WizKids Origins FAQ [Archive]

DKJedi

04/22/2011, 20:40

Hello,

Figured I would post a thread where players can ask the questions they have about the events at Origins which are below:

Origins 2011 Event Descriptions

HeroClix Battle Royale (Marvel): Interested in fast and furious HeroClix play? Want to prove you’re the best no matter what team you draft? Then this event is for you! The Marvel HeroClix Battle Royales will be offered in four-player pods and will utilize boosters from the Giant-Size X-Men expansion.
Cost for this event will be $12.
Availability/Schedule: Thursday-Saturday from 10 AM-6 PM

HeroClix Battle Royale (DC): Interested in fast and furious HeroClix play? Want to prove you’re the best no matter what team you draft? Then this event is for you! The DC HeroClix Battle Royales will be offered in four-player pods and will utilize boosters from the DC 75th Anniversary expansion.
Cost for this event will be $12.
Availability/Schedule: Thursday-Saturday from 10 AM-6 PM

HeroClix Giant-Size X-Men Super Booster Event: Join us for this very special sealed event! Purchase 1 Giant Size X-Men Super Booster and 2 Giant Size X-Men boosters from us and using the contents of your booster build the best 600 point force you can but you must use your colossal! This event will be limited to 32 players so be sure to secure your place early because everyone in this event will get a prize. Build the best team and tower over the competition!
Cost for this event will be $48.
Availability/Schedule: Thursday at 1 PM

HeroClix Captain America Booster Event: Join us for this very special sealed event! Purchase one 1 Giant Size X-Men booster and 4 Captain America single figure boosters from us. Using the contents of your booster build the best 300 point force you can to defeat the competition! This event will be limited to 32 players so be sure to secure your place early.
Cost for this event will be $24.
Availability/Schedule: Friday at 1 PM

HeroClix National Championship “Grinder” Qualifying Event: Want to play in Nationals and prove you’ve got what it takes to be the BEST? “Grinders” are sealed qualifiers made up of 8 people. Players can participate in as many sealed qualifiers as they want in order to try to earn one of the slots in the finals. Each sealed event will be run for 3 rounds and the winner will qualify for the finals. This event will utilize 2 boosters from the DC 75th Anniversary expansion.
Cost for this event will be $24.
Availability/Schedule: Thursday-Friday from 10 AM-6 PM and 2 Last Chance Grinders on Saturday at 10 AM before the Finals

HeroClix National Championship Final Event: THIS IS IT! You’ve battled through the grinders and victory is in sight! Build the best 300 point Modern Age force! Fight it out with the rest of the Top 16 and see who emerges victorious as the 2011 HeroClix National Champion!
Cost for this event will be covered by Wizkids.
Availability/Schedule: Saturday at 2 PM

Of course, I won't have answers for all of your questions but I will answer the ones that I can.

Darin

DKJedi

04/22/2011, 20:42

By the way, could someone sticky this thread for me as I can't.

Thanks.

phantalien

04/22/2011, 21:00

By the way, could someone sticky this thread for me as I can't.

Thanks.

You got it!

DKJedi

05/01/2011, 00:49

So this question has been asked a couple of times now:

Can Captain America Figures be played in the constructed Nationals Final at Origins?

The answer is no because they won't be out for a week yet at that time.

TODDRUSSELL

05/02/2011, 14:06

Will there be more than 16 grinders?

squirecam

05/02/2011, 15:04

HeroClix National Championship “Grinder” Qualifying Event: Want to play in Nationals and prove you’ve got what it takes to be the BEST? “Grinders” are sealed qualifiers made up of 8 people. Players can participate in as many sealed qualifiers as they want in order to try to earn one of the slots in the finals. Each sealed event will be run for 3 rounds and the winner will qualify for the finals. This event will utilize 2 boosters from the DC 75th Anniversary expansion.
Cost for this event will be $24.
Availability/Schedule: Thursday-Friday from 10 AM-6 PM and 2 Last Chance Grinders on Saturday at 10 AM before the Finals

Of course, I won't have answers for all of your questions but I will answer the ones that I can.

