting table. HMGS can re-motivate you and Cyber Wars will have a virtual hobby room where you can get tips from some of the greats when it comes to painting and modeling. To check this out just click .

..and More

Cyber Wars will also have a spotlight on, a place to buy , painting contests, and a place just to hang out and chat with fellow gamers. For more info just hit the .

Still unsure?  Well, check out the Podcast link below. I recorded it with HMGS and we preview all the fun events at Cyber Wars. Well while I won’t see you at the event I hope you can attend and have a great time.