Best Board Games Reviewed

Best Board Games Reviewed We review the best board games, card games and rpgs to help you make the right purchase. Please check back regularly as we've a lot of great games to review (yes, this really is the best job in the world...)! http://www.libermortis.co.uk/ Thu, 7 Oct 2010 08:38:44 GMT Thu, 7 Oct 2010 08:38:44 GMT en-GB &copy 2011 Copyright Liber Mortis info@table4.com info@libermortis.com Table4.com RSS Builder 30 Arkham Horror Board Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/arkham-horror-board-game/ By far the greatest horror board game ever - Arkham Horror the Board Game is intelligent, beautifully designed and is generally in most board gamers top games list of all time. Prepare for the horror board game review to end all disputes - Arkham Horror is the ing of the underworld, hands down. You will lose mortal Seriously though, you will lose - a lot. Perhaps more than you will actually win. This game is hard and it has been designed to be just so. But we shouldn't get so caught up in winning anyway, should we? It's only a bit of fun? Hmmmmmm... Don't get me wrong many have mastered this game but not within their first couple of games that's for sure, unless they are secretly akin to the Ancient Ones themselves. So the bottom line of this game is practise makes perfect. If any board game is worth the time and effort it's this one. The Lovecraftian World of Cthulhu You have perhaps already noticed there is a large gathering of people who are huge fans of everything Cthulhu - H.P. Lovecraft's work is now legend, but even if you're fairly new to all this you'll soon be fully immersed in Arkham Horror's dark and imaginative world. Your characters include an eclectic group of historians, wiseguys, hookers, librarians, drunks - who all share one common cause: "to save the goddamn world seeeee?" Everyone else in town may not have the stomach to stand up to the worst thing since Big Brother, things like winged demons, possessed zealots, taxmen, okay no taxmen, but these likely and some very unlikely heroes laugh in the face of evil and drink hard liquor to settle the nerves when thinks get a little hairy. Booze is also great for hiding the smell of urine... Monsters, lots of monsters You never know what will pop of the next portal, as each turn monsters will be randomly taken from a cup, skull or pumpkin (why not be creative with the container?) and placed on the board. Get yourself some guns, occult books, etc to blast those malevolent beasts back to the unknown or sneak, cower and run like any smart academic would do! Bravery is for the dumb in this town, how many times must they punish you to get the message across, puny mortal! Arkham Horror Terror Track My favourite bit about this game is how tension increases gradually over the course of the game. After each round there will be an event, normally involving some sort of horrific incident meaning the towns people become more and more paranoid each time the 'Terror Track' is increased until they are quite literally scared sh*tless! People going missing, strange sightings, cultists growing numbers - it's enough to make you lose your marbles, or your bottle. But not this bunch of floosies, gangsters, and bums - these guys n gals aint scared o' nuthin' I tells ya! "Lemme at em, lemme at em!"... Depth, Depth, Depth Arkham Horror is most definitely not a quick, simple board game - you're in it for the long haul. Like the many areas of the board game, there are many elements to keep you engrossed. The result - pure depth of gameplay, once you begin playing you want to be disturbed, and don't be surprised to find yourself playing on into the night (this is quite cool as it adds to the spooky ambience). To be played around Halloween only? No way, but this is the quintessential game for the Halloween season. What could be better than getting your mates round, watching a horror flick then breaking out the most highly recommended horror board game of all time? Not much I say. Or you could go the cinema on the 31st of October and have the shuffling fool behind you kick your seat every time a good scene comes up... it's up to you really. Taxi! Stylish and elegant Fantasy Flight got it right with this game (they normally do), the artwork is excellent and the overall feel for the game is very well fitted to a boot-legging, monster-ridden town of the roaring '20s. Authentic, high quality eye-candy is what we want and boy do we get it. Arkham's Conclusion No better game for the Halloween season. Fact. There's so much much more to talk about really but I hope you can see from the points above that Arkham Horror the Board Game is the Horror Board Game. Fact. Like all the best board games there are enough expansions out there to keep the game fresh until you're well into your 90s "...aye you don't what a board game is 'til you've played Arkham Horror wee lad..." You'll want to play it more than once, you may even get hooked, so get your mates round, get a scary film on in the background, keep the lights low and have fun going to the bathroom on your own... If you have already played Arkham Horror and want a new experience you may also want to try the Witches of Salem, A Touch of Evil and Betrayal at the House on the Hill board games. And don't forget Call of Cthulhu the Living Card Game.By David 07/10/2010<hr /> Thu, 7 Oct 2010 08:38:44 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/arkham-horror-board-game/ Stone Age Board Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/stone-age-board-game/ Beautifully designed and wonderfully inventive board game set in the golden age of time before cars, queues and canteens. Suitable for family nights in and experienced board gamers alike this is real treat for all involved. It even comes with a genuine leather dice cup for that authentic hunter-gatherer feeling! The Stone Age was a golden age. Tough, but golden... These happy folk could get by just fine before the advent of bronze, iron, steel and aluminium - instead they had to utilise the best resources available to them for that time. This is where you come in - your key resources are (in order of difficulty to obtain) wood, brick, stone and gold. These are essential for gaining new building cards and civilisation cards. The more educated, artistic and ingenious your little pioneers are the more points you will accumulate (more on this in a bit) - and the player with the most points, wait for it, is the winner! What do you get for winning? Erm the player who wins gets to take a big sniff out of the leather dice cup... The higher the population, the more mouths to feed Its crucial to breed and increase your population (and there is a special nooky hut for that) so that you can send them out to gather more resources, one people piece grants you one dice roll for a chance at accumulating stuff, so the more the merrier. Youll also need tools to help increase your chances of collecting more wood and stone etc and your people' must be also be spent in order to build up your Stone Age tool rack. However, at the end of each round your tribe must be fed, one food unit per people piece and you can gain food in two main ways. The first is by going out and hunting dinner, you and all your mates run around through the woods chucking spears and shooting arrows at the local wildlife - if youre lucky you may even bag a hefty bear (worth 10 food units)! The second is to work all day in fields so you can bring in