Darin

Can a grinder "start" right before 6 pm (thus playing till about 9 pm), or does the gaming "end" at 6.

DKJedi

05/03/2011, 23:25

Will there be more than 16 grinders?

We can run more than 16 grinders but we can only run a few extra so I wouldn't plan on us running 32 grinders. I can say that we will split up the grinders on Thursday and Friday. On Saturday, we will only run the 2 last chance grinders so if you plan on getting into one of those you should get there early to make sure you can get into them.

DKJedi

05/03/2011, 23:27

Can a grinder "start" right before 6 pm (thus playing till about 9 pm), or does the gaming "end" at 6.

A grinder can start right before 6 PM and go to 9 PM but our plan was that grinders would end earlier than that. So I wouldn't plan on a grinder being available at 6 PM. I would plan to get there a little earlier because it is while supplies last each day. So we could run our last grinder for the day starting at 4PM if we also run out of product at that time as well.

Hope that helps.

TODDRUSSELL

05/04/2011, 02:25

Very helpful and thanks much.

Jerry_Damage01

05/04/2011, 07:15

Thank you very much. Can't wait for Origins!

Uniquist

05/09/2011, 13:45

DKJedi

05/12/2011, 03:40

I assume losing the first game means a player can get in line to join the next available pod?

What are the rules on dropping? If someone pulls terribly and the other players in their pod pull great and say they're not a big fan of swimming upstream a raging river, can he drop and try to get into the next available pod?

And, 2x3 maps only for Grinders?

2x3 maps only for Finals?

Yes, if you lose your first game, you can drop from the grinder and immediately sign up for another if you want to. You can also play in the next two rounds if you want to as well. The choice is yours.

Plan on only 2x3 because you will always be able to play with those. If the table space doesn't allow for 3x3, then you won't be able to play with them but we won't know that until the show.

PoppaBear

05/26/2011, 01:06

DKJedi

05/26/2011, 23:26

I'm planning my trip for Origins and need to know if i have to pre-register for more than one grinder in the likely case that I lose my first or is the $24 fee good for ALL of the grinders for that particular day?
Thanks.
PB

The $24 fee is only good for 1 grinder. If you play in another grinder, you have to pay that $24 fee to us again.

Hope that helps.

Darin

RavenProject

05/27/2011, 01:08

RavenProject

05/27/2011, 01:19

One more: How full are they Colossal and Cap events so far? (Once I registered, I couldn't see how many slots remained!)

-J

PoppaBear

05/27/2011, 08:25

So, technically, we don't really have to preregister for any of the grinders then? we can just show up fork over the cash and play?

DKJedi

05/27/2011, 16:32

One more: How full are they Colossal and Cap events so far? (Once I registered, I couldn't see how many slots remained!)

-J

So, technically, we don't really have to preregister for any of the grinders then? we can just show up fork over the cash and play?

We're checking on this. Technically, you weren't supposed to be able to pre-register for anything as it was supposed to be first come first serve. Now it appears that Origins is letting players pre-register for events that we never put into their system so I'm trying to untangle this. Hopefully, I will have answers by early next week.

RavenProject

05/27/2011, 16:51

We're checking on this. Technically, you weren't supposed to be able to pre-register for anything as it was supposed to be first come first serve. Now it appears that Origins is letting players pre-register for events that we never put into their system so I'm trying to untangle this. Hopefully, I will have answers by early next week.
This is obviously not your fault or WizKids, so I'm not upset with you.

Suffice to say, if they scrap my pre-reg they better be willing to refund my entire ticket.

-J

mike_houghton

05/27/2011, 17:07

This is obviously not your fault or WizKids, so I'm not upset with you.

Suffice to say, if they scrap my pre-reg they better be willing to refund my entire ticket.

-J

I concur. I think the best idea would be to allow those that have pre registered to go ahead and keep their tickets, then stop the prereg. I think when I checked yesterday there was still 20+ available for each.

So we werent technically supposed to be able to prereg for any events?

