Keeper of the Lost Cities Plot

Sophie is not a normal 13 year old, she has the power of telepathy and can always hear everyone’s thoughts. To go along with that, she’s extremely smart, and has a photographic memory. She’s an outsider because of all of those things. Then, she sees a boy, on a class field trip, who just looks too pretty. And he is looking at her, something feels off and she talked to him.

Turns out that something is off about her life. Fitz, the boy, tells her that she isn’t a normal human, in fact, she isn’t a human at all. There is a secret world of elves and other magical and mythical creatures out there. In our own world, but just out of sight due to magic. But her life as a human will need to go away if she is going to be an elf and live the life that she’s supposed to.

More Details and Harry Potter Comparison

So I don’t want to go into much more. What I wrote is basically the back blurb on the cover, but it’s something that should wet your appetite. And don’t worry, Keeper of the Lost Cities is not another Harry Potter. There are elements that might feel similar. The main character integrates into a new world that they didn’t know existed.

And to continue that comparison, she is a bit of a chosen child, but not in the way that Harry Potter is. I think that chosen child comparison is something people will latch onto, but Shannon Messenger does a better job of writing a chosen child. Sophie is really behind for an elf. She doesn’t know the world, she is expected to know and catch-up to what she doesn’t know. When she gets stuff wrong, elves are disappointed.

Harry Potter constantly should be in trouble, and he is not. Sophie often should be in trouble, and when she is, she gets punished. Her life has many more real elements to it. Characters worry about her. They pester her. They bug her, stuff that you don’t see happen in Harry Potter. People either hate Harry or love Harry, there is nothing between the two. For Sophie, people look to use her, to befriend her because of who she is, avoid her, and expect everything from her. And she is trying to balance all of that.

What Doesn’t Work?

There is very little, if anything that doesn’t work. I should talk about book 8.5 here. Mainly because that might be something that won’t work for some people. Even for me, I found it fairly boring. The point of book 8.5 is that it’s a bit of a recap for everything that has happened. Plus a novella that tells some story where book 8 left off and where book 9 begins. Or at least I am assuming that.

If you read the series in a compressed period of time, most book 8.5 is unneeded. I know what the characters did recently. I don’t need a full recap, no matter what way it is written. And some of the sections are better written than others. It is more the authors notes turned into something in the world that you are reading through.

I don’t even mind that they exist. I mind that there is a pretty important feeling novella in the book. It is different than she could write for the main book. The main books only show Sophie’s perspective. The novella bounces between perspectives. But to get the novella, you get the whole book. And I say now, get the book, just read the novella.

What Works?

Characters

So much works in this series. Sophie is a believable main character and the side characters are strong as well. Often in Middle Grade or Young Adult books, the main character is a paper cutout of a character. It is meant for the reader to put themselves into their shoes. Sophie is not that. She is a fully realized and deeply developed character. And each of the side characters at least the core, are as realized as she is.

I fail to think of many series where this is the case. Especially in that grade range. And I think there should be more. The story is easily digestible for an adult. And while there are intense moments for maybe middle grade reader, it is going to be pull them in.

Story Depth and Intensity

And let’s talk about the intensity. The story, unlike others in it’s age range, isn’t shy about bad things happening. And not like they happen around Sophie. Some of them do happen to other people. And it is character development for those characters. And reasons that friendships become stronger. But often the bad is directed to Sophie. She is not given an easy life. She is not a hero who always steps in and saves the day.

In fact, most of the time, she needs to rely on others to help her. Does she lead, for sure, she is the chosen one after all. But it isn’t a situation where she can do it alone. And that is a struggle for her. To compare her to another fictional character, it is a lot like how Harry Dresden, in the Dresden Files, is always looking to do stuff himself. He does so because he doesn’t want others to get hurt. Sophie is the same way.

World Building and Themes

Shannon Messenger is very good about building out her world. It helps that some of it is our world. But the rest of it, with the elves, dwarves, goblins, orcs, and more is different. But it is still similar. I think it is worked well like good fantasy or sci-fi. It is different enough that you feel like it isn’t our world, but close enough that it can touch on themes and issues that are true for us our world as well.

And I think that is another thing Messenger does well, also. She tells a good story with items that ring true. Now, it is still middle grade, so the depth of an issue isn’t always there. But that is okay, she is writing through the eyes of a 13-15 year old. Sophie is not going to understand everything, so as a reader, our view of these issues in the story should be simpler.

At the same time, I talk about the intensity of the story. And that means that as an older reader of the series, I understand some things that Sophie doesn’t. The story ages up well, that way. It makes the young reader start to think and the older reader understand the depth that is there.

Who is Keeper of the Lost Cities For?

I think that the young end would be twelve for the series. Though you maybe could go younger just reading it aloud and talking about what is going on. But that depends obviously on how you spend time. I don’t want to assume that people do a story that way. But twelve or thirteen is when I’d say a kid would be up for reading it.

As for getting older, it depends. I think a lot of people around my age and younger so mid-thirties and younger. The story is familiar. It feels a bit like Harry Potter, but in my opinion better. And my generation and younger, we read Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Twilight, Divergent, Maze Runner and more. Keeper of the Lost Cities contains all of that and more.

Final Thoughts

I love this series. I am reading a few other things right now, but I fully expect to come back to the series and read it all again. And I already pre-ordered the next book in the series. I want to know what is going to come next, and I want to spend more time with these characters in that world.

I really believe that a lot of people are going to enjoy this series as well. Like I said, the story is different, more meaningful than things it feels similar to. Yet it will hit the same beats that you expect from a Middle Grade or Young Adult series and novels. Plus there is a lot to the story, just in terms of how long the story is.

Have you read Keeper of the Lost Cities?

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Two Player Games Rankings

Before I get started, there are a few that are good at a lot of player counts. But I think a lot of people will prefer them at two, or they offer a different experience at two, so I’ll call out those on the list.

14. Star Wars: Destiny

Bottom of the list just because I had this game, I started to kind of get into it, but it’s a TCG style game. Trading card games are harder to play just because you need someone else who is into it. I recently sold my cards to a friend because, well, I wasn’t going to play it again. The game is fun, I don’t think it’s better than Magic, which isn’t on my list because I prefer it as a free for all. And like Magic, it’s harder to find time to play it.

13. Blossoms

Blossoms is a push your luck game with some choices. It really, though comes down to push your luck as you are growing plants. How far do you want to push, or will you bust. Game play is very simple, decision space is very limited. But it’s not a bad game. If you want a two player game you could play with anyone, Blossoms works for that.

12. Cribbage

Now Cribbage, I really like this game. The concept is simple but the game play is good and there is strategy to what you play. I’m not great at cribbage, but I have a nice board that I need to use sometime soon. The game plays fast, and this is really one of those great bar or brewery games where you don’t need much, and it’s a nice game to play.

11. Skulk Hollow

Might be higher on the list if I played Skulk Hollow more often. It’s a game where both sides play similarly but differently. Each side has their own objectives as to what they want to do, the Foxen want to take down the guardian, and the guardian might want to take out enough Foxen or maybe put out their tentacles, it depends on the guardian. Nice asymmetrical game with a cool two board system.

10. Claim

Two player trick taking, shouldn’t be the only trick taking on the list, but I haven’t played Fox in the Forest or Fox in the Forest Duet yet. I want to, and I have both on my shelf. But Claim is a very interesting game. You play a hand to build your next hand. And then you play to gain majority in the five different suits. But different suits have different powers. Fun puzzle of a game that you can play a few games in a sitting.

9. The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game

I think I’ve played this game at all player counts. Solo isn’t bad, and three isn’t bad, but I like The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game best at two. Why, because there’s little downtime between turns. And also because I know one person who I regularly game with who is as deep, if not deeper, into the Dresden series than I am. So it’s fun to bring that theme to a game that has it pasted onto mechanics in a good way.

