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I played a couple of solo games yesterday and was very impressed. The 'build a deck' mechanic of Dominion is, probably, the most interesting game mechanic of the last few years, and imitations were never going to take long to appear. Thunderstone borrows (steals?) the mechanic and uses it to make a fun dungeon crawl game. Like Dominion the main interaction between players is the race to the finish though there are interesting timing questions as you take the limited saupply of heroes. Thuderstone is a little rough around the edges and there are a few rules that are not clear without a reference to the Geek. However, it is a fine game and already has a first expansion scheduled for release in the Spring. I suspect that, like Dominion, the game will be even better with expansions
It does not have the finesse of Dominion, but Dominion does not have the fun of Thunderstone.
World Without End
'As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods, they kill us for their sport'
King Lear must have played World Without End. I do like this game, i like it a lot but i am begining to wonder if it's a Euro man's snakes and ladders.
Planning in this game can be rewarded with what seems like cruel fate. Pay your dues at the end of chapter? Check, everyone else fails and then an event causes everyone to lose their action next turn. Build up medical knowledge seeing that everyone else ignores it? Check. Event gives everyone free medical knowledge. Ok what else can go wrong? Oh an event wipes out the plague a the begining of the fourth chapter...At least the event that wiped out a house got rid of that redundant medical knowledge generator
I think the lesson is to keep the plans flexible, be happy grabbing incremental point scoring opportunities and enjoy the ride. Everyone in my game got hit to a lesser or greater extent, and whilst it might feel like a lottery at times in all the games i have played the winner was the best player (not me!)
This game is not for the control freak, or the self pitying (Lear, were he a gamer, should definately avoid this one). It is a very tense two hours of crisis management played on a lovely board with quite a bit to think about.
Heroes of the World
A friend from Spain is living with us at the moment and having never played a 'proper' boardgame before 2010 is now demanding a new game every night and has worked his (and mine) way through the Spiele Des Jahres winners of the last decade.
As a diversion from the relentless demand for Zooloretto and Carcassonne i tried 'Heroes of the World' as an introduction to area majority . Somewhere at the back of my mind i was hoping he'd like it and demand 'El Grande' or 'History of the World' next. Perhaps a little unrealistic...
Well he did not like it but i did. It's made by Sirius game who don't seem to have a website or to be very good at publicising their games. It's a shame as 'Heroes of the World' deserves a wider audience. Gameplay can be described as 'A briefer brief History of the World'. It has attractive components and the game is played on a map of the world divided into nine regions. Each region has either three or four boxes in which discovery tiles are placed. On a players turn he or she plays a historical leader card from his hand who has 'influence' in one or more regions on the board. The leader has ratings for how many population can be placed on the board, how many dicovery tiles are drawn form a bag and placed on a region, a conquest rating for bashing people and an income. The player gets to take all of these rated actions in the order above. All of the activities can only take place in a region where the leader has influence and when the discovery boxes are full a region scores - with the players with the most population in a region scoring points depending on the value of the discovery tiles (tiles vary in value from 0 to 4 - hte zero ones are great for screwage)in the region. Players can spend their income to buy Wonders of the World which provide a one off benefit or can buy VPS or to move population around.
The game is played in two epochs, the first ending when four regions have been scored and the second when eight regions have scored. There is a different deck of leaders ofr each epoch and a different set of discovery tiles. One of the best parts of the game is that at the begining of the game you are dealt two random leaders and on your turn you select a third from a face up pile or a random leader from the deck. This gives you a little bit of control, you can try and plan ahead or keep a portfolio of leaders to react to other players moves.
This is a light and quick game and is not going to appeal to those looking for a quicker version of '7 ages' or even, 'Endeavor'. It will appeal to family gamers and i think it would be an excellent purchase if you wanted to try and ween a teenager off 'Risk'. Just don't try it on my lodger....
As a diversion from the relentless demand for Zooloretto and Carcassonne i tried 'Heroes of the World' as an introduction to area majority . Somewhere at the back of my mind i was hoping he'd like it and demand 'El Grande' or 'History of the World' next. Perhaps a little unrealistic...
