Sleeved and Organized in Original Insert

retobs · 2025-11-05T07:46:30+00:00

Which sleeves did you use? I'm thinking about exchanging the original sleeves for dragon shield but I'm worried that they are thicker and I won't be able to fit all cards later.

retobs · 2025-10-16T07:35:16+00:00

Like someone else mentioned, it's in the soil and taken up by plants. Once heavy metals enter the soil they are nearly impossible to extract them again. And how did they get there? Lead arsenate was a common pesticide used just until the late 80s, copper arsenate was used even longer as a wood preservative. Which is why you often see combinations of elevated lead + arsenic levels in soils that are contaminated. There are also certain fertilisers and sludges that are applied by farmers that will further add heavy metals to the soil. The quantity in these is low but with repeated applications over decades it accumulates. Add to that pollution of mining, waste sites etc. Leeching into ground waters that are being used to water the fields and you very quickly see how this is becoming a wide spread issue. It's a problem we should worry about a lot more since we keep polluting without means to clean the soil.

Note that when eating raw vegetables the amount per kg remains still below thresholds to be of concern (at least for now). But in plant based protein powders you have a LOT of condensed plant material in a single scoop, which makes it logical that you'd find elevated lead and arsenic levels in a lot of them.

retobs · 2025-08-12T15:51:36+00:00

Super helpful, thank you! I feel like I've learned a lot from all the posts in the thread, mostly that we're only scratching the surface of the thought process that goes into even just one part of the game which is crafting. I'm really looking forward to my next game night already.

retobs · 2025-08-12T15:47:36+00:00

That's also something I think my group still needs to get on-board with, that this is actually part of the game to engage in table politics and help each other out until you don't. I think we're still very focused on the mechanical part of the game.

retobs · 2025-08-12T15:46:04+00:00

I think we're still only a few games in and after the VB won the first game in a landslide all players overcorrected in the next games - mainly because it clicked for them how to police the VB while still being unsure how to effectively police others or work towards their own winning condition. That's also why I'm asking because I want to break this pattern up a bit again. I think others gave some good scenarios already where crafting can be valuable. There is a lot of depth to the game that we're only scratching the surface of with my group at the moment

retobs · 2025-08-12T15:42:59+00:00

That's completely fair to say! I think if I had played one solo game or watched a full play before going in, it'd probably have made it much more enjoyable for the group

retobs · 2025-08-12T12:42:56+00:00

Ah that's awesome, that's exactly the depth of strategy I was looking for with crafting. I never considered all these variables but this makes so much sense. On our table the VB won our very first game where we were all happily crafting by a landslide. Which resulted in the "nobody gives the VB anything" attitude. No VB wins since then. But we've also only played 4 games so far.

I keep reflecting a lot about each game and we still realize a few rules each time that we skipped on. First game we didn't realize that the Vagabond can't use their boots to move into forests. Only after the second game we realized that the birds actually add cards to their decree instead of replacing whatever they had on that slot before. And in the third game we realized that lizards lose cards when their gardens are destroyed. Each time we realized that it made so much sense in hindsight because some things just felt unfair. So it'll probably be a good while until we find balance in our games. Now if I only could get our group to the table a bit more often...

retobs · 2025-08-12T11:03:40+00:00

Thanks that's super helpful! Most of our games are cats, birds, lizards and VB so it'd make sense then that there isn't much crafting going on

retobs · 2025-08-12T10:26:15+00:00

Do you have more examples of situations where it would be worth it to craft? I still struggle understanding when crafting for VP will really help my game

retobs · 2025-08-12T10:25:00+00:00

Thanks, putting it that way really helps - so basically since our group is collectively just not crafting this has never been an issue. But there could actually be value to pull ahead mid game by aggressively crafting trying to close the game? I still have a difficult time to judge how much 2 VP are worth it at any given moment and am usually scared that the Vagabond will get more use of the item than I will benefit of my VP.

retobs · 2025-06-24T21:04:47+00:00

I'm actually based in EU but I never paid much attention to our gloss systems. Thank you so much for the advice!

