Octopus Overlords

hentzau wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 11:38 am Not sure how compatible the 2nd/3rd edition character sheets are, but if said person were willing to invest the effort, I would be grateful...

I just checked and they're quite different, unfortunately. However, it looks like someone on BGG already did the heavy lifting for you - more here...

Did you take them out to have them laminated or something and they never made it back to the boxes?

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 11:54 am

hentzau wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 11:38 am Not sure how compatible the 2nd/3rd edition character sheets are, but if said person were willing to invest the effort, I would be grateful...

They're quite different, unfortunately. However, it looks like someone on BGG already did the heavy lifting for you...

Did you take them out to have them laminated or something and they never made it back to the boxes?

Only other thought (and something I can check tonight at home) is that I may have stuck them in one of my Descent boxes. I have no clue why I would do that, but I have been known to do erratic things before...'

Edit: Ooh, those cards will do! Thanks!

I think there was some crossover stuff that came out with the Descent 2.0 materials / upgrades - if you purchased that, maybe you tried sorting stuff and got distracted.

And now that I'm looking at the pictures, I'm trying to figure out if these cards were just standard sized cards. Because if they were just standard sized cards, I may have just overlooked them. I was thinking they were the usual larger format character cards.

Anonymous Bosch wrote: ↑Mon May 14, 2018 1:59 pm FWIW, I think Star Trek: Frontiers makes for one of the most enjoyable solo-able gameplay experiences I've played. For anyone unfamiliar, it's basically a streamlined Star Trek reimplementation of Mage Knight (YMMV, but I much prefer the Star Trek theme over Mage Knight's clunky fantasy theme).

I suggest watching Ricky Royal's Box of Delights Star Trek: Frontiers play-throughs, which provide a great feel for exactly how the solo game plays:

I’ve been able to hold out and not buy this but after reading about the new expansion, The Return of Khan, I don’t think my resolve will hold out much longer...(insert Scottish engineering brogue here)

I've had the Khan expansion for a while now and still haven't given it a go. I should rectify that soon.

Why do you all like solo boardgaming as opposed to computer gaming?

I really like gaming on the PC - no question there. However, I've yet to play a PC game that can adequately recreate the entirety of a solo board gaming experience - even when there's a PC game version of the board game in question. I'm not sure if it's a tactile issue, but that definitely contributes. I can also spend hours on a PC for work and being able to disconnect and just sit at a table has some value. I also like having the ability to walk away and just leave it all set up.

On the downside, it's definitely more of a brain-burner trying to keep track of everything. At night, it's definitely easier to fire up a PC game than try to manage a solo board game.

Yeah, I'd say "in addition to" rather than "opposed to" since I definitely play way more PC games solo than board games.

For me I'd say it's a more cerebral experience. There is no game engine to keep the rules for me. I can't multi-task by watching a movie or TV while I'm playing because usually it requires a high level of focus and concentration. And it's more relaxing. It's nice to take a break away from the screen while still getting the same level of escapism and challenge that a PC game gives me.

The other thing I enjoy - and this might sound a little counter-intuitive - is the time it takes to play a deep solo board game as opposed to a PC game. It's very easy to pick up a PC game and put it back down. But if I'm going to play a board game I have to make an evening commitment. There's something satisfying in that, however. Some feeling of accomplishment for pulling it off vs the ease of jumping into a PC game.

hepcat wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 3:12 pm I've had the Khan expansion for a while now and still haven't given it a go. I should rectify that soon.

Ditto.

Not being a hardcore Trekkie, I was quite surprised at just how tiny the Enterprise NCC-1701-A was compared to the other ships in the game.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 3:35 pm
On the downside, it's definitely more of a brain-burner trying to keep track of everything. At night, it's definitely easier to fire up a PC game than try to manage a solo board game.

I'd call that part of the upside. A complex system of rules to wrap your brain around. It's a nice break from all the passive entertainment. TV, podcasts, music, video games. For the most part, the electronics do the heavy lifting so your brain doesn't have to. It's easy to lose the ability to think that way if you never exercise it.

I'll also add the hobby itself. Finding, collecting, painting. And the ability to sometimes sit down with other humans to play.

And imagination. Video games are so detailed now that there isn't much room for imagination, for interpretation of what's happening on screen to suit your own personality. Board games still give you that.

In addition to all the reasons outlined above I'd also mention the wide range of subject matter that's covered in board games that you don't necessarily see in the video game world. Want to make a go at running a vineyard? Or be a hostage negotiator instead of the cop that goes through the door? And the variants that can be added to a board game that expand the experience. Mods would be the equivalent of course for electronic gaming but the distribution for a board game can be a bit easier.

In the end, both mediums scratch an itch for me.

dbt1949 wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 3:27 pm Why do you all like solo boardgaming as opposed to computer gaming?

For me, in an age where the ownership of books, movies, and computer games has become ever more digital, boardgames give you something real to play with. Something you can just hold, and collect, and even trade with others (much like the earlier days of computer games). Because, to be honest, just holding a hand of cards or rolling dice, feels really, really good. For lack of a better term, it's a refreshingly tactile and tangible experience, as Smoove observed above.

