Game Nite
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the magazine of tabletop gaming
February 2019
Tom Lehmann game designer
v
Issue # 33
“for the love of board games� review
game reviews
In this issue: Interview 26
Tom Lehmann Game Designer
mobile Review 06
Legends of Andor For Android and iOS
Book Review 10
For The Love of Board Games
book Review index 58
Reviewed Books Index
game Reviews 12
Highlander:
16
Architects of the West Kingdom
34
Tricky Dungeon
38
Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Ed.
48
Reviewed Apps Index
Past Interviews Index
Game Review index 64
Game Review Index
Heroic Trick Taking
Euro-Style Dungeon Crawler.
Warigin
Heaven, Hell and the Void.
52 Hey That’s My Fish by Tom M Franklin
Top 10 04 Top 10 Game Related Books
Interview Gallery 54
Unique Worker Placement.
Abstract games
Mobile Review index 60
Princes of the Universe Highlander the Board Game Expansion.
Calendar 75
March 2019
Contributors 63
Game Nite Contributors
© Game Nite 2019. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used or reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. All information contained in this magazine is for educational purposes only and is, as far as we are aware, correct at the time of release. Readers are advised to contact manufacturers and retailers with regard to the price of their products. All material remains the property of its respective creators. Opinions expressed by the writers are their opinions alone and may not reflect the opinions of Game Nite. Disclaimer: Game Nite receives review copies of games, but does not accept payment for reviews.
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Game Nite Issue #33
From across the table
Game Nite ISSUE # 33
I
t’s been a few months since we’ve issued an Editor’s Choice Award, but we are happy to announce that this issue has two recipients! What makes this interesting is that both games take a proven mechanism, Worker Placement and Dungeon Crawler, and put a unique twist on each. “Architects of the West Kingdom” has players placing their workers on the board, but unlike other Worker Placement games, they are not returned to the player at the end of a phase. Whereas “Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition” bases its Dungeon Crawler on the use of a Rondel mechanism, thus adding a euro-styled element to the game. Both games are a breath of fresh air! This issue also features my Top 10 list of Game Related Books. These are books that I feel are among the best related to a specific genre, whether it is about Game Design, Games in general or even focused on specific games. Lots of good reading for those interested in the subject matter.
Cover Photograph by Serge Pierro. Architects of the West Kingdom © Renegade Game Studios
Editor in Chief/Publisher: Serge Pierro
Editor:
In this issue: Tom M Franklin’s Abstract column features the game “Hey, That’s My Fish”. Tom also reviews, “Tricky Dungeon” and “Warigin” I would like to thank Tom Lehmann for taking time from his schedule to share his thoughts with our readers.
Eric Devlin Writers:
Photographers:
Serge Pierro Serge Pierro Tom Franklin Tom Franklin
The March calendar features “Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition” and provides the release date for issue #34. If you are interested in contributing to Game Nite, feel free to contact us, as we’d love to hear from you!
Follow us on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/GameNiteMagazine Visit us at:
Serge Pierro
www.gamenitemagazine.com Follow us on Instagram:
Editor in Chief/Publisher
@gamenitemagazine
editor@gamenitemagazine.com
Follow us on Twitter:
@GameNiteMag
Game Nite Issue #33
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Top 10 - Game Related Books
1 The Art of Game Design Jesse Schell
2
Zurich 1953 David Bronstein
3 Characteristics of Games Richard Garfield
4
Word Freak Stefan Fatsis
5 Attack and Defense Akira Ishida
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Game Nite Issue #33
By Serge Pierro
6
Backgammon Paul Magriel
7
Eurogames Stewart Woods
8
Boardgames That Tell Stories 2 Ignacy Trzewiczek
9 Shogi For Beginners John Fairbairn
10 A Gamut of Games Sid Sackson Game Nite Issue #33
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Mobile Review
By Serge Pierro
Legends of Andor: The King’s Secret
I
n our interview with Michael Menzel in issue #11 of Game Nite, he mentioned that he wanted to design a game that he and his son could play. That game turned out to be Legends of Andor and now United Soft Media has captured the essence of the board game and ported it as, Legends of Andor: The King’s Secret, over to the mobile platform. Let’s join the quest and explore it further.
Once loaded, you are greeted with a screen displaying: Play, Options and Credits. There is also a Tips and Info bottom in the lower right corner.
The Play button will play a nice 3D animation and take you to the main screen from which to launch the Legends. The Options screen allows for the control of Sound Effects, Music and Language. There are also buttons for resetting For those who are unaware of Legends of rule tips and messages, as one labeled “GDPR” Andor, it is a fantasy game based on the trope of which requires an internet connection to review Tolkein, where players have a limited amount the latest data protection information. of time to solve each quest. This is done via a The first thing that you are going to want to time tracking mechanism within the game, and although there is combat prevalent throughout, do is take the tutorial. This is recommended it is sometimes best not to engage, as this could even for experienced players so that they can cause you to waste time. You will find yourself get used to the User Interface of the app. The losing most of the time due to not finishing the Tutorial is Legend #0 and does a decent job of quest in a timely fashion, rather than dying in the main actions of the game, though there are combat - this is especially true when the quest some things that you will have to figure out on your own. Upon completion of the tutorial you has multiple objectives. will be ready to take on the 1st Legend, “The Great Hunt”.
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Each of the Legends is preceded by a display of a book that gives you a bit of a backstory and proclaims what the current Legend entails. At the start of the Legend you are given information on how many members will be in your party, the length of the Legend and if you had previously played it, how you finished. The User Interface looks great, especially when you “zoom in” by spreading your fingers on the touchscreen, which reveals a 3d representation of the landscape instead of the default, overhead 2d viewpoint. You will find yourself switching often between these two views. The character “standees” look good and the additional 3d objects add to the landscape. All of the pertinent
information is contained on screen and there is a tab on the left side of the screen to remind you of your current Quest(s). Each of the Characters display their actions in the lower left corner of the screen and these include; Movement, Combat, Campfire, and Resting. Movement in the game is accomplished by tapping on the Boots in the Character area and then “double tapping” the area of the screen where you want the Hero to go. Combat is resolved by rolling dice and picking the highest number and adding it to the Hero’s Willpower, this is done for each character in a fighting group. The results are compared to the enemy’s die roll and defense, and the results are then Continued on next page>
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Mobile Review
(Cont.)
carried out. The Campfire action is for a “pass the landscape is probably modeled/rendered in a turn�, while the Rooster icon lets the Hero rest/ similar manner. sleep till the next day. There is also an icon for Overall this is a quality offering that is going switching to another Hero. to provide a lot of fun, and frustrating, moments There are two different levels of AI and both of of entertainment. The hardest thing to do is them will prove to be challenging. You might to try to gauge the amount of time that you want to play the game once through against the can use/spare in order to complete the quest in easier AI and then try to do it again with the time. Another aspect that needs to be tracked harder one. Of course if you are sadistic, you is the Willpower levels of your Heroes. It is a can go right for the tougher one right away. juggling act to balance the Time and Willpower elements of the game, especially when you are The graphics of the game are quite stunning deep in strategic thought and lose track of one or for a mobile app. There is copious amounts of the other. There were several times when I was 3d visuals, as well as the more traditional 2d all excited that I was about to succeed when the graphic look. The 3d components appear to screen suddenly changed to announce my failure, be texture mapped, low polygon models and due to time running out.
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This is a game that you will probably lose each Legend multiple times, however, each time you glean additional information that can make your next attempt more successful. There are enough Legends to keep you busy for quite a while, especially if you decide to pursue the harder AI settings. Overall, this is a game that is going to appeal to a great number users, as the game is good looking and challenging. Each Legend is different than the others and none of the items and stats carry over to the next one, so players will have a variety of challenges to pursue.
If you are fan of the board game, or you enjoy puzzle-like adventures, this is an app that you are certainly going to want to consider adding to your device.
