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platypotamus
Member
Porthos said:
Dominion and Stone Age are both great at 2 and 4, and both pretty casual friendly.
IlliterateBookworm
Neo Member
I'm in the same boat looking for 2 players with up to 4 that play quick. I think I've probably got most of the big name games these days.
I'll second stone age as well- just picked it up last week and really enjoyed it.
Pandemic works well with any number of players really.
I've got Masons, Alhambra, Lost Cities and Castle Panic all sitting here waiting for my wife to get back- I'll let you know how those play out.
I'll second stone age as well- just picked it up last week and really enjoyed it.
Pandemic works well with any number of players really.
I've got Masons, Alhambra, Lost Cities and Castle Panic all sitting here waiting for my wife to get back- I'll let you know how those play out.
blindrocket
Member
Played BSG for the first time last weekend. Took us six hours or so. :lol
A couple more jump icons and we would have jumped to Kobol, but suddenly ran out of Food.
To battle through six hours of gameplay (because we were new and our first play) to end up dead was pretty disheartening.
Game was with only three people and it was a struggle. The Cylon player had no poker-face and really started doing blatantly evil stuff right away so it was easy to tell their true affiliation. Sent them to the brig so they'd reveal themselves. hah.
A couple more jump icons and we would have jumped to Kobol, but suddenly ran out of Food.
To battle through six hours of gameplay (because we were new and our first play) to end up dead was pretty disheartening. Game was with only three people and it was a struggle. The Cylon player had no poker-face and really started doing blatantly evil stuff right away so it was easy to tell their true affiliation. Sent them to the brig so they'd reveal themselves. hah.
blindrocket said:Played BSG for the first time last weekend. Took us six hours or so. :lol
A couple more jump icons and we would have jumped to Kobol, but suddenly ran out of Food.
Game was with only three people and it was a struggle. The Cylon player had no poker-face and really started doing blatantly evil stuff right away so it was easy to tell their true affiliation. Sent them to the brig so they'd reveal themselves. hah.
6 hours for only three person game in which you instantly knew who the cylon was? Does not compute! :lol
I played Last Night on Earth for the first (and second) time last week first as Heroes (2p game) then as Zombies (3p game). I and one of the other people I played with liked it a lot, but the other guy (who joined int eh 2nd game, the mansion scenario) didn't care for it too much. In both games Jenny in the corn field was nigh untouchable.
On Thursday we'll be playing Descent. From what I've seen it looks, more or less, like a fantasy version of Space Hulk.
On Thursday we'll be playing Descent. From what I've seen it looks, more or less, like a fantasy version of Space Hulk.
BattleMonkey
Member
If your DM for Descent is "friendly" the game is still a fun game. It's about the experience as a whole and the DM should be presenting the game as well as providing the challenge. Descent has lot of similiarities to running a Roleplaying game and in that sense the DM should be enjoying the game while also challenging the players. Your following the rules and not so much trying to be the bad guy, though a player can play mean and be against the group. When I run descent I'm playing to have fun with the whole group even though I am the DM, I am there just to basically provide the challenges for the players, but never go out of my way to be against the group.
LNOE is great fun though a couple of the scenarios you can get are not as fun as others.
Descent is really nothing like Space Hulk outside of the tiles. Space Hulk is a 2 player competitive game that is very simple but also highly strategic combat game. Descent is more akin to a simplified roleplaying game, taking out all the complex rules and book keeping from roleplaying games to make for a more streamlined dungeon hack n slash adventure.
Yeef said:
LNOE is great fun though a couple of the scenarios you can get are not as fun as others.
Descent is really nothing like Space Hulk outside of the tiles. Space Hulk is a 2 player competitive game that is very simple but also highly strategic combat game. Descent is more akin to a simplified roleplaying game, taking out all the complex rules and book keeping from roleplaying games to make for a more streamlined dungeon hack n slash adventure.
BattleMonkey said:
However, there is a new co-op Space Hulk card coming from Fantasy Flight called Space Hulk: Death Angel. It's coming out in a couple weeks.
http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=118&enmi=Death Angel
I think he was likening it the the old computer Space Hulk game though, and not the Tabletop one.
Some of you may already know but Stronghold Games is re-releasing Survive! -- an awesome 70s game:
Reminds me a little of Hey That's My Penguin! actually except with some luck and more viciousness.
I listened to part of an interview with one of the founders of Stronghold and he said they were basically spying on BGG Holy Grail threads and looking for games to republish. Pretty smart actually and Survive! is a great first pick.
