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[Palmer_v1]

Played Champions of Midgard and New York 1901 today.

Champions was pretty good. It's not as similar to Lords of Waterdeep as I expected. I won by close to 40 points thanks to playing a bit defensively with red dice warriors. I didn't have to recruit nearly as often as the other players which left me with more actions to gather other resources or to fight with. Definitely want to play it more.

NY1901 was boring. The randomness of the land-plot draws was pretty aggravating, cause you can't really plan for anything long term when there's no guarantee you'll get what you want. Also extremely passive-aggressive in that you'll buy plots of land specifically to hamstring your opponents rather than trying to get your own combos. Doesn't help that I kinda hate Tetris as well. I won by maybe 5 points because I ignored the bonus cards for street frontage and focused on a different one, while everyone else jockeyed for position. I would play this if others demanded it, but will never specifically break it out myself.

I think tomorrow we're going to try Blood Rage and Legendary Predator.

 

[neorej]

Picked up Smallworld this weekend, we had a blast. The game moves very fast, and the randomness keeps it fresh. I started off with the trolls, who also had Fortress building capabilities, so I started dispersing trollcaves and fortresses all over the land. I quickly put them into decline and swapped them out for Orcs with a Berserk boost, occupying as many caves and fortresses the trolls left behind. It was tremendous fun and you're really constantly annoying other players, not because you want to, but after the first turn or so, you can't make a move without being in someone's hair (which is the entire premise of the game, of course).

I really wanted to pickup Emprial Assault too, but my GF (who I play mostly with) isn't a fan of Star Wars and the game concept didn't really appeal to her. Shame, I was excited about picking it up and roling with Solo, Chewie and Luke.

 

[One Foul Note]

Picked up Smallworld this weekend, we had a blast. The game moves very fast, and the randomness keeps it fresh. I started off with the trolls, who also had Fortress building capabilities, so I started dispersing trollcaves and fortresses all over the land. I quickly put them into decline and swapped them out for Orcs with a Berserk boost, occupying as many caves and fortresses the trolls left behind. It was tremendous fun and you're really constantly annoying other players, not because you want to, but after the first turn or so, you can't make a move without being in someone's hair (which is the entire premise of the game, of course).

I've had a lot of fun with Small World over the years, it is a cool littl' game. The only issue I run into with it is the very first thing you do as a player is pick your race and that can be a tough and daunting choice for any new players.

 

[Lyng]

I really wanted to pickup Emprial Assault too, but my GF (who I play mostly with) isn't a fan of Star Wars and the game concept didn't really appeal to her. Shame, I was excited about picking it up and roling with Solo, Chewie and Luke.

For what it's worth I own several games my wife was sure she would hate, but those games are now among her favourites (Five Tribes, Aquasphere, Seasons etc)
So I guess my advice is, buy it anyway and make sure you study the rules before playing so you can get straight to the fun part.

 

[Experien]

Pick up Legendary Encounters last week and wow, I heard that it is better than Marvel version but I didn't think it would be this much better. I always feel disconnect with Legendary theme as it never seems like you are the superheroes team and feel more like a card trader. The "Coordinate" card really improve the co-op nature and I like the avatar mechanic where you feel like you are in constant danger of dying from strike card.

I hold off picking this up for so long because Legendary is not game we play all that much and all the missing cards snafu with the early run but now I wish I have gotten it sooner. My only gripe is with Legendary Encounters is still the difficulty of sacking cards you don't want anymore. May be it is part of the balance but drawing 6 cards in late game and still getting a bunch of your starter cards is really lame. The artworks is great but sometimes a little inconsistent (several artists?) I don't think I have any missing cards (that I know of anyway) so that is good and the playmat is a nice touch and I like it better than a board. Any card drafting game or card games that have extensive set up area really need to come with playmat, it make learning and teaching so much easier. The insert for the box is cheap and terrible not sure if I want to invest in Broken Token or just make a foam core one.

I got the insert from Broken Token, it isn't too bad. I will admit that i had to fiddle with it a lot before it got really locked in place. But I am glad I have it and it fits everything nicely. I did have to set them up in a manner I didn't like since each side has a permanent divider in the middle. The slot in the middle fits the mat well (I heard they tweaked it from the original design) but you do have to roll it up nicely.

