June 15, 2015:  Year 5; Edition 13
COUNTDOWN TO NOVA OPEN

63 DAYS UNTIL THE NOVA OPEN 2015!

(This large newsletter may be clipped in your browser; if so, select "view entire message" at bottom of newsletter.)
In This Issue:
BATTLE FOR CRAFTWORLD:
Sons of Orar Space Marines vs. Alaitoc Eldar

The NOVA Open Charitable Foundation (NOCF) charity army raffles begin today. Visit the site NOW and buy a a ton of raffle tickets - you could end up owning one of these amazing Warhammer 40,000 armies. 
Ninety-five cents of every dollar raised will directly support the work of Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres.

Each of these armies is a one-of-a-kind work of art lovingly created by nearly 20 of the world's greatest miniature artists, the NOCF Artist Consortium. They came together in 2015 under the direction of Dave Taylor to lead the Compassionate Force (what the NOCF calls the worldwide network of tabletop wargamers) in a mission to fundraise for charity on this Battle for Craftworld project. On point for The Sons of Orar artists was John Stiening; for the Alaitoc Eldar, Brian Ballard.

The winners of these armies will be drawn at the NOVA Open's Final Awards Ceremony, September 6, 2015, between 7-9pm EST.

NEED NOT BE PRESENT TO WIN!
The NOCF will ship anywhere in the world with a deliverable address.

Bookmark the NOVA Open Charitable Foundation's blog and follow Dave Taylor as he features the many units that make up these armies. Next up: Guardians and the Dire Avengers from the Alaitoc, along with two of the Tactical Squads from the Sons of Orar!

Both armies are base 2000 points with a lot of flexibility up and down. Check out their lists:
Battle for Craftworld begins with models
donated by Atlantis & Element
CHARITY ARMY RAFFLES:  
Where Does it Begin?    

In 2013, the NOVA Open Charitable Foundation (a 501c3 U.S. non-profit business) was created to demonstrate the great generosity of the worldwide network of tabletop wargamers in raising funds for charitable organizations. In two years, the Compassionate Force has raised more than $50,000 in support of DWB/MSF, BCRF, Fisher House and more. 

All armies receive
custom cases and transports from KR Mutlicase
These armies don't just spring up out of thin air, though. The NOCF is supported by a number of amazing and generous sponsors who have donated models, transport cases, unique bases, time and more to the charity army raffles, Silent Auction, backyard fundraisers and the Foundation Lounge which operates during the NOVA Open. We hope you will help us show our appreciation by supporting each in return:

Element Games

Eric Fontaine's Facebook Project

KR Multicase

NOVA Open

Powered Play

Road to NOVA / Rogue General Hunter
 Secret Weapon Miniatures

Stiff Neck Studio

Whiskey&40K

Wyrd Miniatures
CHARITY ARMIES COMING SOON:
Malifaux & Flames of War   
Stiff Neck Studios completing Malifaux Army

The NOCF begins the 2015 season with the Battle for Craftworld armies (above). Over the next two weeks, the Malifaux Army being created by Stiff Neck Studio will join the raffles. Everyone is very excited about this enormous 78-model army because of its versatility and playability - good for the expert player, a novice, or a team!


From Steve's 2014 Panzer Lehr Donation



Also joining the 2015 charity army raffles will be another Flames of War army created by Steve McCuen. This year, he is delivering a1620 Point Base Polish Army, with a lot of flexibility up and down.
WHERE THE ARTISTS ARE: 
=
Figure Painter Magazine  
 
Once again this year, NOCF is pairing with one of the premier online miniature hobby magazines to showcase a piece for this year's charity armies. The Chapter Master for the Sons of Orar, created and painted by Sean Fulton, is being featured in two issues of Figure Painter Magazine! 

The first half of the two part step by step painting article has already been released and is in this month's issue of the popular magazine and describes the construction of this unique piece as well as the painting of the torso of the chapter's leader, Alavaan. The second issue, which will be released later this month, will cover the painting of the painting of the base, the chapter master's robe and the bike itself. Be sure and check it out--not only will you get a detailed look at how the piece was created and painted by the artist himself, but a portion of the proceeds of each issue purchased will go to a donation by FPM to Doctors Without Borders.

Figure Painter Magazine is an NOCF donor. You can find the first part of the article HERE. Take out a subscription today.
40K/Malifaux BACKYARD BBQ: 
A Few Spaces Left - Join Us!
 
The NOVA Open invites you to a backyard charity tournament and BBQ on July 18, 2015, in McLean, VA.  The games of the day will be Warhammer 40K and Malifaux . . . and its all for charity!



