Our 10th season of Windy City Weasels Diplomacy opens Wednesday night at the Red Lion in Lincoln Square. Hoping to bounce back from a down year for recruiting — we only recruited 21 new Weasels last year, our lowest total ever — we decided to cross-post the event in the huge Chicago Game Lovers Meetup group. A whopping 12 people responded to the invite.
In all, we’re expecting 21 people for Opening Night. If everyone shows, that means three boards, but with so many new faces, we’re expecting a smaller turnout. More than likely, we’ll have two boards with a few vets on hand to coach the newcomers.
Should be a fun night. The games will begin at 6:30 p.m. and end no later than 11. It’s not too late to join us.
It’s time to get regular, Weasels! Starting in October, the second Wednesday of every month will be Red Wednesday at the Red Lion. Make your plans now to join us for dinner, drinks and Diplomacy on the second Wednesday of every month. We look forward to seeing you on Oct. 8 and Nov. 12 and Dec. 10 and, well, you get the idea. Red Wednesdays! See you there.
Loktoberfest
As mentioned last month in our sneak peek at Season 10, we plan to experiment with week-night, bar-style house games this year. The first of these will be Oct. 2 at Peter Lokken’s home in Logan Square. Apparently we’re on to something with this idea because the game filled in three days and attracted two more first-time Weasels. Watch the site for more opportunities to play bar-style games in the comfort of people’s homes.
Everybody Jump the Queen!
Also in the sneak peek, we talked about playing outdoors in the Chess Pavilion at North Avenue Beach. We’re planning to do that on Sept. 21, the penultimate day of summer. We have four signed up, maybe five. Help us pull this game off by signing up. The Chess Pavilion is in a great spot on the lakefront path. Historic building, cool location, and an opportunity to show off our game while enjoying one final day at the beach.
The game will start at 11 a.m. and end no later than 4:30. Check out the link below for a short film about the Chess Pavilion. Then join us on Sunday, Sept. 21. We’ll start play at 11 a.m. and end no later than 4:30.
Dip begins at Conception
If our schedule looks a little city heavy, that’s because it currently is. The Undercard at the Weasel Royale on Nov. 1 is our only scheduled house game in the burbs. However, there will be an opportunity to play Dip out west on Sept. 27. Tony Prokes once again will evangelize at the Conception game convention at the College of DuPage. He will host a teaching game at 9 a.m. on September 27 until no later than 1 p.m. Veterans are welcome, but this game will be an exhibition, which means it will not count in the league standings.
Then at 2 p.m., Tony will host a standard league game. That one will end no later than midnight, as the con closes up then. Conception does charge a $15 registration fee, so keep that in mind. And don’t worry, we will schedule more suburban house games at some point.
Your Feedback Needed!
Your tournament committee is starting to plan for next year’s Weasel Moot IX and beyond, and we’d like your feedback. Please take a couple of minutes to complete our short survey. You can access the survey here or through SurveyMonkey.
Hosts Needed
We’d like to schedule some house games for the Fall, including one that will be a tablet game hosted by webdiplomacy.net. (B.Y.O. Device.) If you’d like to step up and host a game for the club, please email me off the list.
Upcoming Games
- September 10 at the Red Lion in Lincoln Square, beginning at 6:30 until no later than 11. Have 21. Could use a few more just in case people don’t show. And if they do, we can get you in as we’d like to free three or four of us to serve as instructors for all the new players.
- September 21 at the Chess Pavilion at North Avenue Beach, beginning at 11 a.m. until no later than 4:30. Have four (or maybe five?). Three (maybe two?) more needed.
- September 27 at Conception at the College of DuPage, novice game from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; standard club game from 2 p.m. until no later than midnight. Have 1 for each. How ’bout it, suburban Weasels? Who wants to play?
- October 2 at Peter Lokken’s home in Logan Square, beginning at 6:30 until no later than 11. Full. Standbys needed.
- October 8 at the Red Lion in Lincoln Square, beginning at 6:30 until no later than 11. Have three. Four more needed.
- November 1, the Undercard Game at the Weasel Royale, beginning at 11 a.m. at Dan Burgess’ home in Downers Grove. Have five. Two more needed.
- November 12 at the Red Lion in Lincoln Square, beginning at 6:30 until no later than 11. Have one. Six more needed.
Sign up for games here, on Meetup, or by emailing me (jimthegrey1013@yahoo.com).
Important Dates
- September 10: The Season 10 Opener at the Red Lion.
- November 1: The Weasel Royale and Undercard Game at Dan Burgess’ home in Downers Grove.
- Remember, the second Wednesday of every month is Red Wednesday at the Red Lion. These games are scheduled through 2015 and will always start at 6:30 p.m. and go until no later than 11, so get ’em on your calendar.
Dues
Finally, a big Weasel thank you to the 29 people who paid club dues for 2014. Their support makes so much of what we do possible: The Meetup site, the website, our annual club awards, and the awards for the Royale and the Bar Room Brawl. Thanks, Guys!
That’s all for this week. See you at Opening Night! I’ll be one of the eight people you’ll recognize…
Jim
