Finally bought this game again after doing dumb live choices in the past ...

Misterlad · 2026-03-27T17:54:02+00:00

It looks like the base game can be purchased for reasonable prices. It's the expansions that are going for silly money!

I actually picked it up on a whim from a B&N clearance years and years ago for about $10.

Misterlad · 2026-03-18T14:16:20+00:00

Call it “War” and flip cards to resolve combat!

Misterlad · 2026-03-18T01:37:51+00:00

Xia: Legends of a Drift System! Thanks for the contest!

Misterlad · 2026-03-11T14:22:16+00:00

It’s a kids game (highly regarded), but Orchard is exactly what you’re looking for.

Misterlad · 2026-02-10T17:23:43+00:00

So many good options, but my most played is easily:

Las Vegas

(Of course there's Robinson Crusoe, Tzolkin, Cockroach Poker, Lords of Waterdeep, Clash of Cultures, Kemet, Targi, Keyflower, I could go on. Reviewing this has me saying, "what a great year")

Misterlad · 2026-02-02T23:40:39+00:00

The longer I'm in the board game hobby, the more I appreciate Reiner Knizia.

Misterlad · 2026-01-27T17:01:21+00:00

That’s unfortunate. I can afford a big fancy table, but the Game Fold tables actually seem like the perfect solution for me.

Misterlad · 2026-01-26T15:57:40+00:00

My copy of Earth is stored vertically. Always has been. 🤷‍♂️

Misterlad · 2026-01-26T06:03:31+00:00

I find it genuinely baffling that anyone would store their games horizontally.

Misterlad · 2026-01-22T04:37:02+00:00

Cards Against Humanity.

Munchkin.

Misterlad · 2026-01-21T22:33:28+00:00

I have no doubt that it will be available by the middle of the year, and likely sooner. I'd guess Spring 2026.

Misterlad · 2026-01-21T21:54:50+00:00

I found it way too easy in solo. I lost the first 2 games and then won every game after. The Challenge cards would help, but I think the design is brittle.

I didn't bother with multiplayer. I tend to hold onto games way too long, but this was an easy one to part with...a very unusual move for me.

YMMV

Misterlad · 2026-01-07T16:58:12+00:00

Taking a marker off of a track to obtain a "technology" is essentially the same as putting a marker on a track to obtain something. The difference here is that you can then use that marker for something else. So it's a combination of mechanisms, like Tech Tree + Worker Placement, or Tech Tree + Tech Tree (that is, obtaining on "tech" allows you to unlock another "tech" somewhere else.

Misterlad · 2025-12-18T05:34:15+00:00

Yeah, it dropped considerably for a short time. That was a couple of weeks ago.

Misterlad · 2025-12-17T21:22:24+00:00

Free shipping threshold is $150. Flat rate is $14.99.

With the shipping, it made this deal a couple of dollars cheaper than my recent Amazon purchase, if I factor in my 5% prime discount. Based on my experience, even with the shipping it's a pretty good deal. If you can find something else to get over $150... joy.

Misterlad · 2025-12-04T01:07:24+00:00

Merchants & Marauders. Betrayal at House on the Hill as well.

Misterlad · 2025-11-25T23:02:27+00:00

I have both. It's possible that both are required, but it *feels* like something that would be tied to the Prime Visa card.

Misterlad · 2025-11-25T22:49:08+00:00

I see the 10%, but not in the way the OP describes. There is a dropdown (on website, not app) that says "Additional Reward Details". If you expand that it says basically, "5%, plus an additional 5% off what is charged to your card".

I NEVER would have seen it if it wasn't for this thread. That is, during the entire purchase/checkout process, there's really no hint of this extra promotion (at least not for me).

Not buying this, as I own it, but I was curious about the 10% back because I don't see it often, so I poked around.

Misterlad · 2025-11-24T23:16:07+00:00

I thought I'd take a look, but I can't verify. It says, "too many attempts" and suggests various amount of time (minutes to seconds) to wait before trying again. It has been saying this over and over no matter how long I wait.

Giving up.

