# Board Games



## Plank

So how many of us are really into board games? As in, a real hobby, rather than playing every so often with the family?

Personally I love them, and am starting (shock horror) to enjoy them much more than video games. My collection so far consists of:
Settlers of Catan (possibly a favourite)
Carcassonne
Ticket to Ride
Dominion - card, I know but still
Scrabble... cluedo... monopoly... of course
Small World
Munchkin (again cards...)

I have several friends who are similarly into board games and we try to meet up every so often to play. We also have, amongst others, Small World, Battlestar Galactica, Citadels, The Resistance, Lords of Waterdeep...

So... can we talk board games?


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## svalbard

I used to play a lot of the old Avalon Hill games years ago. Hitler's War was a favourite of mine. Also played a cracking WWII strategy board game at division level called Against The Reich. It was slow(a day needed to be set aside to play it), took forever to set up, the rules were ridicolously complex, the action when it happened was spectacular and then it took forever to manouvre for the next battle. Yep, I loved that game, but not sure would I play it again.

A group of us used to play Axis and Allies non stop for a period of time. We got so damned good at it that we could predict the winner after the first five moves, but still played out the bloody game to its bitter end. Every strategm of the that game is inprinted upon my mind. Not a lot of girls used to hang out with us back then, but it was better than going to the pub and getting hammered at the ages of 15-18.


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## Moonbat

We love board games, favorites at the moment are Pointless (yes from the TV), Cranium and Rumikub.
Love Perudo (ok no board), scrabble, risk (seriously long game) and all the classics.
I'm fond of a good quiz, and even at times make up our own games to be played on a board.


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## Mr Fraaz

I love boardgames, but have too little time to let it develop into a full blown hobby. I do get to play Small World sometimes, though, great fun that. I'm also really looking forward to the boardgame version of the old Lone Wolf gamebooks: http://www.greywoodpublishing.com/lwwg.html


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## Plank

Axis and Allies has always intrigued me, whenever I see it in the shop. Interesting to hear your take on it.

I love perudo!! I got it a long, long time ago from my then-girlfriend's parents, and have enjoyed every game since. Risk is a favourite of mine, too.

Mr Fraaz, I know what you mean with lack of time  My friends and I try to meet up once a fortnight for a games-evening, which is always good fun.

A nice light hearted game is Pandemic (as it's a co-op game it takes out the competitive element), although it can get stressful when you get so close to winning.


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## Foxbat

Like svalbard, I used to play a lot of the Avalon Hill stuff - mainly Up Front(brilliant card game, still have it, never play it, too fond to part with it) but lack of opponents meant that it was never going to last unfortunately.

A place worth visiting http://boardgamegeek.com/


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## svalbard

That has always being one of the big issues with board gaming. Finding suitable opponents who were willing to give up 4 to 5 hours of their time to play Hitler's War, Risk, etc. After a cerain age life just took over and it became more difficult to find the time to play these games. I recall a mammoth length game of Risk that lasted over 15 or so hours. It ended when one of the players in a temper tantrum upended the board. In his defense he suffered a sequence of bizarre dice rolls that saw his much larger army wiped out by a force a tenth of it's size.


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## bluenimbus

i used to play go, anyone heard of it? it's like chess, but much harder.


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## reiver33

Third Reich
DNO/UNT (lets be obscure here!)
The SPI stable
Avalon Hll
Etc.


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## jastius

we have chess, checkers, monopoly, sorry, battleship,  risk, pictionary, clue, trivial pursuit, life, snakes and ladders, chinese checkers, parchesi, and a few movie games including lord of the rings; magic the gathering, and candyland.  
we find board games to be useful when friends come over just to hang about for a while. (along with cards- but we aren't hanging those in here also, are we?). when there are big family dinners or holidays, they get pulled out to pass time until dinner. they are a good way of including everyone from littles on up into doing things together. and of talking instead of having the television on.


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## Foxbat

reiver33 said:


> Third Reich
> DNO/UNT (lets be obscure here!)


 
Ahh! Drang Nach Osten and Unentschieden. Absolute monster. 
Played this a few times in my youth. A friend of mine had an empty room


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## Plank

Will Wheaton's Tabletop is a good source of reviews for various games. 

I used to play Go a lot, and found it was enjoyable but you really had to get an opponent of the same skill level or it is completely unbalanced.

I also think like the break from sitting in front of screens (work, mainly!) and keeps everyone together and chatting, as jastius said


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## kromanjon

Love board games. Anyone interested in them should check out the Shut up and sit down site, it's awesome and will get you psyched for some new games without a doubt. And they are funny as well.

Myself I own Android, bertayal at house on the hill, ghost stories, cave troll, infiltration, quarriors, warrior knights, island of doctor necreaux and epic spell wars of the battle wizards: duel at mt. skullzfyre.


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## Plank

Just checked out shut up and sit down - they review citadels in episode 1, so I'm sold!! 

kromanjon, what games would you recommend from those you've listed - I haven't played any of them!


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## kromanjon

Quarriors is a Dice building game and has gotten the most play time so far. I love it dearly but must still warn you that it's a game about luck almost exclusivly. If you like random chance though and fists full of dice this game is a must.

Betrayal at House on the Hill is a strange survival horror game of sorts. I've only played it a few times but it's been great and very surprising.

Ghost Stories is a cooperative game were you play taoist monks fighting of ghosts and monsters and trying to protect a village. It's relentless and basicaly must be played by four players if you want to stand a chance. Played it a bunch of times but we've onlt managed to beat it once, don't know how we did it.

Warrior Knights is my latest purchase and I haven't had the chance to play it yet. Reading the manual though and looking over the components have gotten me realy exited. This might be my greatest game thus far.

I love all my games in one way or Another but these are the ones I would recommend and they cover a spectrum as well depending on what kind of board game you like.


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## hitmouse

Regularly play Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride, Dixit, and Perudo with with the family.


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## Plank

Fantastic to see others enjoying Perudo 

Ticket to Ride is a family favourite, it seems to appeal to all ages. The ladyfriend doesn't like Carcassonne very much, so it doesn't get played too often! Catan is the popular one it seems!


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## AlexanderSen

There are some great Scifi themed board games out there, such as Eclipse, Alien Frontiers, and Cosmic Encounters. I also have to mention Le Harve, Dice Town, and China Town. ;D


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## Moonbat

Since I last posted to this 20 months ago my board game hobby has grown. I now have loads of games including: pandemic, marvel dice masters, dominion, game of thrones, edrich horror (a lovecraftian co-op game) and plenty more. This Christmas I got Dixit, small world, forbidden island, werewolf, betrayal at house on haunted hill, ticket to ride Europe and Telestrations. 
werewolf went down really well with my big family. Also telestrations was hilarious. 
I think boardgames are having a big resurgence that might go mainstream soon.
love tabletop and dice tower on YouTube.


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## Balthagor

AlexanderSen said:


> ...Alien Frontiers...


I'm a big fan of this game, specifically for the mechanic it uses with the dice.  It's nice to see a game where there aren't really "bad rolls", only rolls you can't use the way you wanted to.  While some may be shocked to hear this, I really dislike Catan.  It is just too random for my taste.

