Which Super Villain Are You?

Your results:
You are Dr. Doom

Dr. Doom 90% Juggernaut 84% The Joker 80% Lex Luthor 80% Apocalypse 80% Magneto 77% Mr. Freeze 70% Venom 64% Dark Phoenix 61% Kingpin 54% Green Goblin 52% Catwoman 50% Poison Ivy 45% Two-Face 36% Riddler 28% Mystique 28%

Blessed with smarts and power but burdened by vanity.

Click here to take the Supervillain Personality Quiz

Which Superhero are you?

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman 90% Spider-Man 75% Robin 60% Supergirl 50% Hulk 45% Green Lantern 40% Batman 40% Catwoman 35% Wonder Woman 20% The Flash 20% Iron Man 10%

You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

Looking at the Numbers

I have created my own database of boardgames using mysql and php. This database duplicates the collection i still maintain on BGG but it allows me to "slice and dice" the numbers more easily and to examine some trends. What I found might be considered disturbing...

I got back into gaming, in a big way, in 2004. While I had a significant number of games prior to 2004, I have more than doubled that number since then.

Game Collection by Year

2003 - 471 games. This represents games acquired between 1968 and 2004.
2004 - Added 57 titles to the collection
2005 - Added 284 titles to the collection
2006 - Added 245 titles (so far!) to the collection

I have played (at least once) at least half of the games in my collection. The division is very close however:

Played - 535
Not Played - 522

To put the "not played" number into context, 210 of the 522 unplayed games were added to my collection before 2004. Roughly half of my pre-2004 collection was unplayed. At least the percentage of unplayed games is remaining relatively constant. Also, of the 522 "not played" games, 308 are wargames. Wargames are hard to play due to difficultly in finding opponents and time to play them. I still enjoy wargames and will continue to add them to my collection. But it should be understood that most wargames will probably not be played.

BGG.CON 2007!

Space Dealer was the darling of BGG.CON which I am attending for the second year in a row.

Do You Worship Cthulhu?

Oh, I do! I do!

Do You Worship Cthulhu? is a game I just gotta have and gotta play! The Cthulhu Mythos is a perfect topic for a what is really nothing more than a retheme of the classic social (or party) game, Werewolf. Wow... Who says theme isn't everything? My interest in playing a game of Werewolf is mild at best. My interest in playing Do You Worship Cthulhu is very high! Theme makes all the difference! The game is due to be released sometime in November. I can't wait! I must have this game!

Shear Panic

I read that Barnes & Noble Bookstores were participating in National Games Week by setting up a display of games in the store. The games on display are not normally carried by B&N and so I stopped by the local store to see what was on display. There was a mix of games, including standard family fare, but there were also other games of interest like Rheinlander, Settlers of Catan and Shear Panic.

Shear Panic is a game I have had some interest in since it debuted at Essen in 2005. The original printing of the game sold out even before the Essen show opened in 2005, so getting a copy was a forlorn hope. I did see the game at BGG.CON in November of 2005, but didn't get a chance to play the game. Then Mayfair announced they would produce a version of Shear Panic and the game was again available. I picked up a copy from Barnes & Noble paying full retail price. I hope buying games from B&N will encourage them to carry more games of this type.

The bits of the game (the sheep) are cute. Very tactile. I can see this game will be the favorite of eye candy lovers everywhere.

Hopefully I'll get a chance to play this game, for the first time, on Wednesday night.

Happy Birthday to me!

The big 5-0! Fifty years. Funny, I don't feel fifty years old, but then I don't know what fifty years old should feel like, so maybe I do feel fifty years old...

Lunar Rails is a game I've had my eye own for some time now. Ever since I heard the Vintage Gamer podcast (#17) reviewing Empire Builder and other "Crayon Rail Games" of the same family. I'm not a big fan of rail games, but Lunar Rails looks interesting if only because it takes place on the Moon!

Anyway, Lunar Rails was given to me by Dave as a birthday present. Thanks Dave!

Order of the Stick

Not only a great web-comic but now a boardgame!

Order of the Stick Adventure Game: The Dungeon of Dorukan arrived yesterday. (Speaking of which... it must have been a long day for the postman, as he delivered the package to my apartment door after 7:00pm.)

From the APE Games website:
"Why just read about foolish and incompetent adventurers when you can be one yourself? Dive head first into the world of the inexplicably popular fantasy gaming webcomic. Take on the role of one of the six daring adventurers as you explore each room of the mysterious Dungeon of Dorukan in this hilarious satire of the fantasy genre. But beware, for the evil undead sorceror Xykon awaits you at the bottom of the dungeon, and he has nothing better to do than focus on wiping the floor with your sorry butt."

The game includes:
6 Shtick Decks (120 cards)
1 Battle Deck (158 cards)
1 Loot/Trap Deck (124 cards)
1 Dungeon Deck (54 cards)
10 Xykon Battle Cards
8 Xykon Lair Rooms
8 Stairs Cards
1 Dungeon Entrance Card
6 Character Cards
6 Character Move cards
Are you still reading this?!
6 Quick Reference Cards
6 Wound Tokens
2 12-sided dice
32-page full-color rules
8-page full-color comic!
1 big box to fit it all in

For 2-6 players | Ages 12+ | 3+ hours | Includes over 500 full-color cards!

My first impression: there sure are a lot of cards in the game! The rulebook is pretty thick too for what would seem to be a simple game... I've heard tales that this is a long game. If true, this will impact how often the game gets played. A game has to have a lot going for it to hold my interest for more than an hour or two. I haven't found a boardgame based dungeon crawl that can do it yet. I'm happy to have the game -- I love the comic -- but I don't expect that it will get played more than once or twice in my group.

Mission Planet Red

I've been waiting for the english language version of Mission Red Planet every since I saw it demoed at BGG.CON in 2005. It's been almost a year but the English language version of the game is in my hands at last!

The game is easy to teach and play:

• Fill launch pad with new spaceships
• Each player selects and plays a Role card.
• Any ships that launched during the 2nd phase now land on Mars. The astronauts occupy the destination location.
• End of turn. Pass the First Player marker to the player who played last in the 2nd phase.

The game last Ten turns. Score victory points after the Fifth, Eighth and Tenth turns. After Turn Ten scoring has been completed, the player with the most victory points wins.

The only real complexity comes in during the 2nd phase of the game when players are choosing Roles and then carrying out the Roles. This will slow the game down a little bit until everyone is familar and comfortable with the Role Cards.

It's like El Grande combined with Citadels. The game is less heavy than El Grande and (for me anyway) more fun than Citadels.

While it adds nothing to the game except color and ambiance, I'm a sucker for the "Steampunk" theme. I just love the concept. One example of this concept is the novel The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling. The Graphic Novel The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is another good example of the genre.

There are a few games that utilize this theme. Space: 1889, a role-playing game (RPG) published by GDW in 1988 is one example. GDW also published a boardgame based on Space: 1889 idea, Sky Galleons of Mars. I'd really like to see more new games using this theme. It's such an interesting idea.

Thanks for reading.

Top Ten Games Published Before 1970

On a recent episode of The Dice Tower an email was discussed where the listener asked about the "American Heritiage" series of games and Tom and Sam joked about doing a Top Ten list of games Published before 1970. The 60's were my early formative years. I was too young to join or even notice the cultural upheaval going on in the 1960's (I turned 13 in 1969) but I was already playing games in the 60's. Little did I know then that I would still be an avid gamer forty years later.

The list that follows is not a true "Top Ten" list because, with one exception, I only included games I own. I don't claim that this list represents the best games published prior to 1970. I'm sure there are some very good games not on this list. Sadly, I don't own those games...

Anyway, here is my Top Ten List of Games (that I own) Published before 1970.

#10. PIT. A classic by any definition.

#9. ACQUIRE. A Classic. I only played this game for first time in 2005, but I can see why it is so well liked. The first "Euro" game.

#8. BISMARCK. Avalon Hill. Spent many an enjoyable hour searching for the Bismarck or seeking to evade the British. The first "hidden movement" game I ever played.