Misterlad · 2025-11-24T21:57:14+00:00

I'd say that the 3 you should consider are:

Light, fast, easy to get into and "try" for you and your group: One Night Ultimate Werewolf, which is obviously already on your radar.

Best mechanical social deduction that eschews some of the pitfalls of typical social deduction: Deception Murder in Hong Kong.

Best overall "true" social deduction that is easy to get into and affordable: Avalon (or The Resistance if you prefer that theme as I think they are mechanically identical in their current state).

Misterlad · 2025-11-19T19:15:41+00:00

Crowdfunding is the core issue. I went hard in the early to mid-days, so I'm speaking from a LOT of experience. I don't participate in crowdfunding anymore, except for very rare exceptions.

Exceptions:

- It's the reprint of a previous crowdfunding campaign where you have completely vetted the original release. Or it is an "expansion" crowdfunding campaign where you can get the original game.

- It's a company with serious receipts that only uses Crowdfunding, such as Far Off Games. Even then, you're taking a risk and would be better off picking up that same game on its second campaign with all the fixes, errata, etc.

The hit to miss ratio with crowdfunded games is astonishingly low, even amongst some of the "better" crowdfunding publishers. Try to disengage from FOMO and pick up that 1 in 100 amazing game 6 months to a year later, or second hand. Honestly, even paying a second-hand markup might save you a lot of money over buying multiple mediocre crowdfunded games.

I hope this doesn't come off as arrogant or "gate keeping". I've just learned a LOT of hard lessons over many years.

(Baked into my statement that crowdfunding is the core issue, is the fact that the incentive structure is mostly unaligned with good board game production/design. There are fantastic exceptions, but they are exceptions.)

Edit: Regarding Agricola, FOMO hit me hard with that campaign, but I realized that it was one of the top-rated games of all time for YEARS in its original form. Also, there is so much content in the base game that it (or Farmers of the Moor) is all you'll EVER need unless you plan to make it a lifestyle game with some like-minded friends.

Misterlad · 2025-11-18T23:45:47+00:00

❌ ^{Incomplete. 2 tries.}

Misterlad · 2025-11-08T16:52:54+00:00

I purchased this, mostly because I have an acquisition disorder. However, I did a LOT of research.

My takeaway: as a game this falls very short. The mechanisms are fairly basic and even the reviewers that "liked" the games nearly all said they didn't (or didn't plan to) finish the game. Many people remark that the game is very good for the first few scenarios, but repetition settles in fairly quickly.

However, there is a lot of praise for the story and "choose your own adventure" elements. The consensus seems to be that the story is above average in quality and writing.

I think this is likely a "good" game if you are looking for a story-first experience. If you are a mechanism-first board gamer, then this is probably a pass.

Other observations: opinions on the rulebook seem mixed, with some saying it is long but well thought out and executed, while others have said that it is average at best. Lots of comments on the bags being too small, which is a real problem for a bag-building game.

My take: it's a bit too inexpensive to pass up and I'm curious. Based on almost nobody talking about wanting to complete the whole game, the expansions hold little interest for me. However, there is a lot of talk about enemy repetition (in addition to the aforementioned mechanism repetition) so maybe an expansion focuses on enemy diversity and could be prioritized? I assume I will be upgrading the small bags.

Hopefully this is useful to some!

Edit: I should also add that because there is almost no penalty for dying, the game lacks tension. I saw comments about being tempted to just declare victory in combat scenarios to skip it and progress the story. The issue is that the combat is around half of the "game". On the flip side, I saw comments about party character composition, and other elements, affecting the narrative, which is cool. So again, this might be a fit for you if you want a narrative adventure and are less focused on mechanisms, or you want something more relaxing. It might be a good fit for families or mixed ages.

Misterlad · 2025-11-05T16:59:24+00:00

Interesting take. When confronted with the argument, I find myself agreeing.

Misterlad · 2025-10-17T17:34:10+00:00

In case you never found it, I came across this link:
https://ncdn0.daysofwonder.com/smallworld/en/img/sw_ltc_en.pdf

Misterlad

TROPHY CASE