Welcome!
This is the official website for RPGaming Faversham 2023 presented by The Boys from the Baltic Star.
Come and join us in the heart of historic Faversham in Kent for a weekend of Tabletop Roleplaying Games.
Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th of March 2023.
Faversham Assembly Rooms.
Tickets are now available!
Weekend Passes: £25
Day Passes: £15
Latest News about RPGaming Faversham!
Tickets are now on sale for RPGaming Faversham 2023!Join us on the 18th and 19th of March in Faversham for all the excitement
All the Boys from the Baltic Star will be there, and there will be plenty of opportunity to try out a range of Tabletop RPG systems, play completely new adventures, and we've made sure there are some suitable for complete beginners or who like a really light and flowing rule set.
The Boys from the Baltic Star are running our very own convention for tabletop RPGs in Faversham in Kent on the 18th and 19th of March 2023.Join us in our historic market town to play games and meet RPG people!
Friday
Welcome Drinks > From 9pm - Venue TBC - FREE
Saturday
Game Session 1 > 10am-1pm
Game Session 2 > 2pm-5pm
Panel Discussion > 6pm-6:30pm - FREE
Game Session 3 > 6:30pm-9:30pm
Saturday Drinks > From 10pm - Venue TBC - FREE
Sunday
Game Session 4 > 10am-1pm
Game Session 5 > 2pm-5pm
Panel Discussion > 6pm-6:30pm - FREE
Game Session 6 > 6:30pm-9:30pm
Monday
Farewell Brunch > From 9am - Venue TBC - FREE
Faversham - An Embarrassingly Superficial Introduction
Overview
Faversham is an ancient Market Town in Kent. It lies about ten miles from Canterbury, less than thirty miles from Rochester and about fifty miles from London. Today it's considered one of the better preserved towns in England, with hundreds of buildings and houses dating back up to four centuries and one or two genuinely mediaeval.
Ancient History
Faversham was a small town by the time Julius Caesar passed through on his way to Richmond and there's plenty of archaeology from Roman times, though nothing so impressive that we've been forced to make a dedicated museum, partly because a lot of the Roman era finds were taken away to the British Museum. There are a few decent pieces in the Maison Dieu in Ospringe, about twenty minutes walk from the centre of town. In fact the Maison Dieu is well worth a visit anyway, being a twelfth century hospital (which doesn't quite mean what you think), but it's open intermittently. It's not the most notable thing about the village of Ospringe though, nor is the ruin of a Roman temple called Stone Chapel conveniently located in a muddy field several hundred feet from the nearest pavement and completely lacking any useful signage. No, the most notable thing about Ospringe is that two-thirds of the Boys from the Baltic Star live there.
Local legend has it that the town put up a valiant defence against the Roman invaders, the local regiment, the Faversham Charioteers exhibiting enormous courage in fighting in the forest atop earby Boughton Hill, however I'd advise that you remember the way I used the word legend.
The Dark Ages
Faversham and its surrounding villages prospered throughout Roman rule and did even better once the Anglo-Saxons turned up in quantity. We know this time as the Dark Ages because people hadn't worked out how to make real ales yet, but this was the era when Faversham's port and shipyards flourished.
The town was sufficiently important that Alfred the Great, on becoming King of almost all of England, included Faversham in his list of Boroughs, towns and cities that were significant enough to be required to provide soldiers for his army on demand.
While there's a variety of local archaeology from this period, most of it's gone to important museums in London. One piece is especially notable. In the mud off Graveney, a village just outside Faversham, an almost complete Anglo-Saxon boat was found buried. It's one of the best preserved pieces of wooden construction from this era and it currently, rather sadly, sits in a loft at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, while Faversham argues about whether and where it could be displayed in the town.
After the Normans
As is well known, Kent was never actually conquered during the Norman invasion, in fact that's how it got its County motto Invicta, Latin for undefeated. While this is technically true, it turned out to be a distinction without a difference, and the county formed an important component of Norman Britain.
King Stephen made the decision to build a large Abbey in Faversham, and he was buried there, though not until after he died.
Faversham Abbey was a victim of the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Thomas Cromwell, after Henry VIII fell out with the Bishop of Rome. Very little of it remains, but some pieces still exist, including one of its gatehouses, now a private home.
