Monthly Archives: January 2016

Senior moments

Fenland Gamers, first look, game night, tabletop

Last night the worker placement fan club wing of the Fenland Gamers met up to make wine by playing Jonathan's Christmas present from his son Viticulture.

On my way to the meet I realised I had forgotten my 6S, which meant I was going to have to ask Jonathan for copies of any photos from the evening for the post. Seconds after I arrived, Jonathan pulled up in his car. He had just nipped home because he had forgotten his phone also!

We were playing the essential edition of the game, which is basically the second edition of the game plus some hand picked modules by the game designer Uwe Rosenberg from the Tuscany expansion.

The essential edition of the game is like the special edition Star Wars, the second edition and Tuscany expansions will not be reprinted, the essential edition is it, the only one you will be able to get.

While setting up the game it became apparent very fast that Jonathan had forgotten the games money. Which meant you guessed it, Jonathan popping home to get the games currency. Luckily the secret Bat Cave that Jonathan lives in was nearby.

The delay while Jonathan fetched the moolah was worth it. Before Christmas Jonathan had a slight inclination that he'd be getting Viticulture so he hunted down the metal coin pack for the game. I can tell you this bit of pimping the components of the game was well worth it. The coins are gorgeous. I can't believe that they won't be making these any more, that's a mad decision. The coins look fantastic, have a lovely feel to them.

Above photos curtesy of Jonathan

Playing the game was a delight, I really enjoyed playing it. There are some very nice mechanics in the game.

First off is the Waking mechanic, where you decide the order of play that round. If you really want to go first and grab a particular place on the board, you can grab that (if it hasn't been chosen already), but you get no bonus. Otherwise you may decide it's more important to gain one of the bonuses, the further back in the turn order you go the more powerful the bonus. These bonuses range from drawing cards, getting money, or victory points to having an extra temporary worker to place.

I like this mechanic for deciding turn order, it's similar to Five Tribes. Except in Five Tribes you are deciding how much you are prepared to pay to go first.

Similar to the Manhattan Project and Coal Baron where by taking an action first you influence the cost of that action for the next player that turn. Which enables you to have a negative influence on the other players. In Viticulture this is reversed. Meaning the second player to take the action gets a positive bonus, often repeating that action again, for instance instead of playing one visitor card they can play two.

Breaking each round into seasons, and having actions only available in a particular season is a nice touch, and helps get the theme over really well.

Speaking of theme, I think this game oozes theme. The whole vineyard, making wine, comes across really strongly.

I love how victory points are not just something you are striving to gain, but also a resource you can spend to gain an advantage.

I took an early lead in the victory points, which I was able to maintain for most of the game, even when I was manipulating the victory points to get some advantage on the board. Most of my victory points came by lots of little actions and bonuses, Mat and Jonathan got most of their points from completing orders. I think I only completed two contracts, for six or seven victory points in total.

Yes the completed contracts give you more victory points, and recurring money. But the chipping away tactic I used in this game seemed just as effective. I did reach the twenty victory points first, triggering the end game.

That end game or final turn was very tense. Mat and Jonathan were only a couple of points behind me at this point. A completed contract or two, which they looked like they could do, would push them to victory. I needed to disrupt their plans, and try and complete a contract.

I knew my only contract was not something I could complete. I didn't have the resources.

During the Summer phase I played a card that allowed me to discard a couple of cards and draw one of each type I had discarded. It was risky, I needed to top deck a good card to help me. It paid off.

During the final Winter phase I had to try and stop them completing contracts. Mat completed one, taking him two points ahead of me and into the lead. Jonathan took the draw contract action, phew that helped me ALOT. I followed that action, but I got the bonus of drawing two contracts, hoping to get one I could complete. Phew the cards were smiling on me tonight. I had a contract I could complete for two victory points. I had top decked again.

However by completing his contract first, Mat had given me the win! Being second to do the complete contract action meant I not only got the two victory points for completing my contract and drawing level with Mat on points, I also got an extra victory point giving me the win!

As I previously said, this last round was very tense. It was so close, any of us could have won. Jonathan had been frustrated in that last round unable to complete a contract. Mat nearly won. But Lady Luck and the cards smiled on me.

This was an awesome game, it will definitely go on the wishlist.

Afterwards Mat showed us his new game Trickerion – Legends of Illusion. We didn't play it, that will be for another night. But this worker placement game about being magicians and performing magic looked amazing. It was so thematic, and had a look and feel that really invoked the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the magic acts of that age like Houdini, and the theatres of the time.

The light brown faded colour scheme really made the look of the rules and player aids fit in and feel part of the whole period it was set in.

So the game looks beautiful and thematic, I can't wait to play it.

Whilst looking at Trickerion Jonathan confessed with out any prompting or arm twisting, that he had a chequered past as a magician! So we have said when we play the game Jonathan has to set the mood of the evening by performing some magic!!!