#7. DOGFIGHT. Part of Milton Bradley's American Heritage series of games. I credit this series of games with my life long interest in History (in general and specifically in Military History).

#6. WATERLOO. Avalon Hill. My first "hex and counter" wargame. Well, the game belonged to my brother and he refused to teach me how to play it. My friends and I figured it out one summer day. I've been a wargamer ever since. (On a side note, I credit wargaming with teaching me basic mathematics. Prior to wargaming my math abilities were pathetic. Due to odds based CRTs, wargaming taught me to multiply and divide better than any school did.)

#5. KIMBO. I found this game doing random searches on BGG. My namesake game! It turns out to be not a bad game. Originally a Waddington's game, brought to American by Parker Brothers. It is a "roll and move" game, but you move over an open grid and each player has a set of gates he can place to impede other player's movement. A "Take That" game where "luck of the roll" is a factor. A good game for all of that. Popular with the casual gamers I have played it with. Back in it's day, KIMBO would have been a good "gateway" game, I think.

#4. RISK. I wouldn't play the original version of RISK today, but I spent many an hour playing this game with my friends. It is a classic game in the sense that almost everyone has played the game. (I can't tell you how many times I've been playing some other game only to have someone walk up and say "Is that like RISK?"

#3. FACTS IN FIVE. The 3M line of games were ahead of their time. FACTS IN FIVE is still a great Trivia type game today.

#2. CAREERS. An important game in my early gaming days because of the variable victory conditions. Each players defines his own victory conditions. A great concept and one that really resonated with me.

#1. BROADSIDE. Another game in the Milton Bradley American Heritage series of Historical games. The Bits (Ships with Sails) are great. The sails are removed as a ship takes damage. A ship is sunk when the last sail is removed. I loved this game as child and I am still fond of it today. The first game that showed me a game could be played without dice or luck and still be fun. I learned strategy and tactics playing this game. Abstract games, like Chess, just couldn't (and still can't) hold my interest. But a "chess-like" game like BROADSIDE with its wonderful theme had me hooked. I credit the American Heritage series of games, and BROADSIDE in particular, with starting my life long interest in History as well as my beginnings as a wargamer.

Good gaming didn't start in 1995 with Settlers of Catan. There are a lot of good games, even my today's standards, that were published prior to 1970. Granted the good "Euro" type games were far and few between but they were out there and the gaming renaissance we enjoy today is possible, due in large part, to these earlier games.

The Golden Geek Awards (aka the 'Geekies')

The voting is now in progress for the BoardGameGeek.com Golden Geek Awards. As I am a supporting member of BGG, I get to vote. Here's how I voted...

Gamer's Game Category
I've come to the realization that I don't like "heavy" games or "gamers" games all that much. I find these types of games to be too much effort. I much prefer the light to medium weight games. With that in mind, here's how I voted in the "Gamers Game" category:

• Thurn & Taxis
• Ticket to Ride - Märklin Edition
• Elasund: the First city of Catan
  Among these three, it's too close to call. I like each of them and which one I like best (or which one I would prefer to play) changes from day to day and with the group I'm with. All three are very good games. Maybe not "heavy" enough to be considered "gamers" games, but I didn't make up the list.
• Louis XIV
• Mykerinos
• Arkham Horror
• Tempus
• Reef Encounter
  A good game, but not one I would play very often.
• Shadows Over Camelot
  I rated this game highly when it was first published. Since then, it has come down a lot in my personal ratings. A good game, but really more of a party game than anything else. The game play itself is not all that interesting.
• Twilight Imperium 3rd Edition
  Big, Pretty, Lots of plastic pieces. Meh.
• Descent: Journeys in the Dark
  Big, Pretty, Lots of plastic pieces. (Yawn) Meh.
  
  I haven't played any of the heavier games in this category. I hear that Caylus is a good game and I'm interested in giving Railroad Tycoon a try.
• Antike
• Caylus
• Hacienda
• Railroad Tycoon

Wargame Category

• Twilight Struggle
  Gets my vote for "Game of the Year."
• Bonaparte at Marengo
• Friedrich
• C&C: Ancients
• Nexus Ops
• Twilight Imperium 3rd Edition
• Conquest of the Empire
  
  I haven't played ove half the games in this category. I like wargames, but it's difficult to find a FTF opponent and the time to play.
• Fire in the Sky
• Lock 'N Load: Band of Heros
• Crusader Rex
• ASL Starter Kit #2
• Battleground: Fantasy Warfare
• Warrior Knights
• Pax Romana
• Here I Stand

Two Player Game Category

• Twilight Struggle
  I won't be surprised if Twilight Struggle wins in both categories. It's that good of a game.
• Roma
• Dungeon Twister
• Ingenious
• Travel Blokus
• Deflexion
• Pizza Box Football
  A dice fest if ever there was one. Fun to play in small doses. Gets boring quickly.
• Times Square
• Hey! That's My Fish!
  Nominated in four out of six catergories, clearly this game has it's supporters but it doesn't do anything for me.
• Fjords
  
  Not played. No comment.
  Lord of the Rings - The Confrontation: Deluxe Edition
  Rat Hot
  Dynasties
  PÜNCT
  Aton

Light/Party Game Category
I don't consider "Light" games to be in the same class as "Pary" games. I like "Light" games for the most part and I dislike "Party" games (for the most part). I find it odd to bunch these two categories together. Oh well.

• No Thanks!
• Diamant
• Poison
• Tsuro
• Mall of Horror
  Completely out of place in this category, IMO. The game has lost it's allure for me.
• Shadows Over Camelot
• Hey! That's My Fish!
  
  Not played. No comment.
• Um Krone und Kragen
• That's Life
• Nacht der Magier
• Wits & Wagers
• Ca$h 'n Guns
• Pickomino
• Funny Friends
• You Must Be An Idiot!

Family Game Category
This is the category that most clearly defines the type of games I like to play: Light to Medium weight strategy games.

• Thurn & Taxis
• Cleopatra and the Society of Architects
• Ticket To Ride Europe
• Blue Moon City
• Ticket To Ride: Märklin Edition
  Another five-way tie for first. I'm happy to play any of these games and which one I prefer on a given day cannot be predicted.
• Manila
• Ingenious
• Niagara
• Diamant
• Poison
• Shadows Over Camelot
  
  Not played. No comment
• That's Life
• Railroad Tycoon
  Out of place in this category.
• Vegas Showdown
• Hey! That's My Fish!

My prediction for the winners in each category are:

• Gamers Game: Caylus
• Wargame: Twilight Struggle
• Two Player Game: Twilight Struggle
• Light/Party Game: Hey! That's My Fish!
• Family Game: Ticket To Ride: Märklin Edition

First To Find - A Geocaching Card Game

First To Find is a card game with a "Geocaching" theme. If you are curious as to just what "Geocaching" is, check out the web site Geocaching.com.

First To Find comes in a nice tin box. Inside the tin box, an insert holds a single deck of cards. Remove the cards and insert and the tin box would make an interesting geocache container itself.

The deck consists of fifty-five (55) cards. The First To Find deck is essentially a standard deck of playing cards. There are four suits (Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter instead of Hearts, Spades, Clubs and Diamonds) of 13 cards (2-10, J, Q, K, A) and two Jokers. The rules are printed on both sides of the final card.

A "difficulty" number between two (2) and six (6) is selected before the game begins. This is the number of points a player will need to score to win the game. Five cards a dealt out to each player. The remaining cards make up the DRAW deck. The top card of the DRAW deck is turned over to set the starting season (suit).

On his turn a player draws cards from the DRAW pile until he holds six cards. Then the player plays a card, if possible. The card played may depend on the card played by a previous player. When playing a card, the card played must match the current or subsequent season. (For example, if the face up card is a "Summer" card, then the player must play a "Summer" or "Fall" card.) If free to do so, the player may play a MOVEMENT card. In each suit the MOVEMENT cards are numbered from 1 - 4. When the player plays a movement card, he scores one point. Instead of playing MOVEMENT card, the player may play an OBSTACLE card. After playing a MOVEMENT or OBSTACLE card, the player's turn is over and play passes to the next player in clockwise order.

