EXCERPT
Last year’s dial-back more relaxed unstructured Retreat was a resounding success, bringing together gamers from Malaysia and Singapore for a weekend of (almost) non-stop gaming. This year we rotate back to our (original) semi-competitive format as we get set to host our 9th Retreat this Dec 7-8 at the 3rd Rock from the Sun.
#nomerman #justsharks
FLIP FLIP FLOP back to FLIP
When we crafted the framework for our BGC Retreat back in 2010, “competitiveness” has always been one of the key factors we wanted to imbue into the event, and while the (modified) World Cafe format has evolved slightly over the years, the semi-competitive nature of our Retreats has been one of the attributes most past attendees chose as their highlights of the event.
who attended last year’s BGC Retreat 2018
In recent years as we tried to expand our repertoire to cater to a more diverse group of boardgamers, we found ourselves dipping into the Quasi-Retreat style. While those experiments have largely been “fruitful” – yes we do have a number of attendees sharing they love the more laid-back and less stressful nature of such Retreats – we still feel the Quasi-style lacks certain oomph.
This year we’ll be putting back the sharp intensity that has always been the hallmark of this event. Two days of intense sessions of trying not to drop points or tables. We invite you to come experience the adrenaline of finding, getting, and staying in the Zone.
WHAT
An offsite retreat over one weekend devoted primarily for like-minded boardgamers like yourself to gather and enjoy each other’s company over two (and a half) days of (semi) intense boardgaming!
We’ve booked a hall that’ll be available to us from 9am on Sat till 5pm Sun. We should have the keys to the Hall so technically it’ll be available late into Sat nite, possibly all-nite-long if you got da staying power. 🙂
In order to prevent hungry gamers from chewing on the cardboards, we’ll provide two coffee/tea breaks and lunches daily, and breakfast on Sun morning (so that’s 7 meals over the two-day event). Dinner on Sat evening is on your own.
Here we would like to emphasize one key point. The gaming sessions in our Retreat is unlike going to a GameCon or Meetup, where you can moderate the intensity and duration in which you play, rest or just chill out. In our Retreat, you’ll get to savor the experience of learning, playing, cramming and competing over 7-8 sessions of mid-heavy Euros back-to-back in two days.
You do not rest nor stop. There is no break in the gaming sessions; you simply move from one session to the next. You just game, game and game even more. Leave the resting / chilling till you get home. 🙂
WHEN
Our Retreat is usually scheduled 4-6 weeks post-Essen Spiel so that our latest Essen games can be shipped back on-time for the event. This year’s BGC Retreat shall be held on the weekend of 7th & 8th of December.
Baitul Hilal Complex which houses the Teluk Kemang Observatory
WHERE
The Retreat has always been hosted at some place close by – or at least no longer than 1.5 hrs away by car – to minimize travel time and maximize playing time! We’ve done this at Genting (2010), Port Dickson (2011 & 2014), Bukit Tinggi (2013), Kuala Selangor (2015), Broga (2016 & 2017) and Sepang (2018). For this year’s Retreat, we’ll be returning to Port Dickson and this time, it’s a place where we can take you to Mars and back.
TELUK KEMANG OBSERVATORY
One unique feature of this venue is that it’s home to the famous Teluk Kemang Observatory, reputedly one of the best facilities in this region. It maintains one of the largest and sophiscated 24-in telescope. For a nominal fee, hotel guests can gaze the star or sun thru this telescope. Or maybe just Mars.
WHO
Who is this Retreat suitable for? Our Retreat Persona is someone who loves boardgames – not Monopoly or Risks but Euro games like Terra Mystica, Concordia, Brass, Power Grid among others. You are more than a social or casual gamers – i.e. while you may love to play Splendor, it’s games like Terraforming Mars and Voyages of Marco Polo that scratch your itch. While you do not necessarily have to love Russian Railroads or Dominant Species, it would be helpful if you do since we expect our Retreat participants to be able to sit thru two days of full 8-hours of almost non-stop gaming day (yes, you still get time to take food & bio breaks) and some of the game sessions may last up to 2 hrs per game.
If you feel our Retreat Persona matches you (and have not made you click the Back button yet) and you are excited about trying out the latest Essen Spiel games with a bunch of friendly and at times semi-competitive but always fun gamers, dun wait. Sign up now!
p/s Those who feel the above sessions might be too intense/heavy, our BGC Quasi-Retreat would be a great fit for you. Do check back on us next year when (and if) we flop back to the Quasi-Retreat format.
