Author Topic: Board Games - what are you playing?  (Read 70059 times)

Jet711

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #50 on: February 01, 2017, 04:48:15 PM »
Has everyone forgotten about Monopoly?

Also, would card games count? President, Blackjack, Yugioh, e.t.c

neo von retorch

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #51 on: June 30, 2017, 07:24:07 AM »
Strategy Game addition

Roll for the Galaxy (2-5 players, 45 minutes) After playing this game once, I knew I had to add it to my collection! SO. MANY. DICE. So this game is both very complex, and very simple. When you first read through the rules, you might be a little dazed, but usually after a single round or maybe two, it "clicks" and you get the gist of the game. Your dice start out as workers from various factions, but each face of the die represents the action the worker is capable of performing for you. Some factions (colors of dice) are more likely to perform certain actions. But... here's where strategy comes in. At the beginning of each round, before you take your actions, after rolling the available worker dies... you can assign them to the action you want them to perform. Mostly that matches the face that you rolled, but lots of things, like technology you've researched while exploring the universe, can help you reassign them to a different action. Plus... you "vote" for which action you really, really want to happen this round. There are five actions, and in a two player game, only two (at most) are going to really happen. This is all hidden (but you can try to figure out what your opponents are vying for), and then you all reveal.... and get to take your space actions. Explore, discover technology, settle planets, produce goods, and finally ship it (for money to aid your progress, or for points to win the game!)

That probably sounds complex, but... once you get it, it's simply - roll, assign, take actions. Repeat! It's just that assign phase is where all the decision-making really happens. (Also explore, where you get to pick between new planets to settle, or technologies to discover!)
« Last Edit: June 30, 2017, 07:25:39 AM by neo von retorch »

WhiteTrashCash

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #52 on: June 30, 2017, 07:41:38 AM »
We are still hooked on "Firefly: Fistful of Credits" which has three very, very difficult heists. We still haven't been able to beat the third scenario. No matter how much we aim to misbehave.

Also, we have been playing a game called Lego Heroica. It's kind of a kids board game, but fun for anyone who grew up playing Lego.

Lis

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #53 on: June 30, 2017, 09:30:28 AM »
Betrayal on house on the hill - No idea how to explain this game, you explore through a house that gets built room by room, and mid-game, one of the players becomes the traitor and the other players have to attempt to win against him. Interesting to play, but I haven't played enough to find the sweet spot of the right amount of players VS the traitor (at 6 players, the traitor got slaughtered pretty quickly)

LOVE Betrayal! It's a different game every time... I think there are something like 50 different storylines? And even those can change depending on the characters in play. I've only been the traitor once, and it was so much fun.

If you're interested in games that take 3-5 hours (shortest I've ever played was 2 hours, I've seen long games go for 6+) - Battlestar Galactica. You don't need to be a fan of the show to play (I've never seen the show), but if you know the characters you'll pick up on nuances quicker I'm sure. It's humans vs. cylons (evil robots if you're not familiar). Humans want to be able to travel a specific distance, cylons want to make humans fail. There are a lot of variations depending on the number of people playing and if expansion packs are involved. I've only ever played with a friend who knows every single rule backwards and forwards (he's obsessed), so it's easier having a talking rule book in play. Lots of fun though!!

Has anyone picked up the Game of Thrones board game? I'm a huge fan of the show, and this honestly looks really intriguing. It's just been hovering at $40-$50 on Amazon, I'm not sure if it's worth it.

I participated in the Zombies, Run! kickstarter for its board game... I believe I should be getting a copy this summer :)

DragonSlayer

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #54 on: June 30, 2017, 09:52:36 AM »
Just picked up Sagrada, Ethnos, and Century: Spice Road and am loving all three. We're really getting out of the "heavy" game arena these days (just no time or desire to internalize lots of rules) and are looking for lighter, quicker games that still challenge the brain a bit. All three are marvelous at that!

Noodle

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #55 on: June 30, 2017, 10:50:37 AM »
This might be a good crowd to ask for suggestions--

We are going on a family reunion/vacation and I would love to pick up a couple of new card or board games for the group. Up to 10 people may be playing (teams fine) although we will probably have smaller groups too. Age range from bright 9-years-old to early 70s. We like word and trivia games. Strategy games are less preferred but OK if fairly simple, and anything with highly complicated rules to learn ahead of time is right out. Also games that involve quick reflexes tend to start fist-fights (among the adults...the kids have good manners :)) Attention spans are not likely to last more than an hour or two.

