Board Games and Miniatures

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The P

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« Reply #135 on: June 11, 2020, 08:58:44 pm »
Board gaming is my primary hobby.  In college in the early 2000s, I played lots of Catan (back then we called it Settlers).  Since then, I've found and acquired a lot more games.  For a while, before work got in the way, I was in a local board game club with over 200 members and a library of about a thousand games.  So my experience is extensive.  Typically I go for games in the "Euro" style, but tastes are ever changing.  These days, I mostly game with my wife, occasionally friends or siblings.  I'll post some games of interest to me as I feel inspired:

Innovation by Carl Chudyk is maybe my all time favorite game.  It is a card game where you are (loosely) building up a civilization from prehistory through the modern age (if you make it that far) represented by, of course, your innovations.  Plays 2-4 players in probably about an hour.  It is an amazing ride of a game.  The game-state is constantly changing.  What's useful to you now could be harmful next turn.  You could be sitting in a comfortable lead one turn, then suddenly everything crashes down around you.  Each of the innovations are, in the right situation, game-breakingly powerful.  Not only is it great fun, but it's usually under $20.  It's also free to play online: innovation.isotropic.org  I'd happily meet up someone is interested.

TaoHorror

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« Reply #136 on: June 11, 2020, 11:25:05 pm »
Innovation by Carl Chudyk is maybe my all time favorite game.  It is a card game where you are (loosely) building up a civilization from prehistory through the modern age (if you make it that far) represented by, of course, your innovations.  Plays 2-4 players in probably about an hour.  It is an amazing ride of a game.  The game-state is constantly changing.  What's useful to you now could be harmful next turn.  You could be sitting in a comfortable lead one turn, then suddenly everything crashes down around you.  Each of the innovations are, in the right situation, game-breakingly powerful.  Not only is it great fun, but it's usually under $20.  It's also free to play online: innovation.isotropic.org  I'd happily meet up someone is interested.

This sounds pretty cool, P! I'm interested, but my life is a blast furnace at the moment ( Divorced, new home, radical job risk, oldest son got drivers license - all over last 2 months. Oh, all in the middle of a pandemic, so ... ). I have 4 gaming nights a month with my friends ( on hold now going on 3 months, I'm sad ). We play Descent 2.0, Gloomhaven and then random other stuff like Terra-forming Mars, Twilight Imperium IV, Sythe, Viticulture and Mansions of Madness. Twilight Imperium IV was the most fun with 6 people and not a fan of Mansions, really. Back in the day ( late 70's/80's ) I loved those Avalon Hill games ( Magic Realm, Third Reich, Dune ).
It's me, Dave, open up, I've got the stuff

Wilshire

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« Reply #137 on: June 16, 2020, 12:40:15 pm »
Sounds awesome. I'd probably be up for a round! Would be fun to try it out.

TH: That's a sweet set of games. Gloomhaven is something I wish I could play but dont have the friends to play it. Terraforming Mars is amazing, Sythe is a ton of fun, and I've won my fair share of Viticulture games.
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TaoHorror

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« Reply #138 on: June 16, 2020, 05:58:50 pm »
Sounds awesome. I'd probably be up for a round! Would be fun to try it out.

TH: That's a sweet set of games. Gloomhaven is something I wish I could play but dont have the friends to play it. Terraforming Mars is amazing, Sythe is a ton of fun, and I've won my fair share of Viticulture games.

Worker Placement games brings out the best in people ( e.g. Viticulture ). I was on my best behavior with ( at the time ) new group of gamers I hooked up with until we played Viticulture and then the real TaoHorror stood up and they got me in the RAW ( fuck you, no fuck you, no fuck you! ).
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The P

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« Reply #139 on: June 16, 2020, 08:05:28 pm »
Gloomhaven is great.  I had grand ideas for it, but the people and opportunities for it are inconsistent.  It works well solo (if you are into that; I am not much, but I will for gloomhaven).  I get my wife to play, which surprisingly, she enjoys.
I think they are making it digital on steam.

I like terraforming mars pretty well, scythe, too.  I played Twilight Imperium IV once.  I could see myself liking it again, but it's such a long game.  I'm more inclined to play 3 two-hour games than one 6+.  I have a friend who recently got viticulture, but the pandemic hit.  We'll play it some day.

TaoHorror

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« Reply #140 on: June 17, 2020, 02:10:41 am »
I did not like Gloomhaven the first time I played, but I respected the gaming tastes of my friends, so stuck with it and so happy I did - very very fun game with great mechanics. You'll like Viticulture, another winner - but again, forewarned, it can piss ya off. I'm "ok" with Terraforming Mars - it's very well done, complex hard to learn/play game ( at least for me ), but honestly with the mild cock-blocking, it's seems like a sexy game of chess given the low level of interpersonal dynamics, just seems like the worst of both worker placement and engine building, not the best of each. But I need to play it more, give it a chance. I enjoy Sythe much more.
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The P

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« Reply #141 on: June 23, 2020, 09:22:28 pm »
There is a series of games I am quite enamored of, known as Pax games.  They are, for the most part, a production of Sierra Madre Games, and designed and/or devoloped by one Phil Eklund.  At one point they were described in contrast to wargames.  In wargames, typically, the players are the great generals or factions moving their pawns on the map to achieve victory.  Whereas in a Pax game, "the players are the pawns."  Meaning your goal is to leach on to the strong faction of the moment and hopefully come out ahead when the power structure tumbles.  More or less.

Pax Porfiriana The first of this line.  It takes place during the final years of Porfiro Diaz's leadership of Mexico.  Players are Hacendados (powerful landowners of the time) building their own wealth while destroying others, dealing in extortion, lawsuits, banditry, revolution.  Victory comes in several guises; being named Porfiro's successor, staging a military coup, leading the revolution, or becoming the governor of Mexico under U.S. control.

