Son of Recommend me a Boardgame (2014 edition)

[hepcat]

At least 3 players, in my opinion. Although the sweet spot for me is 4.

As for complexity, it’s about a medium weight game. I would stress before you play that the game itself is one of the opponents. That way they understand the semi-coop nature.

Go to boardgamegeek.com and grab the player aids before you start. In particular, they have a player aid for actions that’s invaluable.

[MMDuran]

At least 3 players, in my opinion. Although the sweet spot for me is 4.

As for complexity, it’s about a medium weight game. I would stress before you play that the game itself is one of the opponents. That way they understand the semi-coop nature.

Go to boardgamegeek.com and grab the player aids before you start. In particular, they have a player aid for actions that’s invaluable.

I have never noticed that aid in the files section and I’m about to teach two new players tonight. Thank you – that one is amazing.

[Shieldwolf]

I had a chance to play Tragedy Looper tonight.

What a great time I had! If you really like mystery/deduction games this is something to try at the very least once.

It will take a bit to get your head wrapped around the game but what a great experience. Great story building (this is not a game that reads paragraphs).

I will try to explain this a little without giving anything away in the game - so if it is a little confusing I apologize but it is not that hard to learn and I am sure everyone would get the hang of it (and the first scenario is for learning - but still very enjoyable and challenging).

The GM (mastermind in the game - refered to as the MM from now on) plays against three players. The players are trying to avoid a tragedy from occurring and there can be different types of things occurring. The MM plays cards on Locations or NPCs and the players get to play three cards (one per player).

Think of the NPCS as the cast in the mystery who can have different roles in the game. The MM will be able to put paranoia on an NPC, or move an NPC, or put Intrigue on an NPC (or a room). The players use their cards to try to remove paranoia, move characters and all cards resolve at same moment. The script for the scenario can then allow a certain thing to happen if the MM can get a certain level of paranoia or intrigue on a character. Even though bad things will happen you learn information to try to deduce what type of Main Plot, what roles the NPCs are playing and so on.

The players win if they can go so many days getting through avoiding the tragedies and defeat the main plot. If certain events occur to a certain character who has a certain role - than the players lose.

But wait!

There is a time travel element (called a loop). The game resets when they lose and the players now have a chance to go through everything again trying to figure out what they can do to prevent the bad tragedy/event etc from occurring. Each scenario can be quite different in the amount of NPCs or how many loops, and subplots. Once you fail on your last Loop - the Mastermind wins the game.

The game comes with ten scenarios so once you play a scenario as a player you cannot play it again (unless you play as the Mastermind - the MM runs the scripts so it does not matter if he/she already knows the details and even though may know whta happens can still have fun strategizing on each loop).

I know there was an expansion with more scenarios so hopefully it sells well enough to have it published over here (game comes from Japan) The game explains how you can create your own scenarios too.

I would say this is a gamer’s game (and even with that a mystery gamer’s game if that makes sense). I do think that my family would like this game though because we watch mysteries all the time.

NOTE: Artwork is anime like but fits the theme based on the number of characters in the first scenario (people dressed in a suit etc).

Was thrilled to hear this was coming to the US glad to hear it it’s awesome.

[geewhiz]

…That game sounds really cool. I have a friend who’s been trying to sell me on it, but I can’t get over the anime artwork (it’s really not appealing, I think). Hoping someone else in my group picks it up because I’d love to play it.

The artwork is more generic anime or in other words not like those games with all girls in maid outfits kind of thing. I would strongly suggest trying it once just for the experience. It is certainly different than anything I have ever played.

When you play you find yourself thinking what role is that character are they the “key person role” or are they the “ROLE” or are they the “ROLE” and you are not really focused on what they look like. ;)

Names have been changed to protect the innocent.

[Gedd]

Uh oh, I just found out you can email CSI after you place an order and have them hold on to something until you accumulate enough to get free shipping. Bad news, wallet.

[tomchick]

At least 3 players, in my opinion. Although the sweet spot for me is 4.

What makes four the sweet spot for you for Archipelago?

I find that it scales really well, but oddly enough, we’ve rarely played with fewer than four. I played a three-player game last night that was all sorts of comedies of errors. We accidentally dealt the betrayer into the objectives and the player who got it didn’t know we meant to exclude it, so he gamely played along, even though we had the benefactor trend card as our main objective. The benefactor trend card gives people points for contributing to crises and building churches, and it’s an almost guaranteed way to make sure the game doesn’t end due to a rebellion. What a terrible time to get the betrayer card!

