Reichbusters | Nerdologists https://nerdologists.com Where to jump in on board games, anime, books, and movies as a Nerd Tue, 18 Mar 2025 16:29:26 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://nerdologists.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/nerdologists-favicon.png Reichbusters | Nerdologists https://nerdologists.com 32 32 Monolith Revolution https://nerdologists.com/2025/03/monolith-revolution/ https://nerdologists.com/2025/03/monolith-revolution/#respond Tue, 18 Mar 2025 16:24:25 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=9489 What is Monolith games bringing to Gamefound. Let's break down the video and give you that fast recap.

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This is a new thing for both Monolith and Gamefound. Alex Radcliffe is doing a video with a team member from Monolith about four games that they have coming up. That means, since you might not have time to watch the video, it’s my sworn duty to write stuff up for you. Let’s see what Monolith has coming out, and what sounds the most exciting to me.

Monolith Revolution

Champions of Rokugan

This is going to be a game set in the L5R (Legends of the 5 Rings) universe. This is cool. It’s going to be a cooperative game. And I’m very interested in this game. I love the Japanese theming of the game with L5R. And one cool element is the idea of honor. This is important for the RPG, but it’s going to be important in the game as well. I’m super interested and the minis look great. I hope that this has a great rulebook. I’ll save that for the end, but Monolith isn’t known for the best rulebooks.

This is going to be a dice based game which is going to determine how you play different actions out there. This is going to feel a bit more like a miniatures game as well, which I think is interesting for me. I’m going to be curious about how it balances board game or miniature game.

Follow the campaign here.

Berserk: The Board Game

Oh man, this is an interesting one. I did watch the original anime of Berserk which is crazy and intense. But it’s a very dark manga and anime, so I’m kind of interested and kind of not. I want to know how it is going to work as a game.

This is going to be a cooperative game. You are playing out cards to with hand management is nice as well, and then attack dice for combat. It’s interesting because you’ll be able to play as a campaign game or as one off scenarios. That’s a nice element for the game as well. And the more cards you play, you lose fatigue, so it’s going to be a nice balancing act of pushing more actions at time or not.

Follow the campaign here.

Reichbusters Reloaded

This one is coming up on April 2nd. This one you can see some stuff around now. And it’s a game that you might know about. I actually owned this game when it was with Mythic Games. I’m curious to know what is going to be changed. They are trying to improve things with fewer keywords and the noise system is going to be better. It sounds like they have taken the feedback and improved things a lot.

Honestly, this might be the point where I dive back in. I love the idea of the weird world war setting. And who doesn’t want to go in and blast away or maybe sneak around. And the improvements really make it sound a ton easier to play. It’s still going to be a similar game but it’s going to be faster. Overall it sounds like it’ll be faster in almost every way from set-up to turns. And if you own the previous game you can grab upgrade packs.

Follow the campaign here.

Mythic Battles: The Roleplaying Game

This is going to be an RPG like it says. If you’re not familiar with what Mythic Battles is, this was originally a board game where you would play as gods and throw trees at each and basically have a big throwdown. It’s interesting that they are bringing in an RPG. For me this one is less interesting for me. I do enjoy running and playing an RPG, but I’m sticking with Dungeons and Dragons and the Marvel RPG system, which I still need to try. But if you want a different idea, I think this is going to be interesting.

Follow the campaign here.

Final Thoughts

Which one is the one that interests you the most? For me, Reichbusters is definitely the most interesting. The Reichbusters game was one that always interested me, but I made the mistake of getting too much to start. Now I want to get this new core box and play that game, keep it simple is my new theory for a lot of games.

Berserk and Champions of Rokugan interest me as well. Berserk though, I think that I’ll pass on it. Mainly because it’s such a dark setting, it’s amazing, but it’s so dark. I don’t love to steep myself in something that dark. For Champions of Rokugan, I want to know more about how the game plays. Is this a miniatures game, is this a board game, where does it land on that?

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Maximizing Board Game Space and Storage https://nerdologists.com/2022/11/maximizing-board-game-space-and-storage/ https://nerdologists.com/2022/11/maximizing-board-game-space-and-storage/#respond Tue, 01 Nov 2022 14:44:35 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=7508 How do you manage space when it comes to your board game collection? Do you have ways you squeeze in more games?

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Maybe you are one of the lucky few, you have a ton of room to house your board game collection. But, for at lot of us, that isn’t the case, we don’t have all the room in the world to store all the board games in the world. And some of us might not want that, I personally am a collector and a hobbyist, so I want to own and play all the board games. But I do not have room to store all the board games as much as I might try.

I’ve already talked about culling games, and it is something that I do fairly often, I should look to play more new ones again and do another cull soon. But this article is about how you can maximize the amount of games that you can have in a space.

Step 1: Combine

Now, don’t worry, I am not talking about combining a game like Five Tribes into the Ticket to Ride box and having both in the same box. I don’t like that. But I like to look at a game and go, can I fit the expansion into here. Is there some way that I can make it work. Some games it works well for, Marvel United for example, others, you can free up a little space, like with Root. But how can I free up that space by putting an expansion into the base box.

Step 2: Throw Out Inserts

This ties directly into the first one, but throw out inserts, and this is really for games with expansions. There is an exception to this rule. If the insert makes the game easier to get to the table, keep the insert. For example, if Stars of Akarios comes out with an expansion, I am not going to get rid of the insert in the base game to get it all into one box. Why, the insert makes the game easier to table. But on the flip side, Reichbusters had a big insert to house one giant mini. I don’t need that, so let me remove that and get my four boxes, and four big boxes, down to three.

Step 3: Organize

Then organize your space, and think about how you want to organize. Because of my streaming, I want some of the bigger titles behind me. But you can also do it by size of the games, types of games whatever it might be. I have three cubbies that are full of roll and write games for example, just not on the side on camera. But organizing helps you gain space in two ways. You can optimize how you place your games and you might find a few to cull.

Step 4: Organize Less

Now, this flies in the face of Step 3. But organize less. We are talking about fitting a lot of games in. Some games just won’t fit in a good spot. I have Hadrian’s Wall down below, why, because I am out of room. I really should play a couple of roll and writes and decide if I can get rid of a few. But if I tried to cram them all into one spot or keep them sorted too neatly, I’d have four semi-full cubbies for of roll and writes. Instead I have three jam packed ones and one that is in another spot.

Final Thoughts

Now, this might not be easy for you to do. I know of gamers who really want their games to be like they were when they got them. Keep them as new looking as possible, keep the expansion boxes if possible and some of that is because they might want to sell them again later.

So, it is something that is personal to the person doing it. It might be easier for you to sell games than to condense a base game and an expansion into a box. Or easier to sell a game than have a roll and write not with the other roll and writes. It depends on you, but if you want to get more games, the tips above or steps above will create more room.

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Top 10 – Always Interested Board Game Companies https://nerdologists.com/2022/07/top-10-always-interested-board-game-companies/ https://nerdologists.com/2022/07/top-10-always-interested-board-game-companies/#respond Fri, 29 Jul 2022 14:12:31 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=7221 Which companies when they announce a new game, do you take a pause and see? I have my Top 10 interested in board game companies.