I really wanted to pickup Emprial Assault too, but my GF (who I play mostly with) isn't a fan of Star Wars and the game concept didn't really appeal to her. Shame, I was excited about picking it up and roling with Solo, Chewie and Luke.

Just to make sure you know, you can't play the campaign with Han, Chewie, and Luke. You might be able to get them as an Ally but you can only really play with them in the Skirmish mode.

Wasn't sure if you knew...

 

[neorej]

For what it's worth I own several games my wife was sure she would hate, but those games are now among her favourites (Five Tribes, Aquasphere, Seasons etc)
So I guess my advice is, buy it anyway and make sure you study the rules before playing so you can get straight to the fun part.

I considered that, but it's a 90 euro game, which I consider a lot of money for a game we might not play at all. So I was thinking of easing her into the concept of dungeon crawler (she likes Munchkin and she found Munchkin Quest appealing) before surprising her with a box of Imperial Assault for my birthday.

Just to make sure you know, you can't play the campaign with Han, Chewie, and Luke. You might be able to get them as an Ally but you can only really play with them in the Skirmish mode.

Wasn't sure if you knew...

I didn't, thanks for the heads up. Still want this game though

 

[emag]

I think tomorrow we're going to try Blood Rage and Legendary Predator.

I'm interested in hearing how Blood Rage compares to Chaos in the Old World. We enjoyed CitOW greatly, but there were always balance issues due to the [lack of] player experience.

 

[Experien]

I didn't, thanks for the heads up. Still want this game though

It is pretty intense when playing it when you play with all the right rules. We played a few missions with some missed rules.

Also, Han & Chewie miniatures don't come in the base game. I have a feeling all future big-name characters from the movies have to be purchased separately. They come with extra skirmish missions and their miniatures. Base and big expansions will come with a token of the character to play in some (side?) missions.

 

[neorej]

It is pretty intense when playing it when you play with all the right rules. We played a few missions with some missed rules.

Also, Han & Chewie miniatures don't come in the base game. I have a feeling all future big-name characters from the movies have to be purchased separately. They come with extra skirmish missions and their miniatures. Base and big expansions will come with a token of the character to play in some (side?) missions.

Yeah, the Han Solo and Chewbacca Packs were separate packs. I like the idea of a base game and expanding it to your liking. Legendary is the same; I have all the expansions, except the Fantastic Four pack, because I can't really be bothered to care about the F4.

 

[BattleMonkey]

It is pretty intense when playing it when you play with all the right rules. We played a few missions with some missed rules.

Also, Han & Chewie miniatures don't come in the base game. I have a feeling all future big-name characters from the movies have to be purchased separately. They come with extra skirmish missions and their miniatures. Base and big expansions will come with a token of the character to play in some (side?) missions.

The characters do come in the base game and expansions, just that you don't get their miniature just tokens. The tokens and their card work in skirmish play just fine, but the expansion mini packs include extra cards which I assume is largely to entice ppl to buy the actual figs instead of just playing with tokens. Making skirmish exclusive cards for the minis is lame and smart at the same time lol

 

[Faiz]

The characters do come in the base game and expansions, just that you don't get their miniature just tokens. The tokens and their card work in skirmish play just fine, but the expansion mini packs include extra cards which I assume is largely to entice ppl to buy the actual figs instead of just playing with tokens. Making skirmish exclusive cards for the minis is lame and smart at the same time lol

I have to say I really hate when a miniatures game comes with tokens for characters.

 

[Chorazin]

So, yeah, Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn. I like it lots and lots! Enough to actually break down and write my first BGG review of a game: https://boardgamegeek.com/article/20074342

 

[antiquegamer]

I have to say I really hate when a miniatures game comes with tokens for characters.

I do too but after having played the skirmish games I think the way they do it in Imperial Assault make sense. Let said, if they were to put Boba Fett in the big box expansion then people who only play skirmish would have to shell out $30-40 for him instead this way you just have to spend $10.00 to get him into your skirmish army.

Also by doing it this way, the campaign is "playable" with the token and keeping the price point low (it's already quite expensive with all the minis and Star Wars tax).