Version # Price: Devices:
1.0.6 $4.99 Android and iOS Developer: United Soft Media
Recommended www.usm.de
Game Nite Issue #33
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Book Review
By Serge Pierro
For the Love of Board Games
O
ne of my favorite aspects of working on each issue of Game Nite is having the opportunity to interview artists and game designers. For decades these people were all but ignored by the corporations and the consumers. No longer are names like Sid Sackson and Alex Randolph hidden from consumers, as nowadays things have changed and the game designer’s name is now featured on the front of the game’s box. With the growth in the hobby, it should come as no surprise that fans are interested about the creators behind the game. With For the Love of Board Games, Erin Dean presents a collection of board game designer interviews. Let’s take a look at what it has to offer to both to designers and board game fans. The 300+ page softcover book measures 6” x 9” and is printed on decent paper stock. The book contains a foreword by popular YouTube personality, Rodney Smith of Watch it Played fame. The layout of the book is composed of an alphabetical listing of all of the designers interviewed. Fifty-three designers are featured, and they include top names such as Reiner Knizia, Richard Garfield, Antoine Bauza, Bruno Cathalla and Bruno Faidutti. Each of the interviews are approached in the same manner, there is some general background information, as well as specific questions that pertain the designer’s most popular works. Some questions include things like: favorite games, can you walk us through the process of designing…, which game do you wish you had designed, etc. One fault with the book is the lack of white space. There is a lot of text on each page and it can be hard on the eyes to read for longer periods of time. Each designer interview has the designer’s name at the top of the page and then the questions and answers follow, however, often times they just run into each other and if you should somehow miss the name at the top of a page, there is nothing to separate it from the previous interview.
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One thing that I do with Game Nite interviews is to include a few of the designer’s more popular titles so that someone who is unfamiliar with the designer might recognize a game they know. Unfortunately, at times I would have to read through half the interview to find out what they designed. I would have preferred to have had that information at the start of the interview so that I could read it with that in mind. While the above caveats were somewhat disappointing, that’s not to say that the book isn’t good. I really enjoyed reading it. The responses tell you a great deal about the designers themselves. Some designers took the time to fully answer the questions and provide some interesting insight, while others just briefly answered the questions and sent them off. One of the more in-depth responses was provided by Richard Garfield, as he discussed several of his designs in a deliberate and enlightening manner. There were several times when I was pleasantly surprised with some of the responses. Case in point, I had no idea that Reiner Knizia’s favorite game of all time is Chess! Since that is also my favorite game, it brought a smile to my face - especially since we both seem to enjoy playing Speed Chess. There’s a lot of great information contained in this book and if you are an aspiring game designer you are going to want to see what these people have to say. If you are a fan of board games, then this book will provide you with some excellent background on some of your favorite games. It’s always exciting to see a book that features a collection of game designer interviews and you’d be hard pressed to find a better book than For the Love of Board Games. A must read!
Author: Publisher:
Erin Dean Self-Published
Highly Recommended www.fortheloveofboardgames .com
Highlander:
Princes of the Universe
By Serge Pierro
There Can Be Only One!
L
ast issue (Game Nite #32) we took a look at Highlander the Board Game and thought that the game did a good job of capturing the essence of the movie/television show in a fastpaced filler game. For this issue we will take a look at an expansion for the game, Princes of the Universe and see what it adds to the base game. Like the base game, Princes of the Universe ships in an unusual sized box. Measuring 12 1/4” x 3 1/4” x 2”, it also features the plastic “window” that displays the miniatures that come with the game. This is certainly a major selling point for both the base game and the expansion, since the miniatures are nicely done. The insert is also similar to the base game in that it is also yellow, molded plastic that has individual areas for each miniature, as well as a “thumb hole” that allows for the removal itself from the box, thus revealing the expansion’s cards and character sheets which are separated by a cardboard divider/insert. The expansion doesn’t come with a rule book or rule sheet. To use the expansion, you just add the enclosed cards to the corresponding decks of the base set and you have the option of using an alternate miniature and Character sheet for those characters in the base game. The 7 Character Sheets are 6” x 2 1/4” and are linen finished.
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The 55 cards are linen finished and are of a decent card stock. Sleeving could be considered optional. Once again the miniatures are highlight of the set. They are all in similar scale to the base set with the same approximate range of 1 1/2” to 2” tall. And like the those in “Highlander the Board Game” they really capture the essence of the characters. The expansion adds some interesting new cards, however, there are no bugs/icons on the cards to signify that they are from the expansion. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights. There are 3 new Weapons, with the most interesting one being “Wicked Khopesh” which allows the owner to choose an Immortal in the Arena and have their die “downgraded”. The Fate deck gets 2 of the same card, “Spree” which rolls a d6 and flips over the amount of cards of the Encounter deck equal to the results and receives 1 Quickening token for each Conflict revealed. And speaking of the Encounter deck, it has received 2 new cards, yet there are 5 copies of each of them. The most interesting of the two is an Event, “Running Out The Clock”, which rolls a d6 and the result is the amount of cards discarded from the Era deck. I had some mixed emotions on this one, as I would prefer the game to last a little longer, but nevertheless, it certainly made for a fast and tense game when
high numbers were rolled, especially when there were Of the 7 Event cards, “People Say You’ve Had Your Day” is an interesting one, and there are two copies! All Immortals multiples of the card in the deck. return their Initiative tokens and there are no further actions The Modern Era deck gains 24 new unique cards. The that turn. Of the 4 Ally cards, “Hit Team” was perhaps the highlight of the 3 Event cards is “A Reason to Fight” best, as the others weren’t all that interesting, as it allowed which discards the Arena card currently in play. Of the you to discard it to have an Immortal in your space lose 2 3 Arena cards, “Jaffa” stands out for its powerful ability Quickening tokens. The highlight of this Era are clearly the of having all Immortals in the Arena with 2 Life cards Life cards. Three of the four give +2 die upgrades to a specific upgrade their Power die twice while in this Arena. And die, one for each type of upgrade, and the fourth card gives a speaking of Life cards, of the 12 that are included there +1 upgrade to all three dies. Everyone loved these. are 3 that have +1 to 2 die upgrades and −1 to 1 die, each one featuring a different combination. Of the 6 Ally When it comes to the Character sheets, everyone will have cards, “Treacherous Friend” was the most interesting as their own opinion on which of the two versions they will you can discard it to automatically resolve the success choose to play with. Some of the better abilities in the text on a Conflict card, instead of rolling a die. expansion include, Vincent Smythe’s “Laissez Faire” which allows him to spend a Quickening token to choose and The Ancient Era deck contains 16 new cards. The activate one extra card when he is Laying Low, and Iman 1 Arena card is strong, as “Construction Site” switches Fasil’s ability allows him to be unaffected by downgrades the duel from Power to Cunning while in the Arena. printed on attached Life cards. Continued on next page>
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Highlander:
Princes of the Universe
One thing is for sure, the Princes of the Universe adds a great deal of variety and replayability to the game. All of the miniatures look great, there are some excellent new cards and having the choice between 2 Character sheets/ miniatures just adds to the experience. The main downsides of the set are: There are no bugs/ icons on the cards to distinguish them from the base set, so unless you write down the names of the cards, once you mix them into the main set, they will remain mixed. I would have preferred to have had the option to switch them in and out. Also, a minor issue is that the Character sheets have “Influence” spelt “Ifluence”. The main upsides of the set is the great variety of cards that can be now used in the game, which of course leads to excellent replayability.
(Cont.)
Overall, this is a no-brainer if you have the base game, as the additional items are certainly welcome. We’ve been playing with all of the cards and we never knew what to expect, and that has only enhanced the playing experience. While there can be “only one!”, we hope that doesn’t hold true for the number of expansions for the game.
Jack Caesar Publisher: River Horse Players: 3-6 Mechanic: Dice Manipulation, Special Abilities Ages: 14+ Length: 15+ mins. Designer:
Recommended www.riverhorsegames.com
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Architects of the West Kingdom
By Serge Pierro
Unique Worker Placement
T
hroughout history there have many famous duos: Antony and Cleopatra, Laurel and Hardy, Simon and Garfunkel, etc. Recently the gaming industry has spawned a new “dynamic duo”, Shem Phillips and Mihajlo Dimitrievski. With Architects of the West Kingdom, they are joined by SJ MacDonald for an interesting take on the Worker Placement mechanism. Let’s take a look at a game that I chose as one of my anticipated games from the 2018 Essen Spiel. The first thing that you notice about the box is that it measures 9” x 9” x 3”. Due to the high cost of shipping, I think that we can expect to see more games released in this size. The box top features spot varnishing on the game’s logo on all of its sides. The cardboard insert is made of a sturdy stock and is divided into two sections, one
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primarily for the cards and the other for the wooden components. Each section also provides a shelving area to support the game board, player boards and the rulebooks. And speaking of rulebooks, the game includes both the main rulebook and a supplemental one devoted to each of the card and building effects, as well as the rules for Solo Play and Variable Setups. The main rulebook is 20 pages long and is nicely laid out. There are numerous examples, as well as highlighted points of interest. Each of the key points of the game are accompanied by an illustration. The rules do a good job of teaching you the game and you will be up and running quickly. The last page of the book has both “Quick Reminders” and “Quick Standard Setup”.
