As was foretold, we've added advertisements to the forums! If you have questions, or if you encounter any bugs, please visit this thread: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/240191/forum-advertisement-faq-and-reports-thread/
Options

[Board Games] Discussions of Wil Wheaton's cardboard nerd-cred consolidated here.

134689101

Posts

  • Options
    ArcticLancerArcticLancer Best served chilled. Registered User regular
    FreeAgent wrote: »
    Tayrun wrote: »
    FreeAgent wrote: »
    Core worlds it is then. Now to decide if I can justify picking up a discounted 7 wonders as well, seeing as I've spent a ridiculous amount funding future board games pretty recently.

    You absolutely can justify getting a full-price copy of that brilliant game. Discount is a no brainer as long as it's in good condition.

    This is my usual line of thinking (I'm a sucker for a good deal) but zpocalypse, zombicide, and agents of smursh have taken their toll already. And what if, god forbid, I end up backing sentinels of the multiverse or tammany hall? The thousand games of the kickstarter army have descended upon me. Their cards and minis shall blot out the sun.

    I feel like what this really is a lesson in is picking and choosing your kickstarter games. I got in on Zombicide mainly because of all the extras they were throwing at people. Otherwise I could have easily waited for it to come along later in a store. And I'm kickstarting Tammany Hall because I've been waiting for a reprint of that for a little while now, and I'm happy to support them. But that's been it in the last few months, really. I think it's kind of a bad idea to put so much money into games that will eventually arrive rather than ones you can have now. It's not at all uncommon for most KS projects to be 4-8 months away from shipping (4 being the lowest I have experienced, and 8 being ones I am still waiting for), which really isn't a short period of time ...

    I mean, don't let me dissuade you from picking up things you're interested in, but ... just consider that in most cases, games on kickstarter will be available later for similar or better prices, or people will be willing to trade them on BGG with any promos included. You'll wait just as long, but you aren't spending the money now, which means you *could* buy something else that *is* out now.

  • Options
    jergarmarjergarmar hollow man crew goes pew pew pewRegistered User regular
    edited May 2012
    FreeAgent wrote: »
    Thanks for the insight on lords of waterdeep. Gives me something to think about.

    I'm considering picking up one or two games while that deal is going. How would you advise between the following: 7 wonders, core worlds, race for the galaxy, betrayal at house on the hill,
    . I've played 7 wonders once, and none of the others.

    I really like Race for the Galaxy. It has a ton of depth and replayability, especially with the first two expansions (the third expansion is good times but really changes the game to an "experts only" version). It also is a very quick game where you can play several rounds back to back.

    It has two downsides:

    1) Its theme is really vauge. It has excellent artwork but you do not generate a narrative as you play (eg: its like Dominion in that the cards you play do not make a coherent story).
    <snip>

    I just wanted to echo this sentiment. Literally a couple of days ago the example of Dominion came to mind, concerning the nice cards, great mechanics, and a theme that evaporates as soon as you start playing unless you really focus on it. It actually makes me want to pick up Thunderstone Advance or another deck-building variant with a more crunchy "game story arc". Shoot, I think you could argue that Quarriors has a more satisfying theme, because your monsters attack other monsters.

    EDIT:
    Figgy wrote: »
    Hensler wrote: »
    Thoughts on Forbidden Island? For $10 at Barnes and Noble, I'm almost certainly going to buy it, but would like to hear what people think anyways.

    It's certainly worth $10. I found it to have less depth than I thought it would, but it's a good game to get people into the hobby. It introduces concepts that traditional "popular" boardgames don't usually contain.