I have the good fortune to have a gaming group that live nearby and a local group that meets twice a month.  This past weekend our gaming group played Lords of Waterdeep and I was reminded why it current is top of my list.  4 player game, 1h45 followed by a 3 player game, 1h10 to finish.  Lots of different strategies and the game is unique each time.  Can't recommend it enough.

Cheers,


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## Fried Egg

"Carcassonne" was a revelation when I discovered it a few years ago. It's great because it's very accessible to a variety of ages, very intuitive.

I've since acquired "Ticket to Ride" (Europe edition) that's also a lot of fun as well as "Settler's of Catan" which is great but playing with my kids can be difficult as they hate the perceived vindictiveness when using the robber.

Lately I've got "Dominion" and that's absolutely fantastic; really loving it's gameplay and endless variety. One good thing about this game is that (once players know what they're doing) games can be over in about half an hour.

I'm now considering games such as "Puerto Rico" and "Agricola" that are apparently regarded very highly.


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## Zoe Mackay

I like both Puerto Rico and Agricola, but both are a step more complex than Settlers or Dominion. Not ridiculously so (Agricola has loads of pieces, but the rules aren't that hard), but enough that you'll notice. We got Ticket To Ride India/Switzerland (We've had America for several years) over Christmas and have been playing that a lot. 

Pandemic is great because it's co-operative - the players against the game - and has a good mechanic. In a similarish vein to Ticket To Ride is a game called "Thurn And Taxis", which is about building post-offices in Germany. Not complicated to learn or long to play.


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## Moonbat

I played Puerto Rico several months back at board game night and thought it was great, the mechanics are very smooth and I'm not surprised it is a classic. It is certainly heavier in terms of gameplay. It will seem very complex at first but once a few rounds have been played it is actually very simple. I've not played Agricola but it is also very highly regarded.
I don't think either will compare with the simplicity and easy flow of Dominion, it is a very straight forward game mechanic.
My wife doesn't like Carcassonne so we haven't played it much, I really like Dixit (its a sort of story telling game) it works well and is a short (ish) game.
I've not seen Thurn and Taxis but it sounds interesting.


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## Balthagor

Another with a fairly straight forward game mechanic that I enjoy is Kingdom Builder.  Modular map and random victory points system mean that it has immense replayability.

Carcasonne is on my wishlist and I've also heard good things about Agricola and Puerto Rico.


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## Boaz

For three seasons of HBO's Game of Thrones, my friends and I gather to play Dominion (our own game of thrones), eat dinner, and watch the show... and then play more Dominion.  Once you know how to play, the game just flies along while we tell lies... I mean stories.  It's a blast!

I bought it for my nephew's thirteenth birthday... and he loves it.

One of my friends told me yesterday that he's now hooked on Agricola.

Like any game, the system needs to be easily understandable, intriguing to play, and have a solidly measurable goal.... but it's probably only as fun as your playing partners.


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## Fried Egg

Do you guys get the expansion sets for the games you play?

I have the "Inns and Cathedrals" expansion for "Carcassonne" and that gives you a few more interesting pieces that allow for filling in gaps previously impossible!

I also have the "Seafarers" expansion for "Settlers of Catan" that allows you to have multiple islands (with the ability to connect sea routes between them) and adds a lot more variety in terms of the map.

Has anyone tried any of the expansion sets for "Dominion"? I am considering getting one but don't know which...I would prefer one that doesn't change the game mechanics too much, just adds more variety in terms of kingdom cards available.


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## Moonbat

I don't yet have any expansions for my games, but I am looking at Dominion.
I like the look of Dominion Prosperity, as it gives greater money (platinum) and estates (colony) but I think it brings in an extra mechanic to do with coins.
The first expansion for Dominion as Intrigue is voted as better than the base set on Board Game Geek. there are quite a few but I've not got one yet. If you do get one I'd like to know which, and how it played.

Oh, I told a lie, I do have an expansion for Pandemic, on the brink, which includes a 5th disease and extra roles and virulent strain cards, there is a different role that someone can play as a bioterrorist, but we haven't tried it yet.


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## Balthagor

Fried Egg said:


> Do you guys get the expansion sets for the games you play?



In some cases.  I've gotten Ticket to Ride Asia, two nice additional boards.  Picked up the expansion for Kingdom Builder but haven't had the chance to play it.  Bought it because it has the rules and peices for a fifth player.  Got the expansion for Starfarers of Catan for the same reason.


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## markpud

Picked up Pandemic last month and we've enjoyed getting to grips with its tactics and cooperative strategies. Really good fun and the expansions sound fun too


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## Boaz

Dominion expansions in order of release date...

Intrigue: (25 new action cards)  Leads to cutthroat actions and negotiations.  Really varies the effects of abilities of cards during action phase.  New ways to get VP. If you want to laugh, grimace, and actually interact with your friends, then this is the expansion.  It's Game of Thrones in a box.
Seaside: (25) Slows down the game due to persisting effects.... you must concentrate on game, so less chatting... but it has some really powerful cards. There are also coin and embargo tokens... you start managing stats.
Alchemy: (12) Introduces new potion currency. Can take longer to build effective deck. I don't like it at all, even though it has lots of plus action cards.  If you play from multiple expansions, then Alchemy gets really watered down.  I think it should only be played by itself or with the base game.
Prosperity: (25) Money, money, money. Congratulations, you're a Lannister.  Higher denomination currency and VP.  Winning player might have quadruple the VPs of base game.  A fast and fortunate player may find him/herself gaining a huge economic lead... but this can be offset by Thief and other attack/trash actions.
Cornucopia: (13) I've never played it.
Hinterlands: (26) Buy phase (gain card) abilities are increased.  
Dark Ages: (the internet says 35, but I think there might be more, I dont' remember) Lots of attacks and trash triggered abilities.  It's complete anarchy.
Guilds: (13) I've not played it.

Fried Egg, I would strongly recommend Intrigue as your first expansion.  Prosperity and Seaside introduce powerful cards and change the basic rules.  They're fun, but they don't sound like what you want.  Alchemy is a different animal altogether... In over a hundred games, I've only ever seen one person win by using Alchemy cards instead of Base or other expansion cards.  Intrigue introduces enough trickery to be fun, but probably Dark Ages is... well, the Dark Ages... it can devolve into utter chaos.

So my friends and I draw from more than 170 action cards when we play.  I cannot remember them all.  I don't know what all of them do.  Some have gain abilities, some attack, some defend, some trash cards, some steal, some give cards, some have abilities that endure for a turn, some give VP...  What I'm saying is, you need to play with people you like and trust.  Due to the speed of play, chatting, and reshuffling decks, it would be very easy for an unscrupulous player to cheat.  And a person who cheats his friends over a parlor game is a total loser.  With that being said, mistakes are inevitably made... 
_
"Last turn, I forgot to get my copper from my Madman... Can I do it now?"  

"After Thief, I'll play my Village... +2 actions... Wait!  I needed to play my Village and then my Thief... Can I back up?" 

"How can you still have five cards? I played Militia, you idiot!"  

"Stop! Why are you drawing?  It's not your turn... oh, I played Council Room... I forgot.  Okay, everyone gets to draw a card. Doh!"

