AXIS AND ALLIES ftw

3/13/2008 6:39:52 PM

Just found a site:

http://www.pozy.com

It's another one of those "deal a day" websites, but I've seen a few good games on there that have been more than half off

ex) Arkham Horrow for like $26 shipped not including a 10% coupon that was advertised
Pandemic for about the same price last week

Might be worth bookmarking or having a tab open up every day you open the browser, just in case

3/14/2008 7:35:52 AM

http://www.tanga.com is run by the same guy who runs boardgamegeek.com and it always has deal of the days on boardgames.

3/14/2008 8:57:12 AM

Shadows Over Camelot was the Pozy deal for today, but it's already sold out.

Apparently a lot of people were waiting on it to show up, just like I was.

3/25/2008 11:42:34 AM

"RISK year 2210" is fun.

also, not sure how much of a board game this counts as,
but I enjoy some "Apples to Apples"

3/26/2008 1:20:46 PM

The game store in that moved from Cary to Apex has board game night every Thursday night. I went almost every week when I still lived in Raleigh. If you go, say hi to Paul(the owner) for me.

My current board game collection:

Rumis
Power Grid
Carcassonne
Catan(card game)
San Juan
Jambo
Caesar and Cleopatra
Alhambra
Darjeeling
Arkham Horror

Since it's mostly just me and the wife that plays the games usually have to fit 2 people.

My favorite game is Puerto Rico, though.

A lot of these games can be played for free online via Bret Spiel Welt (sp?)

Obviously, it's filled with German gamers but not a lot of dialog is required to play.

3/26/2008 1:51:56 PM

Bump

12/3/2012 12:56:57 PM

we're asking for some games for christmas (most of which our friends have, but we don't)

dominion
settlers of catan
carcassonne
ticket to ride
7 wonders
agricola

12/3/2012 1:32:13 PM

Cards Against Humanity

12/3/2012 1:32:55 PM

^ ah, love that game

also, bananagrams!

12/3/2012 1:34:23 PM

looking at getting some of these myself.

been playing:

pandemic (45min after you learn rules) (co-op)
settlers (1-2hrs depending on gameplay)
agricola (probably 30min per player)
dominant species (probably 30-45min per player)
betrayal at house on the hill (30-45min depending on luck of dice) (co-op until twist in the game makes someone a traitor)
dixit (20-45min)
wits and wagers (30min)
cards against humanity (as long as people want to play)

haven't gotten to play but going to get a hold of:

dominion
king of tokyo
eclipse
citadels
saboteur
for sale
cthulhu gloom
incan gold
battlestar galactica
ghost stories
mansions of madness

I like cards against humanity a lot, but the games seem to go on for too long (record is 12+ hours)
so trying to incorporate more house rules (e.g. deal 30 cards to each player, play 25 hands; modify a twister spinner to give rules on how to judge cards "most literal", "most ironic", "most cringe-worthy", "worst answer")

I'm finding my biggest problems is either the games picked last too long, or too short.

Ideally the 30-45 minute games seem great for a party, since it doesn't suck up all your time into a game and you can still get to socialize.

12/3/2012 4:01:21 PM

after watching tabletop, i got inspired to try out a few of the games on there that branched off from my usual regimen of party games and hearts. i really liked the simplicity of munchkin while still being something completely different from anything i'd played before, and my wife ended up getting it for me as a gift. after playing that some, she surprised me with the game of thrones card game. i'm not sure she realized it was a card game, but we gave it a shot and while its really complex for a couple people who've never played a trading card game like that before, we really like it. then we picked up ticket to ride and have played that a lot with her family. technically its for 2-5 people but we managed to make it 6 people by having one person use monopoly houses as trains. i just got pandemic for my birthday and its the first co-op game i've played. i like that no game is gonna take you that long, but you can lose in about 5 minutes if the cards dont go your way. its almost more fun to lose than win though...winning is kind of anti-climatic in that one.

12/3/2012 4:46:03 PM

with pandemic make sure that the infection cards are spaced pretty evenly in the deck. I think 4 is the standard amount for an "easy" game. but bad card spacing can also make it very challenging to try and recover. two infections back to back with drawing 3 cards will usually mean an outbreak.

i tend to separate all the colors into separate groups and then shuffle them in to try and make them evenly spaced out.

if you still have a harder time playing pandemic, try out forbidden island as its an easier to pick up game and should be shorter. i don't have as much fun with it as it doesn't feel as challenging, but if you're bringing in people who haven't played these style games its probably the more appealing choice.

12/3/2012 7:27:51 PM

Love settlers of catan and last night on earth.

12/3/2012 11:01:04 PM

Love settlers of catan and last night on earth.