    Forbidden Island is fun for kids, because you can help them play it and they don't need to be on "mommy's team" or anything. I like playing with my nibblings (nieces and nephews).

    jergarmar on
    When I was a child, I had a fever...
    jswidget.php?username=jergarmar&numitems=7&text=none&images=small&show=hot10&imagesonly=1&imagepos=right&inline=1&domains%5B%5D=boardgame&imagewidget=1
    My BoardGameGeek profile
    Battle.net: TheGerm#1430 (Hearthstone, Destiny 2)
  • Options
    NamrokNamrok Registered User regular
    So I'm finally getting around to watching Tabletop. It's interesting enough. But I sort of wish it kept a regular casts. Or at least 3 regulars and 1 guest. Because like most shows, I think the cast needs to gel, and that's not gonna happen with people never sticking around for more than 1 show.

  • Options
    lazegamerlazegamer The magnanimous cyberspaceRegistered User regular
    Namrok wrote: »
    So I'm finally getting around to watching Tabletop. It's interesting enough. But I sort of wish it kept a regular casts. Or at least 3 regulars and 1 guest. Because like most shows, I think the cast needs to gel, and that's not gonna happen with people never sticking around for more than 1 show.

    I hope Day9 makes semi-regular appearances. He's been far and away my favorite guest so far.

    I would download a car.
  • Options
    DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    Played some Lords of Waterdeep over the weekend. One of the players got the "Get an extra worker for the rest of the game" quest in his starting quests, completed it almost immediately, and predictably went on to win everything forever.

    What is this I don't even.
  • Options
    NamrokNamrok Registered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    Played some Lords of Waterdeep over the weekend. One of the players got the "Get an extra worker for the rest of the game" quest in his starting quests, completed it almost immediately, and predictably went on to win everything forever.

    We've never ever seen that quest. I know it exists. I see the extra pawn for it in the box. But its never come up. Go figure.

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    edited May 2012
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    Played some Lords of Waterdeep over the weekend. One of the players got the "Get an extra worker for the rest of the game" quest in his starting quests, completed it almost immediately, and predictably went on to win everything forever.

    yeah there is a reason that in the worker placement games Lords of Waterdeep was "inspired by" the addition of a new worker is the most powerful, game-changing effect possible.

    edit: and is something either given to all players at the same time or something that can be purchased / earned by all players for some known price. The only exception to this that comes to mind is Dominant Species and the way that game handles extra workers is kind of flawed as well. But still not as bad as Waterdeep.

    Handing it out based on the luck of the draw on a quest (yet another reason the draw 4 keep 1 space is the broken-best in the last 1/3rd of the game) is just silly.

    RiemannLives on
    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Riemann you seem to have taken this game's choice of mechanics very personally.

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Riemann you seem to have taken this game's choice of mechanics very personally.

    eh? No. I just think it is extremely poorly designed (though very lavishly produced. it does have nice components).

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    Custom SpecialCustom Special I know I am, I'm sure I am, I'm Sounders 'til I die!Registered User regular
    lazegamer wrote: »
    Namrok wrote: »
    So I'm finally getting around to watching Tabletop. It's interesting enough. But I sort of wish it kept a regular casts. Or at least 3 regulars and 1 guest. Because like most shows, I think the cast needs to gel, and that's not gonna happen with people never sticking around for more than 1 show.

    I hope Day9 makes semi-regular appearances. He's been far and away my favorite guest so far.

    Day9 on the initial episode pretty much made the show for me. I just wish he was on every week (but I'm sure his own casting limits what he can do).

    XBL: F4ll0utBP | STEAM | PSN : CustomSpecial | Bnet: F4ll0ut#1636
  • Options
    Medium DaveMedium Dave Registered User regular
    Hey, guys. Got a couple of quick questions/recommendation requests to pick up something off of yoyo.com

    Party/group game: Say Anything, Wits and Wagers or Dixit. I've played Dixit and think it's really cool and I've heard good things about the other two.

    Euro-y goodness: Puerto Rico, Power Grid, Twilight Struggle. Now, I have Carcasonne and Catan and Stone Age and like all three. Something complimentary would be nice. I'm leaning towards Twilight, if only because my fiancee is an intelligence major and has books on the kind of theme that Twilight is.

