OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

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hentzau
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hentzau »

$iljanus wrote:
hepcat wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 11:42 am
Also, now that we're discussing skills, one more question: At the start of my tutorial mission, my crew has one to three skill points. I know they can use those once during a mission to trigger a skill that isn't passive, but can I also spend those to buy skill points on their crew board or career board before a mission? At the risk of not having them to spend during a mission, that is?
I had to reread that portion of the rulebook the first time around. The skill points serve two purposes. First, the pool of points is used to buy or leveling up skills. You can even put all your points into one skill so it’s at a higher level. During the mission, your skill points are spent on activating skills. The points you spend to purchase skills don’t detract from what you have to spend during the game to use skills. Keep in mind that if you have a level 2 skill, it will take 2 skill points to use. Also, a person with a level 2 skill has access to both levels, meaning that if you think the 1st level of a 2nd or 3rd level skill is better suited to a situation you have that choice. Also, the number of remaining skill points may make that choice for you (can’t use the 3rd level of a skill because you have 2 skill points left but you certainly can use the 1st or 2nd levels of that skill).

So to sum it up: You have 3 skill points outside of the mission, use them to make your purchases. When you are on mission, you have 3 skill points for using the skills you purchased. Hope this helps (and I got it right)

Doh what Hentzau said but with less verbiage!

I also didn’t punch out the armor slot but just put any armor I want to equip on top of that slot.
Just making sure here...career points are used to purchase your skills and skill slots. It spells it out on page 66 in the deluxe rule book, it’s under Selecting a Crew-Class Boards.
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hentzau
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hentzau »

hepcat wrote:Okay, I see where my mistake is. I was confusing career points with skill points. You actually do have a starting amount of career points. And I assume I can spend those before a mission/campaign to buy some skills. Then I get on career point after each mission (which I mark on their trader board) that I can spend on skills.

In my current game I didn't use any trader's career points before my game so they basically just have their starting skill on their trader board. Whoops. :oops:
Yep. You got it right. And I did the same thing my first game.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

hentzau wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 1:42 pm
$iljanus wrote:
hepcat wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 11:42 am
Also, now that we're discussing skills, one more question: At the start of my tutorial mission, my crew has one to three skill points. I know they can use those once during a mission to trigger a skill that isn't passive, but can I also spend those to buy skill points on their crew board or career board before a mission? At the risk of not having them to spend during a mission, that is?
I had to reread that portion of the rulebook the first time around. The skill points serve two purposes. First, the pool of points is used to buy or leveling up skills. You can even put all your points into one skill so it’s at a higher level. During the mission, your skill points are spent on activating skills. The points you spend to purchase skills don’t detract from what you have to spend during the game to use skills. Keep in mind that if you have a level 2 skill, it will take 2 skill points to use. Also, a person with a level 2 skill has access to both levels, meaning that if you think the 1st level of a 2nd or 3rd level skill is better suited to a situation you have that choice. Also, the number of remaining skill points may make that choice for you (can’t use the 3rd level of a skill because you have 2 skill points left but you certainly can use the 1st or 2nd levels of that skill).

So to sum it up: You have 3 skill points outside of the mission, use them to make your purchases. When you are on mission, you have 3 skill points for using the skills you purchased. Hope this helps (and I got it right)

Doh what Hentzau said but with less verbiage!

I also didn’t punch out the armor slot but just put any armor I want to equip on top of that slot.
Just making sure here...career points are used to purchase your skills and skill slots. It spells it out on page 66 in the deluxe rule book, it’s under Selecting a Crew-Class Boards.
Arrgh, f**k me you're right. Career points=skill purchase, Skill points=skill usage. Sorry about the confusion. I'll just let Hentzau answer everything next time! :lol:
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hepcat »

Yeah, I'm reviewing that section over lunch right now. I was all full of hubris coming from the worlds of Malifaux, Hordes/Warmachine, Fallout Wasteland Warfare, etc. and thought I was right without checking the damn rulebook on some things. That'll learn me.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

For my tutorial and first mission I used the default skill loadouts for the captain and tech guy. Made things much quicker and I figured during the campaign I can make my own decisions about points after the first mission.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hepcat »

