Membership Terms
Caesar
Consul
Praetor
Sportsmanship

 

World Boardgame Championships Honors Updated March 22, 2021.
 

The highest honors that the Boardgame Players Association bestows are Top GM, Caesar Award, Consul Award, Praetor Award, and Sportsmanship Award.

GM of the Year honors those who sacrifice their time to make WBC the memorable even. The top GM receives a free room during the following WBC. Players are urged to nominate their favorite GMs. The Convention Director reviews those recommendations and then submits to the Board of Directors a list of the top 12 eligible GMs. Each member of the Board of Directors then casts a weighted vote based on his or her own preferences for each of the nominees ranging from 12 points (most worthy) down to 1 point (least worthy). The Convention Director votes only as a tie-breaker.

As they say: “To the victor goes the laurels!” The Caesar Award, which was first presented in 2002, is designed to promote competitive boardgaming at all events run by the BPA, including tournaments at WBC and Play-By-Email tournaments. Every BPA member is automatically entered into this championship hunt. In 2020, the new Praetor Award was created. If the Caesar winner also wins the Consul and/or Praetor Award, that person will only receive the Caesar Award. The honor goes to the player who accumulated the most laurels over the course of the year (including any pre-cons, mini-cons and PBeM events). Laurels are earned for each of the top six places in every event offered. The number of laurels each competition is worth is based on the prize level of the event and has nothing to do with the number of plaques awarded.

Commencing in 2004, the BPA began presenting the Consul Award to the player who earned the most laurels during the WBC to give everyone an equal shot on a level playing field at the meta honors regardless of their event choices and budget.

Commencing in 2020, the BPA began presenting the Praetor Award to the player who earned the most laurels in BPA PBeM Tournaments during the calendar year. This creates an award available to all BPA members, including those that cannot attend the World Boardgaming Championships.

The Sportsmanship Award, first awarded in 1992, is BPA’s top honor since it is something we can all aspire to and is within our reach regardless of our skills. It reminds us that there is no fun to be had in gaming without affable opposition providing obstacles to overcome. Our winner always prizes camaraderie and fair play and offers a shining example of sportsmanship that we should all strive to emulate. Nominees are limited to those endorsed by WBC GMs or other observers for outstanding sportsmanship. Those who receive the most fervent endorsements make it to the ballot that accompanies the earliest BPA Membership Form and BPA members select the one they think is the most deserving.