#Board game

Heroes of the Colosseum is Now Available

Heroes of the Colosseum

 

 

Heroes of the Colosseum Now Available

Two Hour Wargames announces that Heroes of the Colosseum is now in stock and available to the public.

June 8th , 2015 – Lake Havasu, AZ. — ] Two Hour Wargames (http://twohourwargames.com/) in association with  Lock ’n Load Publishing (lnlpublishing.com) are excited to announce the release of “Heroes of the Colosseum.” Designed by Ed Teixeira, “Heroes of the Colosseum” brings the power of two games in one box as players battle it out as both gladiators in the historic Roman Colosseum era and also compete in all out chariot races providing furious action no matter which game players choose.

In the first game of Gladiatorial Combat, player may:

  • Rules to personalize your gladiators, making each truly unique.
  • A way to generate Non-Player Gladiators, opponents totally controlled by the game mechanics.
  • Two full color arenas, beautiful counters, and Roster Sheets to represent the gladiators and their equipment.
  • Quick to learn, but hard to master, combat rules that accurately reflect the gladiatorial way of combat.
  • An easy to use Campaign System, to track the success of your gladiators, as they rise in abilities.
  • Three different locales to fight in, from the Fringes of the Empire to Rome herself, where only the greatest gladiators can gain their freedom.

The second game of Chariot Racing allows player to:

  • Rules to personalize your charioteer, making each truly unique.
  • A full color Racing Oval, beautiful counters, and Roster Sheets to track your chariots.
  • A unique mechanic where, unlike other chariot games where you fall behind and out of the race, each player is always in the race, making critical decisions each and every turn.
  • An easy to use Campaign System, to track the success of your charioteers, as they rise in abilities.
  • A way to generate Non-Player Charioteers, totally controlled by the game mechanics.

Components:

  • 2 Game Manuals
  • 12 Player Cards
  • 2 – 11”x 17” Maps
  • 1 – 8.5”x11” Map
  • 2 Player Aid Cards
  • 112 – counters

One of the exciting things about “Heroes of the Colosseum” is the fact that it can be played as a stand-alone game, a solo game against the mechanics themselves or even as a long running campaign allowing for players to keep stats for a “circuit” type of game play and constantly improve on their characters so they grow as the campaign goes on.

Get more information or purchase Heroes of the Colosseum from its official product page (http://lnlpublishing.com/Heroes-of-the-Colosseum).

Check out the promotional video on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhHvEgCzCa8 and be sure to subscribe to the Two Hour Wargame channels to see more promo videos.  Box art and other art assets are available by contacting david@thelowryagency.com.

ABOUT TWO HOUR WARGAMES

THW Game Design, parent company of Two Hour Wargames, has published over 70 games. We have been in business since 1998 and have won an Origins Award for Best Miniatures Game of the Year 2006 – All Things Zombie as well as other awards.

ABOUT LOCK ’N LOAD PUBLISHING, LLC.

Lock ’n Load Publishing, LLC. are a leading developer-publisher in both the table-top and video games.  Since 2006 Lock ’n Load Publishing has developed and published 75+ of historical, strategy and fantasy games with many award-winning titles in their portfolio spanning both digital and table-top platforms.  Lock ’n Load Publishing’s mission is to provide new game designs and redefine how people play games.

Media Inquires for Two Hour Wargames:

Contact: David Lowry

david@thelowryagency.com

Official Press Release here:  http://www.prlog.org/12464163-heroes-of-the-colosseum-now-available.html

 

Club Fantasci 2013 Board Game Awards Program

Club Fantasci

Club Fantasci

 

Club Fantasci announces the release of a new awards program focusing on board and role-playing games.

David Lowry the board game column editor is announcing the release of their new Club Fantasci 2013 Board Game Awards Program to feature the very best in the board and role-playing games industry.

“The gaming industry has being growing at an amazing pace for over a decade but yet there are still so many people who are unfamiliar with all the new types of amazing games that are coming out. We want to introduce these games to the public at large and encourage more social activities between families and individuals” says Lowry.

Read more here: http://clubfantasci.wordpress.com/2013/11/25/7208club-fantasci-board-game-awards/

Previously the Geek Eccentric Board Game Awards.

 

Thoughts after the ASTRA Toy & Game Convention in Nashville, TN.

Monday morning I was on Facebook to see if Mayfair Games had posted my review of Star Trek Catan which they did because (thank you) they understand social media much better than just about all the rest of the of the board game publishing companies and I noticed in their social media posting that they were at an ASTRA Toy & Game Convention in Nashville just one block away from the Starbucks I was sitting at working so I jumped online and registered and high-tailed it down there to check out what was going on!