the harvest at the end of every round, to do this all you need to do stick one of your people on the harvest space, but there is only one space to do so and demand is high! Too complicated for a simple Stone Age man? It will take the top minds of your tribe to work out how many points youve got at the end of the game, so lets hope theres an abacus about! If not, quick - invent one! Your building and civilisation cards will be multiplied in various ways so be sure to collect them wisely, better combinations equal more points, a lot more points! The first time you read the rules and try to add up your score you may well find yourself saying things like ugh? but in all fairness its actually fairly simple after your first attempt. This is pretty much how I found all of the rules: at first glance I think to myself oh dear this looks like its going to be unnecessarily complicated and then after a few minutes I realised oh wait, this is actually quite simple, making this board game a very special game indeed. Simple to play, gorgeous to look at and bags of gameplay and depth - what more could you ask for? Summary of the Stone Age Absolutely fantastic, I cant wait to play it again. Sure the dice cup really does smell bad but you dont have to use it if you dont want to. We found this be a very immersive game for all involved, be it a 2, 3 or 4 player game as the rounds are pretty quick and youll never feel like youre waiting very long before you need to act again. Fans of Settlers of Catan will surely like this, personally I found this to better than Catan but that will depend on the player I suppose! Lets see, marks out of 10 then? Ill give this a sturdy 9 carved out of a big block of stone. Well done you clever little bearded people!By David 14/06/2010<hr /> Mon, 14 Jun 2010 05:26:00 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/stone-age-board-game/ Settlers of Catan 5 to 6 Player Expansion http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/settlers-of-catan-5-to-6-player-expansion/ An essential purchase for anyone with more than 3 friends / family members who are up for a game of Settlers of Catan. There isn't much to tell about this expansion - it does exactly what it says on the erm... box. Normally the basic core game of Settlers of Catan grants you a maximum of 4 players, which isn't many when you think about it, and most people can't be bothered waiting or watching while the others finish their game. So the additional components you get with this expansion provide all you need to have a seamless 5-6 player game. The expansion basically adds two additional features to the core game of Settlers of Catan. The first being that there are additional components to make the game board larger, by adding extra tiles etc. The second feature being that the turn structure of the rules have been changed slightly. Players now build their roads and settlements etc at the end of each turn simultaneously, if indeed required. The reason for this is so that the game runs smoothly and keeps all players interested whilst they wait for their turn to come around again. This also keeps the game from going on for too long (which wouldn't bother me personally). In a 3-4 player game this was never a problem but if you do decide to play the game exactly as you normally would with the core game then by all means do so! Off you go then - have fun!By David 04/06/2010<hr /> Fri, 4 Jun 2010 08:39:04 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/settlers-of-catan-5-to-6-player-expansion/ Settlers of Catan Board Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/settlers-of-catan-board-game/ The Settlers of Catan offers multiple combinations each time you play making this game one of the most ultimately replayable board games of all time. It's not brand new, there's an ultra uber amazing 3D edition out now to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Settlers of Catan, complete with its hefty price tag. However for most of us the basic 3 - 4 player game of Settlers of Catan will do us nicely as it's still just as classic, just as appealing as it's ever been and probably ever will be. The world of Catan Three or more of you will begin your small settlement on the Isle of Catan, the main objective being to achieve the biggest and bravest settlement before your friends / foes do. You do this by gathering various resources to enable building roads, settlements, cities and other additions in the form of bonus cards such as an army of knights, universities, churches and palaces. This may not sound very exciting but within the first 5 minutes of game you'll be laughing shouting and scheming as with all descent board games! The wretched robber will probably be the cause of most ill-will, being that whenever a 7 is rolled the person who rolled may choose an area to blight until he is moved on again. At times you'll also need to trade with your most bitter enemy, but be warned, even though you receive the item you need most you may well be aiding your enemy to victory before you do. 3 - 4 players? You can get away with playing with 2 people even though you're not really supposed to, although 3 or more does play much better, as with most board games. To play with 5 or 6 players however you'll need to buy the additional aptly named 5 - 6 Player Expansion (see below). It's not the end of the world though as it's not too expensive, and highly recommended for games with all your friends and family around. Easy, rewarding, never-ending strategy There are three main reasons why Settlers of Catan is a classic; firstly anyone can learn the rules in no time at all, this includes family members who normally can only be bothered playing Monopoly or Uno etc because they can't be bothered absorbing new rules... Secondly, despite the simplicity, there is a good deal of rewarding tactics and strategies to keep the game nice and moreish. And thirdly, like all classic board games, there is an element that allows for a different game each time it's played, and Catan is no exception. The hexagonal tiles can be arranged differently each game as can the outer coastal tiles, and as if that wasn't enough you can also re-arrange the variables for each tile meaning you practically have limitless possibilities for how the game will begin and inevitably play out. Some variations offer an easier or harder game - you may even want to try a completely random setup and work with your foes and allies to get what you need to win (this is where Catan really lives up to its reputation in my opinion). Catan expansions If you were to buy all of the many, many expansions / spin-offs for Settlers of Catan then you would be probably have to sell all your wee settlements, all your wee sheepies and consider a career as the robber... However, as with most board games with a huge list of expansions, you're best picking the ones that appeal most to you and collect them over time. The basic game already offers hours and hours of gaming delight so you're unlikely to get bored with it easily. But when if it does ever begin to lose its sparkle by all means pick up the Cities and Knights Expansion and get excited about Catan all over again! Catan settles itself nicely in the board game halls of fame, and we at Liber Mortis agree totally. If you don't already own this then you should definitely give it a go and see what all the fuss is about. If you like Settlers of Catan you may also like... If you're thirsty for more great alternative