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When it comes to board games, you stick around in the hobby long enough, you start to know what games you like and which ones you might not like as well. And often, you realize that there are certain board game companies that you like better than others. This doesn’t mean that you’ll like or buy all their games, but you check out a game announcement from those companies whenever they happen.

I have a few companies like that where I generally will pay attention. And for me, that doesn’t mean back or buy everything. But it does mean that I will always check it out in detail. Rarely, if ever, will I just gloss over a game from these companies. So here are my Top 10 companies I’m always interested in

Top 10 Board Game Companies

10. Fantasy Flight Games

Fantasy Flight Games is probably a company that’d have dropped off for a lot of people. They used to come out with a whole lot more games and a whole lot bigger announcements. But I still am interested. When I saw a Twilight Imperium Roll and Write, I was interested, even with a long play time. And Marvel Champions I still buy everything for that.

I wish they would come out with something more. A new version of Star Wars Imperial Assault? I would love to see that. Or something more original from them. Maybe a smaller version of a Descent 3.0 to go along with Descent: Legends of the Dark.

9. Thunderworks Games

Thunderworks is also just on that edge if I check everything out. I will look at any announcement because I am curious about anything set in their Roll Player World of Ulos. However, anything, like Tenpenny Park, those I’ll look at, but generally aren’t what I’m interested in. But I see them because I am curious if it is more stuff for Roll Player, Roll Player Adventures, or Cartographers.

8. CMON

CMON is either on your list or not. There is no in between I feel. Some people wait anticipating what CMON is going to announce next. Other people pledge $1 so that they can complain. That is basically how it goes on everything that CMON does. And I understand some of the complaints, I also don’t care on some of the complaints. They end up being complaining for the sake of complaining. But that isn’t the point of this article.

I wait to see what CMON comes out with next. And there is no company where they can announce a game and I will always back it or buy it. But when CMON announces a Stranger Things Game, see here, I get really excited. On the flip side, I like the idea of a big Dune battling over the planet game, but it is not one that I will back.

7. Chip Theory Games

Chip Theory Games is moving up the list for me. The more I see and mess around with their games, the more interested I am in their games. I enjoy Too Many Bones, and I think the more I dive into it the more I will like it. Then I almost backed Hoplomacus Victorum because it was a solo version of a game that I thought looked cool. And Burncycle, after watching a Brother’s Murph play through, see below, I really want to get it. Their games aren’t cheap though, so I need to pace myself.

6. Horrible Guild

Probably the biggest break or one of them, from the big games on the list is Horrible Guild. Horrible Guild does some campaign or legacy games with King’s Dilemma and then Queen’s Dilemma coming to Kickstarter. But I like their small games. Stuff like Potion Explosion, Railroad Ink, I’m so excited to be getting Tiny Turbo Cars, stuff like that.

They make games with amazing toy factor to them. And I just really enjoy sitting down and playing them. They also make games that are accessible. Railroad Ink is a bit challenging for a roll and write with Railroad Ink Challenge, but it’s not hard to teach. Same with Potion Explosion or Similo. Plus with so much fun in their games, I always want to see what they make.

5. Mythic Games

Getting back to big games, we have Mythic Games. Mythic Games has made such games as Reichbusters and Solomon Kane, but the one of theirs I play the most is Super Fantasy Brawl. I really love that game, but I mainly pay attention to their big games. Now, with that said, I don’t back a ton of their games on crowdfunding. I have backed Super Fantasy Brawl and HEL: The Last Saga, but that is it.

One of the reasons is that their rule books first time around tend to be poor. You need to get, and they do send out, a new rule book. But also because their games are big and epic and tend to have a lot with them. They are like CMON in some ways, I might want to back all of them, but I certainly don’t have room to back and store all of their games. Just between Super Fantasy Brawl and Solomon Kane that takes up a lot of space on top of a Kallax shelf.

4. Roxley Games

Marvel Dice Throne
Image Source: Roxley Games

Last game on the list that makes that many smaller games. Though, when you get everything for Dice Throne, it certainly isn’t that small. And Dice Throne is the reason Roxley is so high on the list. They have some heavy euro games, I am not interested in those. But I want more Dice Throne. And their lighter games, I am interested in.

I really only own two games from Roxley, Dice Throne and Radlands and I need to play Radlands still. But when Santa vs Krampus came out, I backed immediately. When Marvel Dice Throne was announced, I knew I’d be all in. That is going to be case whenever they come out with anything new.

3. OOMM

OOMM is a very new company to the list. And honestly, I should likely keep them lower on the list, but we’re not talking about backing everything, we’re talking about being interested. I bought Stars of Akarios because of what it looked like after the fact. I backed Mythwind because the game looked so different.

OOMM really does something that I love in creating games that feel unique. Mythwind seems really different than anything else out there. Stars of Akarios is a big space campaign game. Do I need more space campaign games, not really but I want them. And the new legacy game they announced looks very cool as well.

2. Awaken Realms

Awaken Realms maybe could be #1, but it’s at #2 because there is Awaken Realms Lite, technically it’s own company I believe, but a lot of the same people and process. But the last two on the list, I will always look and almost always back whatever they do.

There are two exceptions for Awaken Realms. I didn’t back The Great Wall as it is a massive euro game. It looks cool, I’d love to try it, but I wouldn’t buy it. And I didn’t back Lords of Ragnarok from them. Why, because I already own and love Lords of Hellas. Lords of Ragnarok might be better, but I don’t need to own both.

Frosthaven
Image Source: Board Game Geek

1. Cephalofair Games

I doubt that this is a shock. I went all in on Frosthaven. And I love Gloomhaven. I never looked at Founders of Gloomhaven once I realized it was a euro. But Cephalofair announces something, I am interested. I hope it is more for Frosthaven, after that has been out for a bit. Or another big box game, but really, anything at this point. Even with my #1 company that I will be intrigued to hear whatever they announce, not every game will be for me.

Still, I can’t wait until Frosthaven gets here. And I even started a campaign of Gloomhaven Digital recently. It is just a fun experience to play that game and it is fun to dive back into it. And I will for sure dive heavily into Frosthaven almost right away when it shows up. I suspect we’ll be done with the final Tainted Grail expansion by then, but we’ll see.

Final Thoughts

Firstly, I’d love to know what companies you are generally interested. Which ones make games that seem fun to checkout or different. I want to know what gets you excited. And as I said, I don’t like every game from all of these companies. In fact, there are some that just miss completely for me, even though I love the company.

And that is very fair to not like everything. I talk about how CMON is polarizing, the people who love CMON don’t like everything from CMON. The people who dislike CMON will never know what they are missing out on. I think it’s more important to remember that some games are going to be for you and some won’t no matter the company. And even if you enjoy all of them, some will be better than others.

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Top 10 Campaign Games I Want To Play https://nerdologists.com/2022/07/top-10-campaign-games-i-want-to-play/ https://nerdologists.com/2022/07/top-10-campaign-games-i-want-to-play/#respond Fri, 15 Jul 2022 14:41:58 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=7175 What are the Top 10 Campaign Games, that I own, that I want to get the campaign to the table? Yes it's a lot and I have more coming in.

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There are two ways that I could do this list. It is possible that I could just put down any campaign game. A game like Kingdom Death Monster (KDM) is likely making the list then. Or it is games that I own already. And I am picking campaign games that I own that I want to play. I am doing that second list, I might come back, even today, and do that other list. But these are my Top 10 Campaign Games on my shelf that I really want to get played.

