Attendance for the general public is $15; Villa Maria College students will be admitted for free.

On the day of the Con, registration should be your first stop! Registration is located on the ground floor of the Main Building, right across from the College’s on-campus art gallery. (Same spot as last year!)

• If you pre-registered: You’ll provide your name and we’ll give you your official VillaCon badge and a schedule of events.
• If you did not pre-register: We’ll collect payment ($15 cash or card; kids 12 & under are free), then hand out badges and schedules. Villa students who did not pre-register must present their Student ID card to be admitted for free.

If you did not pre-register for the cosplay contest online, you can sign up to participate at the registration table until 1 PM.

• Physical tickets are not required for entry; attendees will check in and be cleared for admission upon arrival and given a badge to be worn and displayed as you move throughout the Con.
• Everyone must check in at the registration table before entering the Con.
• Pre-registration will close on Friday, March 1 at 11:59 PM. Anyone who did not pre-register but wishes to attend may pay with cash or a card at the registration table.
• Please enter through the doors located in Parking Lot A and proceed directly to the registration table.
• If you plan to participate in the Cosplay contest and did not pre-register, you can register at check in up until 1 PM on the day of the Con. No late registrations will be accepted.
• Attendees must sign up for games and panels at VillaCon; advanced registration is not available at this time.
• A very limited number of VillaCon t-shirts will be available for purchase in the registration area.
• No new guests will be admitted after 5 PM.

Food trucks will be ready to serve by 10 AM, so come hungry! All trucks have been asked to stay for the duration of the event, including during and after the cosplay contest. This year, all trucks will be located in the circle between the Main Building and Felician Hall.

Cater2YouKitchen – Sandwiches and loaded tots, 10 AM – 6 PM

Cheesy Chick – Grilled cheese and ​mac-n-cheese, 10 AM – 6 PM

Dirty Bird – Chicken and waffles, 10 AM – 6 PM

Sun Roll – Sushi rolls, Asian fusion, Burmese and more, 10 AM – 6 PM

Venus – Greek, 10 AM – 6 PM

Metz – Starbucks coffee and assorted grab & go options, 10 AM – 11 AM. Lunch service beginning at 11 AM. Located in the Commons (Main Building, Ground Floor)

Sweet Treats: Sharelle’s Place – 10 AM – 6 PM, Main Building, Lobby (First Floor)

Artists & vendors
Video gaming
Games
Panels
Food
Animation, film & game design showcases
Animation Club fundraiser

*Updated information for 2024 coming soon!*

• Click here for a Campus Map
• Artists & vendors should enter campus on Pennock Place and park in Parking Lot B
• Attendees can enter on Pennock Place and Parking Lot A or enter on Pine Ridge Road and park in front of the Main Building or Felician Hall

Registration is now open for attendees!

Artist Alley – Felician Hall: First Floor Lobby & Second Floor Chapel, 10 AM – 6 PM
Local Vendors – Main Building, The Commons, 10 AM – 6 PM
Video Gaming, Main Building, The Commons, 9 AM – 12 PM & 1 PM – 5 PM
10 Games – 10 AM – 5 PM, Various Locations
14 Panels – 10 AM – 5 PM, Various Locations
Food – The Commons & Main Lobby, Food Trucks located in the circle between the Main Building and Felician Hall
Animation, Film & Game Design Showcases – Main Building, Digital Media Art Center (Ground Floor), 10 AM – 6 PM
Animation Club Fundraiser – Main Building, Mission Nook (Ground Floor), 10 AM – 6 PM
Admissions, Achieve Program, and Summer Camps – Main Building, The Commons (Ground Floor), 10 AM – 6 PM

The following artists will be present at VillaCon 2024:

• The Honey Hive Company
• Oliver Buck
• Lauren Cardamone
• Timothy Clavier
• Owen Doud, Birdie Owen Art
• Mika Ervin
• Black Unicorn Wood Fanciful Artifacts, Midori Hirtzel-Church
• Ashley Homer
• Chelsea Huchital, Studio Cadco
• Brittany Kruszka, Lots of Lemons Studio
• Emily Lawton
• Emily Metzger, Em & Me Handcrafted Creations
• Emma Morlino
• Monaca Morgan
• Nyree Purdie, Galactic Cleaver Studios
• Nancy Shortz, Mutilated Beauty Art
• Kirstie Storrs, Kitomet Art
• Lolliath Tilley, Lolliath Arts
• Colleen Tulowitzki
• Nichole Fears
• Ron VanOstrand
• Melia VanOstrand
• Joy Zappia, Vulturama Studios
• Adriana Daniel
• Amanda Brown, Laser Crits
• Victoria Troutman, Victoria’s Creations
• Tiffani Alello

Please see below for more details. Details are subject to change.