"You cannot Remodel a Silver into a Gold because the cost is three more.  You played Remodel, it allows you to trade in for a cost of only two."_


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## Fried Egg

Thanks for the advice Boaz, Intrigue does look like the way to go...


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## Fried Egg

Anyone played "7 Wonders"? Sounds like a good, fast paced game for up to seven players...


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## Moonbat

I've not played it, but it was on my list for Christmas (sadly I didn't get it)
It has good reviews on both Dice tower and Board Game Geek, so I expect it is a very good game.

I just checked and it is the number 1 ranked family game on BGG
It is number 18 in the over ranking, so it scores very highly.
I might keep an eye out for a copy, though I suppose I should play it first at board game night.


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## Fried Egg

I just bought it and had my first game last night (with my kids aged 8 and 11). Went quite well although there is a bit of a learning curve...mainly because there are so many different ways to score victory points. Definitely one you need to play a few times before you can understand how to formulate a strategy...


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## Balthagor

This week I got to try Power Grid.  I had been looking for a chance to play it and it is not high on my wishlist.  The gameplay starts simple but builds very nicely.  There is also a reasonable amount of strategy.


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## Michael Colton

I've played Power Grid, Agricola, Settlers, Carcassone, and Peurto Rico. Enjoyed them all when I have people to play them with (though that never happens any longer). What is Ticket to Ride? Is it similar as far as depth of play/rules? I have been looking for slightly more in-depth games that I can play with myself (yes, yes, I know, sad).


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## Balthagor

I'd say Ticket to Ride is less complex than the games you've played.  Color matching between wagons allows claiming of routes that others can no longer use or pass through (key difference when I played Power Grid, had to remember I could still pass through).  It's fun but doesn't sound like what you're after.


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## Fried Egg

I don't think Ticket to Ride is suitable for solitaire in any case. 

Apparently co-op games can be played solo since you're playing against the game as it were so, although I haven't played it, "Pandemic" could be worth checking out. Very highly regarded by many.


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## Moonbat

I've played a few games of pandemic and I do enjoy it, not sure it has the complexity of Puerto Rico and settlers, but it is fun. The one player game will work ok, like other co-op games, I really enjoyed Eldritch Horror, which I have played single player, but I died quite quickly.


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## Michael Colton

Fried Egg said:


> I don't think Ticket to Ride is suitable for solitaire in any case.
> 
> Apparently co-op games can be played solo since you're playing against the game as it were so, although I haven't played it, "Pandemic" could be worth checking out. Very highly regarded by many.



I shall ask around and see if anyone I know has it so I can take a look at it.

As far as solitaire, it is sort of similar to how one plays chess alone. Examining weaknesses for moves, etc.


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## Fried Egg

I just bought the "Frenemies" add-on for Settlers of Catan. Great for those players that don't like being mean as you can earn favour tokens in exchange for being friendly (such as giving people resources or moving the robber away from everyone). Perfect for my daughter who hates the robber...


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## hitmouse

Fried Egg said:


> I just bought it (7 Wonders) and had my first game last night (with my kids aged 8 and 11). Went quite well although there is a bit of a learning curve...mainly because there are so many different ways to score victory points. Definitely one you need to play a few times before you can understand how to formulate a strategy...



This has been a long-lasting favourite with my kids. Once you get past the apparent complexity, it plays quickly. Ticket to Ride has been the most durable of games in our family.
We have also had fun with some fairly quick and loud card games: *Bohnanza* is very clever, *Hanabi *is fun, as is *No Thanks!* All have far more depth than is apparent at first glance.


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## Fried Egg

Yes, "7 Wonders" does play quite quickly once you all know what you're doing.

I've bought "Star Realms" the other day; a two player head-to-head deck building game that plays a bit like Dominion but quite unique in its own right. Very good fun...


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## Moonbat

ooh, Star realms, I want to get this, am I right in thinking it only plays 2 player, or can you have 4 player?
Also are there some kind of small expansion packs?


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## Fried Egg

It is two player but you can simply buy another set of cards for each 1-2 players additional you want to play with. As each deck of cards is pretty cheap, this isn't as prohibitive as it sounds.

I haven't looked into any expansions yet but there are a variety of "crisis" packs that cost only a few quid each that add a variety of different elements. There's so many different types of ships/space station cards in the base game that I'm still getting used to them; I don't feel any need for an expansion just yet.


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## Foxbat

Something some of you may find useful. It allows the multiplaying of board games over the net or is handy if you don't have the room to set up a 'monster' game (you can set it up virtually and not have to worry about pets scattering pieces). 

You still need the original game (mainly for the rules and legal reasons). 

http://www.vassalengine.org/


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## Fried Egg

I have recently acquired the following board games:

"Agricola" - A competitive farming game. Doesn't sound like fun but it is surprisingly so. A game for 1 to 5 players (allow about 1/2 hour per person) that involves each player trying to develop their own little farmstead by competing for access to a common pool of actions/materials which means what one player picks pay deprive another.  Plenty of alternative strategies and challenging decisions face the players in which every turn is a trade off between growing your farm for the future and simply warding off starvation for your family.

"Castles of Burgundy" - A kingdom building game for 2 to 5 players in which each player attempts to develop their kingdom in ways which maximise their points, making the best of their die rolls and competing for access to a pool of common resources. A variety of strategies are viable in an enjoyable and somewhat sedately paced game.

"Ghost Stories" - A cooperative game for 1 to 4 players in which you play Taoist monks attempting to drive out a variety of ghosts and demons from a village and eventually defeat the ultimate nemesis causing all the trouble. An incredibly difficult game which you should expect to lose the first few times you play. The game punishes sub-optimal decisions heavily. Tense and exciting fun.


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## Moonbat

Oooh, sounds good Fried Egg, I'd like to try Agricola and Ghost stories sounds like fun.

I have received a few games since my last post, I turned 37 and everyone knows that 37 is the board game birthday.
I got Concept, Dominion Prosperity and Dead of Winter and Star realms. All of them are great although I've found that whilst games like Dead of Winter are fine for me that they are too heavy for my wife and friends, so I wont get much chance to play it.

Also I picked up Ingenious and Incan Gold from charity shops in the past few weeks.


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## Fried Egg

Is "Dominion Prosperity" your first expansion? I'd be interested to know how well it sits with Dominion without any of the other expansions...

"Dead of winter" sounds interesting; having both cooperative elements and secret solo missions. Doesn't sound like a family game though so I might avoid it for the time being...


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## Moonbat

Prosperity is my first expansion, and it is the one I chose because it sort of gives you dominion but larger.
I found that sometimes we would play dominion as a 4 and the game wouldn't take long at all, I wanted something that extended it.
Whilst on holiday we played this about 4 times and 1 game was almost excruciatingly long, it took ages, but the other three were much better, one was quite short but the other 2 were of a decent length. The new cards (which we only played with, no base game cards - except the coins and property) did have some interesting effects and we used most of them, the game were interesting for us 4 as we had all played dominion basic plenty of times. I think if you'd like Dominion to be a bit longer or bigger then this is a definite expansion to try. I looked into all the expansions and this came out on top for me, maybe intrigue next, but I'd like to see how it works if we have a true mix of both base and expansion cards, might end up a bit hotch-potch.