Top 10 Campaign Games

10 – Marvel Champions: The Mad Titan’s Shadow

I had to put one of the campaign boxes onto this list for Marvel Champions. There are a number of them, a Spider-Man one, a Red Skull one, Guardians of the Galaxy, soon to be Mutants as well. But I went with The Mad Titan’s Shadow just because that box feels the most epic. And I can take anyone into that one and it makes sense thematically.

I’ve heard that these are lighter campaigns which is not a bad thing. It means that I could and maybe will, set it up sometime and just play it over a few evenings. And you know I’m going to be running Thor up against them, or maybe Doctor Strange. There are enough characters know that it might actually be a tricky decision.

9 – Massive Darkness 2

I picked this one up because it did have a campaign. And I want to get it to the table, at least for scenarios fairly soon. I like that you level up a lot in this game, and the minis are cool, the classes are cool, the weapons are cool.

Plus, this is also a lighter game. You don’t need to know nearly as much how to play it as some of the other games on the list. That means that even if I don’t play it as a campaign soon, it’s probably one I can sit down and knock out a scenario with some friends easily in an evening.

Reichbusters
Image Source: Mythic Games

8 – Reichbusters: Projekt Vril

One that I also need to sort some more, which is why I haven’t played it yet. Reichbusters came out with an errata pack for improved card wording and rules. But because that was coming, I waited on playing it. Now I own it and, well, I need to sort the cards in.

This is going to be a game of sneaking into enemy base and trying to stop their experiments. Think kind of Howling Commandos vs Hydra, if I were to take it over to Marvel. There are crazy experiments going on, and monsters you need to fight. But every mission has an objective and if you’re too noisy, well, things are going to go sideways for you fast and you’ll get swarmed. So it’s not a guns blazing game, which I think sounds interesting.

7 – Betrayal Legacy

I did put a few legacy games on the list. Legacy games are campaign games too, and it surprised me a little bit, but the one at the bottom of that is Betrayal Legacy. I love Betrayal at House on the Hill, even with it’s wonky scenarios and problems with sometimes the traitor being too strong, sometimes the other characters. And I want to see what the legacy one has to offer.

I am really curious about the legacy aspect of it. You play as a family versus a character coming back generation after generation. I want to know how that plays out in the game. I think it could offer some cool game options and ways to progress and tell a bit story.

6 – Descent: Legends of the Dark

Moving back to just a campaign game, we have Descent: Legends of the Dark from Fantasy Flight Games. This is going to be their Descent, but not third edition, game, of exploring tiles, fighting monsters, and interacting on the map.

Like a lot of bigger Fantasy Flight games in recent history, Mansions of Madness, Journeys in Middle-Earth, and Star Wars: Imperial Assault, there is an app piece. I like it for this game, it was a bit much in Journeys in Middle-Earth, but in Descent it offers some fog of war. It is in that category of games like Massive Darkness 2 for me. It looks like a blast to play as a fun dice chucking game.

Folklore the Affliction Fall of the Spire
Image Source: Greenbrier Games

5 – Folklore: The Affliction

Now moving into another bigger game, and I think the top 5, with the exception of the legacy ones, are the heaviest of the campaign games that I own, at least right now. Of course there are more coming in. But Folklore: The Affliction is going to be a game that borrows a lot from pen and paper RPG’s. You roll more than a standard six sided die. And that is intriguing to me.

Plus, I like that it’s a darker setting. I don’t need all my fantasy to be grim and dark, but sometimes that is what I want. And since I always am the Dungeon Master for D&D, I believe that it’ll give me that RPG feel without me needing to be in charge of everything. Though, if I paly it solo, I will be, but I’ll be doing the same thing as the players.

4 – Aeon’s End: Legacy of Gravehold

Another Legacy game and this one just came in from Indie Boards & Cards. I played through the first Aeon’s End Legacy on stream. And I had a blast with that game. Plus, just in general I really like Aeon’s End, so much so that I keep on backing and tracking down everything for it.

Legacy of Gravehold is going to be another legacy campaign. Where I knew a little bit of the campaign for the original Aeon’s End Legacy, I know nothing about the story this time. I just know that the box is bigger and heavier. That probably means more cards, but I’m hoping for more story as well.

3 – Clank! Legacy

And the other legacy game is Clank! Legacy. This one is higher for me just because I want to play it with some friends. I love the Acquisitions Inc theme on it as their game play is hilarious. And I suspect that the humor in the game will be great as well. Plus, I like the system that it is built upon. I prefer Clank! In! Space! to Clank I think, but the legacy version with the fantasy theme, I’m still there for it.

This is a deck building push your luck game. You are going into it trying to complete missions and get treasures. And it’s competitive in that you are trying to be the best so that you can end up with the franchise within Acquisitions Inc. I have to imagine that the whole of the story is going to be goofy, and it sounds like there is a lot to unlock so that is exciting as well.

2 -Middara: Unintentional Malum

A huge box with two more huge boxes on the way. I give that as my excuse for not getting it to the table sooner, I want Acts II and III to show up as well. But really, it’s just such a table hog and such a big game, I am not sure that I want to play it solo, but I really do want to play it.

Middara has more of an anime style to it’s game look. The artwork, and from what I can tell, the world building and story look fairly anime. It is going to be a leveling up, dice chunking, monster fighting, dungeon crawling game. And I think it’s going to be one that I find to be a lot of fun to get to the table and play. But like I said, I suspect the game would work best with four players, or two players controlling two characters each.

Stars of Akarios
Image Source: OOMM Board Games

1 – Stars of Akarios

Call me cult of the new if you want, and it’d be fair in this case. But I am excited to plays Stars of Akarios. This is a big space exploration and adventure game. What really intrigues me is how it is split into two parts. There is that space exploration and then you can be down on an planet as well. That is intriguing.

It also looks like it uses a combination of cards for modifying your attacks and things but also uses dice. And just the production quality on the game is great. While it is a big game, compared to some of the others, it looks like it should be easier to play solo. And I want to get it to the table and play it on Malts and Meeples.

Final Thoughts

I say this almost any time I talk about a campaign game. And I feel like I can redo this list in different ways pretty often. But I have a lot of them coming in. 15 more campaign games in fact, which is a lot. Now some can be played as more of a one off situation such as Primal: The Awakening. Otherwise might be smaller sit down and play a campaign of it in a sitting, Spire’s End: Hildegard. But most of them are going to be much much bigger than that.

Just to show everything that is coming, and there is a lot, in alphabetical order, we have:

  1. The 7th Citadel
  2. Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread
  3. Chronicles of Drunagor
  4. Divinus
  5. Ehterfields
  6. Frosthaven
  7. HEL: The Last Saga
  8. ISS Vanguard
  9. Mythwind
  10. Oathsworn: Into the Deepwood
  11. Primal: The Awakening
  12. Sleeping Gods: Distant Skies
  13. Spire’s End: Hildegard
  14. Valor & Villainy: Lludwik’s Labyrinth
  15. Vampire: The Masquerade – Chapters

What campaign games do you own, if any, that you want to get played?