Any ideas much appreciated!

Lis

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #56 on: June 30, 2017, 11:04:06 AM »
This might be a good crowd to ask for suggestions--

We are going on a family reunion/vacation and I would love to pick up a couple of new card or board games for the group. Up to 10 people may be playing (teams fine) although we will probably have smaller groups too. Age range from bright 9-years-old to early 70s. We like word and trivia games. Strategy games are less preferred but OK if fairly simple, and anything with highly complicated rules to learn ahead of time is right out. Also games that involve quick reflexes tend to start fist-fights (among the adults...the kids have good manners :)) Attention spans are not likely to last more than an hour or two.

Any ideas much appreciated!

We Didn't Playtest This At All. Each game lasts 2-5 minutes (maybe more if you have loads of people). The rules change each round, so once you pick up on the concept, it's pretty easy. Appropriate for all ages.

Apples to Apples is also fun and relatively quick. I've read people scan through the cards of Cards Against Humanity and pull out the super inappropriate ones so they can play with kids, but I'm not sure I'd recommend that stil.

Grog

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #57 on: June 30, 2017, 03:00:02 PM »
This might be a good crowd to ask for suggestions--

We are going on a family reunion/vacation and I would love to pick up a couple of new card or board games for the group. Up to 10 people may be playing (teams fine) although we will probably have smaller groups too. Age range from bright 9-years-old to early 70s. We like word and trivia games. Strategy games are less preferred but OK if fairly simple, and anything with highly complicated rules to learn ahead of time is right out. Also games that involve quick reflexes tend to start fist-fights (among the adults...the kids have good manners :)) Attention spans are not likely to last more than an hour or two.

Any ideas much appreciated!
Fuji flush
Www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/203430/fuji-flush
Card game, some 60 cards I believe
Up to 8  players, kind like UNO but faster and more fluid. Easy to learn. Appropriate for alle age. Luck play a role but you are never stuck and things can change fast.

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Noodle

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #58 on: June 30, 2017, 03:35:28 PM »
I've read people scan through the cards of Cards Against Humanity and pull out the super inappropriate ones so they can play with kids, but I'm not sure I'd recommend that stil.

The really inappropriate stuff would probably go over the heads of the youngest, but I'm not sure I would be willing to play Cards Against Humanity with my mother... and I suspect my siblings' spouses would REALLY rather not play with their mother-in-law...  :)

WhiteTrashCash

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #59 on: June 30, 2017, 05:59:41 PM »
I've read people scan through the cards of Cards Against Humanity and pull out the super inappropriate ones so they can play with kids, but I'm not sure I'd recommend that stil.

The really inappropriate stuff would probably go over the heads of the youngest, but I'm not sure I would be willing to play Cards Against Humanity with my mother... and I suspect my siblings' spouses would REALLY rather not play with their mother-in-law...  :)

There's a clean version of Cards Against Humanity called Apples To Apples and it actually predates the former.

fuzzy math

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #60 on: July 09, 2017, 04:35:56 PM »


There's a clean version of Cards Against Humanity called Apples To Apples and it actually predates the former.

Would not recommend this either. My 7 and 10 yr old try to play it, and don't know anything about most of the nouns provided...

WhiteTrashCash

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #61 on: July 10, 2017, 05:54:09 AM »
Just picked up a copy of RoboRally and this game is so much fun. It would appeal to the coders on this forum. Players portray robots that have to navigate an obstacle course to reach their objective and you have to preprogram the robots with a series of moves you want them to make. The hilarity ensues when everyone's robots are activated and things go terribly awry and they crash into each other, go off-course, get damaged, go the wrong way, etc. What a great board game. :-)

BiochemicalDJ

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #62 on: July 13, 2017, 08:07:33 AM »
We've been big into "Lords of Waterdeep" and its two expansions. It's a worker placement game in the spirit of Agricola or Stone Age, with a few twists and an interesting Dungeons and Dragons theme. Appropriate for 10 and up, I'd say.

N

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #63 on: July 19, 2017, 12:23:37 AM »
I love games!

