#most of my RDC3 problems were caused by me just not having time to buy food

[idontfindyouthatinteresting]

So I’d think it’s fair to say that most people going to Red Dragon Con 4 will probably have attended an RDC before, but just in case, or if you had a tough time getting things in place last time around, here’s a tips list, from the basics to extras. 

Autographs! - All Gold/Regular ticket holders get 1 autograph per guest included with their ticket price, Bonus Guests are chargeable to regular ticket holders and Extra Guests are chargeable to everyone. If you would like extra autos beyond what you’re allocated you can buy them at the con (from the desk by sign ins) and you can do this in two forms. Either you can buy a photo, and the cost of the photo includes an autograph, or you can buy a “badger” which means the guest will sign something you’ve brought, like a funko or an artbook. Autos are £10/£15/£20 depending on the guest. Badgers and photos are exactly the same price. Autos are called by ticket type and number, please do not queue unless you’ve been called as you won’t be allowed in the room. The calling is done via notices on the screens in the talks, via a white board in the atrium and via starfury’s con twitter. You’ll be given a card containing your “free” autos, if you lose it you won’t get a replacement and each auto is ticked off as you get it. If you bring something to be signed by a guest, whether or not they are willing to sign it is entirely at their discretion, I would recommend not bringing anything that you think might cause a stir.

Photos! - No photos are included in your ticket price. You buy what you want before/during the con. All guests will do individual shoots and groups selected by Starfury (this typically depends on which guests characters work well together) and then also they’ll do a shoot with all the guests. Photos are typically (Eddie Izzard was an exception) not organised by ticket type or number, but preorders went first as of RDC3. When it gets closer to the con you’ll be able to buy selected photo shoots online, and this is the only way to guarantee you’ll get hold of a photo ticket. Though it’s v. unlikely they’ll turn you away. Photos are £20 (for individual guests, though the “main” guest i.e. Mads, Hugh etc may cost slightly more) and then the groups range up to £130+ for the photo with all the guests (and if you want more than one attendee in the photo it’s £5.00 per extra person.) The photo queues are scary but do go quick. I would recommend not buying all your photos for the Saturday or Sunday, spread it out. There is a (free) bag drop off so they aren’t in your photos, but you do have to carry your preorder email or cards with you when you go round.

Talks! - Talks happen on both Saturday and Sunday from around 12pm to about 5pm. There is a break for lunch (but this is when the fan meets take place, see below) of about half an hour. The seating for the talks is Gold at the front, stewards and then regular ticket holders. All the talks are about an hour long and are made up entirely of questions from the audience, there is a microphone at the front and people queue for a chance to ask a question. (If you’re unable to queue, someone can hold a place for you and when it’s your turn, a microphone will be brought to you.) Talks are filmed and projected onto huge screens. 

Fan Meets! - My knowledge here is limited because I’ve never done one but the essentials are, if you’d like a “meet and greet” scenario whether you’re a gold or regular ticket holder, you can buy a ticket to have a talk with some of the guests. These are held (as above) during the talks break on both Saturday and Sunday, so if you want to do them your schedule becomes pretty hectic. There are select tickets for each talk, you have to sign up at the registration desk. Only certain guests do them, Bryan and Hugh didn’t for RDC3 (for obvious reasons.) Details I’m not too sure on, so please correct me if you’ve been to them: Sessions are 30 mins, tickets are £20 and the groups are of about 10 people.

Meet and Greet! - Gold ticket holders only! This is run immediately after the opening ceremony and golds will be directed to the room as soon as it’s over to be seated. Tables are of 9 (with a chair left for the guest) and you’ll be asked how many are in your group before you enter the room. Guests will then work their way around the room, spending about 5 minutes at each table. With regards to how long it lasts for, that’s anyone's bloody guess. RDC1 we were there until midnight, BTRDC we were out at like 10:30 (lots of gold ticket holders didn’t show to the con) and RDC3, well, 4 in the morning. Basically, it lasts as long as it takes for the guests to get around and as long as you’re willing to wait. Bryan Fuller is of course the worst offender, but regardless of who is attending, prepare yourselves for a wait! (with booze and pizza and probably some sort of activity.)

Stewarding! - I’ll definitely be stewarding this time around! Basically it means you help out with the con a little over the course of the weekend, most people will have a 3(ish) hour slot on the Saturday and the Sunday. Things like being on the door and checking badges or doing the bag drop for photo sessions etc. You won’t miss any autos/photos you buy (you may be able to skip some queueing too if you’re stewarding during the sessions,) you get to sit behind the golds in talks and you get a group photo of the guests as a reward at the end of the weekend. (Check out my one from RDC1) I’ll post when Starfury are asking for sign ups and put the info on my RDC4 page.

Gifts for the Guests! - Keep them small if you can, Bryan and Hugh had gift collections at RDC3 and then we know that Bryan shipped all of his stuff back to the US. This was a later addition to get the queues running faster, so I don’t know what they’ll do for RDC4, but regardless, there is a high chance if you give them bulky stuff they’ll have to leave it.

Self care! - It’s very easy to not eat or drink anything over the weekend, I would recommend bringing a bottle you can fill up with water and snacks. For RDC3 I didn’t have a single square meal (but that was super bad, I’m changing it up to ensure I do actually eat this time around) it’s that easy to forget about. You aren’t going to want to go up to your room constantly either so bringing a bag you can carry everything in for the day is also important

Guest care! - They will be in and around the hotel, getting to and from sessions, getting into cars and sometimes in the bar. Please don’t use this as a chance to swipe a freebie. The weekend is crazy for them and because it’s Hannibal and they’re awesome, they are probably already going above and beyond what they’re paid to do. Unless they’re willing and able (like for example, Vlad turning up at the hotel on one of the evenings) please just let them do what they have to do in peace. You have plenty of opportunities to interact with them and ask your questions over the weekend. 

Misc!

- Lanyards for your con badges are an extra £2.50, please have this (and to make it easier, in change) ready when you sign in on the Friday evening.

- There is a raffle for the con banners and posters (signed by the guests) over the course of the weekend and winners are announced on the Sunday.

- Bring a folder to put your photos/ autos in. (Mine also has my name and telephone number on it just in case.)

- Lots of people are now wearing badges with their URL’s/twitter handles on so everyone knows who is who! Here is mine!

- FLOWER CROWNS! Please wear a flower crown! It’s a wonderful, beautiful thing that makes the whole event look much more like a Fannibal one! 

- You don’t have to stay in the con hotel to come, and sometimes staying elsewhere is cheaper, along bath road there are lots of options. But if you’re staying in the con hotel and still want to keep costs down, it’s cheaper to bunk up! Single occ is £80 a night, double is £90 and triple (with 1 camp bed) is £110.

- There is a cash machine at the con hotel but you are charged to withdraw. But planning what you want and sticking to it (i.e. drawing the cash out pre-con) is the best way to stick to your budget and not go mad. I know exactly what I want photo/auto wise before I walk into the hotel and I do not deviate.

- Some people (particularly international fannibals) do arrive on the Thursday so there’s a little going on that night too if you want to make a longer weekend of it. The con discount for the cheaper rooms doesn’t apply for the Thursday so you will have to pay the normal rate (which is currently £132 for a double room.)

*This is how starfury/the hotel runs things as of the time of writing, I doubt they’ll change the set up too much but if they do, I’ll alter this post as soon as I’m aware. This post is built upon my own experiences of RDC1, BTRDC and RDC3.*

As always if you have any questions about the con let me know and check out my RDC4 page for the most up to date info on what’s going on.