On the weekend I played...

[Andre]

The week of gaming continues. Wednesday Luxor.




Yesterday Wayfarers of the South Tigris, then the first go of Return to Dark Tower with the Alliance expansion.



Alliances kicked our arse, so learning from our mistakes we attempted the scenario again today and managed to complete it.

 

[Andre]

Games day New Year’s Day. Merchants of the Dark Road, Kittens in a Blender, Paint the Roses and Lets Summon Demons.



Then yesterday the two of us tried the first couple of expansions (6 small ones, you do one of at a time) of Paint the Roses. First one (Alice) no luck from multiple tries, the compensation for 2 player mode is not as good as having 3+ players. The second done (Cheshire cat) we managed a win. Then first game of Dom Pierre.

 

[Andre]

After around 7 tries, including 3 this weekend, finally we managed to win at Arkham Horror (using Curse of the Dark Pharoah and Lurker at the Threshold small expansions). Yog-Sothoth kept at bay.




Then tonight a few games with the kids, finishing with Ice Cool + Ice Cool 2.

 

[Macca19]

got a stack of games for the kids for Xmas so have been smashing those out with them the last couple weeks:

Project L
Splendor
Jaipur
Hanabi
Zombie Kidz Evolution
Sleeping Queens
Sushi Go Party
Dragonwood

 

[Chief]

I have Hanabi but we have never played it.

 

[Andre]

Some Ticket to Ride with wife and eldest, also the three us had a game of Terror in Meeple City. Wife and I also Paint the Roses with a couple more of the expansions done, plus Time Stories - The Hadel Project.

Finally not played yet, but eldest interested in doing D&D again, so wife and both kids set up characters (Human Cleric, Dragonborn Wizard and Tiefling Sorceror), ready for me to start DM’ing Hoard of the Dragon Queen soon.

 

[Macca19]

This weekend we played:

Ticket to Ride
The Crew: Deep Sea
Catan
Splendor
Sushi Go Party

 

[revival_mode]

gf and i must have played Tapestry a dozen times since xmas

 

[Chief]

gf and i must have played Tapestry a dozen times since xmas

A friend of ours played it heaps with his son now we can't beat him.

Once a year I entice them back to Blood Rage and smash them all by dozens of points.

 

[Oddhawk]

gf and i must have played Tapestry a dozen times since xmas

We’ve done the same with Everdell and Parks. Maybe 10 times each!!

 

[Andre]

Yesterday Hoard of the Dragon Queen started with me DM'ing wife, both kids and a friend of the eldest. Lots of checking rules. Going to need refresh myself some more, so not spending as much time book reading during play.

Games day today, with gaming friends, and the summit has finally been climbed, likely never to be repeated. Yes, the elusive perfect 13 for Just One has finally been achieved.




Prior to that The Shivers. Pop-up adventure game, for first episode.



Between those we started a Charterstone campaign.

 

[Andre]

Games day Saturday. Only found out after deliveries, that friend had also backed Casting Shadows. First go (6 player) at his house. There’s not much to do on your turn, unless you’re attacked, so for a simple game, at 5 or 6 player count, the downtime until 2/3 have been eliminated is high. I think the sweet spot would be 4 players - enough to have a variety of opponents, without the game dragging out.

After Casting Shadows taking so long, the rest of the games we stuck to light and short games.

 

[Andre]

We hadn’t played Machi Koro, since completing Legacy version over a year ago. Last night a game of Machi Koro, Bright Lights. Managed to get a killer combo of lots of flowers and apple orchards with a couple of fruit and vegetable markets and smashed a big win.


Then tonight finally we got to trying Destinies. Werewolf killing villagers slayed, with wife not happy as was her characters son, was trying to remove curse from Though didn’t know that until after killed.

 

[SonOfScray]

I finally tracked down a copy of Trails of Tucana, so we’ve been smashing that as a filler after some heavier games recently. Also a big fan of an older Phil Walker Harding card game, Archaeology. Got plenty of rounds in this weekend just gone.

 

[Andre]

Time for the next Sleeping Gods campaign. Off to explore new areas of the world.

 

[Drummond]

Time for the next Sleeping Gods campaign. Off to explore new areas of the world.