I did find an Apples to Apples: family edition, and there is also an Apples to Apples Picture edition (no words, just images) and my kids love both of them (9 and 13)

My brother and I play alot of games together, here are some of our favorites:

Jaipur, a 2 player card game, collect resources, trade them in for coins, earn points. The illustrations are pretty and its goes by pretty quickly.

Lost Cities, a 2 player card game, pretty illustrations, 3 rounds of trying to create "expeditions", there is never enough time or resources and the end is always too fast!

Quirkle cubes: multiplayer game with cubes that are placed on the table.

Five Crowns: multiplayer card game, sort of like gin with progressive number of cards per hand and changing wild cards.

Quiddler: multiplayer card game, a lot like five crowns, but with letters, and you make words instead of sets and runs

Karma: a diabolical card game that my brother never ever wants to play with me because he is a giant babyhead.

We also play Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, Trivial Pursuit (the original edition or the second genus hold up pretty well, and can often be found at thrift stores) and Takenoko, which is similar to Catan, with tiles and multiple ways to earn points to win. The illustrations and characters seem a bit more kid friendly than Catan. There is a panda and pastel colored bamboo trees. If you like Forbidden Island, try Forbidden Desert-its harder to beat, and enough different then Island so as not to seem the same. We also like Tapple, which is a game of quick answers using different letters of the alphabet.

For groups I would recommend Scattergories, Wise and Otherwise (this is old, not sure if its still around, but it is so much fun. similar to balderdash, except players complete a proverb or saying, and then vote on which is the correct answer). Dixit is fun, and kids can play it too. Anomia is another fun card game.

For non readers or mixed age groups that include non readers:
Hedbandz
Apples to Apples, pictures version
Dixit
Tsuro
Tummple!
Aquarius
Yamslam!
Roll For It
Quoridor
Memory type games- I have one that all the tiles are Impressionist paintings and one that is for kids with illustrations of faces of children from different countries.

A Definite Beta Guy

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #64 on: July 19, 2017, 01:18:25 PM »
Not a board game, but a fun party game for 6-10 people is "Secret Hitler." It's sort of like Resistance, but instead of spy operations, there are Liberal or Fascist policies implemented. A team (either Liberals or Fascists) win after 5 policies for their side are implemented.

It's a blast and everyone I've played it with loves it so far.

N

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #65 on: August 04, 2017, 11:49:58 PM »
I borrowed the game Splendor from a friend to try out. My brother and I have played it a few times now and its pretty fun. You have to collect gems and cards to earn points, everyone is collecting from the resources. The art is nice  and the pieces feel well made.

DragonSlayer

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #66 on: August 05, 2017, 07:25:57 AM »
I borrowed the game Splendor from a friend to try out. My brother and I have played it a few times now and its pretty fun. You have to collect gems and cards to earn points, everyone is collecting from the resources. The art is nice  and the pieces feel well made.

FYI if you decide to buy it... They reprinted it and the chips are not near as nice of quality as they were in the first edition. They cheaped out and they're not as hefty feeling. Much lighter, like light poker chips. You might want to try to find an older version, if you can. (If that's important to you.) Also, if you really love it, there's an expansion coming in August. (And, yes, this is one of my favorite games, if you can't tell!)

Fudge102

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #67 on: August 05, 2017, 11:03:49 AM »
Posting to follow because I love board games!

Also, do you do more house rules or actual game rules?  I've always been a game rules kinda guy myself.  Something about actually being able to read them....  Need to expand my horizons more.

Raenia

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #68 on: August 05, 2017, 12:09:46 PM »
I haven't read through the whole thread yet, so sorry for duplicates.  The games I've been playing recently are:

- Cosmic Encounters - I like the mix of strategy and randomness.  It's a good low-stress game for certain friends of mine who get frustrated by strategy games.
 - Dominion - I have a few different sets.  We haven't played as much recently, since it's not as fun with only 2 players, and the friend who most consistently comes to game nights doesn't like deck-building games.
 - Legendary: Alien - A cooperative deck-building game, with different enemies/win conditions ala Arkham Horror
 - 7 Wonders - Great game with great pacing, works for any size gathering
 - Mysterium - An interesting picture-association game, semi-cooperative.  All my English-major friends love this one.

