Board Games!

[xRECKONERx]

to clarify, your Mage Wars is basic Mage Wars and not Mage Wars: Arena?

also, interested in Quarriors. What shape are the components/cards in?

It came out before Arena was a thing. I *think* it's just the same base game but they renamed it later.

[vonflare]

There are slight differences but yes they are essentially the same

[Vi]

Argent: The Consortium - 5 (Mannheim) to 4 (Trias) to 2 (Jesca, me) to 1 (Lavanina)

I thought I knew how to play this game, but honestly I got humbled so badly this time around. It was a gala event with no scarcity of anything, plus the utter nonsense that is Golem Lab A (or whichever side has "1 Merit 1 Mana = Place a Temp Mage and Lock its Room"). My first three Marks were Research and two colors, and I rolled it so hard that I wound up boxed in. Supporters and Influence were distant dreams, and everyone else was (in some cases literally) locking down the rest. I managed to lose both Intelligence and Wisdom - to different people. Maybe now they'll learn that when I say I can't win, I mean it? Or maybe that's just an open invitation to pick off what they can from me. Utterly vicious game from all parties; I think I learned that I (still) can't ever dump Influence and that in wide-open setups like this I simply can't stop people from getting what they want, so much as outrace them.

But at least everyone acknowledged that no one is challenging me for the fanciest bank-shot turns. I mean, I had Staff B for the entire game, and picked up both Dazzle and Future Power. Actual mid-turn time loops.

I'm still on the fence about whether Festival of Masks is a silly module. It sure does make whoever takes the last turn each round very sad.

this game started at 20:30 or so and the post-postgame ended at like 02:15 how did this become my life

[chamber]

this game started at 20:30 or so and the post-postgame ended at like 02:15 how did this become my life

This has been my biggest complaint with the game the few times I've played it, seems to take forever for the experience I get. But it's always been with newish players (myself included). Hearing that it still took you this long makes me never want to play it again.

[Vi]

this game started at 20:30 or so and the post-postgame ended at like 02:15 how did this become my life

This has been my biggest complaint with the game the few times I've played it, seems to take forever for the experience I get. But it's always been with newish players (myself included). Hearing that it still took you this long makes me never want to play it again.

The game doesn't have to be this long, but this was a

particularly

elaborate randomly-generated monstrosity of a setup with a new player and two overthinky types. Also by "post-postgame" I mean "after half an hour of everyone reliving their joys and agonies from the game, armchairing everyone else's moves in retrospect, and then after two people left me and the other person kept talking for a while longer while I decided whether I was awake enough to drive across town".

...But it's still a commitment. This experience is basically all the anecdotal evidence anyone needs to get the hint that this is not something you pull out for an evening of gaming, unless you're one of those weird not-me people who doesn't associate the AM hours with daylight. This is something you play on a weekend maybe once a month, getting some good food beforehand and then settling in for the afternoon. I would hesitate to play this game with five people not just because there's an additional person who takes their time, but because that's compounded by how the pressure becomes even more crushing when one more person competes for the same total number of voters.

It's still less analysis paralysis than Five Tribes.

[popsofctown]

So it was a 3 hour game? That's not that long? Do I have more endurance than normal people or can I not do math across midnight? Maybe both.

[Vi]

So it was a 3 hour game? That's not that long? Do I have more endurance than normal people or can I not do math across midnight? Maybe both.

The game took about five and a half hours. Still not as long as Twilight Imperium (although I'm told that is also a good game if you don't mind losing the whole day).

[PJ.]

If it's longer than 90 minutes, it's too long

[xRECKONERx]

We played Spirit Island last night. Hooooooly shit what a dense game

[Vi]

We played Spirit Island last night. Hooooooly shit what a dense game

preach

but did you enjoy it

[shaft.ed]

got to play a lot of board games visiting the fam

Unfortunately, my nephew has a bit of a cheating problem. He was caught blatantly cheating during games of Quacks of Q and Whitehall Mysteries

I kinda liked Quacks, but the games we played were a bit to luck based for my tastes. A lot of times someone would draw almost every chip besides their whites while someone else would explode within about 5 or 6 pulls. Seemed the amount of setup and effort needed for what felt like a luck heavy game wasn't all that worth it. Also didn't like how people losing towards the end are pretty much forced to push it to the max that last two or three rounds, which 9 times out of 10 just makes them explode and then get spaced further back. I don't know if there would be a way to accelerate the game (we played all rounds with simulataneous bag draws because of the nephews aforementioned cheating).