We also after using my discussion piece I had taken along (the Pandemic Legacy rule book) come up with a plan for getting the game to the table.

This was a really awesome evening of gaming, I had a great time (and not just because I won for once). Thanks guys for a great evening.

Some Boardgame Breakfast Thoughts

expansions, news

In this post I'm picking out some bits from the latest Dice Tower output that has interested me.

While watching this weeks Boardgame Breakfast in the news section of the show it was mentioned that Days of Wonder had released a solo variant for the game.

I own the game. I've played it once since getting it. I like the game despite the temper tantrum by one of the other players (that was a first). I'm hoping to get the game to the table with the Fenland Gamers. But in the meantime this new solo mode should help me reach that Five Tribes itch.

While you are over at the Days of Wonder page for Five Tribes look at the other goodies they have there for the game. Some nice little surprises there, I should of visited their site earlier.

Get your Five Tribes goodies HERE

The Dice Tower also reported that AEG have announced the first expansion for Dice City. Despite Jonathan handing me my butt in this game, I still enjoyed playing this game. So I'm looking forward to this expansion coming out.

In the Tom Thinks section this week, Tom makes his annual ten predictions for the coming year in the games industry. One of those was about Magic the Gathering Arena of the Planeswalker. Tom's prediction was that this game would disappear because of lack of backing for the game by Hasbro. I would and this is with a heavy heart have to agree with Tom. Which is a shame, because this game with its great price, potential for organise play, could be huge. The crime is the lack of support from Hasbro.

This game needs expansions, it needs to allow the team/squad building. But that only comes when you have a pool of spells etc to choose from. That pool comes from expansions. There also needs to be more terrain pieces made available, maybe a specific terrain expansion. The pieces you get with the base game is nothing but stingy. I know why they did this to keep the price down. I also know yes you can buy old Heroscape terrain to use with the game. But this needs Hasbro to man up, and make some available with the Magic name. It sends a powerful message to the consumer.

Hopefully Hasbro are looking at the FFG playbook for games like Imperial Assault (a far more expensive competitor). Since that came out a year ago, we have seen two big expansions, and four waves of “character” expansions. There has been a World Campionships, three or four organised play kits for stores. Why are we not seeing this from Hasbro? They have the infrastructure already for the organised play side with Magic the Gathering.

Hasbro are certainly frustrating.

Finally yesterday the annual Dice Tower Kickstarter kicked off. It has already reached its funding target in the first twenty four hours. There are some nice promo sets as backer rewards. Each promo set is made up of promos for a number of separate games. There is at least one promo in each of the promo sets available that I'd like. But because of the way the rewards are structured to get all the promo sets it would cost me about $250. Which yes the main point of the Kickstarter is to help fund the channel, and not about the rewards. However if I went with that tier of support I'd be left with a lot of unwanted promos. Yes I could eBay the stuff but that's effort! Or I could hope the promos I want form the sets are available to buy separately later on. Or possible I could try trading the promos I don't want for ones I do.

Luckily for me the promo set with the most promos I'd use is set A. That's the $60 tier. It would be nice to be able to select which set you wanted at this tier, or any of the tiers between this and the “All of them” tier.

My ideal would be to be able to select the promos I want to make up my set, but that is a LOT of extra effort for the Dice Tower team.

Anyway apart from that little moan, the Dice Tower is a great channel, putting out a lot of free content over the year for gamers. You can show your support for the Dice Tower HERE.

 

Small Box Gaming

new arrivals

This morning the game Bomb Squad Academy arrived. Yes I liked it that much that it had to be added to the collection.

But Bomb Squad Academy could be called by many a “micro” game. I'm beginning to not like that description. I think it does the game it is being applied to an injustice.

Take for instance the new arrival, on bgg the playtime is listed as twenty minutes. From experience of the time I played it at Fenland Gamers, and when it was played a second time also by a group at Fenland Gamers, I would put that play time more in the thirty to forty minute zone.

For me a more accurate and less demeaning description is small box games. How can you dismiss the games above as “micro”? Yes they are in smaller boxes, play quicker, but they deliver a lot of punch for the size packaging and components used.

Machi Koro could easily fit into a smaller box like the one used for Tiny Epic Galaxies, and then become a “micro” game. Yet it is classed as a full game because of the packaging, which is rediculous there is so much empty space in the packaging (yes I realise it was most likely done for shelf space and attracting potential buyers).

Some of these “micro” games have so much game play it's amazing, and put some of the big box cousins to shame.

So why not call them small box games instead? Pay them the respect they are due.

I like, nay love small box games. I like that they are portable, can be throne into a bag, a suitcase, a pocket. That they can then be pulled out at a moments notice to get that gaming fix. Heck you have seen on here that often I meet up with friends at drinking establishments to enjoy a hot beverage and some gaming. Heck I've also gamed at the establishments of perveyors of alcoholic beverages too.