Games we play less often:
 - Arkham Horror - Stopped playing this because it's not challenging enough.  We've never lost a game, despite playing with some of the toughest enemies, including some expansions.
 - Twilight Imperium - I'm not allowed to play this anymore.  It's a really intricate strategy game, but it runs 7-8 hrs, requires 6-8 players (definitely plays better with 8) and there's little-to-no rubber banding.  Once you get behind, or if you start with bad board position, you've basically lost.  I've learned that I can't get through a game that long without misremembering a rule, making a serious strategic error because of it, and being eliminated from the chance to win.  Unfortunately, the game doesn't allow a player to withdraw, even if they've been completely wiped off the board.
 - Legendary: Marvel - I really liked this one, unfortunately we had a falling out with the friends who owned it.

Games we used to play that I miss:
 - Terra Mystica - One of my favorite games, sadly my ex took it with him and it's a really expensive one (deservedly so, it has a ton of quality wood pieces)
 - Puerto Rico - Also went with the ex, plus the friend who always comes to game nights doesn't like it.
 - Pandemic - I might actually get this one soon, I really enjoyed it the few times I've played and it seems like my group prefers coop games.

JanF

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #69 on: August 05, 2017, 11:29:27 PM »
Easy party games:
Sushi Go: easy to learn, quick, and fun
Codenames: the original is far superior to NSFW version...there's only so many ways to hint at penises and boobs

Competitive games:
Settler of Catan: I think this is one of the first games that gets people into board games
Tickets to Ride: easy to learn, fun to play with kids

Co-op games:
Pandemic: bird flu always win.....
Betrayal on the House on the Hill: really easy and fun to play once you go through it once or twice
Elder signs: my recent favorite but it's super depress because it's so hard to win

We watch Wil Wheaton play TableTop on YouTube a lot, it's a nice preview to see what kind of games we want to play. And if anyone is looking for a vacation there is a cruise called the JoCo Cruise that's made for board game nerds that's super amazing.

rocketpj

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #70 on: August 06, 2017, 05:33:18 PM »
Dominion.  I don't play this one with my family much, but I do play it online quite often.  Good fun.

Settlers of Catan.  I play this one with my family and online, especially Cities & Knights of Catan.

Carcassone.  Good fun.

Some card games:  Lost Cities (a good 2 player game).

Zombie Flux (my kid loves this one).

Munchkins (my other kid loves this one).

A couple of cooperative games:  Forbidden Island, Forbidden Desert, Castle Panic.  All three are good games.

Some higher level games like Mice & Mystics (more of an rpg, but the kids like it).


Roland of Gilead

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #71 on: August 06, 2017, 06:38:23 PM »
Games we used to play that I miss:
 - Terra Mystica - One of my favorite games, sadly my ex took it with him and it's a really expensive one (deservedly so, it has a ton of quality wood pieces)
 - Puerto Rico - Also went with the ex, plus the friend who always comes to game nights doesn't like it.
 - Pandemic - I might actually get this one soon, I really enjoyed it the few times I've played and it seems like my group prefers coop games.

Puerto Rico is probably my all time favorite game (maybe Imperial as a close second).  I may have played it 1400 times on Brettspielwelt...yikes.

Grog

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #72 on: August 12, 2017, 09:20:47 AM »
Happy to have found a copy of Tikal for 3 dollar at my thrift store in very good condition. I have fond memories of games with my brothers looking forward to other games.

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Inaya

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #73 on: August 17, 2017, 10:20:35 AM »
We've been big into "Lords of Waterdeep" and its two expansions. It's a worker placement game in the spirit of Agricola or Stone Age, with a few twists and an interesting Dungeons and Dragons theme. Appropriate for 10 and up, I'd say.


Hubs and I got the base game for our wedding many years ago. Never really got around to playing it until recently (mostly due to lack of surface area to play on). We play it a lot now and just bought the expansion last weekend. We don't really have any local friends, so it's nice to have a 2-player game that stays interesting.

rocketpj

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #74 on: August 17, 2017, 10:27:36 AM »
We've been big into "Lords of Waterdeep" and its two expansions. It's a worker placement game in the spirit of Agricola or Stone Age, with a few twists and an interesting Dungeons and Dragons theme. Appropriate for 10 and up, I'd say.

I was just given this game by my 7 year old for my birthday and I am looking forward to playing it (I've played it with my gamer friends).  I think it will be a winner with my family - accessible enough for my non gamer DW and precocious 7 year old, and a good challenge for me and the hyper competitive 12 year old.

