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Boardgame-Age
- Thread starter SCHUEY F1
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Looking to purchase a board/card game of my own.
In the past, I've been to friend's houses playing Settlers of Catan, Bang!, and Power Grid. While I find them all fun, I don't know which one would be the most worthwhile. Can't decide between Catan and Power Grid. I like Power Grid better than Catan, but too many transactions have to be kept on tabs for each round that occurs compared to Catan.
I would like some advice on which one I should purchase. If you want to suggest another board game, please do so. Thanks!
In the past, I've been to friend's houses playing Settlers of Catan, Bang!, and Power Grid. While I find them all fun, I don't know which one would be the most worthwhile. Can't decide between Catan and Power Grid. I like Power Grid better than Catan, but too many transactions have to be kept on tabs for each round that occurs compared to Catan.
I would like some advice on which one I should purchase. If you want to suggest another board game, please do so. Thanks!
platypotamus
Member
Aww hell, by the time the non work days rolled around, I forgot about Dominion online. I coulda totally played yesterday/Wednesday like all day long 
EDIT: claviertekky -
Don't buy a game someone you game with already owns, buy a new one
I personally think Dominion is about the best first-board-game anyone can own, with the only exception being if you plan on gaming with more than 4 people frequently. If that's the case, Ticket to Ride is a great casual friendly game, and both Race for the Galaxy, Puerto Rico, and Agricola are all great heavier games.
EDIT: claviertekky -
Don't buy a game someone you game with already owns, buy a new one
I personally think Dominion is about the best first-board-game anyone can own, with the only exception being if you plan on gaming with more than 4 people frequently. If that's the case, Ticket to Ride is a great casual friendly game, and both Race for the Galaxy, Puerto Rico, and Agricola are all great heavier games.platypotamus said:Aww hell, by the time the non work days rolled around, I forgot about Dominion online. I coulda totally played yesterday/Wednesday like all day long
EDIT: claviertekky -
Don't buy a game someone you game with already owns, buy a new one
Good advice here. All good suggestions. Consider the gang of people you're playing with. What's most likely to get repeat play. Buying a heavy game can be a bummer sometimes if you only manage to get it played every year or so.
This thread seems mostly fairly complex strategy/card type games. With a young family, we enjoy things like Carcassone, Labyrinth etc (still looking for a copy of TTR). We (i.e they) don't have the time (or concentration span) for complicated counting rules or card collecting.
So what other games are there that are simpler in terms of laying out/setup/complexity, but still have some depth & strategy to them? Am I looking at stuff like Risk (and if so, whats the best version) or is there more out there in that vein?
edit: Hey Astrolad (or anyone else) was there a list in this thread or a separate thread, on ipad/ipod touch implementations of board games? Its difficult to keep track of that sometimes. Its an ideal platform for me to try things out on before shelling out for a full box
So what other games are there that are simpler in terms of laying out/setup/complexity, but still have some depth & strategy to them? Am I looking at stuff like Risk (and if so, whats the best version) or is there more out there in that vein?
edit: Hey Astrolad (or anyone else) was there a list in this thread or a separate thread, on ipad/ipod touch implementations of board games? Its difficult to keep track of that sometimes. Its an ideal platform for me to try things out on before shelling out for a full box
Check out Alhambra and Cartagena. Both have very simple rules but are a lot of fun and require a decent amount of strategy.mrklaw said:
If you're playing with only 2 people Lost Cities is a great pick-up game.
Usually on our gaming nights we play Guillotine while we wait for stragglers to show up. Very simple, but fun game.
A couple others that come to mind right away are Quiddler, Through the Desert and Elfenland. Quiddler, especially, can be addictive. Before Dominion it was easily the game we played the most. Once you find Ticket to Ride definitely pick it up. It's a great that fits very comfortably into the space between family games and gamer games.