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Unplayed Board Games – 50 -26 https://nerdologists.com/2022/02/unplayed-board-games-50-26/ https://nerdologists.com/2022/02/unplayed-board-games-50-26/#respond Mon, 14 Feb 2022 15:49:12 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=6677 We're getting towards the top of the list. What board games that I need to play from my collection interest you most?

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We’re getting down to the top of the list of unplayed board games, and I keep on saying this every time, but there will be more and more bigger games as we go up higher on the list. In particular, we’re going to start to see more campaign games show up. Now, that doesn’t mean they’ll get played this year, it’s unlikely that they will, but I am really excited to get them to the table.

124-101

100 – 76

75 – 51

Unplayed Board Games 50 – 26

50: Arboretum

This is an abstract game about planting trees. What interests me so much in this one is that you play out cards to build up your arboretum, and you score points for having trees go in ascending order. But in order to score a type of tree, you need it in your h and at the end of the game. So do you risk it that you might not get a tree of the type you need in order to complete a longer route and score more?

49: Call To Adventure: The Stormlight Archive

Call To Adventure comes in a few different flavors. There is the base game which is generic fantasy. That has an expansion for Patrick Rothfeuss Kingkiller Chronicles. And while I do like that series, I knew there was a Stormlight Archives version coming out, so I waited for it. I love the setting of the game, and I think a game where you are building up your characters story is cool.

48: 7 Wonders Duel

I got this one a while ago using store credit after a trade. And the game I think is going to be fun and probably better for me than 7 Wonders which I think is just okay. This does a lot of the same things, drafting, fighting, and science, but all in a two player package. And you can win by doing more than just getting points. Though, points are one way to win. Get one of each science card, you automatically win. Push the combat all the way to your side, automatically win. I like that a lot.

47: The Dragon Prince: Battlecharged

And now we’re back to another IP (intellectual property) that I really like. The Dragon Prince is a great show. And this is a two player battling game. You put together games of characters to face off against each other in battle. Looks some like Super Fantasy Brawl with card play determine a lot of what you do.

46: Paper Dungeons: A Dungeon Scrawler Game

It’s one of a couple roll and writes on this part of the list. Paper Dungeons as it says is a Dungeon Scrawler. So it is going to give you a bit of that dungeon crawling feeling all while being in a roll and write package. I hope that between it, Doodle Dungeons, Deadly Doodles (which I know I like) and Drawn to Adventure, I’ll have some fun adventure focused roll and writes.

Yggdrasil Chronicles
Image Source: Ludonaute

45: Yggrasil Chronicles

This is a bigger box game, some of that though, is because it comes with a tree. One that you put together, and then it’s a cooperative game where you are trying to protect Yggdrasil, possibly, my knowledge of this one is limited. But the game looks like a lot of fun, and I know that the original is really challenging. Plus a giant 3d tree that rotates is cool.

44: Forgotten Waters

Forgotten Waters is a campaign game that I wish I played already. It’s gotten bumped down the list a little just because I’m playing more in person. But it was a good one that could be played via Zoom. In this game you are pirates on a crew working together through an adventure. There is voice acting for the story, and overall just seem like a fun time. And it uses the Crossroad card system from Dead of Winter that I love.

43: Mythic Battles: Pantheon

Definitely a big game here. I don’t have the whole Kickstarter, just the base game and Pandora’s box and that is a lot. It’s another one of those head to head battling games, like The Dragon Prince or Super Fantasy Brawl. This one is pitting Greek gods against each other. And what really intrigues me about this one is how you can pick up trees, as a god, and use them as a weapon. So the terrain is very much in play.

42: Catacombs & Castles

We go from an epic minis game to a one versus all dungeon battling game where you flick discs. And that is what intrigues me. I like dexterity games, and Catacombs & Castles seems like a lot of fun. It also seems a bit more complex, otherwise might be higher on the list. But I think if I learn the game it’ll be pretty easy and fast to teach.

41: Adventure Land

While I’ve gotten a lot of games based off of Sam Healey’s reviews on the Dice Tower, I have less based on Tom Vasel’s but Adventure Land is one. In this game you are taking out adventurers trying to get treasure. And they move across the board right and down. That means if a treasure shows up to the left or higher on the board, you might not be able to get it. So how to balance that out getting the best treasure, but still hanging back?

40: Space Base

This falls into that category of Foodies, Machi Koro, and My Farm Shop. A game where you roll dice and no matter what you get something. I like those games, and this is supposed to be the most gamer version of that. It gives you a lot to think about and you can build up some powerful combos while you try and get points. And you have more tracks to control and keep track of.

39: Chronicles of Crime

This is a deduction based game that I’m confident I’ll love. Chronicles of Crime, from Lucky Duck Games, uses an app that you can scan cards with to interrogate them and so you can actually look around the crime scene. The concept is cool and while the cases sound a bit less in depth than Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game, it might work better for some people because of that.

Chronicles of Crime
Image Source: Lucky Duck Games

38: Fleet: The Dice Game

Roll and write game and actually dropped further down the list than I’d have guessed. Fleet is a game about building up your fishing fleet and scoring as many points as you can. I’ve heard that it’s great for combos, which I love in roll and write games. And it’s also more complex. I think that it is going I’m going to play solo pretty often.

37: Raiders of the North Sea

Possibly the highest true euro game on the list, Raiders of the North Sea has you building up your crew and taking them out to plunder lands. What intrigues me so much about this one is that your turn you put a meeple on, and take a meeple off. You can’t do the same one twice in a row, so it gives some interesting strategy to the game. And as you push out further and plunder, you lock some meeples to those locations, but get stronger ones back.

36: Horizon Zero Dawn

Based off of the Playstation video game, Horizon Zero Down doesn’t take you through the story of the game, but it puts you out on hunts against monsters. I’m excited to see how this game works, I really like the video game, but need to play it more. And I like the idea of just going out on a hunt, and it being a scenario and then done. It’s a bigger minis game, but not a campaign.

35: Reichbusters: Projekt Vril

Now we’re onto a campaign and Reichbusters is one that I picked up because it looked like so much fun when GloryHoundd YouTube Channel played it. And I think it’s going to be amazing. I need to get the errata cards taken care of, but sneaking into bases in WWII and finding all sorts of crazy experiments going on, it’s very Hellboy. And that theme is just fun, plus it’s not just kick down the door and shoot the board game.

34: Bloodborne

Another video game board game with Bloodborne. Another one that it is a bigger game but doesn’t play over a massively long campaign. I believe this one comes together over three different plays. Or it might just be that’s how the chapters, that are in the box, come out. Still, fantasy, fighting monsters and bad guys. Story going on, and from CMON, I suspect I’m going to enjoy this one.

33: Time of Legends: Joan of Arc

And another big box game. Time of Legends: Joan of Arc is almost a miniatures game more in the lines of a Warhammer where you takes two armies up against each other. But it does away with all that measuring. And it comes down to scenarios, there are characters, NPC’s, that you can interact with. And it’s time of legends because it takes the legends from the Joan of Arc time period and historical records, so it can add in dragons and things like that.

Joan of Arc by Mythic Games
Image Source: Mythic Games

32: The 7th Continent

The 7th Continent has been on my shelf for a while. And I need to get it played before The 7th Citadel comes in, because I suspect I’m going to like that one better. In The 7th Continent, you wake up on a continent cursed, and need to explore and find a way to break your curse. I’ve heard that the first one is tough and takes a lot of time to play. Mainly so you learn the continent, but as you do the other ones, you have more of an idea of where to go.