If the previous player played an OBSTACLE card, then the current player must play a GEAR card to overcome the OBSTACLE. In each suit the OBSTACLE cards are numbered 5 - 9 and the GEAR cards are numbered 10 - A. The card numbers appear to serve no purpose within the game. If the current player cannot play a GEAR card to overcome the previously played OBSTACLE card, the player loses one victory point and may discard a card.

This last rule immediately led to two rules questions: 1. Can a player's score go negative? 2. Where do discarded cards go? If discarded to the play pile, do they change the season? Or should there be three card piles (DRAW, PLAY and DISCARD)? The rules do not address either of these questions. We played that a player's score could go negative and we used a separate discard pile.

If a player is able to play a GEAR card to overcome an OBSTACLE, then the player may play a second card, presumably a MOVEMENT or OBSTACLE card. If not required to overcome an OBSTACLE, a GEAR card may be played to simply change the season. The rules did not make it clear if this play of a GEAR card also allowed a player to play a second card as when a GEAR card is played to overcome an OBSTACLE. (We played that in this case, the player may not play a second card.)

The game continues in this manner until one player scores enough points to win the game. The number of points needed to win the game was determined at the beginning of the game.

The rules do not address the use of the JOKER cards. The JOKERS are GEAR cards and appear to be "wild" in terms of season (suit).

There is no relationship between OBSTACLE cards and GEAR cards. If the OBSTACLE is Flood, for example, any GEAR card may be used to overcome the Flood. (A Hat Gear card, for example, will overcome a Flood OBSTACLE card.)

Another question not addressed by the rules is what happens when player A plays and OBSTACLE card and player B is not able to overcome the OBSTACLE CARD by playing a GEAR card. Is Player C then required to overcome the OBSTACLE card? Or is Player C free to play any card? (We played that Player C was free to play any card.)

The rules are brief, fitting on two sides of a card. Perhaps they are too brief as too much is left to the imagination (and assumption) of the players. A second rules card with the space used to more clearly explain how to play the game, or even a printed rule book with examples would have been helpful. We did have to make some assumptions as to how to play the game. Perhaps we assumed wrong. Should it turn out that we were playing the game substantially wrong, I will be sure to update this thread with the latest information.

It seems clear that each player is responsible for hindering (by playing OBSTACLES) the player on his left. If left undisturbed, a player can freely play MOVEMENT cards and quickly win the game. Of course this is only possible if the player has any MOVEMENT cards and this reveals that the game is largely won on the "luck of the draw." Game play is determined by the cards drawn and by the cards played by the previous player. A player must play to overcome an OBSTACLE and can only chose to play MOVEMENT or OBSTACLE cards himself if the pervious player did not attempt to hinder him, or if hindered by an OBSTACLE, then by having a GEAR card in the appropriate seasons and having a second card to play. Player decisions are minimal as the hand of cards and current situation determines what the player will do.

Final Thoughts:
I bought First To Find because it was a Geocaching themed game. I was not expecting much in the way of a game and I was not disappointed. The value, for me, of First To Find is simply that it is a "Geocaching" game. The game itself is no great shakes and won't be winning any awards, but for the price ($10 plus shipping) the "Geocaching" theme by itself makes it worth adding this game to my collection.

---

Afterword:
Ryan Thiegs, the designer of the game First To Find, made the following reply to my questions:

Hey guys,

Sorry for the confusion with the rules. I had a pretty limited space to work with so I tried to include the basics. Now that my website is up I'll get some more details in place there soon.

But to answer your questions;

1. There are 3 card piles, Draw, Play, and Discard. Discard pile is totally seperate and do not affect the game, so seasons do not change when discarding a card.

2. Jokers are wild in that they can be played during any season.

3. The next player is free to play any card if the previous player cannot overcome an obstacle.

4. A 2nd card may only be played after a Gear card when you overcome an obstacle.

5. Yes, you must ALWAYS match the current season or the subsequent season.

Thanks again for checking out the game, hopefully this email will help.

Ryan

More Dreamblade

My Dreamblade collection currently stands at 90 118 figures:

• Two Starter Sets (16 figs each)
• Eight Twelve Booster Packs (7 figs each)
• One promo figure (FLGS Tournament participation)
• One other figure given to me by a friend...

Do the math. At MSRP, that's about a $180 $210 investment in the game already. And I'm planning on buying a booster pack or three (four actually) later on today... This is what I dislike most about collectible games. $200 could buy a lot of "regular" boardgames. Still, I've no one to blame but myself for jumping down this rabbit hole...

My figure collection breaks down like this:

Valor
• Runetagged Brawler (x2)
• Ardent Zungar (x2)
• Pearlthorn Castle (x2)
• Inspired Samurai
• Steelborn Lion
• Twilight Scout
• Falcon Soldier
• Knight of Tomorrow (x2)
• Knight of Strife and Joy (x2)
• Mirrorman (x3)
• Eagle-Feather Warrior (x3) (x4)
• Brighthammer Avenger
• Saint of Roses (x3)
• Whirlwind Dervish
• Inscribed Axebeast (x2)
• Savannah Dreamhunter
• Loyal Scragglemaw

Madness
• Spellbound Scissors
• Gateway to Psychosis
• Pick-Pick (x2)
• Asylum Escapee (x3) (x5)
• Jack-in-the-Box
• Book of Nothing (x2)
• Relentless Eviserator (x2)
• Dreamstuff Entity (x2)
• Gun Possessed Killer (x2)
• Nevrft Screamtrooper (x2)
• All Seeing Mage
• Faceless Stalker (x3)
• Iron Thug (x2)
• Doomsinger (x2)
• Malborn Croc
• Windborne Blademaster

Fear
• Barbstrider
• Cannibal Pariah (x3) (x4)
• Hive Pincer (x2) (x3)
• Hellshrieker
• Soul Grub (x2) (x3)
• Knight of Pain and Sorrow (x2)
• Jack of Blades (x2)
• Genteel Husk
• Doomball (x2)
• Knight of Autumn Gate (x2) (x3)
• Night Queen (x2)
• Carrion Spiker
• Eater of Hope
• Acolyte of Loss
• Blight Rat
• Fleshless Reaper
• Skull Hill

Passion
• Boneclan Hunter
• Bloodthirsty Redcap
• Blind Spike Mauler (x2)
• Rainforest Shaman (x2)
• Boneblade Serpent (x4)
• Alluring Succubus (x2)
• Skeever Hatchling (x2) (x3)
• Prowling Leopardman
• Flame Harrower (x2)
• Heart Render
• Forgeblind Punisher
• Savage Ogre
• Dreamreef Marauder
• Greenleaf Dryad
• Hearstblood Temple

I currently have two Warbands I am playing with. Both need further tweaking.

Valor Warband
• Runetagged Brawler (3V)
• Ardent Zungar (3V)
• Pearlthorn Castle (3VV)
• Inspired Samurai (4V)
• Twilight Scout (5V)
• Falcon Soldier (5V)
• Knight of Tomorrow (5V)
• Knight of Strife and Joy (5V)
• Mirrorman x2 (6V)
• Eagle-Feather Warrior x2 (6VV)
• Brighthammer Avenger (8V)
• Whirlwind Dervish (8VV)
• Inscribed Axebeast x2 (10V)

My Valor Warband depends on the greater than average defense/life of the creatures to withstand enemy attacks while I whittle my opponent down. It does not have any "fancy" combos and may be too "generic" to do well in competitive play.

"Eater of Hope" Warband
• Zombie Enforcer x2 (3F)
• Hive Pincer x2 (3F)
• Blind Spikemauler x2 (4P)
• Asylum Escapee x2 (4M)
• Relentless Eviscerator x2 (5M)
• Prowling Leopardman (8P)
• Flame Harrower x2 (8PP)
• Savage Ogre (9P)
• Forgeblind Punisher (9P)
• Eater of Hope (10FF)

This Warband has undergone a lot of tweaking lately and has not faced battle in its current configuration. I am concerned that the average spawn cost is too high and that it will take me too long to deploy most of the Warband onto the Dreamscape. It may be powerful, but the battle may be over before I can bring that power to bear.