Yeah, I'm a D&D player and I've DM'ed in the past. The new Essentials line is basically D&D Lite. The rules for character creation are simplified, class powers are simplified, DM tools are streamlined (but constrained), and in general options from character archetypes to encounter types are reduced to avoid the confusion that can arise from the complexity of full-scale D&D. The first product in the line is the new Red Box Starter set, which is both radical in its content and retro in its design. It's retro in that it looks exactly like D&D introductory packs that were sold back in the 1980s, down to the Larry Elmore art on the front.Neverfade said:
It's radical in the sense that you aren't provided the three foundational pillars of every (previous) D&D session: The Player's Handbook, the Dungeon Master's Guide, and the Monster Manual. Instead you are given two books- a player's guide and a DM guide. The player's book is presented as a sort of "choose your own adventure" quest meant to be played solo: Yes, solo D&D. You start as Generic McBlankname, a hearty lad or lass who shows promise but no direction in life. As you progress through the quest you gradually acquire a class, a race, a few powers, and some skills. The idea is that you basically fill out your character sheet as seen in full-grown D&D, but interactively.
Once that's completed players are expected to band together with friends and attempt the DM guide, which presents one adventure to bring the heroes from level 1 to 2, and then adventure-creation guidelines for the newbie DM to challenge the players up to level 3 or so. The box also includes monster tokens, player tokens, printed dungeon tiles, and dice to fully prepare the players to actually play everything in the guides.
It may work as a good introduction to the larger D&D world but the point is it is very limited. Your characters, for instance, literally do not have as many abilities or the opportunity to make as many interesting decisions during play as a character of the same class created through the standard Player's Handbook. The "Cleric" class in the Essentials Starter Box is like a dumbed-down version of the "Cleric" class from the PHB, for example. Despite all this the actual rules of combat and application of abilities work just as in normal 4e D&D. Wizards of the Coast intends to continue producing content in the "Essentials" line, including new DM content for adventures above level 3 and new player content in the form of higher-level abilities and skills to support that progression, as well as new (revamped) classes.
So the result is a simpler game running parallel to the full-grown 4e D&D. If you're completely new to D&D you may find this method easier to get into- and easier to convince other people to get into- than the normal game. However, you must be aware that you'll have a choice to make at some future date- continue playing on the bunny slopes and increase your investment in the Essentials line, or start investing in the 4e Core Books which will open up access to the larger D&D gamespace with less restrictions and greater complexity?
This.platypotamus said:EDIT: claviertekky -
Don't buy a game someone you game with already owns, buy a new one
But if you insist on getting one of those two, it depends on the seriousness of the people you would mostly play it with. Catan is great for casuals, but can get old. Power Grid is a little more intimidating for people who don't play many board games, but I think it holds up longer than Catan. As you seem to have already noticed, Bang gets old reaaaally fast.
BomberMouse
Member
mrklaw said:
Besides TTR and Carcassone (which you already have in mind) my family also enjoys Zoo le Mio, Stone Age, Blokus and Alhambra. I haven't tried anything risk-like with them.
mrklaw said:
Someone just made a great list of iPhone implementations: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=405311&page=3
Don't forget we have a thriving group of Carc iPhone players too: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=397985
I hope you haven't gotten the wrong idea from this thread! Because honestly the types of games you're looking for (or maybe one complexity level up) are the majority of what I play, mostly because I play with much more casual people. Let me throw out some games, some duplicative of Yeef's list, in rough order of my favorites (though these are all highly recommended):
2P:
1. Battle Line: One of my favorite games. A card game with deceptively simple rules, where you compete with cards 1-10 to make hands on your side and capture flags. Also several special "tactics" cards really spice things up.
2. Jaipur: Gorgeous card game where you have a hand containing one of six goods and you decide each turn whether to take more from the market or to sell them for amounts that decrease as more goods of each type get sold, so there's good balance and tension.
3. Lost Cities: Press-your-luck-type card game where again you use numbered cards and "investment" cards to go on "voyages." But launching a voyage costs you 20 pts, so you really have to think about whether you even want to start each one out of the five available.