Dead of winter was great, everyone but me won, they all had easy targets like having a few medicine in hand, I had to ensure there were loads of barriers at the basecamp and they all got destroyed and overrun by zombies on the last go, but as I said it was late and only one other player was really enjoying it, so it might not come out for a while. I thought it was good and a nice long in depth game of it would be great to play, hopefully I can convince my wife to play it with me - once we get Avalon to sleep a decent amount of time.


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## AlexanderSen

I just picked up copy of Space Cadets recently. It has an amazing premise where you and your crew(friends) work together to complete unique tasks so you and your team can finish the mission much like the classic Star Trek series. I also have been watching Star Trek The Next Generation, and after watching all of the first season I am hyped to play this game. I ran through a trial run to familiarize ourselves with the game and can't wait till you next boardgame session which I can bring it out!


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## Fried Egg

"Space Cadets" looks like an interesting game; great concept.


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## Fried Egg

Okay, latest acquisition is "Rivals for Catan"; a card game adaptation of "Settlers of Catan". I wanted something compact I could take away on holiday with me.


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## Moonbat

Have you played it yet?
Yesterday I got Tokaido, we played a two player game - which involves a third player played partly by both players.
To be honest, I was hoping for more from this game, it got a little better as we approached the end, but I expect it is a game that works best with 4 or 5 players.

Hopefully Five Tribes is arriving today, so excited about this one, we have been playing mancala and this uses that 'mancala' mechanic so hoping it will be worth the wait.

Also, I've allocated myself some funds to buy another game, but I'm not sure which, there is a new dominion out, and 7 wonders always intrigued me, but I'm unsure of what I should buy. Any ideas?


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## Fried Egg

Yes, I played one game of "Rivals of Catan" with my daughter and it was good. I forgot to mention that it is a two player game ("Settlers of Catan" is 3 - 4 players).

As for recommendations; I would what number of players are you aiming at?. "7 Wonders" is great for 3 - 7 players and (once you're all up to speed) can be played in half an hour irrespective of the number of players. But it doesn't play very well with 2 players (in my opinion).


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## Moonbat

In the end (and from advice from the very sarcastic and seemingly uninterested owner at the Exeter game shop) I went with Agricola: all creature big and small, which is a stripped down 2 player variant of Agricola.
We've only played once, but I enjoyed it. It's a worker placement/resource management and it plays in about 30mins, also it doesn't take long to set up so that is a bonus.
Still haven't played 5 tribes even though I've had it over a week now. Oh well. Soon it will hit the table.


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## Fried Egg

That's funny; he was giving that game the hard sell when I was in there buying "Rivals of Catan" the other day. If I wasn't already a bit Agricola'd out I might have gone for it.

I am really enjoying Rivals though; many viable strategies and a lot of variety offered by the three theme decks included.


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## AlexanderSen

Man I totally forgot about this.  I was going to contribute but I was so busy lately I forgot about the deadline. Well, hopefully I can get myself a copy!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1293726726/exoplanets


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## Fried Egg

That game does look interesting...


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## cyberpunkdreams

I've started playing board games a lot more with a local meet-up group here. I'm not sure it really qualifies as "board" (as it's really a card game), but I'm really into Shadowfist.


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## Fried Egg

cyberpunkdreams said:
			
		

> I'm not sure it really qualifies as "board" (as it's really a card game), but I'm really into Shadowfist.


I think we're talking about any kind of table top games in this thread...

As for myself, I've just aquired "Age of Darkness" (the first expansion for "Rivals For Catan") and someone has leant me their copy of "Pandemic" which I've played one game of so far and thoroughly enjoyed.


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## Fried Egg

If anyone's interested in playing board games on line I'm a member of the following sites that allow you to play a variety of board games when you don't have the time or ability to meet up with people face to face:

http://www.boiteajeux.net/index.php (I've played 'Agricola' and 'Castles of Burgundy' here)

http://en.boardgamearena.com/#!gamelist (They have games like 'Puerto Rico' and 'Race for the Galaxy')


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## AlexanderSen

I found this gem of a game recently. Unfortunately, I was too late to join in on the Kickstarter campaign. It looks like it's going to be a great addition to any sci-fi board game aficionado's collection, just like Cosmic Encounters and Eclipse. 

https://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/163976/exoplanets


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## Fried Egg

Indeed, games with an SF feel appeal to me too although currently the only one I have played is "Star Realms". 

I have been considering Eclipse because of its high rating but the slightly long game length deters me a little I must admit. I'm also considering Race For The Galaxy, Eminent Domain, Quantum and Core Worlds.


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## Moonbat

I have joined those online board game websites, not sure how we start a game or what game to play though.

I have played Eminent Domain and I hated it. It might be because the guy who taught it to me and two others kind of loved winning and we didn't really know how to play, he explained the rules but it seemed much more complicated than it was. I even ended up playing it again with him and thought it was rubbish the second time - but that might have been me being too angry with him for the first time we played.


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## Fried Egg

One of us needs to start a turn based game and then we can specify the number of players and specifically invite others to join it, if we specify their user name. On board game arena, I am "Fried Egg". On boiteajeux, I am "FriedEgg".


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## Fried Egg

Moonbat said:


> I have played Eminent Domain and I hated it. It might be because the guy who taught it to me and two others kind of loved winning and we didn't really know how to play, he explained the rules but it seemed much more complicated than it was. I even ended up playing it again with him and thought it was rubbish the second time - but that might have been me being too angry with him for the first time we played.


That's a shame. I've not played it yet but I thought it sounded interesting. Does the game not have any redeeming features?


----------



## Moonbat

Actually its a bit like Race for the Galaxy, I think the game is probably ok if you like that kind of game, I was probably put off by the annoying player.


----------



## AlexanderSen

Fried Egg said:


> Indeed, games with an SF feel appeal to me too although currently the only one I have played is "Star Realms".
> 
> I have been considering Eclipse because of its high rating but the slightly long game length deters me a little I must admit. I'm also considering Race For The Galaxy, Eminent Domain, Quantum and Core Worlds.



Yeah, Eclipse is an intense game, but well worth it. It could be considered a sequel to Twilight Imperium which is even longer than Eclipse!  But Race for the Galaxy is a much shorter game but there is a bit of a learning curve with all the symbols they use in the game.

If you don't mind more of a Fantasy theme, there is Seasons. Great artwork and theme and the game mechanics are really cool too! 
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/108745/seasons


----------



## Fried Egg

Thanks for the suggestion.


----------



## Fried Egg

An update of recent additions to my board game collection:

"Quantum" - A fun space exploration and battle game with a modular board and dice as ships.

"Race for the Galaxy" + "The Gathering Storm" (first expansion) - My new favourite game. A superb combination of brevity and depth. Establish your galactic empire before your opponents to win. Do it in a different way each time you play.

"Resistance: Avalon" - A Party game that requires 5 to 10 players. A game of deception and intrigue. Only played it a few times with children too young to bluff effectively and a grandparent too senile to remember what she's doing so haven't really seen it at it's best yet but seems a lot of fun.


