Wargaming Wednesday - Men At Arms (1990)

I was super stoked the other day after a pleasant visit with my buddy Jim in Milwaukee to pop into a couple of Half Price Books and find some real bargains.  One of them was a copy of Strategy & Tactics Issue #137 with the complete Men-at-Arms game (including the unpunched counters!).

The cover by Angus McBride was licensed from Osprey's Men-at-Arms Series and depicts Celt Iberian warriors circa 130 BC.

The magazine includes the complete game rules as well as 32 Battle Scenarios by Albert A. Nofi and James F. Dunnigan as well as an article on the same subject by Dave Arneson (and a bunch of additional content).

The 6 pages of double-sided maps and the game charts and turn track are all on thin cardstock in the center.  I'm really very pleased with this find!

Wargaming Wednesday on MFWARS.com 

A closer examination of board and miniatures Wargaming.

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Terrain Tuesday - Scenic Express, Roman Empire, & Cavern Bridge

Over on sceneryexpress.com, have a look at all of the wonderful things they have for crafting here.

Also, on brilliantmaps.com, check out "An Incredibly Detailed Map of the Roman Empire At Its Height in 211AD" here.

Finally, on the AJ Pickett YouTube channel, "The Mighty Gluestick presents a quick modular cavern terrain build, using carved expanded polystyrene hot glued to a cardboard base, painted and dry brushed.. fast, useful and very adaptable."  Enjoy!

Terrain Tuesday on MFWARS.com 

For purposes here, the term Terrain is used broadly
to cover 3D and 2D maps, foam, felt, and such.

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Minis & Modeling Monday - Rage of Demons, Bolt Action, & Gallipoli

Over on gravengames.co.uk, they have a Rage of Demons Booster Review here.

Also, on sixdsix.co.uk, they share a tutorial on "Making Bolt Action Pin Markers" here.

Finally, on anzacdiorama.blogspot.ca, check out the "First pics of massive Gallipoli diorama at The Great War Exhibition" here.

Minis & Modeling Monday on MFWARS.com 

A look at prepping and painting Miniatures,
crafting buildings and paper Models,
and other non-terrain stuff for the tabletop.

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The Sunday Miscellanea - Alien Frontiers (2010)

We recently got the chance to revisit Alien Frontiers (2010).  Once more, we played with five players and utilized some expansions, notably more Alien Tech Cards as well as hidden Agendas.  I think both of these add a great deal to the game.  As per yesterday's blog about Tiny Epic Galaxies, we played Alien Frontiers twice in succession, so the two new players were well up to speed with the three semi-veterans half into the first time through.  The second game came down to a three-way tie with the first tiebreaker elimination one contender and a second tie breaker needed to edge the winner into first place by a single point.  Quite exciting!

The description from Board Game Geek is as follows:

Do you have what it takes to be a deep space colonist? An alien frontier awaits the brave and daring! This new planet will be harsh, but if you have the skills to manage your resources, build a fleet, research alien life, and settle colonies, the world can be yours.

Alien Frontiers is a game of resource management and planetary development for two to four players. During the game you will utilize orbital facilities and alien technology to build colony domes in strategic locations to control the newly discovered world.

The game board shows the planet, its moon, the stations in orbit around the planet, and the solar system’s star. The dice you are given at the start of the game represent the space ships in your fleet. You will assign these ships to the orbital facilities in order to earn resources, expand your fleet, and colonize the planet.

As the game progresses, you will place your colony tokens on the planet to represent the amount of control you have over each territory. Those territories exert influence over specific orbital facilities and, if you control a territory, you are able to utilize that sway to your advantage.

The planet was once the home of an alien race and they left behind a wondrous artifact in orbit. Using your fleet to explore the artifact, you will discover amazing alien technologies that you can use to advance your cause.

Winning the game will require careful consideration as you assign your fleet, integrate the alien technology and territory influences into your expansion plans, and block your opponents from building colonies of their own. Do you have what it takes to conquer an alien frontier?

Roll and place your dice to gain advantages over your opponent and block them out of useful areas of the board. Use Alien Tech cards to manipulate your dice rolls and territory bonuses to break the rules. Steal resources, overtake territories, and do whatever it takes to get your colonies on the map first! Don't dream it'll be easy, though, because the other players will be trying to do the same thing.

Our group finds this game to be very flexible provided folks understand that the Alien Tech cards are integrated into whatever strategy is chosen.  This is also a game where anyone can win regardless of slow starts or difficult rolls or turns during the game.  If a strategy doesn't unfold as planed or someone else's strategy is thwarting the one chosen, another strategy can be chosen and exploited.  I've heard the argument that some bad dice rolling can doom a strategy but, from what I have seen, some flexibility and adjustments can change the game considerably.  Even in games where I was not ultimately the winner, I've always felt that there was a way for me to win each game I have played until the final round.  It seems to come down to watching who is within two colonies of triggering the end of the game and being ready to make a move of your own.

The Sunday Miscellanea on MFWARS.com 

Essentially, a clearinghouse for topics on MFWARS.com

not covered elsewhere or wanting a particular focus.

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Systems Saturday - Tiny Epic Galaxies (2015)

I got a chance to revisit Tiny Epic Galaxies (2015) not long after the first time I played it.  We also played two games consecutively, which I do like to do if it is a game I enjoy.  This is definitely one such game.  We played with three people, one who had tried it during the playtesting phase and the other who was new to the game (both solid gamers who learn quickly and are strong strategists).