31: Dinosaur Island: Rawr ‘n Write

The final roll and write for this list, and might be the final one overall. Dinosaur Island is a big game about building out a dinosaur park with a lot of euro mechanics. The Rawr ‘n Write is similar in that you’re building out a park. And you are trying to breed dinosaurs, it just does it in a roll and write version. So I’m very excited to give it a go. Supposed to be a heavier roll and write as well.

30: The Crew: Mission Deep Sea

The Crew is a cooperative trick taking game where you have limited communication. And while there is a space version, the Mission Deep Sea is supposed to help improve a few things. Mainly because you have missions, Mission Deep Sea makes them variable. The space one they are set. I like trick taking, and I need to play more of them.

29: Land vs Sea

Land vs Sea is a tile laying game where you are trying to complete areas of land or sea. But I care about completing land areas where as you care about sea. And the tiles are four sided, so having two in your hand gives you a lot of options. I wonder if this might replace Carcassonne when I play it. A tile laying game, but one that seems like it could be simpler.

28: Heroes of Land, Air & Sea

Now we’re back to a big game with Heroes of Land, Air, and Sea. This is a massive 4x game where you’re taking over lands, exploring new locations, fighting your opponents and building up your power. Twilight Imperium 4th Edition is a massive 4x game as well that I’d love to play set in space, but Heroes of Land, Air, & Sea just spoke to me as a 4x game I wanted to own.

Heroes of Land Air and Sea
Image Source: Gamelyn Games

27: Champions of Hara

Champions of Hara is a pretty big game, and one that seems like it will be quite unique. It seems unique because all the characters seem unique, and I like that about it. It has a fantasy feel to it, but it isn’t fantasy in the normal way. And I believe that you play the game in two parts. The first part is competitive. Then the second part, really second game, is cooperative where you work together to complete the winner of the first games story.

26: Floriferous

Final one for this part of the list is Floriferous. A set collection flower game, this one looks amazing. The artwork is great, and I like the mechanics, or how they sound. You basically draft cards from the columns. But as you draft, you place your pawn next to the spot. So the higher in the column, the next round, is going to go, then the next. Plus you are drafting scoring cards, great ways to get more points, but you’ll go last in the next round.

Final Thoughts

One more list of this, and then you’ll know about all the games i need to play. I actually had a game night this past weekend and I didn’t play any new to me games. I did have a few pulled out. But with the group, and player count, not all of them would have worked.

This part of the list also had a lot of big games in it. And while some of them might be harder to get to the table, even something that is more campaign like Reichbusters, you can play on off scenarios. So I should be able to get a number of them to the table. And some of the roll and writes, probably all of them, can be played solo.

Which one should I play first from this chunk of the list?

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Only Six Board Games? https://nerdologists.com/2021/11/only-six-board-games/ https://nerdologists.com/2021/11/only-six-board-games/#respond Fri, 19 Nov 2021 18:16:37 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=6340 If you could only play six board games for the rest of your life, what board games would you pick and why? I think I have my six figured out.

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Yes, it’s a shocking title, no, I am not getting rid of all my board games to just get Marvel Zombicide. No, instead, this is being done because I was watching a video from Tablenauts and it was a fun thought exercise that they were doing. If I could only play six board games for the rest of my life what would they be. What sort of criteria would I even be thinking about for these games? They had one rule, you get one expansion per game.

Here are theirs:

But what board games would I pick?

Frosthaven

Now, this game isn’t out yet. But it also is the follow-up to a game that I already love. So this one is a bit of a cheat, but I’ve already beaten Gloomhaven. It was the first game I thought of because of the fact that this is going to be another game that takes 200 hours to play and even when I’m done with those 200 hours, I’ll probably still have other things I haven’t seen in the game. I for sure won’t have played all the side scenarios or solo character scenarios yet.

Plus, Frosthaven builds upon Gloomhaven in that it adds in city building. City building is not something that I knew I wanted in Gloomhaven, there is a lot going on. And you do increase the prosperity of the town and you keep track of that. But being able to build up your town, upgrading buildings, I am sure that when you’re done with 200 hours of the main campaign there will still be more that you haven’t found yet.

Now, I could go with other Kickstarter games on this list. But I don’t want to do that, because I also have other games on my shelf that need to get played or that I’d add to the list.

Dice Throne Seasons 1 & 2

Dice Throne
Image Source: Roxley Games

Yup, Dice Throne Season 2 is technically an expansion. At least, that’s what I’m going with, so it counts for the list. If not, then We’ll go with Season 2 and bring in Season 1 Pyromancer duel box. But I love Dice Throne, this is a game that I’ve probably played 30 times already and there are still lots of combinations that I haven’t played.

Plus, this one is also a game that I can play with a lot of people. Frosthaven is a complex game, Dice Throne, I can probably teach it to most people. But it is also a game that isn’t too light. So that means that I won’t, for a long time, get bored of playing it. And even with 10 characters, say that’s all I’m allowed in these made-up rules, repeating a character I play every ten games, yeah, I won’t get bored.

Lords of Hellas with Dark Ages Expansion

Lords of Hellas
Image Source: Awaken Realms

Another bit of cheat game here. The Dark Ages Expansion is the Kickstarter expansion, but I do own it. It takes all the expansions and puts them into a single box, which means that there is more content for the game. But this is my list, so my rules, and Lords of Hellas is on the list. Lords of Hellas is an area control, statue building, monster fighting game, and it’s a lot of fun.

Plus, this game has one important thing to it, variability. Whomever you pick for your leader, that is going to determine what you go after, at least at the start. They give you a special power. And then as temples are built, you draft more special powers. You could play this hundreds of times and never get the same combination. Plus it’s a longer game, but not a campaign game. Though, likely we’ll see more campaign on the list.

Middara: Unintentional Malum Act 1 & 2

Middarra
Image Source: Succubus Publishing

This one is a tough one to put on the list. I own Act 1. Act 2 gives more story, and I have yet to play it. What makes it hard is the fact there is an act 3. So now I have limited myself by the rules of one expansion to missing out on the end of the story. With that said, it seems like act 1 is a great story anyways because people have beat it now and might want more but aren’t complaining about a cliff hanger.

This is a big dungeon crawl style game, box size is similar to Gloomhaven in terms of volume. But this game has more story to it. So while it doesn’t have the characters that Gloomhaven does, it does have a lot to play through. Assuming that this takes 100 hours maybe 200 with two acts, and Gloomhaven took my group 3+ years to get through, between Frosthaven and Middara I now have 6 or 7 years of campaign games on my list.

Root and Riverfolk Expansion

Root
Image Source: Leder Games

This is another game that gets onto the list because it’s bigger and longer and because each faction plays differently. So with Root there are four different factions in the base box, I believe the Riverfolk adds in two more. So while you need potentially four people to play the game, Root is going to be one that feels different as you play with the different combinations.

Each factions being asymmetrical to the others also means that each faction will feel unique when you play them. And it gives me something to master as well. Once I’m really comfortable playing the Eyrie I can move onto playing as the Marquise d’ Cat and then the Vagabond. Each of those plays differently and will take time to master. So a lot of game play and a lot of learning for this game.