 

[Phthisis]

Got my copy of Tesla vs. Edison to the table last night for a two player game. Really interesting game; because VPs are based on how much the companies you own stock in are worth at the end of the game, you get this weird situation where you might think about tanking your own company to provide more opportunities for the other players to do better and then buy up all their worthwhile stock.

Real interesting mix of ideas; I love all of Dirk Knemeyer's games, and this one is another home run, IMO.

 

[Gaming Truth]

Got my copy of Tesla vs. Edison to the table last night for a two player game. Really interesting game; because VPs are based on how much the companies you own stock in are worth at the end of the game, you get this weird situation where you might think about tanking your own company to provide more opportunities for the other players to do better and then buy up all their worthwhile stock.

Real interesting mix of ideas; I love all of Dirk Knemeyer's games, and this one is another home run, IMO.

I had a hard time pulling the trigger on this one because I didn't know how the AC/DC influence tracks balances with differing numbers of players. It has an interesting set of mechanics, and I wish I had a full play session at GenCon, because I couldn't see the replayability of this, both from the ks and from the demos at GenCon

I'd love to give this a try whenever I get the chance. I love the New Science from the same company

 

[Karkador]

I played that game last night, and it seemed like it was primarily a game about buying and selling stock, with a bunch of other stuff that didn't really matter.

 

[antiquegamer]

Got my copy of Tesla vs. Edison to the table last night for a two player game. Really interesting game; because VPs are based on how much the companies you own stock in are worth at the end of the game, you get this weird situation where you might think about tanking your own company to provide more opportunities for the other players to do better and then buy up all their worthwhile stock.

Real interesting mix of ideas; I love all of Dirk Knemeyer's games, and this one is another home run, IMO.

I felt like that part of the mechanic sort of ruin the game. Game is beautiful but unlike the New Science this one the end game VP is harder to comprehend because of the stock market. We have to give it another try but so far it's a big disappointment for me. Game is beautiful though.

 

[fenners]

So it's a stock market game?

 

[Phthisis]

So it's a stock market game?

Kind of, but not really. It's an action-taking game that involves elements of tech-tree progression, area control, variable player powers, and light stock buying/selling.

 

[Karkador]

There just seems to be a bit of single winning strategy in repeatedly selling and buying stocks to tank the VPs of the other players (whilst practically ignoring the rest of the game), and some player characters are setup to do this better than others.

Since the stock market aspect is light, it seems like it will pretty much go the same way every time, unless stock actions get house ruled.

 

[Faiz]

In case people haven't seen the images of the new Force Awakens X-wing Core set. Meant to post last night but last night was crazy.

 

[Xater]

Is this just a visual rework of the core set?

 

[Faiz]

Is this just a visual rework of the core set?

Essentially? Not sure what else it would be. The X-wing is a new model based on the Force Awakens design, TIEs are repaints I'm pretty sure. It's possible some new rules will be introduced for new pilots/upgrades etc as they often are with new ships, but I have a feeling, being a core set, there won't be.

Not that it matters really, I like the TFA X-wing and I'd likely buy a couple First Order TIEs anyway - core sets are cheaper than three individual ships.

 

[BattleMonkey]

That's cool. I do wish they would do a Clone Wars era series of releases though. Have a feeling one movie is not going to give us much content for a TFA themed series of X-Wing.

Is this just a visual rework of the core set?

It should be, for gameplay reasons they would need to keep away from continual escalation by going into the future, all these new ships would need to be more advanced have have bloated stats to represent them being newer craft. Kinda like if they did do Clone Wars, the product should be kept separate based on time period, otherwise many of the CW ships would need to have stats lower than the OT ships, and they really can't go any lower

 

[kurisu1974]

Mage Knight will get a Star Trek reskin... that might make it my first Vlaada Chvátil game! I know the guy has quite the following, but his games never appealed to me because they look fidgety and I don't like the 90s style boardgame art on most. But now they have my atention, even without showing anything!

 

[Experien]

In case people haven't seen the images of the new Force Awakens X-wing Core set. Meant to post last night but last night was crazy.

Wish my 2nd core set was this one just for variety of cards...I'm sort of dying down on buying new X-Wing stuff so it would have to be something amazing to jump on this.

 

[joelseph]

MM Summer sale started. Big list but not a bunch of boardgames.