But the bigger boner was me not remembering my objective card closely enough. I thought my victory point objective was ports and my endgame condition was churches. So when someone built the fifth church while I was ahead on ports, I announced the game was over and flipped my card. Oops! It turns out I had it backwards. My endgame objective was ports and my victory point objective was churches. And, as it turns out, the game was over, because our third player flipped her card to reveal she had the card with churches as an endgame condition. I am such an idiot. I, of course, lost big.

Also, I would reiterate to agapepilot the following conventional wisdom: DON’T PLAY WITH THE SEPARATIST AND PACIFIST UNTIL YOUR GROUP HAS PLAYED A WHOLE MESS OF GAMES!

-Tom

[tomchick]

In some actual session reporting news, I found a (relatively) inexpensive copy of Nations. I had always been interested in it, but was a bit leery at the price (not because it was so high by itself, but because I already have Through the Ages, Clash of Cultures, and I’m sure one or two other civilization building games. Having found it for around $40, I pulled the trigger and bought it.

Unlike Clash of Cultures (which I’m still trying to get to the table), I actually managed to play Nations with my family. There were four of us playing.

How was the analysis paralysis situation? My experience with Nations is that a lot of players take a superlong time to take their turns. Was that an issue for you and your family?

But it streamlines those things and is more “playable.” I do not know that it is considerably shorter than Through the Ages, but I can already tell that the rules will be easier to remember if I have not pulled it off the shelf in a few months. The gameplay seems more intuitive.

Absolutely true. It’s such an oddly simple game, isn’t it? Not at all simplistic, but certainly simple.

-Tom

[hepcat]

What makes four the sweet spot for you for Archipelago?
-Tom

Bidding for first player always seems more frenzied (and therefore fun), player interaction is at a comfortably hectic level (bribing for help during crises, bribing for harvest actions because there are more towns, etc.), and the game length feels just right, to paraphrase Goldilocks.

[charmtrap]

My new-found enthusiasm for Ascension has me wondering what other “deck-building” games are worth checking out? There seems to be quite a few out there.

Incidentally, the term “deck-builder” is kind of non-descriptive and a little misleading. I had no idea that “deck-building” referred to building the deck through gameplay. I assumed it just meant that the decks were built from all the cards in a single box.

[hepcat]

Star Realms. If you like Ascension, you’ll love Star Realms.

[Harkonis]

The Legendary games are amazing deck-builder games imo. The new Alien themed one seems to combine aspects of it and some other fun games together.

So my current set of games that I need to play:

Krosmaster (now with season 2)
WH40K: Conquest
Doomtown (will be here when released)
High Command: War Machine
X-Wing
Shadowrun: Crossfire
Mice and Mystics
Marvel Legendary and Marvel Legendary Villains
Legendary: Encounters

omg, stop me, my wallet hurts

[Nightgaunt]

A lot of folks will come out and disagree with me, but I think this is an objective fact: There is still no deck-builder that’s half as mechanically rich as Dominion. I’ve waded through all these follow-on games in the genre for a game that understands the rich interactions and synergies of Dominion, but what most of them want to do is crank up the theme (all well and good in itself—Dominion is on the bland side) and, in the process, calcify the gameplay possibilities. Not saying some of them aren’t fine games, but if deck-builders are about making engines, Dominion lets you build Ferraris to those others games’ Edsels. A synergistic pair of cards here and there, or a benefit for getting as many cards as possible with X property, is not the same as what a good Dominion deck has going on inside it.

I don’t actually play a ton of Dominion anymore, but when I do it always amazes me from a game design perspective.

All that said, I liked Rune Age fairly well (can you still get that?), especially because it could be played co-op, competitive, or semi-coop. I recently got Valley of the Kings and it’s got some interesting things going on as well.

Core Worlds was not my thing and neither is Marvel Legendary, but Star Realms is sounding pretty good.

[tomchick]

Star Realms. If you like Ascension, you’ll love Star Realms.

I’m liking Star Realms, but it feels a bit too fluffy to me, too simplified. But that’s mostly a good thing, and I can understand the appeal. I would, however, go in the other direction and recommend Core Worlds (with the expansion). It’s a much longer and more involved game, but it has a unique dynamic with the way the cards progress as you move in towards the Core Worlds and with the way the more important cards seem to matter all the more. It’s a bit of a slog to learn, unfortunately.

For lighter fare, we really like the goofy DC Comics Deck Builder Game. That’s actually what it’s called, by the way. DC Comics Deck Builder Game. Superfast, slick theming, simple. A lot like Star Realms, actually.

