The Gamers Guild

The Gamers Guild is a game store at 200 E 8th St in Hays, Kansas, that works as much as a place to sit and play as a place to shop. Trading card games, board games, miniatures and roleplaying all share the space, with a concessions counter and free Wi-Fi to keep a long evening comfortable. It suits card players who want a table and a crowd, and newcomers who want to try something before they buy it.

What's on the shelves

Six trading card games are carried: Pokémon, Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece Card Game, Disney Lorcana and Digimon Card Game. The store buys, sells and trades cards for the games played in its space, and it sells the usual run of industry-standard accessories and hobby supplies alongside them.

Beyond cards, the stock includes several hundred board games for sale, plus miniature games such as Warhammer 40K and roleplaying products. Gaming supplies made by local craftspeople fill out the shelves, among them woodwork, handmade dice and knitted dice bags.

Free Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Magic: The Gathering cards are on hand for players to build decks from and take home. That is a real convenience for anyone just starting out, since a first deck costs nothing.

Play at the store

Magic: The Gathering, One Piece and Pokémon have the largest communities in the building. Yu-Gi-Oh!, Riftbound, Lorcana, Gundam, Union Arena and Digimon also have groups that play, and the store hosts tournaments for Magic: The Gathering, One Piece, Pokémon, Lorcana, Riftbound, Gundam, Digimon and Yu-Gi-Oh!. Pick-up games between friends are welcome, and players are invited to bring a favorite card game the staff and regulars have not tried and teach it.

The rest of the program is built around tabletop play:

• Over 200 board games are available as free demo copies to play in the store, and monthly board game nights are held.
• Warhammer 40K is played on Fridays, using the store's armies or your own. Pick-up games turn up on other nights too, along with other miniature games such as Warhammer Fantasy, Star Wars Legion and Armada.
• Roleplaying groups run by locals play at the store for free, and players can bring their own food and drink or buy from the concessions area.

The store also runs special events and is often open past its posted hours for late-night gaming, special events or groups that reserve the space. Volunteers run the place at those times, so the register may be closed.

Trading and store policies

Cards are normally bought and traded any time the store is open. On a busy night the line can keep staff from getting to trades near closing, so anyone planning a larger trade is better off arriving earlier in the evening.

A customer loyalty program covers purchases made in the store. Some of the strongest sales inventory is only found by visiting in person, but customers who have moved away or live out of town can still buy from the store by mail order.

Hours and getting there

The store is at 200 E 8th St in Hays. It is closed Wednesdays and open evenings on weekdays and afternoons on the weekend.

Holidays and other noted dates can change the schedule.

The local scene

Three other stores sit within about a mile and a quarter in Hays: Red Wagon Comics at 0.6 miles, Hays Hobby Shop at 0.9 miles, and Extra Life Video Game Store And Repair at 1.2 miles. That makes an evening of browsing easy to string together, with The Gamers Guild as the stop for sitting down to play.