8. Star Wars: Rebellion

Star Wars: Rebellion almost missed being put on the list. This is a two player only Original Trilogy Star Wars in a box. You can play with four, but it just splits up everything into two, and there’s not that much to keep track of. The game is a lot of fun because the Empire is trying to track down the Rebel base, and the Rebels are trying to undermine the Empire. I don’t even mind the dice combat in the game. Big box, takes a while to play, but great.

7. Hats

Hats is one of those abstract games that can play more, but it’s so much better at two. It’s about playing cards from your hand down to the table, the Madd Hatter’s table, to collect other hats. So it’s interesting because what you have in your hand won’t be the cards you use to score at the end of the game. It is fine at four, but at two, there is a whole lot more tension in what you do.

6. Ohanami

Ohanami is almost two different games at the different player counts. When you play with three or four, you take what is best for you because you won’t see the hands again too much. At two, you are going to see your starting hand three times. So you get six of the ten cards in it. Now in two players you think about what you want and your opponent might want, take the ones that overlap first, before taking ones that just you might want.

5. Hanamikoji

Two player only game, Hanamikoji is amazing. And really the top six are games I’d always play, and even Hats is one I’d play but only if it’s two player. Hanamikoji has you vying to win favor of Geisha. Either by getting 11 points or the favor of four of the seven Geisha. The game play is amazingly tense as you try and puzzle out what you opponent might have. And the four actions you take all feel like tough decisions.

4. Super Fantasy Brawl

Super Fantasy Brawl I believe can be played with more, but it’s best as a two player head to head skirmish game. This game is about punching your opponents to knock them out, but also completing objectives. I don’t think you can easily win without doing both. Because you worry about only objectives, your opponent will take you out and ruin your plans. Only about taking your opponent out, they’ll be able to maneuver to get objectives.

Plus, the game play is extremely simple. You have three different color actions you can take per round. That corresponds to colors of cards, so you play cards of that color. You have some defensive ones you can use, but if you use those, on your turn you can’t then play that color to take a more offensive action. And there are a lot of characters and I still want more.

3. Marvel Champions: The Card Game

Marvel Champions is a very nice solo game, but I think I prefer it as a two player game. More I wouldn’t want to play with because of downtime. But at two player, it feels like it offers a different depth of strategy and teamwork that you don’t get in solo. And it’s fun to take two super heroes up against a villain and have that team-up feel.

2. Aeon’s End

Aeon’s End is another one where I really like it as a two player game. Even the solo experience is really a two player game. Mainly because as solo you need to control at least two mages. What makes it so good at two players is that you each get two turns to go along with the Nemesis two turns. At four player you’d have each mage go once prepping in round one, and attacking in round two. You get that, but it feels more powerful with two players, though it really isn’t.

1. Dice Throne

Finally, we have Dice Throne. Dice Throne is a game that I love as a two player game, but I think it’s great as a King of a Hill style free for all. It makes sense at two because it’s kind of a Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat battler of a game. Game play is slick with upgrading abilities and then Yahtzee style dice rolling and battling.

Final Thoughts

There are a lot of games that are good at two players. For me, these fourteen aren’t always ones that I need to only play at two, but are really strong at two. And I have a number on my shelf to play. I want to get The Inbetween to the table, as well as Seven Wonders Duel, and the previously mentioned Fox in the Forest and Fox in the Forest Duet.

What are some of your favorite two player games?

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Ranking My Solo Games

So, one thing that I haven’t talked about when ranking is how I rank them in each category. And that’s somewhat because this is the category that needs this explanation. In a lot of them, I can just pick my favorite game, which game is my favorite roll and write. Here, I am trying to factor in a combination of what my favorite is, but also what my favorites for solo are. So if something is harder to get to the table, I might rank it lower.

I think that is important because solo gaming is a different beast. I think that some very complex games might be high on the list, if I could leave them set-up all the time. So I could go and play them for thirty minutes to an hour in an evening every evening. But when it takes twenty minutes to set-up, that isn’t an option.

28. Sword Art Online Board Game: Sword of Fellows

This might be the worst game in the group, and I still own it. I have played it solo a few times and it’s a fun push your luck sort of game. But when you’re controlling three characters, or two, it isn’t as fun. And the theme of the game, Sword Art Online doesn’t come through.

27. Legacy of Dragonholt

I think I I had streamed Legacy of Dragonholt, which I had thought about doing, I might put this higher on the list. The game is fine, the mechanics are solid, but the writing on the story was just fine. And when the game play is solid and the story is fine, it wasn’t going to stick. I’d love to see Fantasy Flight use some of their IP’s and create a story in this vein. Or even an Arkham game that uses the same mechanic.

26. Second Chance

Second Chance is easy to get to the table, but the game plays out the same every time. And with roll and write games, when I play them solo, I prefer that I can then compare a score, or something like that. Second Chance you just see how well you do. Sure, you can use the empty spaces as a score, but it’s not that interesting solo.

25. Criss Cross

This one is also one where you can just see how well you can score. I have it lower on the list, even though it is easy to play, because I have played it a lot. I don’t think I’d pull out Criss Cross to play solo again. Other roll and write games, yeah, those are higher on the list, but Criss Cross I’ve played a lot.

24. Marvel Battleworld

This one is easy to play and has high toy factor. But it is barely a game, the rules allow you to play some sort of game, but they aren’t that clear. You really play Marvel Battleworld to open up the little “Thanos Stones” to get new heroes and do the blind buy. It’s not a great game, but fun toy value.

23. Gravwell: Escape from the 9th Dimension

Gravwell is a game that generally would be higher in my Top 100 games but drops so solo, not because of set-up, but because the game is much more random solo. It feels like mechanically the game isn’t as good. So I don’t want to play it solo all that often. I’d play it with people, but solo is just okay.

22. Floor Plan

Floor Plan is another one where the solo seems added on and not fully planned. You get a certain number of rolls for solo play and see how well you do. But it lacks the tension of racing to complete different features that people want.

21. Pandemic Legacy: Season 1

This one I played through solo on Malts and Meeples, and it is a blast to play that way. Technically, it doesn’t have a solo mode, but no information is hidden, so you can easily play solo. But I wouldn’t play it solo again after doing that once. I would play it for the third time because the story and game are fun.

20. Marvel United

I was a little bit surprised that this one was lower on the list. But I prefer to play it with others. It again comes down to a solo mode that is okay. And you can play it solo like you’re playing multiple people, and it’s good. But the game is more fun with more players and working together cooperatively and discussing how you can set up the next player.

19. Tainted Grail

This is fun solo, and I’d love to have it higher on the list, but even three player, the game is a beast to get to the table. I’d maybe come back to it solo if I could leave it set-up. And I’d love to explore it again that way, which maybe I eventually will. But right now, three player play is great.

18. Onirim

Actually just got rid of this game, but I really enjoy Onirim and I still own the app. Onirim is a nice little puzzle of a game with a lot of shuffling. And I feel like the decision space is good. But as I get more solo only games, that are higher on the list, I know that I’m going to play it less and less. So the app is good enough for me, for now. I can always pick it up again.

17. A Gentle Rain

The first solo only game on the list. I think technically you can do two player, but it just means you split up half of the stuff, which means it’s less fun. The game is simple, but it is very relaxing to play. And for me, that’s nice. It comes in a small box, but plays large, in area, on the table. I wish it played a little bit smaller, so it was more portable.

16. The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game

Now back to a bigger game, The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game, I like to play that one at two best. But three is good as well. And the game while having a lot of cards, is pretty fast to set-up and get to the table. I think it works best as a game in general, if you know the books. The theme is there, but it’s hidden behind mechanics.

