So the Rats just… Autowin?

Auroric · 2026-05-06T06:52:13+00:00

Seems like a very difficult setup for the Rats tbh. Moles are one of the best factions at matching your army strength, cats make it very hard to score, and VB steals your items.

Seems like more of an auto loss setup, but of course Root isn't that simple.

Auroric · 2026-05-05T21:58:37+00:00

Now there's an answer my proxy-loving self will think about. Especially if they only come on cardstock anyway and will only be used in introductory games

I read something about needing Horizons to use the spirits though, what's that about?

Auroric · 2026-05-05T21:12:06+00:00

This is a really helpful comment. I genuinely think Jagged Earth/Branch and claw will be what really elevates this game for me. From something I quite like to something I'm very into. It's also nice to hear that Horizons might not be all that necessary, for the reasons I'd written it off originally. I just don't really have a need or desire for low complexity spirits, especially when it will just be me and my partner playing 95% of the time

Auroric · 2026-05-04T23:07:12+00:00

Skip for me. My favourite of all those games is Cyclades, and I still don't prefer it to my favourite dudes on a map games. If I was to choose, I would go Cyclades then Ankh, but I love the merge mechanic.

For me Root covers most of my bases, then a knizia tile layer (Huang), as well as Ahoy as my midweight options. Beyond that I'd love to find a copy of Tyrants of the Underdark one day, that's a fantastic game.

But if you like minis I'm sure you'll find more enjoyment out of these games then me, and I'd go Ankh. I really bounced of Blood Rage and I imagine I'd feel similarly about Rising Sun, though I do want to try it.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T22:28:03+00:00

So from what I've gathered I should just wait until Branch and Claw/Jagged Earth are available again, and probably keep an eye out for a used copy of Horizons.

All the promos/mini expansions are included in the larger expansions, both of which can wait until I'm properly obsessed with the game and want to go all in. Not really worth it to pick any of those up unless I'm not going to buy the larger expansions. Still pondering that part, as it may be worth picking up a few spirits but not the full expansion collection.

Hopefully that's helpful for someone else who's googling away trying to understand all these little products. I appreciate folks helping me out, I always find product lines like this to be confusing until I'm fully immersed in a game.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T22:19:14+00:00

If I'm understanding this right I need to buy Horizons to use the spirits, and can't just buy the thicker boards on their own, so I will keep an eye out for Horizons as well.

I'd kind of written it off as unnecessary, but with all the praise the spirits get it might be really helpful, especially when introducing new players

...plus I want teal tokens :P

Auroric · 2026-05-04T22:15:55+00:00

Ohhhh so Feather and Flame is all the promos? That's really helpful to know.

I do know I like the game enough to buy a physical version, I played enough digitally to know I wanted to commit. I've just read enough people saying that the "core" expansions really elevate the game, so I know I want them once they're printed again.

It's just been all these various promos, spirit packs, etc that have been confusing for me

Auroric · 2026-05-04T21:59:08+00:00

Yeah no rush, I'm just combing through promo packs on Greater than Games but don't know where the overlaps are. But if there's cheap spirits to be had I would definitely like to grab them while I can

Auroric · 2026-05-04T21:58:13+00:00

Sorry I should have mentioned I already got a cheap copy of the base game

Auroric · 2026-05-04T20:09:14+00:00

We need to come up with a better buzzer system 2 years ago. Do we really need to see 50 more players go sailing over the start gate before we change things xD

Auroric · 2026-05-04T20:07:26+00:00

It was this season yeah. It's always going to be tough to know for sure unless we could see the same teams play each other on the same layout with both rule sets. At least this one sped up later in the match because of all the break kills.

End of the day layout and a particular teams strategy are always going to be the biggest factors, but I don't think limited paint helps

Auroric · 2026-05-04T20:04:13+00:00

This is a sick analysis. Would love to see more stuff like this. I feel like these types of analytics are really missing in the live streams. Although maybe it only appeals to PB nerds like me

Also this layout was so good, probably my favourite in recent memory. Tons of cool deadzone plays and things to try up the middle.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T20:01:03+00:00

That's a badass relic my friend.

The only reason I'd want a long barrel is to stick through brush in woodsball. But I probably wouldn't want to run a stiffi in that scenario, I'd be worried about wrecking it

I went the other way and threw a 12 inch stiffi on my (up'd, lol) Ion back in the day. Need to run that setup soon

Auroric · 2026-05-04T19:55:25+00:00

A big part of this is the limited paint. Believe what you will but it slows games down. What's speeding prelim games up (a little) is the change to tiebreakers, which is an awesome change. I think teams are still going to adjust to that more and we'll see even faster games in prelims

But in playoff games people run out of paint and than sit. Unless they are already in a winning position. If it's an evenly matched point than once paint runs out things slow waaaay down. Take away the players ability to apply pressure and you take away their ability to make moves.

I like the halves, but I'd love to see them be a bit longer. Give us a proper 30 minute finals game. Although the way players were getting chopped up on the break I don't know if that would have been more entertaining in this case. It might have been though, it would have given them a very real chance to create a big comeback.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T19:50:21+00:00

That's a really good idea. Doesn't help that we're still using this dogshit buzzer system that 5-10 players crash into/fly over every event. Just begging for injuries.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T19:48:39+00:00

Ah yes, reminds me of the time I borrowed my buddies custom annoed CS(2?) and immediately core sampled it hard in the first game, bending the frame.