classics then Dominion and Carcassonne are your best bets. You may also want to try Stone Age and Tobago.By David 04/06/2010<hr /> Fri, 4 Jun 2010 07:56:25 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/settlers-of-catan-board-game/ Gloom Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/gloom-card-game/ Simplistic, innovative, dark, twisted and malevolent fun! There is a very gothic, Tim Burton-esque feel to the game, particularly due to the authentic quality of the illustrations and dry wit of the character names and descriptions. For example; for the card 'Attacked by an Angry Mob' the description reads 'Fifty people with torches and pitch forks can't be wrong' ... genius. Today is a good day to die The object of the game is quite simple. The player controlling the family of miscreants who has suffered the most wins the game. You can inflict horrific acts upon those of your own family or those of your opponents. However some cards offer some slither of hope to these poor unfortunates, meaning you can cause a great deal of happiness to one of your opponents characters, similarly causing your real life opponent a great deal of suffering... The idea of the game is that the more these gang of eccentrics suffer in life, the greater they will be rewarded in the afterlife - so you have to make sure they are close to topping themselves before finally freeing them and sending them off to the world beyond. You may not kill a happy or content character however, as some form of tragedy must befall them before they pop it... Tactics for the deceased As simple as this game is there is a very nice element of tactics involved, this is mostly how and when to use your deck to its maximum effect. The are three areas in which you can inflict pain / joy, the top being common, the middle average, and the bottom rare. So what you can do is override pain / joy by adding the right card at the right time, the best being when your opponent has caused a high amount of suffering to his character, and you override it with a mere trivial occurrence, thus edging you swiftly on your way to a wonderful afterlife. So to put it simply, the rarer the area, the less likely someone can override it. There are also event cards that allow you to steal cards, pick up more, clear all points from a character and even bring characters back from the dead... Necessary transparency, not just a gimmick True to the nature of the game the cards have their own clever twist. The cards are actually see-through, a very rare thing indeed and this game thrives on this attribute, it simply wouldn't work without possessing the transparency traits of a passing poltergeist. The cards are very high quality and work extremely well, they even wipe clean if you invite your sloppiest friend over for game. Well done to these guys for their brave and bold approach, may they live miserably in this life, and flourish in the next! Eulogy Gloom was a good card game. For Gloom did venture where none had ventured before, and succeeded in doing so. Gloom has a big family of expansions and they will miss Gloom dearly, if not purchased also. I bestow Gloom the card game a whopping 9 out of 10, for bringing so much happiness to those who have suffered so much. Amen.By David 28/05/2010<hr /> Fri, 28 May 2010 01:40:13 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/gloom-card-game/ Myth: Pantheons Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/myth--pantheons-card-game/ The latest game from Alderac lets you play as the god of your choice. We'd all love the power of divine influence and now there's Myth: Pantheons, the board game that lets you battle other Gods in a popularity contest for the favour of mortals. All Star Cast... of Gods! In the starting line-up we have (in alphabetical order): <ul> <li>Amaterasu (Japanese goddess of sun)</li> <li>Anansi (African trickster deity)</li> <li>Anubis (Egyptian god of the underworld)</li> <li>Athena (Greek Goddess of War)</li> <li>Ganesh (Hindu elephant-headed lord)</li> <li>Guan Yin (Chinese goddess of compassion)</li> <li>Jupiter (King of the Roman gods)</li> <li>Morrigan (Kinky Celtic goddess of death)</li> <li>Quetzalcoatl (Say it three times as fast you can - Mesoamerican god of the morning star)</li> <li>Thor (Norse god with a whopping great hammer, also a comic book hero)</li> <li>Tiamat (Babylonian dragon-like goddess who personifies ever-changing nature)</li> <li>and finally White Buffalo Woman (has the most unimaginative name of all of the deities but she is still a powerful Lakota ancestral spirit of peace and fertility)</li> </ul> I know what you're thinking - "What, no Jesus? No Buddha...?" Mortal Followers The aim of the game is to sway the hearts of mere mortal men, so that they wear a funny shaped hat / dance naked / etc in your honour - and not for some other wannabee, passing trend, demigod (i.e. your opponents). That's right these fickle humans and perhaps their very souls are up for grabs - ancient Clash of the Titans style! Whoever has the most by the end of the game wins and the people will remember you for eons to come, eventually making a board game about the tales of your victory... Divine Influence You do this by completing challenges in order to claim control of an ancient city (drawn at random), when the city is yours you get a set amount of happy little followers (as specified by the card) who chant your name and sacrifice yaks in your honour so that you spare them of your omnipotent wrath. How do you win a challenge? By using your cards of War, Heaven, Death, Harvest and Weather of course! You can also use your unique deity cards (5 per deity) to really out do your celestial opponents. All of these cards have their own special abilities and can only be used once per game - so use them wisely! You will also build up a collection of tokens that can be spent on fortifying your won cities, invading your opponents cities and much more... Gaming Commandments The board game rules state Myth: Pantheon should be played with 3 - 6 people. Like all good commandments, these rules can be bended, as the game actually plays fine with only two players (in all honesty though 3 or 4 is the ideal number of players). Another rule that can be tweaked is the game length, the game is supposed to end after the third 'Epoch' - but if you're running low on time for whatever reason you can choose to end add up your followers after one or two Epochs to determine the winner. Favourite Deity My personal favourite of the game is Tiamat! Tiamat has cool deity cards that can cause a good deal of random havoc to each game, which I like very much... That's how gods are supposed to act, right? Typo The game comes with quick play cards, but don't rely on them! On the Domain Abilities side you can see under 'Protective Storm' it says "attach one or more harvest tokens..." when it should say "weather tokens". It's quite an obvious mistake but a big one nonetheless. The main rulebook is fine however. Judgement Day So how does it fair on a scale of 1 - 10? I'd give this a solid 8, we found it to be good fun without a doubt. It's not going to become the next big must-buy board game I don't think but it will appeal to a wide variety of gamers and new comers alike. It's easy to play and fairly easy to grasp the first time around but after a few plays the game will reveal a lot more depth with various tactics that you can use. Bottom line, if playing as a God appeals to you then it's definitely