15. Arkham Horror: The Card Game

One that I’d love to play solo more. And I think the game works really well solo for keeping the game moving. But Arkham Horror: The Card Game, it takes effort to get to the table. There are a lot of cards, and setting up each scenario takes time. I’d love for a faster way to get it to the table so I could play it more often because the story is good.

14. Doppelt So Clever

We’re going to see a lot of roll and writes now. Which makes sense because they are easy to get to the table. Doppelt So Clever is on the lower end because while it is easy to play, it is less satisfying than some. Mainly because I feel like I’m not doing as well as I should be. That is a function of the game and scoring sections, but still, it’s less fun.

13. Deadly Doodles

Deadly Doodles is a dungeon crawler roll and write, kind of. I’d say it is a more like D&D where you go diving into a dungeon, get some treasure and be done. Maybe more of a classic thing, here you find treasure, get weapons and fight monsters. Very simple game, but a fun one to play solo.

12. Marvel Champions: The Card Game

Now back to a living card game that is easier to get to the table. Marvel Champions works very well as a solo game. I prefer it two player, but either works. You play as a hero trying to stop a villain and thwart their evil scheme. Deck construction is fine, but I just like that this is a mechanically fun game, simpler than Arkham Horror, but still thematic game.

11. Welcome To…

Back to roll and writes, Welcome To is a game that works as a solo game. Though, I will say that it is better with more players. And I’m not 100% sure, they might have improved the solo mode in a small pack. But base solo mode is go through the deck and eventually hit a point where it ends and see how well you did. It works, and the game play is still a lot of fun, just the overall experience doesn’t feel as robust.

10. Aeon’s End

Some people might disagree with me. You need to control multiple characters, I recommend only two. But I think this is fairly fast to get to the table. Use the randomizer, pick the market, grab two breach mages and a nemesis and get going. There is more than that, and there are tokens, but Aeon’s End is easy to control two at once. I think that’s a thing for a lot of bigger games, they might be better controlling two characters, but is that easy.

9. Clever Hoch Drei

The third of the Clever roll and writes, and the middle one on my list. It’s a good solo game and this one lets you feel like you can do everything. It is more rewarding than Doppelt So Clever, but almost too rewarding. You can do everything, like every track will be filled in a lot at the end. You can optimize it still, which is what I love about the game. But huge points.

8. Ganz Schon Clever

Last of the Clever trilogy or first if you read top down, Ganz Schon Clever is just fun. I still play it on the app. And I love the game two player. I think that it helps improve the game play and is less lucky than solo while still getting all the rolls and all the rounds. But at any player count, I always want to know what is going on during your turn. And the combos, it feels like the right amount.

7. Metro X

Metro X is a roll and write that has a great puzzle. It isn’t one that has many combos, but the game play feels so tight and restrictive. You try and complete routes, and as you fill in one route, it might help another route. But since you are filling in 4 spots, if you now only can do three before you hit a filled in spot, is that optimizing what you do. The game’s puzzle feels tense from the start.

6. Spire’s End

New to the list and new to me. When I did my cooperative games, I couldn’t put this one on the list. Since it technically is cooperative, though, it just splits it up so that a person controls each of the characters. I’ve even heard of three player with one person being the dungeon master. But Spire’s End, and I’ll talk about it more in the future, is a story driven game where you take characters into a spire for some reason. And you fight monsters in there, but game play is simple and smart.

5. Sleeping Gods

Hey, this is the one that I’m playing right now. You can what last nights stream here. For some people this might seem like a lot because there are nine crew you are in charge of. But you always control them as a group and I think makes it easier. Plus this game is so story focused that if you miss a mechanic, I don’t feel bad about it.

4. Super Mega Lucky Box

One that when I played it the first two times I thought might leave my collection quickly. But no, I really like this game. It’s basically binge, you draw a card, cross of a number. So roll and write mechanics with bonuses when you fill in rows and columns on your card. The game is very fast and so much fun. And there is depth to how you try and get combos working in the game.

3. Railroad Ink & Challenge

Another one that works well solo because you are just trying to beat your previous score. I like either version, so I think that Challenge adds some good stuff to the game. It’s mainly about connecting routes of rail and road. This one also has a strong puzzle to it and the right amount of luck, I feel. The app is a lot of fun too.

2. Orchard: A 9 Card Solitaire Game

Another true solo game, Orchard is amazing. Orchard is all about laying cards on top of each other and growing fruit. It hits that great spot of simple but interesting. The combination of layering cards, creating a few dead spots to try and score more, it’s interesting. And I can knock out games so fast while watching something from sports to cooking shows. If I don’t need to pay complete attention, Orchard is great.

1. Super-Skill Pinball: 4-Cade

Finally, Pinball. I love Super-Skill Pinball, I haven’t played multiplayer yet. But the roll and write works as a pinball game. It is maybe the most thematic roll and write game that I own. And there are a lot of boards, pinball machines, you can play on. The production quality is high and game play is so much fun, and I’ll 100% be getting the Star Trek version when it comes out.

Final Thoughts

Solo gaming is something I want to do more of. And I know it’s goin to be a way to help me get through my goal of getting under 100 unplayed games in 2022. Right now, the number sits around 130, and when I can learn and play it solo, it helps. I’m curious to see how two, Village Green and Floriforous play solo. Mainly because it’d let me learn the game to make it easier to teach to others, if I’ve played it.

What are your favorite games to play solo?

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Cooperative Games Rankings

So just be aware I’m going to talk less about these games because there are a grand total of 52 that I ranked. Expect a sentence or two on each one of them.

52. FUSE

Fast paced game of rolling dice and then using them to try and complete enough cards to diffuse the bomb. I don’t love games that are only real time, and FUSE is only real time. It plays fast, but the game isn’t that interesting the more you play it.

51. Magic Maze

Another real time game, this time taking adventurers through a shopping mall. This one is more interesting because you need to work together more. But it’s going really fast without talking and sometimes it works and other times it doesn’t.

50. Forbidden Island

This one is a great introduction to cooperative gaming and gaming in general. It follows the standard, do something and then something bad happens. My issue is that the game is too easy and generally just an okay game.

49. Arkham Horror: Final Hour

Now, on the flip side of Forbidden Island, this game is hard as you try and guess some ruins to be able to stop ritual from happening. It basically takes Arkham Horror and tries to make it shorter. It succeeds on that, but it also just isn’t interesting. The couple clever things it tries to do are just misses.

48. God of War: The Card Game

And another game that was too easy when I played it. I wonder about playing a whole game if that would make it more challenging, but what I played was fairly boring. I also feel like the decisions weren’t that interesting in the game. Most of the time it was do the obvious thing.

47. Legendary: A Marvel Deck Building Game

I talked about this yesterday. It’s a fine deck building game. It is just too slow to get to the table and too slow to get to feeling powerful. If they were to come out with a second edition and make the game play ramp up faster, I’d probably like it a lot. But right now, the ramp is just too slow.

46. Forbidden Desert

I like this a fair amount better than Forbidden Island, it offers more to do and a more clever mechanism of figuring out where to get things. It follows that Pandemic formula for things of do good things and then bad things happen. Played it a few times, enjoyed it, and have moved on.

45. The Mind

This one is an interesting one. You try and play cards down in numerical order without talking. The concept is cool, and the game works, but only sometimes. This is one where it really depends on who is in the group. And I had some good times with it but moved on again.

44. Sword Art Online Board Game: Sword of Fellow

I need to try this one again, it’s been a little while. The concept isn’t bad, you are basically playing the boss battles from Sword Art Online the show, and it has the main characters. The downside is that the rules aren’t that great, and it’s pretty simple and lucky. That said, it is tiny, so I don’t mind luck as much.