• Tables are $30
• Artist Alley will be open from 10 AM – 6 PM; Artists must be present until 6 PM
• Artists can begin unloading and setting up on Friday, March 24 between 1 PM and 5 PM
• On the day of VillaCon, artists can begin uploading and setting up at 8 AM
• Artists must be fully set up and ready by 9:45 AM on Saturday
• VillaCon volunteers will be available to assist with unloading and will help direct you to your table
• You will be issued an ID tag indicating your status as an artist
• Enter campus from Pennock Place & park in Parking Lot B
• Click here for a campus map
• All artists will receive a 36″ x 96″ table located in Artists Alley
• 10 x 10 total space
• Wifi access will be given at registration
• Upon acceptance to the Con, artists must complete the Code of Conduct Agreement – https://forms.office.com/r/HZWaxE8WTH

• The Cosplay Contest will take place in the Auditorium at 3:30 PM.
• Pre-registration (online and in person) for the contest will close at 1 PM on Saturday, March 2.
• If you did not pre-register and would like to, please email Krysta Edwards with your name, your character name/source, and a reference photo.
• You can also register to participate in the Cosplay contest when you check in until 1 PM.
• Registration for the contest will end at 1 PM day of, so be sure to register before then! No late registrations will be accepted.

Prizes for the 2024 cosplay contest include:

• 1st place: $25 gift card to Michaels, VillaCon t-shirt, and a free pass to VillaCon 2025
• 2nd place: VillaCon t-shirt, and a free pass to VillaCon 2025
• 3rd place: Free pass to VillaCon 2025

2024 Cosplay Contest Judges

Random Chibi is a multi-fandom cosplayer from Pittsburgh, PA who has been cosplaying for over fifteen years. Their cosplay motto is “Don’t be afraid to ask a question or make a mistake!”. They started cosplaying back in 2002 and have seen how both the convention and cosplay scene has changed in that time frame. In their time as a cosplayer, they have hosted and co-hosted meet-ups at multiple cons and run panels on both in character and out of character. They have knowledge in working with materials such as foam, wood work, acrylics, special effects makeup and jewelry making. Random Chibi is an avid anime watcher and has been attending conventions since 2002. Their other hobbies include reading, writing story stories and poetry, learning about voice overs, and dancing.

Jim Fenix aka the Canadian White Wolf has been cosplaying for over 15 years and is best known  for Winter Soldier and His Halo Armour . He brings expertise in Foam Armour crafting as well 3d printing. His cosplay adventure began one Halloween. As he learned about comic cons, he found himself looking forward to dressing up as his favorite character more than once a year. Jim Loves to learn about each character he cosplays, and he fully immerses himself into the role for each of his projects.  In life, Jim’s motto is, “I Always Want To Be Better. Better Than What? Better Than Yesterday.”

Bobby Whalen, Jr. finished his first costume build in October 2012 and he has been part of the Western New York Cosplay community ever since. His first project was a foam pepakura Mark VI Iron Man suit from Iron Man 2. Since completing that build, Bobby has built over a dozen other costumes and props including, Lego Batman, 3 different screen replica versions of Groot, Dark Helmet from Space Balls, a Foot Clan Soldier from TMNT, Tanjiro Kamado from Demon Slayer, Stormbreaker from Endgame, Predator, Ulysses Klaue from Black Panther, and a Buffalo-Themed Arctic Mandalorian for The North Ridge. Additionally, he is a member of the 501st Legion’s Garrison Excelsior as A New Hope Stunt Stormtrooper (TK-71600), and co-founder of The Superhero Alliance of WNY (SAWNY).