worth buying! I'm off to sacrifice a chicken in its honour...By David 21/04/2010<hr /> Wed, 21 Apr 2010 07:12:02 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/myth--pantheons-card-game/ Talisman The Reaper Expansion http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/talisman-the-reaper-expansion/ We think the Reaper Expansion is a must buy for Talisman the Board Game, can't imagine not having it now it's that essential. Basically if someone rolls a one for their move, ole' boney boy has to be rolled for too, meaning he roams the board just like you do. Presumably he does this because he's a bit bored and feels like decreasing the overall surplus population. Fear the Reaper If you're unlucky enough to unwittingly shoulder-barge the Grim Reaper as you're dreamily looking up at the clouds then you'd better start praying. Well actually this doesn't mean instant death but your next roll will count a lot! Some results mean losing a life, a follower or a turn. Roll a six and get cool stuff. Roll a one and your character is well and truly dead, not just lose a life and some stuff dead, it's game over pick a new character dead or sit and wait patiently until the game ends dead. My favourite bit is what happens when you roll a five, as you can send bone head off to pick on an opposing character of your choice... Expansion Extras and Characters Personally I find the presence of the Grim Reaper enough for me but you do actually get a heap of new cards and four new characters to prance about with, all of which have their new skills, talents etc. as you'd expect. The Sage - doesn't look very tough, mostly because he isn't but can sneak a look at the top adventure / spell cards. The Knight is fairly cool, but a bit of a goody two shoes. The Merchant is the Dell Boy of Talisman, ('ees a geezer innit?) bit of dosh, talks his way out battles when the odds are stacked against him and can sell snow to the Eskimos. The best of the new characters however has got to be the Dark Cultist, not only does she look cool but she's incredibly powerful... Don't forget to download the 'Danse Macabre' PDF from this page for a new alternative ending, simply print it out and you're ready to go.By David 05/04/2010<hr /> Mon, 5 Apr 2010 09:31:47 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/talisman-the-reaper-expansion/ Talisman The Frostmarch Expansion http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/talisman-the-frostmarch-expansion/ The first question you may ask is "is the Frostmarch Expansion worth the money?" - the answer will obviously depend on how much you like / play Talisman. If you love the main board game and need more then the answer is a simple yes. If you love the main board game and find yourself quite satisfied with it then the answer is still yes, but we're not going to force you to buy it or anything... Frostmarch Expansion Characters The Ogre Chieftain is mighty. He eats donkeys for a light snack. His arms look like small hills. His head is 97% bone. And he will whoop everyone's bottom if you don't keep a close eye on him so be warned! To make him even tougher he can use beasts he's slain to fight with him (adds strength to his own), like he wasn't hard enough? The Warlock performs tricks for handicapped children in his spare private time but when he's out there in the harsh regions of Talisman he's all spells and fiery business! If you go him remember to keep casting spells, don't save them! The Necromancer - a magicy version of the Ogre Chieftain, he can get his slain spirits to fight alongside him (adding craft to his own), not a happy chappy. The Leprechaun (did I spell that right?) is a cheeky one, can bounce anywhere within his current region if he gets a six and can grap a load of gold whenever he's in the woods. He doesn't always win but he is ALWAYS minted! "Lend us a tenner dude..." Frosty Town This expansion turns the whole game into a slippery winter wonderland, filled with blizzards, ice beasties holding handkerchiefs and a chapped lips epidemic. There are tonnes of new cards, we tried playing Talisman using only the Frostmarch cards, and it worked a treat! Some have similar attributes with different names / artwork to the original cards but overall they work really well. Alternate Endings Don't settle for the same scenarios each time you play, get all original directors cut on Talisman's ass! We're not talking DVD extras or anything, but you can decide by choice or at random how the ending is going to go down. The Frostmarch expansion allows you to duke it out with Madam Ice Queen Frost-Bitch herself (she's pretty damn tough) in order to win the game, this one being the best of the new three endings. Overall this expansion is fairly small and simple but will definitely rekindle your love of Talisman if you have been neglecting it lately, shame on you! For even more expansions for an already great game check out the Dungeon Expansion, the Reaper Expansion and the latest Highland Expansion.By David 05/04/2010<hr /> Mon, 5 Apr 2010 08:21:46 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/talisman-the-frostmarch-expansion/ Talisman Board Game (Revised 4th Edition) http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/talisman-board-game--revised-4th-edition-/ We have given Talisman the Board Game the number one top spot in our top board games list, so already you can safely assume that this game is good, very good in fact, perhaps brilliant. No better than brilliant it's marvellous, yes that's the word I'm looking for, marvellous. So if you haven't got the time to read this review and want to know whether or not this game is worth buying, then by all means just buy it now because you really won't regret it. For those of you who have perhaps already heard good things about Talisman the Revised 4th Edition Board Game and want to know more please do keep on reading... Best Board Game of All Time? The top spot hasnt been given out to any old board game, or a passing fad even, nor has it been given to one of the tired old classics (you know who you are!). This isn't something that's easily achieved don't forget, as there are plenty of must-buy board games out there, so what is it that makes Talisman the grand champion of the universe? Is it the price? It's not cheap but good for such a large game. Is it the theme of the game? Surely fantasy settings, dragons, swords, warriors, wizards etc don't exactly make a brand new concept do they? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that the game is well into its most solid edition thus far: the Revised Forth Edition! Perhaps it's the fact that it still manages to mesmerise audiences some 20 odd years on with its simplistic, addictive game mechanics and hugely expandable settings! Or perhaps it's because it's not about passing go, making words, remembering who won a gold medal at the 1986 Winter Olympics - yet it's still loved by teenagers, kids, mums, dads, girlfriends, gamers and geeks the world over. This is easily our most favourite board game that can be played again and again with new experiences each time it's played. Maybe I'm not a Board Game Kinda Guy / Girl? Poppycock! You heard me... In our experience anyone who plays this game will love it. Okay maybe your chavs and your crack dealers are less likely to admit doing anything other than narcotics but everyone else has a soft spot for elves, monster slaying and forest frolicking. This game has the same mass appeal as the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter movies yet you and your mates / family can all get together, talk and have a few laughs whilst playing the game. Your Character and The Luck of the Gods Fight and squabble amongst your mates / rivals to decide who gets to go who (because some are definitely much better than others) or let the gods decide by randomly selecting from the huge stack of witches, warriors, fanatics and erm, idiots ("oh no, not the Priest!"). Some characters have mighty, sometimes silly advantages at the start of the game, some can use two weapons, some can combine their strength and craft (see below), and then some just kinda suck... But gloat and boast all that you will after choosing your most highly favoured champion, as they will do you no good if your stars are out of line, as it is the dreaded dice roll that will determine your fate! Some games you will find yourself slaying every beast and ghoulie that comes your way, collect every strength and craft bonus that has been scattered across the board and deflect every foolhardy attempt from your impetuous opponents. And your victory shall be swift. Should the gods who normally favour you feel poorly that day or tire of your boorish antics you will be on the slippery slope of "it's not fair, what did I do to deserve this?!" and you will have nothing but cowardice and embarrassing defeat to your name. For example you may find you've been turned into a toad for three turns, on more than one occasion, which is bad. There has never been a decent game, be it plugged or unplugged that has achieved legendary status without the tears, the tantrums and random element of bad luck. Don't let the die's all-important presence sway you however, as a good player will find his or her way out a string of poor roles and will still find this game a genuine treat any day. Strength or Craft Be you a mighty meat head of brawn? Capable of headbutting your way through a stone wall? Be you a book wormy know-it-all of the magical variety with more spells than a Scottish weather forecast? Or perhaps you be a light-footed ninnymuggins of no particular strength or craft, capable of performing a secret ability that none other can even dream of? Strength and craft play a vital role in Talisman (gold comes in handy too), strength for killing monsters and characters, craft for killing spirits and casting spells (spells can do all sorts of cool stuff). As the game progresses you'll find even the weediest of wizards will be shouting "come on I'll take you all on" and Conan's dumber more inbred cousin will be reading at a 12+ level. Magical artefacts and bonuses will begin to blur the edges of the warrior and wizard, but the final path will require each character to choose the most powerful of the two attributes, before advancing to the final event... A Land of Fortune and Glory The board, I mean the Realm of Talisman, is split into 3 very distinct regions of varying difficulty. The Outer Region is where most characters begin their quest, forests, taverns, villages, rivers and sunny skies. Like the Lake District but with less tourists. Venture from the seemingly safe Outer Region into the harsh, unforgiving Middle Region too soon and it will swallow you whole and spit you out like an orange pip, leaving you with no possessions, no strength / craft bonuses and a one way ticket to the choose a new character pile. Harsh. The Middle Region may add strength to the random enemies you encounter, drain your life when you enter the desert and rewards your character much less frequently, so be prepared! The Inner Region is nothing less than a waste ground of torment and doom, eternal suffering, and the final path you must walk to victory. Make your way here too soon and you'll regret it. Roll too high a number and you'll regret it. Roll too low a number and you'll regret it. Say the Lord's name in vain and well you probably wont regret it but you get the general idea. At the centre of the Inner Region lies a trinket to behold higher than any other shiny thing you'll come across in the game, for it grants the power to win! The Quest There is but one quest above all others - to seek out the Crown of Command from the Inner Region! Be sure to have your Talisman before you go or you won't be able to advance. The crown gives you the power to take lives one by one from all remaining characters still lurking about in the other regions (and the Inner Regions too) until there aren't any more lives left to take! If one of your opponents make it to you before they snuff it, they will challenge you to a battle to the death! Once all the other players have popped their clogs you'll become the new ruler of the world of Talisman and eternal glory will be yours! Until the next game. Artwork, Miniatures and Rules This is Fantasy Flight Games at its best. Miniatures replace all previous edition's attempt at character markers and they're ready to be painted too if that floats your boat, although it's not essential and look great out the box. The illustrations are beautiful, from the character cards to the board, although fans of the second edition will inevitably miss some of the charm of the less sophisticated but downright hilarious artwork, but they'll soon forget as the Revised 4th is still a much better edition by far. How have Fantasy Flight affected the rules? Well they've done a bang up job I reckon. FFG style games aren't always for everyone, the phase-based turns, overly complex decisions and a heavy reliance on dice roles can at times turn people away from them, but with Talisman they managed to keep it just right. The rules are easy to digest, easy to remember and you can develop the way you play the game to keep it all fresh. Sometimes the game can go on for hours if you're not a regular player but the alternative rules really help to speed things up. Otherwise it may be a case of leaving the board the way it is until you're all ready to play again. How Much Board Game for your Buck? In terms of price, if you were to buy this game and all of the expansions (more are on their way as I type this) then you will have spent a fair bit in all honesty. However, you only need to spend 30 odd pounds to begin with and you've already got a whopping great main game of a game (you do get a lot for your money), that alone will keep you occupied for donkeys! The expansions really start to come in handy when you become like us and you've played this game to death and need more depth ("more cards, more characters dammit - look at all this empty table space!"). But seeing as you can buy them at your leisure you can choose between huge games like the Dungeon and the Highland expansions or start with the smaller Reaper and Frostmarch Expansions, whatever suits your pocket. Board games like Middle-Earth Quest, Runewars and Descent are all amazing fantasy board games too but are way above the 35 pound range, so even though they are cheaper when you add it all up, they can't compete with the initial beauty of Talisman! 