ConFABulous offers a single high quality track of programming of interest to LGBTQ+ fans of fantasy and science fiction, comics, horror, and gaming.
Take a look below at our growing list of panels for 2024! If you are interested in being on a panel, please reach out to programming@confabulous.org.
Friday, October 11, 2024
5:00 PM - 5:30 PM
Welcome to ConFAB!
Panelists: Don Kaiser
Whether you are a first time attendee or a veteran ConFABulous attendee, please stop by and we'll do some quick introductions to each other and the convention.
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
D&D is 50 Years Old!
Panelists: Don Kaiser, David Paschall-Zimbell
A retrospective – Are any players old enough to remember D&D’s initial release? Do you have favorite stories from a beloved decade, starting with the 1970s? Join us to talk about the days gone by, and the future that begins with the Next Release.
7:15 PM - 8:15 PM
Joe Talks About TV
Panelists: Joe Agee
A variation on a ConFABulous tradition, Joe Agee talks about recent shows.
8:30 PM - 9:30 PM
NOT D&D
Panelists: David Paschall-Zimbel
A discussion of the state of TTRPGs that are not Dungeon & Dragons. Games without a GM, alternates, solo gaming (Captain's Log), minigames, source material.
9:45 PM - 10:45 PM
Dungeon Sex! Relationships in RPGs
Panelists: Don Kaiser
An attempt was made to codify sexual encounters in earlier editions of Dungeons & Dragons, and, more and more TTRPGs are inviting characters to consider roleplaying intimacy. (Thirsty Sword Lesbians has mechanics for flirting and enticing.) Let's talk (dirty?) about how all this works and what safety and consent rules we use!
Saturday, October 12, 2024
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
World Building for RPGs
Panelists: David Paschall-Zimbel, James Satter
How do you create a world using the ruleset you’ve chosen to run a game? Does 1930s noir seem exciting? Adventures across the multiverse? How do you select genres, create monsters and NPCs, and decide the difficulty level of a campaign?
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Ask a DM
Panelists: Don Kaiser
A ConFABulous favorite returns! Ask our GMs anything, but the focus is on running good games. An AME with our panel of experts on running RPGs.
1:45 PM - 2:45 PM
What Have You Been Reading in 2024?
Panelists: NC Gaylaxian Members, including Don Kaiser
Did you know that the Twin Cities hosts a very active monthly book club reading and discussing fantasy, SF, horror, and comics by LGBTQ+ authors and/or with LGBTQ+ themes? We’ll start by sharing the high and low notes about what the North Country Gaylaxians Book Club has been reading together in 2024, and then expand to see what others have been reading!
4:15 PM - 5:15 PM
Running an RPG Using a Virtual Tabletop (VTT)
Panelists: Don Kaiser
Virtual Tabletops (VTTs) have been with us for over a decade, but they really came into their own during the COVID lockdowns. Now with more and more games being run either entirely remotely or as a hybrid, and professional game masters running their games on the various VTT platforms, how have these changed your gaming groups? Do you run games on VTTs? If so, which VTT do you use and why? Do you have gamers from other states or even other countries in your VTT game? Let’s talk about how VTTS have changed the way we play RPGs.
Sunday, October 13, 2024
11:15 AM - 12:15 PM
Fan Fiction
Panelists: David Paschall-Zimbel
Let’s talk about the origins of fan fiction and the emergence of Archive of Our Own and other current platforms. When did you start reading/writing? Have you met or joined friends online? What are your favorite fandoms? What place does fan fiction hold in our lives?
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Danger Twinks and Mutant Pansexuals Everywhere!
Panelists: TBD
Have you seen silver-haired Astarion, the danger twink from Baldur’s Gate, vamping it up in someone’s feed? How has Deadpool become everyone’s favorite pansexual after his new movie? What’s the appeal of the danger twink? Are pansexuals finally having their moment?