I really liked Whitehall Mysteries. Fun game with a lot of pins and needles regardless of what side your playing on.

Niece also really enjoyed Kingdomino. She's still a bit young and has more compulsions about finishing her square or matching up tiles instead of optimizing for points. But it has a nice quick play speed and is challenging enough to keep the 'adults' interested

Push was also a great family/filler game. Would recommend if you're looking for a nice 3-6 player filler card game that is exceedingly easy to teach.

Also got a couple more playthroughs of Clank! in. This might be one of my top games currently, although I only have 3 plays on it. Really like the hybrid of board game and deck builder. ALso like how sometimes the game goes really fast because someone tries to get in and out really quick and trap everyone down below, and sometimes we all delve into the depths and pull out obscene point totals. Last play I got knocked out one space from the exit (from time out) and my brother got KO'd two spaces away (clank heavy deck). I still managed to win without the 20 point exit bonus.

[shaft.ed]

We played Spirit Island last night. Hooooooly shit what a dense game

I still haven't ventured into a game of Spirit Island with other people as I'm terrified of trying a playthrough with someone that isn't up for that kind of density

[xRECKONERx]

I did enjoy it. I crave playing it again. But I need to PREPARE my brain.

Funny enough, the other game I was gifted for my bday was fucking Food Chain Magnate. My brain gonna be doing a big hurt for the foreseeable future.

[hiplop]

i really like dominion

[vonflare]

yeah dominion is pretty great

[Equinox]

If it's longer than 90 minutes, it's too long

any game shorter than 120 minutes does not feel like a game was played.

[DeathNote]

Finally played Captain Sonar and I am in love.

We got the full 8 too which was awesome.

[popsofctown]

If it's longer than 90 minutes, it's too long

any game shorter than 120 minutes does not feel like a game was played.

I want to play board games with Equinox!

[shaft.ed]

why not both?

[zoraster]

If it's longer than 90 minutes, it's too long

any game shorter than 120 minutes does not feel like a game was played.

Well boy howdy do I have a suggestion for a game to play again, Equinox!

[Errantparabola]

Unfortunately, my nephew has a bit of a cheating problem. He was caught blatantly cheating during games of Quacks of Q and Whitehall Mysteries

wild

She's still a bit young and has more compulsions about finishing her square or matching up tiles instead of optimizing for points.

never heard of this game but this sounds like me tbh.

We played Spirit Island last night. Hooooooly shit what a dense game

I still haven't ventured into a game of Spirit Island with other people as I'm terrified of trying a playthrough with someone that isn't up for that kind of density

spirit island is so sick. do you normally play solo? i was thinking of trying the table top simulator for it solo

[hasdgfas]

If it's longer than 90 minutes, it's too long

any game shorter than 120 minutes does not feel like a game was played.

Past 120 minutes a game has to be very special to hold my attention.

[implosion]

Fun thing: i've decided to start tracking my board game plays this year. Bought a random app that seems to do the job nicely.

So far I've only played one game... five times... and it's terraforming mars . Enjoying it more than I feel I ought to. The first time I played it, my reaction was more or less "this game seems somewhat fun but also probably really poorly designed??" and now i have the more nuanced opinion of thinking that No Pun Included's review of saying it's "fun, but not for the right reasons" is kind of right. But also it's really fun so. Got several expansions as well (prelude, alternate boards, colonies) which are all quite solid.

I did play a ton of different games the couple of weeks before the turn of the decade, though. Probably like 10-15 different games over those weeks, since friends and I were off school and I opted to have a rule for a while that we couldn't play any game twice.

[Vi]

No Pun Included

this seems like the worst name for a commentator

[shaft.ed]

i was thinking of trying the table top simulator for it solo

the table top simulator is WAY better for solo

I started playing on the simulator while I was waiting for the game to arrive
I barely use the physical game because it takes up a lot of time and space for something that works fine on the PC