35 skidoo is well within the average game budget, considering it's a great laugh for a night-in with your mates and perfect for livening up family quality time you can't go wrong really. So why not pick up the family board game that actually does entertain the whole family and find out what you've been missing all this time...? Already have Talisman and want a board game with the same appeal? Check out Carcassonne, different theme, bags of fun!By David 05/04/2010<hr /> Mon, 5 Apr 2010 05:57:54 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/talisman-board-game--revised-4th-edition-/ War on Terror Board Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/war-on-terror-board-game/ The Daily Mail branded it as 'sick', the Police once confiscated a copy as 'evidence' of... something. We just think it's a bloody good game that makes us laugh. So what's got all the knee-jerkers calling for blood? It's basically Risk with a sense of humour, a balaclava with EVIL written on it, and some marvellously illustrated cards. But don't let that brief summation detract from the simple genius of TerrorBull Games. War on Terror is a great game, and in this day and age of fear-mongery and doom-say it wasn't going to be long until a couple of desperate journos and hippy-whacking coppers seized on the 'be the terrorists' aspect. Yet however much this has been painted as the board game equivalent of the Anarchist Cookbook... we say there is more to this game than a bunch of a gimmicks intended to wind up the media. This is a war game and a playable one at that, and due to its clever lampooning of international politics it can be picked up by anyone with even the smallest comprehension of the post 9/11 world. So how does it play? It plays well, real well. The object of the game is to build an empire and to fill it with cities. To build cities, you need plenty of cash. The more land you own, the higher your potential oil revenues will be... but with land and money also comes a lot of unwanted attention of the boom-boom-bang-bang variety. How do I get my hands on a big ol' cup of Texas tea? Black gold is only obtainable by possessing land, and each country contains a random counter with a number printed on it. At the end of each turn the oil dice are thrown, if the dice roll matches the number on one or more of the counters in your empire you get a payout. Your payout increases depending on how much money you spend developing the country. Take a little land, make a little war, get down tonight Unclaimed land can be absorbed relatively simply, so long as you border it and you can afford the cost of colonising it with a modest village. To invade someone else's land however you'll need to possess the appropriate Empire or Terror card. These cards are the key to winning, and are what gives this game its special dynamic. You have to either wait for or buy the right cards and lady luck can seriously help or hinder your expansionist dreams. You don't have an army as such, and any developments you make don't necessarily increase the defences of your realm. This random game element means the armchair general's tactical brain advantage is reduced somewhat but this is good on 2 levels: <ul> <li>the playing field is levelled for family game play</li> <li>it drives any real wargamers absolutely mad that someone with no tactical knowhow whatsoever can drop a nuke and utterly destroy their plans (yes I am speaking from experience, and yes I am still harbouring grudges!!!).</li> </ul> Yet this randomness is totally acceptable in the context of the game. War on Terror is all about mirroring the international arena so we need all the anger, frustration, vengeance, madness, bitterness, and suspicion we can get! The Terrorists Any player can buy and control terrorists. Terrorists can be played anywhere on the map, and with the right card to 'activate' them they can be a real threat. Once played, you lose control of the unit and other players can attack or manipulate them. Scary, but this is where the more tactical minded can gain an advantage through surprise attack and misdirection. The Axis of Evil Every empire needs an enemy and to this end the Axis of Evil wheel is spun from time to time. The lucky/unlucky player selected not only takes control of the rather fetching Evil balaclava, but also draws both Empire and Terror cards. These extra cards increase your attacking capability but other players are likely to come gunning for you as attacks against the Evil empire are rewarded with cash bonuses from the world bank. This inevitably results in your once quietly expanding glorious nation being reduced to smouldering radioactive rubble. Throwing in the chips The best thing about War on Terror for me is the rule that allows you to forsake your empire and become a terrorist or 'freedom fighter' (we leave it to you to determine the context). You decide when to do this, though usually it'll happen when you've taken all the nukes or military defeats you can stand (or simply because you want to cause the other players as much misery as you can). The Terrorist player can only access the Terror card deck, and cannot possess land anymore. Your job now is get rid of the greedy oppressors by destroying their developments, for each continent you liberate of Empire forces you will score points. Though beware... this is no easy task, and it is difficult to earn cash without land. What's worse is the other players may unite against you and try to totally eradicate you from the game. However it plays out... being the bad guy is always fun - just don't take it too seriously.By Chris 15/02/2010<hr /> Mon, 15 Feb 2010 06:36:52 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/war-on-terror-board-game/ Crunch Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/crunch-card-game/ First TerrorBull Games surprised us with the <a href="http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/war-on-terror-board-game/">War on Terror Board Game</a>, which was very impressive indeed. Then just when you thought that was your lot TerrorBull kindly rewarded us with the cheap as chips card game - Crunch! Ill be quite honest, normally if anyone ever mentions credit crunch within a 10 meter radius I develop an urge to chop my ears off without any consideration of the consequences, but this game almost makes up for all the pap and makes me wish I could turn back time and study to be a fat-cat banker. Yes this game lets you play on the other side of the fence of the credit crunch. You are indeed, a banker. A big fat banker to be precise whose sole ambition is to screw everyone and everything over, several times, much like a real banker. Big shoes to fill? War on Terror, for me wasnt the most original game in the world (although its still pretty damn fantastic) but this on the other hand was. I doubt theres another game anywhere on our funny little planet quite like it (not in civilised society anyway), it encourages you to embezzle assets in whichever method you feel to be ethical, much like a real banker! Ho ho! During my first game I obliterated my opponents by owning 90% of the game's assets and was convinced I was the unquestionable ruler of the universe, much like a real... ok Ill stop with that now. So what makes this game different to and perhaps better than War on Terror...? Its simple and cheap. True to the style of the recession this game is affordable to all and sundry, why even a commoner could afford it. Its a tiny wee game that can fit neatly within a pocket of your three piece suit (so its actually kind of travel-friendly too). The game is comprised of only a few decks of cards but what it lacks in balaclavas, spinners, boards and counters it makes up for in sheer genius. Well what did you expect, the game designers did go to Oxford yknow... I think this game is genius for two reasons. <ol> <li>Who the hell ever thought they could make a great game about borrowing assets, rebranding and corporate mergers? I mean youd have to be ruddy mad... or incredibly clever. Youll shake your head with appreciation when you play this its that good, its witty, satirical like WOT and really good fun when played with a group of 4 players.