THE 16th annual Conclave Games Convention in Thomond Park this weekend will again attract people from all across Europe for this Limerick run gathering.
Participants in the Conclave Games will compete for national and European gaming titles while the Convention will also feature stands hosted by traders from all over Ireland and some of the world’s biggest games manufacturers, such as Mantic Games, Airfix, Games Workshop and Ironwind Productions.
This year all board gaming at Conclave will be organized and run by the Limerick Knaves. The Knaves are a long running, Limerick-based board gaming group with 500 years of gaming experience between them.
According to organiser Garry Jackson of The Gathering Games Store in Limerick, this year’s games will include the DreadBall Irish Nationals, collectable card games and a model painting competition.
“This year sees gaming groups and gamers from all Ireland, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Poland, Germany, Holland and from throughout Scandinavia coming to attend. The UK based Mantic Games Company will host the DreadBall Irish Nationals while Martin Sweeney of Scottish based Catalyst will run the Battletech European Championships.”
Garry adds, “The hugely popular Games Workshop Warhammer and Lord of the Rings will also feature. The Dreadball Nationals and Netrunner Conclave Tournament will be contested.”
The Convention began in 1999 as a gathering for various gaming and hobby groups in Limerick to host an event encompassing. The first convention was held in Halle Ide on Thomas Street. Garry Jackson told Limerick Post that this year’s event at Thomond Park wouldn’t be possible without the support of and participation of many local groups, including the Limerick Historical Gaming Society, Limerick Modellers Club, The Knaves Boardgaming Club and The Gathering Gaming Club and the support of local businesses.
This year’s Conclave Charity Event is the ‘Flick to Kick’ Subbuteo Challenge, with all proceeds going to the Sunshine and Rainbow Children’s Wards at Limerick regional hospital. For those of us familiar with Subbuteo, it’s a case of retrieving your favourite team from the attic, dusting the cobwebs off the box cover and preparing to relive past glories from the days before the digital console age of Playstation and X-Box.
The Conclave Games Convention happens at Thomond Park and runs on Saturday June 21 and Sunday June 22.
