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The New Board Game Thread (Newcomer Friendly)

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AstroLad

Hail to the KING baby
-heard good things about blokus though it's an abstract spatial game and some aren't into that (me, for starters)

-say anything is a very fun goofy party game.

-risk . . . i was a fan of it when i was a little kid? :D
 

Heel

Member
Thanks for the input guys. I think I might just go with looking at the iPad versions since they're pass and play.

if you are thinking about ios games to get try out carcassonne and ascension

I played a few games of Carcassonne on 360 and liked it so I'm down to join you guys. Part of the reason I'm getting an iPad is my interest in diving into the board gaming stuff.

How's that "Catan" app? Is it official?
 

cozo

Member
is risk: legacy basically just vanilla risk with emergent gameplay elements or is the base game modified also?
 

cozo

Member
I'm so paranoid about spoilers! will watch the dice tower episode but first hint of spoilers and I'm out

fake edit: 00:39 secs in and there's a spoilers warning... I'm out
 

bloodydrake

Cool Smoke Luke
I'm so paranoid about spoilers! will watch the dice tower episode but first hint of spoilers and I'm out

fake edit: 00:39 secs in and there's a spoilers warning... I'm out

LOL thats funny..If they do spoil anything I couldn't tell..they try hard not too..in all honesty reading any threads about it will probably spoil it worse
 

Neverfade

Member
I feel like that's how most GoT first games probably go. You're so busy working out what pieces do what, and worrying about your immediate neighbors that you don't have much time to coordinate backstabs.

Not our game. I plunge that knife deep into Tyrell's kidneys and twisted that son of a bitch hard. Ours is the Fury!
 
I played a few games of Carcassonne on 360 and liked it so I'm down to join you guys. Part of the reason I'm getting an iPad is my interest in diving into the board gaming stuff.

How's that "Catan" app? Is it official?
The presentation is pretty rough, but it gets the job done. Haven't played it in a while though. I remember the 360 version being much better. Carcassonne, Ascension and Ticket To Ride are 3 great games to start with. Easy to play, great presentation and well supported. After that I recommend Neuroshima Hex and Caylus, both of which have fantastic presentation but are a little meatier. Both have solid tutorials though.
 

Heel

Member
The presentation is pretty rough, but it gets the job done. Haven't played it in a while though. I remember the 360 version being much better. Carcassonne, Ascension and Ticket To Ride are 3 great games to start with. Easy to play, great presentation and well supported. After that I recommend Neuroshima Hex and Caylus, both of which have fantastic presentation but are a little meatier. Both have solid tutorials though.

Sounds good, I'll check it out. Thanks!
 

Xater

Member
Yeah, unfortunately par for the course with FFG. It's true that it's not that complicated when you know how to play, but man do they make it a chore to learn.

Maybe FFG should take a good look at how Mage Knight teaches the rules? I heard a lot of things about their walkthrough rulebook. I have not yet played it myself.
 

Zalasta

Member
Does anyone of you still play Catan? I actually don't own it, but I wonder if it even makes sense to get it. In a world where I play Power Gride, Stone Age, Pandemic and El Grande is Catan still something that can excite me? Maybe with the Cities & Knights expansion but to me it looks like it stretches the game out way too much.

I don't. I think Catan is a great game to own if you find yourself teaching entry-level games to new players a lot. However, to me I find that there are too many other more interesting titles that employ similar mechanics. I'd be willing to play some variant of Catan which I've never tried yet, but I refuse to play the vanilla version. I'd rather spend 2 hours on something else.

I've had the game for a few years now and played a lot of rounds, but I think it's definitely settled into the "casual fun" territory because mechanically these limit a lot of the strategy that could arise.

You're right, Bohnanza doesn't stand up to scrutiny if you try to min/max the strategy as you've dissected it in your post. If every player only trade when it significantly benefits them, then I imagine there won't be a lot of it going on. Sometimes it's all about taking away a trade from another person that makes the game fun, even if it ends up costing you an arm and a leg.
 

Chairhome

Member
Does anyone of you still play Catan? I actually don't own it, but I wonder if it even makes sense to get it. In a world where I play Power Gride, Stone Age, Pandemic and El Grande is Catan still something that can excite me? Maybe with the Cities & Knights expansion but to me it looks like it stretches the game out way too much.

We just got the C&K expansion this weekend, and minus the time it took us to read the instructions, it took us just a little longer than an average game. I think it'll be quicker as we adjust to it. I liked it a lot (not only because I won, haha). My group of friends would still rather play Catan than most games, so it made sense for us to grab the expansion. It changes the game enough that you are doing more actions per turn (and getting a lot more cards) during the game, but it doesn't change the core concept to make it a completely different game. I'd recommend it.