3-4P:
1. Ticket to Ride: You know this one. The King Daddy of gateway games. In my book at least.
2. Dominion: On the fly deck-building game. You start with 3 point cards, and 7 copper cards worth one coin each. Shuffle and draw 5. Then choose from either one of ten Kingdom Cards (which always change, and which give you the ability to carry out an action that helps you and/or hurts others), more coins, or more point cards -- all with varying costs. Add that one card bought to your discard, then keep drawing and progressing until you get near the end when everyone starts rushing to buy point cards (as the final score is based purely on points -- but that points cards themselves have no separate function to they are bad cards to have early). The game itself is really simple, but it takes a game or two for anyone to get their heads around the mechanic. Once you do, I can almost guarantee this will rarely leave the table. Some sample cards for fun:
3. Catan: Guessing your probably know about Catan with its widespread popularity.
4. Forbidden Island: Just got this myself. The simplest co-op game I've played, but still quite fun. Race around a random tile-made island with your friends trying to collect treasures and get back to the helicopter before the whole thing sinks.
5. Survive!: Being re-released. Keep an eye out for it. Sort of like the evil version of Forbidden Island I suppose. You are racing off a sinking island trying to get your people to safety, while at the same time trying to sabotage others' boats with sharks, sea monsters, and the like. Very fast and fun and a great theme.
Don't know if you even have need for the following two groups, so I'll keep it short:
5+: Robo Rally, For Sale, Bohnanza
Party: Time's Up, PitchCar, Wits & Wagers
Oh and don't get Risk! I know some people are into it "and I totally see the merit." But the game is neverending, has fairly complex rules and strategy, and is just a really bad fit for casuals imo. If you do find yourself into that kind of thing, there are tons of Risk-like conquest games that are way better, but I won't get into those here because just like RIsk they're fairly complex and very long for the most part. The exception would be Small World, mentioned above. Not really my thing, but a lot of people do like it.
SapientWolf
Trucker Sexologist
Risk got a pretty significant rule update. They don't even sell the old version in the stores anymore.
Dominion was a hit with the fam so I'm thinking about adding a second casual game to the rotation to keep things fresh.
Dominion was a hit with the fam so I'm thinking about adding a second casual game to the rotation to keep things fresh.
platypotamus
Member
I don't think my usual group is ever going to play Galaxy Trucker with me again
I destroyed them yesterday. Like, I had 5 times the score of my closest competitor destroyed them (I broke 100). I don't know what I'm doing that they're not, but my ships are way better than theirs.
I destroyed them yesterday. Like, I had 5 times the score of my closest competitor destroyed them (I broke 100). I don't know what I'm doing that they're not, but my ships are way better than theirs.
You should get The Long Road Ahead and play with those cards. I forget the mechanic but there's basically a way to give yourself much harder events. Could make for a nice way to teach the game while others are competing against each other and you're trying to survive.
platypotamus said:Aww hell, by the time the non work days rolled around, I forgot about Dominion online. I coulda totally played yesterday/Wednesday like all day long
EDIT: claviertekky -
Don't buy a game someone you game with already owns, buy a new one
Flynn said:
Cyan said:This.
But if you insist on getting one of those two, it depends on the seriousness of the people you would mostly play it with. Catan is great for casuals, but can get old. Power Grid is a little more intimidating for people who don't play many board games, but I think it holds up longer than Catan. As you seem to have already noticed, Bang gets old reaaaally fast.
Hey thanks for the advice guys.
I'm considering purchasing Dominion as I have never played that game. I was only considering purchasing the above two since my new set of friends (geographically) have never played Catan or Power Grid.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001JQY6K4/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Doesn't seem a bad price either.
Hmm... just looked at Ticket to Ride. Opinions?
platypotamus
Member
claviertekky said:
Ticket to Ride is a great gateway game. Some in this thread have specific versions they recommend as being superior. I THINK those are Marklin edition, and USA with the 1910 expansion, but I am not positive. I've played both USA (no expansion) and Europe, and find both to be enjoyable.
Ticket to Ride base is a very very good gateway game. Plays best with 4. Works with super casuals too, unlike some other gateways (Catan). 1910 expansion just improves upon it and I never play without it. Nordic Countries is awesome for 2-3 and is my personal favorite TTR although it always seems to be out of stock and pricey.
BomberMouse
Member
claviertekky said:
It's awesome, great for casuals too. I've bought 4 copies (2 for me, 2 for gift) since everyone seems to love it.