I really dislike the idea of people being able to drop out of a grinder before the round starts, or during the first rounds because it can encourage groups of players to selectively drop and give their opponent a win if they get paired against a friend. I think they should at least have to wait through a grinder or two IMO.

spawn10

05/27/2011, 17:16

We can run more than 16 grinders but we can only run a few extra so I wouldn't plan on us running 32 grinders. I can say that we will split up the grinders on Thursday and Friday. On Saturday, we will only run the 2 last chance grinders so if you plan on getting into one of those you should get there early to make sure you can get into them.

If I'm reading the description above right, I'm not following how this is going to work. If there is nothing in-between the grinders and the finals, then how are you going to cut to the Top 16 if there will be more than 16 grinders? It says only 16 slots are available for the finals, yet there is no "cut" to Top 16 if there are more than 16 winners/grinders.

mike_houghton

05/27/2011, 17:19

DKJedi

05/28/2011, 00:16

I concur. I think the best idea would be to allow those that have pre registered to go ahead and keep their tickets, then stop the prereg. I think when I checked yesterday there was still 20+ available for each.

So we werent technically supposed to be able to prereg for any events?

I really dislike the idea of people being able to drop out of a grinder before the round starts, or during the first rounds because it can encourage groups of players to selectively drop and give their opponent a win if they get paired against a friend. I think they should at least have to wait through a grinder or two IMO.

So I'm still trying to get this resolved but here's what we want to have happen.

The Cap and Colossal event should still allow you to pre-register for them and your tickets will be good for them. That's how we want them to work.

The grinders and battle royales are to be first come first served. No pre-registration (although we are going to try to allow those who have pre-registered to stay in the system but require them to show up at the morning start time for those events). As soon as we have enough players for an event, they start. When we run out of product for the day, we are done for the day. Hence, the reason that those who pre-register for a battle royale or grinder most show up early in the day.

Players in grinders can drop after the first round and then sign up for another grinder at that time. The reason for this is that if you lose any game in a grinder, you can still play for fun but you can't win that grinder anymore and some players will want to play another grinder if they can't win the one they are in. We will watch for behavior like you describe and try to prevent it but we can't stop a player from dropping in an event and signing up for another if they want to.

DKJedi

05/28/2011, 00:18

If I'm reading the description above right, I'm not following how this is going to work. If there is nothing in-between the grinders and the finals, then how are you going to cut to the Top 16 if there will be more than 16 grinders? It says only 16 slots are available for the finals, yet there is no "cut" to Top 16 if there are more than 16 winners/grinders.

So we should have extra product available to run extra grinders but after considering this some more after you guys pointed it out. Grinders will be strictly limited to 16 total. The extra product that we have will go into the pool for battle royales. That should help to clear that up.

Repeat, we will only be running 16 grinders total.

RavenProject

05/28/2011, 04:16

So I'm still trying to get this resolved but here's what we want to have happen.

The Cap and Colossal event should still allow you to pre-register for them and your tickets will be good for them. That's how we want them to work.
=whew=

-J

mike_houghton

05/28/2011, 09:00

=whew=

-J

LOL I second that whew :P

TODDRUSSELL

05/28/2011, 14:23

Handled nicely DKjedi...rep to you

spawn10

05/29/2011, 06:39

So we should have extra product available to run extra grinders but after considering this some more after you guys pointed it out. Grinders will be strictly limited to 16 total. The extra product that we have will go into the pool for battle royales. That should help to clear that up.

Repeat, we will only be running 16 grinders total.

Thank you for the speedy response, kind sir. Looking forward to this (hate sealed, but whatever it takes to qualify!).

badseed02

05/30/2011, 01:51

How Do You Reg For The Cap Event I Cant Seem To Find It On Line

DKJedi

05/30/2011, 15:41

How Do You Reg For The Cap Event I Cant Seem To Find It On Line

The event is listed on the Origins website in an excel sheet (under minatures) but you can't register for the event unless you have bought a Origins ticket. Once you have your Origins ticket, you can log into the system and register for events.