I also appreciate being able to control the pace of whatever I'm playing.

When I buy games on Steam, sometimes entire years pass before I try to buy it again and realize I already own it. The joy only lasts for a brief minute or two as I jump on a Steam sale email notification and buy it.

With solo boardgames, I get 5 days of anticipation as I wait for my CoolStuffInc shipment to arrive. Then I get a fun 30-60 minutes unpacking the box, and another 30-90 minutes of reading the rules. I get to have some giddy anticipation of how fun it looks like it will be to play someday. Only then do I box everything up again, put it on a shelf, and forget that I own it. It's really much more fun from start to never finishing.

For me, I feel less pathetic getting drunk while playing a board game than I do a computer game.

hepcat wrote:For me, I feel less pathetic getting drunk while playing a board game than I do a computer game.

Don't be so hard on yourself. You have no choice until Golden Girls Clue gets a Steam adaptation.

I’m waiting for the Golden Girls RPG. I’m thinking Blanche would be a great rogue.

From last year when I was on vacation in Toronto. Thinking of you hepcat!

Oh that Sophia. Always the scamp.

I'm not sure if this is a solo game or not but it sure would be if I bought it.
Anyhow this looks quite interesting to me.
https://us-store.warlordgames.com/colle ... red-skies/

dbt1949 wrote: ↑Sat May 19, 2018 12:25 am I'm not sure if this is a solo game or not but it sure would be if I bought it.
Anyhow this looks quite interesting to me.
https://us-store.warlordgames.com/colle ... red-skies/

I didn't look into it too deeply, but it looks like a competitive wargame similar to something like X-Wing.

You could play it solo, but it would be akin to playing chess against yourself. What is it you like about it? The theme? The pieces? Perhaps someone could give you a comparable suggestion.

The theme and the pieces both.
I have a similar game already called Wings of War (WW1).

I ran through around half of the Prologue to SWORD & SORCERY last night. Not so much to really get through it, but to try to learn the rules and get a feel for everything.

Really I think the biggest hurdle is remembering all the combat modifiers. Rules-wise there's a lot going on, but character turns boil down to Movement/Action/Combat. I think once I get that Combat phase down pat, it will flow pretty smoothly. I really love how the Monster AI works, as well as how the Event deck, Waypoints, Shadows, and Storyline Events work together to create a GM-less game which is still full of surprises.

dbt1949 wrote: ↑Sat May 19, 2018 12:25 am I'm not sure if this is a solo game or not but it sure would be if I bought it.
Anyhow this looks quite interesting to me.
https://us-store.warlordgames.com/colle ... red-skies/

Warlord makes excellent games.

dbt1949 wrote: ↑Sat May 19, 2018 4:38 am The theme and the pieces both.I have a similar game already called Wings of War (WW1).

Yeah, there's another series called Wings of Glory that covers WW2. I don't think you can truly solo it though because it involves hidden information - namely your flight maneuvers for each round. Blood Red Skies is just a different publisher's version of the same theme. I'm not sure if it's the same idea for this game (hidden movement), but I suspect it is.

I have a friend that is really into playing RAF solo, which has a similar theme but different execution. I think he also owns Wing Leader, though I don't recall his feelings on it. I own B-17, but I don't think it's for me.

None of those are quite the same as Blood Red Skies (minis vs chits), but if it's the theme you're looking for...

I played the hell out of B-17 when it first came out. I think that was about 35 years ago.

I'm guessing you're referring to this game?

RAF looks a lot like Eagle DAy at Matrix.
And they have a new one out I see called Check Your 6. Plane on plane action.

Dreary rainy day here so I made the best of it with a bunch of solo gaming:

AEON'S END: WAR ETERNAL - Came thisclose to beating the damn Gate Witch but she pulled out all the stops at the end and overwhelmed me. Too bad. Even though I randomized the supply and mages, I had a killer setup with plenty of heals and lots of offensive power. I think I got slightly too slow a start which put me just far enough behind at the end to be unable to pull off the victory. However, the best games are those that beat you while leaving you with the feeling that you had a chance.

LEGENDARY ENCOUNTERS: ALIEN - I pulled this old chestnut out because I was talking to someone about how it's one of my favorite solo (or any, for that matter) games of all time. I've beaten all the missions via various mixes of 1, 2, 3, and even 4 players, but I decided to try to go through the entire run solo with 2 characters. My reward should I succeed in this endeavor will be treating myself to the expansion. ALIEN is in the bag, with a well-timed Airlock showing up right when I needed it. On to ALIENS!

Also one of these days I"m going to break down and get Legendary: Buffy. I know it's not "Encounters" but I'm a huge fan of the show and the thought of combining that with the Legendary engine makes my heart go all a-flutter like Buffy the first time she kissed Angel.

Anonymous Bosch wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 3:56 pm

hepcat wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 3:12 pm I've had the Khan expansion for a while now and still haven't given it a go. I should rectify that soon.