That's one of the game's strengths. Those career boards add a substantial amount of RPG customization to games. I could see myself purchasing an entire expansion that's nothing BUT career boards with new and interesting skills, or just different skill combinations comprising a new career.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hentzau »

hepcat wrote:That's one of the game's strengths. Those career boards add a substantial amount of RPG customization to games. I could see myself purchasing an entire expansion that's nothing BUT career boards with new and interesting skills, or just different skill combinations comprising a new career.
You get a lot of that with the crew expansions. But no just career boards expansion, sadly.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Skinypupy »

The 4 Against Darkness book arrived this afternoon. Gonna read through it tonight and give it a shot tomorrow.

Looks interesting enough and very much outside my typical gaming wheelhouse. I'm embarrassed to admit I've never actually played a game that required graph paper. :oops:

If not, it was only $12. :)
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Tao »

Skinypupy wrote: Mon Feb 08, 2021 1:01 am The 4 Against Darkness book arrived this afternoon. Gonna read through it tonight and give it a shot tomorrow.

Looks interesting enough and very much outside my typical gaming wheelhouse. I'm embarrassed to admit I've never actually played a game that required graph paper. :oops:

If not, it was only $12. :)
These are a lot of fun for what they are. No setup time, very simple rules and can be played in short (or long) sessions. I also have Dark Waters (level 1-2), Caves of the Kobold Masters (level 1-2) and The Three Rings (level 3-4).
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

Been meaning to post my impressions, but I keep playing more instead of writing things down. :D

I'm going to start out saying after I initially purchased this game (when it came out), I hated it. Hated it. The components are sub-par, the manuals were a mess and the MSRP is $140 (you read that right). However, if you're patient and or know where to look, there's always a way to get it cheaper. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I'll come back to the components at the end.

For those unaware, Combat! is a fully-solo (though I guess you could play co-op, sharing squads) WW2 war game. To be even more specific, it's squad-based infantry combat; there are no tanks, but there are mortars and crew-equipped machine guns (if you care).

The game is a spiritual successor to Ambush!, though the mechanics are different and there aren't any giant booklets with paragraph narrative elements. Where I think it's similar is that because it's very much focused on small squads, you can grow a little attached to the members - they all have names and unique skills; they're not just nameless chits.

Here's the setup for the first scenario:

Enlarge Image

My two squads are on the bottom of the map; the scenario allows you to start them anywhere in a defined area. The enemies are all hidden and randomly picked from a seeded cup then placed in hexes named by the scenario. For reference, I had to place 12 out of 26 possibilities, so I really have no idea what's out there. Some of the enemy units are also dummies, but until I can spot them they will act like enemy soldiers moving across the map.

The yellow discs are special hexes worth victory points if I move through them - essential simulating a point of control.

As you'd expect, the various artwork elements represent things like roads, hedges, rocks, fields and other terrain that impacts line of sight and your ability to hit someone with a weapon.

The game is played in rounds, but every round has four "impulses" and this right here, is the meat of the game. The reason is that timing is everything - it's not just a matter of I go, enemy goes and then it's the next round. Each turn is broken down into those four impulses and very specific things happen during each. For example you might only be able to move in impulse 1 and 3 and only shoot in impulse 2 and 4. This then changes strategy as you need to think about where you are, where you might need to move and when you'll be in position to shoot. I've tried playing other games with this impulse design, and I really struggled. However, for some reason (maybe because this is written for full solo), this finally made sense to me.

Initiative each round is determined by cards. Mine are actively played from a hand (so I have a choice) and sometimes when you play cards for initiative, there are impacts for that entire round. Other cards can be discarded or played at specific times in reaction to an event. The enemy AI is a draw from the deck each round and their behavior is based on their morale.

However, rather than a complete wall of text, I'll split this into another post...
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

Hurry up and post the rest! Being a fellow owner of this game I look forward to your impressions! :pop:
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

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Here you can see a close up of the order chits, stacked on top of the individual soldiers ("Evade"). Each has four numbers along the bottom and that describes the behavior the unit follows during each impulse. I pick all my orders first, then then draw cards to see what the AI is doing.