Village Attacks and Grim Dynasty Expansion

VIllage Attacks
Image Source: Grimlord Games

So, this is a game that is also in that waiting on the Kickstarter category, and I only have the base game coming. But I have played this game, so its not kind of cheating like Frosthaven was. This is a tower defense game where you are playing the bad guys. There are a few reasons why this one would make the list.

Firstly, the bad guys who are in the tower, there are several different ones, add in the second big Kickstarter, now there are a lot of them. So variability as to what characters you play as. Plus, like Lords of Hellas, you get to add more abilities as the game goes. It might not be as variable but it is close. And this is scenario based, so I can play a scenario one time and then the same character and a new scenario and the game changes, slightly.

Other Board Games Considered

So, I think those are the four. On the Tablenauts list, they had Sagrada which would be another really good one, and I did steal Root from them, though I think I’d have landed on that as well. Sagrada makes sense because your window, the dice, the powers, scoring, all of those things are variable. And it’s one that you can teach everyone.

I also considered Western Legends, it’s a sandbox game where you could decide to just gamble the whole time to get points, go out adventuring or become a bad guy. Since it is so sandbox, it means that it’ll have solid replay value. But the game doesn’t force variability on you like Lords of Hellas or even Sagrada, so didn’t make the list.

Reichbusters was another one I considered ,it has a campaign, and you can play it as a one off. I could have just gone with campaign games though, and I didn’t want to do that, because I like to play one off games as well. And I think that Middara and Frosthaven are just better campaign options.

And no roll and writes on the list. As much as I love ones like Cartographers, Sonora, or Ganz Schon Clever, they tend to change less. And even Welcome To… and taking a map that is different, the game play changes somewhat but not completely.

And Kingdom Death Monster, I didn’t pick that one because I’d never buy that one. Yes, it is a massive game and a campaign game, but I don’t want to put the monsters together. And the whole thing costs so much. Maybe if I played it, I’d be saying differently, but I haven’t.

What six games (with one expansion per game) would you pick? Let me know in the comments below or on Twitter.

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Malts and Meeples Top 10 Board Games To Play https://nerdologists.com/2021/06/malts-and-meeples-top-10-to-be-played-board-games/ https://nerdologists.com/2021/06/malts-and-meeples-top-10-to-be-played-board-games/#comments Tue, 29 Jun 2021 13:54:27 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=5844 What board games do I have in my collection that I really want to get to the table that I haven't. That's my Top 10 list on Malts and Meeples.

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Well, that’s a mouthful, but the Top 10 list is Top 10 Board Games In My Collection That I Want To Get Played, which well, is much much longer. So instead, it’s Top 10 To Be Played Board Games. What games that I own do I need to get off my shelf and get played? Are there any that you love in that list that I really need to move to the front of the line?

The Games

Well, no spoilers like last time, the list will be at the bottom for those who don’t have time to watch the whole video. But let’s talk a bit about how I picked these games. This is a bit different than a lot of lists. The other two I’ve done, they were cooperative games and small box games. A game is either in a small box or not, though small can be debated. And a game is either cooperative or not. Or at least it has a cooperative mode anyways. For this list, it was my choice of what I had on my shelf.

Dwellings of Eldervale
Image Source: Breaking Games

There was an even split of cooperative and competitive games on the list which surprised me. And if you know my taste in games, there were five campaign style games on the list. Though, that’s only half the list, I thought I might have picked more. And there were some games that I left off the list that definitely could have made it.

So they are honorable mentions that I didn’t mention, but Forgotten Waters and Dice Throne Adventures are two of the top ones on that list. Lost Ruins of Arnak , Yggdrasil Chronicles and Detective: City of Angels also could have made the list. I skipped games like Vienna Connection because while I haven’t played it, I have played Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game which is the same system.

The Beer

Last nights beer was a local one again. This time from Lift Bridge brewing, it was a Kolsh beer, Lemon Bar flavored. It is an okay beer. I saw lemon in the name and I was excited for it, but like the pink lemonade beer that I had from Tin Whiskers a stream or two ago. While a lemon bar should be sweeter, the sweetness basically overwhelmed the lemon flavor. The lemon should have been a stronger punch of flavor with a sweet finish versus what it was to make it a more enjoyable drink. Still, for a hot summer day, I think it’d be a solid option, just not the first one I’d reach for.

Image Source: Awaken Realms

The List

  1. Nemesis
  2. Dwellings of Eldervale
  3. Middara: Unintentional Mallum Act 1
  4. Clank Legacy: Acquisitions Incorporated
  5. Reichbusters: Projekt Vril
  6. Solomon Kane
  7. Deep Madness
  8. The Reckoners
  9. Kohaku
  10. Heroes of Land, Air, & Sea

Upcoming Streams

So a few options for what’s coming up next. No Monday stream next week, but I’m thinking some reviews and maybe a topic instead of a Top 10 for my next stream. So let me know what topic sounds good.

And on Wednesday, I think my plan is to play Railroad Ink Challenge, but I had so much fun playing Aeon’s End last Wednesday that following that up, I mght actually start playing Aeon’s End Legacy two handed for a bigger playthrough. Let me know your thoughts on that, I as I learn how to play it, I might have some polls for whom I should play as.

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Point of Sale: Good Bye Lord of the Rings https://nerdologists.com/2021/06/point-of-sale-good-bye-lord-of-the-rings/ https://nerdologists.com/2021/06/point-of-sale-good-bye-lord-of-the-rings/#respond Wed, 23 Jun 2021 14:16:27 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=5824 It's time to clean out some room on my shelves for incoming Kickstarter and other board games. Which Lord of the RIngs game is leaving my shelf?

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The time has come to say good bye to a few games in my collection. In particular, there is one bigger game that has been in my Top 100 that is going away. So why is it and a few other games leaving my collection? What makes that Lord of the Rings game go off my shelf? I got a few games to talk about today as I make room for Kickstarters and other games that will be coming in.

There is going to be a consistent theme on a lot of these games. When I look at them, I think I have games that do something like it better, for me. But let’s not spoil too much and get into all the games I’m either selling to friends or trading into my local FLGS.

Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle Earth

This was probably the hardest one to get rid of, but also one that I’ve been wondering about for a long time. I really like Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle Earth, but I don’t know when I’ll play it. I look at my shelf and see a lot of campaign games. Games like Solomon Kane, Reichbusters, Arkham Horror The Card Game, Star Wars: Imperial Assault and more are going to get played before it.

Plus I have Kickstarter games coming in like Etherfields, ISS Vanguard, HEL: The Last Saga, Primal, and Oathsworn. So when I look at Journeys in Middle Earth, I had to ask myself, would I play this before those. And the answer is, probably not. While the theme is one that I love, and the game was a lot of fun, I don’t see myself playing it when I have other bigger campaign games and other smaller campaign games.

This one I sold to a friend last night actually who had a group that had gone through Imperial Assault. For them it could be a good next game to play, and again he also really likes the theme as well, so it works well for him. I wish I’d played it, but I also know that I won’t.

Legacy of Dragonholt

Another campaign style game. This one is different though, it’s choose your own adventure with character stats. It’s somewhere between an RPG and a board game. I’ve played the start of it a few times and it’s fun. I think that it does a lot of things really well, but again, you saw my list of campaign games. When am I going to fit this one in?