I'd say get the Europe version (more options, comes with the big cards by default) or the USA (simpler) and the 1910 expansion (to repace the small cards with bigger ones)
Posted in here two years ago that I was trying to get my wife to try some of these games. Almost without fail the themes or box art turned her off. I bought a couple games two years ago and just this past weekend finally got her to try Carcassone. We had an absolute blast, and now I'm hoping to expand our collection.
Thinking Ticket to Ride will be the next purchase, watched a video on Amazon and she seemed into it. Any other suggestions? Have to be two player and have to have innocuous non-"nerdy" themes.
I remember someone mentioned a political game involving Nixon that seemed pretty awesome.
Thinking Ticket to Ride will be the next purchase, watched a video on Amazon and she seemed into it. Any other suggestions? Have to be two player and have to have innocuous non-"nerdy" themes.
I remember someone mentioned a political game involving Nixon that seemed pretty awesome.
platypotamus
Member
eznark said:
Sounds like Twilight Struggle, which is awesome but possibly the heaviest game I've got in my collection. I don't consider that a bad thing, but you/your wife might. Also: it's much easier (at first) to win as the Russians than as the Americans, so if either of you get frustrated by getting beat a lot, make sure you rotate sides as you're learning. My wife played as the Russians and beat me 5 straight before I got a win as the US.
Two player, my wife and I mostly play that, Through The Ages (think Civilization in board game form, also fairly heavy, can play up to 4 people), or Catan Card Game. Catan Card Game is like an hour long, the other two can easily be double or triple that.
Also worth noting: You can get Catan Card Game (18ish) and 6(!!) expansions for another 18ish (they're all in one box), and I think this is one of the best bang-for-buck values in board gaming. Naturally, start with just the base set to see if its for you, but if it is, the various expansions change up the game from very little to quite a bit depending on which one you play with, and give the game all kinds of replay value.
EDIT: Also, Carcasonne has some expansions too, most of them are fairly cheap. I THINK there's a big box with multiple expansions for it too.
My recommendations would pretty much be the same ones from my 2P casual list above:
1. Battle Line: One of my favorite games. A card game with deceptively simple rules, where you compete with cards 1-10 to make hands on your side and capture flags. Also several special "tactics" cards really spice things up.
2. Jaipur: Gorgeous card game where you have a hand containing one of six goods and you decide each turn whether to take more from the market or to sell them for amounts that decrease as more goods of each type get sold, so there's good balance and tension.
3. Lost Cities: Press-your-luck-type card game where again you use numbered cards and "investment" cards to go on "voyages." But launching a voyage costs you 20 pts, so you really have to think about whether you even want to start each one out of the five available.
None of these have nerdy themes. Battle Line has an ancient battle theme but it is very theme-light and pretty elegant. Jaipur has a goofy/fun Indian theme and is a really nice-looking game. Lost Cities has an exploration theme but is again very theme-light (ugliest out of the three imo fwiw).
Ticket to Ride base game is not a good 2p game. The map is so big that there's very little potential for conflict and the gameplay is just kind of dull as a result.
1960 is quite complex compared to the above games. Honestly don't know if your wife would have the patience to learn it. But is one of the best themed games out there.
1. Battle Line: One of my favorite games. A card game with deceptively simple rules, where you compete with cards 1-10 to make hands on your side and capture flags. Also several special "tactics" cards really spice things up.
2. Jaipur: Gorgeous card game where you have a hand containing one of six goods and you decide each turn whether to take more from the market or to sell them for amounts that decrease as more goods of each type get sold, so there's good balance and tension.
3. Lost Cities: Press-your-luck-type card game where again you use numbered cards and "investment" cards to go on "voyages." But launching a voyage costs you 20 pts, so you really have to think about whether you even want to start each one out of the five available.
None of these have nerdy themes. Battle Line has an ancient battle theme but it is very theme-light and pretty elegant. Jaipur has a goofy/fun Indian theme and is a really nice-looking game. Lost Cities has an exploration theme but is again very theme-light (ugliest out of the three imo fwiw).
Ticket to Ride base game is not a good 2p game. The map is so big that there's very little potential for conflict and the gameplay is just kind of dull as a result.
