RTX 2013 Follow-Up (and Prep for 2014)

Well, I think RTX went wonderfully this year! I received a very thankful email from the event staff that really appreciated the huge 405th turnout.

It may seem a little early, but they are already asking if we are coming back for next year, and I think the answer would be a resounding yes!

There are a few things I wanted to go ahead and get started on some questions getting answered:

If you attended RTX 2013 and visited the 405th booth, what was something you liked and something you disliked?

If you did not attend RTX 2013, what would you expect to see in a 405th booth? (Or if you did attend, did the booth live up to expectations?)

How do you feel about the 405th hosting booths at conventions?

How do you feel about the 405th hosting panels at conventions? (And what would you expect them to cover?)

If I could get some responses to the questions above, that will really help to get the ball moving for next year.

A major issue we had this year was lack of space: we just ran out of room to show all of our wonderful props! For next year, I'm going to see how much it would cost us to get an end-cap booth, and/or two booth spaces. The earlier we book, the better.

Any kind of suggestions you guys have would be greatly appreciated. I know for sure we're gonna have more 405th swag for purchase next year, that can help to fund the booth(s) for subsequent years.

We also had many, many people asking if our props were for sale, so I'd like to also entertain the potential of doing so. Maybe we (as the 405th) take a percentage cut of any sales we do on behalf of our members, and that percentage goes to fund booth costs. The problem being, though, that the price that we logically sell our things for may be slightly out of reach of the general con populace. (Many people, and I mean many people, stopped talking to me immediately after they found out the Reach Spartan helmet was going for at least $150.)

Those are my thoughts for now.
Cheers all,
- Drakku

Guess I'll drop my 2 cents here, I did not attend RTX13, and I'm unsure if I will be able to next year (distance thing). However the thought of 405th hosting booths and panels at conventions is great. I can not tell you how many people are I retested in the process of making armor for cosplay/costuming. I think you would have decent turn outs at the panels, especially if the ones hosting them were in armor, I know I would attend. That's all I really an answer for.

I loved seeing the 405th there! This was my first year going despite living in the area and the 405th was the primary reason I wanted to go! I've always had an interest in cosplay and costume building but I've hesitated for so long because I'm not terribly artistic and I'm worried I'll just make a mess of things. That being said every time I see a Spartan I get more motivated. I'd definitely like to see you guys in a bigger booth next year with more props out and about for admiring. I also missed the panel on costume builds because I didn't get to attend on Friday, if there will be one next year you bet I'll be at the front of the line!

I had no idea you guys were selling anything other than the t-shirts. I intend to start a foam build soon but haven't had an interest in trying to foam a helmet or mess with pep/resin/bondo and all that. $150+ is absolutely worth it, I've seen through videos and various threads how much work and skill goes in to that stuff. You may not have a massive group of people willing to pony up the money but there are people like me out there that absolutely would. That being said, shoot me a pm if you have anything!

Can't wait for next year, I'll absolutely be there!

Hey there! I was at RTX 2013 and was the guy working at the griffball hub booth! My suggestion for next year would to have a double wide panel for a bigger display. 1 halo spartan props statue thing like you had on the right but movie it to the left. a weapon rack in the front middle with weapons that people can hold and get pictures with. 2 tables, the one on the left beside the spartan statue for the merchandise thats for sale and information about the booth and what the 405th dose, and the table on the right will have someone building a foam suit of armor, like what the lego booth was doing! a 3 day RTX armor suit that a few ppl take turns building in group collaboration then possibly have a drawing where people can donate a dollar or what not to have a chance to win it!

And also I was talking to the guys from the 501st legion (Star Wars) and asked them if they had ever collaborated or done anything with the 405th and they said they had not, but it might not be a bad idea to put both booths side by side and collaborate! In the future Because the more the merrier!

I didn't attend RTX 2013, and I really hope to attend 2014, but I'm in the UK, and Air fares aren't cheap, but may save up for the event in 2015, who knows, I'd really enjoy being involved in the booth for the 405th, and by the time of the event should've completed my ODST suit. As for booth space, bigger is always better! Looking forward to it next year!

Drakku said:

If you attended RTX 2013 and visited the 405th booth, what was something you liked and something you disliked?

If you did not attend RTX 2013, what would you expect to see in a 405th booth? (Or if you did attend, did the booth live up to expectations?)

How do you feel about the 405th hosting booths at conventions?

How do you feel about the 405th hosting panels at conventions? (And what would you expect them to cover?)

(Many people, and I mean many people, stopped talking to me immediately after they found out the Reach Spartan helmet was going for at least $150.)

Those are my thoughts for now.
Cheers all,
- Drakku

Click to expand...