It was a great event with lots of fun toys and board games which is of course what I was interested in and a great energy with very friendly vendors, store owners, reps and staff. Granted most of the product is aimed at children but some of the games were amazing no matter what the target market was and real credit is due to the designers on their originality and the ability to put together games that allowed for different levels of playability at the same time so any age can play the challenge will better fit each player without the parent or adult having to throw a game for the children to win. There was some great solo player games, a few original party games that looked like a blast, one being Donkey from Cleveland Kids and Spontuneous from Spontuneous Games Inc. It was amazing to see so many great educational, fun toys and games. Things have come a long way since I was a kid.

As mention earlier Mayfair Games had a booth there demoing Catan Jr. which is my daughters favorite board game and a game more for adults called Five Points that looked very interesting. Asmodee Games had a presence there as well for both kids games like Timeline, another of my daughters favorites and 7 Wonders which is a great gateway game for the older crowd. I’ll have reviews of many of these games out soon so stay tuned for that.

Like any sales convention, you can tell who is experienced by their booth personality and who isn’t. There were a handful of people who didn’t try engage anyone as they walked by and others that were all about demoing their product which is the whole reason they are there. Creating interested and sales is the whole point of the convention. There were some very talented sales people there and that was fun to watch!

I spent many hours talking to reps and publishers and for the most part across the board whether it be through my normal connections or just talking with this crowd, many really don’t understand or utilize social media to even a 10th of its potential. Sure many of them have witter accounts and Facebook pages but most publishers just post once a day whatever the product that day is and they never engage their fans, reviewers or anyone. Social media is about engagement. This industry has got to learn to embrace this medium and utilize it before board games become passe again. All these companies have a marketing person who might have to do it all, but that is no excuse. Mayfair Games is great about posting their reviews (thank you from all of us reviewers,) Catalyst Game Labs is the best that I have come across so far that understand social media in this industry with email blog updates that are constantly engaging and interesting, Twitter posts with replies to their followers, constant Facebook updates and most of it isn’t a sales push, it’s an attempt to engage their customer base.

Learning to use social media properly is critical to any business today. If the manpower isn’t available, there are of course options like interns to help run it, but there just isn’t any excuse any more. Social media has been around to long to not have put a plan in place. Remember, it’s not about how many likes are on a Facebook page, it’s about how many people are talking about you and engaging with you. I can’t wait for the day with publishers engage with their customers and help blow the door of our favorite hobby.

Batman Arkham City Escape The Board Game Review by David Lowry

Batman: Arkham City Escape The Board Game

Batman Arkham City Escape The Board Game

 

Alarm klaxons are blaring across the Gotham City night. A light cuts through the dense terror consuming the city. The people are panicking, as they know what those alarms mean, a jailbreak from Arkham Asylum. The one place all of Gotham City’s worst, most dangerous criminals are being kept off the streets from terrorizing its citizens. Across the night sky, the light is the beacon of hope for Gotham City as the signal calls for the criminal’s worst fear…. Batman.

Publisher: Cryptozoic Entertainment

Game Designer: Matt Hyra

Players: 2

Ages: 15 to adult

Playing Time: 30- 45 minutes

Contents: 126 Game Cards – 40 Villain Cards, 40 Batman Cards, 8 Utility Belt Cards, 10 Ally Cards, 10 Gargoyle Cards, 18 Setup Cards, 1 Batman Character Pawn, 8 Combat/Action Dice, 1 Batman Experience Die, 1 18” x 33” Game Board, 1 Utility Belt Board and 12 Charge Counters

Suggested Retail Price: $45.00

Parental Advisory: Safe for kids

Batman: Arkham City Escape The Board Game Components

Batman: Arkham City Escape The Board Game Components

Batman Arkham City Escape The Board Game is a two player that pits one opponent as Batman and the other as the criminals that Batman must face and recapture before escaping the walls of Arkham City Prison. The first player to 10 points either by Batman capturing 10 Victory Points worth of Villains or the Villains escape with 10 Victory Points of Villains and Hostages is the winner in this board game based on the wildly popular Batman Arkham City video game.

 

 

The game board is two sided to give a bit of variety to the movement and cards placements available to both players. Side A is the side recommended for use the first couple of plays. Each player then shuffles their 9 set-up cards (there is a set of nine for Batman and the Villains) and deals out 5 cards. Both sets of 5 are then shuffled together and randomly put face down on the board over the spaces marked by the The Riddler Trophy Symbol.

