The Simplest Solution

The easiest way to make a gaming table, actually, isn’t to make a gaming table. It’s to make a gaming table topper. Now, I said that those can be expensive, but you don’t even need a full topper. The reason gamers like gaming tables isn’t because the table, the padded rail, and all of that make the games better to play, it’s because it can be hard to pick up cards off of a regular table. You can slide them, but that doesn’t always work. So instead of doing a table topper, a neoprene mat is a great option. One that the cards can sit on for each player, if you are doing something like Magic the Gathering, or a big one if you are playing The 7th Continent. Whatever you decide, it’ll help keep the cards off of the table and make them easier to pick up.

Don’t Go Too Fancy

With this, however, don’t go too fancy. There are a ton of gorgeous looking mats out there, but they are super busy. I have a very nice looking one for Hanamikoji, but it doesn’t get used. Why is that the case? Because, it is too busy. You can’t see the cards on the mat. Now, that doesn’t mean you go with a solid color one, necessarily. Game Toppers, is an example of a company that does artwork on a neoprene play mat right. You see how the design is in more detail on the edge, so as you play in the center of the play mat, you don’t lose pieces or cards on the design of the board. With that said, the plain colored mats also look great, and you don’t have to think as much about theming/look in the room.

But You Really Want a Table?

Okay build a table yourself? Now, you aren’t a woodworker, I’m not a wood worker either. But it isn’t impractical for most people to make themselves a functioning board game table. What are the things you look for in a gaming table? Ease of picking up cards and somewhere safe to set a drink are the two that pop into my head.

The Table

Keep it simple here. All you really need is a large enough table. Where you find it, Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace are both great spots to find a used table set for a reasonable price. This isn’t something you need to go and buy new for, especially since it’ll be getting modified. Instead look for something that is large enough for the games that you have. If you have Gloomhaven, you need a much bigger table than if you play primarily games like Ticket to Ride and Catan. So judge what you need for game play, but also for how much space it takes up in the room. Some spaces can’t accommodate a huge table. You might be playing Gloomhaven, but not be able to fit a Gloomhaven sized table in there. In that case, look for additional things, such as TV trays to help supplement, plus TV trays work well for holding drinks.

Table Surface Options

I already mentioned one with the neoprene mats. But if you picked up a table, you now know your dimensions, and could get one. There are other options a well. For a cheaper option, get some wood staples/stapler and a big thing of felt. Start stapling on one side pulling the felt under the lip to staple it and stretching it as you go. You want to keep the felt tight as you go around so it won’t slide too much. Felt will stretch and get dirty, but you can vacuum is off easily. This won’t be as clean a look as a neoprene mat, but it is much cheaper, especially if you already have the wood stapler or know someone who does.

Drink Holders

Final issue is where do you put your drink. I have coasters that I normally use on my gaming table. But for some people, they want separation between their food/drinks and the game. I get that, I’d prefer not to have wine or beer spilled on a board game. So there are a few options to consider. The first goes back to TV trays. Those are great when it comes to being able to set snack plates on and drinks on. It keeps the drinks completely away from the board game. Or you can get cup holders. Now, some of the fancy tables come with them built in, and you could get nice wooden ones. But I found some that I was going to use that I liked. They were just plastic cup holders that I was going to screw onto the table. They have a little lip to hold onto a rail on a boat, but that set them out far enough that it’d work for a table. Getting 8 of those was cheaper than anything wooden and gave me the distance I needed with the lip of the table.

Start Playing Games

Now, this isn’t going to look as pretty as an actual gaming table. But if you look enough on Craiglist or Facebook Marketplace, you can probably find a solid table and chair set for $100. Even with a neoprene mat and cup holders, you are looking at $300-$500 versus an actual gaming table which is probably going to be thousands. Maybe, eventually, you’ll want to set aside money for one of those, but let me know what creative ways you have made a gaming table.

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Just to quickly talk about the screen, in case anyone wants to know. The screen is about 10′ wide and about 6′ tall. The screen itself came from Amazon, and we sewed loops along each edge that the PVC has been run through. There are 50′ of PVC or so that were used on it, 5 10′ pieces. We set it up so we have the screen extremely taught on the pipes with three feet coming down to steady it as well as running lines, from the top corners to the ground to keep it from flying away. Without the projector and everything the screen itself cost around $50 to make.