HOW MUCH?
Standard fees per person (twin sharing room) is RM380 which includes all meals (except dinner on Sat), accommodation, our special BGC Retreat t-shirt and a commemorative door gift direct from Essen Spiel! Getting yourself to/from the venue would be at your own cost and we suggest you to car-pool if possible.
WHAT: BGC Boardgame Retreat 2019 (FB Event Page)
WHERE: Klana Beach Resort, Port Dickson (website)
WHEN: Dec 7 (Sat) 9:00 am – Dec 8 (Sun) 6:00 pm
COST: RM380 per pax including retreat fee, accommodation, meals, Retreat t-shirt and Essen Spiel door gift. Exclude transportation and Sat dinner.
AGENDA (all timings are tentative and will be finalized closer to event date)
Dec 7, Sat
8:45 am – Arrival of gamers & tea break (pls be punctual)
9:00 am – Retreat Briefing
9:15 am – Game Zero starts
9:30 am – Retreat Day One starts
10:30 am – Coffee break
12:30 pm – LUNCH
3:30 pm – Tea break
6:00 pm – Retreat Day One ends
7:00 pm – DINNER (not included in Retreat package)
8:00 pm – Free-n-Easy or After-8 Gaming
10:30 pm – Night Sky Observatory (optional)
Dec 8, Sun
8:30 am – Breakfast
9:00 am – Retreat Day Two starts
10:30 am – Coffee break
12:30 pm – LUNCH
3:30 pm – Tea break
5:00 pm – Retreat Day Two ends
5:30 pm – Closing & Prize giving
What do you get?
- 2.0 days of gaming (Sat: 9am-6pm, Sun: 9am-5pm)
- Accommodation on twin sharing basis
- Four coffee/tea breaks as scheduled, two lunches, one breakfast
- One special edition BGC Retreat 2019 t-shirt
- One special commemorative door gift (from Essen Spiel 2019)
- Opportunity to play the latest Essen Spiel 2018/2019 new games and even some OOP games
- Learn lots of new (and old) games and play with other friendly gamers!
- Opportunity to win exclusive hot prizes from Essen Spiel in our LUCKY DRAW!
What’s not included in the package?
- Your travel to / from the location. If you need help with transport, pls ask us.
- Fine Dining on Saturday (tsk tsk). Dinner is not included so you are also free to take a break and go out for a nice dinner before resuming the evening gaming (or sleep). Or do some stargazing.
- Mosquito repellant (yes pls bring your own unless you are not a mosquito magnet)
BONUS – Generous Discount on Game Purchase
Finally to thank you for your support, all paying Retreat attendees would get to buy one game from our BGC webstore at 40% discount (from retail price)! Click here to check the list of games we currently have in stock. T&C applies.
Note: This discount is valid for 3 months (after the event). Some games from our webstore eg Essen Spiel new arrvals & Kickstarters are excluded from this promo. To qualify for this discount, you need to be a paying participant for this event, and participated the event in full from Sat-Sun. No deserters!! 😛
SPECIAL BONUS – Hot Games & Prize from Essen
Beside getting the chance to have an early testdrive of Essen 2019 releases, there’ll be spot prizes and podium prizes at the end of the Retreat. How does MARCO POLO 2 sound?
AFTER-8 GAMING
Our BGC Retreats are famous for its After-8 Gaming session, which is known to be the “real deal” after a full day of gaming! After-8 Gaming is an closed-door gaming session held after dinner where anyone can bring to the table games that are of longer duration (epic games), out-of-print games and/or those with higher level of complexity. Or just some crazee, fun, party games!
After-8 gaming is self-organized and we leave it to the attendees to decide among themselves what are going to hit the tables (and who’s going to read the rules). It’s also an optional event as some attendees may prefer to have an early night or spend the time on their own.
WHERE DO I SIGN-UP?
To sign-up for this Retreat, please visit our Facebook Event page (link here). Seats will be reserved on a first-come first-served basis subject to receipt of your full payment to our CIMB acct (details below). We’ll close the registration once we hit our optimal target of 24 participants.
GOT QUESTIONS?
If this is your first participation to our Retreat, do check out the Frequently Asked Questions for our BGC Retreat event.
BGC RETREATS IN THE PAST
 BGC Quasi-Retreat 2017 @ Broga Hill |
 BGC Retreat 2015 @ The Kabin |
 BGC Retreat 2014 @ Port Dickson |
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Categories: BGC Retreat, Events
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