Tabletop Randomness

AWS260 · Post by **AWS260** » Tue Sep 03, 2019 11:17 pm

This is pretty delightful. Universal Head (creator of a bunch of top-notch rules summaries and player aids on BGG) walks through his collection.

AWS260 · Post by **AWS260** » Tue Sep 24, 2019 10:24 am

Is anyone going to SHUX this year? My wife and I will be there (and in the Vancouver area in general the week before).

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Sat Sep 28, 2019 3:59 pm

Prepping for FLGS fall auction. Anyone see anything they want tell me what you’re willing to pay and I’ll take it into consideration. We’ll work out shipping later. (Check back, I’ll be adding more through the day. )

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Sat Sep 28, 2019 6:41 pm

Let’s talk Paranoia. Not likely you have something I don’t but it’s possible.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Sat Sep 28, 2019 9:47 pm

Zarathud wrote:Let’s talk Paranoia. Not likely you have something I don’t but it’s possible.

1st edition box set, complete except dice. That’s all I have.

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Sat Sep 28, 2019 10:54 pm

Drat. Have that, and pretty much everything else.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Sun Sep 29, 2019 3:16 pm

Dang it, you’re tempting me with that Star Wars Legion stuff.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Mon Sep 30, 2019 6:44 pm

Already dropped off, sorry. Tons of interest from the game store staff in my MDF Star Wars terrain too.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Tue Oct 01, 2019 12:54 am

hentzau wrote: ↑Mon Sep 30, 2019 6:44 pm Already dropped off, sorry. Tons of interest from the game store staff in my MDF Star Wars terrain too.

No worries!

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Tue Oct 01, 2019 1:53 pm

When I dropped off my games at the FLGS for the auction, my Battle Kiwi MDF terrain made quite a stir amongst the staff...they hadn't seen any of that before. It was a really hard decision to part with it, but I just haven't touched Legion since it came out, and Fallout and Gangs of Rome have their hooks in me pretty hard, so it made sense to get rid of it. Based on the staff reaction, I think it will sell pretty well.

And to show what a great store this is, one of the staff members found me in the store as they were unpacking the games and he was carrying my copies of BSG and Pegasus Expansion. He told me that he wasn't really supposed to do this, but I'm a good customer so they wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing putting those in the local auction since they sell in the $150 range on eBay in shrink. I had no clue, wasn't aware it was out of print. So those suckers are going on eBay this week!

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Wed Oct 02, 2019 12:38 am

Thanks for reminding me about the suburban FLGS Fall Auction, but I probably won't be able to get away this weekend!

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Wed Oct 02, 2019 10:06 am

It's funny...I've sold there a couple of times, but have never actually attended the auction.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Oct 07, 2019 10:40 am

South Park continues to champion board games. Obviously Parker and Stone are true board gamers as they feature real boardgames from kickstarters and what not quite a bit.

This time around it's Nemesis, the Dune reboot, Endeavor and Gaslands...which I never would have thought they'd feature.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Mon Oct 07, 2019 10:53 am

Ha! That's awesome.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Mon Oct 07, 2019 12:02 pm

Oh, how I'd love to watch the kids playing Gaslands.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Mon Oct 07, 2019 12:27 pm

I'm interested in Core Space, because I've fallen in love with Battle Systems simple cardstock terrain.

That was the one that I was really surprised to see.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Mon Oct 07, 2019 2:34 pm

Blackhawk wrote:Oh, how I'd love to watch the kids playing Gaslands.

Crossover with Tabletop with Wil Wheaton.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Mon Oct 07, 2019 2:36 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Mon Oct 07, 2019 2:34 pm
Blackhawk wrote:Oh, how I'd love to watch the kids playing Gaslands.
Crossover with Tabletop with Wil Wheaton.

Now that is brilliant.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Oct 08, 2019 10:45 am

New hire came into the office today and I had to set him up with his IT services/computer/etc.. In the first 10 minutes he announced that he was familiar with Microsoft OneDrive because he uses it to distribute files to his Dungeons and Dragons group.

...I think he'll work out just fine.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Sun Oct 13, 2019 5:20 pm

The fruits of my labors...

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Sun Oct 13, 2019 6:19 pm

What new games are you buying?

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Sun Oct 13, 2019 8:10 pm

Smoove_B wrote:What new games are you buying?