The shipyard and the town's wealth were important reasons why the town became one of the associated Cinque Ports (pronounced like hook, line and cinquer), as a so called limb of the port of Dover. This meant that while Dover would be the place that Royal ships were built and stationed, some of the costs of doing so would fall on Faversham. In exchange the town got a number of privileges and it's the reason the town still holds a copy of the Magna Carta.
The town became something of a magnet for theatre companies during the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods, mostly because of its close connections to both London and Canterbury. Another local rumour has it that the first performance of The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare was in the town, but again the word rumour might be important here.
The Industrial Revolution
During the Industrial Revolution Faversham was well-placed to develop new ways of making money, as there were already skilled craftsmen working in the shipyards and maintaining the infrastructure for pilgrimages to Canterbury. The town essentially decided to pick the industries it thought were the most fun, so it became a nationally important centre for brewing and explosives. I leave you to decide if it was technically wise to make sure the workers at gunpowder factories were always liberally supplied with alcohol, but the town was an exciting place to live, that's for sure.
The first facility for manufacturing gunpowder in Faversham was also the first dedicated explosives factory in Europe, established early in the the sixteenth century, and explosives were a major part of the town's industry for the next 400 years. There are plenty of relics of the explosives industry around Faversham, but by far the most charming is the Chart Mills, just the other side of Tanners Street. It's sometimes open in the summer for visits, but even when closed you can see some of the old works.
As for the brewing industry, well that's still very much a current activity. There used to be two major breweries in the town, but the Whitbread brewery closed a few decades ago, its site is now occupied by Tesco, among other things. Shepherd Neame still has its Faversham Brewery right in the centre of town. It claims to be Britain's oldest brewer, having been established in 1698. It's possible to arrange a tour of the brewery, but for those who don't want to go quite that far, they have a gift shop full of beer-themed stuff in Court Street.
The World Wars
By the twentieth century the port of Faversham had failed to keep pace with the times, it simply wasn't large enough and required too much dredging to keep it at the forefront of shipbuilding.
The explosives industry was, however, going through something of a boom (pun intended). Wartime production was much higher than normal and unfortunately one of the factories outside the town suffered an enormous explosion, the cause still undetermined, in 1916. 200 tons of TNT detonated at Uplees, killing 115 workers at the factory. Desperate efforts by the on-site firefighters prevented the fire from spreading to another building where more than 3,000 tons of TNT were stored. None of these firefighters survived the day. As the explosion was on a Sunday there wasn't a single female casualty, women not being permitted to work on Sundays. There's a mass grave in Faversham's main cemetary containing most of the victims.
It wasn't the massive explosion that ultimately led to the explosives industry leaving Faversham, though. In the latter part of the First World War Germany undertook a number of so-called Gotha Raids, named for the long-range aircraft that were used. These air-raids, the earliest strategic bombing by conventional planes, could easily reach Faversham, so close to the European mainland. Faversham was bombed a number of times and a combination of government and corporate decisions relocated the entire manufacturing base to Scotland, far beyond the reach of any current or projected bombing.
Astonishingly there is still explosives manufacturing in Faversham. An old facility near the Creek manufactures Cardox explosives for industrial use, though these are much safer than typical explosives as they burn 'cold'.
Clearly this introduction isn't even detailed enough to qualify as 'superficial', but Faversham has a local historical society, unimaginatively called the Faversham Society, and it can provide much more information for the curious.
The Assembly Rooms
The Assembly Rooms are on Preston Street, between Faversham Kebab House and Yeung's Chinese Takeaway. To get inside, walk through the gates to the right of the front door and the entrance is on your left about thirty yards down.
Getting here by Train
Faversham Railway Station is connected to two main lines from London and two heading out to the coast. Trains from Victoria via Bromley South and St. Pancras via Dartford all pass through Medway on their way to Faversham. In the other direction there are lines in from Dover via Canterbury East and Ramsgate via Herne Bay.
This means it's entirely practical to stay in Canterbury, Whitstable, Sittingbourne and Herne Bay and still have a short train journey each day.
On arriving at Faversham Station, go down the stairs from the platform and turn right towards the main ticket hall. Outside the Station turn left and cross Station Road at the crossing. Walk past the corner of the Railway Hotel into Preston Street and the Assembly Rooms are about fifty yards down on the left.
