The Hex crew have all made it back from GenCon, and most of us have finally managed to catch up on our sleep. This was probably our best year ever in terms of introducing people to the game. We ran four well-attended and lively panels and 15 games this year. Except for one early-morning game that didn't go off, every single game was either full or only a couple of players short of the maximum, a few were over the player limit, and every single one was a lot of fun. Thanks to all the folks who came to the panels and played in the games (even the vile, awful (but in a good way) people who played in my Waxman's Warriors game on Sunday). Also, a huge thanks to Jordan Colson for filling in at the last minute for a GM who couldn't make it and to The Game Publishers' Association for selling our stuff.

If you're one of the people we met at GenCon who's visiting the site for the first time, please sign up for the forums and let us know what you thought of the games and panels. Then check out our Wiki and downloads section for lots of cool (and free) gaming stuff. If you want, you can buy some stuff, too! While you're at it, follow us on Twitter (user name: QAGS) and join our Facebook page (page name: QAGS Second Edition) for updates on what's going on at One Hex Tower.

Now that the convention is over, we're going back to work. We've still got 5 more games to put out this year (including a new Sindbad adventure, fan favorite Fratboys Vs., and the PDF release of Spooky: The Definitive Guide to Horror Gaming). We've also got several of our 2011 releases in the works; my favorites so far are Roller Girls Vs. and Hobomancer: The Unbecoming. Keep an eye on this page, The Death Cookie, and our Twitter and Facebook feeds for up-to-the-minute updates.

While all you people were out drinking beer, eating BBQ, and setting off low-powered explosives, the Hex web knomes have been locked inside upgrading the web site software. The site looks about the same, but there have been several small changes and a few big ones.

• The biggest change is probably the new Wiki, which is a lot easier to use and navigate than the old one. If you want to contribute, you'll need to log into your account here at the Hex site and click the link.

• We've got a full-fledged calendar in the events section. We've moved the event from the old one over.

• We've got new gallery software, and we've actually got quite a few pieces of art and event photos uploaded.

• New FAQ software.

• The Knome forum is once again access restricted. We've given all the Knomes whose user names we recognized permissions. If you think you should have access to the Knome forums but don't see them when you log in, let us know.

• Some pages have been updated, a few things (like the character and monster databases, which are now part of the Wiki) have been eliminated, and everything should work better in general now.

There were, of course, a few issues that arose as part of the migration:

• Anyone who's registered since we migrated the user files (Thursday or Friday afternoon-ish) will have to re-register. Sorry for the inconvenience.

• Some profile information (including user avatars) weren't moved over. You'll want to click on the Profile link of the user menu to reset your picture and make sure all your other profile  information is the way you want it.

• A few forum posts went up after the migration. We've copied all the ones we could find over into the new forums.

We've tested everything and it all appears to be working, but with a site this large something usually gets missed. If you find any errors or have any problems, let us know.

Starting at on January 20th,  Drivethrurpg and RPGnow will be selling the Gamers Helping Haiti bundle on their web sites. This collection of PDF products from dozens of different companies sells for only $20 and contains products with a retail value totalling over $1,000. All proceeds from sales fo the bundle will go directly to the Haitian relief efforts.

Hex has contributed two of our products, QAGS Second Edition and the Book of Dumb Tables, to the bundle. Also included in the bundle are products for Pathfinder, D20, Savage Worlds, and Spycraft, plus many others, including the Serenity Core Rulebook and a Dork Tower collection. 

 If you've already donated to the Gamers Help Haiti program, you'll get credit for your previous donation in the form of a coupon for the bundle in the amount you've already contributed. 

Update 01/20/10: Looks like the Drivethru and RPGnow servers are getting hit pretty hard with the response. They were down for a while this morning and are still running a little slow. If you're having trouble getting through, keep trying. The bundle will be availalbe until the end of the month. I just checked a few minutes ago and it looks like the Gamers Help Haiti fund just broke the $20,000 mark!

 Also, thanks to everyone who's helped to spread the word, and especially those of you who mentioned QAGS in the short list of cool stuff in the bundle. 

Update 01/21/10: The total hit $50,000 sometime this morning! 

Update 01/22/10: Now over $90,000. Keep spreading the word so we can take it to $100K andbeyond. 

Update 01/23/10: Over $100,000 now. Wow. 

Update 01/29/10: $163,000 and change. Offer ends Sunday, so get it now if you haven't already!

Update 02/05/10: Just got an email where they announced the total: $178,900. 

Below is a list of all the companies that participated in the bundle. Buying stuff from a few of them at regular price would be a great way of thanking them for donating their products.

4 Winds Fantasy Gaming, A Terrible Idea, Adamant Entertainment, AGES Gaming, Applied Vectors, Arc Dream Publishing, Art Fantasies, Bards and Sages, Basic Action Games, Berengad Games, Better Mousetrap Games, Black Snake Studios, BoxNinja, Brave Halfling Publishing, Cellar Games, Chaotic Shiny Productions, Crafty Games, Creative Conclave, Dane of War, Day Dreamer Interactive, Dork Storm Press, Encompass, Erisian Entertainment, Evil Hat Productions, Fabled Worlds, Fat Dragon Games, Fiery Dragon, Fire Ruby Designs, FJ Gaming, Flames Rising Press, FSpace Publications, Fuller Flippers, Game Monkey Press, GameVein, Generic Universe Publishing, GMC, Grasshopper Games, Green Ronin, Greg Stolze, Gun Metal Games, Hex Games, Highmoon Games, HinterWelt, Jessup Games, Jon Brazer Enterprises, Justin Achilli, Kallisti Press, Keck Publishing, Knowledge Arcana, Lamentations of the Flame Princess, Machine Age Productions, Magique Productions, Malcontent Games, Marcus L. Rowland, Margaret Weis Productions, Mesozoic Press, Mystic Ages Publishing, Nevermet Press, Nomadic Delirium Press, Open Design, Open Game Table, OtherWorld Creations, Palladium Books, Paper Make iT!, Pelgrane Press, Peryton Publishing, Planet Thirteen, Point of Insanity Game Studio, Polgarus Games, Prince of Darkness Games, Red Anvil Productions, Rhallen Enterprises, Rite Publishing, Rogue Games, Shield of Faith Studios, Silent7Games, Silver Gryphon Games, Skirmisher Publishing, Skortched Urf' Studios, Sonic Legends, SPQR Studios, StoryWeaver, Sword's Edge Publishing, Tabletop Adventures, The Le Games, Thenodrin Presents, Third Eye Games, Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Troll Lord Games, WorldWorks Games, Wydraz, Ye Olde Gaming Companye