FluffaloCon

FluffaloCon, also stylized as Fluffalo Con, is a furry and cosplay convention held annually since 2021 in Western New York. The convention has been held in the basement of Casual Dragon Games in Lockport, New York since its inception but, as of July 2023, is looking to find a new venue as it continues to draw more furries from throughout New York State, southern Ontario, and other parts of North America. The convention chair, head of convention staff, and con founder is Cacao Jackalope; and the convention’s mascot is Scooter, a gray anthropomorphic "buncoon" (a bunny-raccoon hybrid).

FluffaloCon has typically been held on a Saturday and lasts between 8 and 11 hours long, with the following sub-events usually taking place:

• Open video gaming with two Nintendo Switches, a PS5, and an Xbox Series X
• Tabletop games, RPG, and board games, including the Pokémon Trading Card Game, Dungeons and Dragons, Wanderhome, and Peacock Block
• Gaming tournaments, including Pokemon Stadium and Super Smash Brothers Ultimate
• A trivia/Jeopardy panel hosted by Pandora Foxsky
• A 50/50 raffle, with one-half of the money given to the convention’s charity of choice
• A basket raffle
• An artists’ alley/dealer’s den

Origins

FluffaloCon originated as a furmeet known as All Fur the Fun in 2019. The original format included “Board Games, Card Games, Karaoke, Jackbox [and] Smash Brothers” and encouraged attendees to bring their own games. Fursuiting was also encouraged. The con’s original mascot was a black heterochromatic squirrel named “Chippy the Squirrel”. Like the future FluffaloCon, these events took place in the basement of Casual Dragon Games. Two events of this format were held:

• All Fur the Fun 1, held on February 16, 2019
• All Fur the Fun 2, held on May 18, 2019

Both events drew around 25-30 attendees.

All Fur the Fun 2021

After the previous format of furmeets was suspended after the COVID-19 Pandemic, the concept was revived and revised in late 2021 to become less of a furmeet and more of a miniature furry convention; introducing the tournaments, the 50/50 raffle, the basket raffle, and the trivia panel (with Spongebob Squarepants chosen as the initial topic). Vendors were also present for the first time. This initial convention did not have a set theme. The charity selected for the 50/50 raffle this year was the Star Sanctuary Animal Rescue in North Tonawanda, New York.

Billed special guests included:

• Evolution
• Angel Wusky
• Cacao Jackalope (the con chair)
• Blades Tavare
• Maymoo (was ultimately unable to attend)

The convention was held on December 11, 2021. Like the furmeets preceding it, there were around 25-30 attendees. Chronologically, this event stands as a crossroads between the furmeets of the past and the conventions of the future but is considered the beginning of FluffaloCon proper.

FluffaloCon 2022

After the relative success of All Fur the Fun 2021, the convention going forward was slightly reworked further. To reduce confusion with other organizations with similar names, the convention was renamed FluffaloCon for its 2022 iteration. The modern mascot, Scooter, was created and debuted this year, and the tradition of providing a free commemorative sticker for each attendee began.

The trivia panel returned, again with Spongebob as its chosen topic, and a few other panels were introduced including a Furry 101 panel, Mad Libs, and an Art Panel & Art Swap. The theme chosen for this convention was superheroes; and the charity selected for the 50/50 raffle was Whispering River Animal Rescue in Gasport, New York.

The guest of honor was Mark Miller, the creator of Peacock Block.

The convention was held on May 28, 2022. Like the previous convention, there were around 25-30 attendees. An article was published in the Lockport Union-Sun & Journal about the convention.

FluffaloCon 2023

FluffaloCon’s 2023 iteration largely followed the format of FluffaloCon 2022, though the Furry 101, Mad Libs, and art swap panels were not held this year. As the theme of FluffaloCon 2023 was Pokémon, these were replaced with a scavenger hunt inspired by Pokémon Snap and Pokémon Go.

Participants in the scavenger hunt were given a list of Pokémon to look for throughout the location of the convention. When a participant came across one of these Pokémon, which were well-hidden Pokémon plushes, they were required to check them off a provided list and take a picture of the Pokémon in their hiding place. In addition to 12 Pokémon provided on the sheet, two “mystery” Pokémon represented by question marks were listed as well. These “mystery Pokémon” were both Digimon (Gabumon and Gomamon), requiring the participant to think “outside the Pokéball”. Once a participant was able to “catch ‘em all”, they were to report to Cacao and prove it with their pictures to receive a prize if they were early enough.

The trivia/Jeopardy panel returned, this time focused on Pokémon, as did the tournaments (this time adding a Pokemon Stadium tournament in addition to Smash Ultimate), basket raffle, and the 50/50 raffle.

The basket raffle included the following prize themes:

• Pokémon
• Attack on Titan
• Aggretsuko
• Assorted Plushies
• Funko Pop figures [2 baskets]
• Movie night snacks
• Random “nerdy” apparel
• Pocket Watch/Ryan’s World Combobunga Panda
• “Nerdy” plushies
• Giant Scar with Three Hyenas Pop! figure
• Raya and the Last Dragon/MLP
• Rave apparel
• A copy of the game Peacock Block
• Furry apparel
• Great Wolf Lodge/Campfire s'mores
• A full double-sided furry +18 Dakimakura pillow

The charity selected for the 50/50 raffle was Diamonds in the Ruff Animal Rescue in Lockport, New York. This year also saw the introduction of a tattoo raffle, with the winner receiving a $1000 value tattoo from PinHead Tattoo & Piercing.

Mark Miller returned as Guest of Honor, hosting a playing of an 18+ version of Peacock Block. Participants here were required to be verified as being 18 years or older by an ID check performed when receiving their con badge. If they were found to be 18 years or older, they were given a heart on their badge reading “+18” and were allowed to play the game.

As this convention was advertised with a free flyer given to attendees of the Jeff Goode play Fursona Non Grata, which had been run in Buffalo the month before and had its own marketing campaign, this year’s convention attendance spiked dramatically from previous years. While a total headcount was not determined, the convention is estimated to have attracted 75-80 attendees in comparison to the 25-30 attendees in previous years.

External links

• Fluffalo Con Facebook Page
• Fluffalo Con Website (not updated since 2022)

Photos, videos, reports: FluffaloCon resources

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