Cepheid Variable, a student organization that promotes “all things nerds” through an accepting atmosphere, hosted a Tabletop and Dungeons and Dragons event during this year’s Howdy Week, to kick off another year of fantasy role-playing.
Incoming and returning students were invited for a night filled with campaigns and board games provided by another student organization, Tabletop Troupe or “The Board Game Club.” The fun-filled night was held in the Memorial Student Center, or MSC, ballroom on Saturday, Aug. 20, allowing for multiple tables of friends and club members to dive into the fantasy world of Dungeons and Dragons before the start of the semester. Cepheid Variable — pronounced “se-fid” — is one of the oldest student organizations still active on campus, originally started as a Star Trek fan club in 1969, according to the organization’s newest leader, electronic systems engineering senior Tomas Arguello.
Arguello, the 2022-2023 chair of Cepheid Variable, is spending his senior year setting goals to expand the organization. Arguello joined Cepheid Variable his sophomore year at Texas A&M, because he spent his middle school days enjoying the very things the organization has to offer.
“I’ve come from a small country town [where] everyone knows who you are. I couldn’t really find myself … until I came to A&M,” Arguello said.
As the current chair of Cepheid Variable, Arguello wants to make sure students of any year can find a place to call their own in the organization.
“Aside from AggieCon, I want to make sure our membership increases and that we have a more active member base,” Arguello said.
AggieCon, the nation’s oldest student-run convention, is held annually at the MSC and also hosted by Cepheid Variable, according to the organization’s website.
When Cepheid Variable is not hosting creative outlets for their attending members, the organization is volunteering concessions at home games during Aggie football season, to gather funds, Arguello said. With these funds, they are able to host multiple social gatherings, overnight trips and large scale events such as AggieCon.
“We pride ourselves on [the] fact and we want to keep it going,” Arguello said when explaining his goal to make the convention more accessible.
Aerospace engineering senior Travis Gallington is the newest president and web-master of Tabletop Troupe, a group similar to Cepheid Variable, but focused on tabletop games. He attended the event manning the table full of board games the group provided.
“It’s mostly a social organization where people can come and meet new people,” Gallington said.
Tabletop Troupe, usually referred to as “TCubed” or “The Board Game Club,” has been active for eight years, starting in 2015 when a group of Aggies who just wanted to “have fun times with good people” playing board games later flourished into an organization, according to their website. Though the founding members have since graduated, Tabletop Troupe still meets every Thursday at 8 p.m. in the MSC basement.
“I think board games are under-appreciated. I think they are really good and helpful to meet new people and make friends,” Gallington said.
Wildlife and fisheries junior Quinn Howie showed support as a second year member of Cepheid, and said he hoped to socialize and comfortably welcome everyone.
“When I first came to A&M, I was lacking that kind of interaction but then I got introduced to this club,” Howie said, adding that there are many people that are very accepting and chances are that new members can easily find a group that fits them.
Cori Allen, a biology sophomore, also attended the event with the intention of saying hello to old friends and hoping to make new ones.
“When I found this group of people that share the same interests that I do, it’s like people that actually get me,” Allen said.
Allen said it feels like home and advises newcomers to not hide their interests and be yourself.
“We have a lot of niche interests here, video games, D&D … and if you have an interest in those sorts of things, we are happy to take you in,” Allen said.
According to their website, Cepheid Variable meets every Tuesday from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. at various locations that can be found through their provided calendar. Students can either attend meetings or pay dues to become an official member.