43. Exit Games

Exit Games are fun, but any escape room game is always hard to rank. I’ve played less Exit Games, and I don’t love that you can’t pass it on. Granted, I did see it kind of work with them at Fantasy Flight Game Center (now GameZenter), but I don’t want to buy something I need to then replace.

42. Flash Point: Fire Rescue

This is basically Pandemic but with fires. You haven’t seen Pandemic yet on the list so you know it’s higher. I think that Flash Point: Fire Rescue might end up being one that I get. And that’s because it might replace base Pandemic for me, but we’ll talk about why later. Very standard cooperative game.

41. Legendary Encounters: A Firefly Deck Building Game

On yesterday’s list, it is one that I like the theme of. Firefly was a great show, and the game is playing through the episodes. The game isn’t that easy and the artwork is just okay. Again, the ramp speed doesn’t seem right for the type of game it is, but it’s better than Marvel Legendary.

40. Stuffed Fables

This is one that I had a good time when I played it, but ended up being one that I never wanted to come back to. The game has a cool story about a kid who has a blanket, I believe, stolen, and you play as animals going under the bed with all the broken toys to get it back for her. But the mechanics were not that well taught and things that changed up on each different storybook page were worse taught.

39. Legacy of Dragonholt

Another one that was in my collection and left. When I heard about an RPG in a box, I thought it was going to be great. And in all fairness, it is a fun game with a lot of story in the box. But the story and writing was just okay. The best I can compare it is that it was written like a YA novel, but not one of the great ones. I think the system was very good, but I wanted writing.

38. Marvel Battleworld

This is dumb little game. I know it shouldn’t be this high on my list, though we’re not even half way yet. It is just a game where you roll a die and advance a track. The fun of the game is buying blind packs and getting little Funko figures. So I have it this high because it’s a fun toy with a little game attached to it.

37. Ghostbusters: The Board Game

We’re still in the area of games that are just okay, but we’re soon to games that are still in my collection. I loved the minis in the game, and the translucent ones look cool. But the game play was just okay. While there were different scenarios, they weren’t bad, but it wasn’t all that interesting. I just wished there was more.

36. Elder Sign

Another one that left my collection, some of that was just because I had only the base game. I have heard that the expansions help improve the game, and add more to the story of what you are doing. The base game is basically a Yahtzee type game, and I wish that it played a little bit faster for what it is.

35. Legends of Andor

Story driven puzzle game, Legends of Andor is good. The reason that it left my collection is that I never wanted to just sit down and play through all of it. So when I did want to play it, I’d play through the introductory scenario again and I did that a few times. But I like the story and the mechanics are pretty cool.

34. Sword & Sorcery

I played this one a lot, I got through the base game and one expansion. And I do like this game. Once I played that, though, I got rid of it. Even though I had more characters to play with, I wasn’t interested in going back through. The story doesn’t branch enough for that. And I wish that you could retire characters like in Gloomhaven.

33. Castle Panic

I almost culled this game, and I might, the board is a bit dinged so the FLGS didn’t take it. But the game is still playable. We’re not here to talk about that, though. The game is fun, and it’s a very light tower defense game. I like that I can play it with almost anyone, and while you rarely lose, it feels like you might. If I don’t lose a cooperative game fairly often, though, I will move on from it.

32. Choose Your Own Adventure: House of Danger

This is a fun silly little game. I would say that it’s pretty much a solo game. Because you all play as one character and basically just do a choose your own adventure. You can make decisions as a group and pass around who is reading and rolling a die, but that’s how it’s cooperative. It is fun for that, though, because it’s so silly that everyone is laughing together.

31. Mysterium

Mysterium bounces all over for me. I think it was in my Top 100 games this past year and now with this ranking it wouldn’t be. If and when I play it again, it likely will move up. This is about figuring out who the murderer is. And there are rules about how that all works, but really it’s about giving clues as a ghost to everyone so they can figure theirs out. It’s cool concept that can get in it’s way with how it tries to be a game.

30. Unlock Games

The better escape room style board game. Unlock Games you don’t destroy anything, unless in a fit of rage. And I like how it counts down building up pressure versus Exit which is just see how long it takes you. And there are a lot of these with a lot of different themes. I want to play more, but it’s kind of a lot of a game night and works better with 3-4 people not 6.

29. Arkham Horror

This is the 2nd Edition, I haven’t played my 3rd Edition yet, but I need to. This is a grand epic game that takes forever to play. But it is a lot of fun. I felt like when I’ve played it that I get into what is going on in the game. The story is light, but the longer you play, the more story develops just from what you are doing.

28. Dead Men Tell No Tales

I like pirates, so that helps this game. And the supernatural twist on it is good. It again falls into that category of do some things and then bad things happen. What ended up causing this one to leave my collection is that it is that bit more. There are so many things to keep track of and the game isn’t as familiar, I didn’t pull it out over Pandemic.

27. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle

Another deck builder on the list, and one that I just got rid of as well. Why, because I own a lot of deck building games. This one I like the theme of it, and the mechanics are fun. The game gets a bit longer as you go, and I wish there were more characters in the base box. It’d be one I’d gladly get back when I have a group to play it.

26. Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth

It’s odd how many leave my collection, and this is another. And I actually just realized that I forgot to rank Star Wars: Imperial Assault which also just left. So this counts for both. They are great games, The apps work really well, and you can pick your preferred theme. These are campaign games with a nice sense of adventure, but because they are campaign games, that’s why they left.

25. First Martians: Adventures on the Red Planet

This one is still in my collection, huzzah. And it’s probably surprising because when it came out people didn’t love it. But I really enjoy this game. It is a tough cooperative game where you can play all sorts of one off missions with different focuses. Or you can do a mini campaign. And it has an app, not a great one, to handle a lot of the bad things that happen, which I like.

24. Pathfinder Adventure Card Game

I really should buy a copy of this game. I played a few times at Fantasy Flight Game Center and really liked it. But never picked it up, and then played a bunch on the app. There is story, campaign, deck construction, and a lot of cool card play. I prefer the game that this is based off of, but I’d gladly have both in my collection.

23. The Lord of the Rings

While some might argue this game is fairly abstract, where you are pushing up on tracks as you go through the story of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I really enjoy this game. It is a very hard cooperative game, but it gives you rewards at just the right time. It’s one I haven’t played in ages, but now that I’m thinking about it, I want to play it again.

22. Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game

My favorite book series in a board game. When talking about this one, I always want to to point out that it is abstracted. And while the theme is there, it is mainly there if you know the books. I love picking out one of the books to play and then characters from that book and trying to beat the game. I like it best, I think at two, though three isn’t bad either.

21. Just One

Party game on the list, Just One is a great game. And I really like that we are getting a number of cooperative party games. Here one person is trying to guess a word, and everyone else gives them a one word clue. But any duplicate words cancel. Simple game, clever idea, don’t need to play for points, and always a blast.

20. Cross Clues

Another party game, I told you there are a few, Cross Clues I like just a little bit better. Though, last time I played it I was so tired that I messed up a few times. Here you are giving a one word clue to get people to guess the intersection of two words. So it might be day and octopus, what word is between those two? Eight might be a good option. Simple and a lot of fun again. You can play real time, 5 minutes, see how well you do, we never do that.

19. Pandemic

Here are all the Pandemic games. And I have to say, I don’t know that I need to play base Pandemic again. Pandemic Legacy games just kind of ruined it for me. Still in my collection, but like I said, I might get Flash Point and replace it. If I want to play Pandemic again, I’ll play legacy, I think.