But let’s get back to John Wick. This Keanu Reeves action film, has him playing the titular character who has just lost his wife and now has to deal with the mob, whom he was tied into previously, who decided that they want his car. He then goes on a rampage, taking down all the bad guys to get revenge. And that’s loosely the plot with a few other things thrown in. I wouldn’t say that the film has much plot really, it’s basically a reason to get the action going and then letting the action run through out. And that’s what I wanted from the film.

The movie does have one major thing going for it story wise, and it’s long enough ago that this spoiler is fine. John Wick is a former hitman for the mob. They refer to him as a the boogeyman. However, we never see any of that backstory in the film. And I really like this. Going into a John Wick film, you know that he’s going to be a destructive force, it’s an action film with his name on it. But I really like that while everyone else is afraid of him, we don’t get that flashback to explain why. It’s a little bit funny that way, because, we do get it explained, but at the start, we just know that John Wick has people scared of him for some reason.

With that said about they plot, I do think that they got the acting right in the film. They did a good job casting and Keanu Reeves does a good job playing this clinical killer. Adding in actors like Ian McShane and Willem Dafoe to the mix just works well well. We also get Lance Reddick who was one of the characters I liked a lot from Fringe, and he has a great role in the film. Are there any performances that stand out as amazing, I don’t think so, but I don’t think any of the portrayals seem all that odd, they just work well.

This is primarily an action film, as I have said, it doesn’t have a ton of plot or a ton of depth to the plot, I should say. And that’s fine, because we mainly want cool action. So does it deliver on that promise? I would say that it does quite well. We get some well done fight scenes and some nice gun battles. What I like about the action is that you always know what is going on. You don’t get the Bourne movie style where you see one two fingers of a fist connecting with someone’s ear and you’re trying to get figure out what is going on. In John Wick, the action is almost a dance, not overly choreographed, but because all the actions are done for efficiency and lethality. It isn’t a situation where there is much in terms of dragged out fights for the sake of having a long action sequence, you get that only when there is a chase or some reason for it to be like that. The cinematography on the film is also done really well to enhance the fights and give you that almost relaxing feeling with the fights. The fights are also accented by the music that is chosen, which I think all work well.

Overall, how is this movie though? I think that it’s a really enjoyable action film. Is it one of my favorite action films of all time, I’m not so sure about that, but I think they have an interesting world they are working in, I think that they have a well defined style of action that they use really well in the film. I think that the plot could have been tighter, like give me a little bit more reasoning than someone liked his car to set off the action, but I don’t need much more plot for something that is just an action film. I want to see the second one, so that’s a good sign. So I guess, overall, it’s a good action film that gives you what you think it’s going to give you, action and not much in the way of plot.

Overall Grade: B
Critical Grade: B+
Fan Grade: B

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But though I spend a fair bit of time plotting future cosplays, it’s always a long time between events, and a lot of work ends up going into costumes that really, I’ll only spend a few hours wearing. As much as I enjoy going to cons and cosplaying, sometimes it’s fun to have something that I can get a little more mileage out of.

What am I talking about? Why, everyday cosplay, of course! Simply put, it’s a way to rep your favorite stories and characters during a normal day — to subtly (or not-so-subtly, if you choose) show your geeky pride, just for the sheer joy of it.

There are tons of ways to incorporate casual cosplay into a regular day–ways that go beyond just wearing a t-shirt with your favorite superhero on it (though that’s always great fun too). You can go subtle with clever jewelry, like this Divergent-inspired necklace:

Or a little bolder:

You can wear an accent piece that can be covered or shown at will:

Or go all out and put together an outfit inspired by your favorite character’s look:

And you can even take it one step further and decorate your house with nerdy swag:

These are just a few ways to incorporate fandom love into your everyday environment. Don’t wait until the next convention to bring the magic of your favorite stories to life in the real world — carry a little piece of that magic with you all day!

What’s your favorite way to engage in everyday cosplay? Share with us below!

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