Hope that helps.

RavenProject

05/30/2011, 17:31

The event is listed on the Origins website in an excel sheet (under minatures) but you can't register for the event unless you have bought a Origins ticket. Once you have your Origins ticket, you can log into the system and register for events.

Hope that helps.
Actually, you can register for events and sign up for your ticket at the same time -- I paid for my ticket and all of my events at once.

You can't, however, see the "itinerary" system to view and sort events (which is so much better than the spreadsheet...) until you've given them the starting information (name, address, etc) for registration.

An annoying process, to say the least.

-J

RavenProject

06/01/2011, 01:15

1) If we registered online for an event, do we also need to register with y'all or can we safely assume that our names are on the list when we arrive?

2) If we're registered for the 1PM events, think we can safely get a Battle Royale or two in beforehand? How about after the 1PM events?

3) If we decide to drop in on a Battle Royale or Grinder, can we pay cash or does it have to be in tickets?

4) Is the area available for pickup games after the official WK events are over?

Thanks!

-J

Repeating my questions from the other day (think they got lost in the pre-reg fuss!) and adding a new one:

How many rounds will the Colossal and Cap events run? Based on the prize structure I'd assume three, but wanted to ask anyway.

Thanks again!

-J

DKJedi

06/01/2011, 10:08

Repeating my questions from the other day (think they got lost in the pre-reg fuss!) and adding a new one:

1) If we registered online for an event, do we also need to register with y'all or can we safely assume that our names are on the list when we arrive?

2) If we're registered for the 1PM events, think we can safely get a Battle Royale or two in beforehand? How about after the 1PM events?

3) If we decide to drop in on a Battle Royale or Grinder, can we pay cash or does it have to be in tickets?

4) Is the area available for pickup games after the official WK events are over?

5) How many rounds will the Colossal and Cap events run? Based on the prize structure I'd assume three, but wanted to ask anyway.

Thanks again!

-J

Let's give some answers:
1.) You don't need to register with us for events if you have registered online with Origins. However, you do need to show up on time. If the event starts at 1 PM and you aren't there or are playing in another event, we reserve the right to give your spot to someone else. So please try to get there 5-10 minutes early.

2.) You should be able to get a Battle Royale or 2 in before the 1 PM events since they should only take about 1 hour to complete. After the 1 PM events, you probably won't have time.

3.) Checking on this but the plan is to be able to pay us cash for events.

4.) Based on the area that we are holding games in, our area should be available for pickup games after we are done for the day. Of course, that's based on Origins rules and regulations.

5.) Good thing you asked. The Colossal and Cap events are going to run 4 rounds instead of 3. We figured players would want to play a bit longer in these events.

RavenProject

06/01/2011, 10:47

5.) Good thing you asked. The Colossal and Cap events are going to run 4 rounds instead of 3. We figured players would want to play a bit longer in these events.
That certainly changes the dynamic of things, if you're awarding prizes to the top eight players. Good reason to hang in there even after a first-round loss.

Thanks for all the help!

-J

mike_houghton

06/01/2011, 10:50

That certainly changes the dynamic of things, if you're awarding prizes to the top eight players. Good reason to hang in there even after a first-round loss.

Thanks for all the help!

-J

I dont plan on losing a round :)

RavenProject

06/05/2011, 19:35

New one! Which maps will be used for the Battle Royales?

-J

DKJedi

06/06/2011, 17:37

New one! Which maps will be used for the Battle Royales?

-J

Maps for battle royale's will be random depending on the maps that we have. Plus, the format is new as well since it's only 4 players. It's everybody for themselves this year.

DKJedi

06/06/2011, 17:47

Just got a response from Origins:

Origins does not provide us a list of those users who have signed up for an event. They do however provide us with the number of players who have signed up so we will have that.

So those who pre-registered for events are in the system and will have a ticket for the event. We are to take players with pre-registered tickets first for events and then those with generic tickets. (We don't have ribbons for our events).