1960 is quite complex compared to the above games. Honestly don't know if your wife would have the patience to learn it. But is one of the best themed games out there.
Anybody have any opinions on those new(ish?) lego board games? Anyone play one yet?
My wife and I were thinking of getting the Minotaurus (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002WCNKUQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20) one for our nephew.
It seems simple, but with some straight forward startegy to keep it from getting too dull for adults to play with the kids.
I saw some favorable youtube reviews, but I thought I'd ask the pros. I don't know much about the other ones they put out.
Also, I'm interested in any opinions on that D&D board game Castle Ravenloft that comes out next month. Anyone had a chance to check it out? It looks pretty pricey, but it might scratch that D&D itch I have without having to force my wife to learn a complicated paper & pen game.
My wife and I were thinking of getting the Minotaurus (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002WCNKUQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20) one for our nephew.
It seems simple, but with some straight forward startegy to keep it from getting too dull for adults to play with the kids.
I saw some favorable youtube reviews, but I thought I'd ask the pros. I don't know much about the other ones they put out.
Also, I'm interested in any opinions on that D&D board game Castle Ravenloft that comes out next month. Anyone had a chance to check it out? It looks pretty pricey, but it might scratch that D&D itch I have without having to force my wife to learn a complicated paper & pen game.
BomberMouse
Member
I've been keeping an eye on them and I think creationary looks awesome. Pictionary + Legos = Creationary
http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=3844&CMP=KAC-GOOGEU&HQS=lego+creationary
http://www.penny-arcade.com/2010/8/16/lego-creationary/
I don't know about the others though
The 2-3 players version (nordic countries) is getting a reprint this year, you might want to wait for that, I play the USA version a lot with 2-3p but it's true that conflict is minimal.
http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=3844&CMP=KAC-GOOGEU&HQS=lego+creationary
http://www.penny-arcade.com/2010/8/16/lego-creationary/
I don't know about the others though
eznark said:
The 2-3 players version (nordic countries) is getting a reprint this year, you might want to wait for that, I play the USA version a lot with 2-3p but it's true that conflict is minimal.
Longtime boardgame-age lurker. I recently purchased and (attempted) to play Twilight Struggle. From what I had gathered online, this game was going to knock my socks off and hang them up to dry.
But when it came time to read and implement the rules, I found them incredibly dense. And I'm not sure how the mechanic/gameplay is *that* much better than 1960: Making of a President. We played a few rounds, and decided to call it quits. Could anyone give me any insight into how this became such a classic? Any advice to two reasonably hardcore boardgame fans that just "aren't getting it"?
But when it came time to read and implement the rules, I found them incredibly dense. And I'm not sure how the mechanic/gameplay is *that* much better than 1960: Making of a President. We played a few rounds, and decided to call it quits. Could anyone give me any insight into how this became such a classic? Any advice to two reasonably hardcore boardgame fans that just "aren't getting it"?
Do you know how to play 1960? Strange that you'd have a hard time learning TS if you know 1960 -- it's about the same sort of transition as San Juan to RftG -- should be pretty seamless. Independently of that though, the rules are not pretty and make no attempt to be friendly, which imo is a bit silly for a game that's not that complex, mostly because of the wargame presentation they employ. As far as being better, here's a great comparison of the two: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/278441/twilight-struggle-vs-1960-the-making-of-the-presiPepboy said:
For me, I'll usually try to play 1960 first with people because of the rules issues and intimidation factor discussed above. But in terms of playing with experienced people, I'll almost always go with Twilight Struggle.
Had a board game night last night for the first time in a couple months. There were just four of us - the wife and I and another couple.
First we introduced Dominion to the two of them. We only played one game, but they seemed to dig it so hopefully it can be a regular occurrence. It was my first time playing it more than 2P.
Next, they taught us Pandemic. I was pretty familiar with the game and its rules, but I'd never actually played it. It's very simple, but a lot of fun. It does seem like it might be a little *too* simple/light. I'm not sure there is enough depth in the base game to really play it over and over?
In any case, we played three games. The board kicked our ass the first two times, and the last game we won on literally the last turn. I had the final turn and produced the last cure before I had to draw the cards that would have ended the game. Felt good.