Also, can someone confirm for me: on the "building flipchart", it lists "Ship". That's only used if you also have Seafarers of Catan, correct?
 

MrMan2k3

Member
is risk: legacy basically just vanilla risk with emergent gameplay elements or is the base game modified also?

The rules are more similar to the revised rules for Risk from a few years ago than classic Risk. Turning in cards for more troops isn't broken like in the classic game. Still, it has many differences from the revised edition such as faction powers, and you start in a single territory and branch out from there instead of starting with a bunch of countries around the board.

If you want to see some of the other differences from vanilla Risk, check out the rules from Hasbro's website. There won't be any spoilers because any rules changes are added via stickers that are found in the various packets.
 

cozo

Member
The rules are more similar to the revised rules for Risk from a few years ago than classic Risk. Turning in cards for more troops isn't broken like in the classic game. Still, it has many differences from the revised edition such as faction powers, and you start in a single territory and branch out from there instead of starting with a bunch of countries around the board.

If you want to see some of the other differences from vanilla Risk, check out the rules from Hasbro's website. There won't be any spoilers because any rules changes are added via stickers that are found in the various packets.

perfect, thank you

bought the resistance today /may be addicted
 

ParityBit

Member
Made another purchase with Quarriors, but now I am officially done with buying games until Essen.

If only I could do that. I say ...

"I am all done! My wife and I have too many games we need to play already ...."

*browses Amazon*

"Oh Shiny!"

*clicks and buys Hive*
 

Xater

Member
If only I could do that. I say ...

"I am all done! My wife and I have too many games we need to play already ...."

*browses Amazon*

"Oh Shiny!"

*clicks and buys Hive*

Well it is something I hope I can do. ;)

Also Essen is not that far away. Just 7 months....oh man 7 months is kinda long...
 

ParityBit

Member
Well it is something I hope I can do. ;)

Also Essen is not that far away. Just 7 months....oh man 7 months is kinda long...

7 months?! Egads! Heck, I have a giant list of games that I want in my Amazon wish list. Whenever I buy something Amazon (which is way too often) SOMEHOW one of those games appears in my cart before checkout. I am not sure how that keeps happening ...
 
Just ordered "Chicken Cha Cha Cha" (or more accurately the German version - Zicke Zacke Hühnerkacke)
from Amazon Germany (for delivery to the UK).

It's a good place to look for kids games as they seem to work out much more expensive than in the UK, even taking delivery into account.
Not sure why that should be unless the English language runs are much more limited. (just answered my own question probably)

I added "Airlines Europe" too. It was going to be that or "Glen More".
 

StoOgE

First tragedy, then farce.
So, I was I giant fire breathing robot last night. That was a lot of fun, pretty nervous at first, but by the end I was having a total blast.
 

Xater

Member
Just ordered "Chicken Cha Cha Cha" (or more accurately the German version - Zicke Zacke Hühnerkacke)
from Amazon Germany (for delivery to the UK).

It's a good place to look for kids games as they seem to work out much more expensive than in the UK, even taking delivery into account.
Not sure why that should be unless the English language runs are much more limited. (just answered my own question probably)

I added "Airlines Europe" too. It was going to be that or "Glen More".

Edit: NVM I confused the game with Heck Meck.
 
Edit: NVM I confused the game with Heck Meck.

I should be ok. I can get rules off BGG or Rio Grande should I need them.
The Zoch site has an English download too by the looks of things.
It's for kids so there won't be any in-game text to worry about.
It looks like fun. I panicked for a moment and thought I had bought the card game by mistake.

I can't take another game of "Peppa Pig Snakes and Ladders".
The big ladder in that breaks the game!!!!
I will be writing a snooty session report on BGG later.
 

besada

Banned
I take back what I said about Catan. I played the longest game of vanilla Catan ever and it made me want to never play it again. The final score was 10, 9, 9, 9. There were 18 soldier cards showing. Never have I been so happy to lose a game, just to have it over.
 
I take back what I said about Catan. I played the longest game of vanilla Catan ever and it made me want to never play it again. The final score was 10, 9, 9, 9. There were 18 soldier cards showing. Never have I been so happy to lose a game, just to have it over.

my group outlawed Catan 5-6 player expansions for this reason. most of the time it drags the game on way too long and makes it miserable, even with the special building phase.
 
Does anyone have any input on Rex, or, to a lesser extent, Dune the game in which it's essentially reprinted from?

I had no real interest in it until I saw the Dice Tower review. It looked like a total blast. I know the skin of the game is rather unimportant in the grand scheme of things, but I love Twilight Imperium and it's surprisingly cool to see that universe used again in a very different game.
 

