New to Games? 26 - Shut Up & Sit Down

Libertalia

Captain Swallow has always dreamed of pocketing a large nest egg in order to retire on a remote island – but he never counted on stiff competition from Captains Stanley Rackum, Dirk Chivers and others, greedy and cruel enemies who always manage to attack the same ships as him. If he wants to finally sink back and enjoy peaceful days in the sun, he must become the most cunning pirate!

In Libertalia, you must thwart the plans of competitive pirates over the course of three rounds while using cards that show the same crew members as your piratical comrades-in-arms. Yes, not only do they attack the same ships, but they employ the same type of ravenous scum that you do! Can you take advantage of the powers of your characters at the right time? Will you be outdone by a pirate smarter than you? Jump into the water and prove your tactical skills!

Shadows over Camelot is a cooperative/semi-cooperative hand-management and deduction-based board game for 3–7 players.

Each player represents a knight of the Round Table and they must collaborate to overcome a number of quests, ranging from defeating the Black Knight to the search for the Holy Grail. Completed quests place white swords on the Round Table; failed quests add black swords and/or siege engines around Camelot. The knights are trying to build a majority of white swords on the Table before Camelot falls.

On each knight’s turn, the knight takes a “heroic action”, such as moving to a new quest, building his hand, or playing cards to advance the forces of good. However, he must also choose one of three evil actions, each of which will bring Camelot closer to defeat.

Moreover, one of the knights may be a traitor, pretending to be a loyal member of the party but secretly hindering his fellow knights in subtle ways, biding his time, waiting to strike at the worst possible moment…

But enough words… don your cloak, climb astride your warhorse, and gallop into the Shadows to join us in Camelot!

The year is 1888, and Steampunk technology has advanced at a prodigious rate! Probes have been sent to Mars, and soon astronauts will be manning rockets in order to mine the planet for newly discovered resources. The first is a brand new element, Celerium, that could prove to be a combustible energy source the likes man has never seen. The second is Sylvanite, an incredibly dense material unlike anything found on earth. In addition to these resources, glaciers have been discovered on the planet. Whoever controls these icy masses could work to create a livable atmosphere on Mars

In Mission: Red Planet, players work as mining companies compete to send astronauts to Mars in order to colonize and mine for recently discovered materials. Over the course of 10 rounds, players play one of their special agents every round to help fill the rockets heading to Mars with their own astronauts while simultaneously working to prevent their opponents from doing the same. Once landed, these astronauts must gather to control specific regions of the planet, each yielding one of the three resources: Celerium, Sylvanite, or Ice. After rounds 5 and 8, players gain score tokens for every region where they control the majority of the astronauts. At the end of the game, players score one final time, adding any bonuses received from Discovery Cards and Bonus Cards. The player with the most score tokens at the end controls Mars, and all the riches it can bring!

Martin Wallace and Treefrog Games present Ankh-Morpork, set in the largest city-state in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld. Lord Vetinari has disappeared and different factions are trying to take control of the city. Each player has a secret personality with specific victory conditions, which means that you’re not sure exactly what the other players need to do in order to win.

The action takes place on a map of Ankh-Morpork, with players trying to place minions and buildings through card play. Each of the 132 cards is unique, and “the cards bring the game to life as they include most of the famous characters that have appeared in the various books. The rules are relatively simple: Play a card and do what it says. Most cards have more than one action on them, and you can choose to do some or all of these actions. Some cards also allow you to play a second card, so you can chain actions” (Wallace).

A team of artists have recreated the city and its residents for the cards, game board and box, with Bernard Pearson coordinating that team. Ankh-Morpork has been sublicensed to Mayfair Games for the North American market and Kosmos for the German market.

In King of Tokyo, you play mutant monsters, gigantic robots, and strange aliens—all of whom are destroying Tokyo and whacking each other in order to become the one and only King of Tokyo.

At the start of each turn, you roll six dice, which show the following six symbols: 1, 2, or 3 Victory Points, Energy, Heal, and Attack. Over three successive throws, choose whether to keep or discard each die in order to win victory points, gain energy, restore health, or attack other players into understanding that Tokyo is YOUR territory.

The fiercest player will occupy Tokyo, and earn extra victory points, but that player can’t heal and must face all the other monsters alone!

Top this off with special cards purchased with energy that have a permanent or temporary effect, such as the growing of a second head which grants you an additional die, body armor, nova death ray, and more…. and it’s one of the most explosive games of the year!

