TOPIC: Tokens on airplanes? Advice needed!

I'll be bringing several hundred tokens to Who's Yer Con and need them to go as carryon on the plane. I've got a very secure plastic box, plus a ziploc with a nested ziplocs for "Greater Cloak" and "Charm of Heroism".

Any advice for getting through security? I gotta believe I'll be pulled for examination. Are they likely to want to dig through my neatly packaged ziplocs and neatly packed box? If so, I'd better leave two hours early and take a valium...

Advice from those who've gone before me would be greatly appreciated!

I flew with my collection last year--and it did get checked. I'd recommend taking it through as a carry-on if you can. It will likely get checked either way, but you will at least be able to watch them going through security. they asked me what they were, and I just said poker chips, which seemed to satisfy them.

I was told to be there early at the airport last year when I went to Gen Con, and put them in my carry on. I have a fishing tackle box that is one token deep and is easy to open and close. The funny thing is I put it through the xray machine and they didn't even ask me to open the backpack.

I have heard stories of people being pulled aside as well. What I would do is have some non transmute tokens in a bag that you can pull out and show on top. Also when asked, just tell them they are poker chips for a game.

I have been pulled aside at MSP in both 2011 and 2012. The metal slugs in the chippies seem to cause problems for their scanners. They just pour the chips out into the grey bins an sift through them a little before pouring them back in. And that is mainly because of the opaque cloth bags I carry them in. If you have them in transparent ziplocks, my guess is they will look at a bag or two to be sure, but not pour them all out. But I'm not 100% sure of that.

Either way getting there at least 45 minutes early is advisable.


Never had the same problem at Indy.

When I was going thru the Indy airport last year, the customs guy looked a couple times at my bag as it went thru the scanner, and then asked "You have some of those token things in there?" I said yes, and told him they were poker chips for a game. He said yeah, he knew. He didn't know the game, but that there were enough people coming through the airport with tokens in their bags that we could hold our own convention right in the airport.

Normally, the metal cores make weird patterns on X-ray machines, and the staff get very suspicious... but the Indy airport crew have gotten used to it. Or at least they recognize them by the time GenCon is underway.

Other airports/other times of the year, you may get different responses.

every time I've flown with tokens I've been searched, the searches only take 5 minutes extra.

it's worth being there early in general at airports tho.

They check to see what my tokens are every single time I go through security. And as others have said, a simple, "they're like poker chips" has always been enough to satisfy the TSA.

Thanks folks, great advice. I think I'll send the tokens through in their own gray bin, sort of an acknowledgement that I know they'll look funny, but are harmless. Except for that Polymeric Duck one, nobody knows what that will do...

And yes, I'll get there extra early.

binia wrote: Thanks folks, great advice. I think I'll send the tokens through in their own gray bin, sort of an acknowledgement that I know they'll look funny, but are harmless. Except for that Polymeric Duck one, nobody knows what that will do...

And yes, I'll get there extra early.

I drive to Indy, so I'll be happy to take any of those troublesome Ducks off your hands. Always happy to take one for the team...

We always carry many tokens on the plane. Two specific recommendations:
1) Spread them out as much as possible. The X-ray can't see through them, so too many packed in one location forces them to unpack my clear plastic boxes and run them through separately. Then I have to either watch them repack it or I get to do it myself.
2) As mentioned above, pull one box or bag out ahead of the scanner. If they see one out first, it helps them be less excited about the rest.

Though I plan to take the train this year, I chose to empty a poker chip case and load the True Dungeon Tokens in that. They fit perfectly and aren't really unexpected should they get checked. (I also thought it looked a bit more "Professional" as a traveling gamer)

And if they gave you any problems, bribe them with your polymeric decoys. When they ask about them, simply smile knowingly and whisper "Trust me, you'll need these later."

Fly out of any airport except Indy during GenCon and they will want to take a look at the tokens. This has never been much of a hassle-- the advice everyone has given is very sound.

There was one year, however, when I almost missed my flight because of the tokens. That TSA agent used to work in a game store. I think we had moved from TD to D&D to Warhammer as I saw my plane start to board.