18. Village Attacks

A bigger tower defense game, I am still waiting for my Kickstarter to come in. It funded in 2019. But I am excited for it when it does. Village Attacks has you playing as the bad guys with the villagers coming with pitch forks and torches. You might be grotesque or horrifying, but the theme is just funny to me, so while it’s a dark game, it doesn’t come across.

17. Arkham Horror: The Card Game

I really need to play more of this game, it’s another one that I just really love. Arkham Horror: The Card Game, is the living card game (LCG) from Fantasy Flight, and it’s so cool how they can do so many different things with the game. Great card play and fun deck construction that I want to do more of. I prefer it two player, I think, but it’s good solo as well.

16. Similo

Final party game on the list, but not final light game. Similo is game where one person is it. That person is giving clues of either a card being like or not like the secret card. Then the rest of the players eliminate cards. Simple concept for a game and a ton of fun, especially to mix decks. How do you tell players that a chicken is or isn’t like a vampire or medusa?

15. Apocrypha Adventure Card Game

This is the game that the Pathfinder Card Game was based on, though the Pathfinder one came out first, it’s confusing. But I like the dark theme of this one, there is warfare going on between supernatural forces, and not everyone can see it, but you can. So how can you stop it in the different scenarios. Good game, great art, and my sort of them. Horrible rule book.

14. Say Bye to the Villains

Definitely the hardest game on the list, at least in terms of winning. The play is simple, spend time to improve your stats, look at what a villain is doing, and hope that you can win when you run out of time. And there isn’t enough time to do everything in the game. I’ve come so close to winning so many times, I’m sure eventually I will.

13. The Reckoners

Pretty high on the list for limited plays, but I love the theme of the game. The Reckoners by Brandon Sanderson is a great series. And I love the game play, it’s tough, even on easy, but it has a lot of good choices. And you feel like you can do a lot on your turn as you roll dice and every face on the die is probably something you need.

12. Marvel United

Marvel United is a pretty easy game, but I love it a lot. In the game you are playing down cards to stop a super villain. As superheroes you all work together. So the last card you played, if I’m next to go, I’ll get to use as well. The villains also feel so different in this game, and while I have everything for it, the grab and go get it to the table is great.

11. Letter Jam

A game that just made me realize I forgot to rank Hanabi, I play a lot of cooperative games, Letter Jam is a game where you are trying to guess your word. But you can’t see the letters that make up your word. Only through clues and words given by other players can you infer what your letters are. There is some good strategy in figuring out what are good clues. Loads of fun and one that I think a lot of people will like.

10. TIME Stories

The highest escape room style game on my list, though this one has more going on than that. I really like TIME Stories for the puzzles that it gives. I haven’t played all of them yet, and I have heard that some are weaker than others. But every one that I’ve played thus far I really enjoy.

9. Roll Player Adventures

I’m really excited, I get to play into a campaign of this in February. Roll Player Adventures is my highlight from GenCon in 2019. Getting to playtest it was great. In the Roll Player universe, this takes characters you might have rolled up, or pre-made ones, and lets you take them on adventures. The adventures are fun, and the combat is interesting. It’s a lot of choose your own adventure and so good at that.

8. Mansions of Madness: 2nd Edition

Another Lovecraftian game, and another cooperative one. All of Fantasy Flights games in their Arkham Files line are cooperative. Mansions of Madness is app assisted and so much fun. Like Arkham Horror The Card Game, the game can be so different depending upon scenario. Some might have you stopping a ritual in a mansion, others exploring a town. One that I want to play more of to see what else they can do with it.

7. Sleeping Gods

You can watch me play this tonight, Jan 26th, on Malts and Meeples. Sleeping Gods is a big adventure game that I’m playing solo right now where you are the Manticore, a ship, and sailing around with crew that go on adventures. The game has an amazing aesthetic and story. Even though the story isn’t linear, it works well. And the world it’s set in is really cool.

6. Marvel Champions

I like Marvel a lot, and for me Marvel Champions is the best Marvel game. The different heroes feel like that hero, and you can take them up against any bad guy. While Marvel United you play as one hero they are a bit more generic. And Marvel Champions gives you that alter ego side, so you push and pull to keep the villain at bay. And there are so many heroes and villains already and there can be so many more.

5. Aeon’s End

Another one I talked about yesterday. Aeon’s End is a cooperative deck building game where you try and stop a nemesis. A great solo and two player game. There are so many set-ups and so many cards for it. Now this does include Legacy as well, which is a great introduction to the game. And I like that the randomness in the game isn’t shuffling your deck, it is turn order and what the monster does.

4. Xenoshyft: Onslaught

Another deck building game, this one is Starship Troopers and tower defense. I like how collaborative the game is. I build my deck, but if I have an extra troop and you need one, I can give it to you to defend your part of the base and it goes into your deck. It allows everyone to really balance out what is going on and have a chance, which is good, because it’s a tough game.

3. Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game

I feel like this one I talk about and always describe it in a way that doesn’t sound that fun. But in this game, I feel like I am a detective. It’s a bit like a detective TV show, but fun is how I put it. You get into the case and the theme and if you allow yourself to be immersed in figuring out the story going on it is a great time.

2. Tainted Grail

Another one from yesterday, Tainted Grail is an amazing story adventure game. You take these characters and build them up through a grim dark storyline. And the writing on the game is just so well done. In terms of thematic games, I feel like this one might top my list, though, not my favorite cooperative game.

1. Gloomhaven

For my favorite cooperative game, no shock, it’s Gloomhaven. I love this game. I love the leveling in this game and the card play in this game. And I love that you retire characters and get new ones. I think that the mechanics are amazing and the story is interesting. But overall it leads to a great cooperative experience.

Final Thoughts

I’m guessing since I missed Hanabi and Imperial Assault that I likely missed others. And I also found it interesting how many I’ve gotten rid of. I think a lot of that has to do with me having so many I’ve played. It means that they are fighting for playing time. So only the top ones stick around. Especially when you get down to campaign games, for those it’s even a tighter field because of Kickstarter games coming in and time.

What is your favorite cooperative game?

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Now, if you are in the market for board games, I will say that there are a lot of sales going on. A lot of board game companies or online board game retailers have been running longer sales versus a massive “Black Friday” sale. So there are still deals to be found, but let’s talk about what I found.

All Systems Go

I think I talked about how last time I was there, I got enough in store credit to get a free $100 game, but I wasn’t sure what game I wanted to buy. Ankh interested me, but I want to try it before I buy it. Well, it’s no longer the case that I don’t know what game I want. It’s also no longer the case that I have the credit or points to get a $100 game.

Mythic Battles Pantheon + Pandora’s Box

I think it was early in this year that Mythic Battles Pantheon: Ragnarok came on Kickstarter. I backed it, but only at one dollar. And then I never upped my pledge in the pledge manager. I don’t regret that too much. I like the Viking and Norse theme a lot, but it is an expensive game. And there was a copy, I think all in on the Kickstarter, for Mythic Battles Pantheon that had been sitting in All Systems Go for a while.

Now, the base box was over $100, so I didn’t consider it for my free game. But on Small business Saturday, it was discounted by 20% off (as was Pandora’s Box), and that took the base game right to $100. So, it was time. I know I want to try this game. The concept is a lot of fun. You take gods or titans up against each other and see who wins in a fight. It comes with big minis and terrain or some sort, because you can pick up a tree and smash someone with it.

It just seems like a great big game that won’t get played too often, most likely. But when I do play it, it is going to be a lot of fun.

Marvel Champions: Hood Scenario Pack

It’s more Marvel Champions, but also a character that I don’t know a ton about when it comes to the comics. I know he’s a villain, scenario packs are for villains, and I think I’ve read a comic or two with him in it. But more Marvel Champions, what can I say, eventually I’ll have a full Kallax cube full of only Marvel Champions, but not quite yet. If I sleeved all my cards, I’d probably be there already.

