Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Non-GW GW Boardgames

Early last month in a state-of-the-blog update I had mentioned that more and more boardgaming had been working its way into the fold.  Here's a bit more of that.

Since then I have picked up these two Fantasy Flight Games, which in a neat twist are both based on beloved GW properties, yet are decidedly not GW.

First up is Blood Bowl: Team Manager, and where I love regular Blood Bowl, after almost twenty years of playing it's hard to stay enthused.  This one isn't supposed to replace the original, but is another take on the Blood Bowl experience.  In about an hour you will take your team through an entire season of ups and down, wins and losses.  I haven't torn into it yet, but I'm looking forward to it.

Next up is Space Hulk: Death Angel which is an even more abstract game centered on just as anchored a property.  I would say I've heard mixed reviews on this one, but the positives seem to be far outweighing the negatives on this one.  It supports up to a whopping six players, but one of the main selling points is that it can also be played solo too.  This purchase was made even better by the fact that I ended up with the first two card expansions as freebies to boot.

All that said, I am gearing up to get into my boardgame collection, dust off and give some gaming love to those forgotten titles, re-learn a bunch of gems that have been neglected, and put these new games through their paces.  The responses were positive for some boardgame reviews, and that's what I'm going to do. 

Until next time, rock on!
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23 comments:

  1. Eli Arndt10/9/12, 11:04 AM

    I have heard great things about the Blood Bowl card game but have not played.

    I have played the Space Hulk card game and have to say that it really didn't do it for me. Too odd and abstract. I'd rather lay out tiles and push minis for that experience.

    -Eli

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 12:30 PM

      Time will tell on Death Angel, though that solo component was the kicker for me. I've dayrdreamed of just doing Forlorn Hope in minis to get my Space Hulk action since it apparently out-Space Hulks Space Hulk.

      I am greatly looking forward to Team Manager though. I love the Blood Bowl genre but have been very luekwarm to three hour matches lately.

      Delete
    2. Spacejacker10/9/12, 5:17 PM

      Dude... It ain't Blood Bowl if youre not playing with a 3 minute turn timer ;)

      Delete
    3. MIK10/9/12, 5:39 PM

      Don't I know it! The guys around here want to uuse a four minute timer! I do miss the old illegal procedure rules though.

      Delete
  2. BaronVonJ10/9/12, 11:23 AM

    I wish I had never sold my copy of Chainsaw Warrior from back in the day.

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 12:24 PM

      I feel the exact way about letting my copy of Dark Future slip through the fingers of my collection. Aargh!

      Chainsaw Warrior always looked cool but I never got the chance to play it.

      Delete
    2. eriochrome10/9/12, 12:35 PM

      I still have my copy of dark future. I looked back at the full rules a couple of years ago. I do not think it is really a boardgame once you get past the basic rules.

      Delete
    3. MIK10/9/12, 12:44 PM

      Thing is, I don't even remember playing it back then. I think I just owned it, and I was going to do something with the plastic cars...which I never did.

      Delete
    4. eriochrome10/9/12, 9:22 PM

      I remember playing it when I was in junior high. I remember having an interceptor with a turret mounted minigun. Great gun but low ammo capacity. Just redownloaded the rules:

      http://www.games-workshop.com/MEDIA_CustomProductCatalog/m1340008_Dark_Future.pdf

      Delete
  3. eriochrome10/9/12, 12:37 PM

    I have the Space Hulk card game and the rules are pretty unclearly presented.

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 12:43 PM

      That's probably the nicest way I've heard that put. Apparently perseverring with the rules is almost fruitless and augmenting them with Boardgame Geek FAQ's and the like are the way to go.

      Delete
  4. Ian10/9/12, 1:08 PM

    Always hapy to read about board games so keep them coming

    Ian

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 5:38 PM

      Yours was one of the comments that brought this about! They're on their way!

      Delete
  5. M. Jared Swenson10/9/12, 1:28 PM

    I love Death Angel. My brother Jarom bought it and studied up on how it's played. What i like about it is it's a team game. Everyone is playing together against the deck. It calls for a lot of strategy, forward thinking, and it's good fun.

    The more players that play, the harder and harder it gets. It's a definite recommend from me.

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 5:40 PM

      In a lot of ways it's like the Gears of War boardgame, which coincidentally was written by the same guy!

      Delete
  6. Tristan M10/9/12, 2:47 PM

    Death Angel is a great game, but I agree the mechanics are poorly outlined in the rules.

    There is a perfect 2 page BGG file that I use for teaching the rules/running the game. Looks like there's a more complete one too.

    Here's the one I use
    http://www.boardgamegeek.com/filepage/81927/space-hulk-death-angel-additional-faq-v1-0

    New one I still need to check out
    http://www.boardgamegeek.com/filepage/68820/death-angel-complete-guide

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 5:38 PM

      Thanks for the links, I will utilize them. Too bad a game can't be fully enjoyed as written, but it's a small thing.

      Delete
  7. The Angry Lurker10/9/12, 4:36 PM

    I'd like to hear your thoughts on the Death Angel game especially the solo aspect!

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 5:37 PM

      Then I will push that one to the front of the queue!

      Delete
  8. Loquacious10/9/12, 9:43 PM

    I adore the Death Angel game. I honestly had no real problem figuring out how to play it, but to a "draw one, play one" kind of girl like me, the directions seemed pretty obvious. Maybe I'm the outlaw...

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    1. MIK10/9/12, 9:56 PM

      Well I always kind of considered you the outlaw! Good to see so many people coming out and singing Death Angel's praise too, when I bought it I'd say it had about a 50/50 approval rating, now I'm really glad I picked it up. And the first two expansions. All for ten bucks.

      Delete
  9. Unknown10/10/12, 1:54 AM

    Death Angel is great fun! I found the rules clear. Okay, I had to check the BGG forums a few times for a couple of questions I had, but that is more or less true for every game I play.

    I think the game is equally fun playing solo as with a group.

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    1. MIK10/10/12, 7:16 AM

      Another great endorsement Mats, thanks. BGG is a great resource when it comes to getting those little clarifications needed. And it's good to hear the solo aspect in such favorable light as well since that was a big selling point for me.

      Delete

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