Esports at VillaCon 2024

Super Smash Bros Ulimate, Run by Joshua Kamlet
9 AM – 12 PM & 1 PM – 5 PM | Main Building, Commons (Ground Floor)
Crossover platform fighting game, no player limit; all ages welcome.
Sign up to participate between 9 AM and 12 PM in the Commons

VillaCon 2024 Games
Run time for each game is two hours

Legos, Run by Villa Maria’s Lego Club
10 AM – 12 PM | Main Building, Room 115 (First Floor)
No limit, all ages

Board Games, Run by Heather Carmelia
10 AM – 1 PM | Main Building, Room 103 (First Floor)
Board games, 4-7 players, all ages

Prototype Room, Run by Emily Fagerstorm
10 AM – 11 AM | Main Building, Room 106 (First Floor)
Board and card games, no player limit, all ages

Pokemon 5E, Run by Kaden Kamphey
12 PM – 3:30 PM | Main Building, Room 101 (First Floor)
Tabletop, roleplaying, 2-6 players.

D&D High Noon in the Graveyard, Run by Eddie Mas
12 PM – 3:30 PM | Main Building, Room 12 (Ground Floor)
D&D 5th edition character creation panel, 2-8 players.

The Search for the Tidestone, Run by Gayle Petri
12:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Felician Hall, Room 107 (First Floor)
D&D 5th edition, all ages

Shadowdark: Into the Dark, Run by Richard Zimmerman
12:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Main Building, Room 13 (Ground Floor)
Tabletop, 6 players, all ages

Rifts for Savage World: Stirring the Hive, Run by James Snider
12:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Felician Hall, Room 108 (First Floor)
Tabletop, roleplaying, 4-5 players, 14+

Geek Genius Trivia Challenge, Run by Ryan Hartnett
5 PM – 6 PM | Main Building, Room 102 (First Floor)
Teams of 2-6 players, all ages

VillaCon 2024 Panelists and Topics
Panels will run for 45-minutes, with an additional 15-minutes allotted for a Q&A session

The Buffalo North American Science Fiction Convention
10 AM – 1 PM | Main Building, Room 102 (First Floor)
We will discuss the NASciFic Convention being in Buffalo this next July 18-21. We will answer questions on what we plan on doing, who our guests are, and some of the programming we intend to have.

Hidden Village: Buffalo BLERD Party
10 AM – 6 PM | Main Building, M&T Conference Room (First Floor)

• Introduction – 11:15 AM – 11:30 AM
• Afro-Gauntlet – 11:30 AM – 12:10 PM
• Blerd Trivia – 12:15 PM – 1 PM
• Break – 1 PM – 2:10 PM
• Blerd-Owned Business Panel – 2:15 PM – 3 PM
• Nerdy Black Health – 3 PM – 3:30 PM
• Closing Remarks – 3:30 PM

Comic Book Religion (Dot Com), Hosted by Danni Cook
10 AM – 12 PM | Main Building, Recital Hall (First Floor)
Exploring comic book characters and their religious affiliations through a surprisingly well-kept website from the early internet.

Joypad Jesters (Game Development Team), Hosted by Evan LeBlanc
10 AM – 12 PM | Main Building, Room 13 (Ground Floor)
Learn more about our game development process, as well as some of the unforeseen struggles and surprises we encountered along the way. We’ll discuss our animation, coding, and more before demoing the game we’re working on now. Attendees will be among the first to get a sneak peak.

Dramatic FanFic Readings, Hosted by Ashley Mercurio 
10 AM – 12 PM | Felician Hall, Room 107 (First Floor)
Join Ashley for several rounds of dramatic readings of the funniest, weirdest, and messed up fanfics the internet has to offer, plus some of those written by Ashley herself over 10 years ago.

D&D 5th Edition Character Creation, Hosted by Eddie Mas 
11 AM – 12 PM | Main Building, Room 12 (Ground Floor)
New and experienced table-top roleplaying attendees will learn how to make a character for the popular table top role playing game, Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition. Attendees can look forward to learning how to make their characters with a variety of dice and through playable races, classes, and ability scores. Towards the end of the panel, attendees can participate freely in a one-shot fantasy game where they will be able to practice what they have learned as their newly-created character.

Indie Game League, Hosted by Ryan Santiago
11 AM – 12 PM | Main Building, Room 106 (First Floor)
Learn more about Ryan Santiago’s Indie Game League art. Ryan will be presenting his artwork, sharing his real-world inspirations and telling the story of how the Indie Game League came to be be.