Haba

Haba is running, or maybe was running, a by one get one sale on select games. And a few weeks before the toddler, who has been enjoying his first board game, Animal Upon Animal, we talked about a car game. He really likes anything with cars, or trucks, or construction vehicles. I asked on Facebook for recommendations in a board game group, the most common answer came from Haba, and was on sale.

Monza

One of two games for the toddler to play with on a theme that he loves. Monza looks like a simple racing game. And while he might just enjoy the cars right now, I want the idea of games and gaming to be common to him. He gets some of the ideas of Animal Upon Animal. This one looks like a game where you roll dice and move cars around the board.

But it is from Haba, so I expect there is a tiny bit more than that. But it will be simple and good for him eventually. I’m not sure when he’ll get the game, we already have a Christmas gift for him, or two, or three, but when something he’ll like is on sale, especially a board game.

In A Flash Firefighters

I know even less about this game than Monza. But he likes firefighters and there is one on the box. it looks like it’s maybe a speed based game, and a little bit more complex. Or at least smaller pieces, though, this is Haba, so will be good for kids I’m sure.

Now, it’s not rated as well as a lot of Haba games, so I’m guessing a bit more complex so doesn’t work as well with kids, but it is really just guessing. And, like I said above, Haba is doing a buy one get one sale. So that means, it is a free game.

Biffleys

You’ve never heard of Biffleys. That is okay. Biffleys is a use book, video game, DVD, and a board game shop. It is going out of business in my home town. Now, I don’t know if that’s because it didn’t have enough business, but I suspect because it was a lot of work. It isn’t a new business, so it’s lasted 20 years, or so. But 30% off games meant when I was in town for Thanksgiving, time to check it out.

Quadropolis

This is a Days of Wonder game that I wanted to try for a long time. Days of Wonder makes Ticket to Ride, Five Tribes, and games like that which are very accessible. Quadropolis is their take on town building. In typical Days of Wonder fashion, though, it isn’t too complex, but offers a challenge.

What I find really interesting, in theory, about this game is how you get city tiles. You place down markers and that limits rows and columns you can use in the future. At least, that’s how I think it works. It also doesn’t have some of the financial stuff that bigger games in the genre do, I’m excited to play it.

6 nimmt!

This game showed up the first time on After School Dice Club, an anime that I watched because, I like anime and board games. It isn’t super fresh in my mind, but I think it is basically a game of trapping your opponent into cards or points. It is only a card game, and I like that it’s in a small box.

I want to try this one because it was on the anime. I also want to see how tricky a game this is. If a game is very accessible, I can play it with my groups. And card games, especially those that feel a bit more familiar, are good options. I think 6 nimmt might be a game like that.

No Thanks!

No Thank! is a game that I don’t remember where I heard about it. But I like the concept for it. And I know they talk about it on the Dice Tower sometimes. You want as few points as possible in the game. To do that you are saying no thanks to cards with points. To do that, you put a marker on the card, but you only have a limited number of markers. Eventually you need to take something.

But the card you take, you get the markers on it. At what point in time is a 75 worth it to take? If you get 10 markers is it worth it, if you get 20 is it worth it? That is the question you are asking yourself. You get the 75 with 20 markers, now you can make people take lower cards and several of them. Or is it worth it to just take a 10 without any markers on it because it is a lower number?

I don’t know what strategy for this game. But the concept is extremely simple, so I’m excited to find out. This is one of those games that I think will work well in larger groups And I think it will work well with gamers and non-gamers.

Horrible Guild

Now, the most dangerous thing that happened was Horrible Guild opening a web store. I love their games. And in particular, Potion Explosion and Railroad Ink Challenge, anything for those I want. So now, because they opened a store, I own more for Railroad Ink Challenge at least.

Railroad Ink Challenge

I’m going to list everything I got here. They had a nice discount, not for Black Friday or anything, well, kind of, but for the web store launch.

• Arcade Expansion
• Eldritch Expansion
• Electricity Expansion
• Futuristic Expansion
• Sky Expansion
• Underground Expansion
• Additional Card Pack
• Collectors Storage Box
• Solo Board

That is a lot. All of the expansion ones are just small expansions that have 4 dice and some rules, maybe some challenges. I am curious and I really want to start diving into the expansions, probably will start doing that on stream. The additional cards I believe are additional challenges that can be added in. And the Collectors Storage Box just takes all my Railroad Ink and puts it into on box. Solo board is a board for solo game play, not sure what is different, but I want to see.

BGG Promos

This is kind of like Horrible Guild, Board Game Geek is doing a buy 4 get the 5th free for some of the promos they have. So I decided to grab a bunch of them, well, a few. I didn’t want to go too overboard, and I did find ones for games that I like, or that are just cool for games I have coming.

Aeon’s End: Thieving Spirits

I love Aeon’s End, we’ve been through that. This just adds in a new set of cards that you can play with. I need to, now that I’ve played through Aeon’s End Legacy, to get all my games into a single box, and then I’ll have a massive Aeon’s End experience to play around with, which is pretty exciting.

Deep Madness – Magnetic Saw Gun

It’s a magnetic saw gun, I’m not even sure what that means. But it sounds dangerous and Deep Madness is on the list of games that I am going to play this year, well, maybe not this year but soon.

Downforce: Civilized

Downforce is a game that really became interesting for me as a racing/betting game. I want to play it more because I think there’s still strategy to be tapped into. And the different powers, like Civilized is, changes up the game. This one will add in more variety to the game. I think that the powers really do make an interesting difference, and could be leveraged more in my game play.

Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game: Ra

Ra is not a character in the Dresden Files, but it is more for the game. And characters are really easy to slot in. So while I normally play characters from the current book I’m playing in the game, I could slot Ra into the game. And this one might be a little bit of me being a completionist, I won’t like.

Icecool : Blocked Doors

This is what it says it is, it is a way to block doors. And I like blocking off doors, it’s just a fun thing to add to the game. It’s also one of those things that doesn’t change up the game too much or make the rules more complicated. Some expansions add more depth to a game, but for a simple game, I want it to stay simple. Just a few more cards, and that’s really it, doesn’t change up the game much.

Silver: Marauders

Like the Aeon’s End Expansion, Downforce, and Ice Cool, this doesn’t change up the game much, it is something that is easy to slot into what you are doing. With Silver you just play with any combination of 0 through 13. This just another set of cards to drop in at a number. I don’t know that I need more combinations of cards, but also, more combinations aren’t going to hurt. I think with 4 different combinations at each numbers, that’s probably enough for life.

Time of Legends: Joan of Arc: Sam the Blacksmith

This one is because I like the Dice Tower, and I like Sam Healey. He was a lot of fun when he was on the Dice Tower. And he loves Time of Legends and in fact now works for Mythic Games. This is just him in the game, as a Blacksmith. The card looks cool and it’s more content that I’m hoping can just easily be slotted into what I already have.

That is a lot that I picked up but a lot of it was quite cheap. Even Mythic Battles Pantheon and stuff from All Systems go, which would have been over $200 was just over $50, so a massive game with a ton of stuff, but pretty reasonable for me to pick it up. Did you get anything on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday or now Cyber Monday deals?

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Sleeping Gods

This game is one that I almost backed on Kickstarter, but I didn’t for one main reason. Looking at the Kickstarter, I loved the artwork, I thought the game play looked interesting, I was just worried it would land for me like Near and Far did. I like Near and Far, don’t get me wrong. I think that that the game play is solid and the story is solid. But the story is lacking, for me.