Dreamblade is turning out to be a good game so far. It may be nothing more than a passing fancy, but I'm enjoying the play while it lasts.

Simply Catan

Received my SimplyFun order yesterday containing Simply Catan and In10sity.

Simply Catan is a version of The Settlers of Catan produced "exclusivly" for SimplyFun. The production value of the game is quite nice. Linen finish box, board and cards. The basic game is a simplified version of Settlers of Catan. Victory is achieved at seven points and the event cards are not used. The "advanced" version of Simply Catan is the same as the standard "vanilla" Settlers of Catan game.

Also included in the game are plastic molded pieces to represent the roads, towns and cities, instead of the wooden pieces used in other versions of the games. Purists will decry this change, but the pieces look nice. This version of the game also simplifes hex placement. Instead of individual hexes, the hexes come in "strips" of two, three or four hexes. This does limit the number of board configurations that can be made, but also simplifies and speeds up game setup. The hex strips are printed on both sides, so a healthy number of board configurations can still be created. In the original versions of the game the hexes are simply placed on the table top side by side. In this vesion of the game, a board is provided to "contain" the hex strips. This has the advantage of keeping the hexes together and avoiding bumping accidents that can destroy the board as well has providing spaces for card decks and player aids printed on the board. It's a nice addition to the game.

Many of these same "improvements" can be found in the game The Settlers of Zarahemla which is published by Uberplay games. Given that one of the owners of Uberplay is also a principal of SimplyFun it is perhaps not so surprising that Simply Catan has so much in common, production wise, with The Settlers of Zarahemla.

What SimplyFun has accomplished here is to add a medium weight game to their line of generally light to very light games. This is a welcome addition. Also, SimplyFun has added a proven seller to their catalog of games. Settlers of Catan is a "classic" game in every sense of the word and having a version in the SimplyFun line of games will serve to introduce new families and gamers to the wonderful world of Euro games. The simplilifed rules will help introduce non-gamers who are afraid of "complicated" games to the Settlers of Catan mechanics. Once they get a game or two under their belts, adding in the "advanced" rules should be easy. It's a great idea and I think SimplyFun has a real winner on their hands in Simply Catan.

More New Games!

I've been on something of a buying spree in the last week or so. By my count I've ordered thirteen games, not including yesterday's purchases. The games that will be arriving in the next few days to weeks are:

• Canal Mania
• Alpha Strike
• Marvin Marvel’s Marvelous Marble Machine
• Glory to Rome
• Go Away Monster
• Fist of Dragonstones
• Simply Catan
• In10sity
• Start Player (pre-order)
• Order of the Stick Adventure Game: The Dungeon of Dorukan (pre-order)
• Anathema
• Enemy in Sight (Reprint)
• Task Forces at War

On top of this is the Dreamblade stuff I have been collecting.

Don't give me that look! I do not have a problem. I have fewer than 1000 games, and it can't be a problem until I have at least 1000 games in my collection. I read that somewhere... Reader's Digest, I think...

Thanks for reading.

LOST: The Game & Heroscape

Okay, I have not gotten caught up in the whole "LOST" phenomemon. I don't watch the TV show. Never sounded interesting. (I don't watch 24 either. I do watch Stargate (SG1 and Atlantis), Battlestar Galactica, Eureka, Rescue Me and Life on Mars. Different strokes and all that...) But LOST: The Game has been getting some good buzz over on BoardGameGeek and the price is low enough to take a chance on. So I went out to my local Wal-Mart and picked up a copy of LOST: The Game. Of course, that's not the whole story...

First I went to my local Target store. I prefer Target to Wal-Mart so I always check Target first. Target did not have LOST: The Game on the shelf. But they did have:

HeroScape Expansion Set: Raknar's Vision.

I didn't go into Target looking for this new Heroscape expansion, but there it was... and the set contains "5 Large Detailed Figures", so even though I haven't played Heroscape in over a year and haven't bought any of the more recent Heroscape expansions, I just had to get this expansion. The "5 Large Detailed Figures" looked really cool!

I then I noticed (on the back of the package) that there is a new Heroscape Tundra Terrain Pack. Looking at the shelf I saw:

HeroScape Expansion Set: Thaelenk Tundra.

Well. I already have the "Hot Lave Death" terrain pack, so now I have to get the Tundra pack, right? Right.

Ah, but the story is not over. Remember I was looking for the LOST boardgame? After striking out at Target, I decided I'd check Wal-Mart. Not my favorite store but beggers can't be choosers, can we? So what's the first thing I see when I walk up to the boardgame section of Wal-Mart?

HeroScape Expansion Set: Fortress of the Archkyrie

This is the "Castle" expansion that was first shown at GENCON last year (2005). It's out! I can't pass up the castle expansion, can I? No, I can't.

Oh yeah, and Wal-Mart did have a copy of LOST: The Game on the shelf, so I grabbed that too. So I went out looking for a boardgame and ended up with three Heroscape expansions and the boardgame I was looking for. The LOST game was actually the least expensive item of the bunch!

As far as LOST: The Game goes, I haven't had done more than open the tin and look at the bits, but I have high hopes for the game. From what I've heard so far, it might be a pretty good game.

Thanks for reading.

Necronomonopoly - First Impressions

As the name implies Necronomonopoly is a twisted version of Monopoly with a Cthulhu Mythos theme. For fans of the Cthulhu Mythos, the fact that this game is a variant of the often belittled Monopoly matters not at all. A Cthulhu Mythos game will be added to the collection, regardless of how bad a game it may be. If you are not a fan of the Mythos, do not try to understand. There are somethings that Man was not meant to know...

Necronomonopoly is designed by John Wick and Annie Rush and published by Wicked-Dead Brewing Company. It is a DTP (Desk Top Publish) game which means it is a "Do It Yourself" game. The game is provided as a set of PDF files (game board, cards and rules) and the owner must print the files, assemble the board and cut out the cards. The players must also provide tokens to represent the players (and monsters) as they move around the board, and something to represent the Sanity of the players. Sanity is the "money" of Necronomonopoly.

The similarities to Monopoly are obvious. The game board has a "Mi-Go" space, a "Moment of Silence" space (equivalent to "Free Parking"), and the "Arkham Asylum" space which serves more or less the same function as the Jail. Instead of Railroads there are the "Great Books." The familiar property spaces (or "Lots" as they are called in the game) consist of well known Cthulhu Mythos locations and serve much the same purpose as they do in Monopoly. "Mythos" spaces replace the "Chance" and "Community Chest" spaces and in place of spaces like "Income Tax" and "Luxury Tax" will be found the "Gate" spaces.

The basic game play will be familiar to anyone who has played Monopoly. Each turn the player will roll the dice (two six-sided dice) and move the token clockwise around the board. If the player lands on an unowned Lot, the Lot may be purchased. If the player lands on a lot owned by another play, a fee (or "Rent") must be paid to the owning player. Upon landing on a "Gate" space the player will roll two dice and consult the gate table which will move the player to a new location and often have additional detrimental effects. Landing on a "Mythos" space causes the player to draw a Mythos card and follow the instructions on the card.

The "currency" of Necronomonopoly is Sanity. Each player starts with 150 Sanity and the game ends when all players but one have lost or spent all their Sanity. The winner of the game is the last Sane player. Sanity is lost quickly. Players use Sanity to purchase Lots, pay rent and cast cast spells. Players also lose Sanity each time they encounter a monster.

Monsters enter the game via the "Mythos" cards. When a player lands on a "Mythos" space he draws a card and follows the instructions on the card. The cards consist of Allies, Artifacts and Spells, all of which can help a player, and Monsters. When a Monster card is turned up, a monster is placed on the board. Each turn, in addition to moving his own token, a player must move one monster (if any are present on the board). Monsters move counter-clockwise (or "Widdershins") and stop when they encounter (move into the same space as) any player. When encountered, each Monster causes a loss of Sanity. This sanity loss can be small or large depending on the Monster encountered. (As a player, you don't want to run into a "Great Old One!") In most cases, when a Monster reaches the "Mi-Go" space it is removed from the game (but not before inflicting a Sanity loss on any players also on the "Mi-Go" space.) Monsters can also be removed from the board by the use of spells and artifacts, so the players aren't completely defenseless...