I did not attend RTX 2013 but I am planning on getting there next year.

as far as a booth goes i think it would be very cool to have a person actually working on either a suit or a weapon prop (a collaborative effort would be amazing) so that people could buy a raffle for the prop (this would work better if you did a weapon prop) and/or we could also have a set of props for sale at the booth but list the prices that way people understand the price before they ask. (i have seen a few different helmet and weapon props at cons now and they are usually very poor quality. so anything we would sell would need to be approved for price range. {not trying to be mean but we don't want to sell poor quality stuff as the 405th}) we could have a few time lapse videos of some of our work, that way people under stand the amount of work we put into these props.

and i love the idea of hosting a panel. depending on what our topic foam/pepakura/scratch builds we could select the best people for that specific topic and assign a process to each person - example - pepakura process - the software (getting the pepakura program and scaling your model.) the paper process (constructing the paper model) the hardening process (resining, mesh, or any other techniques) the detailing process process (proper application of bondo, or any other detail process, foam cutting) painting ( chosing the right paint, weathering) and finally electronics (seting up your wires, leds, fans, etc.)
myself i would love to be at that panel.


just my 2 cents.

I didn't attend RTX 2013, but DO expect to make it to RTX 2014. I love the idea of the 405th doing both booths and panels, and not just at RTX (though RTX is definitely a good place to do both).

Personally, I'd expect the 405th booth to have a variety of things. First and foremost, some armor. Set up on a mannequin would be easiest, but people wearing it and moving in it would be cool. And, of course, weapons to go with it. These would kinda work best as the "draw", to get people to stop and look at the other things at the booth. Having the option of photo-ops with these would be cool (maybe some props that can be held, or people in armor to stand beside) Then, I'd look for two other things.

First would be merchandise. I have no idea what the 405th has, but t-shirts, patches, maybe bags, things with the 405th on them. And, of course, some armor/props. $150 is a lot, but considering what it's for, it's certainly not bad. Better to have a small quantity on hand and not sell any, than have the one high-spender not be able to get anything. Making it RTX specific, a collector's item of sorts, might help (whether that's a special RTX paint job or some extra/crazy features, whatever). Maybe a set of RvB helmets that play sound effects? (ie, a Caboose helmet you can wear that plays Caboose lines? I'm kinda riffing here). Maybe offer them for sale, maybe do a raffle. Anyone dedicated enough and skilled enough to do a raffle for a custom-made suit? Maybe people buy an expensive raffle ticket, get a picture made, measurements taken, etc, and then, one lucky person gets a suit made specially for them. (it'd be hard as hell to pull off properly, but if money raised beyond funding the suit went to charity, it would sure as hell generate a lot of buzz, too)

Second, now that I've gone over-the-top with it, back to some basics. Since the 405th makes stuff, then stuff needs to be made. Maybe a few pieces in various states of construction (the same helmet printed out, pep model built, fiberglassed, and painted, so people can see the stages it goes through), or a few of the same piece in various sizes (a forearm/hand setup, where people could see how sizing matters; going a step further, an easy to wear glove and some hand sanitizer so people could try it on?) Show different types of construction (paper vs foam), have a monitor set up to view some models in pepakura, a few examples of materials needed (the type of paintbrush to fiberglass and a can of the stuff, whether the actual thing or a print-out with a picture). Some visor stuff, under-armor clothing, electronics that go in weapons/gear, cooling equipment, etc. Maybe even talk to online retailers and see if you can get coupons to hand out. Maybe even a small area where someone goes through the process and makes something (going "crazy idea" thing again, maybe for the fiberglass/painting sections, a work area could be set up with a camera that feeds back to the booth somehow, so people could still watch someone work through the steps less suited for the convention floor) Also, maybe a simple hands on work area? Something super simple to make, like, maybe a grenade? Provide a small kit of "paper, scissors, and craft glue" that people can buy to work on AT the con? (with costs going to cover setting the kits up, and nothing else, to make it as cheap as possible?)

In short, people should come to see really cool stuff, the stuff they want to take pictures of and show to their friends. Then, you want them to be able to buy stuff, or to learn a lot about the process(es), or, ideally, both.