Enlarge Image

For "Evade" there are four 1 icons in black. This means every impulse I must move one hex. So going back to the comment earlier, here's where that timing element comes in because now I also see the Germans are also in an "Evade" pattern and their evade chits also indicate which direction they move in (it's a little black number above the impulse rules). If we run into each other, it's melee time, so I need to be careful. In my mind's eye, I am imagining the troops running towards one another ("serpentine! serpentine!") and trying to get into position.

You'll also note I revealed one of the enemy chits as a dummy. After successfully spotting them, they are flipped and if it's a dummy they're removed from the map. Pvt. Stubbs is in the house (most forward unit on the right flank) and he successfully spotted the units advancing and figured out two of them were dummies, two of them were actual soldiers.

Unfortunately Pvt. Stubbs was also spotted, which meant on the next round (after the advancing German "evaded" into the hedges), I had to act quickly.

Enlarge Image

I switched Pvt. Stubbs to an aimed fire order, which means on impulse 1 and 3 he's aiming (it's a red zero) and on impulses 2 and 4, he's shooting at a visible target (the red 1). To try and offer support, I put Pvt. Douglass and Pvt. Walsh into a "Run and Gun" action. This lets them move (black 1) and shoot (red 1), however there's a penalty to the attempt (the red -2).

The German AI drew a Grenade option which after checking various things, gives the AI the ability to toss a grenade at a visible target within 4 hexes. That's clearly not an issue so that's what the solider does. The grenade action has the German arming the grenade in impulse one (that's the zero), moving closer if he's at max range (that's the black 1 for impulse 2), tossing the grenade in impulse 3 (red 1) and then running away to clear the blast in impulse 4 (black 1).

So on this round in the first impulse, nothing happens here. Pvt. Stubbs is aiming, the German is arming his grenade, and Pvts Douglass and Walsh are moving into a better position (in that order, based on initiative).

In Impulse 2, Pvt. Stubbs goes first (initiative) and squeezes off a round from his M1. It's a hit!

Enlarge Image

I draw a card for damage and it's a bad wound. I rolled a natural 0 (the best die roll) so Pvt. Stubbs has his morale increased. The bad wound means the German's morale is lowered (along with his ability to fight), but more importantly, it interrupts his attack. He immediately drops the armed grenade at his feet and then ducks back into cover (giving him a defensive bonus). When it's his turn to activate (next), he then goes into a "Hide" action for the rest of the round - not moving and gaining defensive bonuses against additional attacks (like my running and gunning soldiers moving up his flank).

At the end of the 4th impulse the grenade at his feet explodes and I roll for damage against him (he survived). Then it's on to the next round.

I detailed all this out because it's a perfect example of how all these chits and die rolls come together in a magical way to really create an interesting narrative, and that's what ultimately won me over.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

So in summary, Comabt! won me over. It took me some time to get into a rhythm, but I think I'm 80% on the rules at this point. Yes, I'm still flipping around to verify things, but I think once you understand the timing of the impulses, everything else follows. There's definitely checking each round because you need to calculate values (+/-) to spot someone or hit them with a weapon. Things like range and cover are going to make it easier or more difficult.

So on to the components....

They're not great. The maps are all paper - not mounted. I don't mind that element, but I know some people do (particularly for the price. The artwork on the map is also not great. It's functional, but it has a clip-art style that's not helping.

The manual and scenario booklets were printed nicely (full color) however they were a total mess when it was released. After lots of community pushback, the author eventually released updated PDF rules on BGG and they're absolutely necessary to obtain. Not only are there corrections (rules, scenarios), but additional examples and clarifications have been provided. I don't have a fancy printer, so I had to send the documents to Staples to get printed and I paid...a lot of money to have it done. Since printing them, he's offered two more updates, though I don't think they're as big as the version I'm using (1.1)

The chits are..not great. Very flimsy paper. They were difficult to punch and were loaded with ragged edges. This was the first time I've felt the need to use a corner rounder, so yeah, I spent time clipping the ~800 chits for this game.

I think Compass prints in the U.S. exclusively, so that's why it's more money and of lower quality. I asked them about getting updated rules, but that seems to be a lost cause. I'm grateful the author updated them and provided them as a PDF, at least - it's more than most would do.