As in Monopoly, players can buy property (Lots). The cost to purchase is paid in Sanity. When landing on a Lot owned by another player, the moving player must pay "rent" in the form of Sanity to the other player. Just as in Monopoly there are "sets" of Lots and owning more than one Lot in a set causes the "Rent" on all owned Lots in the set to increase. There are no House or Hotels to be bought in Necronomonopoly. The Lots in the game cannot be developed. Nor can the Lots be traded or sold between players. If a player chooses not to buy an unowned Lot when he lands on it, nothing happens. The Lot is not auctioned off to the other players as happens in Monopoly. Also, Lots may not be mortgaged. If a player owns all of the Lots in a "Locale" (set), he gains an advantage. These advantages may allow a player to increase his movement, take cards from other players, avoid monsters, etc. The "Great Books" also offer some advantage to the owning player.

And so the game goes. Each turn a player moves a monster, moves his own token and then can take actions (buy Lots, use cards, etc.) As the game proceeds the Players will lose Sanity. When a player loses all of his Sanity, he has lost the game. But an insane player is not out of the game! An insane player becomes a "Cultist". A Cultist is a monster and will move counter-clockwise each turn, just as the monsters do. But a Cultist is not removed from the game when he reaches the "Mi-Go" space and a Cultist can collect Allies, Artifacts and Spells just as the players can. Cultists can also collect and own "The Great Books" but may not own or purchase any of the other Lots in the game. When a cultist crosses paths with another player, the player will lose sanity. As the game goes on, it gets harder and harder for sane players to retain their sanity. The downward spiral into insanity is inexorable, just as it should be...

A few additional comments:

The components of the game are cheap, as is to be expected from a "print it yourself" game. It is basically a two color game, black and white. There is a splash of color on the game board, but it small and easy to miss, so this is basically a monochrome game. The artwork on the cards is crude, but functional. This game won't win any graphics awards, but I've seen plenty worse as well. There are a lot of cards in the game. Mythos cards and Lot cards. The hardest part of assembling the game is cutting out all of the cards. The board is printed on four standard (letter size) sheets of paper. I recommend printing on card stock to give the board some rigidity. Assembling the board is as easy as putting together a four piece jigsaw puzzle. A little tape and you have the board.

The game is good for a laugh or two, especially for fans of the Cthulhu Mythos. It is not a deep game by any means and there isn't a lot of strategy a player can employ to improve his chances of winning. It is a "roll and move" game and highly luck dependent. This is a game to play for laughs, not a game to play if you want a meaningful challenge.

Thanks for reading.

Start Player

This is a cute idea. A deck of cards that can be used to determine who the first player in a game will be.

Sort of silly, but I have pre-ordered a Start Player starter deck because I like Ted Alspach's Board 2 Pieces stuff and this will be a fun and entertaining way to determine who the first player will be when we sit down to play a game.

Dreamblade CMG

"Never say never..."

When I got back into gaming two years ago, I told myself I wouldn't play Role-Playing Games and I wouldn't get into collectible games again. Well, my comments on RPGs can be found elsewhere, but my resistance to collectible games is wavering.

Did I say wavering? To be truthful, the dam has broken and I'm being carried away on the wave of a new collectible miniatures game called Dreamblade.

I've already purchased a Starter Set and three booster packs (that's a total of 37 figures in my collection) and I haven't even played the game yet!

I don't think I'll fall as far into this rabbit hole as I did when when Magic: The Gathering came out, but I don't think I'm done falling yet either. There are a couple of figures I just have to get before I stop buying Dreamblade product...

Why do I think I'll like Dreamblade? First, the game is not tied to any exisitng Brand. This means the designers and developers have the latitude to make the game good without having to deal with preconceived (or contractual) requirements. The game has freedom to grow. Secondly, the game has a board that is an integral part of the game. Dreamblade is a board game that uses miniatures as opposed to a miniatures game that uses a board.

I've read the rules and I like what I see. The rules seem to be well written and tight. It remains to be seen if the current mix of available figures will make for an interesting game.

Dragonology - First Impressions

Walking through the bookstore, I spied something new on the game racks: Dragonology: The Game. A game about dragons? How cool is that?

Opening up the flyleaf cover, I see the game contains some pre-painted miniature figures: dorky looking "Dragonologists" and pretty cool looking Dragons. I'm pretty sure the Grandkids will like this too... "Yes Dear, I bought the game for the Grandkids!"

Just looking at the board on the box, I get the impression this will be a "roll and move" kind of game. That's too bad... but what can you expect off the rack at a bookstore?

After a little more hemming and hawing, I finally decide to buy the game. It's a game about Dragons, how bad can it be?

Get the game home, open the box, take some pictures for the 'Geek. Next step, read the rules...

The object of the game is to become the first player to "Master Three Dragons." To master a dragon a player has to collect three of five "Bits of Dragon Lore" information and then land by exact count on the home space of the Dragon in question. When that's done, the player takes the Dragon off the board and the game continues. When one player has "Mastered" three Dragons, he must move to the Dragon's Eye somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Upon arrival at the Dragon's Eye (by exact count) the player wins the game.

Not surprisingly the core mechanic is "roll and move". Instead of rolling the die a player can use a "Transportation Ticket" to move. There are three types of Transportation Tickets: Air, Land and Sea. An Air ticket will let you move to any space on the board. A Land ticket will let you move to any space on the continent your player piece is on, and a Sea ticket will let you move between ports. If you don't use a transportation ticket, you roll the die and move the number indicated across land or sea. If you land on certain spaces (cities, dragons or other marked spaces) you draw a Dragon Lore card or a Transportation card as indicated on the space.

The Card deck consists of the "Bits of Information" each player is attempting to collect. For each of Nine Dragons, there are five "bits of information." Three "bits of information" are needed to "Master the Dragon." The remaining cards in the Dragon Lore deck are "Special Cards." These cards can be used for a variety of purposes, most having to do with stealing cards (and possibly Mastered Dragons) from other players. There are also a some "Shield" cards that act to counter other cards and some "Wild" cards that can be used to substitute for one of the three required "bits of information."

In addition to all of that, if one player lands on the same space as another player, the active player can challenge the other player. In a challange, the challenging player determines how many cards (of either type) will be at risk. The challenger cannot challange for more cards than he has. The challenged player must accept the challenge. The two players then resolve the challenge by playing one round of "Flame, Tooth, Claw" (Rock, Paper, Scissors) and the winner takes the cards.

After a player has "Mastered" Three Dragons, he moves to the Island of Winged Serpents in the Pacific Ocean by any of the normal movement methods. If moving by die roll, the count must be exact. If the player rolls more than is needed to land on the island, the player does not move and loses his turn. Once the player arrives on the Island of Winged Serpents he is immune from further card play and player challenges. From there he attempts to reach the Dragon's Eye. Movement to Dragon's Eye is by die roll only and must be by exact count. If the player rolls more than the number needed to reach the Dragon's Eye, he does not move and loses his turn. The first player to Master Three Dragons and arrive at The Dragon's Eye wins the game.

Final thoughts: It is disappointing that the game is a simple "roll and move" game. The playing pieces are pretty and add to the theme. Non-gaming fans of the book will probably enjoy the game, as will younger children (the game is rated 8+). Experienced gamers will lose interest shortly after seeing it is a "roll and move" game. Luck will dominate the game but players who like "take that" games will have some fun as they manage to foil other player's attempts to win the game. In the end the game will be good for a play or two, I think, and then it will be relegated to the back of the shelf or the trade pile, soon to become just one more piece in a Dragon fan's collection of Dragon themed paraphernalia

Bay Area Games Day XLVII

I make the the trip to Los Gatos for a Bay Area Games Day a couple of times each year. It makes for a long day, but the Group and game playing are worth it. I was enticed into making the trip this time because Chris Farrell offered to put on a EastFront clinic. EastFront is a game I own and have wanted to play and getting the chance to be taught the game in a "clinic" setting was an opportunity I did not want to miss.