Well he did not like it but i did. It's made by Sirius game who don't seem to have a website or to be very good at publicising their games. It's a shame as 'Heroes of the World' deserves a wider audience. Gameplay can be described as 'A briefer brief History of the World'. It has attractive components and the game is played on a map of the world divided into nine regions. Each region has either three or four boxes in which discovery tiles are placed. On a players turn he or she plays a historical leader card from his hand who has 'influence' in one or more regions on the board. The leader has ratings for how many population can be placed on the board, how many dicovery tiles are drawn form a bag and placed on a region, a conquest rating for bashing people and an income. The player gets to take all of these rated actions in the order above. All of the activities can only take place in a region where the leader has influence and when the discovery boxes are full a region scores - with the players with the most population in a region scoring points depending on the value of the discovery tiles (tiles vary in value from 0 to 4 - hte zero ones are great for screwage)in the region. Players can spend their income to buy Wonders of the World which provide a one off benefit or can buy VPS or to move population around.
The game is played in two epochs, the first ending when four regions have been scored and the second when eight regions have scored. There is a different deck of leaders ofr each epoch and a different set of discovery tiles. One of the best parts of the game is that at the begining of the game you are dealt two random leaders and on your turn you select a third from a face up pile or a random leader from the deck. This gives you a little bit of control, you can try and plan ahead or keep a portfolio of leaders to react to other players moves.
This is a light and quick game and is not going to appeal to those looking for a quicker version of '7 ages' or even, 'Endeavor'. It will appeal to family gamers and i think it would be an excellent purchase if you wanted to try and ween a teenager off 'Risk'. Just don't try it on my lodger....
BoardGameGeek new features
The 'Geek has a couple of new cool features
The games tab now allows you to see the ranking of family games, gamer's games and light games. I hope that those new to the hobby will make use of the family and light games tabs because a lot of people see that Agricola is the number one ranked game, buy it and are then lost to the hobby.
The second is the ability to find a random game - hoping to unearth a gem i stumbled across this. Maybe not so cool after all.
The games tab now allows you to see the ranking of family games, gamer's games and light games. I hope that those new to the hobby will make use of the family and light games tabs because a lot of people see that Agricola is the number one ranked game, buy it and are then lost to the hobby.
The second is the ability to find a random game - hoping to unearth a gem i stumbled across this. Maybe not so cool after all.
New Releases : 19th January 2010
We can call of the search as the last (and great) Essen releases are arriving in the UK next week
The first is Dungeon Lords from Czech Games Edition and Zman. It’s original, entertaining, and moderately complex – moreover, it's the most fun you will ever have playing a Euro. Vlaada's best since Through the Ages and one of the picks' of Essen 2009
‘Thunderstone’ is an adventure game that borrows heavily from the ‘build a deck’ mechanic of Dominion. Where Thunderstone differs from Dominion is that it adds some theme and narrative to the mechanic and I can’t wait to play this. Tom Vassels’ excellent video review can be viewed here
‘Infinite City’ is a tile laying game in which players try to control districts and buildings in the city,one commentator has described as ‘a cross between Carcassonne and Tigris and Euphrates’.
The last of the Essen releases is Cyclades, a strategy game that plays in an hour with gorgeous components. I drooled over this at Essen but as it comes in a rather large box i could not bring one home. This review is worth reading.
Panzer General : Allied Assault is a quick playing game of WWII using a unique blend of cards and a board game. It’s based on the Xbox live game from ubisoft. A review of the game can be found here
I have two new sets of expansions for Steam and Age of Steam from Bezier games. Both products contain three expansions, the first is ‘Alabama Railways, Antebellum Louisiana & Four Corner’ and the second ‘1867 Georgia Reconstruction, South Carolina & Oklahoma Land Rush’
For fans of Cash n Guns i have imported 'The Uzi expansion', originally a give away at Essen 2008 this was reprinted in a small edition. I also have a few German expansion cards (The Golden Eagle, the Saboteur, the Manipulator) for Planet Steam - if you like a set then please email me. They are £10 each inc. P&P.
The first is Dungeon Lords from Czech Games Edition and Zman. It’s original, entertaining, and moderately complex – moreover, it's the most fun you will ever have playing a Euro. Vlaada's best since Through the Ages and one of the picks' of Essen 2009
‘Thunderstone’ is an adventure game that borrows heavily from the ‘build a deck’ mechanic of Dominion. Where Thunderstone differs from Dominion is that it adds some theme and narrative to the mechanic and I can’t wait to play this. Tom Vassels’ excellent video review can be viewed here
‘Infinite City’ is a tile laying game in which players try to control districts and buildings in the city,one commentator has described as ‘a cross between Carcassonne and Tigris and Euphrates’.
