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Board Game Hub 'The Geekery' Opening in Astoria Offers Fans a Spot to Play

 Syrus Gabales and Wendy Chua are opening The Geekery, a gaming store, at 42-11 Broadway in Astoria on Monday, Aug. 12th, 2015.
Syrus Gabales and Wendy Chua are opening The Geekery, a gaming store, at 42-11 Broadway in Astoria on Monday, Aug. 12th, 2015.
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Courtesy Wendy Chua

ASTORIA — There's a new place for the neighborhood's dungeon masters.

A gaming store will open next week that will specialize in "all things geek culture" according to its owners, selling popular roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons and collectible card games like Magic: The Gathering.

The Geekery will open its doors Monday at 42-11 Broadway, between 42nd and 43rd streets, We Heart Astoria first reported. The store will be a place where gamers can shop as well as meet with other fans to play, according to co-owner Wendy Chua.

"Our mission [is] to build a really strong gaming community in Astoria and in Queens in general," she said. "There really isn’t anything like this, a gaming store. Here in Queens, people travel all the way out to the other boroughs to basically get their game on."

They plan to host regular events for adults as well as kids, with some nights devoted to playing specific games, as well as a more generic board game night where people can come and play one of the store's more than 100 board games, or are welcome to bring their own.

The shop had a test-run event this weekend, when about 40 people — double what the owners originally expected — turned up for a night of playing Magic: The Gathering, a fantasy strategy card game.

"We feel like there's a community feeling here," Chua said, of the turnout. "We feel like people are looking for this kind of thing."

A board game fan herself — she's known for hosting game nights — Chua is opening the shop with her boyfriend and business partner Syrus Gabales, whom she called "a hardcore gamer."

In addition to classics like Magic and Dungeons & Dragons, the store will offer miniature tabletop games like Warhammer 40,000 and Warmachine, where players collect and paint model armies that compete against one another.

The shop will also sell the card collecting game Yu-Gi-Oh! and roleplaying game Pathfinder, among others.

"We really want to reach everyone. We especially want kids to come and play too," said Chua, saying games help teach skills like teamwork and strategy.

The store will officially open Monday. A grand opening celebration, with prizes and giveaways, is planned for the beginning of October. Follow The Geekery on Facebook or Twitter for updates.