Sorting the chits is also a problem. I have them in a GMT tray and two smaller plastic containers that I think are for crafting beads. I'm still fumbling for chits each turn and I should probably split the German chits into another container to speed things up. This is a problem because there's just no way this is going back in the box as configured. Maybe I'll bag it all to try, but that's kind of annoying.

However, despite all these complaints, I actually really like the game. It's exactly what I'm looking for - an AI driven WW2 small-squad infantry war game. As I said earlier, I've tried other WW2 hex/chit games with mixed results. The fact that this is natively solo is a huge bonus, and it works. I didn't even really get into the cards or how there can be events each turn that impact what's happening. There's just a ton of variety and with the randomness built in for setup (I could choose different squads, the random nature of enemy setup), I feel like I could play this intro scenario a dozen times and it would be appreciably different every time. There's 10 scenarios included with this game, so if you can get it closer to that $80 price point, I do think there's good value - particularly as a solo title.

There's an expansion coming out in Q2 of this year (I think), and I've already preordered. I'm hoping the rules are in better shape and not in desperate need of fixing.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

Thanks for the write up, Smoove. You’re like my brother from another mother since you’ve summed up my thoughts on the game. But I’ll chime in a little too.

The map:I remember asking on BGG if it was a mounted map or on card stock before the game was released and the developer said no. Bought the game anyway since the words “solo” and “Ambush” were being thrown around and all sorts of nostalgia was being felt. But for $99 bucks (pre ordered) I thought a mounted map would have been nice. I think durable card stock panels that could have been linked together would have been a reasonable option too. The art is functional and the graphics are sort of dated or I guess retro depending on your point of view. But I also own Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear and that is one of the most beautiful war game boards I own. I think it was a bit of a missed opportunity here.

The counters: Smoove pretty much nailed it. Had to break out the x-acto knife for this one and it got really tedious. And it didn’t help that the counters were flimsy as well. The information on the counters was well presented though and told me everything I needed to play. I was hesitant to buy again from Compass but I took a chance on their Devil Boats: PT Boats in the Solomons and the difference in component quality was striking. So maybe they switched manufacturers?

Gameplay: But...even with the criticisms this is a really good solo war game simulating squad level man to man combat. Every counter has a chance to do great deeds or fail spectacularly. The AI deck does a superb job of making intelligent choices and I thought the initiative system for turn taking was well designed. In the end, the games I played outshone the components. Now I think Combat 2 will be the true successor to Ambush because that game will have an actual campaign and your soldiers can gain experience and earn medals as they go through the various battles. I liked that vehicles will be included but because infantry is the main focus the vehicles are at the level of armored cars, halftracks, and medium tanks. This makes sense because unlike in the movies if troops see Tigers coming their way, they’re gonna run. So most likely I’ll be preordering this game too...or waiting to get it from NWS.

Compass is a pretty weird company though. They were quick to replace a misprinted counter sheet for free but won’t update their rulebooks with errata but would only provide a separate errata sheet. The developer ended up posting on BGG his own rulebook and scenario book files and is really good about updates and answering questions on BGG.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Isgrimnur »

Scan and print on Tyvek.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

$iljanus wrote: Tue Feb 09, 2021 3:46 pm Thanks for the write up, Smoove. You’re like my brother from another mother since you’ve summed up my thoughts on the game. But I’ll chime in a little too.
:D

I don't usually have a 180 degree turn on a board game - it's only happened twice now in my board gaming career, but this game won me over for sure.

I think the map issue (paper not mounted) is likely related to the small box size as well. Had they mounted all those maps, they would have needed a box 2x as deep, I think. Unless they did mounted on both sides, which I can only assume would have made the cost of the game go to somewhere around $500.

And yeah, it was weird that within a week of my original pre-order they had replacement chits mailed to me (again, I think because it's printed domestically), but asking them to sell updated manuals at cost? Nope. Even GMT is now on board with sending people fixed documents when you pre-order directly from them.

If the developer didn't fix all this stuff and make the updated documents available on BGG I honestly probably would have sold it off. There's just too many games anymore for me to try to deal with errors and issues that should have been addressed as part of editing and proofing.