12/3/2012 11:01:25 PM

yea i played a game of pandemic last night after walking dead with a few guys. we got 2 cities connected to each other in the first 3 cards of the set up phase, the first epidemic card on the deal which was a city connected to the previous 2, and then drew one of those three on the second infection phase. we'd lost due to chain reaction outbreaks before the 4th guy even got his first turn.

12/3/2012 11:53:45 PM

Trying to get more into it recently. Playing:

Puzzle Strike
Battlestar Galactica
Forbidden Island

Thinking about buying:

Small World
Viktory II (it's cool because the guy self published)
Cosmic Encounter

Quote :

"I would also like to recommend Shadows over Camelot. Instead of competing with the other players, you work together to try to beat the game."

Of the ones I've played, Forbidden Island is cooperative and Battlestar Galactica is semi-cooperative (because cylons).

12/4/2012 7:07:47 AM

I never played board games outside of the usual Monopoly, Sorry!, etc. I got interested in it from Table Top, and the fact a couple we are friends with have a regular table top game night on Thursday and a wall of board games. We played with them quite a bit over the summer, but it was not the best drive (Carrboro to Cary @ 6 pm) and with two kids, its hard to have them out till 11:30 on a school night. They have a daughter but she is not yet in school, and its easier to deal with when its at your house.

The games we played with them:

Ticket to Ride: Really love this one. Bought it. Thinking about getting some of the other versions.
Munchkin:[b/] Really like it. Got the base game, but family bought us some expansions for Christmas. My kids really love the funny names and the funny characters on the cards.
[b]Cards Against Humanity: Really enjoyed this one, with the kids around. This was hilarious with a group of 6 and I would totally get it if we got together with other people.
Survive: Escape from Atlantis: This one is really fun and was not too difficult for the kids to kinda pick up on. I plan to get this in the near future when they get a little older.
Settlers of Catan: Really fun. We bought the SoC Jr. for the kids to learn on, and they really enjoy it.
Small World: We really liked this one. Put it on the Christmas list and hope to get it. The kids really enjoyed it, even if they didn't totally understand it.
Castle Panic: This is a great team game. Its a team game where you are fighting the board, so its good to play with kids who don't want to "lose" or maybe fight each other.
Cosmic Encounter: Helluva lot of fun with a group of people. Currently don't own it though. Love all the different races powers and stuff. Some of them are fucking insane and made for some great battles.
Tsuro: A relatively quick game compared to many of the rest, but can get intense very quickly. Really like it and probably going to pick it up sooner rather than later, as its another one that the kids can pick up quickly.

There were several more, but these were the ones that stuck out to me the most. We really want to find a group of folks to continue to do this with, but don't really know many folks on this side of the Triangle and it would need to be a kid friendly deal.

12/4/2012 7:39:31 AM

Mansions of Madness is pretty fun and based off of Lovecraftian horror. 1-4 investigators face off against a keeper/dungeon master in 1-5 scenarios. It takes about 2-3 hours and can have some pretty epic conclusions.

Pandemic is always fun. I asked for Flash Point for Christmas, which looks like it may have a similar feel to it.

12/4/2012 7:47:47 AM

Catan Seafarer's Expansion!

A game that we love introducing friends to is Quack in the Box, wherein you play malpracticing doctor who treats patients with unneeded procedures in order to make money off them before they die/get better. 2-year old female with a slight cough? Start with some steroids, followed by trepanning, and homeopathic yoga. It's hilarious and diabolical.

12/4/2012 8:38:54 AM

I'm also interested in trying out castle panic and small world based off the tabletop episodes. Sounds like I should check out cards against humanity as well

12/4/2012 10:53:53 AM

i wanna get a modern trivial pursuit. the version i have is from the mid-80s, and most of the questions are dated and really hard.

12/4/2012 11:12:31 AM

I'm actually surprised at all the love for Pandemic. I didn't really care for it at all because its designed in such a way that you need to meta-game or surely lose. This eventually results in one player basically being the navigator (or bully depending on your group) while everyone else gives input. It felt more like a one-player game with multiple pieces that you have to move around the board.

Of the other games we have...
- Settlers of Catan - Love it. I think it plays a lot better with the Seafarers expansion (a very natural progression). I recommend staying away from Cities and Knights because its poorly designed and just feels tacked on.

-Agricula - Absolutely hate it. A lot of people love it because of difficulty and repercussions, but the game feels like its too limited in time.

-Puerto Rico - Love it. This really feels like the game that Agricula wanted to be.

-Carcassone - Love it. Simple to setup and play. The field strategy drives me nuts, though. Most non-tacky expansions are great (rulers . . . really?).

-Dominion - Love it. Quick to setup and a lot of crazy strategies that you can go for. All the expansions except Alchemy are terrific.

