dtolman
4781
Why exactly is this great? I’ve somehow missed the buzz on this… most of the BGG reviews I saw were basically lukewarm.
You probably wouldn’t understand </hipster>
serling
4783
Son Im 38 I wwebsite as on the internet when you were a sperm in your daddys balls and before it was the internet, thanks for the welcome to message wurd up.
Just watched that Mage Knight video. Looks very cool but unfortunately, after Thunderstone, my wife would make fun of me if I bought a fantasy game called “Mage Knight.” And she likes Thunderstone.
More seriously, it looks like a very long game that I would get to play rarely. She’s in grad school and we get together once in a while to play board games with some friends of ours and we never seem to have time for 3-hour games.
Well…to be honest, this is what I was hoping Runebound would have been. To me, Runebound was very lackluster. I really did not like it much at all.
Some things about MK that I like?
-
I really like how the mana dice are used. From how the dice can be used to power your spells/abilities, to how certain dice cannot be used depending on the day/night cycle, to how the dice can change even.
-
I really like the components. Great components and art throughout. The only thing I didn’t care for is the thickness of the cards. But, that is a minor nitpick by me, as I, for the most part, don’t care much about that type of stuff. But, I know lots of ppl do, so, there is that. But the components and art are great, I feel.
-
I really like how the map is revealed. I like how as you reveal the “kingdom”, locations are revealed that can help or hinder your plans. There may not be as much of a variety in monsters to fight, but in my opinion, they are more meaningful.
-
I really like how you level up in the game. As you level, what shows how many cards and how much armor you currently have is flipped. In flipping that token, you reveal a new token that updates your armor/hand limit you can now have, plus, you gain the ability to have another unit to command.
-
I really like how your reputation goes up and down, depending on what decisions you make, and your rep really does seem to matter. Your reputation directly effects your influence, which is basically the currency in the game. You may burn down a monestary, but you will suffer a reputation loss. And that reputation loss may effect your ability to gain a powerful unit that may come available.
-
I really like how the game does not feel static. The unit cards are changed after each round. The spell and advanced action cards are also changed over the course of the game. The available choices may not, and in some cases, will not, be available the next time you get a chance to purchase them.
-
I really like how when you level up, you might be able to purchase a skill that belongs to another player (that that player didn’t want). Lots of opportunity to customize your character over the course of the game. Sure, you may start out somewhat generic, but by the end of the game, your character can, and most likely will be, quite varied from other characters (depending on what advanced actions and spells you take, what units you have hired, what skills you have chosen, what artifacts you have found, ect).
-
I really the merging of different types of games. There is a little bit of deck-building, strategy board gaming, puzzle solving, ect. It all just comes together for me to make a great game.
Those are the reasons that are off the top of my head. There is a lot that I like about this one, though. These reasons may seem small, and they are…but you combine them all together, and I get a great game, in my opinion. This is a game that I am very glad that I purchased.
I have a regular group (with the core of the group being me and 3 others) that meet up nearly every Monday morning. The sessions usually begin at around 8 to 8:30 am, and ends right around 12:30 to 1:00 pm.
My group regularly enjoys games like TI3, Runewars, and A Game of Thrones. This (Mage Knight), I feel, will be a natural fit…as long games are not only expected, but desired.
The promise of decent solitaire play finally pushed me over the edge on Mage Knight. MiniatureMarket got a few copies in stock today if anyone’s still looking. I picked it up from them along with Ora et Labora and a Warhammer: Invasion expansion to get free shipping.
I can’t express how envious this makes me, you lucky bastard.
Hurray! Looks like the Kazad-Dum LotR: LCG expansion is in stock at CSI, which means I have a big box of fun coming soon. Can’t wait for the new LotR expansion as well as my copy of Mage Knight (with a RFtG expansion tossed in for good measure, and free shipping).
This is kinda how our group rolls as well. The “main event” is generally around 4-6 hours, with Arkham Horror being our current favorite. Though recently Runewars has joined the fray, and Mage Knight is on the way. TI3 is waiting in the wings for play as well.
You and me both, my friend, you and me both. :D
Have you ordered from MiniatureMarket before? I’m really tempted to break my “don’t buy games without playing them at least once” rule and order a copy.
I am severely jealous of both of you. I -used- to be able to get people to play stuff like that, but lately everyone wants to play 20 minute abstract Eurogames that leave me totally cold.
Well despite my earlier pooh-poohing, I went and bought one of the copies at Miniature Market. Thanks for the heads-up. After reading more about it, it was the promise of a good solo game that pushed me over the edge as well.
CHUCK HURRY UP THERE’S ONE COPY LEFT
Several times. They shipped a preorder a bit late once but other than that they’ve been great and have prices lower than I get at CSI with my loyalty discount. They have a physical store in St. Louis.
I’ve ordered several times from MM and they’re great. Highly recommended after CSI and Board&Bits.
Ha! Well, I had the thing in my cart and took it out when I glanced over and saw my copy of Castle Ravenloft sitting on the shelf, alone and unloved. That was the last game I told myself “well if nothing else, at least I could play it solitaire.”
Still, there’s no hype train that I’m not willing to jump on, panting and heaving. And their price is surprisingly cheap, at least as far as board games are concerned. I’ve got a feeling I’ll regret it, since the group of people I usually play with balks at the complexity of Race for the Galaxy or the D&D board games, and I even though Dungeon Lords was too “fiddly.” But on the other hand, I’m getting tired of stacking up a collection of games that all end up just feeling like short and simple filler.
Race for the Galaxy I can see as it has all those icons and Dungeon Lords is rather complicated, but if you’re having trouble getting Castle Ravenloft to the table due to problems with complexity, it’s probably best to avoid Mage Knight for now. The magnitude of complexity between the two is pretty enormous. :)
Speaking of which (and sorry for the double post):
I’m still having trouble finding games for my usual group, which always ends up being 6 or 7 people who are reluctant to split up. We always end up playing either Kill Dr. Lucky, King of Tokyo, or 7 Wonders. I like all of those games (esp. 7 Wonders), but I’m getting a little tired of them.
Have there been any good larger-party games released since the last time I asked this question on this topic? (IIRC, 7 Wonders, King of Tokyo, Resistance, and Battlestar Galactica were most often suggested the last time. I don’t care for Resistance at all, and we’re going to try BSG at the next one).
And has anybody had any luck splitting a group into two games without its feeling like two separate parties?
Yeah, the one thing everybody seems to agree on about Mage Knight is that it’s complicated.
I’m kind of hoping that it’ll turn out to be a return-on-investment type situation, though: I like the D&D board games fine, but I’d agree with anyone who said they were more effort than they were worth. This’ll either pay off by getting us into deeper and more interesting games, or it’ll backfire catastrophically.