I don't see many people talking about it though, likely because the price is insane and to the best of my knowledge the current boxed version you'd get still has the original 1.0 manual and scenario booklet that is in desperate need of fixes.

I had thought Combat! Part 2 was a stand alone expansion, but I just learned it requires the core game. I might be mixing up titles and confusing Comabt! with The Last Hundred Yards (not a solo game, but can be played solo).

Either way, I'm glad I muscled through it because it's quite enjoyable - despite all the warts.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

Yeah, with the size of the map a mounted version would have been huge and heavy. That’s why I thought card stock panels would have been more durable but still lightweight. $139 list though was a little rich to me and if I didn’t preorder it I would have definitely held out for a cheaper price elsewhere. And I was shocked that later printings didn’t have an updated rulebook. I guess Compass didn’t want the early buyers to feel left out. :lol:
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

What's crazy is that yeah, I'm still in the tutorial. No off-map artillery. No smoke. No night fighting with flares. No crewed weapons. Hell, I didn't even get into elevation or the events table. One of things I hate about so many war games is that they throw the kitchen sink at you from the get go. This intro scenario at least limits the options and even tries to limit the behavior of the AI by confining it to a die roll for two of the seven rounds instead of the AI cards potentially getting ultra aggressive.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

Smoove_B wrote: Tue Feb 09, 2021 11:15 pm What's crazy is that yeah, I'm still in the tutorial. No off-map artillery. No smoke. No night fighting with flares. No crewed weapons. Hell, I didn't even get into elevation or the events table. One of things I hate about so many war games is that they throw the kitchen sink at you from the get go. This intro scenario at least limits the options and even tries to limit the behavior of the AI by confining it to a die roll for two of the seven rounds instead of the AI cards potentially getting ultra aggressive.
This was a really good move by the developer and added to my enjoyment of the game. Now if they can get their shit together on the counters. With all the games I’ve gotten recently with really nice counters and at a lower price point I’m not so tolerant about this sort of thing...but I’ll probably preorder anyway. :lol:
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

Thanks at @Smoove_B for the write up as this was helpful. I love GMT Fields of Fire and was initially interested in this. I decided to not pull the trigger on this to continue to focus on that game and work through the many scenarios there. Looking at it I have a bit of FOMO but then again I have so many games I need to pull out and try. :)
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by wonderpug »

I've managed to finally get in some solo boardgaming here and there the past few weeks.

Hot Takes:
  • Dune: Imperium - really liked it! Worker placement plus deckbuilding plus light combat. I like the extra bit of player interaction it brings forth other than just fighting over worker placement spots. The AI mode is super quick and easy to run, but also seems to do well at simulating fighting over the board.
  • Warp's Edge - thumbs up with this one as well! Sort of like a card-based space fighting game with a roguelike mechanic that has you repeat each run a little stronger and a little wiser. I only played the easy mode first boss, but had a lot of fun. The different boss options seem like they'll add good variety to the game.
  • Under Falling Skies - loved this one , space invaders in dice chucking board game form, with some base-building as well. Lots of interesting strategy decisions to be made but not headache inducing like some other solo games get to be for me. Also has a sort of campaign with legacy-esque things to open up as you go.
  • SpaceShipped - fell flat for me on first few playthroughs, but I'm still planning to give it another shot. Entirely card based game that evokes a feeling of Escape Velocity/Privateer space trading games. Nice elegant system making it so a single card can be used in multiple ways by the game, but I felt like I had too many turns where I didn't have any good options. I might have just sucked at the game, so I'll definitely try again.
Xia: Legends of a Drift System is flickering in and out of stock in Amazon, so I've got half of the game and expansions in-hand and half ordered and waiting for an updated shipping date. I've got the base game but not the expansion with solo rules, but after looking through the base game rules I think I'm really going to like this one.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

malchior wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 6:33 pm Thanks at @Smoove_B for the write up as this was helpful. I love GMT Fields of Fire and was initially interested in this. I decided to not pull the trigger on this to continue to focus on that game and work through the many scenarios there. Looking at it I have a bit of FOMO but then again I have so many games I need to pull out and try. :)
Fields of Fire is next on my list, but I know that manual was a mess too. I have Volume 2 which apparently addresses the deficiencies but I'm still pretty intimidated by it. I have a non OO friend (he's a real person, I swear) that has been teaching himself how to play for the last 3 months but after hearing me talk about Combat! I think he's going to try it as well. He really likes FoF but is still struggling with some of the basics. I'm pretty confident it's the most complex game I own.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