 

The player who is playing Batman takes the Utility Belt Board and chooses 4 Utility Belt Cards from the 8 possible and secretly and places them face down on the board in any order.

Batarang Utility Belt Card

Batarang Utility Belt Card

 

Remote Electrical Charge Utility Belt Card

Remote Electrical Charge Utility Belt Card

Each player then shuffles their deck of 40-cards and deals them selves 5 cards. There is no hand limit for either side in this game. Batman’s deck is full of combat maneuvers and the Villains deck is packed full of Villains and Action cards.

Strike Combat Card

Strike Combat Card

 

Two-Face Villain Card

Two-Face Villain Card

The Villain always goes first in this game. The villain starts every round rolling 4 dice to see how many actions they will have this round. Each A (Arkham City) sided die is a success, every Batman symbol is a failure so each turn the Villains will get between 0-4 actions unless card texts determine otherwise.

Hush Villain Card

Hush Villain Card

The Villain Actions:

  • Place up to 5 Villains from your hand onto the entry row of the map, face down.
  • You may perform this Action once per turn.
  • Move all facedown Villain cards 1 space in any direction.
  • You may perform this Action only once per turn.
  • Move 1 face-up Villain up to 2 spaces in any direction.
  • You may perform this Action multiple times during your turn, but not on the same Villain.
  • Move 1 face-up Villain holding a Hostage 1 space in any direction.
  • You may perform this Action multiple times during your turn, but not on the same Villain.
  • Draw 1 card.
  • You may perform this Action multiple times during your turn.
Counter Combat Card

Counter Combat Card

Batmans Actions:

  • Move Batman once per turn using one of the following 3 options
  • Move Batman 1 space in any direction
  • Grapple to a Gargoyle up 2 spaces away from Batman. Batman may move to any number of Gargoyles as long as they are no more than 2 spaces away.
  • Move from one Sewer space to the other Sewer space (2 on the board). Batman must currently be on one of the spaces to use this option.
  • Flip any number of Utility Belt gadgets face up. In order to use the gadgets they must be face up and have charges left on them to use.
  • Fight any number of Villains that in Batman’s space. Batman must fight when either he or a Villain move into the same space. If Batman starts a turn in the same space as a Villain he can chose whether or not to fight that Villain.
  • When Batman is in a fight, the player may play any number of Combat cards to aid Batman in capturing that Villain. These cards can becombined for Combo points or Batman may chose to not play any combat             cards unless a card text says other wise.
  • Each Batman symbol is a success so if Batman ties or surpasses a Villains Capture Rating, Batman is successful in capturing that Villain and adding them to the Victory Point pile. After a successful capture, Batman get to roll the XP die and receive the reward shown on the die.

 

Batman can’t fight the same Villain in the same turn. If Batman is able to clear the board of all Villains and all facedown cards including the Setup cards, Batman instantly wins the game. If at anytime either player runs out cards to draw, reshuffle the discard pile.

 

Combat cards have a combo point value up in the left corner. Each point is worth 1 die to Batman during his combat roll. There are only 8 dice in the game so while Batman may play more that 8 combo points worth of cards, he will never role more than 8 dice. Many of the Combat cards have a text to resolve.

 

If Batman doesn’t roll enough Batman symbols to capture the Villain, many of the Villains have a retaliation text on their card to have a negative effect on Batman.

Mayor Quincy Sharp Ally Card

Mayor Quincy Sharp Ally Card

Security Guards Ally Card

Security Guards Ally Card

When the Villains move around the board, if they stay facedown, they have a better chance of making it to the other side and escaping. However, if they land or pass over a space with a facedown setup card, then they and the setup card are flip over and depending on what that setup card is, its text may activate almost immediately. Batman has some allies that get revealed this way, which give Batman a benefit. The Villain also has half of the board covered in their setup cards with give them bonuses.

 

Batman: Arkham City Escape The Board Game is a quick romp that really doesn’t feel like the video game it was based on at all. Batman is a bit trickier to play than the Villains and it requires a few plays to get the turn sequence down and see what the different Utility Belt gadgets really do and how to best use them. There is a bit of strategy to this game but it is not heavy by any means. It is a decent enough game especially for kids that are really into Batman or die hard Batman fans, but it doesn’t scratch that Superhero itch that needs to be scratched. While I enjoyed playing the game more after a a couple games, it isn’t one that make have to have it in my collection. I wouldn’t turn down a game, but there are much better 2-player games out there that give you that satisfied feeling of having really just been challenged. This is just another fun game that is decent to play but doesn’t really knock it out of the park.

