Bokur Brawl 2021
In 1988 George Carlin released an HBO comedy special titled “What am I Doing in New Jersey?” He’s pictured on the cover of the album standing in what I assume to be a dump, shrugging with the New York City skyline in the background. I don’t know why that image always stuck with me but it’s the first thing I thought of when I decided to take a little road trip to the garden state.
The annual Bokur Brawl in Manville, New Jersey provided me with not only an answer to George Carlin’s question but also a feeling of normalcy. For the first time in nearly two years I got to see people from outside my immediate playgroups and start to rebuild a gaming scene that was (and still is) hit hard by Covid. For many other people there it was the first time being together since CaptainCon 2020. The weekend started with a Warfaire Weekend Qualifier and the “Big Base Brawl,” while a WTC style team tournament was the main draw for last two days. Along with two smaller Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika events, Bokur Brawl saw about 100 unique people play over the course of the weekend. While that isn’t very large compared to the bigger conventions most people are accustomed to, it did feel nice to ease back into it for what I hope is a more normal year.
For me it was the first chance I’ve had in a long time to document something I love and capture the joy that people had to just be able to roll dice and push around some models again.
Check out the video of the event below and the full photo gallery below that.