Oddly enough, I think that it’s just a little bit too big for it’s own good. It takes a bit too much effort to get to the table. And the ruleset is just a bit too complex, though really simple, to play and then come back to in a few weeks or in a couple of months. If I want to do something that is purely choose your own adventure, I have Choose Your Own Adventure House of Danger. If I want that storybook and stat sheet, I have Loup Garou from Van Ryder games that is a one off thing.

Legends of Andor (and Expansion)

This, I think, is kind of another campaign game. Now, I say I think because I didn’t delve too far into the game. It is a fun puzzle game where you are trying to maximize what you do. However, for me, it’s just one I won’t play again. Legends of Andor has some really cool things about it though.

It does have that story element that I like to a game. And it makes you think about what you’re doing for an adventure game where there are monsters. You can’t just kill all the monsters, if you kill all of the monsters, you push up on a track. The faster you push up on that track the faster the game will end. So you only need to deal with the monsters that are a threat or are in the way. That is what really drives the puzzle aspect.

But, again, it falls into that category of a game that is pretty light, but has just enough rules that I can’t pull it off the shelf and get it to the table in minutes. And the campaign element isn’t strong to it, so I could play one off scenarios, but I’m likely just going to play the tutorial one again if I were to play it more.

Bring Your Own Book

Bring Your Own Book was one of my first Kickstarted board games. I liked it a fair amount in concept the game, just a bit less in actual game play. The idea is simple, everyone has a book and there is someone who is it. They put out a prompt and everyone has a couple of minutes to find a sentence or phrase in their book as an answer. Sounds fun and funny to have a wide variety of books.

There is one flaw in the game for me, though. It isn’t easy to find passages. Two minutes of time, or let’s say even three, isn’t that long. And while it’s funny to have a textbook and a biography and a novel as people’s books, some books just don’t work as well. And some people aren’t as fast as flipping through their books. I am not a speed reader but I can skim/read fast. Even for me it was tricky at times, or what you land is just something because you have to, not because it’s any good. I’d describe this game as clutchy, it can work, or it can stall real easily.

Image Source: Board Game Geek

Boss Monster

Boss Monster is another I’d call clutchy. It is a pretty fun game with a great theme. You are building out a dungeon and are the boss monster at the end of it. Your goal is to kill as many adventurers as possible. And if you have the most of some symbols you attract adventurers.

That is where the game gets clutchy though. You don’t start out with a dungeon good enough to kill the adventurers. So they only show up in your dungeon if you have the most, so you are trying to tie with people the first few rounds. That isn’t fun, simple as that. If we started with a preseeded dungeon and we could make it bigger or better, that’d be more fun. Also some of the other mechanics aren’t what I’d call intuitive. With that said, I don’t hate the game, I just know I probably won’t play it again.

Sentinels Tactics: The Flame of Freedom

This one is pretty simple to describe why I got it and why it’s leaving. I got it on accident, I thought I was getting another Sentinels of the Multiverse expansion, it is a different game. Why is it leaving, tactics games like this one aren’t always my jam. I have not that many teams on a map games, Super Fantasy Brawl being my favorite. And I know the comparison isn’t perfect, but it’s in a category of games where I just don’t think I’ll get it to the table. It’s just a genre of games that I don’t need that many of.

Image Source: Days of Wonder

Small World Underground

Finally one that might be surprising but don’t worry Small World is still in my collection. Small World Underground is basically the game thing as Small World, it just adds in a few little things, like locations to control that give you something more you can do. It is a lot of fun, so why is it leaving?

It’s leaving because I have Small World. That little extra thing to teach means I don’t want to play it as often. When we play Small World it’s generally because we can pull it off the shelf and play immediately. Nothing needs to get taught, everyone in the group knows it or needs a two sentence refresher on it. If I were to pull out Underground, we couldn’t get it to the table as fast.

Which Would You Keep?

So, in all fairness, I actually pulled back one game that was in the pile as I was talking about it. I am keeping Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle, at least for right now. It’s such a simple deck building game with a theme that people like, even if they don’t like JK Rowling. And I kind of do want to push through all seven chapters just to see everything that changes. It might not last for a long time, but we’ll see, maybe I’ll stream it.

As you can see, though, there are two main things that pushed games off my shelf. Would I play them over other games in the same genre, and are they in that category of too complex but easy. I’m not sure that makes sense, the better way to put it might be that the games a pretty simple when you get down to it, but have enough rules that you need to refresh yourself to play them.

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Table Top Publisher Portraits: Mythic Games https://nerdologists.com/2021/04/table-top-publisher-portraits-mythic-games/ https://nerdologists.com/2021/04/table-top-publisher-portraits-mythic-games/#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2021 13:16:34 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=5583 A new series is starting where I look at different board game publishers and what types of games they put out. I start with Mythic Games.

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A new series, I’ve not done any series recently, and I want to introduce what the series is going to be before I jump into talking about Mythic Games. Publisher Portraits is where I am going to take a look at a publisher and talk about games that I like of theirs and what sort of feel I get from the publisher. A lot of board game companies end up having a certain style of game that they make more often or games that have a certain feel. I hope it will be useful and help you know what company might make more games that you’d like.

The format is going to go along the lines of this:

  • Company Overview
  • Highlight The Feel
  • Game Spotlights
  • Final Thoughts

Let’s get to Mythic Games.

Publisher Portraits: Mythic Games

Mythic Games was founded in 2015 by Benoit Vogt and Leonidas Vesperini. Generally, Mythic Games has made very big immersive games, like their first game, Joan of Arc. This kind of set the tone for their company for a while as they have followed that up with massive games like Solomon Kane, Reichbusters: Projekt Vril, and a less story driven but still big game Super Fantasy Brawl. Recently, as of 2020, they announced a smaller line of games, their Phoenix Line, which started out with the game Enchanters. They have a few games, including one based off of a popular IP, Darkest Dungeon, still in the pipeline of Kickstarter having been funded and waiting to fulfill.

What Are Their Games Like?

The general feel I get from Mythic Games is that they generally produce epic and memorable games. Now, their Phoenix Line is a bit different from that. From what I can tell, the Phoenix Line was meant to bring in smaller and more accessible games versus their larger style of game.

Immersive and Experience Driven
Super Fantasy Brawl
Image Source: Mythic Games

With the larger games, though, they are extremely immersive, sometimes to a point where the rules don’t always work perfectly. That has been a knock on Mythic Games in the past, they make really interesting games, but he rules for those games can be a bit rough the first time around and generally they end up releasing either a 1.5 version of the game or just a new rules book. This is obviously a negative, but if you make it into the game, the experiences do hold up to the effort that was put into learning the game.

Board Game Spotlights

Super Fantasy Brawl

Normally I am not a big fan of skirmish games. Skirmish games tend to lend themselves to one person getting lucky in a lot of them. And because they tend to be 1 vs 1 battling, I find them harder to get to the table. Super Fantasy Brawl does a good job of giving more options than just to beat someone up. In Super Fantasy Brawl you are taking a team of three champions up against another team of three champions, so nothing that unique. What works so well for me, though, is the game play.

