With Storm Claudia battering the country I woke to rain. Not a problem for me. However for two of the little monsters this is the nightmare situation.
Letting them out to answer the call of nature means them being hesitant crossing the threshold between inside and dry, and outside and wet.
After a little encouragement they find the nearest spot to the back door that allows them to do their bodily functions before making a dash inside.
I was hoping for dry weather because I have to swap over my tires.
Last Friday on the way to club night I hit a pot hole. Didn’t realise until I was leaving at about 10pm that my tire was flat and the rim had been damaged. So in the car park I had to change tires and put on the spare.
I’ve been avoiding doing any long trips, because until today I’ve not had a spare tyre. Didn’t want to get caught out. But yesterday I was able to source a second hand rim/tyre for the car with next day delivery.
That tyre is due to be delivered today. Sadly the estimated time of delivery is right smack damn in the middle of club night. So no gaming today for me. There is no way mum could take in a tyre.
The lack of spare tyre is also why Dolly and I haven’t been out on any adventures this week. We are dying to get out into nature again.
Transfer News Latest
I’ve just had Diogo’s travel itinerary shared with me.
I’m flabbergasted.
Diogo starts his journey to the UK on the 17th, and arrives in the UK on the 21st! Four frekkin’ days. Poor little dude.
But his arrival is getting closer, as is my excitement.
The month started off really well with something that Charlene, Ben, and myself had been wanting to do for a year or two now. That was to play all four roll and writes by Ben Pinchback, and Matt Riddle.
But after such a great start the rest of the first half of the month has seemed like a struggle to get any gaming in. But I have, and here is what I’ve played so far this month.
The Quadrilogy
Fleet the Dice Game: The one that started it all. It’s fun. It’s definitely not a roll and write aimed at noobs to the genre. I’d say it’s intermediate level. The two sheets each player has might seem a bit intimidating, especially to new players. You can get combos but they are not excessive.
Three Sisters: This is one of the contenders for most complicated roll and writes going. It is so combotastic. It can get so hard to track what’s going on they give you a space on one of the sheets for notes! Granted it’s not a big space but still. Add in the two mini expansions and this game has a lot going on. Eight rounds, five actions per round, plus combos. It’s possible to get some insane turns where you are doing so much because you are comboing off.
Motor City: I felt a bit frustrated with the game. The previous time I played this I’m sure I did better progressing along the various tracks. But it’s still fun to play. It shares a similar draft action selection mechanic with three sisters. It also feels a little less combo focused.
French Quarter: Probably the least combotastic of the four. For me this is probably the weakest of the four. But it’s still fun.
FYI my rankings in order of least to best is, French Quarter, Motor City, Fleet the Dice Game, and at the top of the pile Three Sisters.
The rest of the month
Satori: worker placement but with no locking out locations. Each location can be selected no matter how many times it’s been used in the round. Which is kinda nice. But also removes a pressure and tactic from the game. But it’s a solid game. You can see one or two of its mechanics have been influenced by other games like Dune Imperium. And they have been implemented and integrated well with the rest of the game. This is well worth playing again.
Netrunner: this really is such a great two player game. So glad to be playing it again.
Lord of the Rings Duel for Middle Earth: this was a close game I almost destroyed the one ring. Sadly Saurons forces managed to take over middle earth. We played with the new Allies mini expansion and the two promo tiles. The Allies added a tiny little overhead, but had an even bigger tactical impact. Deciding which ally to use and when can have a major impact on the game. It was Marcin playing a second ally that allowed him to steal victory.
Tokaido Duo: a first play of this two player “version” of Tokaido. I really liked it. The dice drafting mechanic makes for some great decision making. Including having to hate draft despite really needing to take one of the other dice. You really can’t afford to concentrate on one particular path. You need to make in roads on all three with a preference for one of them.
I can say with confidence that is the case (barring any last minute hitches). That on the 21st of this month I will be driving south to pick up the latest member of the little monsters.
That time will not go fast enough.
I’m so looking forward to picking him up and bringing him home.
The annoying thing about walking at Whitehills Wood is getting into the car park.
There is no signage to indicate where you turn in.
You are literally right on top of the entrance before you see it.
Which means you are breaking hard.
I always feel like I’m a fighter pilot landing on an aircraft carrier pulling into this car park.
And the entrance itself is rather bumpy if I’m being generous. So a bumpy landing so to speak.
After a spell of colder weather, the last day or two had been quite mild. Today was no different continuing the weather trend.
I’m not a weather forecaster, but personal experience tells me after the weekend we will get a few days of damper weather. Saturday will see a few fireworks going off. And that usually affects the weather. It’s all the sulphur or whatever they put in the fireworks entering the atmosphere.