 

[chugs]

Essentially? Not sure what else it would be. The X-wing is a new model based on the Force Awakens design, TIEs are repaints I'm pretty sure. It's possible some new rules will be introduced for new pilots/upgrades etc as they often are with new ships, but I have a feeling, being a core set, there won't be.

Not that it matters really, I like the TFA X-wing and I'd likely buy a couple First Order TIEs anyway - core sets are cheaper than three individual ships.

They'll probably pull the same thing they did on the base game though. Release the core set, and individual models with unique pilot cards so you'll have to buy both if you want everything.

 

[antiquegamer]

They'll probably pull the same thing they did on the base game though. Release the core set, and individual models with unique pilot cards so you'll have to buy both if you want everything.

You can see in the promo picture that there are new cards. There's the new R2 stupid looking ball thing and new pilot cards. I am sure they will tweak the stats for both X-wing and TIE. Both of the original stats for those two are a bit over price for current environment (typical of power creep problem in this type of game). The thing is will they be use in the same format or will they do a new Force Awaken era format. I am thinking may be the latter for tournament play and you can mix and match whatever you want for casual game.

I know prequel is not a favorite for most Star Wars fans but there are a lot of nice ship designs and if they can introduce ground units for Clone Wars era game that would help expand and extend the game. There's a ground unit in Attack Wings so it's not impossible to add in droid tank, and assault vehicle. AT-AT battle with Snowpeeder would also be all kind of awesome.

 

[Neverfade]

Is this just a visual rework of the core set?

You can see in that pic that the X-Wing has boost on its card and the base for one of the TIEs has 4 actions. So its not just a recoloring at least.

Edit: slightly beaten.

 

[joeyjoejoeshabadoo]

Mage Knight will get a Star Trek reskin... that might make it my first Vlaada Chvátil game! I know the guy has quite the following, but his games never appealed to me because they look fidgety and I don't like the 90s style boardgame art on most. But now they have my atention, even without showing anything!

So if the reason why you stay away from Vlaada's games in the past is because of the fiddliness, you really shouldn't start with Mage Knight. I'm a fan of his but I really don't like this game, mainly because it's too fiddly and unforgiving.

 

[Neverfade]

Have any of my fellow BB:Team Manager fans played Warhammer: Conquest? I'm big on this LCG kick right now and this looks to directly lift a good chunk of card play from BB:TM, or at least have a similar feel. If it's half as good, I'm going to love it. Any opinions out there?

 

[antiquegamer]

So if the reason why you stay away from Vlaada's games in the past is because of the fiddliness, you really shouldn't start with Mage Knight. I'm a fan of his but I really don't like this game, mainly because it's too fiddly and unforgiving.

Also I don't see how a retheme Mage Knight into Star Trek would make it less fiddly. My feeling its probably even more fiddly. I however find the fiddly part of the charm in playing board games. I also don't find the game all that fiddly once it is learn. Though a player aid for all the icons in one easy sheet would be helpful. I am sad that the guy at Esoteric Order hate this game so he is never going to do a player aid sheet for it.

BGG Xwing forum is making people to not post the leak Xwing. Not sure if it matter after it's out in the internet you just can't stop it from multiplying.

 

[BattleMonkey]

Have any of my fellow BB:Team Manager fans played Warhammer: Conquest? I'm big on this LCG kick right now and this looks to directly lift a good chunk of card play from BB:TM, or at least have a similar feel. If it's half as good, I'm going to love it. Any opinions out there?

It does take some of the play from BB and makes it more conflict oriented CCG like game. I think its excellent, but not buying into it just cause I can't afford to get invested in another LCG

 

[Jakoo]

I'm sure this has been asked before but are there any great iPad versions of board games people would recommend, ideally with online? So far I've only played Galaxy Trucker and it hasn't resonated with me all that much.

 

[fenners]

I'm sure this has been asked before but are there any great iPad versions of board games people would recommend, ideally with online? So far I've only played Galaxy Trucker and it hasn't resonated with me all that much.

The Agricola & Lords of Waterdeep iOS apps are by far my most played, though I haven't personally touched the online options in either.

 

[Brashnir]

I've had a lot of fun with Small World over the years, it is a cool littl' game. The only issue I run into with it is the very first thing you do as a player is pick your race and that can be a tough and daunting choice for any new players.

