Lobstercon 2024: More Than a Feeling
If you have never been to an Old School event in the States, Lobstercon is a good place to start. Simply put, I loved Boston. Thank you Dave and Jared. Thank you NEOS and friends. Here are some pictures and remarks to get that FOMO going.
First beer at the airport in Helsinki (how it started)
After 13 hours of travel, you get to see some friends at the local watering hole (Moogy's). Some crazy enough to play magic.
Chili Dog in Boston. If you know, you know.
Taking in the freedom.
We stayed at Cambridge, Harvard. I find this funny, as our family will most likely live in Oxford for a while in the near future.
We toured the Harvard Museum of Natural History like a couple of geeks. Is that Marjhan for 5UU?
Had to decide on a PM 75 so we played a couple games of RG Goblins vs. TerraGeddon in our Airbnb. I had an extensive maybeboard with me and decided to switch the heavier red splash for blue and main Meddling Mages for Werebear. Also two blue blasts were added to the side. I just wanted some more help against unfair magic and strong cards like Replenish, Dreadnought, Oath and whatnot. Werebears were underperforming all the time and the switch didn't really seem to affect my aggro matchups.
Thursday was about more beer, friends and some ante+cube. Here Svante is relentlessly beating me in Alpha to Alliances Ante or "AAA".
Some guys were testing a new game, there is a lot of buzz and people think that it has potential!
Dante was a perfect venue for this huge event. 238 players for the PM main Friday and 243 players for the OS main Saturday. Overall these community driven formats seem to be still growing and events are selling out left and right (especially in Old School). It is evident that we are doing something good together and the fun is infectious. I don't know wheres the roof at, other than most TO's have a set venue and plans with a hard cap. Running huge events is a lot of work.
..and just like that I bumb into a couple of witches. These guys were really into Satan.
I was flying high and feeling good at 4-0, then I played against some guy named Brian Selden. A little fanboy moment and what do you know, he was really nice and cool to play with as most people. Two more Stasis matchups after this and I finished 5-3 and 40th place.
I was there for the bachata.
Here I am not shopping for these, but about to shop with them.
With no experience in Atlantic Old School, I just took Wheel's advice and list, then did some dirty things to them. The experience was interesting. I hated the r1 shops mirror that went to time and I ultimately lost on flips. Then I did shops things for several rounds, lost to the highest unpowered finishing black deck that just hymned and twisted me to oblivion otp two times for 1-2 and the Deck that just choked me 0-2 in the last round. Whaddayaknow that is another 5-3 finish and 43th place. Next time I would play something more aggressive, that is how I roll (I loved Jens shops with burn).
From what I have heard the weekend raised over 20k for Room to Grow and a bunch of needed items. I think we all won. Here they are about to announce the winner of Susan Van Camp original painting.
Friendly fire! You travel all the way to play each other. Watchout, this guy was very hostile, rude and salty.
This was not a safe space. This guy was going on and on about some game called "the sauna gollum". Sounded like he was trying to trick me into some sexual stuff. Boundaries people!
I think in the end Mario took it. The man is a gem. Very friendly and made me feel like I was at my local joint shooting shit at the counter.
On Sunday we decided to do the freedom trail. Lots of historic locations within a reasonable walking distance.
I think Boston was beautiful and had good vibes all around.
Yeah, so the event had a bunch of original artist that I got sigs from. Maddocks, Meyer, Van Camp and Wackwitz. I also got my Swedish reprints legal p9 completed, won 7th ed. Booster in the raffle, traded for new patches, am haunted by Selden and so on..
The ending at Warren Tavern on Freedom Trail (how's it going). Hope to see you guys soon!