As for Cards Against Humanity, I can't stand the game.  I have no issue with political correctness or whatever, but I find it is just an excuse to say shitty things in a group setting, and to laugh when shitty things are said.  It felt very juvenile and pointless when I played it.

BiochemicalDJ

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #75 on: August 17, 2017, 12:46:17 PM »
As for Cards Against Humanity, I can't stand the game. I have no issue with political correctness or whatever, but I find it is just an excuse to say shitty things in a group setting, and to laugh when shitty things are said...

Agreed. The target market for the game is sort of high school and immediately post- when people have *just* enough knowledge to get really offensive for humour. It gets very old, very fast.

Inaya

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #76 on: August 17, 2017, 01:40:04 PM »
As for Cards Against Humanity, I can't stand the game. I have no issue with political correctness or whatever, but I find it is just an excuse to say shitty things in a group setting, and to laugh when shitty things are said...

Agreed. The target market for the game is sort of high school and immediately post- when people have *just* enough knowledge to get really offensive for humour. It gets very old, very fast.


I find this has a lot to do with who you play with (and, to be honest, their ages). Some groups can produce some clever and hilarious combinations. Others (or probably most) go straight to toilet humor.

caffeine

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #77 on: August 17, 2017, 01:58:07 PM »
I'm getting together with a group of friends soon. We've rented out a conference room from a hotel and stay there all weekend playing board games. My contribution this year will be the Dark Souls board game I kick started last year. I still haven't played it, but I need to learn it and prepare some quick reference sheets to teach people the game faster than manual to optimize our game time (the game manual is massive!).

Last game I actually played was Letters from Whitechapel. It was super fun. Someone plays as Jack the Ripper and the others play as detectives.

GenXbiker

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #78 on: August 17, 2017, 03:18:32 PM »
Nothing lately, but I used to play:

Stock Market Game (board game)
Easy Money
Monopoly
Careers
Chess

rocketpj

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #79 on: August 18, 2017, 07:03:23 PM »
As for Cards Against Humanity, I can't stand the game. I have no issue with political correctness or whatever, but I find it is just an excuse to say shitty things in a group setting, and to laugh when shitty things are said...

Agreed. The target market for the game is sort of high school and immediately post- when people have *just* enough knowledge to get really offensive for humour. It gets very old, very fast.

Quote
I find this has a lot to do with who you play with (and, to be honest, their ages). Some groups can produce some clever and hilarious combinations. Others (or probably most) go straight to toilet humor.

As a father of young boys I have no problem with toilet humour.  Where I have a problem is with racist jokes, rape jokes, racist rape jokes and many other things that are 'shocking' because they are shitty things to joke about.  Joke about poo and pee and farts all you want, I might even laugh along.  Joke about that other stuff and it becomes an exercises in boundary pushing while acting shitty.  No thanks.

Also, it's the game's only thing, to make random shitty jokes.  I like a game that challenges my brain and my thoughts in some way.  Balderdash, of all things, is actually pretty good in the same type of game (party game with wordplay), and creativity is actually rewarded.

Mac_MacGyver

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #80 on: August 25, 2017, 07:02:57 PM »
Candyland but I played Risk recently and it was so much fun. I also played Life but got the teacher card and my wife got the lawyer card so not cool.

Roland of Gilead

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #81 on: August 25, 2017, 08:27:48 PM »
I used to play Risk with my brothers...a lot of fun but the game is quite luck based IIRC.

Try Imperial.  It is a investing game that has war like aspects as Risk does but uses no random draw or luck.  I call it multiplayer chess.

ender

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #82 on: August 26, 2017, 03:37:07 PM »
Played 7 wonders duel yesterday for the first time.

Was really good. I stomped the person I played, because the game is similar to the regular 7 wonders that I like.

Michael in ABQ

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #83 on: August 26, 2017, 10:02:27 PM »
Any suggestions for a family game for kids in the 6-9 range? I've played Risk with my boys as well as Monopoly but obviously those can take a few hours and sometimes my younger son will get bored and quit. I've heard good things about Settlers of Catan and Ticket to Ride but not sure if they would be appropriate for that age range. If my wife and I played the oldest two boys are almost 8 and just turned 9.

neo von retorch

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #84 on: August 27, 2017, 05:09:55 AM »
Ticket to Ride is great for that age range!