 

The components on this game are well done. The cards are good weight; the board is large with plenty of room for the cards to be played on it. The artwork on the board is ok, but not amazing. The box art on the other hand is visually eye catchy and well done. The rulebook sticks with Cryptozoic Entertainments usual format and is easy to read. The game is easy to understand but the rulebook could do with a bit more examples or details to better understand how a few of the situations work out. The box itself is big and if no expansions are forthcoming, it is to big. But if expansions are forthcoming then there is room to spare to hold extra cards.

 

I am not sure that what you get is worth the $45.00 you have to spend to get this board game compared to others as there isn’t that much to it component wise except for understanding how much the licensing might have to play into that cost.

 

All in all, Cryptozoic Entertainment has put for a solid effort and made a game that is enjoyable for a light gaming session as long as you aren’t expecting a major Batman fix.

 

I will give this game about a 6.5 out of 10 stars as it does lack depth and doesn’t quite live up the game it is based on. However, for a quick game it definitely has its moments of providing a bit of that game excitement and stress we all love. [rating=6.5]

I was not provided a review copy of this game.

[amazon asin=B00ASX2WDM&template=iframe image]

Gaming Resources

Reviewers:

Board Games:

The Dice Tower

Shut Up & Sit Down

The Esoteric Order of Gamers

Board Game Quest

Role-Playing Games:

G*M*S Magazine

Publishers:

Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG)

Arcane Wonders

Asmodee

Bandai

Cryptozoic Entertainment

Days of Wonder

Evil Hat Productions

Fantasy Flight Games

Fireside Games

Game Salute

Gamelyn Games

Gamewright

Green Ronin Publishing

Hans In Glueck

Iello Games

Mayfair Games

Out of the Box

Paizo Games

Playroom Entertainment

Privateer Press

Queen

Rio Grande Games

Stronghold Games

Upper Deck

Wizards of the Coast

Wiz Kids Games

Ystari

Z-Man Games

Miscellaneus:

Board Game Geek

David Lowry Interviews Gamelyn Games about Dungeon Heroes

Dungeon Heroes Box Top

Dungeon Heroes Box Top

In our very first video interview for the board game column, I am interviewing Michael Coe of Gamelyn Games in a Google+ hangout. In this interview we talk to Michael about releasing his new game Dungeon Heroes in July as well as the expansions “The Dragon& the Damsel” and “Lords of the Undead” that are being released at the same time. Also discussed is some of the things that a small publisher and designer have to know to get their games out there.

Gamelyn Games

Gamelyn Games

Geek Eccentric will be reviewing this game upon it’s release as well as doing a random drawing for a copy of Dungeon Heroes so make sure you stay tuned on Geek Eccentric for the details.

 

Please leave comments on what you thought about the interview and what other content you would like to see in our video series.

 

Please make sure to follow Michael and Gamelyn Games at the following social media sites:

Facebook

Twitter

This interview was originally posted on Geek Eccentrichttp://www.geekeccentric.com/david-lowry-interviews-michael-coe-of-gamelyn-games-about-dungeon-heroes/

DC Comics Deck-Building Game Review by David Lowry

 

DC Comics Deck-Building Game

DC Comics Deck-Building Game

Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Martian Manhunter, the world’s greatest hero’s join forces to vanquish the super-villains and archenemies. Each bent on the destruction of the Justice League. In the DC Comic Deck-Building Game, you get to pick the role of one the famed heroes and compete with fellow heroes to defeat all the super-villains lined up to take you out.

 

Publisher: Cryptozoic Entertainment

Game Designer: Matt Hyra and Ben Stoll

Players: 2-5

Ages: 15 to adult

Playing Time: 30- 45 minutes

Contents: 214 game cards including, 36 punch starting cards, 16 vulnerability starting cards, 114 main deck cards, 16 kick cards, 12 DC Comics super-villain cards, 20 weakness cards, 7 oversized DC Comic super hero cards and 1 rule book.

Suggested Retail Price: $40.00

Parental Advisory: Safe for kids

 

In the DC Comics Deck-Building Game you are randomly dealt a Super Hero to play. If you are dealt The Flash, you always go first. The Flash super Power allows for you to go through your deck quickly which makes sense, as he is the fastest man alive. Other heroes have benefits like Batman gives you bonuses for playing equipment cards, Superman likes super Power cards, Wonder Woman lets you draw more cards for every super villain you defeated each round.