As mentioned above the supplemental rulebook caters to the clarification of the Apprentice abilities and the Building effects. There are also two pages for the Solo Play, which features some dedicated components that are not used in the base game. The back cover clarifies the asymmetrical abilities of the Player Boards. Each of the panels of the 6 panel board measure 8” and are made of a sturdy cardboard stock. The player boards measure 5” x 8 1/4” and are made of a decent card stock. The five main boards are double sided with one side
dedicated to the Variable Variant and the other side not having any special abilities. There is also a separate double sided board for the Solo game. There are two different sizes of cards, both of which are smaller than standard sized cards. The larger sized cards used for the Apprentices, Buildings and Solo Game measure 2 1/8” x 3 3/8” and the smaller sized cards measure 1 5/8” x 2 5/8”. Both sizes are linen finished and made of a good card stock. Sleeving should be considered optional, I personally will not be sleeving them. Continued on next page>
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Architects of the West Kingdom
(Cont.)
The currency used in the game is made from turn, you would then have 2 workers at that a sturdy cardboard stock. location and you would gain 2 Stones, etc. You only count your workers, not those of The bulk of the game’s components are any of the other players. custom shaped and made of wood. These include all of the various resources and the One of the many things that makes this player meeples/pieces. The color of the game interesting is that there are many player pieces are: red, yellow, blue, green and locations on the board on which you can purple. place a meeple. The rulebook does an excellent job teaching Here’s a quick overview of them: how to set up the game and is featured at both the start of the rules, for first time players and The middle of the board contains what I also on the back cover, as a speedy reference call the Resource Section. Contained in this for veteran players. area are locations for acquiring the various resources used in the game. This includes: Although this is a Worker Placement Quarry, Forest, Mines and the Silversmith. game, the rulebook refers to it as a Worker The Silversmith is used to gain the Silver Investment game and that’s not a bad currency used in the game. analogy, as you will start with 20 workers and each turn you will place one on the board As far as currency goes, the Tax Stand is there is no “end of turn, take your workers another means of acquiring it, though this back” phase. What makes this interesting is comes at a price, as you lose 2 Virtue when that your workers “stack” as they are placed. you use this location. This is often a prime Example: if you have one of your workers source for obtaining substantial amounts of at the Quarry, you receive 1 Stone. If you coins. should place another worker there on another
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Should you choose to pursue a strategy that lacks honor and don’t mind losing Virtue, then the Black Market is an area of the board that you will want to take a look at as it allows you to get more “bang for your buck”, though at the expense of Virtue loss and paying coins. This is also the only area on the board which contains spaces that only one meeple may be in at a time. The section contains 3 spaces: one allows you to obtain the resources stated on the card for the cost
of 1 coin and 1 loss of Virtue, the second allows you to obtain either an Apprentice or Building for 2 coins and 1 loss of Virtue, and the third allows you to spend 3 coins and lose 1 virtue to gain the resources which are stated on the card, which are a larger amount than those on the first space. It should be noted that when all three spaces are occupied, this triggers the Black Market Reset action which we will discuss further below.
Continued on next page>
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Architects of the West Kingdom
The King’s Storehouse is another interesting area of the board, as it allows for the trading of resources for either Marble or Virtue. This is the main means of gaining Marble without being tainted by the Black Market. It is also an excellent area in which to increase your Virtue. Throughout the game you will be finding yourself visiting the Workshop, as this is the location that allows you to obtain Apprentices and Building Plans which are used to score victory points. Apprentices can be obtained by spending 4 coins, 2 of which are taxed and placed at the Tax Stand. Your total number of meeples at this location determine which Apprentice you can buy. If you should desire to take an Apprentice that is not within the “range” of your total meeple count, you can place a number of coin(s) on the cards in that row, which would then allow you to take it. Building Plans are drawn from the deck at the cost of 1 for the first meeple and then an additional card for every two meeples.
(Cont.)
to the Prison. The cost of doing so is one taxed coin for the first meeple that you have there and then one coin/meeple for each additional group you want to capture. When you capture an opposing player’s meeples you place them on the relevant section of your player board and if you capture your own, they are returned to your supply.
The Prison area of the Guardhouse is where the captured meeples are eventually placed and redeemed. There are several actions that can be used at this location. The first action is taking the captured meeples on your player board and sending them to the Prison. You receive one coin for each meeple sent there. The second action allows you to take all of your meeples that are in the Prison and return them to your Player Board. The third one allows you to pay 5 coins, 2 of which are taxed, or take 1 Debt card and lose 1 Virtue to take all of their captured meeples on other player boards and return them to your Player Board. And the last action is that you can spend 6 coins, 3 of which are taxed, to pay The Town Centre is a fascinating addition off 1 Debt card. to the game, as it allows players to capture groups of meeples and eventually sell them
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The Guildhall is not only where players place there meeples in order to construct Buildings and work on the Cathedral, but it also serves as the timing mechanism for the end of the game. To construct a Building, you must have the resources and Apprentice skills listed on the card. The resources are paid to the supply and a meeple is placed on one of the spaces on the Guildhall track following the top to bottom/left to right designation determined by the number of players. To work on the Cathedral you have to pay the cost listed on the next available space that you want to move to and discard a
Building Plan from your hand to the bottom of the Building Plan deck. You place your meeple on the Guildhall track in the same manner used for constructing Buildings. While that covers all of the available areas on the board, there is still the matter of the aforementioned Black Market Reset. When the three spaces at the Black Market are occupied or a player places their meeple at the start of the third or fourth row at the Guild Hall, the Black Market Reset is triggered. The repercussions of this are as follows: The meeples in the Black Market are sent to the Continued on next page>
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Architects of the West Kingdom
Prison. The top Small Market card is flipped over and put onto the Large Market stack. Apprentices with Black Market abilities are triggered and resolved. All players with 3 or more meeples in the Prison, lose 1 Virtue. The player(s) with the most meeples in the Prison each take a Debt card and place it “unpaid” side up in front of them. The Virtue Track is an additional scoring mechanism within the game. This tracks both the positive and negative positions and influences the overall gameplay and end of game scoring. The higher you are on the Virtue track the more points you get at the end of the game. Not surprisingly, the lower you are on the track will subtract points from your score at the end of the game. But, what makes this interesting is that both strategies are viable, but you do have to work a bit harder to make the low Virtue strategy work. For instance, if you go for the low Virtue route you can’t work on the Cathedral and your tax payments are less. While the high Virtue strategy scores more points at the end of the game and you’re unable to visit the Black Market.
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(Cont.)
While the board itself contains many choices, the Apprentice cards and Building Plans also have abilities and resources that will prove to be useful throughout the game. The Apprentice cards have icons on them that are needed in order to build certain Buildings, as well as providing supplemental actions that can be used at specific locations on the board. Some of them also have effects that are triggered upon purchase. The Building Plans have a resource cost on them for their purchase and some of them have icons needed from Apprentices. Upon purchase they will produce either an immediate effect or an end of game effect. Each Building also has how many victory points it is worth at the end of the game. Once the last place has been occupied in the Guild Hall the end of the game is triggered and all of the players get one more turn, including the person who triggered the end. Then points are totaled and the high score wins.