-Ascension - Its alright. Its very much like Dominion. I've only played the base game, but it feels incomplete. I've heard expansions fix this, but I haven't tried any.

-Thunderstone - I like it. Same idea with Dominion and Ascension, but much more thematic. Its rather clunky to setup, though. I heard the reboot was much better, but I haven't played it.

-Power Grid - Its alright. I'm not a huge fan of the bidding wars or some of the odd starting game positioning.

-Arkham Horror - Love it. Its a beast to setup and play, but very thematic and can be difficult depending on the expansions. This is easily the best co-op multiplayer game I've experienced where each person has their own actions and choices.

12/4/2012 11:20:02 AM

How did I miss this thread?? Actually back in 08 I think I was not yet introduced to board gaming.

Of course I play Settlers, it's the gateway drug that got me hooked Right now I mostly play Dominion - I have Intrigue, Hinterlands, Seaside, and Prosperity. I also love Puerto Rico, but my friend who owns it has moved out of town Carcasonne is fun but I never really got the hang of the strategy.

12/4/2012 4:39:36 PM

And I heard there's a new Dominion expansion out now? So far Prosperity is my favorite. Nobody will ever convince me to abandon the "big money" strategy. Mo' money, mo' Provinces I always say

12/4/2012 4:40:27 PM

has anyone played the game of thrones board game?

12/4/2012 4:46:49 PM

I'm seeing a lot of Dominion fans. Ya'll should check out Puzzle Strike. David Sirlin is a goddamn genius and he claims to have sidestepped several of the problems Dominion has (slightly nsfw pic at beginning):

http://www.sirlin.net/blog/2010/11/28/puzzle-strike-and-dominion.html

The above article also has me very interested in Intrigue (not to be confused with the dominion expansion)

[Edited on December 5, 2012 at 2:19 PM. Reason : asdfasdf]

12/5/2012 2:14:11 PM

Cards against humanity is awesome.

My best play was Ethnic Cleansing for the card "Billy mays here with..." I was playing with my friend his gf and her mom. They found it appalling until I explained it. lolololol

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

12/5/2012 2:38:49 PM

Quote :

"-Agricula - Absolutely hate it. A lot of people love it because of difficulty and repercussions, but the game feels like its too limited in time."

That's the point, that you have the limit in time and you won't get to do everything you want to do.
If you play it with less people you have a much easier time getting what you'd like done.

Quote :

"-Arkham Horror - Love it. Its a beast to setup and play, but very thematic and can be difficult depending on the expansions. This is easily the best co-op multiplayer game I've experienced where each person has their own actions and choices."

There is an android app out "arkham companion" which will take care of all the cards. Could make things a little easier for setup.

12/5/2012 2:46:38 PM

Game of thrones is fucking awesome, definitely one of my top 10 games and I play all kinds of stuff.

It's an area control wargame without luck. It's simultaneous order system creates great amounts of tension, strategy, and tabletalk.

It's a must play in my book if you're into games of that complexity level.

12/6/2012 9:57:55 PM

Yea I watched a video of the game to see how it works and it looks like a lot of fun. I just don't think I could get enough people to play it. I have to stick to something that can be played with two people and still be fun.

12/7/2012 6:56:57 AM

I hate Arkham Horror. It really feels like a 1p game. The more expansions (difficulty) that were added the worse it got in that most decisions felt forced.

I've played Agricola on and off for years.. feel like it has the most replayability because of the hundreds of cards and especially with Farmers of the Moor. (Feel like you can get more 'done' even though the costs are insane) It is a very time consuming and draining game though.

Definitely recommend Battlestar Galactica, but its very people dependent. It isn't super competitive so you don't have to feel bad about lying your face off like friend-crushing Diplomacy, and every 3rd game has the perfect amount of tension. Best piece of advice is 'when in doubt, help yourself', or maybe 'lie often so when you have to lie, its fine'. Even if you don't know jack about the series it really only adds flavor. Expansions suck ass though.

12/7/2012 11:32:07 AM

where do you buy these games at?

12/7/2012 11:34:07 AM

^ Any local board game type store. And I don't mean kids game shops or a Walmart. They are typically the stores that also sell CCGs (Magic, etc). There are 3 I can think of in Raleigh (Game Connection, Games Galore, ...).

^^I can see Arkham feeling a bit like 1 player game in certain scenarios, but it really depends on the group. Usually in our games we feel out who is the bruiser types to take care of monsters and the rest of the group goes around obtaining clues/items for closing the gates. You get assigned a role by the group but still get to do your own thing. We sometimes also have a dead-weight character just messing around (seeing how many skills they can pick up in one game and nothing else).

At the very least Arkham has significantly more individual choices to make than Pandemic.

12/7/2012 12:03:18 PM

I'm sure there are game stores in Charlotte but I don't know what they are or where they are. Most of what I've looked for to this point has been at target and if it isn't I'll order it at Amazon.