Aquaman Super Hero Card

Aquaman Super Hero Card

You start with a hand of 7 Punch cards worth one Power each and 3 Vulnerability cards worth nothing. These effectively water down your hand and need to be purged as soon as possible. Each of your Punch cards comes with 1 Power, which is the currency in the game to either buy additional cards or defeat Villains and Super-Villains. You shuffle and draw 5 cards for each hand. Once you have played your hand any cards used or drawn are discarded and then 5 new cards are drawn for your new hand.

Punch Card

Punch Card

The main deck comprised of 114 cards (not including Super-Villains, Punch, Kick, Vulnerability or Weakness cards) is shuffled and placed in the middle of the table. Place 5 cards out in a line for the line-up. This is where most of your deck will come from.

Aquaman's Trident Card

Aquaman’s Trident Card

Green Arrow Hero Card

Green Arrow Hero Card

The Super-Villain stack is set off to the side of the main deck on the table. The Super-Villain deck can be comprised of 12 different cards but usually 8 cards are used unless you prefer to play a longer game. The Super-Villain card Ra’s Al Ghul is always the top card to start any game. All the other cards are placed facedown underneath the Ra’s card. Make sure to shuffle this deck and randomly draw out the cards not being used so that the deck is unknown to the players.

Ra's Al Ghul Super Villain Card

Ra’s Al Ghul Super Villain Card

The Kick and Weakness cards are also place at the end of the Line-Up with the Super-Villain cards. The Kick (+2 Power) cards are always available for purchase at the cost of 3 Power if the cards in the Line-up are either to expensive to purchase or the players doesn’t like the current cards in the Line-Up. Weakness cards are given to the players in the form of an attack either played by the Super-Villain cards being revealed or a player invoking the attack of a villain they put into play. Weakness cards again water down the hand and provide a -1 victory point per card at the end of the game.

Kick Super Power Card

Kick Super Power Card

Once play begins you can purchase cards from the Line-Up to improve your decks and can purchase as many cards as your total Power allow. The purchase or defeat cost is on the bottom right corner of the card in the Line-Up or Super-Villain stack. Once you purchase a card, the space in the Line-Up is left there until after that players turn is done, then the Line-Up is refilled back up to 5 cards.

 

Cards are played in any order and the text on the cards is resolved immediately. This makes it very important to know what is in your hand and what order to play the cards in. Villain cards played may have an attack against the other players, Equipment cards may give you bonuses or allow cards to be destroyed, and Location card text may be triggered as well as your Super Hero Card. You may purchase cards from the Line-Up at anytime during your turn even if you haven’t already played all of your cards. During a players turn, if they defeat a Super-Villain and completed all their actions, they draw back up to 5 cards and then the next Super-Villain card is flipped up and the First Appearance text is resolved against all players in the game.

Bain Villain Card

Bain Villain Card

If during an attack be either a player or a Super-Villain, a player may have a card in their hand with a defense. They can then play this card if they chose to ward off the attack and resolved the text on the card for defense. Once the player has finished their turn, all cards purchased or defeated go face-up in the discard pile to be redrawn later, this includes all Villain and Super-Villain cards.

Joker Super-Villain Card

Joker Super-Villain Card

Lasso of Truth Equipment Card

Lasso of Truth Equipment Card

Once all of the Super-Villains have been defeated the game immediately ends and the players count up their victory points on the bottom left corner of the cards in their deck.

 

Cards my have certain benefits such as Location cards once played stay out in front of the player the rest of the game and may be triggered each and every turn. Super-Hero cards like Superman for example, have their abilities triggered every time a Super Power (orange) card is played.

Heat Vision Super Power Card

Heat Vision Super Power Card

There are quite a few variants of the game that can be played as well:

 

Two Heads are Better Than One – This variant is a 1 on 1 game, where each player plays two different Super Heroes at the same time. This allows for game text to apply to both Super Heroes.

 

Team Game – This 2 on 2 variant has one team working together to defeat the opposing team. Teams alternate turns and are free to discuss strategy. Attacks do not affect your teammate but if you are attacked, you may defend your teammate. Once the game is over, both players add their totals together and the team with the highest total wins.

 

On Patrol: This is basically the standard game except you may immediately fill any holes in the Line-Up on your turn after a purchase or defeat of a villain. If any attacks appear during the refill of the Line-Up they affect you and only you.