Xater

Member
Does anyone have any input on Rex, or, to a lesser extent, Dune the game in which it's essentially reprinted from?

I had no real interest in it until I saw the Dice Tower review. It looked like a total blast. I know the skin of the game is rather unimportant in the grand scheme of things, but I love Twilight Imperium and it's surprisingly cool to see that universe used again in a very different game.

The video review is up? Have to watch this now. I am also interested in this game.
 

Neverfade

Member
Oh man, don't play Rex with 3 people haha. It's fucking neutered. No alliances, no Betrayal cards, and way too easy to win. The mechanics are solid though. Next week: more folks!
 
I take back what I said about Catan. I played the longest game of vanilla Catan ever and it made me want to never play it again. The final score was 10, 9, 9, 9. There were 18 soldier cards showing. Never have I been so happy to lose a game, just to have it over.

Catan is pretty much out of our rotation due to games like this happening far too often. Something like Smallworld works much better with a hard ten turn limit, especially with our gaming groups of mostly parents of young kids.
 

Xater

Member
Ok I watched the review of Rex and wow if that review was not glowing. This is going on my to buy list I think.
 

Lumine

Member
Hey guys, I need your help.

Since one of my friends started a family, hanging out at his place has become an evening of playing RISK for the past few years. And frankly some of us are sick of it. However his birthday is tomorrow and we've been thinking of buying a new board game for him (and her.) Something perhaps a little similar to RISK that involves strategy, but is less random/luck based than RISK and doesn't take up to 6 hours or longer to finish (we barely ever finish it.) It also still has to be reasonably accessible, we're talking about drunken nights and girls here after all. :p

Anyone have any suggestions? It'd be much appreciated. I know I'm asking this a bit too late though, considering it's tomorrow, but oh well. Otherwise it'll be for her birthday instead. Also I think they've been planning to buy Catan themselves so that ones out.

Thanks. :)
 

Xater

Member
Hey guys, I need your help.

Since one of my friends started a family, hanging out at his place has become an evening of playing RISK for the past few years. And frankly some of us are sick of it. However his birthday is tomorrow and we've been thinking of buying a new board game for him (and her.) Something perhaps a little similar to RISK that involves strategy, but is less random/luck based than RISK and doesn't take up to 6 hours or longer to finish (we barely ever finish it.) It also still has to be reasonably accessible, we're talking about drunken nights and girls here after all. :p

Anyone have any suggestions? It'd be much appreciated. I know I'm asking this a bit too late though, considering it's tomorrow, but oh well. Otherwise it'll be for her birthday instead. Also I think they've been planning to buy Catan themselves so that ones out.

Thanks. :)

What is strategy for you? Dudes on a map?

I would recommend El Grande or Stone Age. Both are not that luck based, involve strategy and have very easy rules. Both are also payed within 60-90 minutes.
 

Lumine

Member
What is strategy for you? Dudes on a map?
I suppose so. It seems to be more accessible for people in our situation compared to an all cards game. Personally I just like something that isn't too much based on luck. It's annoying if you're doing well in RISK but lose it all because of a couple of bad dice throws. :p

I would recommend El Grande or Stone Age. Both are not that luck based, involve strategy and have very easy rules. Both are also payed within 60-90 minutes.

I've looked at them, but unfortunately they don't seem to be widely availible anymore. At least not in the Netherlands where I can't seem to find El Grande at all. There's one place that stocks Stone Age, but it's a little pricey. It looks neat though, so I'll keep it in mind.

Thanks for the recommendations so far, they seem to be in the right direction. Got any more? :)
 
I suppose so. It seems to be more accessible for people in our situation compared to an all cards game. Personally I just like something that isn't too much based on luck. It's annoying if you're doing well in RISK but lose it all because of a couple of bad dice throws. :p



I've looked at them, but unfortunately they don't seem to be widely availible anymore. At least not in the Netherlands where I can't seem to find El Grande at all. There's one place that stocks Stone Age, but it's a little pricey. It looks neat though, so I'll keep it in mind.

Thanks for the recommendations so far, they seem to be in the right direction. Got any more? :)

Small World? It has the area control of Risk, including similar method of distribution. It just lacks the die rolling, which seems to be what you are looking for. You can get regular Small World or Small World Underground. Underground can be added to the base game or can be played by itself.
 

Lumine

Member
Oh my, I really like the look of Small World! Very tempted to order it, though again it's quite pricey.

I don't mind dice in general, I realize that most board games come with a certain degree of randomness/luck which actually adds to the enjoyment. I just think RISK is a little too luck dependent ya know? :p
 
Oh my, I really like the look of Small World! Very tempted to order it, though again it's quite pricey.