In Super Fantasy Brawl, you complete you actions by playing cards. Each card matches a color and a hero, you can play each color once per turn and that’ll activate the champion shown on it. The play is super simple, but gives you a lot of choices. And you aren’t just trying to knock out your opponent, though that is part of the strategy. You are going for five trophies, and you can do that by completing goals or knocking out your opponent. I find that you need to do both to be able to win. This is longer than how the game normally goes, but that is because GloryHoundd is talking with the chat which slows things down.

Reichbusters: Projekt Vril

You are the Allied Forces going on missions into Germany to stop the horrible experiments that are going on and the new soldiers that are being created. Honestly, this feels like you are taking the Howling Commandos from Captain America, and going up against Hydra and the Red Skull, to be honest. And I love that about the game.

I also like for a campaign style game with dungeon crawl, you don’t always just kick down the door and throw in a grenade. Most dungeon crawl games give you that option, but Reichbusters, it’ll go sideways fast if you do that as the more noise you make, the more bad guys can show up. I also like that even though this can be played campaign, it can also be played as a one off scenario. Gloryhoundd again takes on the game, so check out their playthrough below.

Image Source: Mythic Games
Solomon Kane

Another campaign game with dungeon crawling feel to it, Solomon Kane strives to be more than that. Solmon Kane has you playing through the story adventures of the Solomon Kane short stories and books but in a not so normal way. Normally in a board game you play directly as the heroes. In Solomon Kane, it is a bit different.

Instead, you are all playing a virtues, Courage, Prudence, Temperance, and Justice, all of which influence Solomon Kane on his journey. This makes it so that no one player is playing the main hero. This game also leans heavily into the narrative element as well. You can see me unbox everything for it over on Malts and Meeples below. Plus some solo game play from Rolling Solo.

Joan of Arc

Final one I’m going to be talking about as I’m still waiting for my copy to come in, Joan of Arc. I do also have HEL: The Last Saga, but no one has received that yet, so I don’t have any videos for it. Joan of Arc is not a game that I thought I was going to love. Mainly because it is a minis game, and who knows, I still might not. But it is a scenario based game that doesn’t just have you taking two armies up against each other.

Plus, I love the setting for Joan of Arc. It is the historical world, but it pulls from the history of that time and adds in fantastical elements that were presented in the history. So if something was eating sheep, it might have been werewolves, or some unexplained sighting, maybe a dragon. It takes those accounts from real history and adds it into the actual events that we know happened. The setting is just really interesting to me. And over on the Dice Tower they played through a scenario.

Joan of Arc by Mythic Games
Image Source: Mythic Games

Final Thoughts on Mythic Games

I’m a big fan of theirs and their games. Mainly because they tend to have a great experience behind them, which you can see in the game plays that I have highlighted. Even something like Super Fantasy Brawl that doesn’t have an epic story behind it, it still has memorable moments and the game play is so light and fun that it works really well.

Have you played a Mythic Games game before? What is your favorite, do you have any that you want to try?

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Would You Play a Campaign Game Again? https://nerdologists.com/2021/04/would-you-play-a-campaign-game-again/ https://nerdologists.com/2021/04/would-you-play-a-campaign-game-again/#respond Wed, 14 Apr 2021 14:07:29 +0000 https://nerdologists.com/?p=5562 I love a good campaign game. The question for a lot of people diving into them, are they a one and done thing or would you go back again?

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Now, I am not putting Legacy games into this, a lot of them are meant to be one and done. By that I mean, for example, you play through up to 24 games of Pandemic Legacy and at the end, you’ve played it 12-24 times, but it isn’t playable. And then there are some legacy games that you can play again, Charterstone, Aeon’s End Legacy, or Clank! Legacy, in some capacity. But Campaign Games are specifically non-destructive, but the question is would someone play a campaign game again?

Why You Wouldn’t

There are obviously some reasons that you’d be unlikely to play campaign games again. A lot of them tell a story that is important to the game play as you go along. Once you know the story, it won’t be fresh or new again. You will see parts of the story over again even if the story does have some branching narrative paths. And that removes some of the fun of the game knowing what is coming up.

You also might have more campaign games to play. Honestly, this is what will keep me from revisiting something like Gloomhaven with another group soon. I have a lot of other campaign games to get through from Tainted Grail that I’m playing now to Reichbusters and Apocrpyha on the shelf now, and games like Middara, Frosthaven, and Oathsworn coming in probably this year. So it isn’t like I’ll be running out of games to play in the genre.

Why You Would

Image Source: Board Game Geek

Now, there are reasons to again. I talk about how you might have seen a lot of the story, but you won’t have seen all of it. For example, I have played the first chapter of Tainted Grail 5 times now, twice solo, and then two different groups three times. I know I haven’t seen everything. I know that the group that I have played it twice with, I’ve done different things than before. So if the story is highly engaging and offers a wide variety, then there is reason to go back through it.

Mechanically if the game is interesting I’m more tempted to go back through it as well. For example, Gloomhaven, I love how that game works mechanically. I love the card play in it. I see going back to it eventually if my kid grows up to like board games. It is a big game, but it’d be something to share experience over, or if I have another group of players who really want to play it. I won’t get bored, even though I’ve seen a lot of story, playing through it again, because there are still classes I haven’t played.

Finally, bonding, board games are something that bring people together. And a campaign game can bring a group of people together more consistently. It is like Dungeons and Dragons that way, you can set-up a standing time where you play. It grows friendships and gives people a reason to get out and see people, which in Minnesota in the winter, you sometimes need. That is why I tried to keep it going, and we did a solid job of it, throughout the pandemic playing on TableTop Simulator or games via Zoom.

What Games Would I Wouldn’t I Play Again?

I think it might be useful to talk about the campaign games that I have played, the two I’ve finished and the one I’m going through now and see if I’d play them again and why. It is easy to explain that there are cool things about them, or I really like them, but is that enough to keep them around.

Tainted Grail

Let us start with the one that I’m playing. Mechanically the game is solid, but that isn’t the reason I have played it so many times. Some of it, thus far, is because it is hard. But the story is the element that really draws me back to it. I know, like I said, that there is more yet to find in that game. We finally made it to chapter four last night, and I’m seeing all sorts of new things that I didn’t know about before. I am going to new locations on the island of Avalon and fighting new monsters. For Tainted Grail that openness of the world and story is what keep me coming back to it.

Sword & Sorcery

Now, I sold this game, it might give you a hint. There are two things that kept me from wanting to come back to it. The story itself is fun, but it doesn’t branch much. So you play the story once, you know what will happen. And mechanically, it is a bit lacking at times as well. I love leveling up, getting new abilities, and fighting in new ways. But that doesn’t happen that often. So it ends up being the same thing, find a monster, use an ability, aim, and attack. You roll dice, and it’s just the same combos over and over. It is just missing that umph that Tainted Grail has.

Gloomhaven

Finally, Gloomhaven, that one is my #1 game of all time. It is staying in my collection, and I would gladly play it again. It doesn’t have the most in depth and branching story. But what it does well is give you enough story to keep it interesting. And it gives you a ton in it’s game play. Mechanically with all the different classes you can play, it is so much fun. We saw all of them in my play through, but I haven’t played all of them. So Gloomhaven gives you a lot to go back to, and you can just play randomly generated scenarios as well, which is cool.

Would you go back to a campaign game? What has made you go back if you have before? What do you look for in one that you think you might go back to?

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