 

The game cards are good quality and weight and the artwork is extremely well done. The rule book is laid our fairly well and easy to understand making the game easy to pick up quickly and get playing immediately. The Super Hero cards are of a much larger size than the playing cards and unfortunately don’t fit well into the box. The space provided makes it very difficult to get them out and could lead to damaging the cards. The other cards slots leave a lot to be desired as well. If you decided to sleeve your cards to protect them, the current box will provide major fitting issues for putting away your game. Good box design is critical for deck building games and this is one area where the game fails but I am glad to say the only area.

Fastest Man Alive Hero Card

Fastest Man Alive Hero Card

The DC Deck-Building Game is really a lot of fun. It’s a very easy game to learn and teach. It’s playing time make it an easy filler while waiting for other people to show up or something you are able to play several times in one sitting for those that really get into it. While not as strategic as some deck building games it really fills the void for those looking for something that keeps the action going and this game will suffer a lot less from those people with analysis paralysis. While the theme is DC Super Heroes, the theme isn’t really a factor in the game. When you are supposed to be a Super Hero like Batman, but yet you are playing villain cards that you previously defeated, that really doesn’t make sense but it’s okay. The game delivers on many levels while any little nit picking things really don’t matter or take away from the game play. After playing this game at many different game nights and teaching it to other people who don’t normally play board games or usually only play Magic: The Gathering, the response has almost been very favorable and the game store it was played and demoed at sold all their copies to these people.

 

I will give this game about a 7.5 out of 10 stars as it does lack depth but it is certainly worth the price and wins in the fun department. [rating=7.5]

 

This review was originally posted on Geek Eccentrichttp://www.geekeccentric.com/dc-comics-deck-building-game-review-by-david-lowry/

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Forbidden Island Board Game Review by David Lowry

Forbidden Island

Forbidden Island

Forbidden Island is a co-operative board game designed by master game designer Matt Leacock and published by Gamewright (www.gamewright.com.) In this game you join a team of adventurers trying to capture 4 sacred treasures on a perilous paradise that is sinking into the ocean. Will you have enough time? You and your team must race against the rising waters to accomplish your mission before you are swallowed into the watery abyss!

 

Players: 2-4

Ages: 10 to adult

Playing Time: 30 minutes

Contents: 58 playing cards, 24 island tiles, 6 pawns, 4 treasures figurines, 1 water meter, 1 water level marker and the rules of play.

Suggested Retail Price: $17.99

Parental Advisory: Safe for kids

Awards:

Mensa Select

Creative Child Magazine Game of the Year

FunFare All Star Award

FamilyFun Magazine Toy of the Year Award

Parent’s Choice Recommended

Games Magazine Top 100 Game

BoardgameGeek.com Golden Geek Award

MTV Geek, Top Board Game of 2010

Benefits for children: Cooperation, strategic thinking and problem solving.

 

In Forbidden Island your team of adventurers must work together to try and keep the island from sinking long enough to gain the 4 treasures and then get out alive by flying off the island at Fool’s Landing. To do this you will pick from a team consisting of an explorer, pilot, engineer, diver, messenger and navigator. Each team member has its own special ability to use in the game, which allows for greater teamwork and cooperation.

 

You start the game by shuffling all 24-island tiles and randomly placing them face up (non blue & white side) in a 4×4 square and then adding two tiles each side in the middle. Then you place your 4 treasures, The Earth Stone, The Statue of the Wind, The Crystal of Fire and The Ocean’s Chalice on the outside of the corners of the island.

 

Then you take your flood deck and shuffle it and place it face down on one side of the island. This forms the Flood draw pile. Draw the top 6 cards and flip over the tiles to the flooded (blue & White) side they represent to start the island sinking. Now place your pawns on the appropriate start tiles for each player.

 

Shuffle the Treasure deck and deal 2 cards to each person. Each person lays their cards face up in front of them so all team members can see what everyone has and how to best trade cards later in the game.

 

Now set the Water Level Meter to difficulty you wish to start at for the game. By no means think that this game is easy so if it’s your first time playing, set it the Water Level Meter to the novice level.

 

The order of play is as follows. Take up to 3 actions, draw 2 treasure cards and then draw Flood cards equal to the current water level. During your 3 actions you may move, shore up (sand bagging,) give a Treasure card to another player or capture a treasure. Moving allows you to move vertically or horizontally. You many never move diagonally unless you are the Explorer. That is the special ability of that card. The Pilot may move to any tile once per turn. The Navigator may move any other player up to 2 adjacent tiles per turn and the Diver may move through one or more adjacent flooded or missing tiles for 1 action. Shoring up allows you to flip one tile over to prevent it from sinking and obviously transferring cards to another players allows that player to capture a treasure on their turn in they have 4 of the same treasure card.