10 spaces left in 40K; 6 spaces left in Malifaux:
First Come/First Serve
  • $30 - Game Only
  • $40 - Game + 2 drinks and a hot dog or burger.
Food and beverages will also be available for purchase on site. Register TODAY!
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA
We Need Your Support
 
Help us spread the news about the NOCF Charity Army Raffles by visiting our social media sights and sharing our links!

As we approach the convention date, NOVA
Open's social media presence is in full swing. Follow us on Twitter, Flickr, Instagram and at our blogs (Whiskey40K & novacf). Like us on Facebook. Thanks to Mike, Dewey, Dave and Nora, you can stay up to date with the latest on all things NOVA Open & NOVA Open Charitable Foundation:
POWEREDPLAY GAMING:
Capital Palette Lighting Award

For years NOVA has excelled in bringing an "enlightened" gaming experience to their attendees, with many of its custom terrain pieces lit for effect. This year, we again continue the experience beyond the doors of the gaming halls, and invite everyone to learn about lighting and electronics from our friends at PoweredPlay Gaming. The co-founders, Chris Michaels and Chris Wessling, will be teaching in a number of classes, providing hands-on demonstrations, and hosting the return of their Best Lighting Awards - but in 2015, this award will be judged in the Capital Palette Miniature Painting Competition, a Crystal Brush qualifier. Enter your best lit models in the Capital Palette today!

This year's hobby seminars include:

Learn about lighting techniques, color theories, basic rules of electronics for miniatures and how to light to scale.

Have a model you've had sitting on your hobby desk that you want to put lights or effects into? Is there a model you've always wanted to convert? Bring it to this seminar and work with the team from PoweredPlay gaming to make a fully-lit showcase piece! Models are not provided so bring one!

You've built or bought a killer display board. Now let's put some lights on it to showcase your models, add a little drama and give you the competitive edge for judging.

In it's inaugural year, Team PoweredPlay had amazing success through 2014, and this year is shaping up to be just as competitive. 

In 2014, the team comprised of Matt Schuchman, Sirus Chappell, Lyzz Foster, Mark Adam Abramowicz, John Feuerhelm, Steve Martino, Paul McKelvey and Michael Fox show incredible skill both on the battlefield and with their hobby brushes, winning multiple painting and modeling awards, as well as excellent tournament finishes. This included outstanding performances at NOVA Open, Adepticon, Las Vegas Open, Broadside Bash, Bay Area Open, Dark Star GT, Kublacon, and others. The season culminated with three players crowned as ITC top army performances, including:
  • John Feuerhelm, Top Dark Angels
  • Sirus Chapell, Top Blood Angels
  • Paul McKelvey, Top Tau Empire
Paul McKelvey was also crowned 2014 ITC Overall Champion.
2015 Hotel Block Open:
Book Early - No Risk!
 
The rates for NOVA Open 2015 are at $91 per night, up just $2 from the previous four years.
If you have any trouble with block sales being filled, please contact us: novaopen@gmail.com
 
Reserve room at Hyatt now ~ last year nearly sold out. Remember that reservations can be cancelled up to 48 hours before the NOVA Open.  

 
The NOVA Open is your "End of Summer" convention. With its proximity to Washington, D.C. (with its free museums, memorials and monuments) and the lowest hotel costs available in the D.C. area, think about taking advantage of the room rate to turn your trip into a family vacation!
 
Room rates are available from the Friday before NOVA Open through the Tuesday following the convention. If you'd like to extend those dates, please contact us:  novaopen@gmail.com
TABLETOP OLYMPICS:  
Join the Game in 2015!

The Tabletop Olympics is a NOVA Open program which provides attendees with an opportunity to join forces with their local buddies and convention-traveling companions for honor and notoriety! Together, teams can accumulate achievements; individually, players can amass points. Either way, achievements anass at each NOVA Open and across time at multiple NOVAs to keep the competition alive and well. 

Go to your novaopenstore cart and join or start your team today!

Learn More HERE.
Check out the Tabletop Olympics Point Chart HERE.
GAME DEMOS FOR 2015
Drop by for a Demo 

There are quite a few demos slated for the NOVA Open 2015!  Here's a sneak peek at what we'll be offering:
Trenchworx Tanks: Your Canvas!
AIRBRUSH SPEED COMPETITION: Rules Updates Finalized

Bringing the NOVA Open's first "live art" event to life has been a complex and intriguing challenge. Our rules leading into the event have gone through numerous revisions and updates as a result, reflecting the subject matter expertise of a wide number of professionals - from airbrush experts and premier event sponsor Grex to individual artists with their own different outlooks on how such an event should be held. 

