Last week, I got a sniff of something that smelled like a golden opportunity. It was that irresistible honey-baked aroma that often reeks of goodness emanating from Geek & Sundry. This time, they were serving up one of the most brilliant community-building ideas I’d heard of in a very long time… International TableTop Day. Responding quicker than a fast-acting antacid commercial, I was on the phone with my good friend, George Chase, owner of Hypno Comics in Ventura, CA, with whom I’d recently produced some great interviews with Comic Book creators, Steve Niles, Ken Kristensen, Artist Rahsan Ekedal and Top Cow COO, Matt Hawkins for Slice Of SciFi’s ItsComicBookDay.com.

The conversation went something sorta like this ~ “Dude”. “Oh hey Dude.” “Did you git that stuff I emailed you about Geek and Sundry’s TableTop Day?” “Dude, I’m all over it.” “Just talked with my guys at Alliance and I got one of the last International TableTop Day Retailer-Promotional kits on the way to me.” “That’s awesome Dude.” “I just got Slice of SciFi registered as an Official Podcast for the March 30th event!” “Whoa dude.” “Like way-whoa!” “I know, right?” “Let’s combine our efforts and create the biggest, baddest International TableTop Day event on Earth!” “Dude, cool idea.” “What’s that mean?” “Dude, I’ve got no idea yet ’cause Geek and Sundry folks ain’t gonna announce until next week, but like, whoa, right?” “Right. Way-Whoa.” “OK, so like we’ll do everything we can to bring as many people from all over Southern California to jam Hypno Comic to take turns playing amazing games.” “Nice, Dude.” “Yeah, and let’s figger a way for Slice of SciFi to have a multi-cam live stream event between Ventura and our studios in Phoenix?” “Way-nice dude.” “And we’ll get some celebs from the gaming world, comics, tv, film, porn, whoever we can find to spend a day playing games with fans at the beautiful beachside Hypno Comics, ya know?” “Dude, I’m all over it.”

And the rest is history. No, wait. It hasn’t happened yet so it’s futurestory. But it will happen.

Hypno Comics (www.HypnoComics.com) and Slice Of SciFi (www.SliceOfSciFi.com) are joined at the hip (ewww!) to bring a top retailer and top entertainment news outlet together to produce a most-outrageous International TableTop Day Celebration on March 30, 2013 in Ventura, CA. Above and beyond the intense gameplay will be swag, game demos, more swag, video streaming, on-camera interviews, celebrity visitors, social network Q&A, food & drinks, hot tunes, hot chicks, hot dogs and more global warming. A lot more detailed information will roll out as we wrap our heads around the event. One likely feature is that ITTD parties from around the globe could submit text, audio or video updates from their events using our Slice of SciFi App. So if you’re anywhere near this corner of the planet on March 30, then come to the Slice of SciFi & Hypno Comics International TableTop Day event… because it’s going to be slightly larger than Jupiter!

For more info on all things ITTD, hit up #TableTopDay

Here’s the official Press Release from Geek and Sundry:

FELICIA DAY’S GEEK & SUNDRY NETWORK ANNOUNCES CREATION OF INTERNATIONAL TABLETOP DAY, A WORLDWIDE CELEBRATION OF GAMING

FOR RELEASE ON FEBRUARY 27, 2013

LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 27th – Geek & Sundry, the award-winning original YouTube channel, is proud to announce the first International TableTop Day on March 30, 2013. International TableTop Day encourages people from around the globe to participate in the joys of board gaming by empowering the community to host thousands of gaming events internationally. Participants can sign up at www.tabletopday.com for free events at their favorite local game stores or submit their own event at their home, community center or business. Participants are encouraged to use the hashtag #TableTopDay on social media to share and connect their own events on a global scale.

Inspired by tremendous fan response to the the critically acclaimed show TableTop co-created and hosted by Wil Wheaton (Star Trek, Big Bang Theory, Leverage), Felicia Day and her team hope that the day will grow the gaming community by encouraging fans to come together and play more games. “Gaming is a huge passion of mine, and I’m thrilled to help launch this event that will allow gamers all over the world to celebrate their passions together in real life.” Felicia Day, Creator and Founder of Geek & Sundry said. “The response we’ve received around our show, TableTop, has shown us that tabletop gaming brings people together in a unique and powerful way. We want to celebrate this on a larger scale and give back to our wonderful community.”

Industry-leading sponsors such as Asmodee Editions, Days of Wonder, Mayfair Games, Steve Jackson Games, Wizards of the Coast, and many other major publishers are offering free promotional items and games as part of International TableTop Day to over 1,000 game stores around the world. “In the 20 years I’ve been in the game industry, nothing has moved the needle the way TableTop has,” said John Zinser president of Alderac Entertainment Group. “We’re proud to be a partner for International TableTop Day and take Geek & Sundry’s success to the next level.”

In conjunction with this announcement, Geek & Sundry has revealed their website www.tabletopday.com, the central hub for the community to bring together tabletop fans, publishers, and retailers from around the world. The tabletopday.com website provides fans with resources such as the interactive event map which tracks all #TableTopDay events worldwide, inspirational videos from their favorite YouTube stars, blog posts by popular columnists on how to plan for their event, and fun downloadable content to keep fans excited leading up to March 30th, 2013. Organizations, businesses, community centers, retail stores, and fans worldwide are invited to submit their own events for free and help make International TableTop Day a community-driven celebration of tabletop gaming.

About Geek & Sundry: Original YouTube channel Geek & Sundry features the best of indie geek culture and the internet’s foremost geek voices. Founded by the producers of the hit web series The Guild, Geek & Sundry offers a diverse lineup of shows that create a hub for fans of comedy, gaming, comics, music, and literature around the world. Spearheaded by prominent geek figureheads, Geek & Sundry features original content by Felicia Day (The Guild, Dr. Horrible, Eureka), Wil Wheaton (Star Trek, The Big Bang Theory). For more information, visit www.geekandsundry.com & watch us on YouTube at www.YouTube.com/GeekandSundry. – See more at: http://www.tabletopday.com/index.php/about