Small box games are great, let's stop calling them “micro”.

 

IA: Stormtroopers

expansions, first look, imperial assault, star wars

Continuing what I think is a bias by FGG towards the Empire in its expansions for Imperial Assault comes the Stormtroopers Villians Pack.

In this expansion you get three Stormtrooper models. (Yes I know I still have to finish painting my existing Stormtroopers)

I do like the included skirmish upgrade card. I'd actually like two or more copies of that card to power a troopers only team. Having not played the campaign side I can't comment on the three included agenda cards.

As with all expansions you get two skirmish mission cards.

There are two deployment cards for the new troopers.

The Stormtroopers come with four command cards, and this is rather cool a reward card called 501st Training. Why is this cool? Well you know all those Stormtroopers you see at cons etc? They are all part of a fan driven organisation called the 501st Garrison. These guys have even paraded for Lucas! So this card is a lovely little tribute to these die hard fans.

Finally there are the skirmish map and campaign mission. And as usual I don't show the campaign side of the sheet so I don't ruin any surprises.

The skirmish map in this Villian pack is one of the tournament legal skirmish maps.

Finally this Villians pack has the id tokens.

 

Kick that hornets nest

expansions, imperial assault, netrunner, news, star wars

 

With the arrival of the latest additions to the Star Wars Imperial Assault universe, I thought I'd better finally do the posts for the previous additions. So over the next few days I'll be doing posts looking at those expansions plus the new arrivals.

In the meantime before those posts start taking over this blog, I'd briefly point out that FFG over the holiday period decided they would “tweak” one or two of their games. The two I currently care about are naturally Imperial Assault and Android:Netrunner. X-Wing as a collectable game for me is on hold.

Imperial Assault got off lightly I think with the “tweaks”. The Royal Guard, Rebel Saboteurs, and Imperial Officers have had some of their card text changed. Below I have extracted the changes from the FAQ.

Naturally for the new season of store championships FFG have updated the legal skirmish maps. The legal maps are, the Kuat Space Station, Mos Eisley Cantina and the Training Ground map.

Here is the link to the new FAQ, here is the link to the FFG explanation for changes , new tournament rules

Let's look at the Netrunner changes, or as I like to describe it “kicking the hornets nest”. These changes have been the more controversial from my observations of the two Facebook communities for both games I follow.

So what has caused the hornets in the Netrunner community to swarm? Let's take a look at the FAQ for the two changes:

Here is the kick that stirred folks up.

Link to the new FAQ , link to new Tournament Rules , FFG explain why

My Thoughts on the subject…

FFG spent a lot of time analysing the recent world championships they held, I think they also monitor the meta in other ways too. So they have a very accurate image of the current state of the game. More so than us players.

Which means that they won't have reached the decisions they have on a whim. They will have thought about them, play tested them, and made a decision that would have the least impact on the game to fix the “problem” as they see it based on the data they have.

One of the things I don't like about Magic, Pokemon etc is the banned cards list. I think this is a sloppy, annoying fix. So I'm glad to see the solution that FFG have come up with. At least with the FFG solution I can still play with the cards, I just have to make a compromise or two to my deck to use them.

What I would like to see is a more elegant way of doing the errata for the cards. I'd love to see some stickers made available cheaply to purchase to update the cards with from FFG. I'd also like to think all new printings of these cards are with these changes. Or even better still I'd love to be able to buy corrected cards to replace the existing ones with.

FFG think/hope that these changes will add variety to the meta for the games. That it will encourage players to build a wider variety of decks/teams, which they will see reflected in tournaments.

I've been playing Netrunner for nearly a year now, but from what I can tell certain deck types come and go out of fashion as new data packs/expansions come out. At one point a Weyland deck may have the upper hand, while Criminal decks maybe stronger on the runner side. Then the next Deluxe expansion NBN becomes more popular.

If these changes even that out, I'm happy with what's been done.

 

Ross the Boss

Uncategorized

Today a new figure for Zombicide arrived, along with proving belonging to the UK Trading and Selling page on Facebook isn’t that healthy for the bank balance. 

Ross the Boss is the Zombicide characture  of John Goodmans character Walter Sobchak in the cult classic The Big Lebowski.

The super cool thing about this figure is the guy I bought it from had painted it. Sure all my other figures aren’t painted, but one day they maybe.

Ross completes my collection of Zombicide characters from the movie. Ok there are only two.

My goal for getting these figures was for a friend who is a big big fan of the movie (although I do question this because he hasn’t watched the porn spoof of the movie) to play with when we get Zombicide to the table. 

I’m quite proud of myself because I’ve managed to get both figures for less than predicted.