“Architects of the West Kingdom” is a winner! Shem Phillips and SJ MacDonald sculpt the Worker Placement mechanism into something new and refreshing. No longer is there any downtime between rounds as players have to find and remove their workers in order to start another round. The play is continuous and fast.
to the experience. If you feel that someone is starting to gain far too many resources at a location, you can go to the Town Centre and capture them. This mechanism keeps everyone “honest”, as they have to weigh the cost of drawing attention to their workers and trying to extract as much value from a location as possible. It also proved to be an excellent source of income, especially if you The ability to capture and imprison your were wary of going to the Tax Stand. opponent’s meeples is brilliant and really adds Continued on next page>
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Architects of the West Kingdom
The replayability of the game is quite high, especially when you consider that there are two sides to the Player Boards and only a small portion of the cards are used each game. We definitely enjoyed the asymmetrical Player Boards and appreciated how they encouraged different strategies.
(Cont.)
locations were “conditional” and didn’t need to be visited often. This is one of those games that can be approached from various angles. In some ways it reminds me of a Stefan Feld design of “mini-games”, but at a much more approachable level. If you are a fan of Worker Placement games, yet feel that they are all starting to get a bit monotonous, then this is one that you are going to definitely want to take a look at as it provides a unique twist on the mechanism.
Not only is the multiplayer game excellent, but there is also a very competitive Solo game. I was a bit surprised at how close the score was on my first attempt (34-30), as I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but the two decks that you play against are well designed Although the year is young, this is already and I especially liked how the second deck in the running for my top game reviewed for would slowly be added to the first. And just 2019. We’ll have to see what the rest of the like the multiplayer game, the Solo game year has to offer... is fast paced, and considerably more so, as there is no down time. Designers: Shem Phillips & S J MacDonald Overall this is easily one of my favorite Worker Placement games. The fast and smooth gameplay is going to appeal to many players. And while some players were overwhelmed at first by the assortment of choices, after a couple of turns they realized that everything made sense and some
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Publisher: Players: Mechanic: Ages: Length:
Renegade Game Studios 1-5 Worker Placement
12+ 60-80 Mins.
Highly Recommended www.renegadegames.com
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Interview
By Serge Pierro
• Race for the Galaxy • Favor of the Pharoah • New Frontiers • Res Arcana Tom Lehmann - Game Designer Did you start designing games at an early age? If so, do you remember what your first game design was like?
Dominion. The only one of these that has influenced my designs is Dominion. Other influencial designs would be Acquire, 1829, Magic the Gathering, Puerto Rico, and Pandemic.
I grew up overseas, moving every couple of When starting a new design, do you start years. We didn’t own many games so my father invented variants to the few we had. I designed with a theme or a mechanic? my first game when I was 14 years old. 20 years later, completely re-developed and re-themed, Like most designers, I don’t think it is an “either/ it became my first published game: Fast Food or” situtation. I usually start with a working title/theme, a graphic image in my mind, and Franchise. either a key mechanic or “design problem” that I want to solve.
What games over the years have you enjoyed most, from both the point of personal enjoyment, as well as those that influenced your growth as a designer?
With Res Arcana, I had the working title “Artifacts”. My “image” was players as mages, placing artifact cards in front of them which would be turned to produce or convert alchemical essences. These essences would For personal enjoyment: Can’t Stop, Tichu, be used to claim places of power. The design Princes of Florence, Times Up, Air Baron, and
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problem was: could I make this work with each player having a personal deck of just a few unique cards? If so, then these cards could either be dealt out randomly (producing lots of variety from game to game) or experienced players could quickly draft them.
and playtest. At least twice a week, I try to be done with non-design work by 3 pm. I then go to a tea shop, have tea, stare out a window with my clipboard, and spend 2 hours actually doing game design.
What do you think defines your “style” as a What is your daily design/playtest schedule game designer, is there a specific mechanic or like? Do you work on games everyday? rule set or… ? Yes and no. Some days, it’s all support on BGG, Someone asked me to sum my design style up publicity work, reviewing art, proofing files, in 5 words. I came up with: “tough decisions and e-mail discussions with publishers. Other with strategic tension”. This is what I strive for days, I write rules, revise files, make prototypes, in every game.
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Interview
(Cont.)
“New Frontiers” is the latest release in the “Race for the Galaxy” line of games. What kind of experience were you trying to design? How does it differ from the experiences of the other “Race for the Galaxy” games? Race for the Galaxy revels in being a card game. It uses the hidden information of cards, coupled with simultaneous action selection, to create gambling and bluffing interactions. The random arrival of cards drawn from the deck adds hand management and forces players to constantly make and adjust their plans as the game progresses. New Frontiers, in contrast, is definitely a board game. The developments vary from game to game but are laid out at the start, allowing players to do more planning up front. Actions are selected sequentially, with each player able to see the current game state as they pick them. The large round world tiles that slot neatly into the empire mats, the chevron shaped developments, wooden colonists, and cool plastic cubes for goods all give New Frontiers a strong table presence, as befits a board game.
Speaking of “Roll for the Galaxy”, I hear a new expansion, “Rivalry”, will be released soon.
That’s correct. Rivalry is three expansions in one. It adds new dice, start worlds, factions, and bag tiles, plus two optional games. In the Deal Game, players make credit-asset swaps, trading in almost anything, such as spare dice, tiles, VPs, etc., to gain different dice, bag draws, talent We’ve tried to make each game -- Race, Roll, counters, and credits. The Alien Orb Game Jump Drive, and New Frontiers -- quite distinct adds dice crafting to the mix. Players each get in game play, even though they inhabit a shared a customizable die, representing ancient Alien technology that has been found. By assigning universe. researchers, they change its plug-in faces, improving them via six different tech lines.
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One of my most anticipated games of 2019 is “Res Arcana”. This looks like it’s going to be interesting. What can you tell our readers about it?
Each round, players collect essences and then take actions, one at a time clockwise, until all players have passed. An action is either pass, place an artifact, claim a monument or place of power, discard a card for one gold or any mix of two other essences, or use a power on their Res Arcana is a fantastical game of resource mage, magic item, artifact, monument, or place conversion. Players are alchemical mages. They of power. After all player pass, if no one has compete to build valuable monuments and won, you begin a new round. seize five places of power, which are then used to create victory points. The first player to have 10 or more victory points wins. What do the artifacts represent? Each player starts with one each of five magical essences: elan, calm, life, death, and, of course, gold, which was central to medieval alchemy. They also get a personal deck of just 8 artifact cards, a magic item, and a choice of two starting mages.
They include dragons, magical creatures -- such as a winged horse -- and items from alchemy and fables, such as the Philosopher’s Stone, Ring of Midas, dragon teeth, hand of glory, dwarven pickaxe, horn of plenty, chalice of life, dancing sword, etc. Continued on next page>
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Interview
(Cont.)
This mix of fantasy and history is part of what attracted Julien Delval to this project. He has done a great job illustrating the 60 different artifact, mage, and monument cards. Cyrille Daujean served as art director and created a clear set of icons for the various powers.
Are all the artifacts unique?
it’s a race to claim the monuments and places of power! If you try to build all of your artifacts you’ll be too slow. And, with a random set of cards, not all your artifacts’ powers will fit together. Needing to spend some artifacts for essences means that every card is useful.
Yes. This provides lots of variety from game Gold tends to be harder than the other essences to game. You have to decide which artifacts to obtain. Gold is used to claim the ancient to build and which to discard to produce the monuments, each worth 1-4 points, which essences needed to build the others. Remember, forms a different path to victory than the places of power.
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What if some vital power isn’t among the artifacts you have? This is where the magic items come in. Each item has a valuable power to fill in for powers that may be missing in your deck. During setup, you draft magic items from the center (in reverse order to balance the advantage of
going first). Each round, when you pass, you must give up your current magic item and take a new one from the center. This ensures that the available magic items are constantly changing and moving among the players. It also creates tension around doing more actions vs passing early (with the first player to pass also becoming first in the next round).
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Interview
(Cont.)
What about drafting artifacts? For brand new players, we have preset hands of a mage and 3 artifacts (plus five random artifacts to make up your initial deck). Then, we used random decks while players become familiar with the various artifacts, monuments, and places of power (which are two-sided to provide more variety from game to game). Once players are experienced, we provide two drafting options.
The second option is for two players playing a 3 game match. The first game is randomly dealt. For the second, all 16 artifacts are reused. They are placed face up and drafted ABBAABBA... with the first game loser choosing if they want first pick or the first pair (to get two artifacts that synergize well with each other).