EastFront is a good game I did enjoy playing it, but after the game was finished, I got the chance to play Shifting Sands, the new CDG game from MMP on the North African campaign in WWII. Shifting Sands is a great game and as much as I enjoyed playing EastFront, it was getting to play Shifting Sands that really made my day.

I also got to meet Ted Alspach of Board 2 Pieces fame and got a copy of his new game Seismic.

Games Played - July 2006

I started recording games played on BoardGameGeek back in September of 2004. Prior to July 2006 the most games I had managed to play in a single month was 100 back in September 2005. This month I set a new record for the number of games played in a single month: 117!

The game last played in the month was Saboteur. The game I played most this month was Giza with 28 plays. Roma was the second most often played game in July.

Other games that got at least five plays this month were Thurn and Taxis and Rum & Pirates

Why I don't play Role Playing Games anymore

I have a first edition copy of Dungeons & Dragons. I have first editions of Runequest and Traveller.

I was there when RPGs began. I've always been interested and intrigued by the concept of RPGs. But I don't play Role-Playing Games anymore.

When I got back into gaming in a big way two years ago, I told myself that I would not try and "do it all." I wouldn't get back into Role-Playing Games and I wouldn't get into collectible games of any type (card or miniature).

Why RPGs? Mostly because I have almost always been disappointed with my RPG experiences.

An RPG, more than other type of game, is extremely dependent on the players involved. The GM has to be good. The other players have to be good and "of the same mind". *I* have to be good.

By "Good", I mean prepared, focused and ready to play. Too often I have been involved in RPG games where the other players were more interested in "chatting" than in playing the game. Too often I have been involved in RPG games were one or more players were "Min-Maxing" Munchkins that tried to "win" the game by twisting rules and find rule loopholes to exploit to their advantage. Too often I have been involved in RPG games where there was a Players vs. the GM (and vice versa) attitude. Only rarely have I been lucky enough to be involved in an RPG game where the Players and GM worked together to tell an interesting and compelling story. For me, the bad RPG experiences far outnumber the good RPG experiences.

To be honest, part of the problem is me. I've got a good imagination. At least I think I do. But it's a "spur of the moment" kind of imagination. I don't play well in "off the cuff" situations. I need structure and a manageable set of options (each turn) in my games. I don't like "anything goes" situations.

And there are so many RPG systems available. It seems as if everyone and his brother has written an RPG system. This is both good and bad. Too many choices means the RPG game playing community fractures and makes it difficult to find players who play the same game you do. On the other hand, there a lot of good and interesting ideas out there too. I enjoy reading about and seeing the various new ideas and concepts that authors come up with.

(To be fair, a lot of good writers have gotten their start writing RPG games and adventures. Thanks to computers and sophisticated editing programs, it's possible for almost anyone to write, produce and publish an RPG system. Anything that promotes writing is a good thing, in my opinion.)

So, I don't play RPGs anymore. I'd rather spend my game playing time playing a board game of some kind. (Card game, Euro Game, War Game. I play and enjoy them all.) But I'm still interested in reading and hearing about RPGs. I like hearing about new systems and comparing them to other new or existing systems. I like to see how authors handle the various issues that all RPG systems must address. I enjoy reading RPG adventures. I'll never get to play them anyway, and some of them are very well written stories. I still spend money on RPGs, but I limit myself to the odd or unique. I'm not interested in buying the latest D&D expansion or whatever other "mass-market" RPG is the current fave. I'm more interested in the small-press stuff that has the weird and interesting topic or new game system. It's all just research anyway, since I won't play RPGs anymore.

Thanks for reading.

Zombie Rally - First Impressions

The adage "you get what you pay for" holds true for Zombie Rally. The game comes packaged in a small (4" x 6") zip lock bag and contains a deck of 54 cards, a rules sheet and a title card displaying the name of the game on the front and design credits on the back. The retail price is $5.95. The game is also available as a "Print-It-Yourself" PDF download from the Snarling Badger web site for $2.00. The theme (a zombie footrace) is silly but bizarre enough to have invoked by interest. For six bucks I feel the game is worth taking a chance. It should be good for a laugh or two.

The rules sheet is printed in a small, difficult to read (for my old eyes, at least!) font. I found it easier to purchase the PDF file so I could read the rules on my computer after increasing the display size of the document.

The quality of the cards is the first thing I noticed. These are not good quality playing cards. The cards appear to be printed on simple card stock (typical of a do-it-yourself game) and feel thin and a little flimsy. The cards will not stand up to repeated play well. Card sleeves will be needed, I think, to protect the cards from damage during shuffling and play. The cards are printed in two colors, black on green card stock. The printing is good; the font size is comfortably readable and the printing quality is fine. The card graphics are appropriately cute.

After a quick read of the rules (have I mentioned the small font size?), I see that in addition to the cards, some way of tracking the "state" of each Zombie will be required. How many arms and legs each zombie has remaining and how many steps in the race each zombie has completed must be recorded. The rules suggest using paper and pencil. Okay, Zombie Rally is basically a home made game, and keeping the price low was clearly an objective, but having to track the status on each zombie with pencil and paper is a problem for me. Couldn't the designers have come up with some kind of status sheet for the Zombies? Even making something available online as a download would be better than the paper and pencil method. What the game needs is a Zombie status sheet and some counters or other way to track how many steps each Zombie has taken. I see a definite need for a player aid here.

Game play is simple and consists of playing a card (or cards in the case of a combo) and either "moving" (adding steps to the movement total) the player's Zombie or attacking another player's zombie in an attempt to slow them down (usually by removing limbs). There are cards for Movement, Offense, Movement and Offense, Defense, and Specials. Special cards represent special actions that a zombie may take or a hazard that may be played against another player's zombie (Add A Limb, or Lob-a-Skull, for example).

The game continues until the second to last zombie "crosses" the finish line (by having played enough movement cards to match the steps needed to complete the race).

My first impression of the game is that it is cheap. The theme is silly but bizarre enough to have invoked my interest and the price was low enough for me to say "What the heck, why not?" The game will be worth a laugh or two and after a couple of plays will likely be relegated to the back of the closet.

I rate the game a solid '5'. Nothing special. Take it or leave it.

Thurn and Taxis wins the SdJ!

By now everyone should have heard that Thurn und Taxis has won the prestigious 2006 Spiel des Jahres award.

Thurn und Taxis and Blue Moon City were the front runners for this award. I have not played Blue Moon City yet. I'm am waiting impatiently for Fantasy Flight Games to release the english language version.

I have seen Thurn und Taxis compared with Ticket To Ride. It seems to me that any similarities between the two games are superficial at best. Thurn und Taxis has much more of a "euro" game feel to me. Ticket To Ride feels more... what? Open? Wild? Confrontational? It's hard to describe. Maybe the best way to describe the difference is that Ticket To Ride has more of an "american" game feel to it.

I like both a games a lot. I would not say that one game is like the other.

Making Arkham Horror harder...

I'm glad that Fantasy Flight Games revised and reprinted Arkham Horror. I like the Cthulhu Mythos theme and I think the game is pretty good. It does suffer, in my opinion, from being a "character building" game, which is another way of saying a board game that tries to be an RPG. These types of games are okay, but they tend to be repetitive and quickly become boring for me. I think another problem Arkham Horror has is that it's not difficult enough. Barring tragic die rolls, I don't see how a competent group of four or more players can lose this game. It's better with fewer players (two might be optimal) because with fewer players the game becomes harder.

There have been a number of variants proposed for the game. I tend to avoid variants simply because they are usually too complicated and a game as published shouldn't need to fixed. This is often considered an odd position to take, but there you go. On the other hand, sometimes a simple tweak to the rules is all that's needed to make the game better.