Forbidden Island Main

Forbidden Island Main

 

In order to capture a treasure, one player must get to a tile with a treasure symbol on it and turn in 4 corresponding treasure cards in for once action before that tile sinks. Each treasure has two tiles in the game.

 

After a player has taken their actions, they then draw 2 treasure cards into their hand. Draw one card at a time because if you draw a Waters Rise card you then follow the instructions on the card and this is when tiles either get flooded or sink. Move the water level marker up one on the Water Level Meter and then shuffle the discarded Flood cards and put them on top of the Flood deck. Now draw the number of cards indicated by the Water Level Meter and flip any tiles over that you draw. This will with flood a tile or sink it. Once a tile is sunk, there is no brining it back so it is critical that you manage shoring up properly in certain areas and also that players don’t get stranded where they can’t get back to the Fool’s Landing. If any player gets left behind you lose the game.

 

In the game you have special action cards that can help the team. You have Helicopter Lifts and Sandbags cards. Playing one of these cards does not require and action.

 

If the team recovers all 4 treasures and all players are able to get back to Fool’s Landing while playing a Helicopter Lift card, they then win the game. There are 4 possible ways to lose the game. If Fool’s Landing sinks, you automatically lose the game. If both of one treasure’s tiles sink you lose the game. If a player is on an island tile that sinks and they can’t swim to an adjacent island tile you lose the game. If the water level reaches the skull and crossbones on the water level meter you also lose the game.

 

Component wise, the game has incredible pieces. The tiles are thick and don’t fray on the edges, the cards are of good quality with a texture feel and the treasures are nicely done as well and could look even better for those that like to paint their minis. The game pawns are simple colored pieces of wood which actually work perfect so it doesn’t distract from the art on the tiles or the treasure pieces. The artwork is amazing which makes the overall appeal of this game even higher. My only complaint is the tin box. Although the box art is awesome, a tin box is hard to stack with other games and many times the lid comes off very easily causing major spillage. Fortunately, both of my copies of this game the lid holds tight. The box fits all the components perfectly so when you open the game it is nice and neat and easier to get set up.

 

Forbidden Island is an outstanding gateway game to teach new players about co-operative games and for children. It has simple mechanics but also adds a good amount of tension and fun interactive game play between all the players. This game is not easy by any means and you will be stretched with basic strategy and challenged every time you play it. The ability to switch different levels of difficulty from the start also gives it replay value. This is also accomplished, as the tiles are never the same at the start of the game so you basically never play the same game.     If you are looking for a good family game or a gateway game to either get in the board game hobby or to teach other new players, this is a great one to start with. Obviously it has won many awards and although it’s not a “deep” game for experienced gamers I still feel is extremely enjoyable and offers enough challenge for just about any level of gamers. The fact that it is so good for kids is a real bonus.

 

Forbidden Island Back

Forbidden Island Back

Although my star rating may not show it based on the level of difficulty , depth of play and tin box, that in no way should reflect negatively on this game. It is a solid effort and a great game for people who love to interact, be social and want a challenging game that isn’t a brain burner.

 

I give it 7.5 out of 10 stars. [rating=7.5]

 

You can find the original review posting on Geek Eccentrichttp://www.geekeccentric.com/forbidden-island-board-game-review-by-david-lowry/

 

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Stelcon: Infinity Board Game Review

Stelcon: Infinity
Stelcon: Infinity

StelCon: Infinity designed by Russ Rupe is a space battle board game published by Conquest Gaming, LLC pits Marshal’s of interstellar fleets against each other while trying to colonize regions of space nearby in other galaxies to grow your dominance and propagate your species.

Stelcon:Infinity (hereafter SI) is a light strategy game that plays 2-6 players at around 30-45 minutes per player. A six-player game is kept shorter by having three teams of two players execute their turns simultaneously. The list price is $79.95.

The game comes with 6 map boards, 6 star docks separated into three sections, 222 punch out pieces, 115 conquest cards (each unique), 50 sector cards (each unique) 3 dice and rule book.

