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These policies keep the weekend fun, safe, and legal (and keep the venue happy with us). They apply to everyone: designers, playtesters, artists, professionals, publishers, sponsors, guests, volunteers, and staff.
Attendees must follow instructions and direction given to them by a Protospiel staff member or a venue employee. Failure to do so may result in expulsion from the convention without a refund.
The details are below.
These policies are to protect your health, the health of your fellow attendees, and the health of the people you will return to in your own home and community. Please help us prevent the spread of "con crud" and other contagious illness at our event.
Do not attend if you feel sick. If you become sick before or during the convention, please contact us to request a refund. If you exhibit symptoms of contagious illness, a Protospiel staff member may instruct you to leave.
We encourage all attendees to stay current with influenza and COVID vaccinations and boosters.
Social distancing will not be enforced. Masks are welcome but not required.
We encourage fist bumps as a more hygienic alternative to handshakes.
Badges - Your badge must be worn and visible at all times when you are in any of the convention areas.
Convention Areas - We are allowed the use of the Iroquois Ballroom, public 1st floor halls, and the parking lot. Do not wander outside those areas unless you have a room reservation.
Prohibitions - The following are not allowed in the building: open flames, confetti. Any form of smoking or vaping is not allowed in the building. Alcohol is not permitted in the public areas of the building except the venue's serving areas.
Food and Drink - We provide coffee, drinks, and snacks at scheduled times during the convention (check the home page for the details), and you don't need to bring money for them. Beyond that, you may not bring your own food, or have it delivered to the convention space. Additional food and beverages can be purchased from the food service locations on the premises. If a medical or dietary need makes this difficult, contact us in advance and we'll work something out.
Parking - Abundant free parking is available to the west of the building.
Minors and Guardians - Attendees under 18 need their own badge (Player, Designer, or Artist / Professional) and must be supervised at all times. When you register, we'll ask whether the attendee is under 18 and for a guardian's name. A parent or guardian attending with a minor can get a free Guardian Pass. Guardians are here to support their minor, and may join a game their minor designed or coach them in another designer's game. To play on your own, you'll need your own Player badge.
Service Animals are permitted, but other animals are not allowed without prior consent from Protospiel staff and the venue.
No Sales - Protospiel is for getting feedback and making connections, not for selling. Selling products at the event is not allowed, and that includes the Artist and Professional tables. If your game is published and available for sale, please leave it at home.
Lost or Stolen Items - Protospiel is not responsible for lost or stolen items.
Table space is limited, so be generous with it. There are a few kinds of tables, and each works a little differently:
Announcing when you'll run your game - Designers can tell us when they plan to run their game, so players know when to find them. That's a public schedule, not a table claim: announcing a time doesn't hold a play table for you. When your time comes, grab any open table. If you need a guaranteed spot, book a reserved block.
A few rules apply to every table:
Megagames - If your playtest requires more than one table and/or eight players, please contact us in advance so we can discuss how to schedule, promote, and recruit for your playtest.
No attendee shall harass a guest, staff member, volunteer, another attendee, or other individual present in the venue. Any such behavior may lead to expulsion from the convention and revocation of your badge without refund. The convention reserves the right to remove any individuals or signage it considers offensive or in disagreement with its policies and philosophy, including any promotion of hate, religious/anti-religious proselytization, unauthorized solicitation, anti-feminism, or similar.
Harassment includes offensive verbal comments related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, political affiliation, body appearance, race, religion, or gender identity; sexual images in public spaces; deliberate intimidation; stalking; following; harassing photography or recording; inappropriate physical contact; and unwelcome sexual attention. Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately.
If you, as an attendee, feel harassed, ask the offender to stop the harassing behavior immediately. If you are not comfortable doing this, you may contact a Protospiel staff member who will address the concern.
If you want to be here, we want you with us. Our goal is to provide a safe and inclusive space for gamers of all kinds, to encourage the growth of game design and gaming as hobbies for everyone.
We celebrate all races, ethnicities, body types, genders, sexual identities, and persons with all ranges of abilities and ability challenges. While this list of identities is not complete or perfect, we function with a spirit of inclusiveness.
We believe that a diverse range of experiences and perspectives is absolutely necessary in building a thriving and healthy gaming community. We welcome you to share your perspective and experiences with us.
Protospiel staff members may take photos of you and your prototypes, and use such photos to promote the event. They will not interrupt playtest sessions to ask permission. You may ask that such photos not be taken or shared, and we will attempt to comply.
Registration and payment are handled through Tabletop.Events, which has its own privacy policy. We have access to the information you give us when you register, answer questions at checkout, or contact us. We use it to run the event and to get in touch with you about it. We will not sell or rent your information to anyone.
We do use a few services to run things and make for a smoother experience.
The external services have their own privacy policies. Beyond these tools, we will not share your information with any third party.
Unless you ask us not to, we may contact you via email in the future to tell you about future events or changes to this privacy policy.
We ask that all attendees of Protospiel not attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by ignorance. Make new friends, game with enthusiasm, and enjoy the convention!