wonderpug wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 6:46 pmXia: Legends of a Drift System is flickering in and out of stock in Amazon, so I've got half of the game and expansions in-hand and half ordered and waiting for an updated shipping date. I've got the base game but not the expansion with solo rules, but after looking through the base game rules I think I'm really going to like this one.
I've only ever played the game with other people but I really should try the solo variant. It's such a great sandbox experience if you're looking for space or sci-fi adventures.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

Smoove_B wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 6:59 pm
malchior wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 6:33 pm Thanks at @Smoove_B for the write up as this was helpful. I love GMT Fields of Fire and was initially interested in this. I decided to not pull the trigger on this to continue to focus on that game and work through the many scenarios there. Looking at it I have a bit of FOMO but then again I have so many games I need to pull out and try. :)
Fields of Fire is next on my list, but I know that manual was a mess too. I have Volume 2 which apparently addresses the deficiencies but I'm still pretty intimidated by it. I have a non OO friend (he's a real person, I swear) that has been teaching himself how to play for the last 3 months but after hearing me talk about Combat! I think he's going to try it as well. He really likes FoF but is still struggling with some of the basics. I'm pretty confident it's the most complex game I own.
I found FoF complex at first. Its main problem is indeed the manual. It suffers from a weird layout. Another issue is it has a billion tiny counters. I never roll out the physical cards anymore and instead play it on Vassal.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by raydude »

Smoove_B wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 6:59 pm
malchior wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 6:33 pm Thanks at @Smoove_B for the write up as this was helpful. I love GMT Fields of Fire and was initially interested in this. I decided to not pull the trigger on this to continue to focus on that game and work through the many scenarios there. Looking at it I have a bit of FOMO but then again I have so many games I need to pull out and try. :)
Fields of Fire is next on my list, but I know that manual was a mess too. I have Volume 2 which apparently addresses the deficiencies but I'm still pretty intimidated by it. I have a non OO friend (he's a real person, I swear) that has been teaching himself how to play for the last 3 months but after hearing me talk about Combat! I think he's going to try it as well. He really likes FoF but is still struggling with some of the basics. I'm pretty confident it's the most complex game I own.
The thing that turned me off of FOF Volume 2 was that it put you in charge of a rifle company whereas FOF put you in charge of a rifle platoon. I was initially interested in Vol 2 but then I read about what you, as Captain, would be responsible for in-game. Then I thought to myself "thanks, but no thanks. I'll just stick to commanding a board game platoon." I need to get back into FOF again. I dabbled in it but not enough to really learn the rules and how to play well.

I do remember reading the designer's notes and how he stated that most WW2 tactical games let individual squads fire at basically anything in any direction but that in real life it is much more difficult to get squads to shift their fire once they get fixated on a target. That and other notes on how he tries to get his game to organically simulate the difficulty of getting people to do anything while under fire is what drew me to FOF in the first place. I just need enough free time and motivation to really dive into it. Your post on Combat! gave me motivation. Now to find myself some free time :)
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hepcat »

I have FoF 2 and have tried to set it up at least a half dozen times since I got it almost 2 years ago. And each time I realize that I don't have a doctoral degree in game playin', and I just end up playing Aeon's End while eating raw cookie dough.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by $iljanus »

I have FoF too. It's been moved from the shelf to the storage bin. We should start a support group!
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

I'm going to bust my copy out and clip the counters. It really is relaxing. Maybe that's the secret to figuring these games out? Smooth, rounded edges?
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

A support group sounds right. I've been toying with doing a playthrough on the forum. I started one offline but getting the right level of detail/the massive need to have screenshot hosting dissuaded me.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hepcat »

I’ve read a discouraging number of complaints about the number of errors in FoF2. That’s also dampened my enthusiasm to learn it.

