Rules

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1.LoBsterCon Rules

• 1a. Respect other people’s space.

• 1b. Respect other people’s time.

• 1c. Win with honour, and lose with dignity.

• 1d. Trust each other—and always strive to be worthy of that trust.

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2. LoBsterCon Exclusions
 

• 2a. Serious violations of these rules, upheld after investigation, will lead to disinvitation to future LoBsterCon events.

• 2b. Some examples could be:

  • Intentionally entering someone's personal space without consent

  • Verbal abuse of other attendees

  • Theft

  • Bringing LoBsterCon into disrepute or otherwise harming the prospects for future LoBsterCon events

• 2c. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list

• 2d. The decision of the Organisers in these cases will be final.​​

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Policies

3. The Ground floor is “game free” overnight

• 3a. The ground floor (aka the floor with reception, Coniston, Derwent and dining rooms) must be left “game free” overnight. This is to discourage interlopers who may see interesting things through the window and also enable the hotel staff to repurpose rooms easily.

• 3b. This includes bags of games, individual games and any game left on a table (per 4a)

• 3c. Any unattended games found in these areas will be relocated to the games library by the night staff. In the unlikely event that any games are left set up in these areas overnight, they will be packed away by the night staff before moving. Therefore, please do not leave games out in these areas as pieces may get lost/damaged in the process.

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4. Games left out overnight

• 4a. If you may be unable to finish your game in time for bed - and we always encourage a good night’s sleep - please ensure you are playing on downstairs tables (see 3b) and that those tables are as far from the windows onto the street as possible

• 4b. The Organisers will mark acceptable tables for this purpose on the event maps

• 4c. Any games left elsewhere will be packed away by hotel staff and moved to the library (per 3c)

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5. The Game Library is public storage

• 5a. If you place any game into the room with the LoBsterCon game library, it is considered available for any attendee to use freely.

• 5b. The game library should not be used to store bags full of hidden games so you can keep them conveniently close. Please return these bags to your rooms.

• 5c. You should not “queue” a pile of games from the library.  Please only take one game from the library at a time and return it before choosing another

• 5d. If you wish to retain use of a game for yourself, or are unwilling to have unknown people playing your property, please instead store it in your hotel room - even if this is at a different hotel. 

• 5e. If you are taking a game from the game library, ensure you treat it carefully and with respect

• 5f. Any damage or losses to someone’s game should be remunerated or replaced appropriately

• 5g. For the sake of clarity, LoBsterCon as an entity does not accept liability for any loss or damage caused to games brought to the event

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6. Standards of dress and hygiene

• 6a. Please ensure that the comfort of your fellow attendees is paramount in your mind. 

• 6b. To this end, we are explicitly asking that all attendees maintain a standard of dress and personal hygiene that you would expect in a public place whilst in all gaming areas, including wearing socks and shoes at all times

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7. The Derwent Room is now a quiet space

• 7a. Following recent changes, LoBsterCon is fortunate enough to have plenty of gaming rooms. Therefore, following attendee feedback, we are making a dedicated Quiet Space available in the Derwent Room (behind reception). 

• 7b. Whilst there are undoubtedly some players who would simply prefer a quiet atmosphere as standard, the con as a whole is a mixed gamer space and no formal rules regarding behaviour are in place. However, for those people living with anxiety or similar conditions, the availability of the Derwent as a formally quiet space could help make their weekend experience a positive one. These individuals should be given priority use of this room, where practical.

• 7c. Organisers are not expected to act as social referees; the expectation is that attendees will respect this quiet space without any need for formal oversight (See 1a & 2a)

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8. All left items will be treated as hotel lost property

• 8a. As of LC28, if games or any other property are left at the hotel, they will be passed to the Hotel to deal with as per their lost property procedures. 

• 8b. Please contact the hotel directly to arrange for the return of any lost property

• 8c. No items will be stored by the Organisers between events.

• 8d. Unclaimed games are likely to be given to charity.

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9. Lost pieces

• 9a. There is one exception to the left items rule. 

• 9b. There will be a Spring bag and an Autumn bag for found pieces. 

• 9c. At the end of the Autumn Con the Spring bag will be emptied and vice versa. 

• 9d. Pieces emptied from these bags will be moved on, either to a spare parts reseller, for charity, or into the bin.