-Tom

[tomchick]

A lot of folks will come out and disagree with me, but I think this is an objective fact: There is still no deck-builder that’s half as mechanically rich as Dominion…Dominion lets you build Ferraris to those others games’ Edsels.

I totally want to make fun of you for saying this, but I get what you’re getting at, because it’s one of the reasons I like Core Worlds.

-Tom

[tomchick]

Bidding for first player always seems more frenzied (and therefore fun), player interaction is at a comfortably hectic level (bribing for help during crises, bribing for harvest actions because there are more towns, etc.), and the game length feels just right, to paraphrase Goldilocks.

Well, game length varies by number of players, and I find that different objectives lead to different game lengths, almost regardless of the number of players. It’s kind of weird how we’ve had some games that felt interminable, all the more because you’re not privy to what endgame objectives are in play. Yet other games slam shut abruptly because of how the cards played out or the resources.

But good point about the turn order system with more players. That is a really fun system. I think the number of scoring cards that will ultimately flip is also a pretty significant factor. When there are fewer of them, as is the case with a three-player game, the range of scores will be much closer. I suspect this makes those occasional victory point cards even more important in games with fewer players. Lord help you if someone else builds a monument in a three-player game!

-Tom

[tylertoo]

[Pathfinder ACG]

If you haven’t already, make sure you review the updated manual or at least run through the FAQ. It corrects a lot of questionable areas. However, there are still some times when you’re going to wonder how to interpret stuff. As I recall, the first few adventure packs I don’t think I could get through a scenario without at least looking up one circumstance we were in.

There is also a turn sequence breakdown over at BGG that unfortunately hasn’t been updated recently. It does a really good job of taking a turn and walking through every possible step and action. There is some stuff in the game like evading and “before the encounter” which you will probably find yourself asking about at some point.

Thanks Gedd for the link. That turn sequence breakdown is a great help. I played through Brigadoom with two characters and was able to find what I needed in that document much easier than the rule book. I’m sure I made mistakes anyway, but it all seemed to work well and felt challenging. Once I got the hang of things it actually moved along pretty quickly, and some of the checks were damn exciting. Its amazing how I managed to fail some checks that I’d thought would be fairly easy. Damned dice!

[Harkonis]

I’m liking Star Realms, but it feels a bit too fluffy to me, too simplified. But that’s mostly a good thing, and I can understand the appeal. I would, however, go in the other direction and recommend Core Worlds (with the expansion). It’s a much longer and more involved game, but it has a unique dynamic with the way the cards progress as you move in towards the Core Worlds and with the way the more important cards seem to matter all the more. It’s a bit of a slog to learn, unfortunately.

For lighter fare, we really like the goofy DC Comics Deck Builder Game. That’s actually what it’s called, by the way. DC Comics Deck Builder Game. Superfast, slick theming, simple. A lot like Star Realms, actually.

-Tom

Star Realms is expansion-less right now, I expect (and will be sad if not) them to expand the depth quite a bit as they have expansions. I do agree that Dominion gets a lot of it right though, but I like how some other games are taking a Dominion like approach and applying direct combat to it. (Crossfire is one that comes to mind)

[Tom_Mc]

If we’re talking about one of my favorite deck builders in Core Worlds. I want to bring up Arctic Scavengers. It has the fierce competition that Core Worlds has along with a layer of obfuscation that amps up that tension. When building an engine in Arctic scavengers it better be able to off road a bit because as the draw pile is depleted and you’ll be switching gears to get good cards.

Tom M

[Chaplin]

I will chime in on Star Realms for the two player competitive deck builder of choice. I also agree with both Tom and Harkonis. The way I agree with both is that I expect Star Realms to age well from its basic form as it had a fairly impressive offering from its base $15 release that fits in your pocket.

For other types of deck builders your options are many depending on what you want. I personally was excited about, then not, then very much excited again after Gencon coverage concerning the Alien movie themed deck builder Legendary Encounters. It seems to grow the Legendary system (already up there on my preferred deck builders) in smart ways. It is also fully cooperative. And before Tom runs away, it also has equally supported modes of dead players taking over Aliens to kill off former allies or a very franchise thematic traitor mechanic.

[Tom_Mc]

But we’ve got an Alien card game in Death Angel never mind that silly Warhammer 40k skin on it. Best part is Tom does appreciate solo games, which all these co ops fall into pretty well. Death Angel probably works best solitaire.

Tom M