----------



## Winters_Sorrow

kromanjon said:


> Betrayal at House on the Hill is a strange survival horror game of sorts. I've only played it a few times but it's been great and very surprising.
> 
> Warrior Knights is my latest purchase and I haven't had the chance to play it yet. Reading the manual though and looking over the components have gotten me realy exited. This might be my greatest game thus far.


 
Warrior Knights. That's a blast from the past. If it's the same one I remember (from 20+ years ago!) I loved it. You started out as different Barons (up to 6 players as I recall) and had a starting amount of gold. You could bid, in secret auction so you could over-pay a lot, for various mercenary armies each turn but had to have the funds to keep paying them or they'd leave. You could also fund trading ships and, if they returned, you'd get a good gold return on those. Great game & the secret auctions were quite tense when everyone wanted the strength 400 Lombards army group. You'd get random happenings like cards where all Milanese troops would desert so players who were unlucky enough to stack the same nationality of mercs (because they were cheaper) could be punished hard!

Betrayal is great as well, mainly thanks to all the numerous endings that game has.



Fried Egg said:


> Anyone played "7 Wonders"? Sounds like a good, fast paced game for up to seven players...


 
Yes that about sums it up. It plays very quickly for a 7 player game as there are only 3 Ages to worry about. Many ways to win (or lose) as well. A recent game I played I was stacking well with building modifiers and technology points but the two players either side of me had built up a substantial military and kept beating me in fights and claiming victory points, which meant I ended up last!



Moonbat said:


> I've found that whilst games like Dead of Winter are fine for me that they are too heavy for my wife and friends, so I wont get much chance to play it.
> 
> Also I picked up Ingenious and Incan Gold from charity shops in the past few weeks.


 
That's a shame but it is a problem with the types of board games out there now. For people brought up on Monopoly or Risk it can seem intimidating and I have similar problems trying to persuade my friends to join in too. I suppose when you're having to spend 30 minutes setting up the game and explaining the rules then it gets a bit scary. The best way is to spend time getting to grips with the rules yourself, inside and out, and then just play a few quick "open" turns where everyone can see the basic mechanics and then try and go from there.

I loved board games as a kid but grew out of them as I got older. But I've recently joined a board games club in my local area (check out your local area, you might have similar!) just after this year's International Tabletop Day (April I think?) and I've met some really nice people and gotten to play a lot of new and interesting games. And that's caused me to go out and splurge on games myself.

My collection currently includes:
Smash Up (with all expansions bar the Pretty Princess one...)
Dead of Winter (zombie-themed co-op survival game)
Firefly (authorised board game from the show), with Pirates & Bounty Hunters expansion
Sentinels of the Multiverse (superhero themed co-op card game), with Rook City, Infernal Relics, Shattered Timelines & Vengeance expansions.
Game of Thrones (1st edition!)

But thanks to the board games club I've managed to play a lot more, probably more than I can even remember to list here! I did like BSG (but the cylons always win!)


----------



## AlexanderSen

Winters_Sorrow said:


> That's a shame but it is a problem with the types of board games out there now. For people brought up on Monopoly or Risk it can seem intimidating and I have similar problems trying to persuade my friends to join in too. I suppose when you're having to spend 30 minutes setting up the game and explaining the rules then it gets a bit scary. The best way is to spend time getting to grips with the rules yourself, inside and out, and then just play a few quick "open" turns where everyone can see the basic mechanics and then try and go from there.



Yeah, sometimes it's tough finding the right group for the rights games. But for those who are new to more heavy board games there are "gateway" games which can be used to introduce newbie players to more heavy games. Games like Carcassonne and Settlers of Catan are a great way to wet the appetite of non-gamers to the world of boardgames.


----------



## Fried Egg

I just got the game "Innovation" and after playing one game I have to say that it is fantastic. It's a kind of civilization building card game where each card is a technology. Quite abstract and fairly simple play mechanisms yet it allows for a rich and varied game play. The game unfolds very differently with each play and can change quite chaotically within each game.

Highly recommended.


----------



## cyprus7

I was into AH's Panzerblitz back in the day. I used to get the SPI magazine delivered monthly, with a game in each issue.
Losing a counter or three was a bind, though!


----------



## Fried Egg

Latest games I've played:

"Dixit" - I got this as part of an effort to engage my entire family in a board game. Something more about imagination and word play than anything else. So far it's been quite successful but I wonder about the longevity. I recommend buying at least one expansion pack, possibility even before playing the game once, to help in this regard.

"Condottiere" - I wanted a game that worked well for fairly large player counts (4-6) yet retained brevity and strategy. It does indeed do that. Lots of bluffing, intrigue, strategy and fun. Highly recommended. A good game for travelling too as it is a tiny box with a small board.


----------



## Fried Egg

Anyone get any Christmas board games?

I had:

Memoir '44  - A quick playing two player war game that recreates various battles from WWII during the liberation of France.






Five Tribes - Manipulate the five tribes of Nagala in order to maximise your points whilst trying to make it difficult for your opponent. Not as complex as it initially looks!


----------



## Fried Egg

Ooh, and another cheeky little game I picked up _since_ Christmas:

Tiny Epic Galaxies - I'm a sucker for space themed games but got this mainly for it's small box and portability. Actually a lot of fun as you compete to establish the best galactic empire.


----------



## Moonbat

I would post mine, but I got 9 games for Christmas and I haven't got the time (or inclination) to find pictures for them all.
They are
T.I.M.E Stories - A sort of role playing game, that you play through many times before you can win/complete it, other scenarios/expansions available
Pandemic Legacy (season 1) - A legacy version of the ever popular co-operative game.
Libertalia - Pirate ship crew themed game, I think it is card drafting mechanic, but not played it yet
Jamaica - Race ships around the island, not played this either
Jaipur - a simple 2 player card drafting/collection game, played it online with FriedEgg but not in real life
No Thanks - A great little card game, very easy and simple
6 Nimmit - another small card game, tricky little one this
Coup - I actually have this game already, so gave it away as a present to another gaming fan
Age of War - great little dice game, themed on Japanese feudalism.

I may have lied, I also got Game of Thrones Monopoly (what was my brother thinking! Monopoly!!!) and a little quiz Time Lines (music and movie edition)

All in all, we've only played 2 games so far, Age of War and TIME stories, but loving them both.


----------



## Fried Egg

Several of my board games can be played solitaire but this is the first game I bought that is specifically best for solitaire: Space Hulk: Death Angel.






It can play up to six people (cooperatively) and it is a brutally punishing game but a lot of fun (if storming a hostile alien ship wreck with a bunch of futuristic space marines who are all likely to die is your idea of fun).


----------



## Fried Egg

I think I've got an addition, someone help me.

Latest acquisition: Mottainai







Ever wanted to be a Buddhist monk and run your own temple, competitively? Well, who hasn't. Now's your chance.


----------



## The Big Peat

I recently brought my first board game in forever when I joined in on the Kickstarter for In The Name Of Odin. Pretty excited about it coming.


----------



## Fried Egg

It's very rare that I buy more than one expansion for a given board game but I love "Race for the Galaxy" so much that I picked up "Xeno Invasion".