    Big, fuck-off games: Tannhauser, The Adventurers: The Pyramid of Horus. Tannhauser looks fucking bananas and I kinda want it, but I also don't want to be stupid.

    I'll probably only get 2, but if anyone has any recommends, let me know!

  • Options
    DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Riemann you seem to have taken this game's choice of mechanics very personally.

    eh? No. I just think it is extremely poorly designed (though very lavishly produced. it does have nice components).

    I've now played it several times, and I think I agree. I'm slowly whittling cards out of the decks right now, trying to make it more balanced. I'll probably also house rule it a bit. Everyone loves it because of the theme, but the rules really aren't good at all.

    What is this I don't even.
  • Options
    Dr. FaceDr. Face King of Pants Registered User regular
    Hey, guys. Got a couple of quick questions/recommendation requests to pick up something off of yoyo.com

    Party/group game: Say Anything, Wits and Wagers or Dixit. I've played Dixit and think it's really cool and I've heard good things about the other two.

    Euro-y goodness: Puerto Rico, Power Grid, Twilight Struggle. Now, I have Carcasonne and Catan and Stone Age and like all three. Something complimentary would be nice. I'm leaning towards Twilight, if only because my fiancee is an intelligence major and has books on the kind of theme that Twilight is.

    Big, fuck-off games: Tannhauser, The Adventurers: The Pyramid of Horus. Tannhauser looks fucking bananas and I kinda want it, but I also don't want to be stupid.

    I'll probably only get 2, but if anyone has any recommends, let me know!

    Your party games list depends on the crowd. Wits and Wagers is good if your people like trivia style games and/or betting. Dixit is for more creative groups as its all about interpreting weird ass art. Say anything is all about dick jokes whenever I play it.

    Can't comment on your Euro list as I am not overly fond of any of those, though I won't actively avoid Power Grid.

    The Adventurers is a light, random, push your luck game with a lot of theme and not so much a big fuck off game. I like it for playing with my kid or casual people more interested in the experience and social aspects of the hobby. I don't know much about Tannhauser, but it looks like a very different game then The Adventurers.

    jswidget.php?username=DrFace&numitems=10&text=none&images=small&show=top10&imagepos=left&inline=1&imagewidget=1.png
  • Options
    BurtletoyBurtletoy Registered User regular
    Hey, guys. Got a couple of quick questions/recommendation requests to pick up something off of yoyo.com

    Party/group game: Say Anything, Wits and Wagers or Dixit. I've played Dixit and think it's really cool and I've heard good things about the other two.

    Euro-y goodness: Puerto Rico, Power Grid, Twilight Struggle. Now, I have Carcasonne and Catan and Stone Age and like all three. Something complimentary would be nice. I'm leaning towards Twilight, if only because my fiancee is an intelligence major and has books on the kind of theme that Twilight is.

    Big, fuck-off games: Tannhauser, The Adventurers: The Pyramid of Horus. Tannhauser looks fucking bananas and I kinda want it, but I also don't want to be stupid.

    I'll probably only get 2, but if anyone has any recommends, let me know!


    You should probably get Puerto Rico. I'm looking at Agricola for myself. I like eruo-worker placement games. I have Puerto Rico, Stone Age, Catan, Carcasonne.

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    There was a fairly recent reprint of Peurto Rico with the expansions. And that game is a classic for good reason.

    You might also want to check or Ora & Labora. It's the new one by the guy who designed Le Havre and Agricola.

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    TrynantTrynant Maniac Brawler Rank 20.100 and full WildRegistered User regular
    Hey, guys. Got a couple of quick questions/recommendation requests to pick up something off of yoyo.com

    Party/group game: Say Anything, Wits and Wagers or Dixit. I've played Dixit and think it's really cool and I've heard good things about the other two.

    Euro-y goodness: Puerto Rico, Power Grid, Twilight Struggle. Now, I have Carcasonne and Catan and Stone Age and like all three. Something complimentary would be nice. I'm leaning towards Twilight, if only because my fiancee is an intelligence major and has books on the kind of theme that Twilight is.

