Conpulsion is the oldest gaming convention in Scotland, hosted by the Edinburgh University Roleplaying Society (GEAS) annually in Teviot Student Union, Edinburgh. It predominantly features role-playing games and live action role-playing games, but also includes wargames, board games, collectible card games, and non-collectible card games. The convention also has a strong focus on giving money to charity, in a similar vein to many Irish conventions.
History Conpulsion began in 1987 as Dungeon Aid, in a nod to Band Aid and Live Aid, with the intent to raise money for charity through gaming. After the first few years it was renamed Big Con, then later Conpulsion in 1995. After growing gradually in popularity through the late 80s and 90s the convention moved from The Pleasance buildings to Teviot in 1999, where it has been held since.
The 2005 event played host to the launch of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition.
In 2012, Conpulsion began "themeing" the event, starting with Apocalypse in reference to the Mayan Apocalypse predicted for December that year. This continued in 2013 with Espionage, 2014 with Innovation, and 2015 with Overboard. The 2015 closing ceremony announced the theme for 2016 would be Underworld.
Banquo Award Starting in 2004, and annually since 2007, Conpulsion has hosted the award ceremony for the Banquo Award, which recognises those encapsulating the "Spirit of Scottish Gaming".
+ Winners Name Year Morgan Davie 2004 John Wilson 2007 Janet Kerr 2008 Malcolm Craig 2009 Sean Maguire 2010 Sandy Douglas 2011 Paul Bourne 2012 Craig Oxbrow 2013 Sophia George 2014 Gregor Hutton 2015 Iain Lowson 2016 Phil Harris 2017 Hugh Hancock 2018 Jon Hodgson 2019 Bez Shahriari 2020 Dave Allsop 2021 David Wright 2022 Tanya Floaker 2023
Griffie Awards Since 2012, Conpulsion has annually presented two awards for the best RPG and best Board/Card Game released in the past year, voted on by attendees.
+ RPG Winners Game Publisher Year Dark Harvest: Legacy of Frankenstein Cubicle 7 2012 Dungeon World Sage Kobold Productions 2013 Mindjammer Mindjammer Press 2014Pirates & DragonsCakebread & Walton2015 (joint)Call of Cthulhu 7th EditionChaosium2015 (joint)
+ Board/Card Game Winners Game Publisher Year Ora et Labora Lookout Games 2012 Android: Netrunner Fantasy Flight Games 2013 Eldritch Horror Fantasy Flight Games 2014 (joint) Mascarade Repos Production 2014 (joint)Frankenstein's BodiesYAY! Games2015Astral Peaceformat 152016
Reception In a review of the 2014 Conpulsion in Black Gate, M Harold Page said "Conpulsion always feels like a place rather than a fleeting confluence of people, a home to anybody who knows that there are more kinds of dice than six-sided ones. I'll certainly be back next year and plan to spend as much time gaming as possible."
Sources
External links Official Website