Seattle Steamrats

Yesterday my particular lady friend and I went to Café Mox for the weekly Seattle Steamrats meetup.  I want to start making connections with people in the scene and start teaching Whist again.  My plan is to create a few more players before Steamcon so that I can organize a drive at the convention.

In the end I didn’t teach anyone how to play but I did discuss the game with a few folks.  In particular was a short conversation with folks from Rise of Æster.  They are interested in learning how to play as an activity to use during their LARP games.  This idea is very exciting for me as it could bring in quite a few players as Whist spreads through their ranks.  I will try and follow up with them at a future meetup.

I still need to write up a few pages about Whist history, rules, strategy and game playing.  While doing that I would like to find a good way to represent hands and tricks on this blog for examples during the discussions.  Time to browse some Bridge websites to see what they use.

Returning From Hiatus

With my friends moving away from LiveJournal and other changes in my life I’m going to be resurrecting this blog for posting about Whist and organizing players in the Seattle area.  I’m probably speaking into the wind here but whatever.  Some people have found past posts of mine helpful and maybe they will again.

I have three blogs used for different purposes.  They are:

• Leber Hall – My personal blog on a variety of topics.
• N0BML – Dedicated to my amateur radio, emergency communications and electronics projects.
• Seattle Whist Club – This very blog you are reading now.

See you around…

SteamCon II

What a whirlwind weekend! I taught a lot of people how to play Whist. Sadly I know there were several others who wanted to learn but weren't able to make it to any of the sessions I had scheduled. The good news for anyone who missed it is that I have been invited back for next years SteamCon and I will be teaching again.

For all the new Whist players out there I talked to at least as many others who want to play in the Seattle area. It sounds like there is enough interest for a monthly Whist club. The next trick is to find places to play. I have had one offer for a cabana in the Federal Way area. I was also told about AFK Tavern which sounds like it would be able to handle a group of Whist players.

As I mentioned to folks I will come to your event or group and teach Whist. The more players I can help get started the more chances I will get to play. We all win.

Keep an eye on this blog. Things are just getting started.

First Steps

In preparation for SteamCon I am putting together an information sheet about the game of Whist. Here is the outline I’ve put together, which is also a list of upcoming posts on this blog. If there are any other areas you think I should cover please let me know.

1. The History of Whist
2. Terminology of the Game
3. Rules of the Game
4. Table Etiquette
5. Basic Strategy
6. The Seattle Whist Club
7. Whist in Literature

After SteamCon I plan on writing more about each of these areas and working to set up some Whist tournaments for interested players.

For Your Honors

This is just a quick first post.  Your humble narrator has the honor of teaching the game of Whist at the upcoming SteamCon II convention in Seattle.  I love the game of Whist and think it would be a blast to gather a group of others who like to play for regular games and perhaps even tournaments.

So I've decided to start this blog to promote the club, the game and share it with the world.

Enjoy!