International Tabletop Day

I hope you all had a fantastic time celebrating International Tabletop Day! It is pretty good that we have a day dedicated to the fun of games and spreading the love of tabletop games, and hopefully it has attracted more people over to the crusade of tabletop gaming. 

This year I was unable to go to any events celebrating tabletop games, so we crafted our own marathon of games at home! It was quite a feat; sixteen different games, with some meaty games on the list too and a few that I had never played before. Here is the list of tabletop abundance: 

1. Boggle 

2. Blood Bowl Team Manager 

3. Shogun

4. Tokaido

5. Letters To Santa

6. Mit 3 Dabei

7. Brawl

8. Lost Cities

9. Eight Minute Empire

10. 7 Wonders Duel

11. Raptor

12. Bling Bling Gemstone

13. Zombie Dice

14. Pairs

15. Ticket To Ride: The Emerald City     

16, Noir

Most of the games played were old favourites or ones that had not been played in a while, but Blood Bowl Team Manager and Shogun were new games to me. They had been on my playlist for a while and International Tabletop Day seemed like the perfect occasion to give them a go. I thoroughly enjoyed both of these games, they looked daunting at first but the mechanics were fairly easy to grasp and, like most games, a deeper understanding of the strategy comes through with longer plays. Shogun really did remind me of a lengthier and more strategic Eight Minute Empire, which is one of my favourite games, so that went down very well. I do enjoy a bit of area control and resource management. Blood Bowl Team Manager is a great hand management and dice rolling game with a fun theme, I look forward to playing this a lot more and writing about it in the future. 

Officially, in the United Kingdom, International Tabletop Day is over. But in my home, it will never be over - bring on more games!

Have a great day

Marisa xx  

Happy New Year!

I am a little late to the greetings and salutations party, but I would like to say Happy New Year to all of my readers. I trust you all had a merry time and got to play as many games as you could handle. I also wanted to say a big Thank You to everyone who reads my little blog, to everyone who has been involved in posts and interviews and to all the people who have supported it and encouraged me since I plucked up the courage to create it, you are all brilliant!

Whilst I settle into a new year and a new life, full of fresh plans and the unknown, I thought I would share with you all some images of the games that I received for Christmas and my birthday - because sharing is caring, and I am way too excited about them all to be quiet about it :)

I am now the proud owner of the Ticket To Ride expansion India & Switzerland! A shiny new double-sided board with India on one side and Switzerland on the other. Towards the end of last year I found myself playing Ticket To Ride quite a lot, I even printed off some fan-made expansions that are available online to use, like the Emerald City and the London Tube map. There are many expansions of this game, all offering a variety of twists on the classic game that delight and engage. The route formations are different but there are also little extra bonuses in each game that keep you on your toes.

Due to my fondness of Forbidden Island I was given Forbidden Desert, it's thematic sequel, set in what appears to be the ruins of a steampunk-esque world in the heart of the burning desert. Players work together as adventurers trekking out to the desert to unearth a legendary flying machine that is buried under the ruins of the city. As time moves on the board changes; perils such as sandstorms and lack of water arise. With resource management, utilising your role's special skills and fast-thinking you can find the flying machine before you are buried under the vast heavy sand. We failed miserably on the first try as I died of thirst, but the second time we were victorious!

Ever since I played Waggle Dance at the board games cafe, Thirsty Meeple, I have yearned for it. This euro-style worker placement game has such a fun theme! Worker bees - what could be more efficient than that? Buzzing around making their honey. The goal of the game is to be the first one to make the most honeycombs. There are different options to choose from every round, you choose where to place your bees in order to optimise your results. Bees could be collecting nectar, making bee babies, expanding the hive...oh so many choices!

Ah, the gentle and scenic Tokaido is finally mine! Players take on the roles of travellers who are journeying across the East Sea Road, using their unique qualities to help them progress on their travels. On the road you may choose to linger at the hot springs, you may encounter a friendly stranger, or purchase a special souvenir, or perhaps gaze at the outstanding views. The most successful and well-travelled person wins the game, and the calm nature of the game makes everyone feel really chilled (even if they are losing).

One of my favourite set collecting and trading games is Jaipur, I discovered it on Board Game Arena last year. Players act as merchants trying to out-do each other through trading, selling and buying. The game has elements of risk and luck, as you wait with bated breath to see what the card deck has in store for you at the market. Will it be the sought-after and expensive diamonds or will it be plain old cloth? Using clever tactics you can still achieve greatness, even if you are stuck with cloth!