Pax Pamir Afghanistan circa 1830-1885, aka the Great Game.  Britain is worried Russia is seeking access to its interests in India.  Russia is maybe just concerned about encroaching British imperialism.  Afghani nationals are seeking cohesion after the fall of the Durrani Empire.  Players are vague tribal leaders currying favor with one of the three factions, building armies, constructing roads.  And also spying, betraying, taxing, holding hostage whenever it's beneficial.  And changing loyalties when things start to go south, of course.  There is a recent second edition of this, that is easier to learn/play than the original.

Pax Renaissance This is my favorite.  It covers the full scope of the Renaissance.  Players are financial powers using their economic influence to drive the powers of the region.  Complete with coronations, peasant revolts, conspiracies, trade fairs, piracy, religious wars (Reformation, Crusades, Jihads).  Victory is had any number of ways.  Having the most influence in royal courts, supporting a sufficiency of exploration and trade, religious influence (if some religion comes to enough power of the region), amassing legal power in free states, or just plaing supporting the arts.  It's a wild sandbox of a game, but oddly, can be played in about an hour, once you wrap your head around it.  This one also has a second edition being made, but looks like it mostly just cleans up some of the artwork and layout.

Pax Emancipation Easily the largest in scope, it covers the global attempt to end slavery from 1776 to 1917 (or something like that).  It is kind of a pseudo-cooperative game.  It can be played fully cooperative, or even solo.  The game takes as its conceit that the driving force behind this global emancipation arose from Enlightenment ideas.  As such, players are all Western entities (British Parliament, Evangelical Missionaries, and Philanthropists), but the game gives plenty of credit to Eastern leaders and ideas as well.  So you are all working towards ending slavery, but in the end, you want the world to be bent towards your particular idea of what that actually means.  Slaves are freed, slave ships are sunk, laws are passed, revolutions abound.

Pax Transhumanity This is the only one that is not historical.  It is the near future, and players are funding and commercializing various scientific and social breakthroughs to bring humanity to a new era.   Your goal is to bring about the future of humanity as you wish to see it, be it transbiological, computing, space-faring, etc.

There is also a Pax Viking that is currently getting made, but all I know about it is that it has to do with the Vikings and Sweden.

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« Reply #142 on: September 15, 2020, 02:21:57 pm »
Anyone else remember this old game?  Seems they are up to something soon.

I am a warrior of ages, Anasurimbor. . . ages. I have dipped my nimil in a thousand hearts. I have ridden both against and for the No-God in the great wars that authored this wilderness. I have scaled the ramparts of great Golgotterath, watched the hearts of High Kings break for fury. -Cet'ingira

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« Reply #143 on: September 22, 2020, 04:41:33 pm »
HeroQuest now out for Crowfunding: https://hasbropulse.com/products/heroquest-game-system

Looks pretty cool, even if just for the nostalgia value.
I am a warrior of ages, Anasurimbor. . . ages. I have dipped my nimil in a thousand hearts. I have ridden both against and for the No-God in the great wars that authored this wilderness. I have scaled the ramparts of great Golgotterath, watched the hearts of High Kings break for fury. -Cet'ingira

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« Reply #144 on: October 13, 2020, 07:01:12 pm »
So, post-Hurricane Delta, we were out of power for almost 4 days.  So I dug out some old games I had.  We played Risk 2110 and the old (~2000) version of Cosmic Encounters.  Also, a couple version of Trivial Pursuit.  But now the kids are likely going to be glued back on some screens, haha.
I am a warrior of ages, Anasurimbor. . . ages. I have dipped my nimil in a thousand hearts. I have ridden both against and for the No-God in the great wars that authored this wilderness. I have scaled the ramparts of great Golgotterath, watched the hearts of High Kings break for fury. -Cet'ingira

mrganondorf

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« Reply #145 on: October 26, 2020, 02:23:48 am »
HeroQuest now out for Crowfunding: https://hasbropulse.com/products/heroquest-game-system

Looks pretty cool, even if just for the nostalgia value.

Hell yeah!  Some day I going to swing by your neck of the woods, H, and we should play!  I love HeroQuest!!

TaoHorror

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« Reply #146 on: October 27, 2020, 12:48:37 am »
HeroQuest now out for Crowfunding: https://hasbropulse.com/products/heroquest-game-system

Looks pretty cool, even if just for the nostalgia value.

Hell yeah!  Some day I going to swing by your neck of the woods, H, and we should play!  I love HeroQuest!!

+1
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« Reply #147 on: October 27, 2020, 12:34:07 pm »
Ha, unfortunately, the price is just a bit too rich for my blood at the moment...
I am a warrior of ages, Anasurimbor. . . ages. I have dipped my nimil in a thousand hearts. I have ridden both against and for the No-God in the great wars that authored this wilderness. I have scaled the ramparts of great Golgotterath, watched the hearts of High Kings break for fury. -Cet'ingira

mrganondorf

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« Reply #148 on: October 29, 2020, 04:19:50 pm »
Ha, unfortunately, the price is just a bit too rich for my blood at the moment...

https://hasbropulse.com/products/heroquest-game-system

Just saw the price - oh well, I still have the original.  A bit beat up but I think it's all there.

Looks like TaoHorror is going to join us H!

TaoHorror

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« Reply #149 on: October 29, 2020, 07:28:53 pm »
Ha, unfortunately, the price is just a bit too rich for my blood at the moment...

https://hasbropulse.com/products/heroquest-game-system

Just saw the price - oh well, I still have the original.  A bit beat up but I think it's all there.

Looks like TaoHorror is going to join us H!

You betcha, just a plane ticket away to some killer board gaming :)
It's me, Dave, open up, I've got the stuff