Remember to be on-time for your events, if it lists 10 AM as the time on your pre-registered ticket for Friday, you need to be there at that time on Friday. The event might start a little later than that but if you show up at 10:30 AM for an event that starts at 10 AM and it has already started, we will not let you into that event. Also, helps to show up on the right day as well.

We can't take cash for events so you will need to provide us with generic tickets to cover the cost of the event or the specific event ticket from Origins (this will work much like it does at GenCon).

Any more questions, please let me know.

mike_houghton

06/06/2011, 17:55

Is it still possible to sign up for events then? Lets say I wanted to ensure I sign up for a grinder early :)

DKJedi

06/06/2011, 18:31

Is it still possible to sign up for events then? Lets say I wanted to ensure I sign up for a grinder early :)

Yes, you can still sign up for events if they aren't full. Grinders and battle royales will only allow players to sign up for the first one. Every one after that will be first come first served in the tourney hall.

RavenProject

06/06/2011, 21:38

Maps for battle royale's will be random depending on the maps that we have. Plus, the format is new as well since it's only 4 players. It's everybody for themselves this year.
Will they be 3x3 maps?

Will there be any special gimmicks like King of the Hill or Shock the Turtle?

We can't take cash for events so you will need to provide us with generic tickets to cover the cost of the event or the specific event ticket from Origins (this will work much like it does at GenCon).
Thanks for the warning there. I just went back and added a passel of Generic tickets to my pre-reg!

-J

DKJedi

06/06/2011, 21:51

Will they be 3x3 maps?

Will there be any special gimmicks like King of the Hill or Shock the Turtle?

Thanks for the warning there. I just went back and added a passel of Generic tickets to my pre-reg!

-J

If we have space, we will use 3x3 maps instead of 2x3.

No gimmicks during the first 50 minutes of the game. May do something like shock the board starting at the 50 minute or so mark.

RavenProject

06/09/2011, 09:18

Quick courtesy reminder: Online registration closes tomorrow (Friday) at Midnight!

-J

RavenProject

06/10/2011, 09:52

DKJedi

06/10/2011, 18:20

Actually a general Origins question, but figured someone here could answer:

When you pre-reg online, do they mail you all your stuff in advance or do I still need to get to a booth and pick everything up?

I can't find any instructions/information on this, and they haven't answered my email yet.

Thanks!

-J

In the past, you had to pick it up at the show. But it's been a couple of years since I've been to Origins so they could have changed that.

RavenProject

06/10/2011, 20:05

In the past, you had to pick it up at the show. But it's been a couple of years since I've been to Origins so they could have changed that.
S'okay... of course, they wrote me back shortly after I made the post. :)

Yes, you have to actually pick everything up at the show.

"Okay, when can I do that?"

Have I mentioned that their web site sucks? Basic information, no can find. But they did post a PDF of the event book, which indicates registration will be open as early as 7 AM.

(/me debates trading web site development in exchange for tickets...)

-J

DKJedi

06/13/2011, 19:33

S'okay... of course, they wrote me back shortly after I made the post. :)

Yes, you have to actually pick everything up at the show.

"Okay, when can I do that?"

Have I mentioned that their web site sucks? Basic information, no can find. But they did post a PDF of the event book, which indicates registration will be open as early as 7 AM.

(/me debates trading web site development in exchange for tickets...)

-J

I believe you about the website and other info. I email them and then wait a week to get a response. So looking forward to this con.

vlad3theimpaler

06/15/2011, 15:35

Reposting from the rules forum:

Since it's come up to me privately, I figured this was the kind of "ruling" that people in general might want to know.

If I win a Horseman on Thursday or Friday at Origins, can I use it in my constructed team on Saturday?

The "street date" of the Horsemen is deemed to be "Thursday, June 23rd." They are therefore not permitted in a WK-sponsored event until a week later. They cannot be used at Origins in constructed events. At GenCon, they would be fine.

Similarly, the "street date" of the Con Exclusives Wonder Woman and Moonstone is deemed to be "Thursday, August 4th." They are therefore not permitted in constructed events during GenCon.