Character Creation, Hosted by Kaden Kamphey
10 AM – 12 PM | Main Building, Room 101 (First Floor)
In this panel, you’ll learn the basics of Pokemon 5e before creating your own trainer character; your alter ego in Viridian City. Choose your skill set, assign combat skills, choose your features, and more! Once your character is complete, you’ll be ready to start catching, training, and battling Pokemon. Seven lucky characters will be used in another panel later in the day.

Fandom Mad Libs, Hosted by Danni Cook
12 :15 PM – 3:30 PM | Main Building, 115 (First Floor)
In this story…Goku…goes to…Gotham…with…Godzilla? It’s fandom, it’s Mad Libs, it’s a good time.

Marvelous Muppet Madness II, Hosted by Jay Ramos
12:15 PM – 3:15 PM | Main Building, Recital Hall (First Floor)
Are you interested in Muppet history? Then don’t miss this panel, during which Muppet man Jay Ramos sums up the entire lifespan of Jim Henson’s Muppets! This includes the few times the Muppets have said some off color things and, of course, an age-old debate: is Yoda a Muppet? Join for the puppet fun, stay for the Rowlf game!

The Solution? HeadCanoning! Hosted by Salem Saloman
1:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Main Building, Room 103 (First Floor)
Let’s take a deep dive into what headcanoning is in relation to fandom culture. We’ll discuss he different headcanons of various characters and how fandom culture has been built around it.

Cosplay Photography & Tips, Hosted by Kat McCabe
2 PM – 3 PM | Main Building, Auditorium (First Floor)
Learn the ins and outs of cosplay photography from a professional cosplay photographer. Kat Will share some of the tips and tricks she’s learned along the way to help make your next cosplay session your best one yet!

Science Fiction of the 1960s, Hosted by Todd Baker
2:30 PM – 3:30 PM | Main Building, Recital Hall (First Floor)
The science fiction field changed tremendously during the 1960’s.  The discussion will focus on the authors, editors, and filmmakers who made such an impact on the field.

Skepticism & Paranomal, Hosted by Kenneth Biddle
5 PM – 6 PM | Felician Hall, Room 108 (Ground Floor)
Join Kenneth Biddle as he hosts his $500K Paranormal Challenge. Anyone that can prove, under scientific testing conditions, that they have superpowers, can win $500,000. From telekinesis and creating lightning, to teleporting and moving clouds around the sky at will, we’ve tested quite a few potential superpowers, and we have yet to see a winner. 

The following vendors will be present at VillaCon 2024:

• Matt’s New & Used Board Games
• Geologic by Calla
• Super Kitty Crafts
• GeekOut Therapy
• Fox Glove Lane
• Dark Matter
• Casual Dragon Games
• Royal Dovakiin Artisans
• Kruff’s Kreations
• Tree D Studios
• Dragon Moon Creations
• Ichiban Games
• Shiver’s SoleMates
• 716 Pool
• Thiry3D

Click Here to Register Now!

Below are the details from VillaCon 2023. All details are subject to change. 

• Tables are $30
• Vendors will be open from 10 AM – 6 PM; vendors must be present until 6PM
• Vendors can begin unloading and setting up on Friday, March 24 between 1 PM and 5 PM
• On the day of VillaCon, vendors can begin uploading and setting up at 8 AM
• Vendors must be fully set up and ready by 9:45 AM on Saturday
• Enter campus from Pennock Place & park in Parking Lot B
• Click here for a campus map
• All vendors will receive a 36″ x 96″ table
• 10 x 10 total space
• Wifi access will be given at registration
• You will be issued an ID tag indicating your status as a vendor
• VillaCon volunteers will be available to assist with unloading and will help direct you to your table
• Upon acceptance to the Con, vendors must complete the Code of Conduct Agreement – https://forms.office.com/r/HZWaxE8WTH

Let’s keep the fun going!
Additional $20 entry fee

BLERD is sponsoring the official after party of VillaCon!
6 PM – 8 PM, OSB Buffalo, 21+

VillaCon attendees get their first drink* free! First &Drink: 1 cider drink, valued around $8 per pint. VillaCon 2024 badge or other proof of purchase must be presented to the entry booth to receive a drink ticket. 1 ticket per person.

Valid ID required for entry.
Cosplay props checked upon entry. Please do not bring props with sharp edges and items that resemble firearms.

OSB Buffalo is located at 517 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14203

See you there!