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10. We actively encourage and protect “Pre-Game” talk

• 10a. Guidance for good pre game discussions has its own page, found here

• 10b. Attendees should feel encouraged and safe discussing their play style and expectations

• 10c. These requests and expectations should be respected (see 1b)

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11. Raffle

• 11a. Prizes are selected at the organisers’ discretion

• 11b. No substitutions or monetary alternatives are available

• 11c. Each attendee will be given a single entry to the raffle for free

• 11d. Volunteers on reception or running events will be given one additional entry to the raffle

• 11e. Regardless of the number of entries, the maximum number of prizes each individual attendee may claim is limited to one.

• 11f. Where prizes are hidden or uncertain, a rough indication of their potential contents should be given to attendees before claims begin.

• 11g. If there is no raffle prize that is of interest, attendees should feel free to decline any prize rather than taking it from the table only to leave it behind, later.

• 11h. The raffle is drawn by hand after the entries are mixed as well as is possible

• 11i. To keep the run time down, another name will be called as soon as the previous winner reaches the table of prizes - so quick decisions will be needed!

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12. Only Assistance dogs (or other pets) permitted in gaming areas

• 12a. Regardless of individuals’ agreements with the hotel, the games areas are a dog free zone to all but assistance dogs. 

• 12b. Attendees with assistance dogs should make Organisers aware in advance of any such canine companions.

• 12c. Not wanting to be playing at the same table where your assistance dog will be is considered a protected pregame discussion condition (per 10c).

• 12d. To keep it relevant to existing requests, we have used dogs as our example. For clarity and to avoid disappointment, these rules extend to all pets (including dragons).

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13. This is an event designed for adults

• 13a. There is no childcare available at LoBsterCon

• 13b. There are no designated child-appropriate areas

• 13c. Children must be accompanied by responsible adults at all times

• 13d. The Organisers cannot, and will not, make any concessions for children

• 13e. There is always a risk of your child hearing language or seeing games with themes that may not be appropriate for them, LoBsterCon as an entity does not accept liability for this.

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14. These policies and rules also apply to Organisers

• 14a. Potential Organisers should carefully read and agree to comply with these rules before taking the position

• 14b. Organisers committing serious violations of LoBsterCon rules will be treated exactly the same as regular attendees.

• 14c. Where there is ambiguity, a simple majority vote of Organisers is sufficient to exclude such an Organiser from future events.

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15. Dutch Auction (see also here)

• 15a. Definition of Lot: A set of items to be sold together

• 15b. Definition of Items: Each game box is a single item. 

• 15c. If expansions are included in the same box as the base game, that box counts as a single item towards the limit

• 15d. A reserve price must be set for each lot before the auction begins

• 15e. A reserve price cannot be changed after the auction begins

• 15f. The auction will not be delayed while awaiting seller decisions on lot creation or reserve prices

• 15g. By entering a lot into the auction you are consenting to that lot being sold at the listed reserve price if no higher price is bid

• 15h. By bidding on a lot you are agreeing to immediately pay that price for the lot

• 15i. LoBsterCon will not reserve lots for future payment under any circumstances.

• 15j. Lots cannot be split after the start of the auction

• 15k. Lots cannot be split before the start of the auction if this brings your total number of lots over the per person limit.

• 15l. A lot cannot be withdrawn after bidding has started on that lot

• 15m. Purchased lots become your property in their entirety immediately upon payment and no part of any lot should ever be left behind at the hotel if unwanted. This is littering! 

• 15n. Unclaimed lots will not be held by LoBsterCon and must be claimed either by the buyer, or the owner (if unsold) before the end of the event. 

• 15o. Any unclaimed lots will be donated to charity after the end of the current event

• 15p. LoBsterCon will not hold items bought at the dutch auction until a future event, for instance where it is difficult to get the item home - you must determine whether you can transport the purchased item before bidding (per 8c)

• 15q. The decisions of the auction team are final

• 15r. Proceeds will be distributed to sellers either in cash or by bank transfer at the discretion of the auction team

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16. Food

• 16a. Whilst engaging with the menu at the hotel greatly improves our relationship and the sustainability of LoBsterCon, there is no expectation that attendees will eat their lunches and dinners at the hotel. 

• 16b. In the unlikely event of any pressure being placed on you by anyone to buy from the hotel, please report this to the Organiser on duty.

• 16c. While the hotel is serving food (please confirm service times with the hotel on each visit, as they may change), consuming food brought from outside is not permitted in the venue’s public areas.

• 16d. You may, of course, consume food brought from outside in your room at any time.

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17. Hotel Booking

• 17a. While individual rooms can be booked, final room allocation is at the discretion of the hotel and LoBsterCon organisers

• 17b. Last minute changes may affect room availability and facilities leading to an enforced change