    Big, fuck-off games: Tannhauser, The Adventurers: The Pyramid of Horus. Tannhauser looks fucking bananas and I kinda want it, but I also don't want to be stupid.

    I'll probably only get 2, but if anyone has any recommends, let me know!

    Get Puerto Rico out of the Euro's. Twilight Struggle is good from what I've played but it's only two-player. Power Grid is good but not as good as PR and is annoyingly mathy (and has this somewhat irksome rubberbanding mechanic). Although if you're going by player-count Power Grid has the greatest range out of the three.

    From what I've heard and read Tannhauser is not that good. Earth Reborn is a very similar game that does what Tannhauser does better in pretty much every way. Take what I say with a grain of salt, however, since ER is my #1 board game.

  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Riemann you seem to have taken this game's choice of mechanics very personally.

    eh? No. I just think it is extremely poorly designed (though very lavishly produced. it does have nice components).

    I've now played it several times, and I think I agree. I'm slowly whittling cards out of the decks right now, trying to make it more balanced. I'll probably also house rule it a bit. Everyone loves it because of the theme, but the rules really aren't good at all.

    I find this interesting. On the one hand I agree that it does theoretically sound like it could use some houseruling, on the other hand all the games I've played have had no runaway leaders or distant stragglers. Could just be a low sample size, of course.

    I agree that it's not a good example of a finely-tuned tactical/strategic game, but it's big fun and gets a lot of table time, which is the important thing for me.

    I'd be interested to hear what houserules you come up with though, @Darkewolfe.

  • Options
    DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Riemann you seem to have taken this game's choice of mechanics very personally.

    eh? No. I just think it is extremely poorly designed (though very lavishly produced. it does have nice components).

    I've now played it several times, and I think I agree. I'm slowly whittling cards out of the decks right now, trying to make it more balanced. I'll probably also house rule it a bit. Everyone loves it because of the theme, but the rules really aren't good at all.

    I find this interesting. On the one hand I agree that it does theoretically sound like it could use some houseruling, on the other hand all the games I've played have had no runaway leaders or distant stragglers. Could just be a low sample size, of course.

    I agree that it's not a good example of a finely-tuned tactical/strategic game, but it's big fun and gets a lot of table time, which is the important thing for me.

    I'd be interested to hear what houserules you come up with though, @Darkewolfe.

    I absolutely hate houseruling, so I'm going to avoid it as much as possible. So far my primary beef has been with a few of the quests being insanely better than all other quests.

    Actually, I have another complaint, and it's hard to articulate. Moreso than any other Euro I've played, this game presents collective action problems. If a game leader builds an optimal building that everyone will want to use which gives him 2 victory points, it's a huge boost. In most Euro's, you focus on your own victory and try not to spend too much time hurting/not helping other players. Some of the rewards on the buildings make them insanely valuable, because the consensus of players will simply be unable to prevent themselves from activating it every turn, feeding points to the builder.

    What is this I don't even.
  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Riemann you seem to have taken this game's choice of mechanics very personally.

    eh? No. I just think it is extremely poorly designed (though very lavishly produced. it does have nice components).

    I've now played it several times, and I think I agree. I'm slowly whittling cards out of the decks right now, trying to make it more balanced. I'll probably also house rule it a bit. Everyone loves it because of the theme, but the rules really aren't good at all.

    I find this interesting. On the one hand I agree that it does theoretically sound like it could use some houseruling, on the other hand all the games I've played have had no runaway leaders or distant stragglers. Could just be a low sample size, of course.

    I agree that it's not a good example of a finely-tuned tactical/strategic game, but it's big fun and gets a lot of table time, which is the important thing for me.

    I'd be interested to hear what houserules you come up with though, @Darkewolfe.

    I absolutely hate houseruling, so I'm going to avoid it as much as possible. So far my primary beef has been with a few of the quests being insanely better than all other quests.