Reminds me a little of Hey That's My Penguin! actually except with some luck and more viciousness.
I listened to part of an interview with one of the founders of Stronghold and he said they were basically spying on BGG Holy Grail threads and looking for games to republish. Pretty smart actually and Survive! is a great first pick.
BattleMonkey
Member
The recent Space Hulk release was just a rerelease of the original 1st edition of the game with fancier quality components.
The game in computer form is just the board game with some real time components mixed in. Descent is a very different style and type of game
Brashnir said:
The game in computer form is just the board game with some real time components mixed in. Descent is a very different style and type of game
BattleMonkey said:
To an extent, yes, but the way it's presented as a single-player game of a squad up against a bunch of monsters, it feels more like a party-based game than a head-to-head 2-player affair, even though it follows the same rules.
Regardless, the new card game appears to be a completely co-op affair, which I'm interested in. I remember one of my first thoughts after playing Arkham Horror was, "I wish they'd make a Space Hulk game like this." The card game obviously isn't exactly like AH, what with being a card game instead of a board game and all, but it definitely looks interesting. I guess I'll find out in a couple weeks and report on if it's any good.
In other news, I recently picked up Smallworld and got a chance to play with some friends. At first glance, it almost seems like it's too simple to be any good -- Everybody at the table's first reaction to the end of their first turn was "Wait. Thats IT?" -- but after you play a few games, you start to see that there's more to the strategy than appears at first blush. It's also a game (unlike say, Runewars) that I can introduce to my family and not have them be "oh hell no" before I even finish explaining the turn sequence.
joeyjoejoeshabadoo
Member
I'm actually looking forward to this. Regardless of how janky the cover looks.AstroLad said:Some of you may already know but Stronghold Games is re-releasing Survive! -- an awesome 70s game:
Reminds me a little of Hey That's My Penguin! actually except with some luck and more viciousness.
I listened to part of an interview with one of the founders of Stronghold and he said they were basically spying on BGG Holy Grail threads and looking for games to republish. Pretty smart actually and Survive! is a great first pick.
So I got a couple games in from some auctions over this past weekend. I got Ticket to Ride the card game and Funny Friends. Ticket to Ride the Card Game plays like TTR but without the little trains or board. Instead there is a memory element to the game. You basically have to remember which trains your keep in order to finish your tickets. It's not a bad game, it fills the really quick filler game and something to take with us when we travel mold.
Funny Friends is a game by the guy who did Power Grid. The best way to explain the game is, it's an auction game where you are bidding on life experiences to complete a set of life goals. The rule book is fucking terrible. I had to rely on BGG threads and FAQs to make heads or tails of it. The game itself isn't too bad. I'm sure we're playing something wrong but it works for us now, so whatever.
For all the Dominion players: A Prosperity Spoiler was posted at BGG and I, for one, think the set looks very interesting.
joeyjoejoeshabadoo
Member
So a friend of mine sent me a link to an article on Arkham Horror today. He wasn't surprised I already owned it but he was willing to play. So it looks like I'll be playing Arkham Horror soon. Now to go re-acquaint myself with the rules.
Screaming_Gremlin
My QB is a Dick and my coach is a Nutt
joeyjoejoeshabadoo said:
I actually just played two games with the new expansion, Lurker at the Threshold, last Friday. I really enjoyed the new mechanics. The new gate types (gates to multiple dimensions, some that take away health or sanity, etc) and the relationships between players were kind of cool. I noticed it got a lot lower ratings on BGG than the other expansions. I wonder if it is because it isn't quite as difficult as some of the other expansions or if it is people bitter they based it on a non-Lovecraft story.
So Descent is a very fun, but long game. The overlord took it a little too easy on us early on, but halfway through he started playing more aggressively. Still, we managed to win with 9 victory chip thingies left. Two of us (me and another guy) selected heroes at random while the third guy manually picked his hero. We were all ranged/magic characters with no tanks so I didn't think we'd do nearly as well as we did. Once we started getting the silver treasure, though, we became destruction machines.
We've got three of the expansions available to play (Sea of Blood, Well of Darkness and Altar of Despair). We'll probably give Sea of Blood a shot next time we play.
We've got three of the expansions available to play (Sea of Blood, Well of Darkness and Altar of Despair). We'll probably give Sea of Blood a shot next time we play.