Jamaica is a light dice/racing game with a solid pirate theme.

Camel Up is another super fun racing game.

farfromfire

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #85 on: August 27, 2017, 06:13:24 AM »
Risk legacy - starts off similar to regular Risk, but the rules and board quickly change. A little unmustachian because it's hard to 'recycle' but lots of fun and involves more strategy than the original.

JanF

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #86 on: August 28, 2017, 09:15:18 AM »
Any suggestions for a family game for kids in the 6-9 range? I've played Risk with my boys as well as Monopoly but obviously those can take a few hours and sometimes my younger son will get bored and quit. I've heard good things about Settlers of Catan and Ticket to Ride but not sure if they would be appropriate for that age range. If my wife and I played the oldest two boys are almost 8 and just turned 9.

There is Settlers of Catan Jr. and Ticket to Ride Jr. made for kids. I've never played it but it looks easier for kids

Novik

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #87 on: October 19, 2017, 09:25:18 AM »
Loving all the suggestions here - adding many to my list!

My personal favourite game right now is Innovation. It looks fiendishly complicated but the basic rules are actually not too tricky. Not an easy to learn game but has endless levels of strategy and tactics, and no one is guaranteed to win no matter how far ahead they get. Plays well with 2-4, and has several expansions which I'm excited about. If you're buying the base game, get the newer edition with much nicer cards.

Scortius

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #88 on: October 20, 2017, 11:33:25 AM »
My all time #1 - Through the Ages on boardgaming-online.com now as it's a nice way to play with remote friends.

I have two small kids, so it's tough to find time to play strategy games, but my other current favorites are Keyflower and Ora et Labora. I like Eurotrash econ-engine games!

Medium weight games that I don't get to play these days but I'd really like to: Dominion + Exps, Race for the Galaxy, Endeavor, Troyes, Castles of Burgundy, Ra, Smallworld.

Heavier games that I don't get to play, but I'd like to: Eclipse, Agricola, Terra Mystica, Caylus, Le Havre, Tigris & Euphrates, Dominant Species, El Grande, Puerto Rico, and Age of Steam.

For lighter fare, Pandemic, Seven Wonders, and Carcassonne are usually met very positively. Scotland Yard is a blast from the past re-imagined as Letters from Whitechapel, I believe.

For even lighter more parlor-type atmospheres: Love Letter, Hanabi, Resistance: Avalon, Codenames, Coup, maybe Two Rooms and a Boom if you have enough enthusiastic people. Space Alert is also lot of fun if you have the right group.

Games I desperately want, but haven't bought because I can't justify buying more games now that I have two small kids and no time to play: Robinson Crusoe and Terraforming Mars! Not to mention probably a million others!

I'm a red panda

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #89 on: October 20, 2017, 12:33:34 PM »
We just got Tokaido. It is really fun, and what is nice is that it can be played one move at a time and left.  Which is super useful since we play around taking care of our infant- it just sits on the kitchen table.

Dezrah

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #90 on: October 20, 2017, 12:38:46 PM »
I highly recommend Pandemic Legacy.  Season 1 was a blast and is currently available at a good price.  Season 2 is available for preorder now.  I hope to play this with my family over Thanksgiving and Christmas break.

Not a board game, but Jackbox games for PC or console are amazing party games.  Everyone uses their phone to fill in answers for various trivia/Pictionary/bluffing/comedy games.  Games are quick, low key, and so funny.

nereo

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #91 on: October 21, 2017, 03:24:05 PM »
We just got Tokaido. It is really fun, and what is nice is that it can be played one move at a time and left.  Which is super useful since we play around taking care of our infant- it just sits on the kitchen table.

wait, you just leave your infant on the kitchen table?
:-P

I'm a red panda

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #92 on: October 21, 2017, 04:37:33 PM »
We just got Tokaido. It is really fun, and what is nice is that it can be played one move at a time and left.  Which is super useful since we play around taking care of our infant- it just sits on the kitchen table.

wait, you just leave your infant on the kitchen table?
:-P
It was easier before she learned to crawl.

BuffaloStache

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #93 on: November 07, 2017, 02:31:42 PM »
I'd like to throw in my recommendation for Libertalia. 3-4 players is best, and each game typically takes ~45 min. The first game may take almost double that, because I think the instructions aren't written as clearly as they could be. But once you get the hang of it the game is a really awesome swashbuckling pirate game. Has great artwork too.