Chad Walton (C.H.A.D on BGG) has come up with a few simple changes to Arkham Horror that I think are worth the effort of including in future games. In his words:

"I believe that the game is too easy. However I am not a big fan of complicated variants (the rules are long enough already and I don't need more charts or more game terms or more markers on the board...). I also prefer variants that make the characters weaker rather than accelerating the GOO. I think it is more thematic to make the game a struggle rather than a race. Anyway all the tweaks I've listed below have been thoroughly play-tested with two and four players. How well they scale to larger groups I don't know or care as we always have either two or four players. :)

So the first rule we use is:

No clues on the board at the start of the game

This does a lot of things. First it makes sealing gates harder and secondly it makes encounters harder. With a shortage of clues the decision on whether to spend them or save them becomes more significant.

The other rule we use is:

Can only use Lore to close gates

In our experience using only lore instead of both lore and fight to close gates has balanced the game more. Let's face it spells are no where as good as items when it comes to dealing with monsters (or anything else). The gangter equipped with both his starting gun and a magic sword can clear out large groups of monsters plus he is the best at closing gates... When we played the players playing the fight oriented charaters (the gangster, private eye, etc.) were always the heroes while lore characters (the nun, magician, etc.) just tried to survive and contribute something... It also encourages more teamwork as often one of the fighty guys has to play fullback and jump into a gate before the lore guy to clear out those pesky monsters hovering on the gate location when before the fighty guy could handle it all by himself. Basically as the game stands now certain characters can do everything while others can harldy do anything.

Besides those two changes we do use Stormknight's variant more often than not, and if we want a particularly hard game we use Richard Launius's (the deisgner) house rule of hidden gates (nasty when combined with the using only lore to close gates rule).

Oh the other rule we play is knowing that any cultist who is truly intent on bringing his tentacled/many-eyed deity into the world would know that the #1 threat to his plans is a young researcher by the name of Mandy Thompson so he'd take an axe to the back of her head before setting into motion his plan of destroying the world. She stays in the box...

If the game is still too easy for you try starting the game with more than one open gate on the board.

So that's basically it. A few simple tweaks to make the players struggle and make the choices they have to make more significant."

I like Chad's suggestions. They are simple and easy to implement and don't require major changes to the current rule set. I look forward to giving them a try the next time I play Arkham Horror.

Another variant that is getting a lot good buzz on BGG is one proposed by Brian M (Stormknight on BGG):

Changing the Flow of the Doom Track

"We've found that Arkham Horror tends to have the opposite feel that it should - in the begining, there is a frantic rush to seal gates. Later on once you have a few gates sealed, you can move at a very relaxed pace. In fact, it often becomes apparent there is no way for Old One to appear at all, since there aren't really enough gate locations to build up enough Doom tokens, which also leads to the problem that its actually very BAD to close (without sealing) a gate, since it just lets more Doom tokens appear!

We tried changing things a bit, and really liked how this worked out.

When you draw a gate at a location with no gate, place a gate and a monster as usual, but DO NOT add a Doom token.

When you draw a gate at a location with an active gate, add a monster at the location and ADD a Doom token, but do not place extra monsters.

When you draw a gate at a sealed location, do not place a gate or doom token, but place one monster at every open gate (as you would have when a gate opened where there already was an existing gate in the normal rules). (This represents dark forces mobilizing in direct response to your investigator's efforts).

This seems to nicely alter the flow of the game. Early on, the Doom isn't building up, and you can actually afford to close gates. As more gates build up, the Doom track builds up faster. Seal gates, and its a big boon - but you will face more of a threat. And there's never a "safe" point where you know the Old One will never appear.

The other change we made, which is really quite seperate, is to reduce the number of monster strength trophies need to "cash in" to 3 (or 6 for those that would normally cost 10). One gate trophy would replace 3 strength. This lets you actually get to buy more stuff, and have more fun in choosing what to get and actually getting things like allies.

Forgot to mention a minor thing. We did start out the doom track with one token on it.

Just for the record, credit for this variant goes a lot (probably more than me) to Nightmare."

I have not tried Stormknight's variant. It looks interesting and is worth considering.

Another tweak I am considering is making unique items actually unique by removing all duplicates from the Unique Items Deck. This will certainly make the game harder for those players who like to "mine" the Unique Items Deck and extract all of the Elder Signs. With only one Elder Sign available from the Unique Item Deck, the players will have to work harder to win the game.

Alternate Surrender Rule for The First World War

Another Alternate Surrender Rule has been proposed for The First World War. This looks interesting and I'd like to give it a try...

Credit for these ideas goes to E Butler (BGGID: moonglum01).

Alternate Surrender Rule #1:

Roll surrender as normal.

If a faction fails the surrender roll then a second series of rolls must be made.

For each surrender point the faction has, roll 1 die - if the roll is an 'S' the faction surrenders and the game is over.

For example: In Turn 2 the allies have accrued 2 surrender points, they roll surrender as normal and roll a 1 (gasp!). Having failed the surrender roll they must then roll 2 dice (because they had received 2 surrender points during the turn), the rolls are 1 and 4. As neither roll was an 'S' the game continues.

This variant keeps more in the spirit of the game (s i m p l e) and keeps the possibility (but much decreased) of knocking a faction out through the surrender points.

Alternate Surrender Rule #2:

Change Surrender to ‘Breaking the Peoples Will’. Think of failing the surrender roll as a catastrophic event, like a Special Damage event found in many games. Each of the events happened during WWI to at least one major power.

Roll Surrender as normal, if a faction fails their surrender roll a second roll must be made using both dice. The effect lasts for one full turn. If one player controls more than one faction, roll to determine which is affected.

Die Roll
S / S = Surrender (as per normal rules)
S / 1,2 = Revolution*
S / 3,4 = Mutiny**
0 = Revolution
1 = Mutiny
2 = High Command Shake up
3,4 = Reduced Replacements
5+ = Civil Discord***

Die Modifiers (modifiers are not applied to any roll that that includes an 'S' )
+1 If the faction has no previous surrender rolls
+1 If it is game turn 1 or turn 2 (1914)
-1 If only one alliance is making a surrender roll
-1 for each time the faction had previously failed a surrender roll.

Special situations:

Special 1914 (TURN 1 & 2) Situation: A failed surrender roll on game turn 1 that would have resulted in Revolution or Mutiny is instead treated as Civil Discord. A surrender roll result that would have resulted in Revolution (only) on game turn 2 is instead treated as Reduced Replacements.

*If a faction that has ever been in Revolution fails a Surrender Roll, it automatically Surrenders.

**If a faction that is under Mutiny fails the next surrender roll, roll one die with no modifiers:
S= Surrender, 1= Revolution, 2-4 = High Command Shake Up

***If a faction failed a surrender roll in the previous turn, any modified die roll of 5+ is treated as Reduced Replacements.

S - SURRENDER (as normal)
REVOLUTION - Replacements are reduced to 2 units maximum for the year. That faction may not conduct an offensive action for the entire year. A subsequent surrender roll in the next victory check phase is an automatic surrender.
MUTINY - No offensive actions may be taken this year by this faction in one theater, roll to determine which theater if two theaters are possible.
Germany: East or West;
Allies: West or Italian* (only if Italian front is active)
Eastern Allies: Eastern Front* (may support attacks by MEF, OR, ITB but not be lead unit)
A-H: Italian* (only if Italian front is active) or Eastern
HIGH COMMAND SHAKE UP - That Faction rolls before each action phase for the upcoming year, if the faction rolls a ‘S’ it may not conduct an Offensive or Strategic Redeployment Action for that phase.
REDUCED REPLACEMENTS - Reduce that faction’s replacements by one unit for the upcoming year.
CIVIL DISCORD - Civil Discord has no effect other than to modify future rolls. If you fail a surrender roll after the 1st time your modifier shifts by 2 (from +1 for never having failed before) to -1 or more for each failure. Also note you can't get Civil Discord if you failed a surrender roll last turn.

Atlantic Storm

Atlantic Storm is starting to gain some traction in our little game group. I got to play the game twice today, once with three players and again with four players.