Have you already designed expansions for “Res Arcana�?
We are testing two possible expansions. Of The first is simple: deal out artifacts to each course, we need to see how the game is received player in two groups of 4 and draft each group, first! taking one and passing the rest, clockwise for I am really excited to see Res Arcana appear. the first group, then counter-clockwise. I feel deeply honored that Sand Castle Games, a new publisher, chose my game as their first offering.
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Tricky Dungeon
By Tom M Franklin
Heroic Trick Taking
T
ricky Dungeon is a trick-taking card game with a D&D Hero theme for two to four players. Although the rules have a separate section for two players, it is best played with three to four. Each game is played through two full rounds, each with one Active Player choosing the Trick-taking Hero who then plays against the remaining players.
At the start of each round, five Hero cards are laid out, face up, in front of all players. The main deck is shuffled and then dealt out to the players -- seven cards for four players; nine cards for three players.
Dealt cards are numbered 0 – 7 in one of four colors, with some cards displaying the graphic of a Hand or a Potion on the side. These icons may come into play depending on the trick-taking mechanism, chosen by the Active There are three sets of Heroes. Beginning Player for the round. games start with Heroes with an “A” on their card face. Later games can work from Each player takes on the role of Active Player the “B” or “C” cards, or even a random mix twice in the course of the game. The Active of the three. Player reviews the cards they have been dealt
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Photo: Tom M Franklin
and then studies their options amongst the face-up Heroes. That person then chooses one Hero to determine the way they will attempt to score points during the tricktaking phase of the game.
based on the number of tricks with Potions you take, while others score you points only if you take the final trick. Some change the trump card from the card the Active Player first plays to another color or icon, or to no trumps at all. Some ask you to predict the Each Hero serves to score the Active Player number of tricks you will take, while others points in different ways. Some score points give another player the option of choosing the trump for the round. Continued on next page>
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Tricky Dungeon (Cont.)
Play starts with the Active player laying down a card. Cards are then played in a clockwise manner. Players must play a card of a matching suit to the Active Player’s card, if you hold one in your hand. If not, you are free to choose the card of another suit to play. Whoever plays the highest numbered card in the first player’s suit or of a trump card then wins the trick and becomes the first player to play a card on the next turn.
the Hero/Trick-taking Mechanism chosen by the Active Player made all the difference – and the fact that the choices remained the same for all players during a given round made for some interesting choices.
Tricky Dungeon is a surprisingly short game that, thanks to the variety of Heroes/Tricktaking Mechanisms, has enough variety to keep it in our list of filler games, either between longer games or to be played at the It takes a certain type of card game to break end of a more intense gaming session. down my barriers against the randomness inherent in card games to keep my attention. My weekly gaming group played through Designer: Arfan van Houwelingen six rounds (a full game) of Tricky Dungeon so briskly that we were all surprised that the Publisher: Pumpkin Games 2-4 game was over. We played it again and again Players: and remained surprised at how quickly each Mechanic: Trick Taking Ages: 12+ game was played.
Length:
While this is an asymmetrical game (one against many) the rounds are played so fast that it never felt overwhelming. The choice of
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20-40 Mins.
Recommended www.pumpkin-games.com
Photo: Tom M Franklin
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Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition
By Serge Pierro
Euro-style Dungeon Crawler
D
ungeon Crawlers have become quite popular, due in large part to the emergence of Gloomhaven. Due to its success, and that of other games such as Descent, companies have started to see what they can bring to the genre to separate themselves from their competitors. With the Revised Edition of Perdition’s Mouth: Abyssal Rift, Dragon Dawn Productions has produced a very interesting euro-influenced game which combines a dark horror theme with an innovative use of the rondel mechanism. And while the theme of the game is very dark, the future for the game itself looks quite bright!
“Perdition’s Mouth” and “Revised Edition”. The inside of the box features a multipart cardboard insert. The game ships with the punchboard stored below the bottom of the insert, which will have to be removed from the box in order to access the punchboard. It can then be replaced and used as normal. The top part of the insert consists of two wells, one that stores the box of Scenario Sheets and the other for tokens and such. When it is removed it reveals another layer in which there is a channel alongside one side of the box that is used for the storage of the game’s cards, as well as a smaller channel that holds the larger miniatures.
The first thing that you notice about the game is the weight of the box. Weighing in at 12 pounds, this is not a game you would want to store on a weak shelf. The 12” x 12” x 5” box features some spot varnishing on the front of the box for the words
The 44 page rulebook measures 8 1/2” x 11 1/2” and is printed on a nice paper stock. It is profusely illustrated and contains many examples. The table of contents makes it fairly easy to find what you are looking for, however, there is no index which would
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have made it easier to find all instances of a specific inquiry. Nevertheless, after a while you will feel a bit more comfortable in located the relevant information, as you will be accessing the book often at first, in order to clarify a situation. That’s not to say that the game is overly complicated, but there is quite a bit of information contained within and fortunately the gameplay is quite easy, though there are considerable details that enhance the game’s play. Overall, the rulebook is quite comprehensive and does a good job of teaching the game. As mentioned above, due to the amount of material presented it would have been nice to have had a comprehensive index to save
you from having to continuously flip pages to try and find something not specifically stated in the table of contents. The cards for the game come in two sizes, the standard 2 1/2” x 3 1/2” size and the smaller 1 3/4” x 2 3/4” size. Most of the cards are only shuffled to randomize them at the start of the game, so sleeves aren’t really needed. However, the individual Character decks are shuffled during the game, so sleeving those might be considered optional. I think the card stock is fine, and I will not be sleeving any of the cards.
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Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition (Cont.) The cardboard tokens are made from a decent cardboard stock and should prove to be durable. Though one should be more careful with the 4 Pool Markers, as they are only a little over a 1/2” wide at their widest point and could be vulnerable to bending, if mishandled.
have decent detail and are molded from a PVC plastic. The Demon, Summoner and a few of the Heroes really stand out.
While all of the above add to the weight of the box, it is the collection of the 5 doublesided 4 panel boards that add the most heft. The boards are made of a sturdy cardboard The Character sheets are made of linen stock and have a matte finish. finished card stock and measure 5 3/4” x 8 1/4”. They are double sided with the only The rulebook features a nice step by step difference being the printed language. These setup guide and is quite easy to set up, are stored in the separate printed box that especially if you have already separated all of also contains the Scenario Sheets. The sheets the individual components. are also the same size and double sided with a linen finished, but one side is devoted to The flow of the game is as follows; first there the background/flavor story and the other is a Heroes turn and then it’s the Enemy turn. side is dedicated to the setup and additional Heroes will decide on the order in which they information of the scenario. wish to play. There is no set starting order, as players can discuss their strategies and The standout mechanism of the game is the then move in the order that best implements use of two different roundels. These both that strategy. Once all of the Heroes have measure 7 1/2” in diameter and are made of taken their turn, then the Enemies will go a sturdy cardboard stock, with the Enemy and complete their turn. Let’s take a look in one having an additional smaller cardboard a little more in detail as to what this actually circle that attaches to the rondel and is used means. to track the Threat level. On an individual player’s turn they will Of course the star attraction of any miniatures decide to spend their action points to based game is the inclusion of miniatures, move on The Stone of Destiny (the player’s and Perdition’s Mouth is no exception. There rondel). At the start of a turn, all of the pegs are almost 50 preassembled miniatures that on the rondel will be facing “outward”. After
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a player spends their actions on the rondel they will change the orientation towards the “inward� position, thus indicating that their turn is over and everyone can see who has and hasn’t gone yet. This proved to be an excellent method of tracking the Heroes turn.
points to Move on the main board. They also have the option to draw a card from their Hero deck, which is an important ability, as it is not easy to draw Hero cards during the game. There were times when the action was used mainly for the ability to draw a card instead of the main Move action.
