ERA retreats are a unique mode of large group tabletop roleplaying. Here’s how it works, and what you can expect when you join the adventure at one of our events.
Our goal is to produce an epic fantasy RPG campaign over the course of a long weekend. We’ll present a concise campaign with a complete character arc for each of our players. You’ll have some people who fight by your side all weekend, and other allies who will cross your path and move on to new adventures. Over the course of the weekend you’ll enjoy a unique character and experience as you play with three veteran gamemasters at exciting tables with high quality miniatures and terrain.
Before The Event
Step 1: Buy your ticket
You can buy a ticket through this website. Your ticket is for an event that spans from Thursday afternoon to Sunday afternoon. Your ticket includes lodging and meals at our venue in the woods of Kentucky. You can elect to share a room or to have a room to yourself.
Step 2: Fill out your survey
We’ll send you an online survey asking you about your preferences (to the email address associated with your ticket). There will be questions about what sort of characters you like to play, what sort of stories and genres you find most thrilling, and so on. We will use your responses to attempt to assign you a character to you that you will enjoy and find a storyline that fits your playstyle. There will also be space on the survey to let us know if you want to play with other attendees, such as your friends, as well as any lodging and dietary concerns.
Step 3: Receive your character
You’ll receive the hero you will be playing in your email several weeks before the event. Your character will be statted out and have a written background.
How the Retreat works
Arrival
When you arrive at our venue, you will check into your room and sign-in to the game. When you sign in, you’ll receive your printed character sheets/character folio, name tags, and a painted miniature of your hero for you to use throughout the weekend.
Pods
You will be in a “pod” with up to two other players, with whom you will adventure throughout the weekend. Your pod will play at tables alongside other pods over the course of the event. You can choose to be in a pod with someone you know, or be assigned to a pod and meet fellow roleplayers.
Fateful Days
A tabletop roleplaying session at an ERA retreat is called a “Fateful Day”. Each fateful day tells the story of a vital, lynchpin adventure in the grand campaign of that retreat. You’ll play in 3 Fateful days during the weekend.
Gatherings
At several points during the retreat, the staff and all the players will congregate for a gathering. A gathering is an address from the gamemasters describing the state of the world, the unfolding of the storyline, and the effects of the heroes’ actions on the plot. Gatherings also set the stage for further exploits and revelations. There will be a gathering before and after every fateful day.
Epic Downtime
In our stories, there are “time jumps” between Fateful Days. Months or years of in-game time will pass between sessions, but our heroes won’t be idle. Epic Downtime is our system that allows you to tell your character’s tale between the world-shaking events of the Fateful Days. You will advance your character, decide what quests or missions they might have been on, and work with other players to investigate plot threads and mysteries. The time alloted for Epic Downtime at the event is also your opportunity to explore the beautiful, natural environs of our venue.