Lots of new cards but also contains an optional 'Invasion' module in which the galaxy is being overrun by a hostile alien race and players are forced to do their bit to defend and fight back against the common menace. Adds an almost semi-cooperative element to this otherwise cut-throat competitive game.


----------



## Carolyn Hill

Fried Egg said:


> Adds an almost semi-cooperative element to this otherwise cut-throat competitive game.



Is it like the pirate ship in Seafarers of Catan, where you can sometimes use noncooperation to your advantage, or does every player suffer the same negative consequences?

All those beautiful cards and pieces: looks good!


----------



## Fried Egg

Carolyn Hill said:


> Is it like the pirate ship in Seafarers of Catan, where you can sometimes use noncooperation to your advantage, or does every player suffer the same negative consequences?


It's nothing like the pirate ship in Catan where one player gets to move it and put it somewhere inconvenient to others. At the end of each round (after the xeno invasion has begun, each player must defend against it or face one of their worlds becoming damaged. The vaguely cooperative element comes from the fact that if the players combined military strength outweighs the xeno strength, they are considered repulsed and the game ends.

One might think that playing with this expansion forces one to take a military strategy but that is not the case; players pursuing instead a strong economy can muster temporary defences by sacrificing goods/cards and may elected to contribute to the war effort with surplus goods.


----------



## abrucestewart

Getting back into board games now the offspring are old enough to join in.

Used to play a lot of Advanced Third Reich and once tried Rising Sun. Nowadays it's High Frontier or Arkham Asylum for the adults, or Forbidden Island or the newer Forbidden Desert with the kids as they're both cooperative. All highly recommended.

ABS


----------



## Fried Egg

I just got "Citadels" which is a surprising hit with the kids (surprising because it is quite cut-throat).


----------



## Fried Egg

A couple of games I took on a recent holiday that went down well with my family. 

My son was not so keen but my wife and daughter really enjoyed For Sale in which you bid against each other to assemble the best property portfolio that you then sell off. Whoever has the most cash at the end is the winner.






My son really enjoyed Quadropolis, a city building game.


----------



## Fried Egg

Another recent acquisition: Survive: Space Attack!:






Quite a bit of fun trying to escape your astronauts and watching your opponents getting eaten by big ugly alien monsters!


----------



## Fried Egg

Civilization in a board game and it plays in about two hours: Historia






It plays up to 6 players but you can fill out the number of players with "civ-bots", artificial players that make tough opponents!


----------



## Ragandar

Hoo boy. I did not realise there was a boardgame thread here. I am a massive board game nerd.

I'm by far the one that enjoys them the most in my group of friends, though they all enjoy joining in when I set up a game night.
One of my friends refuses to play Game of Thrones (2nd ed), since he's never won it in the 70-odd times we played it, and some are hesitant to join in on a game of Twilight Imperium 3. Of course, TI3 is not for everyone.

However, I've been... collecting people to play with, so I now have enough people to split it into two groups. One group for 'regular boardgames' and one for the people that are mad enough to get into a 12-hour long game. Admittedly, the people in the latter group (me included) have the stamina to play two games of TI3 back to back. It's amazing. Such a great experience, every time.

Other games I play frequently include:
7 Wonders (with all the expansions)
Star Realms
Runewars
Spectre Ops
Descent 2
BattleLore 2

I've got a bunch more games, but those are probably the ones we play most.


----------



## Fried Egg

12-hour long game...wow, it's been a long time since I've had the time (or the stamina) for that. These days I prefer a game that comes in under 2 hours.

I often find I can't find opportunities to play with others as much as I would like so I have resorted to the odd solitaire game from time to time. "Friday" is a challenging solitaire deck building game that I've enjoyed recently:


----------



## Fried Egg

Latest game: Peloponnes Card Game






Try to establish and grow your ancient Greek city state against the backdrop of the looming threat of disasters such as an earthquake or flood.


----------



## Ragandar

Huh, interesting. To keep it to a Greek theme:

Bought Cyclades two days ago. We played it three times since then. This game is all about building an empire on the Greek islands and somehow scheming your way into owning two metropolises. I liked it quite a bit, but this game got more love from my friends. They all like it more than Kemet, and they asked me to play it, rather than me asking them to play it.





Image credit: Review: Cyclades – Hades | Shut Up & Sit Down


----------



## Fried Egg

Cyclades looks very interesting, I've had my eye on it for a while (my eye is on too many games). Looks like a lot of fun.


----------



## Carolyn Hill

The figurines in the photo of Cyclades look fun.  I enjoy games with detailed figures and playing pieces.


----------



## BAYLOR

Two favorite board games 

*1.Chess
2. Stratego *


----------



## cyberpunkdreams

I've just started an ongoing game on Pandemic Legacy with some friends -- really, really good, especially when completely new rules are unlocked, and things like that. You tear up cards, but stickers on the board, modify cards, all of that...

Pandemic Legacy


----------



## 2DaveWixon

BAYLOR said:


> Two favorite board games
> 
> *1.Chess
> 2. Stratego *


I haven't played either of those for years. I spent a lot of time with Stratego when younger, but then got diverted into the Avalon Hill games while I was in the Navy...


----------



## weateallthepies

Board games are probably my second love after books, I probably own a few hundred now though I daren't get them all together as they'll reach critical mass and my wife will explode.

Play pretty much anything but I'm also very keen on historical wargames, and I play a lot of solo games when I'm not getting together with the local gamers.

Currently painting up Shadows Of Brimstone which is a fantastic RPG kind of boardgame with a weird west setting. Can run campaigns with character advancement and stuff, really good fun.

Also working through the rules for Enemy Action: Ardennes which is a huge 15 hour historical campaign which can be played solo or two player.


----------



## Fried Egg

weateallthepies said:


> Board games are probably my second love after books, I probably own a few hundred now though I daren't get them all together as they'll reach critical mass and my wife will explode.


I can relate to that! Indeed, I've actually managed to get rid of a few games lately...I've been ruthless and made the difficult decision regarding which games I just don't think I'll get to the table much.

Still acquiring new ones though. Here are a few recent acquisitions:

Impulse - A 4X space game:







Oh My Goods - Terrible name but a great economic engine building game:






Pandemic: The Cure - A dice version of Pandemic:


----------



## 2DaveWixon

BAYLOR said:


> Two favorite board games
> 
> *1.Chess
> 2. Stratego *


Strange that you mentioned Stratego -- last weekend my youngest brother (to whom I had not mentioned the game) texted me to say that he'd found the game at a garage sale, paid a buck for it, and played it with his son...apparently, my brother, at least, enjoyed it... (No word from my nephew on that...)
Coincidence? 
Now I'm trying to remember whether I ever played the game with him (my youngest bro, that is)...I had the game years ago, but he was nine years younger than me, making him about 13 when I went into the Navy...so I don't really think so...
So why did he buy the game, I wonder...?


----------



## Carolyn Hill

I just purchased The Cataclysm expansion for Talisman.  It's particularly interesting because it has an entirely new three-realm board to replace the original main board.