Stelcon: Infinity
Stelcon: Infinity

While choosing from six races which each have their own strengths to explore the galaxy with all the players taking their game board and making a circle (the boards are properly angled to allow this) to connect their sectors. Each race has its own strength so players need to read their board carefully. Each player starts with a hand of 5 cards dealt out from the sector cards. All 50-sector cards must be gone through before the conquest cards come into play. You also start with a double squad MOD and 1 fuel crystal on your home world.

Turn order is as follows: 1. Star dock, Fuel check and Building.  2. Show all moves. 3. Combat, Scouting and Exploration. 4. Draw up to hand limit.

Each turn a player has many options. They can bring in ships, MODs such as scout ships; engines or fuel crystals (money) or they can play cards from their hand if able. You can do as much during your turn as your resources such as fuel crystals or cards allow. To start your turn, you count up your fuel crystals and subtract the cost of what you have in play i.e., a ship may cost three fuel crystals for one and five for another. After subtracting the cost what ever is left over is what you can now bring into the game such as scout ships or MODS to enhance your ships or sectors. Then you may play cards, which enhance your sectors, hurt other players or help in combat. Some cards are playable on your turn only, other anytime and others only on certain types of other cards. This has a “Munchkin” flavor to it but due to the cards uniqueness it offers lots of replay value.

Home worlds, ships and outposts can hold one MOD each. MODs can be guns, engines, fuel crystals and squads. Guns give +1 firepower and cannot be scuttled later. Engines give +1 movement and cannot be scuttled. Production MODs (fuel crystals) can be built on the home worlds or outposts but not ships and cannot be scuttled. Squads are MODs that can be built only at the home world either in a MOD slot or on a ship. Squads give +1 firepower but cannot attack alone. They must be in a MOD slot or be destroyed at the end of your turn. They can also move 2 moves per turn but again must be in a slot at the end of the turn.

Stelcon: Infinity
Stelcon: Infinity

Players can jump to other players sectors via jump lanes and conquer their sectors. Whatever cards are played on those sectors maybe taken over by the attacking players and then those cards abilities now stand in favor of the conquering race, certain cards can also neutralize this as well.

Combat is simply resolved by counting the number of guns on each sector and/or ship plus any MODs and totaled up against each other. Then cards can be played to either enhance your total or hinder the other player and then you roll a d6 and the highest score wins. The losing player is forced to retreat squads if able and ships are scuttled back to the player’s shipyard. Damaged ships can be brought back into play by paying a fuel crystal cost per turn to move them through the repair process.

During your turn you can have combat, scouting or exploration. Combat is obvious and scouting can be done when a player moves into an empty sector. Sectors that haven’t been scouted or explored yet have a militia you must combat and is represented by the number of guns printed on the game board. Once the player has won the combat they must explore the sector.

Ways to win:

The first person to conquer an opponent’s home world is the victor.

The Victory Point Variant: You get one victory point for every battle you win against an opponent. You get one victory point for every sector you control at the beginning of your turn that is on an opponents map. You get 5 victory points if you conquer an opposing players home world. The first player to 8 victory points wins in any combination of the above-mentioned victory point scenarios.

The 2-player variant: Using 4 player maps, opponents sit directly across from each other. The T-Sectors will connect the opponents via the wormholes.

The 6-player variant: 3 teams of 2 with team mates sitting across from each other and taking turns simultaneously. You win if you conquer an opponent’s home world or if using the Victory Point variant the points are shared.

Stelcon: infinity
Stelcon: infinity

The game components are well done and the artwork is good. The slots in which the MODs fit might take a bit of work at first but don’t seem to get to loose after many game plays so that shouldn’t be an issue. My only gripes here would be need to buy two different size card sleeves for one game that already is a bit up there in price and the rule book could be a bit better as to one of the victory conditions.

Now granted I didn’t cover everything here, it’s much deeper than I wrote so please check it out before making a decision based on this review. SI is most definitely a fun game with just the right amount of light playability and tension. It is a social game that has just enough strategy to keep it fun and “gamers” entertained and feeling like there was enough depth to the game to make it worth their time. It has a ton of replay value as all the cards are unique and the 6 different races having their own strengths. It’s easy to learn, fun to play and easy to teach.

If you are into space themed games but want a version that isn’t as heavy as Twilight Imperium Third Edition then Stelcon: Infinity may be for you. It’s a great way to scratch that space itch when you can’t get the big dogs to the table.

I give it 8 out of 10 stars with the caveat it’s a light strategy game but great fun!  [rating=8]

This review was originally posted on Geek Eccentrichttp://www.geekeccentric.com/stelcon-infinity-board-game-review/

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