The Gamer's Armory

The Gamer's Armory is a game store at 684 Cary Towne Blvd in Cary, North Carolina, that covers both ends of the hobby: Magic: The Gathering, Pokémon, Disney Lorcana and the Digimon Card Game for the card crowd, plus miniatures, board games and wargames for everyone else. It began as an online game store in 2002 and opened its physical doors in 2010, so the staff have been selling games for a long time. The store suits players who want a regular night out, from kids to adults, and shoppers who like to test a game before they buy it.

What's on the shelves

Card players find Magic: The Gathering, Pokémon, Disney Lorcana and the Digimon Card Game here. The wider stock includes board games, Games Workshop games, Star Wars miniatures games, Marvel Champions, Infinity and a deep selection of historical wargames. The store carries a library of sample copies of many popular games that customers can try at the tables before buying.

The store does not stock everything its distributors carry, which is how it keeps prices low. Anything not in stock, or any pre-order, can be special ordered. Most special orders arrive within three to five business days, the store contacts the customer when the item comes in, and nothing is charged until pickup or shipping. Payment options are cash, check, Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express, and gift certificates are sold at the register in any amount. The store also sells online, with bundled shipping and discounted pricing.

Weekly play

Events run nightly, and the schedule is built around the card games and miniatures that fill the tables.

Dungeons & Dragons night depends on table availability, so it pays to confirm a seat on a busy Friday.

Open gaming and store rules

Tables and terrain are available for open gaming during regular business hours, first come, first served except during planned events. The rules aim at a family atmosphere: no profanity, bullying or rude behavior, no weapons, no electronic cigarettes, drugs or alcohol, and no can drinks. Parents are responsible for their children's behavior.

A few rules are specific to how the store runs. Customer-to-customer sales are not allowed in the store, and items must be paid for before they go into the game area. The store does not hold customers' belongings up front or in the back, so anything you cannot keep track of belongs in the car. At events, players turn in a signed result slip, and a player who leaves without dropping on the slip takes the loss for the next round.

Events with prize support from Wizards of the Coast pay prizes only as booster packs, never as store gift certificates.

The charity board game marathon

Each November the store hosts a charity board game marathon. The twelfth annual edition ran on Saturday, November 8, 2025, with the marathon starting at 8 AM and the store opening to the public at 10 AM. A raffle wall of 90 different items runs alongside it, and over the first 11 years the event raised more than $170,000.

Hours and getting there

The store sits in a shopping center on Cary Towne Blvd. Late weekend hours make it one of the longer-running places to play in the area.

History

The Gamer's Armory opened in August of 2002 as an online game store. After years of online customer support and growing demand, the owners opened a physical store in Cary on June 30, 2010. On November 1, 2013, it moved to a larger space within the same shopping center. The owners also run a real estate business, RE 360 Realty, aimed at gamers looking for homes with room for a game space.

The local scene

Several other shops are close by. Unique Gifts and Collectibles is 0.3 miles away and Cardiacs Sports & Memorabilia is 0.4 miles away, both in Cary. All Fun and Games is 1.3 miles away, Ultimate Comics has a Cary location 1.4 miles away, and a second Ultimate Comics in Raleigh is 1.6 miles away. Upcoming shows include the Raleigh/Crabtree Sports Card, TCG, Pokemon & Hobby Event, 6.6 miles away, starting November 1, 2026. Pokémon Mini Con, 12.4 miles away, also starts November 1, 2026, and Raleigh TCG Con, 12.4 miles away, starts November 20, 2026.