Mostly miniatures stuff right now. I’m hoping they can get some Gangs of Rome and Sarissa buildings in.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Mon Oct 14, 2019 10:32 am

Redfive wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2019 10:47 am
Paingod wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 8:45 am I just got accepted into my first Roll20.net group and should be playing Starfinder with three other people this Saturday as long as nothing untoward happens. Feels weird. Pen & paper sessions were always with really good friends, and committing to 5 hours with complete strangers has me feeling a little uneasy.
What others have said. My online D&D group, with the exception of 2 players that were added after we had been going for a year already, was essentially strangers or acquaintances of other online acquaintances. We're all friends and one of them will be in San Antonio in early August on a potential house hunting trip. We already have plans to meet and I'm even going to hook him up with my father in law who is a custom home designer.

If it's a good group you'll know pretty quickly. Except for that one guy.

I don't think I'm that guy, yet. We all seem to get along. The game is heavily character-based and less combat-oriented, though. I feel bad for the west-coast guy who made a soldier. He doesn't chime in much. I don't typically join the banter with my character unless I have an idea I want to try.
The trio we joined in Malta dominate the sessions, but it's not in a bad way. They're pretty witty and have a lot of personality for their characters - it's just hard to get a word in sometimes. One is a -very- verbose diplomat type character, so we're happy to let him lead NPC interactions. Another is a feisty klepto, and he's fun to listen to, if a little brash.

There aren't any rule nazis or anything, and the GM is always willing to listen to why you think your thing you're attempting might work this way or that way without pushing his own ruling instantly. The GM is pretty darn good at improvising scenarios and reactions for NPC's as well.

As far as Starfinder goes as a game...
Pros:

An absurd number of playable races - 76 racial selections (so far), each with different perks or negatives.
- Core Rulebook: 7 Alien Races, 6 Standard Fantasy Races (human, half-orc, gnome, etc), Pact Worlds: 6 Races, Alien Archive: 22 Races, Alien Archive 2: 15 Races, Alien Archive 3: 20 Races
- There are a LOT of terran-animal themed aliens. Cats, Wolves, Bears, Walruses, Otters, Squids - to name a few.
24 Themes, 7 Classes, 9 Archetype options
- Core Rulebook: 10 Themes, 7 Classes, 2 Archetypes, Pact Worlds: 14 Themes, 6 Archetypes, Armory: 1 Archetype
- Themes define your character's backstory and objectives, like being an Outlaw or Scholar.
- Classes define your core abilities
- Archetypes provide a selection of alternate core abilities that replace class abilities, as an option
- Two players may choose the "Operative" class, but one wants to be an Outlaw while another is a Corporate Agent. They would assess situations differently. They may also have entirely different skills to use outside the framework of the class depending on their Archetype.
I don't think any one class will dominate late-game like casters do in other systems. No class is truly bad at combat, and weapons scale up in damage with level. A level 1 pistol might do 1d6. A level 20 pistol might do 12d6. So, too, though does armor and health scale up, so in theory a balance is maintained.
Aliens/Enemies are laid out plainly for GM's to use without a lot of tinkering to figure out bonuses to this or that.
Players work best when they know their class and abilities inside and out, without relying on the GM to know everything.
Lots of plot hooks included in the books, particularly the Pact Worlds. Pretty easy to visualize a custom campaign that uses an established theme in the books as a focal point.
All of the books in PDF format can be found here, though I've also bought hard copies.

Cons:

There's a LOT of data in those books that all meshes together. There's a learning curve in there that may scare off some players.
The economy is ... wonky. Players sell items for 10% of their worth to vendors. Players (especially early on) can quickly outgrow their equipment and have trouble finding level-appropriate items they can afford (so GM's need to balance loot for players or ensure they get enough, but not too much, cash reward) to be competitive with enemies they may face.
Skill wonkiness. It can be easy to be a master of a particular skill early on with some builds. It's entirely feasible to have +14 to a skill at level 1 depending on race, class, and abilities. By the same token, as you level up, if you haven't been laser-focused on maintaining expertise in a set of skills, they may not be overly useful later on when you're rolling against things with +20 (or higher) bonuses.
Crafting is bland. The way players craft is based on skill + money. Done. The game needs homebrewed rules for crafting items to make them more interesting. As it is, there are few limits - if any - on what a player could make on their own with enough of the "universal resource" the Core Rule Book says everything is made out of. At the same time, lots of items are referred to as being made of rare metals or exotic hides - but with no mechanism to account for it in crafting.
Starships. Arguably one of the biggest draws for me turned into a head-scratcher once I got in there.
- Starship combat is sloggy and not fun for all involved. Our sessions had one combat that lasted just 9 turns and took over 2 hours. As the first combat, there was a lot of reference work, but it was still slow. Each side has to push through 5 phases in sync with each other, based on initiative. Player Captain, Hostile Captain. Player Engines, Hostile Engines. Player Science, Hostile Science. Player Pilot, Hostile Pilot. Player Gunner, Hostile Gunner. Initiative really matters as it decides who moves their ship first each turn, and you always want to move second, in response to how the enemy moves.
- Pilots and Gunners get to really engage somewhat, Captains maybe more, but Engineers and Science Officers are pretty much rolling to repeat last turns actions.
- The biggest one - the Economy of ships. The rules have absolutely NO accounting for how a rag-tag band of penniless misfits can afford to operate, build, or acquire a ship. This is entirely at the GM's discretion with little guidance. The book assumes players want a ship and basically says they can have one, and that ship typically gets upgraded to stay appropriate for the party's overall power level. A ship should, if the players financed it, cost in the tens of thousands at a minimum and billions at the top levels... but these are freely given for the sake of fun.

raydude · Post by **raydude** » Fri Nov 01, 2019 9:46 am

My willpower broke down this week and I ended up buying both Dawn of the Zeds 3rd Edition and Tiny Epic Zombies Deluxe.

I'm a little upset at myself for not backing the Zeds reprint, as I could have also gotten the 3 expansions + base game for the retail price I paid for the base game. I played Tiny Epic Zombies Deluxe with some friends a while back and I think it would be perfect as a coop game for my 2 daughters and myself. Plus I'm hoping to use the zombie minis in Dawn of the Zeds.

AWS260 · Post by **AWS260** » Fri Nov 01, 2019 3:38 pm

Starting at midnight tonight, I'll be gaming at my FLGS for the Nov. 2 Extra Life fundraiser. I am definitely not going to make it through the 24-hour marathon; my plan is to stay a few hours and come back at some point during the day on Saturday.

Edit: Made it to 3am! Considering we started at 9pm, I'd call that a success. Played Startups, Inis, Intrigue, and Hans & Gut.

AWS260 · Post by **AWS260** » Wed Nov 06, 2019 3:26 pm

A nice article about the games of designer Carl Chudyk. Of these, I've only played Innovation, and only once, but I was really impressed by its fizzy, chaotic cleverness.

Certain designers have a set of obsessions that shine brightly when you put all their work together. There’s a pattern of passions that unite their work. Carl Chudyk is my my board game design crush, and it’s because he ploughs a furrow that nobody else could. His games are relics from a weirder, smarter world. He builds layered puzzle-systems where possibilities multiply at every turn. They’re challenging to learn, but a delight to wrangle.

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 1:03 pm

Going to buy this for all my board game matts, unless someone has a better suggestion? What does everyone else use?

Amazon Linky to something cool

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 1:11 pm

Are they vinyl mats? I've been using a baseball bat display tube (it's just clear plastic) to hold a neoprene gaming mat. I think it would hold a whole bunch of vinyl mats, though I don't have any experience to say for sure.

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 1:17 pm

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Thu Nov 07, 2019 1:11 pm Are they vinyl mats? I've been using a baseball bat display tube (it's just clear plastic) to hold a neoprene gaming mat. I think it would hold a whole bunch of vinyl mats, though I don't have any experience to say for sure.

Nice! I do have some of those types of tubes. Might use them in conjunction with the other item, so I can keep them all in one place, and not get indents on any of the matts.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 2:04 pm

Depends on the mat. For card mat size, I use Playmat tubes. For larger mats (like RPG mats) I use clear acrylic tubes I was given that are comparable to the bat tubes. A little thicker and no caps, but otherwise about the same thing. I've seen others that use a cheap alternative - sections of PVC pipe with end caps made for just that. PVC pipe comes in long enough sections that you can cut them just the right size.

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 2:12 pm

Blackhawk wrote: ↑Thu Nov 07, 2019 2:04 pm Depends on the mat. For card mat size, I use Playmat tubes. For larger mats (like RPG mats) I use clear acrylic tubes I was given that are comparable to the bat tubes. A little thicker and no caps, but otherwise about the same thing. I've seen others that use a cheap alternative - sections of PVC pipe with end caps made for just that. PVC pipe comes in long enough sections that you can cut them just the right size.