    Actually, I have another complaint, and it's hard to articulate. Moreso than any other Euro I've played, this game presents collective action problems. If a game leader builds an optimal building that everyone will want to use which gives him 2 victory points, it's a huge boost. In most Euro's, you focus on your own victory and try not to spend too much time hurting/not helping other players. Some of the rewards on the buildings make them insanely valuable, because the consensus of players will simply be unable to prevent themselves from activating it every turn, feeding points to the builder.

    Indeed. The Zoroaster is a good example of this.

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    LykouraghLykouragh Registered User regular
    Twilight Struggle ain't a euro. I vote Agricolo/Puerto Rico next if you like Carcassonne, Catan, and Stone Age.

  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Haven't seen that happen. What does the Zoroaster do?

  • Options
    NamrokNamrok Registered User regular
    I have to admit some of these complaints about Waterdeep strike me as incredibly nit picky. But I've only played it a handful of times and so far nobody has had a runaway win. Worst case, the game is only an hour. I don't really expect flawless balance out of a medium weight game like that.

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Haven't seen that happen. What does the Zoroaster do?

    the one that lets you activate a space that someone else has already used

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Lykouragh wrote: »
    Twilight Struggle ain't a euro. I vote Agricolo/Puerto Rico next if you like Carcassonne, Catan, and Stone Age.

    Before you buy Agricola you should take a real close look at Le Havre, then ask yourself if you want to lose because you didn't make as much money as the others, or lose because you're a piss-poor farmer scrabbling desperately in the dirt and dealing with the humiliation of having a handful of begging cards?

    (Le Havre is essentially Agricola but without making you feel like you're a worthless person)

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Lykouragh wrote: »
    Twilight Struggle ain't a euro. I vote Agricolo/Puerto Rico next if you like Carcassonne, Catan, and Stone Age.

    Before you buy Agricola you should take a real close look at Le Havre, then ask yourself if you want to lose because you didn't make as much money as the others, or lose because you're a piss-poor farmer scrabbling desperately in the dirt and dealing with the humiliation of having a handful of begging cards?

    (Le Havre is essentially Agricola but without making you feel like you're a worthless person)

    There is also the new Ora & Labora which takes some good stuff from both of those games. It is very slick in its mechanics.

    Though there is less opportunity to directly "attack" other players by blocking them out of stuf in O&L.

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    I love Le Havre, but I think Agricola is the superior game if you can only own one. Agricola runs much shorter, the strategies feel more meaningful and it's easier to bring casuals into. I truly love Le Havre, but it hits the table in our group once for every 20 times Agricola does.

    What is this I don't even.
  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Though there is less opportunity to directly "attack" other players by blocking them out of stuf in O&L.

    By a long way this mechanic in Le Havre has been the biggest cause of suppressed nerdrage and snarky comments around my table. I can only imagine that Agricola would have resulted in a murder by now.

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Though there is less opportunity to directly "attack" other players by blocking them out of stuf in O&L.

    By a long way this mechanic in Le Havre has been the biggest cause of suppressed nerdrage and snarky comments around my table. I can only imagine that Agricola would have resulted in a murder by now.

    ...

    but that's like the main mechanic of the game. Might as well nerdrage about needing to pay rent if you land on someones hotel in monopoly.

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    InquisitorInquisitor Registered User regular
    Figgy wrote: »
    Hensler wrote: »
    Thoughts on Forbidden Island? For $10 at Barnes and Noble, I'm almost certainly going to buy it, but would like to hear what people think anyways.

    It's certainly worth $10. I found it to have less depth than I thought it would, but it's a good game to get people into the hobby. It introduces concepts that traditional "popular" boardgames don't usually contain.

    The official variants should help you squeeze a bit more life out of the game but, yeah, it is a rather straight forward experience:

    http://boardgamegeek.com/filepage/67217/forbidden-island-official-variant-layouts

  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Yeah but the difference is that I play with humans whereas judging by your tastes and comments I think you play with fully-rational automatons, Riemann. ;)

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Yeah but the difference is that I play with humans whereas judging by your tastes and comments I think you play with fully-rational automatons, Riemann. ;)

    hehe.

