Back in March 2020, in-person tabletop gaming stopped all around the world. We’ve now been playing in the digital realm for 3 seasons, relying on Vassal and Tabletop Simulator to play IACP skirmish games with one another. These digital programs have been a godsend for the Imperial Assault community, but now game stores are opening their doors and their tables to in-store play once again, and though this global pandemic is not yet over and we absolutely plan to keep using online tools like Vassal to keep playing IACP games, we also need to look at getting games back to the tabletop, which means rebuilding our shuttered local Imperial Assault communities.
In response to general easing of restrictions on public gatherings, local game stores reopening for in-store play, and pent up demand for live skirmish play with real models on a real table, we have added a Community Locator feature to the IACP website.
Remember when playing in public spaces to follow all state and business social distancing guidelines and rules for interacting in public to be safe and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Make sure you’re fully vaccinated and boosted if you can be, and keep an approved mask on you and wear it whenever you can.
Expanding the Imperial Assault skirmish and IACP communities outside of just the scope of online discussion and play will be a huge step in helping this community thrive and make it easier than ever to find other players that love Imperial Assault and want to play.
This is a Beta Test, but we are hoping there will be enough participation to make this a permanent feature. How well this experiment does depends completely on the community’s willingness to participate and add their names to the map through our submission page. This should help with building local communities and giving players a way to reach out and contact their designated local organizers and game stores to ask about Imperial Assault play.