The rondel contains the following options: Special: Each of the Heroes has a Special Move, Special, Attack, Sprint, Defend, Ability and this is the rondel spoke that triggers it. This has only one hole available Charge, Rest and Bash/Aimed Shot. for a Hero peg, so it would be wise to Move: The move spoke on the rondel has strategize as to who would benefit most three available holes for player pegs. If a from using it, in case there is more than one player uses this space they may spend Action player interested in doing so. After using the Continued on next page>
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Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition (Cont.) Special Ability the player has the option of to bunker down for an upcoming Enemy moving, though this optional movement has attack. You may also draw one of the coveted Hero cards here. You can also spend 2 Action its Action point cost doubled. points to take a +1 Defense token, as many Attack: Attack has three available holes and times as you’d like, however, the Defense is one area that you will be one of the most tokens are discarded at the start of your next important areas to plan a strategy around, turn. Should you be attacked while in this especially if the Hero has a Ranged Attack area, you also get to draw a card from the ability. Your Attack can be increased by 1 for Response deck and add it to your defense. every 2 Actions spent, in addition to being increased with Hero cards. This is also one Charge: Charge was the most coveted action of the four spokes to feature the ability to on the rondel, as it allows you to move and attack. There are only two holes available on draw a Hero card. the spoke, so it is important to prioritize who Sprint: Sprint is your primary means of should take them for the benefit of the group. moving across the board quickly. It has two You can spend action points to move, as well holes and you draw a Response card and as boosting the action with cards. You can add it to your remaining Action points in also separately boost the attack with Hero order to move. Example: You have 5 Action cards. points at the start of your turn. You move Rest: The Rest spoke only has one hole 3 spokes on the rondel and have 2 Action points remaining. At this point you can play available and this makes for a very tense and Hero cards, lets say a “2”, you now have 4 strategic implementation, as this is the only Action points available. Now you draw a spot on the rondel where you can potentially Response card “3”. The end result being “7” draw multiple Hero cards. There is also Action points available for moving around a healing bonus of 1 if you are on a space containing a Flea Mattress on the board. The the board. limitation of only one hole meant that we had Defend: Although the Defend spoke to find ways of working around it, especially isn’t used as often as the others, it can be if multiple players were burning through a real lifesaver. This has 3 holes available their Hero cards. This was the one spot on and provides the opportunity for 3 Heroes the rondel that we wished had another hole
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or two. Needless to say, the one hole was designed that way on purpose and proved to be a tough strategic choice amongst the players as to who would get to access it on a turn - especially during or after a big battle.
finished playing any Hero cards for boosting the attack, you then draw a card from the Response deck and add it to your total. Whether you attack is successful or not, the attacked enemy moves one space away from the attacker and the attacker pursues them one space. This was an excellent action to use to push an Enemy into a Special Terrains so that they would automatically suffer a Failure Event.
Aimed Shot/Bash: This spoke is the only one to contain two separate actions. The Aimed Shot is only accessible to a Hero who has a Ranged Attack ability. The attack is made at +1 strength and can be further enhanced by playing Hero cards. After the The Enemies have their own rondel. This attack you can move only one space. The features: Attack, Move, and two different Bash half of the spoke allows you to play Spawn spokes. your attack as normal, however, when you are Continued on next page>
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Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition (Cont.) At the start of the Enemy turn the top cards of the Response deck is turned over and the revealed card indicates the number of spokes to move one of the tokens. Then the other token is moved one space at a time resolving each action until it lands on the spoke with the other token. That last action is resolved and their turn is over. It is possible to draw a negative number and have the action(s) go counter clockwise. There are certain criteria involved for both the Enemy Move and Attack. First the Insectoids move, then the Cultists and then the Demon. The priority of which is smallest to largest and the furthest and closest to a Hero. Generally, Enemies will pursue the Hero with the lowest Health. The amount of movement is indicated on the Enemy sheet for each of the Enemies. The Enemy Attacks also follow a hierarchy similar to the aforementioned usage used for movement. The Attack and Defense stats of the Enemies are shown on the Enemy Sheet. A Response card is drawn and added to the Enemies base attack.
symbol and place them at the relevant points on the board. It is interesting that you get to choose what figures to bring out at that point. Needless to say, you’ll grab the Acolytes first and work your way up to the more powerful units. But don’t be surprised if they all wind up on the board at some point! This gives a basic overview of the game. What makes the game shine even brighter are all of the additional rules that make for an interesting game, such as rescuing Victims and discovering Treasure. And while there is more to learn, it is not overly complicated and after a few plays it will all become natural, especially as this game is challenging and you’ll probably be playing it often. I’ve had several people ask me what the game is like. I wind up telling them that it’s as if Mac Gerdts had designed Gloomhaven with a dark horror theme. And while the gameplay and such is not necessarily related to Gloomhaven, these days it makes it easier to use that as a starting point. In my opinion, Perdition’s Mouth - Revised Edition is a “thinking man’s” dungeon crawler.
There are two different Spawning spaces on the rondel. One of them features a round symbol and the other is a square symbol. The use of the two roundels is brilliant and These represent the different Pools that are everyone who played the game thought that setup at the start of the game. You take the they were an excellent means of providing appropriate figure(s) from the corresponding action choices to all the players. Players were
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immersed in the decision making process as to who would do each action every turn. With higher player counts the rondel can become quite crowded and spokes that had only 1 or 2 holes were often quickly taken. Another aspect of moving around the rondel was trying not to waste Action points so that they could be parlayed into the actual Action take at the spoke that they stopped at, as this was often the best way to Sprint.
to come out so that the game has some longevity. However, there are a ridiculous amount of scenarios (20+) and they can all be customized to harder or easier settings, especially when you factor in that the Response card deck can be tweaked for a more intense playing experience. There is tremendous replayability with just the base game, though I did notice on the companies site that there are actually expansions that are being developed/manufactured, so this makes Oftentimes with games such as these will for an excellent starting point if it seems like ship with a “small� amount of scenarios and a game that you might be interested in. you have to hope and wait for an expansion Continued on next page>
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Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition (Cont.) And speaking of interest, the game’s theme is fairly interesting, but it is very dark. If you like dark horror, then this game will be right up your alley. The artwork and feel of the game captures the darkness. You would almost get goosebumps as a line of Acolytes would start moving around the board in a single file, as if you could hear them chanting along, totally oblivious of the carnage going on around them. The asymmetry of the Hero decks only added to the interest and replayability to the game. Each Hero felt very unique and there was little crossover in abilities. You could try and play each of the Heroes through a Campaign and have even more replayability. And speaking of Campaigns, this is where the game really shines. I can’t even fathom at this point the idea of taking my Hero through an entire Campaign and making it to the end alive. The game is brutal, and that’s another reason why we enjoyed playing it, as we felt challenged and emotionally invested in the experience. And although I’m not a huge fan of co-op games, if you don’t cooperate with the members of your group, you will most certainly fail. Because of its challenging nature and extensive set of scenarios, this is a Campaign that I just feel the need to have to try and complete. Though I’m sure I’ll be frustrated along the way...
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Overall, this is an excellent game. Being more of a fantasy fan than horror, I probably would have preferred that the theme be more fantasy oriented, but it is nice to play outside of your comfort zone and experience something different. And make no mistake, Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition is a different kind of dungeon crawler. There are no dice, and the rondels will have you planning out your turns and strategies in a different manner. I’m really looking forward to seeing what Dragon Dawn Production have in mind with the expansions for this game. If you are into dungeon crawlers with innovative mechanisms or you enjoy dark horror themes, then this is a game that you will certainly want to take a look at.
Designers: Timo Multamaki & Thomas Klausner
Publisher: Players: Mechanic: Ages: Length:
Dragon Dawn Productions 1-6 Dungeon Crawler, Rondel
12+ 60-120 Mins.
Highly Recommended www.perditionsmouth.com
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Warigin
By Tom M Franklin
Heaven, Hell and The Void
I
n Warigin, players represent Heaven, Hell, and The Void. After eons of mutual indifference, mankind has come into the world and attracted the attention of all three. Now, one faction makes its move against the other two to rule mankind’s future.
can or cannot happen during the given round or immediately kill off pawns in specific areas or give an advantage to an attacking pawn in battle. On a turn, the Alliance players working together against the Challenger may take two actions. They can either play an Action card and move a pawn one hex on the board or they may move two separate pawns one hex on the board. (At no time can a single pawn be moved twice in a turn unless an Action card allowing this is played.) The Challenger, however, has an additional action, although only one Action card may be played per turn.
