🎪 5 lessons learned at the 2025 Indie & Local Tabletop Games Fair

After every in-person event I’ve done as Exeunt Press, I have tried to do a post-mortem. I think through what went well and what didn’t go so well, and then try to formulate a list of lessons learned.

People’s Book in Takoma Park, MD (near DC)

First, thank you…

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to visit me at the Indie & Local Tabletop Games Fair in Takoma Park over the weekend! It was really amazing to have so many people stop by and say they play Exeunt Press games and read Skeleton Code Machine each week. A few people even said they made the trip specifically to see me!¹

Thank you for your kind words and support. It made it a really special and rewarding day for me.

Some lessons learned

An outdoor event in beautiful fall weather!

After every in-person event I’ve done as Exeunt Press, I have tried to do a post-mortem or “after action” report. I think through what went well and what didn’t go so well, and then try to formulate a list of lessons learned. You can read the previous ones here:

• Harrisburg Board Game Day (2025)

• MEPACON (2024)

• Indie & Local Tabletop Games Fair (2024)

• Save Against Fear (2024)

• Save Against Fear (2023)

The event was a success. The weather was great, the vibe was perfect, and I was able to get together with other designers that I can usually only talk to via Discord. I met new Skeleton Code Machine readers and signed copies of games. All that, and sales were really good too! So, spoiler, no major issues.

The Exeunt Press table and display.

That said, I’m sure there are always some things to learn:

1. Bring signs and markers: I accidentally brought the wrong zine stands, and left the one that had the nice glittery SOLO GAMES on it at home. Luckily I brought some brightly colored paper and markers. I made some handmade signs that, while not as professional looking, added to an “authentic” feel — or at least that’s what I told myself. Either way, I was glad I had the ability to make ad hoc signs on the fly.

2. Oh no, cash: When someone asked if I take cash, I said sure! Then realized that while I could accept cash, I had forgotten to bring a cash box or way to make change. It wasn’t a big issue because I only had one, single person offer to pay with cash for the entire event. This is in contrast, however, to an event like MEPACON where 37% of my transactions were cash.

3. Simplify the categories: At this point, Exeunt Press has five solo games, two Skeleton Code Machine guides, Tumulus back issues, and a few CY_BORG titles, and a MÖRK BORG pamphlet adventure. It’s too much for a small table and too confusing to visitors who aren’t familiar with TTRPGs. Having one zine rack of just solo games helped. But having the CY_BORG stuff mixed in with the guides seemed to confuse people.

4. Optimize how many copies to bring: I wish I could say I had a highly scientific way of deciding how many copies of each title to bring. I don’t. Instead I looked at the maximum number sold of any single title at last year’s event, rounded up to the closest 5 and then brought that many of each title. It meant I sold out of one item and had a bunch left of some others. Caveat Emptor sold far more than I was expecting and Exclusion Zone Botanist sold far less.²

5. Bundles continue to be popular: Offering a bundle discount when you buy all five solo RPGs or when you purchase both SCM guides was a hit. I think this is common knowledge at this point, but bundles work. If you aren’t doing them yet, you should consider it.

That’s about it. I feel like I’ve got a good system for small events. At some point I’ll need to make the leap and get a table for Exeunt Press at a big event!³

Special thanks to Gene (Sticky Doodler) for organizing the event and to People’s Book for hosting it. As always after events like this, I left feeling energized and excited to create new things.

MÖRKTOBER runs through October!

If you weren’t able to attend, check out the Exeunt Press Shop. Get a free sticker with your order during MÖRKTOBER! 🎃

The next event I’ll be at is PAX Unplugged in November. No booth, just walking around and playing games. If you’ll be there, let me know!

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- E.P. 💀

1. Shout out to the fellow Mountain Goats fan!!!

2. I hadn’t counted on a high number of repeat customers. It turned out that a non-trivial number of people were back after having attended last year’s event where they bought games from me. In addition, many people said they had picked up Exclusion Zone Botanist, You are a Muffin, and/or Eleventh Beast at PAXU or other event.

3. The major limiting factor is that Exeunt Press staff consists of one person (me) and one unpaid intern (Murphdog). And Murphdog refuses to work a booth. Running a booth solo at an event like PAX Unplugged sounds like a fool’s errand.