We had barely started our walk when I saw a muntjac wander into the path ahead, notice us, and return the way they’d come.
It wasn’t long into our walk that I was removing my shemagh because I was getting too hot.
I loved the contrast between the deciduous trees of this wood and the coniferous trees at this time of year as we made our way round the walk. The autumnal shades of browns, fading greens. At one point leaves were falling like a light shower.
Crime scene. We have an alibiPolish Army Bread Bag, Pathfinder Canteen Trail Set in a Valtcan Canteen Pouch Carrying CaseGimme more jerky!Our brew spot
We found a quiet spot not far from the main path to have our brew and enjoy the sounds of nature.
Today’s brew was made using the titanium version of the G2 Firebox Nano. I’d bought it with the X-Case kit, flame guard, leather case, and grill (not pictured).
I’d bought the Nano with the X-Case kit because it provides more stability for the Nano, and acts as an ash tray. Whilst also providing a cool storage case for the stove.
Yes I have to admit having the stove in a rather cool, luxurious leather case does undo the weight advantage of having the titanium version of the stove.
X-Case, titanium flame guardNano sticks, Carbon felt pad and L-pins from the X-CasePathfinder nesting cup with lid, Sea to Summit X Collapsible Silicone Mug, high temperature soldering matLeather case for the NanoG2 Firebox Nano (titanium edition)
The carbon felt pad that comes with the X-Case is intended to be used as a windshield. However there was no breeze today. But I don’t think I’d use it that way. I have my foil windscreen in my cook kit that I’d use instead. I’m more likely to use the felt pad to help insulate the X-Case and stove from the ground to stop any heat transfer, and leaving any nasty marks on the ground. It’s why I have the high temperature soldering mat in the bag. This soldering mat is a perfect size for this stove or the next mystery stove I will be using. Or even meths stoves like the Trangia.
I also have a Forest Fundamentals Artisan Fire Mat with me. Which too can be used to protect the ground from a stove. But it can also be used for sitting or kneeling on, bushcrafty stuff, starting fires. I just need to find a way to attach it to the Polish Army Bread Bag so it’s not flapping around.
The stove is lightning fast to set up. And it should be because it’s a folding stove. No having to assemble the stove before use. It pops open. Literally. It took me longer to get into the X-Case. Which by the way I find a bit stiff to open.
Today I used a bic lighter to start the fire with birch bark.
I was taken aback by just how little wood I used to boil my water for a brew.
The flame guard was amazing. I was able to lift the nesting cup from the stove without using my leather glove. It worked as advertised. It also provides a bit of wind protection if needed.
Feeding in wood via the two holes at the bottom of the stove was pretty cool. It allowed me to use the longer lengths of “processed” kindling I had with me.
Once the flames were out, and I had emptied the ash on to the X-Case the stove cooled down pretty fast.
Being a proponent of leave no trace I left no scorch marks, carried my ash and waste out with me.
The stove in the X-Case packs down quite small. Would easily fit in a pocket. Obviously the leather case (not needed) does make it a bit bulkier. But it’s so cool.
I really like this stove. I’ve yet to try it with the Trangia. Maybe next time. I want to get the Wood Flame Gas Burner & Ti Ember Glow Diffuser to try with it. I didn’t get the solid fuel plate for it. I should for completeness. However it’s not a fuel type I’d plan to use with it. I think meths or gas would be it.
Has this stove replaced the Bushbuddy for me?I’m thinking it just might have!
After our brew stop we continued our circular walk making our way back to the car.
Although there seemed to be much more up than we had done down.
Dolly and I did try to get a walk in at Shouldham Warren. However that was a blow out. We got there to find that the car park, and the woods were closed. Later at home I was able to find out on a council discussion thread that it has been closed since September, and due to reopen on 5th November. Apparently the Forestry Commission is doing some tree thinning. The public are allowed access after 5pm each day.
Dolly and I will return once Shouldham Warren is reopened.
But that left us needing to find a spot to have a walk.
On our drive back across the fenland landscape we were looking for a suitable spot to stop.
In the end we ended up walking along a section of Middle Level Main Drain.
Wearing the USGI poncho Middle Level Main Drain
Our walk was windy, and as we made our way along the drains embankment we started to feel specks of rain as we caught up with a shower moving across the fenland landscape.
On the opposite embankment was a fisherman sheltering under his large fishing umbrella.
Once back at the car the geese we had seen earlier swimming on the drain were now on the opposite embankment.
As an impromptu walk under the circumstances it was ok.
Dolly and NicoSome cute Dolly photos
But that walk was a couple of days back.
Today Dolly and I ended up at Sutton Bridge and walking along the sea defences leading towards the RAF target range, and forming part of the King Charles III coastal path.