</li> <li>Whether you understand all of the credit crunch banker fraud malarkey or not this game is easy to play and will give you more truth about what went on than most of the usual media. Much like War on Terror in that sense. TerrorBull Games to run for office!</li> </ol> How does it work? You make huge amounts of dosh by borrowing assets to your workforce when you cash in on the good times, high risk loan situations bring mega moolah. Each turn you need to cover your debt and if you can't there'll be hell to pay, well not really as there are many slippery, slimy ways to get out of said situations. Trust cards will get you out of trouble when it all goes belly up (when the 'Crunch' card comes up for example), trust cards comprise of nice little benefits such as 'Government Bail Out' schemes etc. You dont win the game by owning the most assets, you win by skying away the most loot, this can be via your official bonus pile, or via the sneaky pile of cards hidden away sneakily from the view of your opponents (this can bring funny situations if you're dying for the toilet and you have half the economy stashed underneath your arse). I feel like playing a game again now... Any bad points? Yes but it's a very small complaint, which can be remedied quite easily in fact. When playing with 4 players the asset cards seem to run out fairly quickly, which isnt too much of a bad thing as you don't really want the game to go on for hours on end anyway. Quick games with bags of replayablity is the way I like 'em personally, so in that sense this game is perfect. But if you feel the game goes too quickly then a simple remedy would be to buy 2 boxes of Crunch as you'd have plenty of asset cards then. If you did decide to do that you could easily get away with playing with 1 or 2 more additional players. Then you can feel like a real big spender... Conclusion? Why do you need a conclusion? Ive given you all you need to know, cheap, travel-friendlyish, simple, witty and clever. Good show old boy!By David 15/02/2010<hr /> Mon, 15 Feb 2010 05:30:56 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/crunch-card-game/ Zombies!!! Board Game (2nd Edition) http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/zombies----board-game--2nd-edition-/ I have to admit at first I didnt particularly like the idea of the game as I am not a huge fan of zombies in general. However after a few turns the game turned out to be loads of fun. You have to fight armies of zombies every time you add a tile to the game. Each time more zombies appear you have to fight your way through them if you want to grab the extra bullets and lives available, which you will need. Its most likely that youll die at least once during the game but not to worry as you reappear back in the middle of the board with your full quota of lives and half of the zombie trophies that had been collecting throughout the game. The aim of the game is simple, either kill 25 zombies without dying or make it safely to the helipad. Beware however as the ultimate warrior zombie awaits you there. You can choose to make it even harder for your rival human players as you decide where the zombies go during the last phase of your turn and the dice roll determines how many of them will move about. This means you can move each available zombie one space closer to your opponents each turn, which is great for blocking passage ways so that they go through without a fight! By Cristelle 08/02/2010<hr />Best bit about this game for me was the artwork, it's funny, extremely gruesome and very well drawn. My favourite card for the artwork alone is the butter fingers card, its really nasty... Its a funny game to play too with zombies popping out all over the place and you never know where youre going really until the next tile comes out, which is random of course. I was gutted the first time I played as I had killed 23 zombies and threw a load a of crappy dice rolls so I lost all my bullets, lives and then re-spawned with half of my zombie trophy kills. I only needed to kill 2 more zombies to win. Grrrrrrr. I mean 'braaaaaiiiiiiins...'By David 08/02/2010<hr /> Mon, 8 Feb 2010 07:45:04 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/zombies----board-game--2nd-edition-/ Warhammer Invasion Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/warhammer-invasion-card-game/ Warhammer Invasion... whats not to love? Well, I guess that obviously depends on who you are. If youre a bit like me: overly hairy, likes games, and digs the Warhammer world in every way but for the painting/collecting aspect then this truly is a fantastic proposition from FFG. All folks like us need now is someone who feels the same way to play it with... Assuming you know someone (or if youre really lucky 3 someones) then you should get something like a battle fix from this card game. It is simple to pick up and play, despite the rulebooks best attempts to make you feel otherwise. And it pays the Warhammer world due homage with some quality artwork. But enough of this, what you want to know about is how it plays right? <ul> <li>There are four factions to play as. Two fight for Order the human Empire, and the stoic Dwarves. The other two for Disorder the barbaric Orcs, and the twisted forces of Chaos.</li> <li>You pick a faction, take a Capital board and a deck of cards representing your forces, and shuffle in a number of cards from the neutral deck (mainly representing fortifications) for good measure.</li> <li>Then you play in typical FFG phase-based fashion.</li> <li>The first phase sees you drawing resources which you can spend on units, special attacks and tactic cards.</li> <li>The second phase sees you drawing cards from your deck to place in your hand.</li> <li>The amount you draw as either resources or cards is determined by the amount of power (little Warhammer symbols) marked on the cards in either the Kingdom or Quest zones of your Capital. You with me so far?</li> <li>The third phase sees you placing cards into either of the afore mentioned zones (to make yourself more capable of fielding an impressive army) or into your Battlefield zone. Cards placed in your Battlefield can be used to attack your opponents Capital, which is where it gets interesting for armchair warmongers such as myself.</li> <li>To attack, you declare which zone youre going to grind into the dust (usually the least heavily fortified) and what units youre going to use. The defender declares his defensive force. You both tot up your power, and then dish out the damage tokens. Any attacking power left after the defending units are dead is assigned as damage to the Capital zone.</li> <li>When a Capital zone takes all the damage it can, it burns. Once two of your opponents zones are alight, he is toast and out of the game.</li> <li>Simples. Well maybe. You also get a host of Tactic and Quest cards to spice up the action, but youll have to buy a copy to see how these work.