Ditto.

Not being a hardcore Trekkie, I was quite surprised at just how tiny the Enterprise NCC-1701-A was compared to the other ships in the game.

http://www.chartgeek.com/wp-content/upl ... lfgdf1.jpg
Warning. The pic is large. Probably not Smoove B friendly.

Any of you hear of Up Front or Banzai ?
I think that's my all time favorites.
From Avalon Hill in the early eighties a WW2 squad level game using movement and firing cards.
I still have both games but not the boxes.

dbt1949 wrote: ↑Sun May 20, 2018 5:19 pm Any of you hear of Up Front or Banzai ?

No on Banzai, but yes on Up Front. My buddy helped to update some errata with the older/original Up Front cards and I've played a few times with him and his printed version. It's a great game - so unique and rather impressive in how it's able to simulate squad-level combat with nothing but cards.

There was a Kickstarter a few years ago to have the game officially reprinted, but it turned into nightmare and was never completed. A few years ago Hasbro officially re-released the game and you can get it all now print on demand from the Wargame Vault.

If you scroll down a bit, it seems they also have Banzi available there too.

dbt1949 wrote: ↑Sun May 20, 2018 5:19 pm Any of you hear of Up Front or Banzai ?
I think that's my all time favorites.
From Avalon Hill in the early eighties a WW2 squad level game using movement and firing cards.
I still have both games but not the boxes.

Yes! Played the crap out of them back in the day and still have everything for them.

Finished up LE: ALIEN. Scenarios 1 & 2 I went with random classes for the first two and managed to win on the first try. Had to switch over to Medic/Mercenary for Scenarios 3 & 4 because they get so combat-heavy. Managed to beat both of those in 2 tries each.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Sun May 20, 2018 5:52 pm
There was a Kickstarter a few years ago to have the game officially reprinted, but it turned into nightmare and was never completed.

(The five stages of backing the Kickstarter Up Front project...)

hentzau wrote: ↑Fri May 18, 2018 12:04 pm And now that I'm looking at the pictures, I'm trying to figure out if these cards were just standard sized cards. Because if they were just standard sized cards, I may have just overlooked them. I was thinking they were the usual larger format character cards.

Yes, the character cards for 2nd edition were just standard sized cards. I have them all in the box.

Managed to play a quick round of Desolate before dinner - would recommend. It's a very light card and dice game that plays in about 20 minutes. You're an astronaut that's been stranded at a space station on a distant moon. You're trying to find enough fuel (5) to escape and need to do so before your Oxygen runs out or aliens kill you. The game starts with you having two randomly selected items and then you spend each turn revealing cards from the exploration deck to simulate you moving through the abandoned space station.



What's cool is that all the cards have information printed on them in a way that lets you rotate the card 180 degrees to see the results of combat or a search. You also pick two exploration cards each turn but only reveal one. You decide to keep that one and discard the other unseen or discard what you revealed and pick the face down card. In this way, you never quite know what's up next. You're always trying to juggle ammo and hoping you can find those fuel cells.

I picked up a copy from the Game Crafter, but the creator has released the cards for free that you can print and play. You just need to supply your own dice and counters (not a big deal). I'm not crafty in any way so this was an easy choice for me, but I know some of you have the patience and skills to figure out how to print and cut out cards. As I said, it plays really quick and has a tiny footprint. It's something you could toss in a briefcase and play at a desk or take with you while traveling. It's definitely a bit swingy and my game ended with 3 fuel cells after I ran into an alien and he blasted me for 4 damage (they always shoot first). I only had 3 health so it was game over. That might drive some people nuts, but it's such a lite quick game, it's hard to get upset. YMMV.

Looks good. I'll have to look for it at the conventions this season. Or just buy a copy from their site.

Friday night I played a solo game of 7th Continent. Or rather, I started yet another attempt at the suggested first curse.

I still say 7th Continent is best as a solo game. Its unstructured turn order can quickly turn a 2 to 4 player game into a struggle to keep that one player who wants to do everything in a game from taking control of the narrative. But when you're on your own, it approaches a zen like peacefulness as you leisurely get bitten by poisonous spiders, unhurriedly avoid dangerously hot geysers, and take relaxing runs from wild boar and other assorted animals.

I also like that I can pack and unpack a game in progress within 5 minutes.

I keep unpacking and re-packing the 7th Continent; I find it very intimidating and I'm not sure why. Probably because I'm hesitant to watch any tutorials for fear of spoilers and yet it's completely unlike anything I've ever played. I'd absolutely only play this solo as it always looked (to me) like that's what it was really created for.

It's surprisingly easy to learn. I think it took me about 15 minutes and I had the hang of it. I've restarted the first curse about 3 times now, but that's only because the first time was a learning experience, the rest because I tried it with 3 players and just started a new game, and then because I just wanted to start over and see how it would work. I've got a LONG way to go to finish even this first one. So my worries about longevity were unfounded. There's definitely a lot of game to be seen.