Gondolin

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #94 on: November 09, 2017, 05:01:32 PM »
I must add my usual pitch for Tammany Hall.

If you like political strategy games with zero element of chance, Tammany is one of the best out there.

neo von retorch

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #95 on: April 09, 2018, 11:53:17 AM »
Scythe
2-5 players, 30-45 minutes per player
Strategy, Engine-building, Area Control, Balance (x5)

[Ever try to rebuild a community on a small, war-torn continent? You're going to need mechs. Because you need workers to join you, and you need to keep them safe. You need to acquire resources (by land or by trade), rebuild your buildings, venture out into the dangerous territory, enlist help from your neighbors... and keep your people happy. Your goal is simple - achieve your goals and become the wealthiest faction around.

The game looks like a war-game, but as mentioned before, it's more about the risk of invasion than having to focus on combat. The real challenge is balancing a long list of objectives and a long list of choices that you make each turn. Can you get your ducks in a row such that you're efficiently expanding your lands, growing your supplies, optimizing your workers and pleasing your people? All while under real danger with rapidly expanding neighbors?

The game looks daunting, there's a lot to learn, and your strategy will vary and change. But each individual turn is actually pretty simple. You have just one of four choices: move units, produce resources, trade for resources (or love), or beef up your military prowess. If you're doing well, you'll be able to take a second action as well, and it's simple. Upgrades make your turns more efficient. Buildings help you in various ways. Enlisting help from neighbors gives you advantages when they accomplish things. And deploying mechs... that's just fun!

It's in-depth, and as such, it's somewhat long. I've played with 5 players a few times, and 2 players once. It's quite reasonable with 2, and if you slowly build up to 5 with players that learn the game, it moves much more quickly with more players. (You have just enough time between turns to pick your next action, so you really don't feel the down-time.)

I don't recommend it to everyone. You have to want to learn a more complex system, and then you can appreciate the variety of strategies and differences in each turn, the surprisingly good balance of the game, and of course, high quality board, artwork and pieces. (While the Kickstarter edition has amazing resource components and metal coins, most of the goodness is baked into the regular version, including 20 miniature mechs and 5 miniature player pieces.)

nereo

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #96 on: April 09, 2018, 02:50:12 PM »
Scythe
2-5 players, 30-45 minutes per player
Strategy, Engine-building, Area Control, Balance (x5)

Thanks for the synopsis @neo von retorch.

Scythe has been at the top of my list since the kickstarter campaign, but the main reason I haven't jumped in is because I lack a good group willing to learn the rules and strategy to play it with. Until recently most of my friends have been from other countries, and explaining rules and strategies in secondary languages is a chore, at best.

How quickly did you go from just understanding the rules and gameplay to really being able to develop your own strategy?

neo von retorch

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #97 on: April 10, 2018, 02:54:37 PM »
How quickly did you go from just understanding the rules and gameplay to really being able to develop your own strategy?

I'd say... probably sometime during game 2 (which was a solid 9 months after game 1.) You can start by just looking at your faction's bonus ability and trying to capitalize on it. But I know of players that do this and quickly realize that the engine they are building is actually more powerful when utilized for a different strategy anyway...

When MvR and I played, she was focused on her production-heavy "same turn multiple times" ability, and I was trying to focus on "exploring to take advantage of encounters" with my "2 options per encounter" ability. But I found that I ended up boosting popularity and military prowess as a side-effect of the efficiencies I gained in preparing to build mechs and gain their expansion abilities, and she ended up taking more encounters than I did... due to her production giving her mechs very early in the game. So we basically swapped strategies at that point...

Nangirl17

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #98 on: April 17, 2018, 04:00:01 PM »
Right now we are big into Terraforming Mars. Awesome game!

We also enjoy Lords of Waterdeep, Pandemic, Power Grid, Five Tribes, 7 Wonders, Stone Age, Agricola (and it's 2 player spinoff All Creatures Big and Small), Blue Moon City, Cleopatra, Ticket to Ride, Catan C&K, Dominion, and Race for the Galaxy.

Mezzie

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Re: Board Games - what are you playing?
« Reply #99 on: April 17, 2018, 05:33:34 PM »
Has anyone played Rising Sun yet? It's a new favorite.