As crazy as it may sound, the surprise of the night, for me, was a card game version of Monopoly called Monopoly Deal:
http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/40398/monopoly-deal-card-game
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001FPQ5Y4/?tag=neogaf0e-20
1) The game is $5.50. After playing it I instantly bought a copy. So cheap.
2) It plays in about 10-15 minutes.
3) It scales very well. I played it 1v1, but it seems like it would scale up to 5 no problem.
It probably leaves a little bit too much up to chance for board game snobs, with fairly large swings in fortune and a heavy reliance on drawing the right cards, but in general, the more strategic / better player should come out on top.
It's very lightweight and fast and simple. I literally understood the rules in probably 2 minutes, and after asking a few questions in the first game I got the rest of the details. I highly recommend it as a good downtime/popcorn game.
Edit: I'll run down the rules if anyone is curious.
First we introduced Dominion to the two of them. We only played one game, but they seemed to dig it so hopefully it can be a regular occurrence. It was my first time playing it more than 2P.
Next, they taught us Pandemic. I was pretty familiar with the game and its rules, but I'd never actually played it. It's very simple, but a lot of fun. It does seem like it might be a little *too* simple/light. I'm not sure there is enough depth in the base game to really play it over and over?
In any case, we played three games. The board kicked our ass the first two times, and the last game we won on literally the last turn. I had the final turn and produced the last cure before I had to draw the cards that would have ended the game. Felt good.
As crazy as it may sound, the surprise of the night, for me, was a card game version of Monopoly called Monopoly Deal:
http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/40398/monopoly-deal-card-game
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001FPQ5Y4/?tag=neogaf0e-20
1) The game is $5.50. After playing it I instantly bought a copy. So cheap.
2) It plays in about 10-15 minutes.
3) It scales very well. I played it 1v1, but it seems like it would scale up to 5 no problem.
It probably leaves a little bit too much up to chance for board game snobs, with fairly large swings in fortune and a heavy reliance on drawing the right cards, but in general, the more strategic / better player should come out on top.
It's very lightweight and fast and simple. I literally understood the rules in probably 2 minutes, and after asking a few questions in the first game I got the rest of the details. I highly recommend it as a good downtime/popcorn game.
Edit: I'll run down the rules if anyone is curious.
Anyone up for some Dominion?
http://dominion.isotropic.org/
http://dominion.isotropic.org/
I think it holds up over repeat plays because its so hard. :lolGDJustin said:Had a board game night last night for the first time in a couple months. There were just four of us - the wife and I and another couple.
First we introduced Dominion to the two of them. We only played one game, but they seemed to dig it so hopefully it can be a regular occurrence. It was my first time playing it more than 2P.
Next, they taught us Pandemic. I was pretty familiar with the game and its rules, but I'd never actually played it. It's very simple, but a lot of fun. It does seem like it might be a little *too* simple/light. I'm not sure there is enough depth in the base game to really play it over and over?
In any case, we played three games. The board kicked our ass the first two times, and the last game we won on literally the last turn. I had the final turn and produced the last cure before I had to draw the cards that would have ended the game. Felt good.
My wife and I can win consistently now which shows we've gotten better at the game. Add other people though and we get worse. Improving at a hard game can be satisfying. It seems the sort of game that fairs better when you consistently play with the same group of peeps. My enjoyment seems to come from getting better at the game rather than with varying boards or anything of that sort.
I'm considering getting the expansion soon. Perhaps it would be a good christmas gift for the owner of the game if you continue to play it but start to think its getting stale?
VERY! sounds interesting! I hate Monopoly, but enjoy it in theory. Catan has been a good replacement for Monopoly, but something a little more casual would be good for certain groups of friends.
BomberMouse
Member
Staccat0 said:
The only thing it has in common with monopoly is the theme, it's a "set collection" card game. Bought it some time ago too but I haven't tried it yet. It looks like some good family fun.