It's mentioned somewhere in that BBG thread, but both provinces and colonies disappearing end the game (whichever happens first), but it sounds like the VP chips are designed to make going for victory cards slightly less appealing which might help to keep the games from going too quickly.Cyan said:
Loan's not so bad. I think it'd be good for getting rid of coppers without wasting an action. Then it just becomes a matter of getting rid of Loan itself.Neverfade said:
AstroLad said:
do you mean Hey thats my fish!? If so I'll look to pick this up when its released (sounds like its coming to the UK too).
For TTR, I keep hearing that the europe or Nordic version is better for 2 players than the standard version? which is a shame because its hard to find.
Yeah, whoops, must have been thinking of those big plastic penguins but that is what I meant. It's a game where you peel off tiles, but then at the bottom they reveal different sea monsters or other things you can place. In the meantime, you're trying to navigate your people to safety through the waters while your opponents are trying to kill them. Also, your people have varying values only you know, so there's a bluffing-type element where you don't want people to figure out who you're high-value people are so that they don't focus on killing them.mrklaw said:
Yes, Nordic Countries is way better for 2 (it's designed for 3 max), but since it's come out it's been insanely hard to track down.
biggyfries
Member
Anyone else interested in this?
Lords of Vegas
Really digging the subject on this one. We need a cutthroat Vegas game. :lol
Lords of Vegas
Really digging the subject on this one. We need a cutthroat Vegas game. :lol
BattleMonkey
Member
Yeef said:
Er Sea of Blood is a campaign system. You will not want to play that next. If anything integrate both Well of Darkness and Altar of Despair into your base set and then play a scenario from either one of those. Not much rule differences between the two expansions, just more stuff was added.
Sea of Blood is a island hopping campaign system for playing a RPG like game where you keep your heroes, earn xp, train, and do multiple dungeons over several weeks and months. It is not really meant to be a stand alone expansion. Road to Legend is the land based campaign system, and it does not mix with Sea of Blood and vice versa.
Tomb of Ice is the expansion you should get eventually since the expansions give lot of power to the Overlord player, Tomb of Ice put in some stuff that can be helpful to players.
Yeah, I know about Sea of Blood. The guy who owns the game and all the expansions is big on DND, so that one interests him the most. The plan is to have "Descent Night" every other Tuesday and play Sea of Blood when just the 'regulars' are around and the smaller campaigns when non-regulars show up.BattleMonkey said:
joeyjoejoeshabadoo
Member
That sounds pretty neat. It's a small box expansion, right? I might put it in as something to fill out a thoughthammer order.Screaming_Gremlin said:
XiaNaphryz
LATIN, MATRIPEDICABUS, DO YOU SPEAK IT
I just now saw that BGG has opened VGG. The current game rankings have M.U.L.E. and Alpha Centauri at the top spots. 
Captain_Spanky
Member
It's my birthday next weekend and I'm trying to find a decent boardgame to get. Any suggestions?
My favourite games are:
Chaos In The Old World
Battlestar Galactica
Atmosfear
Arkham Horror
Starcraft
Descent
Horus Heresy
So I enjoy particularly competitive games or ones that can inspire bickering (fun arguments). I do enjoy co-op as long as it's not "solvable" (i.e. one player takes control). Basically really social, fun games.
I'm considering Runewars at the moment, but suggest more!
My favourite games are:
Chaos In The Old World
Battlestar Galactica
Atmosfear
Arkham Horror
Starcraft
Descent
Horus Heresy
So I enjoy particularly competitive games or ones that can inspire bickering (fun arguments). I do enjoy co-op as long as it's not "solvable" (i.e. one player takes control). Basically really social, fun games.
I'm considering Runewars at the moment, but suggest more!
HappyBivouac
Member
So I just got Arkham Horror, and it appears to be a very rewarding game with the right people. Anyone have tips for making games run a bit smoother? Any good house rules people have implemented? I'm thinking for games with newcomers I'd like to do something like after going unconscious or insane, the investigator still loses half items and is lost, sent to the hospital or asylum, but is restored to half sanity or stamina, rather than just 1. It seems like it's not that easy to regain sanity and stamina unless you've somehow kept a stockpile of bills. Any thoughts on that?
BattleMonkey
Member
Yeef said:
Thing is you shouldn't go into the campaign if you have not integrated the regular expansions into the game first. You will be very limited for whats available in all areas just playing the base game with one of the two campaigns.