I don't mind dice in general, I realize that most board games come with a certain degree of randomness/luck which actually adds to the enjoyment. I just think RISK is a little too luck based, ya know? :p

Don't really think Risk is very luck based outside of lot of dice rolls, it's really more predictable than anything and a problem with base Risk is that the games can go on forever because of how predictable outcomes are, so you get ton of deadlocks. RISK variants that have come out help a bit with more unique special rules added, objectives, and other little tweaks.

Small World can be very random as well with it's race creation and how they match up in game.
 

Lumine

Member
Don't really think Risk is very luck based outside of lot of dice rolls
Well, the dice rolls are a big part of the game after all and it still happens frequently enough that an attacking player has 5 times as many as the defending and still manages to lose. Consequently being punished for even trying as he gets attacked in return after but has no army left. I also don't think the worldmap itself is very even. I have to admit though, I'm probably no RISK expert. :p

it's really more predictable than anything and a problem with base Risk is that the games can go on forever because of how predictable outcomes are, so you get ton of deadlocks.
I agree with that, deadlocks can be even worse.

RISK variants that have come out help a bit with more unique special rules added, objectives, and other little tweaks..
I'll have to look into that. Are these simply changed rules that I could look up somewhere for us to try sometime or does this stuff come as expansions or special editions of Risk?

Small World can be very random as well with it's race creation and how they match up in game.
A little randomness is fine. As long as the deciding win factor is strategy/tactics and not luck.
 
I'll have to look into that. Are these simply changed rules that I could look up somewhere for us to try sometime or does this stuff come as expansions or special editions of Risk?

Most variants are based on the theme which has unique figures, cards, board elements unique to that version of Risk. The core game mechanics don't change, but for example with Metal Gear Solid RISK you got unique characters with stats and powers that can be recruited that usually change the abilities of your units in a particular area. You can also buy cards that can give you one time effects in game. Objectives are randomly chosen when you play and put goals out for a player to achieve on a single turn for extra points and such.

If you like RISK getting one of the variants of a theme you like might be a good idea to try, as they usually better than the old classic vanilla. Some though fall flat on their face like like old RISK SW Clone Wars set, which featured some awful end game mechanics that simulated Order 66 from the final movie.
 

Xater

Member
Small World can be very random as well with it's race creation and how they match up in game.

True but then you still have to use these combination so that they are most effective.

I've looked at them, but unfortunately they don't seem to be widely availible anymore. At least not in the Netherlands where I can't seem to find El Grande at all. There's one place that stocks Stone Age, but it's a little pricey. It looks neat though, so I'll keep it in mind.

Thanks for the recommendations so far, they seem to be in the right direction. Got any more? :)

If you think Stone Age looks interesting take a look at other worker placement games. Maybe take a look at Carson City which also has a fun Western theme.


I also have to say that Quarriors is really fun for a dice game. I am really enjoying myself. Yes it is light but sometimes you don#t want to play something that deep right?
 

Lumine

Member
Well after all that, it looks like no one is willing to chip in much and I simply can't afford to pay 40+ euro's myself at the moment. :(

So... how is that Munchkin card game? I see that getting mentioned every once in awhile and it sounds kinda neat.
 

Xater

Member
Well after all that, it looks like no one is willing to chip in much and I simply can't afford to pay 40+ euro's myself at the moment. :(

So... how is that Munchkin card game? I see that getting mentioned every once in awhile and it sounds kinda neat.

No, no, no! Stay away from Munchkin!

If you want something cheaper a card game is fine. Look into Citadels or maybe San Juan.
 

Socreges

Banned
Catan seems to bring out the sore loser in everyone. It got so bad last weekend that a friend of mine was trying to convince me that when I take the Longest Road card from him (I bridged two independent roads to make one huge one, so he was unlikely to get it back) he gets to keep the two victory points. We laughed at him, but he wasn't going to budge. He kept the argument going for about 15 minutes and then another 10 after I won. He finally shut up after calling another friend at about 1am and had it confirmed that you don't hold onto the points.

Sometimes it's pretty sad to witness. I've played with couples (and my own gf a few times) and it always seems to cause real arguments between even those that don't fight much. So much passion inspired. I guess that's a good thing.

Everyone recommends Puerto Rico, right? I've heard great things, but we get a chance to play Catan so rarely that I haven't bothered introducing a new boardgame yet.
 

Lumine

Member
No, no, no! Stay away from Munchkin!

If you want something cheaper a card game is fine. Look into Citadels or maybe San Juan.

Haha what's wrong with Munchkin?

I'm heading to Amsterdam tomorrow, I think there's a gamestore there. Perhaps I can find something cheap. I've written Citadels and San Juan both down, thanks. :)
 
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