The description from Board Game Geek is as follows:

A thirty-minute game of galactic conquest, Tiny Epic Galaxies is driven by an exciting dice-rolling mechanism that rewards thoughtful programming of the results. Players control a home galaxy and a fleet of space ships. As players upgrade their galaxies, they gain access to more ships and more dice.

Each turn, a player rolls a set of dice; how many dice are rolled is determined by the level of that player's galaxy. Each side of the six-sided die represents a different type of action: Movement, Colony Action, Harvest from Culture Planets, Harvest from Energy Planets, Improve an Economic Influence, and Improve a Diplomatic Influence.

After the roll, the player sorts the results of the roll (one selective re-roll is allowed) and organizes the dice in a desired activation order. Each die, in order, is then resolved and the results are immediate, which allows the player to pull-off unseen combos and surprise other players. Other players have the option to copy other player's actions...at a cost!

As players expand their galaxy by colonizing other planets through economic and diplomatic influence, they gain victory points AND the special powers brought in by those planets! In addition to galaxy upgrades, effective resource management provides luck-mitigating options that can sway the game in a calculated player's favor.

Whoever achieves the most points from acquiring planets and upgrading their personal galaxy wins!

We didn't use the expansion for either game though it was available.  I'm glad of that because I had played the most of we three and still feel like the base game has plenty enough to offer.  If I play later with all experienced players or ever feel like the base game is becoming too familiar, I will definitely lobby to add the expansion into the mix.  As it is, there are still enough card combinations that the base game always has something new to offer during gameplay.  For example, out first game on this day yielded a planet selection and secret missions that prompted a lot of competitive play between while during the second game, the planets which started the game were often helpful to the landing player as well as others.  A decidedly different feel, despite still being a competitive game.  I look forward to paying this one a whole lot more.

Systems Saturday on MFWARS.com 

A look under the hood of various Games, Rules and Systems.

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Tabletopper Friday - Istanbul (2014)

Most of the games of Istanbul (2014) I've played have been two player games.  My first was with five, but since then it's only been one on one except for one three player game somewhere down the line.  While I know that it can be quite a different challenge with more people, I really like the way it plays as a two player game.

The description from Board Game Geek is as follows:

There's hustle and bustle at Istanbul's grand bazaar as merchants and their assistants rush through the narrow alleys in their attempt to be more successful than their competitors. Everything must be well organized: wheelbarrows must be filled with goods at the warehouses, then swiftly transported by the assistants to various destinations. Your goal? Be the first merchant to collect a certain number of rubies.

In Istanbul, you lead a group of one merchant and four assistants through 16 locations in the bazaar. At each such location, you can carry out a specific action. The challenge, though, is that to take an action, you must move your merchant and an assistant there, then leave the assistant behind (to handle all the details while you focus on larger matters). If you want to use that assistant again later, your merchant must return to that location to pick him up. Thus, you must plan ahead carefully to avoid being left with no assistants and thus unable to do anything...

In more detail, on a turn you move your merchant and his retinue of assistants one or two steps through the bazaar, either leave an assistant at that location or collect an assistant left earlier, then perform the action. If you meet other merchants or certain individuals at the location, you might be able to take a small extra action. Possible actions include:

• Paying to increase your wheelbarrow capacity, which starts the game with a capacity of only two for each good.
• Filling your wheelbarrow with a specified good to its limit.
• Acquiring a special ability, and the earlier you come, the easier they are to collect.
• Buying rubies or trading goods for rubies.
• Selling special combinations of goods to make the money you need to do everything else.

When a merchant has collected five rubies in his wheelbarrow, players complete that round, then the game ends. If this player is the only one who's reached this goal, he wins immediately; otherwise ties are broken by money in hand.

I've said this in a previous blog post but it definitely pays to plan far enough ahead to avoid needing the fountain.  Getting Mosque Tiles then the Cart Upgrades might be the two biggest priorities.  Their importance is two-fold, the action benefits as well as the ruby at each location.  A couple of trips to the markets is often enough to allow for purchasing the other three rubies (six required in a two player game).  However, you do need to plan those actions out along with visits to the regular markets for goods and it can't hurt to grab a bonus card or two.  Avoid paying the fee for running into other merchants.  In fact, all encounters come with a fee, so I don't go out of my way for them like some folks might.

Tabletopper Friday on MFWARS.com 

Mostly about card games and board games,
unless they have a decidedly wargamey feel.

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Nostalgia Thursday - 30 Sided Assistance

Many of you are aware of the tragic circumstances now faced by our friends and relatives in South Carolina.  The flooding has been devastating from a storm that is being touted as a once-in-a-thousand-years event.  It's that bad.  In an effort to render some assistance, CMG's "30 Things Can Happen!" has been added to the "South Carolina 2015 Floods Bundle" spearheaded by Fat Goblin Games here.

As many may recall, "30 Things Can Happen!" was meant to be a tribute to the d30, the thirty-sided die.  It was also meant as a homage on the 30th anniversary of the publication of The Armory's "30 Sided Dice Gaming Tables."

Recently while at a Half Price Books in the area, I picked up a book I'd forgotten existed.  It is the sequel to the above book called The Armory's "30 Sided Character and Other Tales."  It came out a few years after the first and it might require me to make a sequel as well.  Since I focused on situations and locations in my first homage, I think my follow up should be all about characters, quirks, and backgrounds.

Nostalgia Thursday on MFWARS.com 

Focusing on the roots of current tabletop gaming

with an eye toward the last century and before.

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