So those were my fabulous games of the season, and I intend to play them a lot more over the cold months to come. 

Thanks for reading!

Marisa xx

    

Top Ten of the Two Hundred

Last month I completed the 200 different games challenge, it was intense but so much fun. It was great to go through all of the unplayed games in my home and explore new ones. August seemed to be the longest month, which was good because we had a lot of ground to cover. Here is my round-up of the top ten games from this challenge.

1. Imperial Settlers

A Fantastic civilisation building card game for 1 - 4 players. Players are settling in to a new world, erecting buildings, gathering resources and maybe even trading with other factions. Imperial Settlers is totally addictive and hugely enjoyable, every different faction has unique abilities and with the added bonus of the expansion pack Why Can't We Be Friends things get even crazier. Everyone must play this game!

2. Five Tribes

This is a very unique game for 2 - 4 players that blends elements of worker placement, area control, bidding, set collecting and strategy; all wrapped up in a beautifully designed package that is Arabian themed. There are so many different ways to score points in this game that you cannot judge who the winner will be until the scoring sheet comes out at the end.

3. Splendor

A card drafting and set collecting game for 2 - 4 players that is so shiny! You take on the role of a merchant trying to acquire gem mines, transportation and shops in order to boost your prestige and attract attention from wealthy nobles. I do love this kind of genre, collecting and saving up my gems in order to purchase pricier items; a buyer's paradise!

4. Waggle Dance

A worker placement and dice rolling game for 2 - 4 players, with different stages involved in each round, and it is all about making the most honey in your hive. You may build up your hive, lay eggs to be hatched into more worker bees, collect various kinds of nectar, then return the nectar to the hive and make the honey. I have never had so many dice to roll in a game before, my little hands were bulging with them! A great game, one I need for my collection. Oh, Santa...

5. Arcadia Quest

This is a miniatures fantasy campaign-based game. Players control a guild of three heroes throughout each scenario, battling against Monsters and each other, whilst completing quests. It is so much fun and probably my favourite game of this genre that I have played so far, those damn cute heroes and their special abilities make it extra cool. The added bonus is that when a hero dies they can return to the game after resting and pick up a Death Curse for the next Scenario. This is good for me to have heroes that resurrect as mine die constantly! 

6. Machi Koro

A city building and dice rolling game that is completely addictive and very simple to learn. Players take on the role of Mayor and take it in turns to develop their small cities, choosing which landmark to build carefully, what will help you reap profits and what will hinder your opponents? This game is a good one to introduce to people who are new to table top games.

7. Tokaido

I consider this game to be my relaxing and soothing hour, it is great to play after a tough day as I find it very calming. Players are travelling across the 'East Sea Road' and taking in the sights, the smells and the entire experience of the journey. Each character has unique qualities and you can use these to your advantage to gain extra points. Whether it is meeting new people, visiting a spa, earning money at the farm or purchasing lavish souvenirs; you can leisurely stroll across the road or pick up the pace. This game plays really smoothly and is rather serene.

8. Cartagena 2: The Pirate's Nest

This is very similar to my beloved Cartagena, players are racing their escaped pirates to the safe haven of a Pirate's Nest in Tortuga, but who will get there first? This time there are two islands to get through and instead of moving pieces backwards to gain extra cards, you must move your opponents pieces forwards. Oh dear, this is tricksy! But it is jolly good, me hearty.

9. Bohnanza

A fantastic card trading and set collecting game for 3 - 5 players. Players earn coins by planting fields of beans and harvesting them, whilst trading with others. You may plant a maximum of three fields and cannot rearrange the order of cards in your hand. Trading comes in useful when you have to lay a bean and your fields are full of beans that do not match the one in your hand! This game has been widely recommended to me and I can see why, it is very absorbing and engaging.

10. Mai-Star

This is a strategic card game with a Japanese Geisha theme. Players are competing to be the most powerful and popular Geisha by attracting guests, preferably wealthy ones, and by increasing their stature and skills through the means of advertisements. This impresses the guests and slowly you can build a higher rank of clientèle, whilst sneakily sabotaging your opponent's chances. This attractive and exciting game is unpredictable and brutal at times, you never know what is coming your way. Play it, and see what I mean!

So, those games were my absolute top picks of the challenge. I did enjoy many more but I fear listing every one of them would send you all to sleep. Perhaps one day I shall do it, one cold autumnal evening I will wrap up in a blanket and plough through the long list in intricate detail. Perhaps.

Thanks for reading!

Marisa xx