You also don't really need to play the expansions as much as just add them to the game contents as they largely add just more of everything. If anything the Overlord player is going to be screwed over by not having access to the expansion contents in a campaign.
Hey everyone, I recently became interested in getting Dominion after seeing a "Kessler Kam" on Giant Bomb where Will from tested was raving about it. I absolutely loved playing Magic as a kid and am even more excited at the idea of playing that type of game without the collecting part.
My question is, should I just go ahead with the original? If so, what is a good price I could get it for, amazon has it for $27 right now (this is kind of a big deal as I'm not sure I have many to play it with ).
Cheers! Reading back a few pages I've realized how much I really am interested in board games.
edit: I'll add in a board game experience of my own. I believe it was last summer a couple of friends and one of their dads and I played Axis & Allies. It definitely took a while for the game to build up and we ended up playing the same game for 6 hours over the span of two back to back nights.
It was probably the most intense as well as taxing board games I've ever played. :lol
My question is, should I just go ahead with the original? If so, what is a good price I could get it for, amazon has it for $27 right now (this is kind of a big deal as I'm not sure I have many to play it with
).Cheers! Reading back a few pages I've realized how much I really am interested in board games.
edit: I'll add in a board game experience of my own. I believe it was last summer a couple of friends and one of their dads and I played Axis & Allies. It definitely took a while for the game to build up and we ended up playing the same game for 6 hours over the span of two back to back nights.
It was probably the most intense as well as taxing board games I've ever played. :lol
platypotamus
Member
Ok so Galaxy Trucker is indeed lots of fun. I'm undefeated so far, and generally much faster at ship building then the folks I've played with. We'll see if that lasts though.
Played a bunch of rounds of Dominion too. Is it generally agreed at this point that Possession is the worst card ever? I can't decide which does more to kill the flow of the game, that one, or the Philosopher's Stone.
Played a bunch of rounds of Dominion too. Is it generally agreed at this point that Possession is the worst card ever? I can't decide which does more to kill the flow of the game, that one, or the Philosopher's Stone.
Of the two base sets I prefer Intrigue, but vanilla Dominion is probably better to learn with. Only vanilla or Intrigue will work since none of the other expansions have the Basic cards that you need to play. Seaside is my personal favorite as far as sets go, but, again, you can't start with just Seaside since it doesn't have the Basic cards.AcridMeat said:Hey everyone, I recently became interested in getting Dominion after seeing a "Kessler Kam" on Giant Bomb where Will from tested was raving about it. I absolutely loved playing Magic as a kid and am even more excited at the idea of playing that type of game without the collecting part.
My question is, should I just go ahead with the original? If so, what is a good price I could get it for, amazon has it for $27 right now (this is kind of a big deal as I'm not sure I have many to play it with
I would say don't worry about having people to play with. Dominion is a very casual-friendly game and has wide appeal. Of the dozens of people I've taught to play (most of whom have little to no interest in board games) only a single person didn't end up enjoying the game.
Most games that we play with possession no one really bothers with it anymore. I do remember shortly after Alchemy came out we played a game where everyone was using Throne Room on possession. It was incredibly annoying.platypotamus said:
joeyjoejoeshabadoo
Member
My girlfriend remains undefeated in Twilight Struggle. However, tonight she won because I made a boneheaded mistake. I had dominance in Europe with only two more battleground countries needed for control and I had the Europe scoing card. I proceed to take the last two countries with the intention of slamming the Europe scoring card on the table and do a victory lap but I began to second guess myself. For some stupid reason I thought I needed all the BG countries as well as more non-bg countries than my girlfriend. So on the turn I was going to win I took over two more non-bg countries and she plays the Asia scoring card beating me on points.
Gaaaaaaah!
Still had fun. It was too long since we've last played TS.
Gaaaaaaah!
Still had fun. It was too long since we've last played TS.
platypotamus
Member
joeyjoejoeshabadoo said:
She plays the USSR, doesn't she?
joeyjoejoeshabadoo
Member
Before last night, twice with the USSR and once with the US.... I see where you are going with this.platypotamus said:
platypotamus
Member
joeyjoejoeshabadoo said:
Oh ok. When my wife and I first started playing, she was undefeated for about 4 straight, all as USSR. I think they're easier for newbs, because they start stronger and have better events in early war. AstroLad kept urging me in this thread to switch with her, but I refused until I won at least one as America (my wife is of Russian descent, so somehow it felt more fitting anyway).
