By Casey Stepaniuk
If you live in that sweet spot in the intersection of the Venn diagram of being an LGBTQ2A+ person visiting (or living in) Vancouver and being a fan of board games, have I got an event for you! Quests and Queers: An LGBTQ2A+ Game Night is an event hosted by the GM Tim (a local tabletop and role playing game coordinator) and held at Vancouver’s nerdiest pub The Storm Crow Tavern on Commercial Drive.
When I first heard about this event in late 2017, I was disappointed that I was unable to make it. However, to my delight, I realized it was a monthly-ish ongoing event that is going strong in the New Year. 2018’s first event is happening on February 5th, with more queer and trans games nights planned for March, April, May, June and August.
This low-key, casual event is the perfect way to meet some like-minded folks. The event description encourages people to come both in groups or alone. In their words, “don’t be shy! We’re all friends here!” The host is there to help break the ice and get new folks playing games together, as well as to assist players with games that are new to them and rules that might be a bit complicated.
The games are curated by Strategies Games and Hobbies on Main St (one of my favourite stores to visit when I’m looking for a present for any occasion for anyone, myself included). Examples of the games available to play at Quests and Queers are: Settlers of Catan; Pandemic; Forbidden Island; Dungeon Fighter; Citadels; and more!
Image courtesy of Storm Crow Tavern
Storm Crow has cleverly named and delicious comfort food and drinks, including a Butterbeer drink featuring Schnapps, root beer, and ice cream; Klingon Chicken Strips (of Prey); Teenage Mutant Deep Fried Pickles; and Mac and Cheese of the Elder Gods. For folks who are vegetarian, vegan, and/or gluten-free, there are plenty of food choices for you too at the Storm Crow and the Mythical Chickpea Fries are especially standout. They’ve also got an awesome rotating draft beer selection, with plenty of local options. There are even gluten-free beer and cider options!
RSVP to the Quests and Queers Facebook event and I’ll see you there!
Where: The Storm Crow Tavern, 1305 Commercial Drive
How Much: No extra charge for the event, but it is held in a restaurant, so eating and/or drinking there is encouraged!
Casey Stepaniuk is a writer and librarian-in-training who runs the website Casey the Canadian Lesbrarian, where you can find LGBTQ+ Canadian book reviews and a queer book advice column. She also writes for Book Riot. Find her on Twitter: @canlesbrarian
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