AstroLad said:
Yeah, I've played about 3-4 games of 1960. I agree that the basic mechanic is about the same, but it took me 1.5 hours of reading the rules to really figure that out... I think I'm just not very adept at reading wargame-presented rules. We were also pretty tired and anxious to play something (instead of reading rules/event cards), so probably not the best time to start TS. Thanks for the comparison link, we'll probably try again some other time.
Staccat0 said:
The goal of the game is to get three complete sets of properties.
All players have a hand of five cards, and at the start of their turn draw two more cards, from a communal draw deck.
When it is a player's turn, they may perform a maximum three actions (play three total cards). An action might be something like laying down a property to start or add to that property collection, bank money, or play an action card.
The bank mechanic is kinda cool. Your "bank" is basically just a stack of cards that you've designated as currency. Some cards have no purpose except as currency. So you might draw a card that says "5 million" on it. Your next turn you can spend one of your three actions to put that card in your bank pile, so you now have 5 million more in the bank. But *any* card have a monetary value, and can be used as bank currency. So if you have an action card you don't want, you can go ahead and bank it as well and use it as currency, instead.
Action cards usually involve other players paying you money. Either out of their bank if they have enough, or by giving you their placed properties, if their bank is empty.
So, that's basically it. The game ends when one player completes a set of three properties. It involves a lot of luck, as you'll basically need to get lucky enough to draw them. There is skill though. Some action cards let you steal other people's properties or do other powerful stuff, so it's wise to hold onto them until the proper moment.
Sum up:
- bank money
- place properties
- lay action cards and perform the action on the card.
- first to three property sets wins.
It's *very* lightweight. 1v1 games last about 10 minutes. It was a great way to close out the night after some hardcore dominion and pandemic.
and after we were all fairly drunk.
That sounds nice! Uno and Apples to Apples are our curent "in between" or "lets wait till folks arrive" games. This sounds like a good addition and will hopefull help quell whiners who sometimes pop up THINKING they want to play Monopoly (Whenever people want to play monopoly we play a "quick start/more lethal" version and I make people finish.GDJustin said:
Its been years since anyone made the mistake of forgetting how shitty that game is. Making someone finish is a good reminder... and hilarious for those heckling and goading the people still playing and wishing they never had.
Aww man that sucks. I have a bunch of things in that order too. Ah well, more time to dig into the backlog which has actually been lots of fun: Learned Caesar & Cleopatra this weekend, which is a fun "wife/gf" 2P game that's similar to Battle Line but slightly more complex and goofy. Next up might be Thebes and its pretty components.
I've been playing a lot of board/card games recently:
Agricola: Fun, but the playing field becomes a mess with all of the cards/tokens being added/taken. Maybe we're just doing it wrong...
Dominion (plus expansions): Have played way too much of this.
Imperial 2030: This game is fantastic; it's probably my favorite of the bunch (Dominion is also up there). On the surface it looks a bit like Risk, but it's a very clever, well-designed investment/economy game.
Other stuff includes Anima (has some design issues), Catan, Starcraft, Diplomacy (great), and Summoner Wars.
Agricola: Fun, but the playing field becomes a mess with all of the cards/tokens being added/taken. Maybe we're just doing it wrong...
Dominion (plus expansions): Have played way too much of this.
Imperial 2030: This game is fantastic; it's probably my favorite of the bunch (Dominion is also up there). On the surface it looks a bit like Risk, but it's a very clever, well-designed investment/economy game.
Other stuff includes Anima (has some design issues), Catan, Starcraft, Diplomacy (great), and Summoner Wars.
Soakedjunk
Member
I had a great session last night. I recently picked up Forbidden Island and Drakon both for PAX because they're small games.
Forbidden Island we played with 2 people then 3 people. I would like to play with 4 next, but overall is seems balanced well. We played and won on regular difficulty twice so we upped the difficulty 1 notch and barely escaped the island. The game is fun and is co-op which is a nice difference from most games I own.
Next we played Drakon. It is a very unique tile based dungeon crawler. You are trying to get 10 gold before anyone else. On your turn you can either put a tile down and draw a new one or move your character into a new space. You get a hand of 4 tiles to start with. Tiles have abilities like any CCG card game, except you can't use them right away, you have to play them onto the map, then move onto it to use the ability. Tiles represent rooms and have arrows on them, so you can only move in the direction the arrows are pointing. Most tiles abilities have you: collect a gold coin, steal a gold coin, turn a room, move a room, mind control (force another character to move), things like that. there is also a dragon that can be moved like thief in Settlers which will block another player or make them go back to the beginning. The strategy in this game is refreshing, but in the end it's a classic "screw your opponents while you try to get points" game.