Each player starts by placing the wooden pawns of their color on the hexes on the outer perimeter of their castle. Of these pawns, five are Soldiers (unmarked on the bottom) and three are Heroes (marked with crossed swords on the bottom), with the Challenger receiving one additional Hero. Once placed on the board, players are not permitted to look under any pawn to check its The Challenger’s goal is to capture either of the relative strength until that pawn goes into combat. Alliance castles. The Alliance players win if they either capture the Challenger’s castle or kill off all of Players are also randomly dealt nine Action Cards the Challenger’s pawns. that allow them to make changes to the game rules for either their own turn or until their turn comes Battles involve one pawn moving into a hex already around again. occupied by another player’s pawn. The two pawns are picked up off the board and the bottoms revealed Event cards are placed in view of all players. At to see if they are Soldiers or Heroes. Soldiers get one the start of each round a new Event card will attempt at damage, while Heroes get two. (For the be turned over with an effect that lasts until the sake of battles, a castle is considered a Soldier.) next Event card is revealed. These can effect what
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Photo: Tom M Franklin
The game comes ready for an introductory game to give you a feel for the basic mechanics and strategies involved. There are two additions that can be added to make the game more challenging, should players wish to do so. For instance, in the initial game players roll an eight-sided die to determine battle outcomes, with Soldiers rolling one of the provided d8s and Heroes rolling two. Alternatively, each player is given a set of 16 Battle cards, with two cards each ranked 1-8, plus one Faction card. These cards are shuffled and five are randomly dealt out to the player, with the remaining cards set to one side.
Regardless of Soldier/Hero status, two cards are always set down for battle. For Soldiers, only the lower card is the only one used. For Heroes, both cards are added together. If the Faction card is used, only the numbered card is counted. At the conclusion of a battle, a Hero discards both cards played. A Soldier discards the higher card, replacing the lower card back into his/her hand. If a Faction card is played, the Faction card is always returned to the player and the numbered card is discarded. Players then draw back up to five cards from their stack of remaining Battle cards. Continued on next page>
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Warigin (Cont.)
As well, deciding who takes on the role of the Challenger can either be randomly assigned or chosen on the basis of bidding on so-called Elite cards. Elite cards grant the Challenger stronger actions than the two Alliance players. Nine of these cards are laid out face-up where all players can see them. Players then assess the hand of cards they’ve already been dealt (some of which may be Elite cards) and then determine how many additional of the available nine Elite cards they think they would need to claim to win.
agreed that the bidding system and the Battle cards made this a game we’re going to keep in our regular rotation.
The playing field is a sturdy plexiglass with a colorful board drawn underneath. The playing pieces are stout, wooden pawns that can be a bit difficult to maneuver on the small board if you have big hands and fingers. The playing cards are all standard, glossy card stock. The illustrations, by artist Anna Kersten, fit well with the theme and are evocative without going overboard. The colors underneath the game board are especially My initial reaction to Warigin was one of well done. disappointment. The Stratego-like blind battles combined with rolling a d8 to determine the While the initial beginner’s game did not meet my battle made the game feel too random. There was expectations, I like the current trend of shipping a a slight strategy applied in those early games, but game ready for a first play. The twenty-page rule the Challenger always lost, making the game feel book explains the concepts for the first game and gets unbalanced. you playing fairly quickly. We all liked the gameplay variations offered and certainly agreed that the However, when we added the Elite card bidding bidding and Battle card mechanics made this game system to determine the Challenger and the Battle far more challenging. cards, the game took on a very different feel. We each had to assess our hands against the available cards. Whoever took on the role of the Challenger Designer: Christian Sauer now had a better choice of cards. Battles became Publisher: 3-Headed Dog much more focused. (Do I use my higher number Players: 2-3 cards early on with my Character card and then Mechanic: Battle Cards, Abstract lose its use, potentially for the rest of the game? Or Ages: 16+ do I wait until the end when my Castle might be threatened?) The other members of my weekly Length: 15-60 mins. gaming group liked the standard game, but we all
Highly Recommended http://3-headed-dog.com
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Photo: Tom M Franklin
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Abstract Games
By Tom M Franklin
Hey, That’s My Fish!
Y
es, yes, I know. There are hex tiles with fish on them. And there are plastic penguins in four different colors. This does not fit the typical definition of an Abstract Game. Bear with me. (Penguin with me?) Okay, just trust me. Hey, That’s My Fish may have fish hex tiles and plastic penguin pieces, but the root of the game is purely abstract. (Print and Play variations exist online with Squirrels and Nuts. Consult The Almighty Google and construct your own if you choose to do so.)
Once the hex/ice floes have been set out in a predetermined formation (again, consult The Almighty Google for variations – my personal one is a large hex with the center hex/ice flow missing), players then place their colored penguins on ice floes containing only one fish until all penguins are on the board. Then, in order, each player moves a single penguin of their color from one hex/ice floe to another in an uninterrupted straight line. They then carefully take the hex/ice flow they moved from and remove it from the board, leaving a gap that all penguins cannot cross over. The removed hex/ice floe then becomes part of their hoard of fish and will count towards their final fish count at the end of the game. Whoever has the most fish at the end, wins the game.
It also wins my personal award for the game in my collection that takes longer to set up than it takes to play. (A point that everyone I’ve ever played in person has mentioned.) This, however, does not Hey, That’s My Fish was a game I acquired in a diminish my appreciation for the game. trade. Initially I thought it was a lightweight filler of a game, if it wasn’t for the time it took to set up The 60 hex tiles that represent ice floes and fish the board before playing. It was quick, amusing, (ranging from one fish to three fish) are generally and fun to try to strand other players’ penguins on unwieldy in their size and determination to not non-productive stretches of fish and ice. cooperate when trying to fit them into a reasonable, symmetrical shape before playing. Trust me, though, it is worth the effort.
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Game Nite Issue #33
Photo: Tom M Franklin
Then I started playing it online with a friend. The online site we use only allows for two-player games and, more importantly, allows for games to be played without both players being present during gameplay. When my friend makes a move, I get notified via email that it is my turn.
The randomization of the hex tiles/ice floes at the start of each game means that there is no single strategy to winning. It’s easy to focus on landing on the three fish ice floes, but if there is a possibility of cutting off an opponent’s penguin at the cost of a few fish, the number of those fish need to be calculated against your potential gain elsewhere.
This changed Hey, That’s My Fish from a simple, all-but dismissive filler game, into a strategic game Hey, That’s My Fish is a surprisingly complex game that I study as much as I’ve ever studied a Chess when played with two and is a game that deserves board. more attention from serious gamers. Don’t let the vague, cutesy theme distract you – this is a serious Abstract worthy of your consideration. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Game Nite Issue #33
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Interview Gallery
Steve Jackson #1
Dan Verssen #1
Paul Herbert #1
Reiner Knizia #2
Franz Vohwinkel #2
James Ernest #2
Mark Copplestone #2
Reiner Knizia #3
Peter Adkison #3
Brom #3
Chenier La Salle #4
Ryan Dancey #4
Brian Snoddy #4
Beth Sobel #5
Bruno Faidutti #5
Tom Jolly #6
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Game Nite Issue #33
Antoine Bauza #7
Dennis Lohausen #7
Ryan Laukat #8
Chad Hoverter #9
Matt Leacock #9
Greg Isabelli #9
Ignacy Trzewiczek #10
Jacqui Davis #10
Johan Koitka #10
Jamey Stegmaier #11
Michael Menzel #11
Kay Wilke #11
Vincent Dutrait #12
Mike Fitzgerald #12
Sandy Petersen #13
Mihajlo Dimitrievski #13
Game Nite Issue #33
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Interview Gallery (Cont.)
Bruno Cathala #14
John Ariosa #14
Friedemann Friese #15
Joshua Cappel #15
Eric Vogel #15
Mac Gerdts #16
Keldon Jones #16
Steve Finn #17
J. Alex Kevern #18
Richard Ham #18
Ludovic Roudy #19
Bruno Sautter #19
Phil Walker-Harding #20
Luke Peterschmidt #21
Mike Richie #22
Grant Wilson #22
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Game Nite Issue #33
Curt Covert #23
Daryl Andrews #24
Rob Dougherty #25
Nestor Romeral Andres #26
Leonard Koh #27
Rui Alipio Monteiro #28
Luke Laurie #29
Darwin Kastle #30
Serge Pierro #31
Justin Gary #32
Tom Lehmann #33
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Book Review Index
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Issue #32
Issue #33
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Mobile Review Index
Issue #12
Issue #13
Issue #14
Issue #15
Issue #16
Issue #17
Issue #18
Issue #19
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Issue #21
Issue #21
Issue #22
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Mobile Review Index (Cont.)