Getting here by Car
Getting to Faversham from M2 Eastbound
Travelling along the M2 Eastbound, leave the motorway at Junction 6 and turn left towards Faversham on the A251. At the end of the road, turn left onto the A2 and immediately right into the Mall, towards the Town Centre.
Getting to Faversham from A2 Westbound
The A2 and A299 westbound meet at Brenley Corner roundabout, which is also Junction 7 of the M2. From the roundabout take the A2 exit towards Faversham. Just after passing the junction with the A251 on your left, turn right into the Mall, towards the Town Centre.
Driving around Faversham
Once you arrive at the junction between the A2 and the Mall, it's really easy to navigate to the centre.
Turn into the Mall and follow the road. It turns left, right, and right again in order to go under the railway bridge and around the station. As soon as you've made that second right you're driving past the Co-Op on your left with the station coming up on your right.
Long-stay parking is on the left just before the Co-Op. For the Assembly Rooms, turn left after the Co-Op into Preston Street and they're about fifty yards down on your left. For the central car-park, keep going past the Assembly Rooms, take the turn to the left (it's mandatory anyway) and the entrance to Bank Street is about fifty yards on your right.
Parking
As with many small towns, street parking in Faversham is a dark art, with arcane overlapping regulations. Thankfully there are two decent car-parks in the centre of town within a very short walk of the Assembly Rooms.
Faversham Central Car Park is a multi-purpose car-park which can be entered via Leslie Smith Drive, from South Road, or down Bank Street from Stone Street.
There is a long-stay car-park accessed from Station Road, next to the Co-Op.
Staying in Faversham
Quay Hotel
The Quay Hotel is at the bottom of Quay Lane, at the far end of Court Street. It's less than a ten minute walk from the Assembly Rooms through the centre of town.
Railway Hotel
The Railway Hotel is on the corner of Preston Street and Station Road, opposite Faversham Railway Station. It's about two minutes walk from the Assembly Rooms.
Sun Inn
The Sun Inn is in West Street, about five minutes walk from the Assembly Rooms.
Premier Inn
The Premier Inn is on the A251, between Faversham and the M2. About 25 minutes walk from the Assembly Rooms it's mostly suitable for people who will drive in or get a taxi each day, or, well, people who enjoy a walk.
Eating and Drinking
A selection of options in Faversham, all within a short walk of the Assembly Rooms.
Most of the places to eat are in Preston Street (where you find the Assembly Rooms as well) and in the Market Square and adjacent West Street.
Preston Street
In Preston Street we have the Spice Lounge and the Prince of India Indian restaurants, Faversham's chain pubs are also here along with the Railway Hotel and the Limes, both of these are Shepherd Neame pubs, and two micro-pubs, Furlongs and the Creeker's Tap.
Market Square
In the Market Square you can find the China Village and a range of café and sandwich options. At the junction with Preston Street is the Maypole Thai Restaurant and tearoom. Just off the north end is Ask Italian.
West Street
In West Street you find the Sun Inn and the Raj Indian Restaurant along with a range of other places to eat and drink.
Other Options
If you fancy something a bit smarter then it's worth looking at the restaurant at the Quay Hotel or Posillipo. Both of these can be found on Belvedere Road, just a step away from Court Street and Abbey Street.
A short walk from the centre you can find other pubs, like the Anchor and the Phoenix, both in Abbey Street, and the Market Inn, on the corner of the Recreation Ground (the Rec, as locals know it), on East Street. Past the Railway Station the Elephant pub is on the Mall.
Food and Drink Shops
There's a small but efficient Co-Op on Station Road, by the long-term parking, just a couple of minutes walk from the Assembly Rooms. There's a McColl's shop on Preston Street, almost opposite the Assembly Rooms, and as you walk towards the Market Square there are several other corner-shops, newsagents and the like. Preston Street also has a Boots, near the Market Square end.
Two full-size supermarkets are in town, Morrisons is on West Street and Tesco is just off the north corner of the Market Square. Both are just a few minutes walk from the Assembly Rooms.
For anyone staying at to Premier Inn, or happy to take a longer trip, there's an Aldi close to the Premier Inn on the A251.