This is a game that has a good reputation but deserves more exposure. It is basically a trick taking card game with a WW2 "Battle of the Atlantic" theme. For someone who likes card games (as I do) this is a great mixture of game mechanic and theme. And there are a lot of variables to keep track off while playing. New players can become confused (and frustrated) trying to keep in mind everything they need to remember when deciding what card to play. So the game does have a learning curve, but the curve isn't that bad and it's well worth overcoming with a few "friendly" games.

The game is playable with two and three players, but it really shines with four or more players. This is a great little game that I will keep in my "travel tote" of games in the hope that it will see a lot more play.

War of the Ring

Almost two years (twenty months) after I purchased it, I finally got the chance to break out and play this game! Oh, why did I wait so long? This is a fun game. The forces of Evil, led by Sauron, have the strength and almost unlimited resources to crush the Free Peoples. The Free Peoples have... the Ring Bearers? It seems like a one-sided conflict, but in that mis-preception is where the game lies.

Charlie played the Free People and I took on the role of Sauron. Charlie has played before and this was my first game. I think I may have played too conservatively. I took the time to build up and concentrate my forces before attacking Gondor and Minas Tirith. My attack went well and I was sweeping the army of Gondor before my double pincer attack. Meanwhile, the Ring Bearers were racing to Mordor and Mt. Doom. At the very last moment, with victory within their grasp, the Ring Bearers succumbed to corruption and all was lost for the Free Peoples of Middle Earth. Sauron and Evil and won the day. (In game terms the Ring Bearers reached the twelfth and final spot of the "Doom Track" but accumulated twelve points of corruption at the same time. Game over for the good guys.)

After one play, I like this game. I want to play again. I will try a different, more aggresive, strategy the next time I play as the Shadow. I'm not sure what I'll do if I play as the Free People. I think Charlie showed me the way... The Free People must concentrate on getting the Ring Bearers to Mt. Doom as quickly as possible. I look forward to playing War of the Ring again.

Wallenstein and The First World War

Finally got to play Wallenstein today. I wonder why it's taken so long to get this one to the table? It's a good game. Everyone talks about the cube tower, which is cool, but the game itself is very good too.

I also got to play The First World War again today. This time the game was not cut short by an early surrender and played out to the last turn. I played the Allies and the game ended in a tie which is a Central Powers victory. Good Game Charlie!

The NEW Ticket To Ride!

Game Night at work tonight and I wanted to have the NEW Ticket To Ride: Marklin Edition available to play. So I left work early to drive down to Viking Hobby and pick up the game. Got back to work just in time... As it turns out, only Matt showed up to play games. So after waiting long enough to be sure no one else was going to show we decided to move the game to Matt's house where we could play the game along with his fiancee.

Ticket To Ride: Marklin Edition is the latest game in the popular Ticket to Ride franchise. Each game in the series is a stand alone game and each game adds a new feature or two to make the game unique and different from the other games in the series. The map in the Marklin Edition is of Germany with shorter neutral routes in the west and longer color specific routes in the east. The new feature of this game is the addition of Passenger pieces and merchandise tokens. It's a good game and like all of the Ticket to Ride games, it's fun to play.

ConquestSAC 2007!

It's official! ConquestSAC 2006 was a success! With over 480 attendees. The word has come down that ConquestSAC will be back in 2007! Yeah! With a little luck and some hard work, maybe we can crack the 1000 mark next year...

ConquestSAC - Day 3

On Day 3 I ran a second game of Winds of Plunder in the morning. Next I played a game of Ideology: The War of Ideas which is actually a pretty interesting game. I'll have to try and find a copy for my collection. After lunch I ran a game of Twilight Struggle. As there were an odd number of players present, I did not get to play and acted strictly as the GM for the event.

And that was it for me at ConquestSAC 2006. I headed home tired, but happy. Three days of gaming always makes me happy. It looks to me like the Con was a success. I'm looking forward to ConquestSAC 2007!

ConquestSAC - Day 2

I got to the con around 10:00 AM. Another advantage of a local con is that I can come and go as I please. My first task, after talking to some friends, was to check out the Vendor room. For a first year con, the vendor room was not bad. I've seen worse. There wasn't a huge selection of board games available. Even Great Escape Games, located near the con, didn't have a lot of board games on display. I did find one vendor selling Pizza Box Football and the PBF Expansion Set. As I had heard good things about this game, I grabbed both the game and the expansion. I was scheduled to run a game at 1:00 PM, so I didn't want to get involved in anything major. I played some more Down In Flames - Dragons and a memorable game of Havoc: The Hundred Years War.

At 1:00 PM I ran a game of The First World War. This is a light wargame and we ended up with two games being played. One a four player game and the other a two player game. Both games ended early. The four player game ended early when the Austro Hungarian player (that would be me) failed a surrender role and ended the game. The second game ended after two turns when the Allied player decided this wasn't his type of game and surrendered. The session ended early but overall I think it went pretty well.

Next I got to try out Pizza Box Football. I played the basic game and after some initial confusion the game flowed smoothly. The game is basically all about rolling dice and looking up a table for the result. There's not much strategy to the game other than trying to outguess your opponent's play call. Still, for what it is, it is a fun little game, if taking in small doses. I can play and enjoy the game for about an hour. After that, I start to get bored with dice rolling and playing calling. PBF will make a good "beverage & snack" game.

At 6:00 PM I ran a game of Winds of Plunder. This is the euro game scheduled to be published by GMT Games sometime this year (hopefully). It's a fun little game. It's not well known yet but once the players start to play, they seem to enjoy the game. More than one player mentioned he would buy a copy if it were available for sale at the Con. That's a pretty good recommendation.

After the WOP game I headed out to dinner with Matt. After dinner we returned to the convention, but after wandering around a bit, I decided to call it a day and head home. Saturday, the 2nd day of the convention, seemed well attended. The gaming tables were full all day long and attendence looked very good to me. Hopefully this is a good sign and the convention will return in 2007.

ConquestSAC - Day 1

As far as I know, ConquestSAC is Sacramento's FIRST gaming convention. I've been living in the Sacramento area since 1979, and I've always wished for a local con. It appears that dreams can come true!

Today was the first day of the Con. As it was a work day, activity was slow until the late afternoon when there was a noticible increase in the number of people in the room. A pretty good turn out for a work day...

I started the con off by playing a few games of Down In Flames -- Dragons!. DIF - Dragons! is a refined (some may say simplified) version of the Down In Flames system. It is a fun little game and a good filler. The fantasy theme using Dragons, instead of airplanes, in air-to-air combat is an interesting twist. After Dragons! I played Twilight Struggle, and San Juan. Then it was time for dinner. After dinner I was scheduled to run a game session for "Euro Style" card games. Basically, I brought a stack of card games and we played whatever the players wanted to play. We played a number of games: Who's the Ass, Gang of Four, Geschenkt, Loot and Family Business. A good time was had by all. I intend to run card game sesssions at future game conventions.

As I headed home, to sleep in my own bed (another advantage of the local con), I reflected that the convention was off to a good start.

Braveheart

Hammer of the Scots, published by Columbia Games is the next game I plan on bringing to the table. The game covers the first Scottish War of Independence. It is a block game and the buzz on the game has been very favorable. This is a game I've been meaning to play for a long time. With only eight pages of rules, this game proves the theory that a game can be very good without being rules heavy.

Here I Stand

Here I Stand is the latest CDG (Card Driven Game) published by GMT Games.

"Here I Stand: Wars of the Reformation 1517-1555 is the first game in over 25 years.to cover the political and religious conflicts of early 16th Century Europe. Few realize that the greatest feats of Martin Luther, Jean Calvin, Ignatius Loyola, Henry VIII, Charles V, Francis I, Suleiman the Magnificent, Ferdinand Magellan, Hernando Cortes, and Nicolaus Copernicus all fall within this narrow 40-year period of history. This game covers all the action of the period using a unique card-driven game system that models both the political and religious conflicts of the period on a single point-to-point map."

The game is getting good reviews and positive buzz in the various forums. I don't know when I'll get the opportunity to play this game, but I am looking forward to playing Here I Stand.