Yeah, when you play with new players, it usually takes them about half a game before they really get what's going on. There's really no way to properly explain it other than going through the process, though. The inevitable first question is "so how do I decide when to go into decline?" The inevitable answer is always, "Well, making that decision is sort of the entire game, but you want to do it when you think your current race is mostly used up." Luckily it's a quick game and a second round with a group is always a lot more fun.

As an aside, I picked up the PC version, and playing it away from a table of people you know is a terrible experience, as you might expect.

 

[nicoga3000]

Played 2 rounds of Dungeon Roll solo tonight - Knight and Alchemist. What a fun and quick game. Once you know what you're doing, you can burn through a game in 10 minutes or less. Definitely a fun pickup - thanks for the suggestion whoever you were!

 

[antiquegamer]

The Agricola & Lords of Waterdeep iOS apps are by far my most played, though I haven't personally touched the online options in either.

You can currently get the bundle on iOS currently that include the best deckbuilder game of all time, Tanto Cuore. I am so glad I found it on Apple store and not having to spend $50.00 on actual game my daughter kept asking me to get.

 

[Blizzard]

I just picked up Dungeon Roll on impulse. It's simple and cute but fun enough even solo. I like that achievements are even included so you can go for some optional goals.

What REALLY impressed me was that the game has apparently been around 2+ years, yet I still got a boardgamegeek rules forum reply, from a designer, in about 10 minutes on a Monday morning.

This looks really cool. I may have to purchase this. Gonna hit up YouTube for a quick video on it.

Played 2 rounds of Dungeon Roll solo tonight - Knight and Alchemist. What a fun and quick game. Once you know what you're doing, you can burn through a game in 10 minutes or less. Definitely a fun pickup - thanks for the suggestion whoever you were!

I think that was me, so I'm glad you enjoyed it! I'm curious though, isn't the Alchemist one of the expansion cards? I only got the basic 8 cards in the treasure chest in a store, but I didn't order from CSI like you. Did you order expansion(s) as well?

 

[neorej]

I'm looking for input here:

I'm currently in the process of buying a new house, with more room on the groundfloor. Of course, we want to dedicate the extra floorspace as playspace for our daughter, but I also want a table in there where we can play games on.

The table itself would be pretty basic; a tabletop that can be removed to reveal an indented tabletop underneath, so you can play one long complex game on the indented one, and when you want to play a quick simple game, you can just put the loose tabletop on top of it.

In order to maximize available floorsurface for our daughter during the day, I was thinking of suspending the table from the ceiling using steel wires, using motorized pullies to move it up and down. Attach the legs to hinges so they fold back, even attach them to a rail-running pully attached to the suspension-wires to fold them in as the table moves up, and back out as the table comes down, using a manual locking mechanism to keep the legs standing upright as we're playing, we don't want the legs to kick out from underneath the table if someone accidentally walks into them.

As for the table itself; it would have built-in cabinets for players to store their cards, tokens, money, etc. A cupholder would be nice I think, to decrease the odds of a beverage being tossed all over the game.

Do you guys have any other suggestions? Ideas? Tips? Where could I buy such a table, or where can I find the plans to build it myself? Should the table be rectangular or polyangular? Any other thoughts?

 

[nicoga3000]

I think that was me, so I'm glad you enjoyed it! I'm curious though, isn't the Alchemist one of the expansion cards? I only got the basic 8 cards in the treasure chest in a store, but I didn't order from CSI like you. Did you order expansion(s) as well?

Yeah, I bought both expansions to get free shipping at CSI on a past order. And thank you again for the suggestion. Definitely a game worth tacking onto a CSI order if you've got the funds (and if you need that boost to free shipping!).

Quick rules question if anyone knows. Since you discard a party member to activate it, is this right?

- 1 die in the graveyard
- 2 potion dice in the dungeon
- Drink potions with a party memeber. Before it activates, you send your party member to the graveyard. Since you drank 2 potions, you can revive the member that was in the graveyard as well as the member that drank the potion.

Yes, my assessment is correct according to BGG.

 

[joeyjoejoeshabadoo]

I'm looking for input here:

I'm currently in the process of buying a new house, with more room on the groundfloor. Of course, we want to dedicate the extra floorspace as playspace for our daughter, but I also want a table in there where we can play games on.

