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Gen Con, North America’s largest tabletop gaming convention, begins in Indianapolis

The four-day convention began on Thursday. It will include a variety of events – including board and card games, roleplaying games, a costume contest, a film festival and more.
The four-day convention began on Thursday. It will include a variety of events – including board and card games, roleplaying games, a costume contest, a film festival and more.

The four-day convention began on Thursday. It will include a variety of events – including board and card games, roleplaying games, a costume contest, a film festival and more.

Some of the show highlights include a block party, a dance party, and a collaborative art project. There will also be a miniature hobby event, which will include contests, workshops and demonstrations on miniature and terrain painting.

There will also be an auction, a consignment store and a blood drive.

Around 70,000 people are expected to attend the convention this year. This is the event’s 20th year in Indianapolis.

Tickets are available  online, and are $70 for Thursday or Friday, $85 for Saturday, and $17 for Sunday. A four-day pass is $135. There is also an online option for those who cannot make it in person.

Organizers behind Gen Con have become more vocal in recent years over policy in Indianapolis – including advocating for the city to  back hotel projects and  voicing concerns over the state’s  near-total abortion ban.

Violet is our daily news reporter. Contact her at  vcomberwilen@wfyi.org or follow her on Twitter at  @ComberWilen.

Violet Comber-Wilen covers stories that affect Hoosiers in all parts of Indiana. She is a recent graduate of the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications (Go Gators!) Before coming to IPB News, she worked at the North Central Florida NPR affiliate, WUFT News and interned for the Tampa Bay NPR affiliate, WUSF Public Media. Comber-Wilen grew up in Pennsylvania and spent most of her adolescent life in South Florida. Outside of work, she Is an avid runner and loves to travel.