Possible Game Night at the library?

Submitted by librarian kat(9)

23 November, 2011 - 16:34

Hey,

I'm at librarian at the Hamilton Public Library. I work at Saltfleet in Stoney Creek (on Gray Rd/Queenston) and I somehow came across your gaming group. I'd love to start a monthly board game night or afternoon but I'm definitely not a gaming expert. Would anyone be interested in helping to start a monthly game night at one of our locations?

We'd provide space for you and possibly some games, depending on the location (though we tend to have pretty traditional board games, and no RPG-type games so you might be better off bringing your own!). The only thing we'd ask is that it be an open, public game group that anyone could hang out at.

Naturally I'd love to run a game group at Saltfleet if anyone lives in the area, but if not I can put you in touch with staff at one of our other locations. If you've tried this in the past, let me know. I'm fairly new to the system.

Thanks!

Kat

ps. feel free to email me at kdrennan (at) hpl (dot) ca.

Groups:

Monthly Game Night

Comments

skalchemist13 weeks 9 hours ago

Hi Kat: This is an

Hi Kat:

This is an interesting idea. I wouldn't want to do it solo, but would be interested in working with some others to see if it was feasible.

Hans (skalchemist@yahoo.com)

davedude7713 weeks 8 hours ago

Hi Kat, First off, welcome to

Hi Kat,

First off, welcome to the group. :-)

I would like to help out too but I'm not good at these things. I wouldn't know what to do or where to start. :-) Let me know how I can help and I'll try. I live in Beamsville if that helps in any way.

Dave

Tucktovich12 weeks 6 days ago

Hi Kat

I'd be happy to help out, and I'd love to come play regardless. Let me know what you're thinking timing wise and what sorts of games?

Cheers!

Tucker

librarian kat12 weeks 6 days ago

Thanks so much for the

Thanks so much for the responses & warm welcome! I wasn't thinking of a leading/teaching type of group so much as offering a place for gamers to hang out, something a little different from the usual book clubs that we offer at the library. I think what I'll do is come out to one of your regular game nights and see what sorts of games you're into/the sort of thing that goes on and go from there? It looks like the next one is December 7.

Thanks!

Kat

Mikael12 weeks 5 days ago

HG events at HPL

Hi Kat, and welcome!

I think you'll find that the format we use at the Monthly Game Nights is quite freeform - while specific individuals may informally teach, lead, and/or judge the games when we get started, it's all very organic. The Hammer Games group and this web platform have purposely been set up without a top-down structure, i.e. anyone can join, anyone can attend, anyone can organize and advertise a game session or event using the tools we provide. There are only two places where we draw the line:

You can't organize an event and call it an "official Hammer Games sanctioned event" without endorsement or involvement of Angie and/or myself, the founders of the organization
If the event is not sanctioned or you otherwise do not have explicit approval to post it from us, you may not advertise a commercial venture that you have a personal stake in (i.e. it's perfectly okay if you want to put up an event reminding Hamilton gamers of an upcoming game convention, but it's not okay if you have a personal commercial interest in the convention)

Everything else goes, and neither of the above scenarios would apply in your case - if you wanted to attach the Hammer Games name to the library gaming events, we'd be more than happy to assist with organization and promotion! We've been considering approaching HPL for some time now, I think hobby gaming in libraries is a big deal (there's a big push for it in the US, but no organized efforts in Canada yet from what I've seen) and falls in line very well with the library mission. With respect to Hammer Games' mission (which is poorly documented at this stage, but basically comes out to "promote tabletop gaming as a hobby in the Hamilton area"), the library system would be an excellent vehicle to get some exposure among people who don't hang already hang out in game stores on Friday nights.

I'd love to discuss further at the next game night or whenever is convenient for you. While the games officially start at 7pm, we tend to gather about an hour or so before that to chat, plan out the games for the evening, and enjoy the cafe menu - if you're able to come by a little earlier (maybe around 6pm?) we can discuss face-to-face.