So Gencon's over and I had a blast. Fully played Arkham Horror (4 hours with 8 players and didn't finish it :lol ), Last Night on Earth, Catan (with Doctor Who themes), Munchkin, Dominion w/ Seaside, a Doctor Who GURPS rpg, Cosmic Encounter and Shadows Over Camelot.
Demo'ed in the dealer hall: Descent, Battlestar Galatica (we played literally one turn, mid game, so I still have no clue how I feel about the game), Invasion from Outer Space, Tides of Iron, Small World and Castle Panic.
Was really impressed with Descent, so I'll be ordering that soon, probably with the Well of Darkness expansion. I thought Munchkin was ok, but everyone else in the group, including my girlfriend loved it, so I'll probably pick that up too. Still on the fence with Cosmic Encounter, Shadows over Camelot and BSG. I already own Arkham Horror, LNOE and Dominion.
There were only two games (I think) that I really wanted to try in the dealer hall but could not find anyone demo'ing them: Castle Ravenloft and Defenders of the Realm.
I'd highly recommend anyone who is able to make the trip out next year to check it out, as it is a great time!
Demo'ed in the dealer hall: Descent, Battlestar Galatica (we played literally one turn, mid game, so I still have no clue how I feel about the game), Invasion from Outer Space, Tides of Iron, Small World and Castle Panic.
Was really impressed with Descent, so I'll be ordering that soon, probably with the Well of Darkness expansion. I thought Munchkin was ok, but everyone else in the group, including my girlfriend loved it, so I'll probably pick that up too. Still on the fence with Cosmic Encounter, Shadows over Camelot and BSG. I already own Arkham Horror, LNOE and Dominion.
There were only two games (I think) that I really wanted to try in the dealer hall but could not find anyone demo'ing them: Castle Ravenloft and Defenders of the Realm.
I'd highly recommend anyone who is able to make the trip out next year to check it out, as it is a great time!
Gatekeeper
Member
I concur. I spent my entire weekend in the auction hall and had a blast. There is no possible way not to have a good time here.
Per request: Impressions of Founding Fathers -- the new game from the duo behind 1960 and Twilight Struggle.
Firstly, the game seats more than two. So its quite different in that way alone. Players take turns voting on amendments to the constitution, debating political positions and beefing up their presence in committee. The mechanics are mostly worker placement and super-light set collection.
Its a neatly put together game. Very tight. Not a lot of cards, but each has interesting powers that is tied directly to the politician they come with.
A neat twist to the cards is that the backs aren't identical. You can see the state the person is from and their political leaning. So there's some depth there to plumb for those who replay the game often -- learning how many fathers come from each state and which carry which political leaning.
You pick these cards face down, but you have a little bit of information. So that knowledge can make you a better player.
One of the things I liked about the game is that there are only 30 points on the track. People aren't racking up scores. Rather they're clawing for every point, so you've got to think really shrewdly about how you play.
As such the game feels more directly interactive than your average euro. You're making moves that will deprive your opponents of points. But you're not whacking them with a sword to do it. That's pretty satisfying.
The cards and board are handsome and clean -- Josh Cappel, the same guy who did the art for Endeavor, does some really good work here.
I can see this game getting a bunch of play in my group. It plays fast and feels novel enough that it deserves the time. Plus its not just you and another dude mulling over a map.
Firstly, the game seats more than two. So its quite different in that way alone. Players take turns voting on amendments to the constitution, debating political positions and beefing up their presence in committee. The mechanics are mostly worker placement and super-light set collection.
Its a neatly put together game. Very tight. Not a lot of cards, but each has interesting powers that is tied directly to the politician they come with.
A neat twist to the cards is that the backs aren't identical. You can see the state the person is from and their political leaning. So there's some depth there to plumb for those who replay the game often -- learning how many fathers come from each state and which carry which political leaning.
You pick these cards face down, but you have a little bit of information. So that knowledge can make you a better player.
One of the things I liked about the game is that there are only 30 points on the track. People aren't racking up scores. Rather they're clawing for every point, so you've got to think really shrewdly about how you play.
As such the game feels more directly interactive than your average euro. You're making moves that will deprive your opponents of points. But you're not whacking them with a sword to do it. That's pretty satisfying.
The cards and board are handsome and clean -- Josh Cappel, the same guy who did the art for Endeavor, does some really good work here.
I can see this game getting a bunch of play in my group. It plays fast and feels novel enough that it deserves the time. Plus its not just you and another dude mulling over a map.
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