The last of the Essen releases is Cyclades, a strategy game that plays in an hour with gorgeous components. I drooled over this at Essen but as it comes in a rather large box i could not bring one home. This review is worth reading.
Panzer General : Allied Assault is a quick playing game of WWII using a unique blend of cards and a board game. It’s based on the Xbox live game from ubisoft. A review of the game can be found here
I have two new sets of expansions for Steam and Age of Steam from Bezier games. Both products contain three expansions, the first is ‘Alabama Railways, Antebellum Louisiana & Four Corner’ and the second ‘1867 Georgia Reconstruction, South Carolina & Oklahoma Land Rush’
For fans of Cash n Guns i have imported 'The Uzi expansion', originally a give away at Essen 2008 this was reprinted in a small edition. I also have a few German expansion cards (The Golden Eagle, the Saboteur, the Manipulator) for Planet Steam - if you like a set then please email me. They are £10 each inc. P&P.
New Releases : 6th January 2010
Hi,
I hope you had a great Christmas.
I also hope that the quality of games in 2010 is a good as the new releases in the first week of the year. The following are expected to arrive in the shop next Wednesday 6th January
‘World without End’ by Rieneck and Stadler (Cuba and Pillars of the Earth) is a game for 2 -4 players using Ken Follett’s novel as its theme. Early reports are that this is an outstanding game, and it looks to be setting a benchmark for Euro’s in 2010.
‘Descent : Sea of Blood’ is a campaign add on for Descent. The second Advanced Campaign add on for Descent, Sea of Blood uses the same system as ‘Road to Legend’ but adds islands and the adventurers get their own ship to explore the new world.
‘Assyria’ is Ystari’s 2009 Essen release, It has slipped under the radar since Essen and i am looking forward to trying it – it looks like it continues the Ystari line of intricate Euros that require careful planning.
‘Piece o’Cake’ is the English language (Rio Grande) release of Jeffrey Aller’s excellent ‘Aber bitte Mitte Sahne’. This is a rather unusual game in which players collect pieces of cake by splitting cakes into sections and then take what’s left after their opponents have selected the sections they want. I like this game a lot and defy you to play it without feeling hungry by the end!
‘Krysis’ is a sci-fi themed Euro in which players compete for precious artifacts
‘Kingpin’ is a 2 player game themed in a noir comic world where gangster factions fight for dominance.
‘Summoner Wars’ has received rave reviews since its release in the States. It’s a two player tactical game in which players use cards to summon units, move them or create magic. The beauty of the game i apparently it’s easy to learn rules combined with superb balance between the different cards. The initial release is in two starter sets (Dwarves v Goblins, Elves v Orcs) , and will be followed by many expansions.
‘Path of the Zealot’ is the second battle pack for the excellent Warhammer Invasion Living Card Game
GMT have released a mounted map board for ‘Command & Colors’ owners
Queen games 2009 Essen releases have a UK general release next week – i have them in stock already and they include Chicago Express expansion (excellent!), Granada, Sultan and Nelly
I am adding items to the Guru sale – i have had restocks of Arkadia, Municipium, Sherwood Forest and Giants. I have also added a few wargames. It will be worth checking the sale page throughout January as i will be adding items on a regular basis.
I will be gaming in sunny Stockport next weekend at the excellent Stabcon convention. If any of you are attending and would like me to bring some new releases up or you'd like to meetup for a game a beer please email me.
Have a great new year!
I hope you had a great Christmas.
I also hope that the quality of games in 2010 is a good as the new releases in the first week of the year. The following are expected to arrive in the shop next Wednesday 6th January
‘World without End’ by Rieneck and Stadler (Cuba and Pillars of the Earth) is a game for 2 -4 players using Ken Follett’s novel as its theme. Early reports are that this is an outstanding game, and it looks to be setting a benchmark for Euro’s in 2010.
‘Descent : Sea of Blood’ is a campaign add on for Descent. The second Advanced Campaign add on for Descent, Sea of Blood uses the same system as ‘Road to Legend’ but adds islands and the adventurers get their own ship to explore the new world.
