Very Powerful Dice at Fan Expo

Fan Expo returns to Donald E. Stephens Convention Center August 10-13. As always, I will be “On the Beat' covering all the pop culture fun.

Part of that coverage will focus on the vendor area. As a preview of the fun stuff that can be found there, I interviewed Sean Engelbreit of Very Powerful Dice.

After my coverage partner Tony Feddeler alerted me to the cool work Sean does with dice, I wanted to learn more and to share it with Patch readers.

Sean discussed how he got started creating dice, challenges, functionality versus collectability and more. Of course, he also discussed his booth and what he wants to do at Fan Expo.

I had never really given much thought to dice, thinking they were mere generic elements in games. After talking to Sean, I realized how wrong I was. Like anything else, dice can be an expression of one's personality. They can also be vanity pieces, aesthetic wonders and more. In other words, they can become whatever you want and Sean is the person to make your dice dreams become a reality.

Initially, he sent some pictures of his creations. Then I checked more on his Etsy shop and social media pages. I was blown away at the beauty, detail, craftsmanship and originality I saw. I saw so many styles and designs. They are so cool, I would have trouble using them. I would want to keep them as art pieces.

After talking to Sean, I look forward to meeting him at Fan Expo and seeing all of his work. I also think Sean will have a few new surprise pieces for the show.

Along with Sean and the other vendors, there is an impressive celebrity guest list. Already scheduled are Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Chevy Chase, Zachary Levi, Sam Raimi, Giancarlo Esposito, Christina Ricci, Danny Trejo, Christie Brinkley, Anthony Michael Hall, Henry Winkler, Brent Spiner, Barry Bostwick and several more. That's just the celebrity lineup.

There is also Artist Alley, which will be full of talented creators of all sorts. I have met so many great creators, some of them even becoming long-time friends, at Artist Alley.

As always, there will be panels, Q&A's, photo ops, cosplay contests, gaming, workshops, demos, community meetups and more. There are also dozens of vendors on the 300,000 square feet of convention space. There are so many different activities to satisfy everyone's interests.

The celebrities are usually my main attraction to Fan Expo, but over the years, I have found myself spending more time roaming the vendor area. This year, Sean and Very Powerful Dice will be my first stop.

Check out Sean and Very Powerful Dice on social media and Etsy. Check out Sean and all the other pop culture fun at Fan Expo 8/10-13. See you there.