----------



## Ragandar

I bought Mansions of Madness 2nd Ed. today. I was hesitant at first, as I wasn't sure what to think of the app. Decided to give it a go, and was rather disappointed with the component quality compared to the retail price. However, once we played the game we had a tonne of fun. So much so, in fact, that we immediately played another game. Those stories are pretty great.






[Image credit]


----------



## cyberpunkdreams

I've playing a game of Pandemic Legacy, and it's very, very good. It's my first time playing a legacy-style game and it's a bit mind blowing.


----------



## AlexanderSen

I played Terraforming Mars the other day, although I had to quit mid game, it was great fun. It feels like Agricola, but in space. Try it if you ever have the chance!


----------



## Fried Egg

cyberpunkdreams said:


> I've playing a game of Pandemic Legacy, and it's very, very good. It's my first time playing a legacy-style game and it's a bit mind blowing.


Interesting. I received Pandemic Legacy as a gift the other day but I'm thinking of selling it. Primarily because I feel that you need to have a core group that you sit down with and play every single time. It's like a shared experience that you all go through and I just don't have such a regular group to play with.


AlexanderSen said:


> I played Terraforming Mars the other day, although I had to quit mid game, it was great fun. It feels like Agricola, but in space. Try it if you ever have the chance!


I would love to play the game but it seems quite hard to get hold of.

Meanwhile a couple of my latest games.

"The King is Dead" - A re-implementation of "The King of Siam". Absolutely excellent showdown between two or three players:






And "Discoveries" - Dice rolling and allocation as you're trying to recreate the exploits of the legendary American pioneers Lewis and Clark:


----------



## cyberpunkdreams

Fried Egg said:


> Interesting. I received Pandemic Legacy as a gift the other day but I'm thinking of selling it. Primarily because I feel that you need to have a core group that you sit down with and play every single time. It's like a shared experience that you all go through and I just don't have such a regular group to play with.



This is true. Well, obviously, you don't _have_, but I can't imagine playing with different people each time. It's very much a shared experience.


----------



## Galactic Journey

BAYLOR said:


> Two favorite board games
> 
> *1.Chess
> 2. Stratego *



My daughter and I have played a bit of these lately.  She's lost three for three in Chess, but won three for three in Stratego.  The set I have is a 1961 original (as befits my avocation...)


----------



## Fried Egg

A curious acquisition recently:






Looks like a box of mints but is actually a very good worker placement game in which the players are rival neighbourhood planners trying to make their neighbourhood the best.


----------



## Ragandar

With how scatterbrained I am, that would probably not be a good fit for me. I'd end up gnawing on the pieces, wondering why on earth this mint is so hard to get through.

As for recent purchases, I bought the BattleLore 2.0 expansions that I didn't own yet, so I now have the whole game complete.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



[Image Credit]

The only downside is that it no longer fits in the base game box, so I'll have to find some other way to store it all.


----------



## Fried Egg

Having posted here for a while but the games have still been coming thick and fast. Here is my latest purchase (with a photo I've actually taken myself for a change):

*Mint Delivery *- Another game that comes in a mint tin!


----------



## 2DaveWixon

Galactic Journey said:


> My daughter and I have played a bit of these lately.  She's lost three for three in Chess, but won three for three in Stratego.  The set I have is a 1961 original (as befits my avocation...)


Yes! That's the game I had!
Ah, the memories...thrashing my younger brothers over and over again...!


----------



## AnnWanges

I have a couple to play with friends  Dixit, Uno and Game of Thrones Board game


----------



## 2DaveWixon

I've played a lot of Uno in my time -- all of that well before there was a Game of Thrones game.
But a question about this thread: does Boggle count as a board game?

(For that matter, does Uno?)


----------



## 2DaveWixon

I've been thinking about the mentions of having a "core group" of people to play with. I think the absence of such a group is why I've fallen away from playing games lately...
When I was in the Navy I had a small group of buddies that would spend an entire weekend battling -- our favorite game was Avalon Hill's BATTLE OF THE BULGE -- simple to learn to play, and a game that could come to a finish in a few hours.
But occasionally, we would decide to try something more challenging --- you see, we were forced to play in our barracks, and so had to dance around military requirements and such -- for instance, we tried several times to play Avalon Hill's game 1914...it was a difficult, complicate game that we never managed to finish...always, when we tried that, we went right through the weekend and had to put the game away when Monday came and it was back to the Real World. (Is there a game called REAL WORLD? Should there be?)

Once out of the Navy and back in Minnesota, I fell in with Bad Company...no, I mean, with a different sort of group; and our games of choice were DUNE and KINGMAKER.
Alas, all of us developed family connections that did not really want to spend so much of a weekend listening to the rattle of dice and incomprehensible commentary on English noble houses...
*sigh*


----------



## Fried Egg

Lately I've been building pyramids in *Teotihuacan: City of Gods*


----------



## Kingeleven11

Board games are interesting. I got yahtzee from top1apk. With the available grid, it helps us save time. We usually play this game when we go in group. It's really fun.


----------



## 2DaveWixon

Yes, I'm looking at a box with Yahtzee right now, across the room on a shelf. The deluxe Boggle is on top of that, and underneath are one of my chess sets, the Stratego, and the Monopoly. (The Avalon Hill games take up 'way too much room to be on that shelf...)


----------



## hitmouse

We have been having fun with Puerto Rico since Christmas. Simple yet deep. The amount of detailed needy analysis of this game on the web is impressive.


----------



## Fried Egg

hitmouse said:


> We have been having fun with Puerto Rico since Christmas. Simple yet deep. The amount of detailed needy analysis of this game on the web is impressive.


And it's inspired many other great games...


----------



## MaxiPower

The sheriff of notthingham is a great party / family card game. Involves players taking turn playing the sheriff and basically having the other players having to lie in declaring what they have in their bag to sneak contraband past him. The sound of your bag opening brings laughter and sometimes dred to the group lol. Really recommend it.


----------



## M. Robert Gibson

I've just found an old link to a list of board games and I wondered if there was a thread on here for SFF based games where I could post it.

Silly me.  Of course there is   








						20 awesome board games you may never have heard of
					

Put down that Monopoly money, cease your Trivial Pursuing. Here are the alternative board games you should really have in your life




					www.theguardian.com
				




A lot on the list have already been mentioned, but I'm ashamed to say I've only heard of a couple and played even fewer

Carcassonne sounds great, I'm off to try and find a software version


----------



## hitmouse

Carcassonne is great. Made even better by the Inns and Cathedrals expansion.
From that list I would also recommend Ticket to Ride and 7 wonders which my family have played regularly for years.  Dominion is a  clever game which has some serious fans.
Check out the top 100 or so games on the Boardgamegeek website.


----------



## Vince W

Does anyone else play Illuminati? This is one of SJGames best and was recently updated and reissued.


----------



## hitmouse

Has anyone here played either Concordia or Castles of Burgundy? 

If so, any opinions?

Thinking of getting them to help keep the family entertained over the Summer.


