JGBGB — The Jonathan Grabert Board Game Bash · Oct 23–25, 2026

Jonathan Grabert, at right in the foreground, working the Board Game Bash registration desk — Jonathan Grabert, right, at the registration desk.

Why we're doing this

Jonathan Grabert started Board Game Bash in 2011 and ran it for twelve years. He kept us coming back to the same hotel ballroom, year after year, with nothing but games, goodwill, and a new d6. He passed in October 2023.

We're not trying to bottle the past. We're setting the tables back up, in his room, the way he would have. We'll take it from here.

Board Game Bash: 2011–2022. JGBGB: 2026.

Small on purpose.

JGBGB is a hundred-ish (now a couple hundred) people in one ballroom, and that's the whole point. No vendor hall, no badge-scanner line, no floor plan you need a map to read. One ballroom (and some side rooms), three days, and more board games than you'll get to.

Most board gamers spend the year explaining what hobby games even are. For one weekend, you don't have to. Everyone here already gets it.

Come with friends, or solo. Many tables here start when someone sits down and asks what you want to play, and by Sunday no one is a stranger anymore.

Players filling a hotel ballroom at banquet tables during a card game tournament at the 2015 Bash — The Dominion tournament, 2015 — in the same ballroom we're back in this October.

What a weekend here looks like

One badge, no event tickets, no upsells. You show up, you play. Everything below is included.

Open gaming
Friday evening through Sunday night — three nights and two full days of gaming until they kick us out. Scheduled 8am–10pm, though the hotel has always been more generous than that.
Tournaments & hosted events
Scheduled through the weekend, all covered by your badge. The PitchCar tournament on two tables of track, Fritter's Five, a scavenger hunt, and more. The full program lands on Tabletop Events as it firms up.
The Table Flipping Championship
Returns.
The Jonathan Grabert Congeniality award
Exactly what it sounds like, and you'll be doing the nominations.
This year's die
A new custom die, every year, since 2011. The 2026 die comes with your badge at check-in. Some of you have full sets. Don't let that change to "had".

Twelve years of Board Game Bash custom dice lined up in order, 2011 through 2022 — Every die since the first one. Yours is next.

Tickets

Early birdFirst 30 badges. Sold out. $55

RegularThe next 70 badges. Sold out. $65

Going, going, gone?There may be more added, but it won't be many! $75

Over half the badges are already sold.

Registration is handled by Tabletop Events; the button takes you straight there.

Every badge includes

All three days, Friday through Sunday
Open gaming
Every tournament and hosted event
The 2026 convention die (yours at check-in)
A room full of people who don't need the rules explained twice

The things people actually ask

Answered straight. If yours isn't here, email and it will be.

I've never been. Will I actually be comfortable?: Yes, and you won't be the only first-timer. This crowd is welcoming; there is literally an award for it. Sit down at a table, say you're new, and someone will teach you something before you finish the sentence.
Can I come alone?: Plenty of people do. Board games are the fastest icebreaker ever printed; you can have a regular group by Saturday lunch.
How is this different from the big conventions?: It's intentionally small, and grassroots. We're here to play games, too! A badge is $75 instead of triple digits. You can know everyone by Sunday.
Where exactly is it?: The Austin Marriott South, 4415 South IH-35 Frontage Road, just southeast of downtown off I-35. Open it in Maps. It's the same hotel the Bash always used, and there's free parking on site.
Where should I stay?: Wherever suits you. There's no room block this year, so you're free to book the Marriott itself or anything nearby — plenty of people split a room, and plenty drive in each morning.
Should I bring my own games?: Yes, please. Most of what ends up on the tables is what people carry in, so bring a few favorites. There's no better way to finally get that one you love played. You can also turn up with nothing at all and be fine. A few publishers have donated games to our library this year, and this crowd is generous with what they bring, so there's always more on the tables than you'll get to.
Who was Jonathan Grabert?: He founded the Bash in 2011 and ran it for twelve years, until he passed in October 2023. JGBGB carries his name because the weekend was always really his. More about him above.
What does registration involve?: It's all on Tabletop Events: grab your badge, pay, done. About a minute. Early bird and regular have both sold out, so a badge is $75 now. We will have a limit to the number of badges we sell, so grab one soon!
What if I buy a badge and then can't come?: Give it to someone else — badge transfer is free, and you can change the name on yours yourself. If you'd rather have the money back, email us before October 3 and we'll refund 90%. The last 10% is the booking fee Tabletop Events keeps whether you turn up or not, and we can't claw it back. After October 3 we can't refund at all; by then the room and the dice are paid for.
What if I can't make it this year?: Then come next year — this is annual again, and 2027 is already the plan. There's a place to leave your email just below.

Not this year? No hard feelings — it's a long drive for some of you. Leave an email and we'll send a message when the 2027 dates are set.

October 23–25. We can always play. So we never do.

A hundred-ish (now a couple hundred) seats, three days, and no other plans. That last part is the hard one. One of those seats has your name on it, and a die Jonathan would have put there himself.