The table itself would be pretty basic; a tabletop that can be removed to reveal an indented tabletop underneath, so you can play one long complex game on the indented one, and when you want to play a quick simple game, you can just put the loose tabletop on top of it.

In order to maximize available floorsurface for our daughter during the day, I was thinking of suspending the table from the ceiling using steel wires, using motorized pullies to move it up and down. Attach the legs to hinges so they fold back, even attach them to a rail-running pully attached to the suspension-wires to fold them in as the table moves up, and back out as the table comes down, using a manual locking mechanism to keep the legs standing upright as we're playing, we don't want the legs to kick out from underneath the table if someone accidentally walks into them.

As for the table itself; it would have built-in cabinets for players to store their cards, tokens, money, etc. A cupholder would be nice I think, to decrease the odds of a beverage being tossed all over the game.

Do you guys have any other suggestions? Ideas? Tips? Where could I buy such a table, or where can I find the plans to build it myself? Should the table be rectangular or polyangular? Any other thoughts?

Maybe it's because I grew up in California where Earthquakes are a thing, but suspending a table above your kid's play area sounds crazy dangerous to me. I think you should just get a folding table for now and the nice gaming table for when your kid is older and doesn't need the space.

 

[aku:jiki]

Sorry if this is a common question but the OP just sort of fades out when it gets to this part... How do I save a few bucks (or euros, I guess) on this hobby over here in Europe? I'm new to it and want to dive in with a few games but the local prices are completely absurd and I don't know what online shop has good prices and honest shipping costs.

I was so happy when I put something in my cart at CMON's store and the shipping came out to $7. Turns out the item just wasn't properly tagged for international shipping and it should've been $40! (CMON did honor the mistake and have shipped my box, though, which was cool.)

I'm looking for input here:

I'm certainly not an expert on this, but Geek Chic sells tables that do exactly what you want.

 

[Kitbash]

Sorry if this is a common question but the OP just sort of fades out when it gets to this part... How do I save a few bucks (or euros, I guess) on this hobby over here in Europe? I'm new to it and want to dive in with a few games but the local prices are completely absurd and I don't know what online shop has good prices and honest shipping costs.

BookDepository should be your first stop for any Fantasy Flight games. They're in the UK and offer free shipping worldwide.

 

[neorej]

Maybe it's because I grew up in California where Earthquakes are a thing, but suspending a table above your kid's play area sounds crazy dangerous to me. I think you should just get a folding table for now and the nice gaming table for when your kid is older and doesn't need the space.

Thanks for the concern. We're in Holland, where flooding is a far more real danger than earthquakes (well, apart from Groningen, but I'm nowhere near there). Plus; I believe houses in the US are mostly wood, whereas Dutch housing is mostly concrete, which allows for far more secure anchoring.

I've actually suspended tables before. My dad's 2 (fairly large) trainsets ran on suspended tables, and I've semi-suspended a desk to a wall (desk hinged on wall, two steel wires running to the wall in an angle, pull the wires to flip the desk up and secure with locking mechanisms).

 

[kurisu1974]

So if the reason why you stay away from Vlaada's games in the past is because of the fiddliness, you really shouldn't start with Mage Knight. I'm a fan of his but I really don't like this game, mainly because it's too fiddly and unforgiving.

That's probably a good point... but I'll get it more on account of being a Star Trek game than a Vlaada game. Just to add to Expeditions and Fleet Captains in my collection

 

[Experien]

Imperial Assault Expansion Codename Boba Fett is already being sold? Last week it was on the boat and now Miniature Market is saying they have them in stock.

 

[Draxal]

Imperial Assault Expansion Codename Boba Fett is already being sold? Last week it was on the boat and now Miniature Market is saying they have them in stock.

Today was supposed to be the release date.

 

[BattleMonkey]

Imperial Assault Expansion Codename Boba Fett is already being sold? Last week it was on the boat and now Miniature Market is saying they have them in stock.

FFG statuses are always loose, doubt they keep it well up to date. Being on the boat can also vary simply cause of how long it takes for a container to get through customs. Some will instantly pass while others will get held for a few weeks for customs inspections. It's quite random.