For panels, I would expect a panel to give a simple overview of construction (a short youtube video, maybe even a slideshow), show the steps, the basic skeleton of what is done, maybe include some of the why, groups/gatherings of the 405th elsewhere, some of the community/website side of things, maybe even a hint of the 501st to show the variety. The "elevator pitch" of "why the 405th?", expanded to 8-10 minutes. Then introduce people on the panel. I'd look for a variety of people, to cover a variety of topics. Different levels of experience (some veterans who've refined their techniques over several builds, but also some rookies who might not even have finished a suit yet), different build styles (papercraft vs foam, for example), etc. Have some stuff on display (maybe one guy does the entire panel wearing armor, maybe others have a thing or two on hand as examples), but not much (that's for the booth, really). Assuming an hour long panel, 10 minutes of introduction, then leave like 50 minutes for questions. The panel would be for things that 1) require talking, and thus are easier to convey at a panel than at a booth (the kind of stuff you might repeat hundreds of times to people at the booth, and not have enough time to retell the story to everyone that wants to hear it; thus, tell them to come to the panel). Then, questions, for the more obscure things, or the unique situations, or whatever.


I'm new to the 405th, and am still in the early stages of my build, but I plan to be at RTX 2014, and would definitely be interested in helping in some way, shape, or form.

I think a big thing for next year needs to be engagement with the 405th community in terms of Planning. For 2013, it seemed like it was just announced on a Facebook Event page that there was going to be a booth and some panels. I don't even really remember it being mentioned on the forums. Had it been mentioned on the forums, you could have asked people who were attending if they had items for display at the table or to use for display at the Panel. I would have gladly loaned several items for display at the table had I known there was going to be a booth before I got to RTX.

If the focus of the 405th is to be Community, it would be nice to see the Community involved in the planning. For next year it would be nice to get a Head's Up on the boards that there is going to be a booth, and an engagement and asking for participation from the Community members attending RTX.

Hopefully a forum overhaul will help the 405th more capable of involving the community. We have a couple of things we're working on.

Displays are good. Perhaps a TV/project/video display of the armor making process (i'm working on putting together a couple videos for our booths on the west coast)
Maybe a binder with a bunch of references/pictures/info on costuming, similar to what the Rebel Legion keeps on their desks typically.
Have a sign that shows what panels/405th events we have planned for the week and their times/locations.
More booth space if possible. It was way too crowded.

We used two booths at Ventura Comic Con and set them up in a 'U' shape instead of a desk so that way attendees could walk up, touch the costumes, pose with them, etc. which made us far more interactive. We'll likely repeat that on our end, but it does take up a lot of room. We're also looking to incorporate a photo backdrop.

Went to RTX2013 and it was great to finally see the 405th represented at a convention. Every other con I've been to only ever seems to have the 501st show up as costume crafters. Maybe next year have a bigger booth. I think a great job was done on the panels the 405th hosted. However, might I recommend having more shirts in your inventory? You guys seemed to run out rather quickly.

I may not be able to make it to RTX2014 but you can expect me to be there for 2015, and I'll definitely have my armor ready by then.

These are all excellent suggestions, and I really appreciate all of the input! A lot of things mentioned were already strongly considered before the 2013 convention had even finished, so you all will definitely see many of those improvements. Cadet brought up a good point that we weren't too community-oriented in the planning phase for 2013: we definitely could've been a little more obvious of our intentions. I'll take a lot of that fault, it was kind of a last-minute decision to host a booth to begin with. Once I receive information for 2014, I'll be making a topic to house the planning and organization of the booth (and panel, more than likely!), and what everyone can do to help to ensure a great con. Keep posting, all, this is good stuff! ;0

I ran and organized table displays, panels, and at Convention events for years with my Local 501st Garrison when I was the Public Relations Officer and I would be glad to share any experience, tips, tricks, and general knowledge I gained from all that time, as well as help with any planning. Despite being consistently overlooked in this group, I would like to do what I can to help.

And you'll attract plenty of attention and photo requests as everyone's favorite Blue!

Sorry, but I was so glad to finally meet you in person, and the Achievable was a plus.

FYI, dates have been announced for this year's RTX, Fourth of July Weekend, and passes go on sale this Friday, January 31st.

My boys and I will definitely be there! A little bummed about the prospect of missing 4th of July with the fam, though... :-/ Decisions...

Hey everyone,

Just to update, we are in the stages of procuring the booth. Once we know the space we'll have, I'll try to get some more information out to everyone so we can get some more 405th input. We will definitely have many community opportunities for this year, and I can't wait to start discussing them!

If anyone is specifically interested in helping out, please either PM me (though it might take me a bit to read/respond) or message me on Facebook. (.com/drakku)

I'll be at GrifCon- I mean RTX, helping out at the GrifballHub booth. I'm working on one of Sean B's ODST kits and hope to have it ready in time. I'm eager to meat up for photo ops and activities, but my booth duty will be going to Grifball.
I was at RTX 2013, and passed by the booth. We were in such a rush to visit booths that we didn't stick around for long. Sorry I can't provide more feedback.

So, any updates at all?

Any updates?