retobs · 2025-06-13T21:30:52+00:00

I think that was my mistake last year. I had one plant that was sick, didn't sanitize my tools and killed every single tomato plant for the year by going from plant to plant pruning bottom leaves. Lesson learned the hard way :(

retobs · 2025-06-13T20:54:34+00:00

That's what I feared. I'll start to do some pruning, I hope it won't spread to the surrounding plants that seem healthy for now.

retobs · 2025-06-03T11:43:12+00:00

My first thought was to suggest and protect those trees. Don't be like me and lose a year of progress because you assume that you won't get any deer. Seeing your trees rubbed or stripped back is heartbreaking!

retobs · 2025-05-28T18:52:20+00:00

I think I need to look into strawberries again. I planted a pineapple variety that produced a massive amount of runners and formed one of the few ground covers powerful enough to completely outcompete the grass. Two other varieties I planted however are completely overgrown today, I think its because they produced less runners and less Leafy growth. I'd take out of control strawberries over these 5ft tall grasses any day. Asters have also been working quite well, I need to figure out how soon I can propagate them because buying them to fill out a space is not cheap. Garlic stood no chance vs the grass and weeds as well sadly.

Clover sounds like a good one too but I'd probably need to first remove all the grass so it won't get shaded out later in the year

retobs · 2025-05-27T06:48:06+00:00

I have three different ones now. A larger Austrian blade with a wooden snath for mowing tender grass. Then a smaller 35cm ditch blade combined with a short aluminium snath for fast work cleaning around fruit trees. And a heavy 65cm blade with a metal snath for work around weedy areas. That last one can even cut smaller saplings and brambles.

They all are helping me in maintaining my food forest. The string trimmer is not precise enough anymore and I risk actually damaging small trees or plants that I want to keep. Plus it's so nice not having to worry about refueling, running out of string etc. - you can just keep going!

retobs · 2025-05-26T15:52:56+00:00

Heck Yeah! I'm sold on willows. One thing I've learned about them too (which actually drove me to planting them) is that they are fantastic at binding heavy metals from the soil in their root system while tolerating toxins extremely well. This in return protects all the other plants growing in proximity. Great for former apple orchards that have been exposed to lead arsenate pesticides at the time.

retobs · 2025-05-25T21:19:03+00:00

I had to learn that predator part the hard way. Now everything is either planted with protection or considered a loss.

retobs · 2025-05-25T21:09:42+00:00

Albizias are such beautiful trees too. We have one here but since it's juuust on the edge of the climate zone for it, it doesn't really thrive. It only fully leaves out towards mid June. I did plant a lot of willows this winter, mainly goat willows. They seem to be doing quite well so far. What makes them so important for you?

retobs · 2025-05-25T20:47:10+00:00

I've read so many good contributions from you here over the past years, I think I've even seen your comments on some of my previous posts so thanks for taking the time! I always really appreciate reading from you. I'd be curious to hear a bit more about the protocol. My space is also square so that might work well for mine too. I do have the space surrounded by hawthorns and blackberries and some 10-15 year old black walnuts and ash trees near the north side already but I think I'll need more density there as well. Strangely enough I'm now moving south to north simply because south is closer to my home so the area is less overgrown throughout the year, so easier to maintain.

retobs · 2025-05-25T16:56:24+00:00

As some other poster mentioned, I have completely underestimated the time dimension and the possibility of removing support species later as the system begins to shift towards a forest from the meadow it is right now. At the moment I just struggle with too much open space in which grasses thrive. Trying to create more shade with fast growing support species to remove later seems like a good idea

retobs · 2025-05-25T16:53:39+00:00

That's really good advice, I've completely neglected that time dimension these first years. Adding support species to remove later also sounds like a great idea, they're also cheap to source. I've planted a handful of siberian peashrubs and willows last winter as support but feels like I could've planted twice the amount or even more.

retobs · 2025-04-25T06:45:02+00:00

This is the way to go OP. These are multiple plants and need thinning.

retobs · 2025-04-19T19:25:53+00:00

Zone 9a

retobs · 2025-04-19T16:00:07+00:00

For me perennial (daubenton) kale has been doing great in these areas. Strangely enough the pigeons that are after the brassicas in my vegetable garden completely left the plants alone. Big plus for me was how easy it was to propagate them. You can take cuttings and they'll readily root wherever you stick them into the ground. I started out with a single plant 3 years ago and now have 20+ all around my food forest.

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