----------



## M. Robert Gibson

Ars Technica, an online tech magazine, have a section about board games which makes for some interesting reading





						Ars Cardboard | Series | Ars Technica
					

Serving the Technologist for more than a decade. IT news, reviews, and analysis.




					arstechnica.com
				




The latest game out is a version of Terminator








						The new Terminator board game is actually worth your time
					

Terminator Genisys: Rise of the Resistance isn't wildly innovative, but it is fun.




					arstechnica.com


----------



## Kingeleven11

Currently I play PUBg mobile download at mobidescargar


----------



## M. Robert Gibson

The latest review from Ars Technica, a board game civilisation builder








						Tapestry: Has the mythical “2-hour civ-building board game” arrived?
					

One of the year's most anticipated board games is a 2-hour civ-builder.




					arstechnica.com
				




As a fan of of empire building games, I'd like to give this a go, but I don't have any friends who'd play it with me


----------



## Fried Egg

M. Robert Gibson said:


> The latest review from Ars Technica, a board game civilisation builder
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Tapestry: Has the mythical “2-hour civ-building board game” arrived?
> 
> 
> One of the year's most anticipated board games is a 2-hour civ-builder.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> arstechnica.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> As a fan of of empire building games, I'd like to give this a go, but I don't have any friends who'd play it with me


It's not the end of the world; it has an excellent solo "automa" that simulates another player so you don't need any friends!


----------



## Wyrmlord

My partner and I have been playing Scrabble, with a board from the 1980s. We are also fans of Scythe and Pandemic.


----------



## Peter A

Frustration is a great game. There's a dice in a plastic bubble, and the object is to get your pegs around a board. It is also called Trouble.


----------



## Wyrmlord

Just played a game of The Oregon Trail last night with some friends. It's a lot of fun and a great introduction to more "advanced" games for people who don't have much experience with complex games.


----------



## gtempel

Just to jump in here - games I love:
*Azul* (placing glazed tiles to get points in a game concept I haven't encountered before it is my favourite at the moment - fast, easy to learn and hard to master - no text and easy rules make it perfect for international groups)
*Isle of Skye* (like Carcasonne you place land tiles but you have to buy them from you opponents first and everyone builds their own little kingdom - it is very good and gets better with the expansions - also it is set in Scotland - sheep and Whisky a plenty)
*Carcasonne* (it is a classic and I like to be classy - the bigbox with a number of expansions is fun - mix and match what fits your style and mood)
*Settlers of Catan* (as mentioned I like the classics and I grew up with this)
*Arkham Horror* (Lovecraftian Game about the threat of the great older ones - a coop game where all players play against the board - true to the mythos most of the time you horribly lose - that makes fun stories - it gets more complex with expansions but also more fun and harder - needs a dedicated group as it has a learning curve and needs team communications - takes almost an hour to set up and then if you are unlucky you lose after 15 minutes - but setting up a second game is much faster)
*Pandemic* [Legacy Season 1] (another Coop game - again really fun - again you need a dedicated group - the legacy version includes ripping up cards and stuff - which is super fun once you get over the pain of destroying parts of your game for the first time)
*Agricola *(basically it is farmville for people without a phone - you have a farm you plot your land and make babies and feed babies turn cattle to food and all such things - quite fun and high emphasis on tactics - with the downside that more experienced players have a huge advantage)
*Caylus* (pure tactic game about building the castle for a king - no random elements - if you are into tactics it is great)
*Tzol'kin the Mayan calendar *(super complex worker placement game with many aspects but still a easy core gameplay)

so these are the games I like - I have a sweet spot for tactical gameplay which gets refelcted by the choice of games
for easy short fun I like Munchkin (ok not really short) and Codenames

I despise monopoly and risk (the former gets tedious and boring and the latter gives me dice-throwing-related-carpal-tunnel-syndrome just from thinking about it) - so yeah I do not like all the classics - on the topic of classics I am always open to a round of "Mensch ärger dich nicht" (the German and maybe original version of Trouble) and a nice evening of Skat (a German card game I will not even attempt to explain - it is very fun though)


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## Wyrmlord

My partner got me the LOST game as a gag gift for Christmas. We recently watched the entire series and really enjoyed it. I'm curious to see how this game plays.


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## hitmouse

Having fun with Pandemic at the moment.


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## Narkalui

Does anyone else remember The Lost Valley of the Dinosaurs?
It was basically a board game of an H. Rider Haggard book / Doug McClure film


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## Toby Frost

Yes, I do! My grandparents bought it for me when I was young. I don't remember it being a brilliant game but I loved the look of it. It had a great pulpy cover of an explorer in shorts fending off a dinosaur with a revolver.


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## Narkalui

Toby Frost said:


> Yes, I do! My grandparents bought it for me when I was young. I don't remember it being a brilliant game but I loved the look of it. It had a great pulpy cover of an explorer in shorts fending off a dinosaur with a revolver.


My parents refused to play it with my brother and I, they said it was too complicated. But we did have some great afternoons with friends over


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## Vince W

Toby Frost said:


> Yes, I do! My grandparents bought it for me when I was young. I don't remember it being a brilliant game but I loved the look of it. It had a great pulpy cover of an explorer in shorts fending off a dinosaur with a revolver.


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## M. Robert Gibson

Vince W said:


>


Surely this must be the precursor to Jurassic Park: Danger! 








						Jurassic Park: Danger!
					

Alan Grant and friends run and hide from a pack of dinosaurs who try to eat them.




					boardgamegeek.com


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## DeltaV

The Awful Green Things from Outer Space  & Starmada.

Got these two games out last weekend.

_The Awful Green Things from Outer Space_ is a micro game that has been around for decades, and has multiple editions.   The Green Things try to take over the good ship _Znutar_.  The crew player has various objects and tools to use on the Green Things, but  you don't know the effect until you try them the first time.  Unfortunately for me, playing the Green Things, the gas grenade (an area effect weapon) pulled a 4-dice to kill chit.  And the valiant crew of the _Znutar_, aided by the redoutable robot Leadfoot, made sure that they had a steady supply of them. 

Afterwards we dust_e_d off  Starmada for a quick one-on-one battle.  I haven't played this in ages, but have recently gotten interested again in space ship games and wanted to refresh my memory on how this plays.

I have _Starmada: The Admiralty Edition_, which came out in 2008.  I never bought any of the follow up editions or variants.  The ship building system in the basic game is very easy (there is even a spreadsheet helper), but we never really explored the options (so I am not a Starmada expert by any means).  Although the movement system is a bit quirky, it does make sense, and the combat system is straightforward.

We picked a standard ship (Victory-class heavy cruiser) vs a custom 'Strike-Cruiser' (faster, better shields, but only two weapons, albeit that pack a punch) that I quickly made up. I plunked a couple of old Stardate:3000 minis on the  hex sheet, and we were off.  My 'tactics' were to keep my distance and launch missiles at maximum range, staying out of range of the heavy cruiser's secondary weapons. Unfortunately on the very first turn, at maximum range, my opponent rolled some hot dice and knocked out one of my two missile launchers.  Half-a-dozen turns later, I lost my second missile launcher.  Time to run for home.  

Afterwards, remembering a little more about how it plays, Starmada is not really the game for one ship against one ship.  With the basic rules, there are not a lot of tactics, nor a lot of decisions to make, unlike, say, _Star Fleet Battles_.  I've recently picked up a copy of _Squadron Strike!  _The rule book is a tad thicker than Starmada, so we'll see how that goes.


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