Ultimately, the NOVA desired to bring convention-goers, avocational figure painters, and serious artists a collectively rewarding, juried, live art exhibition ... all with the aim of enhancing the presence of Miniature Figure Art at NOVA Open. The resulting rules represent the final pre-convention iteration of the event's framework for 2015. As with all first-year events, we anticipate great feedback and development going forward based on lessons learned, and we're excited to see what the brave and bold among you can accomplish this year! 

We also extend a special thanks to Grex Airbrush, Trenchworx, Secret Weapon Miniatures, and Vallejo Paints for sponsoring the event and helping us bring this vision to light.

CHECK OUT THE RULES - this is going to be a lot of fun. 
CHOOSE YOUR SLOT & REGISTER TODAY.
NOVA OPEN 2015:  
Army Appearance Primer

The official primer for Army Appearance Judging at the 2015 NOVA Open has been released!  What do you need to know in order to have a great army this year? 

Check out the full primer HERE!
LAST CALL FOR NOVA OPEN STORE PRE-ORDERING
Shirts & Beer Mug Pre-Sales End Tomorrow
2015 Convention T-Shirt Design

This is your last chance to pre-purchase merchandise from the NOVA Open store. There will be opportunities to buy these items at the convention, but quantities will be limited.
  • Beer Mugs pre-sales ($18) close July 2 
  • Convention T-Shirt pre-sales ($14) close July 2; this is the best way to guarantee you have the size that works for you
     
  • Show Miniature pre-sales ($20) close August 2
     
  • Frontline Gaming Mats will be available for pre-sale only; pick up at NOVA Open and save up to $20 on shipping costs
Be sure to pre-purchase your swag TODAY!
WORLD'S TALKING NOVA OPEN
Send Us Your Links 

As we approach the NOVA Open 2015, the Internet is abuzz with excitement. If you see NOVA Open on any blogs or forums, be sure to send them our way and we can give them a shout-out.
NOVA Open LEAD CORNER
News Updates from All Event Leads

The NOVA Open now has ten separate game systems running. The Leads of each will be using this "Corner" of the newsletter for Minute Updates.  

  • Dropzone Commander
      
  • CMON (Dark Age & Wrath of Kings)
    Dark age: New models released for MayCome check them out at NOVA Open 2015. CMON will be running tournaments, demoing the games and setup in the Vendor Hall.
      
  • Lord of the Rings/Hobbit                    
    New: Updated Primer  After much communication in the Hobbit community, our lead revised the primer. Check it out now.
  • Infinity
    Due to an influx of player registrations, the Infinity player space has been increased to 30 players in ITS and Fireteam tournaments.  The limit for the Hunger Games will remain at 16.
  • Malifaux
  • Warhammer Fantasy
    On May 27, the NOVA Open Executive Board wrote to Jerry Parsley, chairman of the USA Masters committee for Warhammer, seeking its help and support in keeping Fantasy as an offering at the NOVA Open.  Steve Gant, our WFB lead, is unable to act due to a work conflict; the player base is reporting overt concerns about 9th edition and delays in release as is evidence by sluggish registration.
     

    Players should know, first and foremost, that this game has been a mainstay at the NOVA Open since 2011 and we would very much like to continue hosting the WFB community and their events. Even with these concerns, our terrain staff has continued to work creating more and improved WFB terrain to enhance this large GT. 

     
    We hope the USA Masters committee will be able to work together with the NOVA Open to identify an optimistic and courageous lead willing to run a big GT with a new edition dropping just weeks before. If you can help, please contact us:  novaopen@gmail.com. If we are unable to find a lead, current registrations will be refunded.
     
  • Warmachine/Hordes
     
  • X-Wing
         Events have sold out - championship tournament is nearly filled; don't miss a chance to play on our 11-foot star destroyer, NOVA Astrabellum!

REGISTER NOW! 

First 400 to Register Receive Swag Bags
Schedule: Tournaments - Seminars - Foundation Lounge
 
UPDATED with HOBBIT/LOTR schedule. 

Spend some time with this important resource so you can plan your best trip to the NOVA Open!
 
The schedule lists all game tournaments and any new Critical Mass Events (CMEs), over 45 art-paint-hobby seminars taught by some of the best talent in the industry, Foundation Lounge hours/presentations, and much, much more. 
 
New Schedule Formatting provides attention boxes with news items for each day:
 
primers
2015 NOVA Open Draft Primers
 
 

Thanks to the heroic efforts of the NOVA Open event leads and staff, draft primers for game systems and events at the 2015 NOVA Open are now available!
 

Non-Game Primers:
All questions for all games, events and leads may be sent to novaopen@gmail.com.