View attachment 1622055

What’s this game like? I’m interested by it.

 

[Andre]

What’s this game like? I’m interested by it.

If you've played (and liked) any Red Raven games (Above and Below, Near and Far, etc.) I'd recommend it. It's a co-op campaign game, where you need to find 8 Totems of Sleeping Gods (hence the name) to wake them to get back to our world. The world is big enough though, with enough locations, that it will take many goes through to visit them all (or even most) and work out which totems you can get in time (as you only have a fixed number of turns). As you find totems (there's many more than 8 in the world), then subsequent campaigns you get some extra starting equipment, based on how many.

We've done 5 or 6 times now and still plenty of the world to explore. A single run through (with 2 players, it can do 1 - 4 players) is 3 - 5 hours of gameplay. I like it (and have backed the sequel), it's different enough from other campaign games out there to not feel like you've done it 20 times before. The thing you do have to accept is, it's very much a trade off game. By that I mean, you are using your skills (which fatigues you) constantly or fighting (health), that requires you to get coin to heal up, so you've never got enough to both be healthy, skills all ready to go AND buy the equipment at market you want to get more powerful. The first couple of games until we got used to this and accepted it, it was frustrating. Once you get past you aren't going to level up into super powerful characters who can do a bunch of things well, you can really enjoy the world exploration at the centre of the game.

 

[Drummond]

If you've played (and liked) any Red Raven games (Above and Below, Near and Far, etc.) I'd recommend it. It's a co-op campaign game, where you need to find 8 Totems of Sleeping Gods (hence the name) to wake them to get back to our world. The world is big enough though, with enough locations, that it will take many goes through to visit them all (or even most) and work out which totems you can get in time (as you only have a fixed number of turns). As you find totems (there's many more than 8 in the world), then subsequent campaigns you get some extra starting equipment, based on how many.

We've done 5 or 6 times now and still plenty of the world to explore. A single run through (with 2 players, it can do 1 - 4 players) is 3 - 5 hours of gameplay. I like it (and have backed the sequel), it's different enough from other campaign games out there to not feel like you've done it 20 times before. The thing you do have to accept is, it's very much a trade off game. By that I mean, you are using your skills (which fatigues you) constantly or fighting (health), that requires you to get coin to heal up, so you've never got enough to both be healthy, skills all ready to go AND buy the equipment at market you want to get more powerful. The first couple of games until we got used to this and accepted it, it was frustrating. Once you get past you aren't going to level up into super powerful characters who can do a bunch of things well, you can really enjoy the world exploration at the centre of the game.

Fantastic recap, thanks for the insight! Its definitely on my watch list.

 

[SonOfScray]

 

[Andre]

A successful Sleeping Gods campaign finished Saturday. There’s an ending where you need to find 3 particular totems to turn the Gods mortal, stealing their power to get home. The prior campaign we’d found out about that ending, but too late through to get all 3 totems. This time we got them. The irony that we got them early and then explored further. Usually we are lucky to get 2 or 3 totems. This time needing only the particular 3, we finish with 10 totems. Enough for the wake the gods ending, that requires 8. We did the 3 totem one, but at least now know an order of locations to get that finish when we play later (although still half the worlds locations to explore, when the expansion is taken into account). The masses of totems and items collected this time.



Then Sunday a game of Tiny Epic Pirates as we hadn’t played for ages and felt like some plundering and fighting on the high, small, seas.

 

[Andre]

With the long weekend in SA, gaming group catch up today. Second round of Charterstone.


Then all suffering with This War of Mine.


Finishing up with Villagers. Friend whose house we were at brought out the rare giant cat invader mini-expansion to challenge the villagers.

 

[Andre]

Tried out Tapestry last night with the three expansions (third and final arrived Friday).

 

[Andre]

First go at Distilled last night. A narrow loss. Maybe I need to drink during it

 

[SonOfScray]

We played Nut Hunt and Machi Koro 2 with some friends who were keen to try some games, I think they’ve got the bug now.

 

[NTRabbit]

I've just realised I can't even remember the last time I played something on the weekend.

Pre-pandemic I'm guessing.