12/7/2012 12:58:35 PM

BSG is on sale on amazon and it's prime eligible.

12/7/2012 1:38:28 PM

Quote :

"where do you buy these games at?"

amazon

12/7/2012 1:54:37 PM

Are there board game clubs or anything? wife and I haven't really had much luck getting friends together for board games, always just turns into drinks and hanging out. I need people to play with.

12/7/2012 2:30:59 PM

I bought Puerto Rico for my husband for Christmas. Hope he is not disappoint.

12/16/2012 11:22:49 PM

Quote :

"where do you buy these games at?"

Online. While it's great in theory to support your local game store, they charge MSRP. Unfortunately the MSRPs are so inflated due to online discounts, I don't think it's worth it. Basically the same way if you wait a week or two from the release of a new video game you can get it for $35 instead of $60.

Quote :

"Are there board game clubs or anything? wife and I haven't really had much luck getting friends together for board games, always just turns into drinks and hanging out. I need people to play with."

There are a few clubs around NC. My main thing is I wish I could have my core group of friends more interested in games. I'm in the same boat. When I hang out with them, we maybe play a party game or two, but that's about it. Can't really get anything serious going on.

The site I mentioned in the first post (http://boardgamegeek.com/) is fantastic. It's a little overwhelming at first, but it's basically an online database of almost every game created. There is an extremely active forum on the site with a ton of great information. You can pretty much find any game on there that matches your situation. The database has information such as "recommended number of players" and "best with __ players." That information is pulled from people that actually put comments on the games they have flagged as owned. The forums on there also have a "region" section that allows you to post and look for game groups.

There is great podcast called "The Dice Tower" that has a lot of good information for up and coming board games, as well as old ones that are still great. There is a network of podcasts that have all joined together to give you any type of offering you might want. http://www.dicetowernetwork.com/

[Edited on December 17, 2012 at 10:59 AM. Reason : link]

12/17/2012 10:51:53 AM

I recommend and regularly play...:

Ticket to Ride
Small World
Dominion
Settlers of Catan
Axis and Allies
Puerto Rico

I don't recommend and literally stopped playing midway through...:

Arkham Horror

12/17/2012 11:04:50 AM

I like Agricola a lot. It is a bitch to introduce new people to, though.

Recently played this and loved it:

12/17/2012 11:17:55 AM

Brass is a really fun board game. The rulebook is a nightmare but the overall gameplay is simple. Their plastic coins suck ass though.

Manhattan Project is a fun worker placement game with the option to spy on and airstrike your neighbors' 'farms'. The curve to see who's winning is a little rough - the game really punishes players for not attacking the leading player.

War on Terror is just fun but probably only once or twice. In our group it was really funny how quickly we funded the terrorists to mess with each other and how fast they destroyed us. Plus it includes an Evil mask.

And if you like deckbuilding there's always perpetual Mtg booster drafts

12/17/2012 11:30:24 AM

has anyone played Elder Sign? was it good?

12/17/2012 11:52:41 AM

^ They played it on Tabletop if you want to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Jh4nSpV2n4k

12/17/2012 12:53:50 PM

As many folks are in here talking about not having anybody to board game with, myself included, maybe we should try to do a TWW Board Gaming Group.

12/17/2012 1:12:02 PM

^^thanks!

12/17/2012 2:01:31 PM

I just bought Power Grid recently. I recommend it.

Started playing more board games in the last couple years and have been building a collection of board and card games.

-Ascension
-Quarriors
-Settlers of Catan + Cities and Knights expansion
-Betrayal at House on the Hill
-Race for the Galaxy
-7 Wonders
-Power Grid
-Gloom
-Gang of Four
-Runebound
-Neuroshima Hex
-Puzzle Strike
-Shadow Rift
-Ticket to Ride: Europe
-Apples to Apples

*looking to add Puerto Rico and Pandemic in the near future.

[Edited on December 17, 2012 at 9:56 PM. Reason : edit for collectiom]

12/17/2012 9:50:02 PM

I would be willing to go to or even host a TWW board game night in the future. It would have to be after the new year, though. We have Settlers and all the expansions, and I bought Puerto Rico for Christmas, and I have a bunch of other stuff. Apples to Apples, Trivial Pursuit, Connect Four, Clue, Mouse Trap, Kerplunk, Twister, Operation, Loser Takes All, Monopoly, Life, The Game of Things, and who knows what else. Our friend has Last Night on Earth. We are also videogamers, and have a handful of systems if we got bored of board games.

12/17/2012 11:33:37 PM

Husband loves Puerto Rico and we both got card games for Christmas. Zombie Fluxx and Star Fluxx

12/25/2012 2:27:34 PM