Oh, man, I never thought of the PVC pipe. I have a ton of it from a drain pipe project I did a while ago. They are like 2 inch wide piping. I could just cut those down. Or even go and buy some smaller piping... Great suggestion.

hentzau · Post by **hentzau** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 2:29 pm

I use poster mailing tubes for my mats up to 3’ wide. Ultra cheap, and they have caps on the ends.

Mailing Tubes

Fardaza · Post by **Fardaza** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 1:47 pm

I'm looking at either Gloomhaven or Mage Knight for solo play. Based on other threads, I know I will like either one.

My problem is that table space is at a minimum. How much space do they take to actually set up and play? My concern is not about the pieces left in the box during that playthrough. I'm only wondering about the pieces, cards, counters, etc. that will be used that session.

My table is only about 2' x 3'

Thanks for your assistance.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 2:32 pm

2' x 3' is a pretty small table, but I think most Gloomhaven stuff should fit on it. The caveat, however, is that you'll want to use an app to control the monster (the one I use is called Gloomyhaven, I think). Otherwise, you'll need the attack deck of cards and info sheets for the monsters, which itself takes up a good bit of space.

I've only played Mage Knight once, so I'll hold off on commenting on its space requirements.

TheMix · Post by **TheMix** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 3:32 pm

I just measured my (permanent) Gloomhaven setup, I think you'll be feeling pretty cramped on 2'x3'. The map that is still set up from Friday needs about 2'x2' (though it is a bit larger than most of the other ones we've played). So that would give you 1'x2' roughly for your characters. I've got the playmats, so that wouldn't work for me. But if I dropped those and condensed, it might be possibly to squeeze 2 characters in. But you won't be playing with more in that amount of space. And this will suppose that you are using an app for handling the monster cards/boards; and keeping as much as possible in the box (or in plano boxes that are then left in the box - though I use a tv tray table to stack most of that stuff on).

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 6:28 pm

Very sad news from the world of board wargaming.

Designer Chad Jensen has been battling cancer, and his wife posted on ConSimWorld that his disease has taken an aggressive turn and that he is coming home for hospice care with possibly just a few weeks to live.

Chad designed the Combat Commander series, Fighting Formations, Dominant Species, and others. His rulebooks are far and away the industry model for clarity and explanatory skill--he's a real genius in that area. He's also always been said to be one of the nicest people in the hobby.

Fardaza · Post by **Fardaza** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 11:19 pm

TheMix wrote: ↑Tue Nov 12, 2019 3:32 pm I just measured my (permanent) Gloomhaven setup, I think you'll be feeling pretty cramped on 2'x3'. The map that is still set up from Friday needs about 2'x2' (though it is a bit larger than most of the other ones we've played). So that would give you 1'x2' roughly for your characters. I've got the playmats, so that wouldn't work for me. But if I dropped those and condensed, it might be possibly to squeeze 2 characters in. But you won't be playing with more in that amount of space. And this will suppose that you are using an app for handling the monster cards/boards; and keeping as much as possible in the box (or in plano boxes that are then left in the box - though I use a tv tray table to stack most of that stuff on).

I'm looking into getting a traditional card table. Roughly 3'x3'. The other issue is my wife won't let me leave games lying out for long.

TheMix · Post by **TheMix** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 11:59 pm

I hadn't originally expected it to be semi-permanent. But we've been playing every couple weeks with some friends. When it doesn't get postponed. I originally figured we'd mix in some other games after a while. But so far they've wanted to keep playing it. So I just leave it set up. Also, I have one of the recessed gaming tables. So I just put the topper on when not in use.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Wed Nov 13, 2019 12:23 am

I've been making myself nuts trying to get something to put on my 3x3 table to make is 4x4, as I find I often struggle with even 3x3 for some games.

I just can't find anything that is cheap, or instructions that don't require tools I don't have access to.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Wed Nov 13, 2019 11:33 am

I've got a weekly Gloomhaven group and we don't keep the set-up out between weeks. Once you're used to it (and when using the aforementioned app to control monsters), setting up doesn't actually take that long. If we're working together, we can usually get it ready to go in about 15 minutes (obviously it would take a bit longer if doing it solo).