Origins 2026 ~ Origins Details

Armchair Dragoons PAO, 22 April 2026

Origins Game Fair is coming up in a few months, and as we have for a decade now, our intrepid events team from the Armchair Dragoons will be running the Wargame HQ in the event hall.

most images can click to enlarge

Origins Game Fair Details

17-21 June 2026
Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio
Events start on Wednesday at noon and run through Sunday at 6pm; Armchair Dragoons events start at 2pm on Wednesday and wrap up by noon on Sunday
Exhibit hall for vendor sales opens 10am on Thursday; closes Sunday at 4pm
A full-show badge is $125 and includes most events (see below); daily badges can be cheaper, as are child badges that must be attached to an adult badge

Events

Last year there were over 7000 events in the program, ranging from the Smithee Awards to to RPGs to escape rooms to tournaments; the Armchair Dragoons had over 175 events in the program, so plenty of wargaming to be found
This year’s event listings can be found on the Origins registration site, and they are still adding some late approvals
Unless otherwise specified, all events are free to register with your paid badge. Paid events are almost always ones that include something provided by the event, such as the decks for a CCG tournament or the materials for a terrain-making workshop
The Armchair Dragoons will have around 200 events in the Wargame HQ this year, including ones we sponsor at the Origins War College
The Wargame HQ will be Hall C again, up at the North end of the convention center, in #2312
We will have a more detailed listing of both our events, and all the wargaming/historical events in the next few weeks

This is the latest article in our series of articles covering Origins 2026 and you can find a carousel linking all of them across the bottom

Getting there

Here’s the link to Google Maps as centered on the GCCC, that you can use for your own navigation; see our marked-up map below for some key information
Most of the attached hotels, as well as those in walking distance, are already sold out. However there are a lot of hotels up & down High Street, and as noted in a previous Origins article:
There are plenty of hotels north of downtown right along High St (or within 1 block), especially near the Ohio St campus, and they’ll be cheaper than downtown.
You don’t need to drive to the convention center, either. The #2 bus is one of the busiest bus routes in Columbus b/c it runs alongside the campus, and it runs every 10 minutes or so between 6am – 10pm, and makes 2-3 stops on High St, right next to (or directly across High St from) the convention center.
Parking sucks. And it’s going to be worse this year because the Columbus Pride Parade will be held Saturday, and that’ll fill the lots and snarl the roads. There are garages at the north & south ends of the convention center, as well as just to the west. The Vine Street Garage sounds like it’s miles aways and it’s literally across the street (see marked up map below).

So, here’s an on-the-ground visual recon for you

Left:south end main entrance |~| Right: south garage entrance

Looking North along High Street with the convention center along the right side of the image

Left: North end of the convention center, from the outside, looking at the lobby where registration and check-in are located
Right: Inside of the North lobby, looking at the same windows from the inside, with the registration kiosks on the right, and yes, the glowing head is very creepy

All of the Origins 2026 Articles
Origins Details ~ Wargame HQ Events ~ War College Events ~ Wargaming at Origins ~ Exhibitor Spotlights ~ Origins History ~ Q&A ~ Final Countdown
Opening Day ~ The Game Hall ~ More Gameplay ~ Above the Convention ~ Minis Wargaming ~ Wargame HQ Partners ~ Wargame HQ Spotlights
Exhibit Hall ~ Cosplay ~ Everything Else ~ AAR ~ Forum Thread

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