Issue #27
Issue #30
Issue #28
Issue #31
Issue #29
Issue #32
Issue #29
Issue #33
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Game Nite Issue #33
Contributors Serge Pierro Serge has playtested numerous games for several companies, including
Wizards of the Coast and AEG. He has also written for Duelist, Inquest and Gamer print magazines. His award winning photography has appeared in both newspapers and magazines. He has self published a game, and has several other designs ready... but, currently finds his free time devoted to doing Game Nite.
Eric Devlin Eric has been the North East Regional Representative for Wizards
of the Coast, the brand manager of Legends of the Five Rings, as well as working with Sabretooth and Third World Games. He has an extensive background in playtesting for top companies. He has also written for Games Quarterly, Duelist, Inquest and others.
Tom M Franklin Tom lives in North Carolina where he and his wife are staff to their five cats.
His writing has appeared in his agent’s Inbox and the occasional hand-written letter to friends. He grew up playing Abstract Strategy Games (back when they were simply called games) and still regards dice of all kinds with suspicion. His Board Gaming Claim to Fame is having taught over 300 kids how to play Chess. Considering he’s been playing board games for over 50 years he really should be much better at them than he is.
Contributors Game Nite is always interested in hearing from would be contributors! If you are a writer, reviewer, photographer, etc. and would like to contribute to the magazine - we would love to hear from you! Feel free to contact us: editor@gamenitemagazine.com and let us know what you have in mind.
? Game Nite Issue #33
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Game Review Index (Isuues 1-6)
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Game Nite Issue #33
• • • • • •
This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the 2-4 of Us Small World Stella Nova Shoot-Out Postcard Cthulhu Postcard Empire
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Tile Chess Cards of Cthulhu Samurai Spirit Golem Arcana Pairs Sutakku Timeline
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Baseball Highlights 2045 Samurai Sword Paperback For the Crown Trench Firefly Cutthroat Caverns Rise of the Zombies Shadow Throne
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Rhino Hero Attila Spurs and Sprockets Chaosmos March of the Ants AquaSphere Fidelitas Rise of Cthulhu Maha Yodah
• • • • • • • • • •
Animal Upon Animal Sushi Draft Stones of Fate WWII: Stalingrad Stockpile The Magnates Sentinel Tactics Flip City Space Movers 2201 Dark Tales
• • • • • • • • •
Nevermore Gold West Arcadia Quest Dragon Flame New York 1901 Lift Off! Tesla vs. Edison Yashima Targi
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Outer Earth 1944: Race to the Rhine Runecast Cycling Tour Witkacy Firefly: Fistful of Credits Dozen Doubloons King Down
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Game Review Index (Issues 7-12)
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Game Nite Issue #33
• • • • • • • • • • • •
Steam Works Web of Spies Cartography Xia: Legends of a Drift System Orleans Raiders of the North Sea Hoyuk Wizards of the Wild Myths at War Ring It! Hogg Wild for Wealth The Martian Investigations
• • • • • • • • • • •
Cosmic Run Imperial Harvest Under the Pyramids (Eldritch Horror Expansion) Bomb Squad Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization Luna Biblios Dice Trekking the National Parks Fuse Skulldug! Horrible Hex
• • • • • • • • • • • •
Cuisine a la Cart Foragers The Shadow Over Westminster Scoville Valeria: Card Kingdom Onitama Knit Wit Worlds Fair: 1893 Flip City: Reuse Gruff The Walled City Empires at Sea
• • • • • • • • • • • •
JurassAttack! Oh My Gods! Looting Atlantis 13 Days Apotheca Tiny Epic Galaxies Automobiles Daxu Slaughterville Kheops Scoville: Labs Ancient Conflict Treasure Chest
• • • • • • • • • • • •
Dr. Eureka Stockpile: Continuing Corruption Sugar Gliders Dawn of the Zeds: Third Edition Vast: The Crystal Caverns The Networks Grifters Trajan Conspiracy! Secrets of the Last Tomb Best Treehouse Ever Matryoshka
• • • • • • • • • • • • •
Imhotep In the Name of Odin Centauri Saga Draconis Invasion Dastardly Dirigibles Flamme Rouge Haspelknecht Hansa Teutonica Star Trek Panic Theomachy Commissioned San Ni Ichi Small City Game Nite Issue #33
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Game Review Index (Issues 13-18)
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• • • • • • • • • • • • •
Kanagawa Lunarchitects Hero Realms Santorini Vinhos: Deluxe Colony Sun Tzu Bermuda Crisis Tavarua Explorers of the North Sea America San Allies Crisis
• • • • • • • • • •
Hanamikoji Element Villages of Valeria Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition 7 Wonders Duel Oceanos Herbaceous A Feast For Odin Schotten Totten This Belongs in a Museum
• • • • • • • • • • • •
Ninja Taisen Space Invaders Dice! The Dresden Files Card Game Pyramids Quests of Valeria Amun-Re Cultists of Cthulhu Magic Maze Knot Dice The Cohort Crazier Eights Pandemic: Reign of Cthulhu
• • • • • • • • • • • •
7&7 March of the Ants: Minions of the Meadow Honshu Web of Spies Saga of the Northmen Tournament at Camelot Haspelknecht: The Ruhr Valley Plague Inc. Zephyr Terrible Monster 5ive Duress
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Fantasy Realms Space Race Isle of Skye Unearth ION Escape from 100 Million BC Battle for Souls COG Near and Far Terraforming Mars Caverna: Cave vs. Cave Pocket Mars Terra Mystica Hafid’s Grand Bazaar
• • • • • • • •
The Climbers Whistle Stop The 7th Continent Witches of the Revolution Viral Sentient Road Hog PeltaPeeps
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Game Review Index (Issues 19-24)
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Game Nite Issue #33
• • • • • • •
Mini Rails Nightmare Forest: Alien Invasion The Ruhr Summit Seikatsu Tulip Bubble Covalence
• • • • • •
Joraku Michael Strogoff Minute Realms Castle Dukes Rajas of the Ganges Cytosis
• • • • •
Ancestree Exodus Fleet Tak Mistborn: House War Expedition: RPG Card Game
• • • •
ShutterBug Divinity Derby Wakening Lair Planet of the Apes
• • • • • •
Vast: The Fearsome Foes Vast Miniatures Expansion Vast Bonus Cards Wildcatters Alexandria Tzolk’in
• • • •
Gretchinz! Button Men The Flow of History The Game of Nines
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Game Review Index (Issues 25-30)
• • • • •
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Game Nite Issue #33
Dicey Peaks Coldwater Crown Thanos Rising Peak Oil Wordoku
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Zombie Dice: Horde Edition Codenames: Marvel Fog of Love Cthulhu Dice
• • • •
Gearworks Grackles Maiden’s Quest The Veil
• • • •
Outpost: Siberia Outpost: Amazon Root Planetarium
• • • • •
Shards of Infinity Blood Rage Mistfall: Chronicles of Frost
• • • • • •
Wish You Were Here Onitama: Way of the Wind Master of the Galaxy
The Manhattan Project: Energy Empire
Barker’s Row
Hero Realms: The Ruin of Thandar
Shifting Realms Hero’s Crossing
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Game Review Index (Issues 31+)
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• • • •
• • • • • • • • •
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Game Nite Issue #33
Dicey Peaks Command Decks Star Realms: Coldwater Your Town Crown Thanos Wu WeiRising Peak Oil Star Realms: Frontiers Wordoku
Darwinning! Zombie Dice: Horde Edition Codenames:Card GoVenture Marvel Game Fog of Love the Board Game Highlander Cthulhu The Forbidden Dice Sanctuary
Highlander: Princes of the Universe Gearworks Architects of the West Kingdom Grackles Tricky Dungeon Maiden’s Quest Perdition’s Mouth: Revised Edition The Veil Warigin
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