A new shop in Troy will give residents the opportunity to buy comic books, tabletop board games, role-playing games, card games games and more.

But there’s more to Troy Fanatix than just selling comics and games, said owner Hiram Faircloth. It’s about providing a place for people to come together.

“I believe that a networked community is a strong community,” Faircloth said. “I want to provide a non-exclusionary, safe pro-social space where people can come together and meet new people and learn new things.”

To accomplish that goal, the shop is divided into two distinct sections.

One side resembles a typical shop. It has a wall rack full of comics on one side and shelves with board games, card games and more on the other side. And in the middle of the retail side is a rack filled with chips and snacks so that customers can have something to eat and drink while they’re in the other section of the shop.

That other section of the shop is a gaming lounge, set up with tables and chairs for people to play games and be together. There’s even a room specifically for console gaming. A community billboard is posted by the door for people to enlist others for game nights.

Faircloth said that the store’s location provides exactly the atmosphere that he was looking for.

“I don’t think it have come out any better for what I wanted,” Faircloth said. “I wanted the retail space to be separate because gamers can get loud and passionate, which might be distracting.”

Faircloth is originally from Michigan, but moved to Troy when his father came to Troy University to teach. Faircloth said that his father was heavy influence on him and his love for gaming.

“I’ve been a gamer since I was very young,” Faircloth said. “I used to have family game nights with my father. He had talked about opening a shop in Michigan, and then when we moved, I met Phillip Chalker, the owner at Dothan Fanatix, and it sort of snowballed from there.”

Faircloth’s father also must have left an impression on his choice of study.

The elder Faircloth is an assistant professor in the Counseling, Rehabilitation and Interpreter Training division of the Troy College of Education.

Hiram is a graduate student in the clinical mental health counseling program at Troy.

While the Troy University provides much of Fanatix’s consumer base, Faircloth said that he also thinks that local high school students could become regular customers as well.

“It’s easier at the university,” Faircloth said. “I’ve already had people come in who have said, ‘Oh, we’re super excited! We’ve been waiting for this to come.’

“But I also have a step-brother at Goshen High School in the tabletop club. These are all these smart kids that have come together, and now they have a place they can go. If there’s that kind of community in Goshen, I’m willing to bet there’s the same at other high schools.”

Troy Fanatix is located at 1122 S. Brundidge Street. It is open from noon to 9 p.m.