Well...That and it doesn’t really seem like a raw cookie dough kind of game.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

hepcat wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 9:10 pm I’ve read a discouraging number of complaints about the number of errors in FoF2. That’s also dampened my enthusiasm to learn it.
I'm not sure about the rule book. The first one was a hot mess, but I thought the current recommendation was to use the FoF2 rule book to learn how to play FoF because it was really an updated version of the system's rules. My understanding is they're organized poorly for referencing things, but I never made it that far. My initial review of the original FoF rule book had me pull the cord early on.

What I do know was problematic for FoF2 was a handful (9?) of the counters were misprinted and the only way to get fixes was to purchase a copy of CSi magazine (#33 to be exact). The official errata document was last updated in 2019 and is only 3 pages (which is nothing short of amazing).
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

I actually have a copy of FoF 1 1st and 2nd edition and FOF 2. I haven't even cracked the cellophane on FOF 2. I actually have the fixed counters in a separate bag. As to the manual - the FOF 1st edition one was really bad. The 2nd edition was much more organized. This however is a GMT problem IMO. The COIN series has similar rules book -- in that they are confusing and illogically laid out. I'll say that FOF designer Ben Hull was at least at one point very active answering questions on BGG forums about the game.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by hepcat »

The component issues and the scenario errors were what I was referring to. The problem with the counters is annoying as heck to me. But the mistakes on some of the scenarios are game breaking.

I didn’t realize they released updated counters though. I’ll have to see if I can get that copy of the magazine.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

I had heard about the component issue but didn't know about the mission misprints. That's insane. I'd have to dig in and figure out how they are game breaking.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

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If they’d just release a revised edition of the scenario books with the fixes incorporated, it wouldn’t be so bad.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by raydude »

I also have Tank Duel: Enemy in the Crosshairs, which is not designed to be a solitaire game but apparently, the rules for the "Robata" AI opponent are pretty good. I say apparently because this is another one I have yet to play seriously. This one though is nowhere near as complicated as FOF.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by AWS260 »

I'm happy to report that the solo mode for Raiders of Scythia is excellent. It's super-smooth and easy to run -- opponent turns take less than half a minute to resolve -- but it provides a good challenge, pushing you to get out and raid instead of puttering around the home settlement.

It might be a little too easy, but I've only played it solo once, and not on the hardest difficulty level, so it's too early to judge. Also, it's possible that I'm just amazing at this game.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

hepcat wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 10:45 pm If they’d just release a revised edition of the scenario books with the fixes incorporated, it wouldn’t be so bad.
FoF has been one of the games where GMT had development issues. I recall that FoF2 appeared out of the blue years after I put in a P500 order and had long forgotten about it.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by Smoove_B »

raydude wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 10:46 pm I also have Tank Duel: Enemy in the Crosshairs, which is not designed to be a solitaire game but apparently, the rules for the "Robata" AI opponent are pretty good. I say apparently because this is another one I have yet to play seriously. This one though is nowhere near as complicated as FOF.
Yes, this is another one that I keep hearing is great solo. I haven't played it yet but the idea that it somehow scales 1-8 players is pretty crazy.
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Re: OO Solo Board Gamers Guild

Post by malchior »

Smoove_B wrote: Wed Feb 10, 2021 9:32 pmWhat I do know was problematic for FoF2 was a handful (9?) of the counters were misprinted and the only way to get fixes was to purchase a copy of CSi magazine (#33 to be exact). The official errata document was last updated in 2019 and is only 3 pages (which is nothing short of amazing).
Want to see more 'amazing'? I love GMT at times but they are super frustrating as well.

BGG Forum. For context, the writer was commenting about his part in an effort creating a player aid for FoF 2.

May 13th, 2020
Mike Welker wrote:A programmed instruction document is nearly ready. Going through edits now with Ben. It really will help folks with walk-through.
May 14th
Mike Welker wrote:I think the first edit passes will be done in a week or so. Then updates to the document. I believe one more edit pass through, as well. Maybe a month, then? No promises though!
Aug 10th
Mike Welker wrote:Gene has the document, and he has told us that it is going to the art folks for a full layout and graphics treatment now.
Sep 11th
Mike Welker wrote:The document is in a crowded GMT queue. I can check in and see where things stand.
Jan 28th
Mike Welker wrote:The document is in the GMT queue for editing, graphics, etc.
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