‘Assyria’ is Ystari’s 2009 Essen release, It has slipped under the radar since Essen and i am looking forward to trying it – it looks like it continues the Ystari line of intricate Euros that require careful planning.
‘Piece o’Cake’ is the English language (Rio Grande) release of Jeffrey Aller’s excellent ‘Aber bitte Mitte Sahne’. This is a rather unusual game in which players collect pieces of cake by splitting cakes into sections and then take what’s left after their opponents have selected the sections they want. I like this game a lot and defy you to play it without feeling hungry by the end!
‘Krysis’ is a sci-fi themed Euro in which players compete for precious artifacts
‘Kingpin’ is a 2 player game themed in a noir comic world where gangster factions fight for dominance.
‘Summoner Wars’ has received rave reviews since its release in the States. It’s a two player tactical game in which players use cards to summon units, move them or create magic. The beauty of the game i apparently it’s easy to learn rules combined with superb balance between the different cards. The initial release is in two starter sets (Dwarves v Goblins, Elves v Orcs) , and will be followed by many expansions.
‘Path of the Zealot’ is the second battle pack for the excellent Warhammer Invasion Living Card Game
GMT have released a mounted map board for ‘Command & Colors’ owners
Queen games 2009 Essen releases have a UK general release next week – i have them in stock already and they include Chicago Express expansion (excellent!), Granada, Sultan and Nelly
I am adding items to the Guru sale – i have had restocks of Arkadia, Municipium, Sherwood Forest and Giants. I have also added a few wargames. It will be worth checking the sale page throughout January as i will be adding items on a regular basis.
I will be gaming in sunny Stockport next weekend at the excellent Stabcon convention. If any of you are attending and would like me to bring some new releases up or you'd like to meetup for a game a beer please email me.
Have a great new year!
Kutschfahrt zum Teufelsberg - a review by Martin Griffiths
A review by Martin Griffiths
Kutschfahrt zum Teufelsberg (Coach Ride to the Devil's Castle) is a game I just got to like a whole lot more by losing it embarrassingly. It's a game of secret identities and variable player powers like Bang or Shadow Hunters, and shares the ability of those games to play well with six or more players. However, Coach Ride has the big advantage of not eliminating players half-way through the game.
Up to ten players represent characters aboard the aforementioned coach. At the start of the game, they are secretly divided into two teams: The Brotherhood of True Lies and the Order of Open Secrets. Each player also takes a character card, which has no real significance but gorgeous artwork, a secret profession card that will give them a special power upon revealing it, and an object from a deck, the rest of which remain in a draw pile. The aim of the game is to figure out who is on your team, and collectively acquire the objects your team seeks: three keys for the Order, three goblets for the Brotherhood.
Turns are simple. There are three options: attack a player; trade with a player; or declare victory. A declaration will end the game one way or the other. The player must name his team-mates, who between them must own the three necessary objects. If he gets it wrong, the other team wins. So what about the options that make up the bulk of the game? To initiate a trade, a player offers an object to another player, who looks at it and decides whether or not to accept the trade. If he accepts, he passes one of his objects back; if he refuses, the active player's turn is over. Some objects take effect only when traded away, such as the Secret Bags, which allow the player who gives one away to draw another object from the pile. Some have effects in attacks, and some are downright nasty: the Black Pearl cannot be refused but prevents the player holding it from declaring victory. One object even allows a player to ditch his team-mates and attempt a solo victory.
If you decide to attack, you declare the victim and put your character card 'sword-side' up, while the person being attacked puts his 'shield-side' up. Following round clockwise from the attacker, each other player flips his card to show whether he will join the attack or the defence. After everyone has revealed, players may add effects from objects and by revealing their hidden professions. Finally, a winner is determined or the conflict ends in a stand-off. A stand-off allows the attacker to draw an object from the pile, and is an important way of getting more objects into the game, but a decisive result is more interesting. The winner gets to either look at the team and profession of his victim, or to look at all his objects and choose one to take.