    Though what I meant was, it seems weird for people to play a game whose main mechanic is something that they don't like.

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    Hehe, it's not that. It's just that when you make a two/three turn plan that took five minutes to figure out and it gets wrecked because the player before you moved where you wanted to move so you have to start again, it's inherently a bit frustrating.

    I think it adds to the flavour though. Gives you a good reason to hate the other players and hence makes the victory all the sweeter.

  • Options
    RiemannLivesRiemannLives Registered User regular
    In that case, your group sounds like the ideal for Ora & Labora. It has a lot of the good stuff from his previous games while making blocking less devastating. Mostly because at any given time you'll have at least a couple decent options for moves so having one of them blocked doesn't through off your plans. You might have to take a less optimal route to your goal but you won't get stopped cold.

    Attacked by tweeeeeeees!
  • Options
    poshnialloposhniallo Registered User regular
    Tayrun wrote: »
    Lykouragh wrote: »
    Twilight Struggle ain't a euro. I vote Agricolo/Puerto Rico next if you like Carcassonne, Catan, and Stone Age.

    Before you buy Agricola you should take a real close look at Le Havre, then ask yourself if you want to lose because you didn't make as much money as the others, or lose because you're a piss-poor farmer scrabbling desperately in the dirt and dealing with the humiliation of having a handful of begging cards?

    (Le Havre is essentially Agricola but without making you feel like you're a worthless person)

    I know which game of Agricola you're talking about!

    Now here's five quid - go buy yourself some out-of-date White Lightning.

    I figure I could take a bear.
  • Options
    TayrunTayrun Registered User regular
    I actually felt this way before we started playing that horrific game, which I feel has become a lesson in self-fulfilling prophecy.

  • Options
    NabobNabob Registered User regular
    That Yoyo deal is great! I got a couple of my friends to do it and we're gonna have 2-3 new games to play with next week! I am personally trying to decide between Eminent Domain and 7 Wonders. I've heard good things about both of them. Which one is more friendly to a non-gamer? I'd like to get something that my wife might be more inclined to want to learn, she likes Catan, but doesn't want to learn any of the more complex games my friends have started getting.

    3DS Friend Code: 3325-2367-6821
  • Options
    AaronKIAaronKI Registered User regular
    I found another coupon code for Yoyo, but I'm not sure if it works, when it expires, and if it stacks with the $25 Credit or 15% Off Code.

    It's GETTEN and is supposed to get you $10 off your first Yoyo order.

    soempty.jpg
  • Options
    BurtletoyBurtletoy Registered User regular
    edited May 2012
    AaronKI wrote: »
    I found another coupon code for Yoyo, but I'm not sure if it works, when it expires, and if it stacks with the $25 Credit or 15% Off Code.

    It's GETTEN and is supposed to get you $10 off your first Yoyo order.

    Which is probably greater than the 15% off if you're only getting a single item.

    Burtletoy on
  • Options
    NabobNabob Registered User regular
    AaronKI wrote: »
    I found another coupon code for Yoyo, but I'm not sure if it works, when it expires, and if it stacks with the $25 Credit or 15% Off Code.

    It's GETTEN and is supposed to get you $10 off your first Yoyo order.

    GETTEN doesn't work with the $25 credit, I just tried it :( The 15% off works fine. Yoyo says its free 2 day on orders $49+ but it was applied for whatever reason to my order, which was only $38 before any discounts... so I dunno, but I'll take it! I decided on 7 Wonders and paid $20 with 2 day shipping all said and done, amazing deal!

    3DS Friend Code: 3325-2367-6821
  • Options
    DarianDarian Yellow Wizard The PitRegistered User regular
    Their current offer is free shipping on any order of $25 or more, which works great with that $25 offer.

Sign In or Register to comment.