Some work is going on here but not sure whatEgretThe mud flats of the Wash.
It was a windy there and back walk. With the wind mainly behind us as we walked away from the car, and then almost head on as we returned.
As we got closer to the car we were approached by a man asking if we had seen a black dog. His dog had managed to run off whilst walking it. Sadly he was the first person we had seen on our walk. And we had definitely not seen a black dog.
Back at the car we wished him luck finding his dog. On our drive back we went a little slower keeping an eye out over the ploughed fields for any sign of the dog.
I hadn’t done this side of the Wash since the wolf pack days. It was nice to return to this spot.
I did manage to get some gaming in during the second half of the month. Surprisingly for me more than I thought I would. What follows below is a summary of what I played.
Netrunner: I think my recent posts say how I feel about this game. I introduced Dave to the game and he enjoyed it. Hopefully once things settle down for him after the new arrival arrives he’ll put together a deck or two using proxies.
The Gang: A co-op card game that uses poker as its main mechanic. Yep you heard that right. There is also a plot twist. You are not allowed to tell the other players what you have in your hand. Instead the only clues you get are via one of four poker chips that you claim to indicate how strong you think your hand is. You do this after each of the four stages of the poker hand. After the last round the aim is to have the hands win in the order indicated by the poker chip front of the player. Get this right three times you beat the game. But fail to do this three times before getting it right three times and the game wins. How much did I enjoy this? I have a copy, ordered when I got home that evening.
Machi Koro 2: Just good beginner gamer friendly fun. It’s light, has a little take that, introduces the concept of engine building, and probabilities. Plus it’s fairly quick to play and teach.
Origin Story: The latest from Stonemaier. A trick taking game with some engine building thrown in. The art work seems to be a bit polarising. However I really love the art work. At the start of the third round (it’s played over five) you turn over the top card of an event deck. This changes the rules in some way for that round. It’s obvious this has been influenced by Rebel Princess. And we all know how I feel about that game. It’s a shame that these events aren’t more frequent. I’m not sure why there is only one. Especially considering the size of the events deck. Did it live up to the hype, especially after the glowing Dice Tower review? I think so.
Rebel Princess: ‘nuff has been said about this classic trick taking game. We love it.
The Hobbit There and Back Again: I wasn’t expecting such a large and heavy box when this landed through the letterbox. Another roll and write or more draw and write that can be played as a campaign or one off adventures telling the major story points of the classic Tolkien book that introduced us to Middle Earth and hobbits, The Hobbit. We played the first two adventures. Covering the unexpected guests at Bagend and the journey to Rivendell and the trolls. Is it my favourite roll and write? No. Is it an enjoyable one? Most definitely.
Civolution: Not a civilisation game! If one of the major criticisms of Tapestry is that it doesn’t feel like a civilisation game (which I don’t agree with) then those haters should also be levelling that same comment about Civolution. For me this game did not feel like a civilisation game. We did play this at the new board game cafe The Dice Box in Kings Lynn. A really nice environment to play although I think the tables may not be ideal size wise for a few games, or even in the case of big games shape wise as well. Civolution is a bit of a table hog and the tables we were on was just big enough, but the oval shape not ideal. Prices were also edging on the expensive side for the food and beverages. The hot dog I had was ok, not great.
Deep Regrets: We played with the mini expansion Lamentable Tenticles. It’s an enjoyable game, but worth all the hype? That I don’t think it lives up to.
Emberheart: A worker placement game with bidding themed around taming dragons. This is another game that is played over a fixed number of rounds. Unlike Zapotec you did feel like you were achieving something each round. It was an enjoyable experience for sure.
Parks: I’m still impressed by the quality of this second edition.
Tokaido: I think this was the first time I’ve played Tokaido at the full player count of five players, and also with the expansions. For this game I also had the newly released play mat. Stonemaier has done a great job with the release of the expansions and mat. Both expansions for the price of one, great value. I love the play mat, who doesn’t love a good play mat? It was a very interesting experience playing at the full player count. A lot more crowded and slower moving along the route. The expansions add to the game experience and give an interesting choice at each spot on the board. Do you go the classic option or the new?
“Many years since I was here, On the street I was passin’ my time away… I’m back, back in the New York Groove ” New York Groove
That’s how it felt to finally to run those servers, break that ice, and score those agendas once more.
Since those Null Signal Game (NSG) designed expansions for Netrunner dropped through the letter box I’ve been dying to get the game to the table.
In preparation I got an original FFG Android Netrunner core set cheaply off eBay for its tokens and rulebook. The NSG token set haven’t turned up yet. I’m hoping anyday now. At least having this core set also gives me some more pre-made decks to play with noobs. Even if those decks are just each faction/corps cards plus the neutral ones.