So far, so simple, but that doesn't begin to describe the feeling of paranoia you get when you start playing. Why's he attacking me again? Are those two on the same team? What is the meaning of being offered this object? The game usually starts quite cagily, as in the absence of any information, it's best to force conflicts to a stand-off and not risk giving vital clues to your opposition. But that's not always possible thanks to the special powers of the objects and professions, and soon some players will begin to know things. Then the game moves into a bluffing stage - if he knows who he is, but he also knows that I know... which brings us back to my embarrassing defeat. The (6-player) game had been moving along quite fast and through attacks I knew who two of my opponents and one of my allies in the Brotherhood were for sure. Then one of the remaining players passed me a goblet, the very object my team was seeking. Surely he must be a Brother too! Soon enough, I cockily declared the 'victory', only to be denounced by the deceitful member of the Order. It really brought home the subtletly of the game: the channels along which you can communicate with the other players are narrow, and there are plenty of ways of being exploited.
There are a couple of downsides to the game. With the wrong group it could drag on a bit and become repetitive, and the fix for odd numbers of players doesn't seem very elegant. But overall this is another excellent game from the Adlung-Spiele range. A tiny box, a low price, evocative artwork, and a great game to have around for larger groups.
Kutschfahrt zum Teufelsberg (Coach Ride to the Devil's Castle) is a game I just got to like a whole lot more by losing it embarrassingly. It's a game of secret identities and variable player powers like Bang or Shadow Hunters, and shares the ability of those games to play well with six or more players. However, Coach Ride has the big advantage of not eliminating players half-way through the game.
Up to ten players represent characters aboard the aforementioned coach. At the start of the game, they are secretly divided into two teams: The Brotherhood of True Lies and the Order of Open Secrets. Each player also takes a character card, which has no real significance but gorgeous artwork, a secret profession card that will give them a special power upon revealing it, and an object from a deck, the rest of which remain in a draw pile. The aim of the game is to figure out who is on your team, and collectively acquire the objects your team seeks: three keys for the Order, three goblets for the Brotherhood.
Turns are simple. There are three options: attack a player; trade with a player; or declare victory. A declaration will end the game one way or the other. The player must name his team-mates, who between them must own the three necessary objects. If he gets it wrong, the other team wins. So what about the options that make up the bulk of the game? To initiate a trade, a player offers an object to another player, who looks at it and decides whether or not to accept the trade. If he accepts, he passes one of his objects back; if he refuses, the active player's turn is over. Some objects take effect only when traded away, such as the Secret Bags, which allow the player who gives one away to draw another object from the pile. Some have effects in attacks, and some are downright nasty: the Black Pearl cannot be refused but prevents the player holding it from declaring victory. One object even allows a player to ditch his team-mates and attempt a solo victory.
If you decide to attack, you declare the victim and put your character card 'sword-side' up, while the person being attacked puts his 'shield-side' up. Following round clockwise from the attacker, each other player flips his card to show whether he will join the attack or the defence. After everyone has revealed, players may add effects from objects and by revealing their hidden professions. Finally, a winner is determined or the conflict ends in a stand-off. A stand-off allows the attacker to draw an object from the pile, and is an important way of getting more objects into the game, but a decisive result is more interesting. The winner gets to either look at the team and profession of his victim, or to look at all his objects and choose one to take.
So far, so simple, but that doesn't begin to describe the feeling of paranoia you get when you start playing. Why's he attacking me again? Are those two on the same team? What is the meaning of being offered this object? The game usually starts quite cagily, as in the absence of any information, it's best to force conflicts to a stand-off and not risk giving vital clues to your opposition. But that's not always possible thanks to the special powers of the objects and professions, and soon some players will begin to know things. Then the game moves into a bluffing stage - if he knows who he is, but he also knows that I know... which brings us back to my embarrassing defeat. The (6-player) game had been moving along quite fast and through attacks I knew who two of my opponents and one of my allies in the Brotherhood were for sure. Then one of the remaining players passed me a goblet, the very object my team was seeking. Surely he must be a Brother too! Soon enough, I cockily declared the 'victory', only to be denounced by the deceitful member of the Order. It really brought home the subtletly of the game: the channels along which you can communicate with the other players are narrow, and there are plenty of ways of being exploited.
There are a couple of downsides to the game. With the wrong group it could drag on a bit and become repetitive, and the fix for odd numbers of players doesn't seem very elegant. But overall this is another excellent game from the Adlung-Spiele range. A tiny box, a low price, evocative artwork, and a great game to have around for larger groups.
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