In order to win the game, one must either destroy Tokyo by accumulating 20 victory points, or be the only surviving monster once the fighting has ended.

“Our Liege is in desperate hour! From what grievous cause have these accursed races arisen? Orcs, Dragons, Demons and the Dead make haste towards Monarch City. The King and Countryside of Monarch City is in need of valiant Heroes!”

Will you answer the King’s call?

In the ancient Citadel of Monarch City, the King calls to arms the finest Heroes to defend against a Darkness that engulfs the land. You and your allies must embark on a journey to defend the countryside, repair the tainted lands, and defeat the four creature factions before any of them enter the City. And they approach from all sides! Fast populating Orcs! Fierce Dragons! Undead that bring Fear! And Demons! All tainting the land in their wake. There are several paths to defeat, but only one path to victory, and only the most valiant Hero will be named King’s Champion.

Defenders of the Realm is a cooperative fantasy board game in which 1-4 players take a role as one of the King’s Champions (Choose from Cleric, Dwarf, Eagle Rider, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue, Sorcerer and Wizard). You, as one of the King’s Heroes make use of strategy, special abilities, cooperation, card play and a little luck in Defenders of the Realm for a unique experience every adventure. But be forewarned! There is never time to rest. As each Enemy General is struck down in battle, the remaining dark forces only grow more difficult to vanquish and their march to Monarch City gets faster with each Hero victory!

The Walking Dead: The Board Game from Z-Man Games transforms the Robert Kirkman comic book series into a board game, giving “fans the opportunity to play Rick, Shane, Andrea, and other favorite The Walking Dead characters as they deal with zombies, collect supplies and pick up the pieces of their lives”, according to a press release announcing the game. Encounter and location cards recreate scenes and events from the comic book series.

World War II has left the world in upheaval, and many nations’ futures are filled with uncertainty. The USA and the USSR are the only Superpowers who can lead the world toward a better future.

Cold War: CIA vs. KGB puts you in charge of a spy network during the post-war era. Your purpose: to “persuade” foreign governments to embrace the “proper” ideology, by any means necessary. Manipulate local factions of influence to get your coup d’etat up and running. Double-cross and eliminate your opponent’s leaders. Gain prestige for your side by winning the Space Race, dominating the Olympic Games, or ensuring that one of your countrymen wins the Nobel Peace Prize.

In this decades-long conflict, victory will go to the side with the resources, conviction, and commitment necessary to ensure that their world view shapes the future.

In Quarriors, each player plays as a Quarrior competing for Glory in the eyes of Quiana, the Empress of Quaridia. Each player starts with an identical set of 12 dice in their dice bag. At the start of the game, Creature and Spell dice (Quarry) are dealt at random to form “the Wilds” in the center of the table. As play progresses, players roll their dice to attempt to summon Creatures, cast Spells, and harness the magical power of Quiddity (the in-game resource) to capture Quarry from the Wilds to add to their repertoire and into their dice bag. Players draw and roll 6 dice a turn from their bag, making that controlling bag composition is key to victory.Quarriors is a fast-paced game where players must strategically balance their choices each turn. Do I use my Quiddity to summon Creatures in the hopes of scoring Glory or should I spend it all to capture more powerful Quarry from the Wilds? Players must outmaneuver their opponent’s through strategic Spell use, the acquisition of powerful Quarry, and ultimately, by striking down opponent’s Creature in combat. If your Creatures survive until your next turn, you will score Glory points and move closer to victory!

Once again, the hunter prowls the forest. All the animals flee in terror! Well, not really. Only a dumb animal would call attention to itself. In our forest, the animals are smart, otherwise their heads would be decorating the hunter’s mantelpiece. Our animals just casually saunter away, while convincing the hunter that he must be looking for something else. “Are you hungry for rabbit, Mr. Hunter? Well, you see, I’m a moose. Oh, no, not a moose with antlers like that…”

In this merry game, players take on the roles of rabbits and moose. While the hunter strolls through the forest, players are trying to look like an animal the hunter won’t shoot. And because they do so by making rabbit ears or moose antlers of various shapes on their heads, the spectators enjoy the game as well as the players.

Libertalia

Shadows over Camelot

Mission: Red Planet

Discworld: Ankh-Morpork

King of Tokyo

Defenders of the Realm

The Walking Dead: The Board Game

Cold War: CIA vs KGB

Quarriors!

Bunny Bunny Moose Moose

Feeds