So I was concerned that Sleeping Gods would kind of fall into that same line of things. And with a lot of other games out there to be back two years ago, I think, I didn’t jump on it. I also knew that the game would be available at retail as well. And then reviews for the game started coming in, and people really liked it. The game play seems more my style, and the story seems more focused. And, of course, the game sold out. Board Game Geek has it (or had) for pre-order, so I figured it was time to hop on it.

Ratcatcher

This one also was a Kickstarter that I wasn’t sure about. Firstly, it is a solo only game, which I have found out that I like more than I thought. But when it was on Kickstarter I wasn’t sure. And I’m a little hesitant to back, or was, a solo only game. This is one, however, I was less sure would actually hit retail.

In the case of Ratcatcher, what drew me in was a solo play on the GloryHoundd YouTube channel. I’ll put the video below. But that game play looked like a lot of fun. The game seems to do what I like in a solo game a lot of the time. It provides an interesting and shifting puzzle in a small package. Now, it does spread out on the table, but overall, I really think this one looks like fun.

Grove

Another solo only game on the list of things that I’ve pre-ordered. This one I did back on Kickstarter. You can read up on it in my Back or Brick article. This one I didn’t hesitate to back on Kickstarter because it’s a follow-up to a game that I already love, Orchard. Orchard is a great little solo game with a little footprint and super fast play time. Grove looks like it is going to be more of the same, and that’s very interesting to me because I’ve already played Orchard over 60 times. I can imagine Grove will get played as much.

Marvel Dice Throne

No shock on this one, I’d think. I love Dice Throne, it hasn’t been on my top 100, yet. But you take a game I really like and an intellectual property I’m clearly in love with, I’m going to back the game. It’s been under 24 hours and it’s just under $900,000. So it’s doing extremely well at a time when some Kickstarters are cancelling. I wasn’t really all that concerned about this one cancelling.

If you are interested in Marvel Dice Throne, it will be coming to retail. But the Kickstarter version does come in a single box, and the price point is going to be cheaper on everything. That means if you want to get the playmats, card sleeves, or the dice tray, the time to get it is now. I’ll be talking about it more tomorrow when I do a Back or Brick for it.

Similos Spookies

This one wasn’t pre-ordered, just ordered, so it’s in my collection, though it showed up a few days too late for the October board game night when it would have been perfect. Similos is a party game where you are working together to figure out clues as to what the groups card is. The game is a lot of fun and you can mix and match the different sets from Mythology to Animals and now to spooky monsters.

I knew I was going to get this one when it became available. The game play is a ton of fun, and if I can add in something spooky or spoopy to my game collection, I’m probably going to do that. And as replayable as Similos already is, I’m not going to say no to having even more sets that I can mix and match together.

Which game would you want to get to the table first? Are you backing either of the Kickstarters, Grove or Marvel Dice Throne?

Point of Sale

Normally I’d do a bigger article as I did sell a fair number of things recently, but they were all RPG books, so I wanted to talk about them in one lump, because there’s really one reason I’m getting rid of all of them. While I do like a lot of different RPG’s and I’ll gladly play them, I’ve come to realize I’m just running D&D. Dungeons and Dragons is the game that I know best. It is the game I buy the books for new character classes or settings for.

I am always going to have more D&D content to run. And I haven’t kept up with other games. While I have run some Star Wars games, I am not that likely to again. The same goes for the other systems, while they are fun, I won’t be playing them over Dungeons and Dragons, so might as well sell them.

Now, I did keep one non-D&D thing. That was the Fate core book and Fate Dresden Files. I haven’t ever used those books. I am not sure that I ever will, But I love the Dresden Files, so I wasn’t ready to get rid of that one right now.

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If you are interested in catching these streams live. Every Wednesday at 8 PM Central time from now until the week before Thanksgiving I’ll be streaming. There is only one more scheduled right now but I’ll get the rest up shortly. You can click the notification bell to know when I go live on Malts and Meeples.

See the previous parts of the list below:

100 Through 91

90 Through 81

80 through 71

Top 100 Board Games – 70 through 61

70. Point Salad

A game about making a salad, this game has you getting as many points as you can. You do this by drafting either cards to add to your salad or cards to help you score your salad. The game is very easy to teach and play. And it plays differently every time, you don’t always play with all of the cards, so while the number of vegetable cards is the same at player counts, what cards are drafted and what scoring is used can change up. It’s a nice twist on drafting.

Buy on Miniature Market

69. Twice as Clever! (Doppelt So Clever)

The most complicated of the three “Clever” games. This one has you scoring points in a lot of different ways, I won’t go into detail because without context it means nothing. It’s an abstract roll and write game where you try and score the most points. It’s really based off of combos and foxes. As you score more points and fill in things in areas you unlock bonuses to fill in spots in other areas. And the foxes, they score with the number of foxes times your lowest in all areas. It’s a nice way to make you focus on everything.

Buy on Miniature Market

68. Hanabi

This game won the Spiel Das Jahres I believe, and it’s a game that still holds up. You are trying to play down cards in ascending order, but you can’t see your cards. Instead everyone else is giving you clues. But you are also giving them clues, and you have a limited number of clues you can give. The game works because of how you give clues, you can either tell people a color or a number. But you need to point to all the cards of a color or a number when giving the clue.

Buy on Miniature Market

67. Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game

Most social deduction games are little, this one is big. In it you’re trying to get the Galactica to Earth after Cylon attack. But the Cylons, while most are toasters, some look like people. And some of the Cylons might not even know they are Cylon. This game works because it’s a game with the social deduction and hidden traitor aspect to it. Can you read who is the player or players who are suspicious? It’s a long game but an epic experience. I could see this getting replaced, though, by Unfathomable for me.

Not Available

66. Cross Clues

A game with a grid and a cooperative party game. This has you coming up with clues to get people to guess your junction on the grid. Clues can only be one word and need to tie together two words on the axis. So if it goes ABCD on the top and 1234 on the side, you might have A3 which gives you the words Kite and Cat. What one would would you give to get people to guess A3? Maybe tail? But what if B3 is Dog and Cat, would people think you mean that? And everyone is trying to come up with a clue to give. Fast paced and a lot of fun.

Buy on Miniature Market

65. Parade

Parade is an abstract game where you are creating a line-up of characters from Alice in Wonderland. It’s not that the theme is great on this one, it is that the game play is a lot of fun. You are playing cards from your hand to the parade. The number on the card determines how many cards you skip over. Then the number and color tell you what cards in the rest of the parade you will take, low numbers or cards of the same color. You want low points but if you have the most of a color instead of being face value for points, each card counts as one point, so some really good choices.

Buy on Miniature Market

64. The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game

The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game, besides having a very long name, is an interesting game because it has theme. But you bring the theme to the game. What the game does, with the scenarios being books, how the characters play, the investigations and the bad guys all are thematic, but the story doesn’t emerge unless you know it. Then the game makes more sense as you overcome obstacles, gain advantages, solve cases and defeat villains. It’s a solid mechanical game that’s great for Dresden Files fans.

Buy on Miniature Market

63. Hats

Another abstract Alice in Wonderland themed game. In Hats you are trying to collect the hats that are worth the most points. But to do that, you are taking cards off of the table at the Madd Hatters tea party. The cards you play out from your hand have to go to the table and the ones coming off the table are your scoring. Each spot at the table scores a different number of points. If there are two hats of the same type on the table at the end, hats of that type are worth the lowest. It’s a good abstract puzzle of a game.

Buy on Amazon

62. Deadly Doodles

Another new game to the list, Twice as Clever! was the first. Deadly Doodles is also a roll and write game. In it, you are delving into a dungeon to fight monsters, find weapons and get treasure. The game in it’s base is a pretty simple roll and write game. But you can make it more complex with Deadly Doodles 2 and the different dungeon types in there. You do need both of them to be able to play those more complex dungeons. But it’s a nice one to stream and a good solo or group roll and write game.