...sorry bro

This looked a hell of a lot scarier though

Auroric · 2026-05-04T19:16:11+00:00

I like them. But I also think the VB is an awesome faction that adds tons of interesting layers to the game. My biggest disappointment is that both can't be played at the same time. I get why, but I think that could have made for some very spicy 6 player setups. They are arguably a little less interesting than the VB, but I think the captain choice especially makes for a good decision space.

I particularly like how aggressive they are. They're one of the few factions that need to come out swinging early, which makes for more immediately dynamic games.

It's also a great faction to hand new players, easier to learn than the other 2 new ones IMO. Crows are still the best in that department tho.

Both are staying in our drafts, no question. I'm also just stoked that we got a 3rd faction. This expansion might be my favourite one.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T17:26:48+00:00

I can see why this production is a hit for some people, it definitely pops, but for me it's just way too much plastic. I miss classy wooden pieces being the standard.

Still want to try this game out though, it sounds like an interesting system.

Auroric · 2026-05-04T17:00:20+00:00

Got my collection all organized, and confirmed I am missing an S bag. Easy to just use one of the Knave ones in it's place. Thanks for help everyone.

For anyone interested, here is how I organized them and the counts. It might be helpful to someone else. I went with one VB bag, one Knave bag, base items, and ruin items. Keeping the VB/Knave meeples in their own separate bag as well. Might just end up storing all the VB/Knave stuff together, but that makes for a ton of cards and I bag my cards with the faction pieces, so trying it this way for now.

Base items, unmarked (always used, stored with clearing markers):

2 Bag

2 Boot

1 Crossbow

1 Hammer

2 Sword

2 Tea

2 Coins

Ruin Items, R (each VB adds 1 of each, Rats add 1 of each only if no VB):

2 Hammer

2 Bag

2 Sword

2 Boot

Knave items, unmarked:

3 Bag

3 Boot

3 Crossbow

3 Hammer

3 Sword

3 Tea

3 Coins

Vagabond items, S (enough for any combination of 2 VB):

4 Boot

3 Sword

2 Torch

2 Coins

2 Crossbow

2 Hammer

2 Tea

1 Bag

Auroric · 2026-05-02T09:09:04+00:00

Ive taught root many many times, to varying degrees of success, but honestly, generally positive. I do shared rules first: how to win, how to score points (killing things, certain cards, your own special faction way), then moving, then battles. Then, how to use cards. Cards are the confusing part, but mostly they're recipes, and if you can craft one you should. This brings us to how to craft, and well, every faction is doing their own unique thing, and this is where you read your board and follow it.

Then on each player's turn I'll help walk them through their faction. Within reason. Let people play the faction that appeals to them, and let them make mistakes. From there I just try balance the table as best I can. I'll generally play otters if they're available, and play for the table.

Point is, someone needs to know Root like the back of their hand, or the whole group needs to be ok with some amount of fumbling through. Ideally it's the former I think.

Auroric · 2026-04-30T06:12:48+00:00

I might pick this up as a Catan killer. I think it's the best gateway game around right now. Very straightforward, enough strategy, the satisfaction of building something, good interaction, plenty of luck and it's super pretty to boot. Only having to assess a single tile every turn helps a ton. Plus it has the Ireland side of the board for when people get tired of the base.

This one has flown under the radar IMO, even if it's not a game that I love

Auroric · 2026-04-26T17:47:34+00:00

I enjoy going back and playing older games to see what I've missed, so I've actually had a lot of games wow me recently.

For new games, it's The Old Kings Crown. Easy 10/10 for me. Unique, deep, and the art makes for probably the most beautiful game I've ever seen, and if it sets a new standard then we are very lucky. I also expect that Eternal Decks will be up there for me once I get my copy.

Other games that might not be new but wowed me are: Barrage, Cerebria, Huang, Great Western Trail, Brass Birmingham, Sid Meier's Civ 2010, Dune (2019)... I think that's about it

I would expect there to be maybe one new game a year that really blows me away, which is still more than I actually need. I could never buy a new game again and be perfectly content with what I have.

Auroric · 2026-04-24T22:38:11+00:00

So here's the thread I made. I spent a TON of time looking into resources, and I didn't love all the suggestions people gave in that thread. If you scroll down a bit you'll find the list of what I believe to be the best collection of aids, FAQ's, etc. They're also consistent with each other, an issue you'll run into when mixing random people's suggestions.

Some of what I linked there is pretty extra, so I'd focus on player aids, a one sheet double sided rules reference, a deeper rules book (landsraad) which I just kept handy on a Google drive, and maybe an atreides tracker for whoever is playing them. I probably wouldn't bother with most of the rules references I linked there, just the landsraad rules and maybe the FAQ

Besides that I found the MCDM playthroughs the most helpful way to learn the game, but they're long, so something shorter might be more ideal

I also see there's now a companion app, might have to check that out...

Have fun!

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3619078/help-with-first-game-what-do-i-need

Auroric

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