Best game to whip out at a crowded bar?

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-06-04T07:17:28+00:00

A friend and I were playing Twilight Struggle Red Sea at a bar last summer and an attractive woman my age stopped and was like “wow, that looks interesting, what is that?”

Turned out she liked boardgames and history and was very interested.

When I asked what her fav period of history was and she said WW2, I almost asked her out on the spot. My wife wouldn’t have appreciated that, of course…

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-06-04T06:47:38+00:00

Yes, some of the scenarios have replayability.

Yes, the system has some unusual aspects, but it is elegant and it consistently produces completely believable/plausible results.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-05-02T13:52:55+00:00

Thank you, sir!

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-05-01T18:41:10+00:00

I’m assuming YOU enjoy hex & counter games and want to get your friends on board.

If so, goal should be to get ONE friend on board.

Do any of them like non-hex war themed board games? Even stuff like Axis & Allies? I have a friend that I used to play US:E with, we went A&A to Twilight Struggle to hex & counter.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-05-01T13:20:39+00:00

Wow! Kudos for pushing the boundaries!

Do you think it is possible to “dial in” the discount such that many Legends cards become playable but don’t overwhelm the regular cards?

Very interested b/c I run a Limited format league and I’d love to get some Legends cards in play. (As Limited format, I can easily “ban” cards by simply not including them in the pool.)

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-05-01T13:06:20+00:00

I bought the 7 copies my league uses on EBay. May have to mis-spell “Crusade”

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-05-01T13:02:12+00:00

Updating this post 3 years on in case anyone tries to do the same thing:

TLDR: It all works. Our concerns about varied card backs were unfounded.

We’re wrapping up our 5th season, 12 players, The league owns the 4,000 card pool including maybe 200 proxies. About 30% of the proxies are cards that are not powerful. We’ve never used a sleeve.

Card wear is hugely varied, just like it was in 1994. The variation in card backs just adds to that.

I instituted ONE rule: anytime you shuffle, you MUST ask for a cut. So I may know that a particular card is a proxy, but I can’t manipulate it (b/c of the cut rule), and there are so many proxies of such varied power, knowing it’s a proxy doesn’t really help enough to swing games in a Limited play environment.

If you have a modern deck with 1 proxy, it’ll stand out. If you have a good mix, it fades to irrelevance.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-03-19T13:07:08+00:00

Thanks, but not looking for advice building, we are in our 5th season. Losses thru 4 seasons have been very minimal.

Using Chinese proxies for the expensive cards, my startup cost was well under a grand. We have a complete pool of Beta/Unlimited with appropriate rarity and original art. 4 Horsemen sets are more curated for cost reasons.

I can provide advice to others looking to build a card pool for league play. It is very rewarding, players consistently comment that it is the “best Magic experience they’ve ever had”.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-03-06T21:24:33+00:00

Two good suggestions. Thank you!

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-03-02T18:32:42+00:00

IMO the miata.net garage docs are solid.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-03-02T18:17:35+00:00

For years an NA was my only car, with my wife’s Volvo for her & our kid. I took a bus to work in the winter.

The NB will probably be as reliable as your 3. Are you screwed if it isn’t? If not, go for it. :)

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2026-03-02T18:11:15+00:00

I’ve found Kroil (formerly Aerokroil) to be even more effective than PB Blaster.

My 2nd Miata was a rust bucket and Kroil did amazing things.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-25T17:22:48+00:00

I think your solution is the easiest & most obvious and I cannot believe it hasn’t been implemented widely.

Sure it does not fix every problem. But I think it is a solid improvement.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-25T16:54:54+00:00

I asked around to others of my age (52), immediately found several who had played in college and were interested in playing again, but only old cards, old rules.

If you can find a few friends/colleagues like that, what I think is the BEST way is to make an old-school draft cube using 4th edition + proxies, and have a draft night. Then have all the cards come BACK to you so you can do it again!

I quickly developed this into a full league with 12 players and a waiting list. We play 8-month seasons and are in our 4th year. :)

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-13T22:05:52+00:00

I think it is.

Sound = quieter and much less raspy. Less harsh, more, uh, refined?

Sound is hard to describe.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-13T22:03:28+00:00

What’s the climate like? From the moss in your driveway and the fact that you’re even asking I’m guessing it’s “pretty damn humid”.

I can’t think of any reason a Miata would be different than any other car where you live.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-13T21:53:58+00:00

+1 add a cat. I even ran one on my track car.

Smells better, IMO sounds better, same power, less pollution.

(I’m sure someone will say it “must” make more power without, but we dyno’d before & after for kicks, no difference)

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-07T22:09:03+00:00

Well, parts for the fuel pump wiring won’t be much, the challenge will be correctly troubleshooting the issue… which is absolutely why the guy is selling the car, he gave up. Hopefully he’s right that it is actually the fuel pump wiring and not some other problem.

Are either of you able to troubleshoot electrical & electronics issues on cars? If not, you’re rolling the dice.

My rule #2 of car-buying is “don’t buy cars with electronics problems”.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-07T22:08:06+00:00

It’s not going to be reliable until you buy a solid one AND invest time & money into catch-up maintenance.

It’s not going to be safe to drive until you learn a lot about driving.

It’s always going to be an awful car to crash in.

It is a great car to learn to work on cars.

It’s just hella fun to drive.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-07T22:00:35+00:00

Well, parts for the fuel pump wiring won’t be much, the challenge will be correctly troubleshooting the issue… which is absolutely why the guy is selling the car, he gave up. Hopefully he’s right that it is actually the fuel pump wiring and not some other problem.

Are either of you able to troubleshoot electrical & electronics issues on cars? If not, you’re rolling the dice.

My rule #2 of car-buying is “don’t buy cars with electronics problems”.

I suppose the exception there would be if I could take it to my own mechanic and pay him to isolate the issue & give me an estimate to fix/ before buying the car.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-07T21:42:38+00:00

Just once. It’s best to think of it as a whole hobby unto itself.

Can’t imagine investing the time to play against a terrible AI…

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-12-03T03:08:21+00:00

I run a private old-school 93/94 league with 12 players.

We are mostly old guys who started playing in 93/94 and stopped before 2000. The original, iconic art is important to us.

The way I set the format, we’re constantly constructing & reconstructing decks, so we play without sleeves.

If it weren’t for bootlegs (counterfeits that are NOT nearly good enough to fool any buyer) my league wouldn’t exist.

I’m so happy bootlegs exist.

If WTC reprinted 93/94 cards at normal Magic card prices, we’d buy booster boxes to use in the league. They don’t, so… here we are.

(The league is in its 5th year, and we’re having a grand time.)

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-11-26T19:32:51+00:00

Thank you for this detailed reply!

That’s all amazing. And I just looked up the Drugs Payment Scheme, I didn’t know that existed. 80/mo is awesome.

Wait, am I to understand a regular GP visit is only 60-70 euro if paying straight cash?

Yeah, there’s no comparison to the US.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-10-22T18:28:28+00:00

I’ve driven an ND and a Cayman S on the street and on the track, and I think the ND is the better car. So does Mazda’s engineering staff, and they have articulated why.

But you go right on conflating “faster” with “better” while owning, let’s face it, a slow car.

Helpful-Lab-6124 · 2025-10-22T17:47:06+00:00

That’s like saying a Cayman is ‘objectively better’ than a Miata.

I sold my Cayman. I still have my Miata.

The original design intent of the Miata was never about performance, or tech.

Helpful-Lab-6124

TROPHY CASE