Buy on Miniature Market

61. Similo

Another party game and another cooperative party game and another new game. Similo was a game I knew about but wasn’t interested in until I saw Horrible Guild play it on their channel. Similo is a game of giving clues to get players to narrow it down to one thing. The trick is that the clue giver can only tell you if their card they play down is or isn’t like the target card. And you have to eliminate more as you go on. What makes this so much fun is that you might be using mythical figures to get people to guess animals, or the other way around. Good simple party game to start a game night.

Buy on Miniature Market

The Next Ten

Like I said at the beginning the next ten are going to come out on Wednesday. The streams are always at 8 PM Central Time and you can click the notification bell for it here. And you can always subscribe and click the notification bell on the channel as a whole. I hope that you can join me then.

Monday streams will start coming back probably after the Top 10 list is done. Though, if I decide to do some solo gaming some Monday, maybe I’ll have a surprise stream and just go with that. Let me know what small solo-able games you want to see me play.

What is your favorite game from this group of 10, and which one do you want to play most?

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The Games

10. A Gentle Rain

This game might feel too much just like an activity.

9. Ohanami

The decision space, while matching the aesthetic of the game, might be too simple.

8. The Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game

You can bring the theme to the game but for a game that should have more theme it is very mechanical.

7. Apocrypha

The rule book is horrible.

6. Say Bye to the Villains

The game is too long for the stuff in the box.

5. Galaxy Trucker

Chaos and then destruction.

4. TIME Stories

You go on runs over and over again.

3. Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game

The game doesn’t let you do everything and you need the internet.

2. Icecool

It’s a flicking game.

1. Betrayal At House On the Hill

The scenarios are hard to understand and if a too strong a character is the traitor they can win easily.

The Beer

Last nights beer was from Bent Brewstillery out of Roseville MN. It is another brewery very close to where I live, though one I haven’t been to in a few years. They make good beer but not always my favorite beers. This one, a hazy fruited sour, O.P.P., is a very solid beer. To me, it would have been a great summer beer because of the very fruity nature. That sweetness balanced out against the tart nature of the sour for a very refreshing drink. I think that it’s getting a bit cold in Minnesota for a beer like that, but still really enjoyable.

What’s Coming Up On Malts and Meeples

Starting tomorrow I am tackling my Top 100 of all time live. The list is ready to go so every Wednesday at 8 PM from September 15th through November 17th I’ll be doing the next 10 on my list. Again that’s at 8 PM Central. Subscribe, click that notification bell and join me live as I talk about my Top 100 games of all time. That’s going to be mainly what I stream coming up here. There might be some Monday night streams, 8:30 PM Central, and those will be chats while playing a small game.

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The Session

So, if you need a quick refresher, Barrai, Kip, and Bokken had all just come back from the 6th layer of hell. Narduk had been swapped out with Barrai’s sister who now looked like Narduk and was running her shop. This was all after Barrai the previous session had been killed, turned into a puddle and brought back as a gnome, a blue gnome.

Thrain joins the group quickly. He didn’t know where they’d gone but after his day of resting he figured they had likely gone to the tower. Of course, there was a bit of an issue as he came out in the courtyard through the trapdoor that Barrai had put a trap on. The group isn’t too worried about him, instead they are worried about what happened to Karl and the cloak that Bokken had previous and had traded for the sun sword, because, well, Karl was still in the cloak.

Kraig is sent up to scout and spots the cloak and someone talking to it. They look elf-like and have antlers or branches coming out of their head. Kip sneaks up and hears a conversation between Karl and this fey creature. He hears that Karl is basically telling the fey creature of his exploits, Karl’s not Kip’s, and that Karl wasn’t sure what had happened to Kip and the others.

Kip makes himself known to the fey who turns out to be The Oak Lord, third in command in the Summer Courts. Bokken soon steps out as well. They talk for a little bit and the topic of the tower, the sphere of annihilation and more comes up in the conversation.

The biggest thing is that the winter courts do not like the three ravens of the crescent moon. That is the organization that Addrus and Nahzir belong to. Mainly because Adanac, the nation that the Three Ravens of the Crescent Moon are based out of won’t work with the winter courts. The fey realm is being drained, slowly, of energy and the same with other realms. That energy is going into the tower. And the fey can’t go into the tower themselves which causes an issue with them trying to get rid of or figure out the tower.

The Oak Lord decides that the group of the four of them were fairly competent. And that since they have had dealt with the winter court, rainman, an arcane stalker and more. He offers them a 15 year contract at a gold a day, 5 silver while they are in school). They won’t be assassins upon graduation, so much, they’ll be adventurers of the tower in employment of the Summer Court. And that’s where we ended.

Behind the DM’s Screen

I’ve known that I wanted to tie in the fey somehow. Mainly because I have the Fey Monster book from Cawood publishing. It’s a really fun book. I normally don’t recommend third party books for players or GM’s because there is so much content. But as a big fan of the Dresden Files where the winter and summer courts play an important role, I wanted to give it a whirl in a game. It is a good book with a lot of different characters I like. I think you’d be able to play a Dresden Files-esque game with it. And while in this case the Tower is obviously the McGuffin for the game, I can still play around with it.

Do you have any third party D&D books that you like to use?

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Cooperative Games

Now, I’m not going to put together a list of all the games and talk about them again. Well, I won’t talk about them again, I’ll have a list at the bottom if anyone wants to find it that way. But I want to talk a little bit about why I like cooperative games.

It is something I touch on just briefly in the video. Cooperative games are a good way to bring more complex games into people’s lives. When I play a cooperative game, I am on the same team as you. That means that I want to help us win. Now I can take it too far and basically play your turns for you. But in the best cooperative game plays, everyone at the table is discussing ideas, working together, and as a new player, you don’t need to worry about getting beat up in the game.

There are a lot of competitive games where the player who knows the game is most likely to win the game. But with a cooperative game you are purely playing against the game. This, again, makes it something that is more palatable to new players, but also when playing with too competitive players. I don’t love playing with someone who must win and must win by as much as possible. While I always try and win, the point of gaming for me is to spend time with people and do something that I love, which cooperative games give me more of that.

But enough about cooperative games. Let’s move onto what I had to drink and then the list.

The Drink

Last nights drink wasn’t a beer. It was in fact a whiskey since yesterday was National Bourbon day. The one that I had was pretty smooth and while wasn’t as flavorful as some bourbons that I’ve had, it was a nice sipping drink. Did you know that bourbon is a whiskey that can only be made in the US? Also, for a whiskey to be consider a bourbon it must also be 51% corn. That corn is what gives it a sweeter taste compared to other whiskeys.

Top 10 Cooperative Games

1. Gloomhaven
2. Mansions of Madness
3. Marvel Champions
4. Tainted Grail: Fall of Avalon
5. Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game
6. Aeon’s End: War Eternal
7. Xenoshyft: Onslaught
8. T.I.M.E. Stories
9. Letter Jam
10. Pandemic (and Legacy)

What’s Coming Up Next?

Well, I am streaming again on Wednesday. And I might get back to Arkham Horror: The Card Game, or we might be back to a roll and write and that schedule just through Disney+ having Loki on Wednesdays. There are other smaller games as well that I can see about getting to the table, or playing less of a bigger scenario. As for another Monday stream, that’ll happen on June 28th, at least that’s my plan. I plan on covering a topic as well as maybe some quick reviews.

If you are enjoying the content and what to know when I go live. You can subscribe and click that notification bell. I also post ahead of time on Twitter and the Nerdologists Facebook page to give you a heads up.

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