Forbidden Island we played with 2 people then 3 people. I would like to play with 4 next, but overall is seems balanced well. We played and won on regular difficulty twice so we upped the difficulty 1 notch and barely escaped the island. The game is fun and is co-op which is a nice difference from most games I own.
Next we played Drakon. It is a very unique tile based dungeon crawler. You are trying to get 10 gold before anyone else. On your turn you can either put a tile down and draw a new one or move your character into a new space. You get a hand of 4 tiles to start with. Tiles have abilities like any CCG card game, except you can't use them right away, you have to play them onto the map, then move onto it to use the ability. Tiles represent rooms and have arrows on them, so you can only move in the direction the arrows are pointing. Most tiles abilities have you: collect a gold coin, steal a gold coin, turn a room, move a room, mind control (force another character to move), things like that. there is also a dragon that can be moved like thief in Settlers which will block another player or make them go back to the beginning. The strategy in this game is refreshing, but in the end it's a classic "screw your opponents while you try to get points" game.
Squall ASF
Member
Wow, you guys are some serious board game guru's!
I was wondering if anyone could recommend some good party games. They probably shouldn't be too heavy because generally, there will be drinking. Some games we enjoy for reference are "Things" and "Apples for Apples". They will obviously need to support a decent amount of players.
I was wondering if anyone could recommend some good party games. They probably shouldn't be too heavy because generally, there will be drinking. Some games we enjoy for reference are "Things" and "Apples for Apples". They will obviously need to support a decent amount of players.
Check out:SquallASF said:
Time's Up: Awesome charades-like game that I guarantee will have you screaming at your partner within 20 minutes. I think it plays up to 8, if not more.
Wits & Wagers: Trivia game where you bet on who got closest to the right answer, so you don't have to know anything to win. Also plays with 8ish.
PitchCar: Car-flicking game where you race around a track. Really fun and nice if you can afford it (it's like $50 since all the components are wood). 8ish also.
Yep we picked this up and played it last weekend. Was just my wife and I but it was solid fun. Like a simpler version of Pandemic but somehow for now I like it more than Pandemix. Excited to play it with 3-4. Co-op filler is the best way to describe it, and I mean that in a good way.
Risible
Member
BomberMouse said:
We brought this along on our family vacation this week and it saw a lot of play. Player ages ranged from 6 to 46.
The goal of the game is to collect three sets of properties. There are property cards, Event cards that work kind of like Chance cards, and money cards. Every card has a dollar amount on it, so every card can be used either as money or for its actual stated purpose.
Each turn you get three actions. You are attempting to build up a personal bank to pay rents with while also putting out sets of properties to win the game. If you run out of bank you need to pay the rent with your property cards.
The game thus becomes a balancing act of trying to keep enough cash on hand, build up properties, and screw over other players with Chance cards with your three actions each turn.
Fun game, and we all enjoyed it, young and old alike.
I just checked out the Prosperity card list... expansion looks AMAZING. Esp. after Alchemy, which IMO was a bit of a misfire.
But then again I haven't played with either Alch. or Prosperity cards, so it's all theorycrafting on my part.
All I know is that the prosp. card lists make me want to dive in day 1, whereas I skipped Alchemy entirely for the time being, and might not ever get around to buying it.
But then again I haven't played with either Alch. or Prosperity cards, so it's all theorycrafting on my part.
All I know is that the prosp. card lists make me want to dive in day 1, whereas I skipped Alchemy entirely for the time being, and might not ever get around to buying it.
No, you're right. (Based off having played Prosperity online and owning Alchemy.) I'm still quite glad I have Alchemy to mix things up -- and the randomization app I use does a good job of sprinkling in Alchemy appropriately -- but I'd put it a distant last among all the Dominion releases. And Prosperity is awesome so far.
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