Dave suffering being made to play a runner
I have to say these NSG learners decks are great fun to play. Plus having it so that once you have played a handful of games with them, you can then shuffle in ten more cards that add one or two new mechanics.
And yes I have really missed playing this game. It most definitely is as much fun as I remember it.
I think Dave enjoyed his games. As results went it was a draw. We both won a game as a runner and as the Corp.
I want some more games with these learner decks and maybe with the original core set decks before jumping back into the deckbuilding side.
Sadly due to an imminent new arrival in the Dave household I don’t know when Dave will be able to play again. Quite rightly his priorities will be elsewhere.
Storm Benjamin has been and gone. Once again despite being in the yellow warning zone our eastily location protected us from the worst of Storm Ben.
It was time once more for Dolly and me to stretch our legs on something a bit longer than our usually daily walks.
Our walk today was a return to Dersingham Bog. A walk Dolly and I hadn’t done since earlier in the year when we came here for the charity walks we did.
As you can see from the photos there were blue skies, the sun breaking through the clouds. What the photos can’t show is the wind adding a chill to walk.
“Hurry up and get the jerky out.“, Forest Fundamentals™ Artisan Fire Mat, 80’s Polish Army Canvas Webbing Bread Bag SatchelIf I watch it will it boil faster?Dersingham BogEnjoying a brew
Thanks to the sandy soil, although we didn’t see any deer, we saw signs that they had been there as we walked round. Mainly thanks to their hoof prints still detectable amongst those of walkers, dogs, and horses.
I love spotting the fungi this time of year. There seemed to be a wider variety here than at the woods of Roydon Common.
Southern BracketThe fungi spotted (I’ll update once I’ve identified them)
We did find a brew spot under a tree. However it wasn’t ideal. But then again the side we were walking along of the bog had no real spots that gave any protection from the wind.
This meant lighting the alcohol stove with my lighter was challenging. It meant I had to resort to my fire starting kit and using the wick and bellows to get the stove to ignite.
After boiling water for a brew, I put more water on to make lunch with.
Today was a bit of recipe development for a project I have started. So I’m not going into detail here you’ll find that when the project gets announced. However I was rather pleased how this first attempt at a Japanese inspired/style curry ended up. If I had one critique then it would be that the prawns could have done with slightly longer rehydrating.
I have a couple more recipes I need to work on/try for this project. I’ll be trying these on future walks.
Speedster 30ml Spill Proof Meths/Alcohol Burner Gold, BCB Crusader Cooker Mk1 Pathfinder 25oz Stainless Steel Nesting Cup with Lid and Bat-Wing handlesJapanese inspired curryFolding chefs knife, plastic spatula, collapsible folding ladle, Boundless Voyage titanium long tweezersLightweight chopping board, foil windscreen Long handled titanium spork, Sea to Summit Delta Long-Handled Spoon, titanium chopsticks ,Lifeventure Superlight Titanium Spork with Serrated Cutting Edge, Boundless Voyage Titanium SpoonThe freeze dried vegetables for the curry.
A part from recipes to try I have a backlog of stoves and pots I want to use on the walks. One of these is the Serotonin Firefly Mini Stove. This is a wood burning stove that packs away to a small size. It’s also most likely to be the one I take out next time.
The Pathfinder cup worked well with the BCB Crusader mk1 cooker, as did the Speedster stove.
This was a chilly but chilled! walk back in nature. Just what the doctor ordered.
This morning I had the pleasant surprise of my Netrunner order arriving.
An even more pleasant surprise was seeing the size of the packaging of each set. The big mostly empty set boxes from the FFG days gone. Now we have deck boxes stuffed with cards. Which I really like. It makes the starter decks in the System Gateway very portable.
Sadly the drawback is where once you got the rule book in the core set and the tokens needed to play. Now you don’t get either.
Instead you get the rules online, plus have to source tokens from a third party. This later point means the game isn’t very accessible for new players to the game.
You can download the rules as a pdf, and like me get them printed out (I used Doxzoo in the UK).
One nice touch is the new player guides to take a corp or runner through learning the game using the starter decks. I’d love these to be available as a pdf too so they can be printed. I like that there is also a video to go along with these starter guides.
I like the included reference cards. Whether it’s a summary of the actions a player can take, to on the starter runner and corp identities the play areas. Plus having a card with the starter decks on is really handy for resetting the decks for teaching new players.
Card quality seems amazing, and the art looks stunning. I believe they have used some of the same artists as FFG did.
Also considering the price of each set is less than £30 they present amazing value.
The only thing you need to take into account as an additional cost is sourcing tokens for the game.
Yep really impressed with the production of these sets.
