Boardgame Bonanza - I
Boardgame Bonanza - Part 1
Boardgames are great. I like boardgames. When I was growing up I played boardgames with family and friends. Yes everyone played Monopoly in the way back at some point in time, but after several arguments it really loses its appeal. I enjoyed other boardgames with my family, like Cluedo , Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit. Somewhere in a cupboard in the famly home there are several boardgames which I got as a teenager which are more logic or puzzle boardgames. Once I left for college I didn't play many boardgames, except the occasional games of Scrabble at Christmas when I was at home with my family for the vacation.
Fast forward to a few years ago when the Causeway Giants Gaming Group used to meet in a local bar. Boardgames were brought along by some of the members as they were easy to transport and could be played in a few hours. I decided to contribute and so sourced myself a new boardgame so I could add to the fun. I picked up Castle Panic (see below). This was a great game which went down well. Since then several members of the Causeway GIants will meet and play boardgames. I have played boardgames in folks homes of an afternoon or an evening, as well as meeting in OTT to play.
I have also discovered Print and Play games (PnP). These are great, as you get a pdf of the game rules / board / cards / tokens etc and you print it out and play it. Generally these are low cost (the ones I got were free or had a free offer at the time of purchase) and you oftern have the option of purchasing a quality print run version if you like it enough. Some of these games I have here also.
Some of the games I have played recently are:
Castle Panic
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/43443/castle-panic
"Castle Panic is tower defense strategy game in which players work cooperatively to protect a castle from monsters... ...The objective of the game is to kill the monsters invading from the forest before they can destroy your castle." - Wikipedia entry, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Panic
This is a simple tower defence game which relys on luck as well as skill. Sometimes you might get unlcky with the monsters draws, but usually if the players work together they can defeat the monsters. I also picked up the expansion for this, which includes more monsters and a few special rules to make the panic set in quicker. All in all I love getting this game onto the table.
Agricola
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31260/agricola
"Agricola is a Euro-style board game created by Uwe Rosenberg. It is a worker placement game with a focus on resource management. In Agricola, players are farmers that sow, plow the fields, collect wood, build stables, buy animals, expand their farms and feed their families. After 14 rounds players calculate their score based on the size and prosperity of the household." - Wikipedia entry, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricola_(board_game)
I've had a couple of games of Agricola. It good, I like it, but it is also tough as I feel there is quite a steep learing curve with it. You do really have to focus on the game right from the start, and strategise well to maximise your farm. I've only played this a couple of times, and it has taken me three or four turns to get into the swing of things, which makes my farm suffer in the long run. I didn't disgrace myself, but I could have planned better in the first few turns. Sometimes the cards you are dealt for occupations and improvements help out and maximising the farm output is easy, sometimes the cards are difficult to use, especially at the start due to restrictions which need to be in place before use, and this can limit your farm growth. All in all I enjoyed this game and look forward to playing it again.
Runebound (2nd Edition)
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/21523/runebound-second-edition
"Runebound is a high fantasy adventure board game created by Martin Wallace and Darrel Hardy and published by Fantasy Flight Games in 2004. A second edition was published in 2005. A third edition was released in 2015. In Runebound, one to six players take the roles of adventurers who seek out quests (indicated by markers on the map). The quests are then resolved with either victory for the player, or a loss of some item. Each player is seeking quests and trying to gain experience which results in greater power and combat skill." - Wikipedia entry, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runebound
Imagine a basic version of D&D in a boardgame, whats not to like about that. Take your character, roam the land, fight monster, gain treasure and equipment, fight the big bad evil guy and win the game. It is quick to learn this game, and with a bit of strategy (and some luck on dice rolls) you can progress your character relatively quickly to end up facing the end boss. Great game, and would love to play more.
Goblin's Breakfast
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/164760/goblins-breakfast
"In this card game, players take the role of Goblins at the Breakfast table, scrambling to eat as much food as possible and to prevent other players from doing the same." - DTRPG entry, https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/135134/Goblins-Breakfast
This is a great game and I got this as PnP. It's easy to learn and easy to play and I have had great fun playing this with friands. You also know its a good game when you are playing with a few friends and once finished someone says, "Do you want another game". Makes me smile inside when that happens.
Anyway, thats a start into the boardgames I play so until next time.
J