</li> </ul> All in all this is a really cool game and Ive found myself rather looking forward to picking up the expansions. Possible downsides... maybe youve got to be a bit of Warhammer-head to truly get it and maybe true living card gamers can point out better titles. Ive personally never found LCGs all that attractive until now, so perhaps this game with its familiar warring minions is a nice bridge between two distinct gaming cultures. At the very least if youre looking to kick your buddys armour-plated ass without resorting to a life of collecting and painting miniatures then you wont go wrong with Invasion. Saying that, this game has brought me dark urges to pick up a paint brush again... oh Sigmar help me, Im so confused!!!By Chris 07/02/2010<hr /> Sun, 7 Feb 2010 04:16:41 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/warhammer-invasion-card-game/ Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/battlestar-galactica--the-board-game/ Whether or not youre a fan of the TV series, I certainly wasnt when I first played it, this game has a lot to offer and will draw you in to its clever Sci-Fi world of peril, deceit and tough decision making. Marks out of 10? Ill go with a 9 and Ill go as far to say whether your bag is Sci-Fi, Fantasy or otherwise youll love this game outright. You may even develop an urge to begin watching the series on DVD after playing the board game. I did& Before we get into my Battlestar Galactica Review though there are two large flaws that I must point out: <ol> <li>The rules took me the best part of a weekend to get my head around. Perhaps it was just me or perhaps the rulebook could have been worked out that little bit better. Not the first time with Fantasy flight I have to be honest. There is a lot to explain granted but the cool thing is once youve got the rules sussed the game jets off at light speed.</li> <li>When I first bought the game it was only playable for 3 - 6 players, which sucks if youre dying to play it and there are only two of you. Fortunately however there are 2 player rules out now result! See the Variant Rulebook .pdf in the download section on this page. Oh and I really hate the sympathiser card, sorry is that 3 now? Oh well the Variant Rulebook lets you get rid of that rule anyway.</li> </ol> Now that Ive gotten that out of the way I can honestly say without any doubt in my inferior human mind this game is one of the cleverest and most exciting games Ive ever had the pleasure of playing. Fact. My favourite thing about this game, and that was tough to decide, was the varying combination of gameplay styles. First you have the space combat element, where dice roles determine who lives and who dies whilst piloting a tiny ship around Galactica. Second you have the fun of using your skill cards to anonymously avert a major crisis, which involves all players at once meaning that if the odds are stacked against the welfare of the humans then a Cylons evil presence has definitely been noted. Third you have the strategy of juggling resources, deciding whether or not to sacrifice food in the stead of population, or having the player to your left sent to the brig so that you can inherit the rank of Admiral (gaining the use of Nuclear weapons). This game is absolutely packed full of great ideas and clever scenarios that I find addictive and totally irresistible. However I havent discussed in nearly enough detail my next favourite aspect of this game, which comes in at a very close second... The Element of Mistrust Its kind of like Sci-Fi poker really. If you cant conceal your contrived, dark wishes of destroying your deluded friends then everyone will be accusing you of being a Cylon within minutes and youll be spending most of the game locked in the brig, figuratively speaking (unless youre a really hardcore fan& Im digressing). One or more of you is a Cylon and no-one knows who, you're dealt random cards at the start of the game and from then on no one is allowed to admit who they are for sure, not even the humans, so it's up the Cylons to stay steaky at all times. Or perhaps youre the type of person who knows you are clearly 100% innocent, yet has the large heading GUILTY stamped across your forehead and the sweaty palms to boot that suggest you are as innocent as Satan at Hitlers time of conception. I love moments like these, and with everyone accusing each other of being a Cylon (normally the person(s) with a reputation of accidentally cheating at board games) it will make life easier for the true dark horse to slip though the guard of their paranoid peers and cause a heavy amount of damage to the last survivors of the human race... Not sure what Im going on about? Not to worry Ill give you a brief look into the background of the game. Humans are on the run from these all powerful beings called the Cylons, who were actually once a creation of man ironically and now they wish to wipe these stinking humans from the face of the universe without so much a single shred of regret. I feel like that every time I take the bus. Seriously though these guys mean business and theyre kind of winning too because the last line of defence for the few human stragglers is the Battlestar Galactica, the last of the Battlestars, a huge battleship the size of a city with kick-a*** fire power nuclear capabilities (well, yknow, space nukes). Aboard the great battleship are a crew of rough-neck pilots, cunning politicians, skilled tacticians and fearless leaders. There is however, a traitor amongst them! Or several even, yes those devious Cylons have developed a way of impersonating the humans to a level of near perfect and will stop at nothing to destroy the last of the humans for good. They must tread carefully however, as these humans arent quite as thick as they look... One Big Game Two Sides to Fight For You all play your turns like most other games but unlike board games where you fight each other head-on, here you must fight side by side, and each player finishing the game with two very opposite outcomes. One being that the Humans have finally found their way through space without being obliterated by their over-powerful archenemies to a world where resources and everlasting peace rain down like... rain. The other being that the ultimate final reckoning for the cruel, manipulative race of former slave-driving Humans has come and the Cylons will reveal that now the humans are gone for good they were actuall just misunderstood and quite caring and sensitive overlords afterall. I may have added my own personal happyish ending to each outcome but you get the idea. Right well thats your lot, if you want to know more youll just have to buy the game. Its fun, exciting, clever blah blah blah yes its bloody brilliant why are still here reading this? You have a rulebook to absorb! Off you go now...By David 02/02/2010<hr /> Tue, 2 Feb 2010 09:15:32 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/battlestar-galactica--the-board-game/ Chaos Marauders Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/chaos-marauders-card-game/ This game rocks. End of review! Ok, ok, Ill tell you why. Chaos Marauders is all about Orcs. And not just any old Orcs - these are the big bad green buggers from Games Workshops Warhammer Fantasy universe. On that basis alone anyone with even the smallest interest/memory of anything green-skinned will find this game very enjoyable. If that isnt you, then please, read on... Firstly, the card artwork is spot on and the colourful nature of the subjects injects a good blob of humour into the game. The boisterous Orc units are full of character, as are the cowardly little Goblin and Snotling tag-alongs. You will also find a nasty supporting cast of Skaven, Beastmen, Monsters, War Machines and the extremely powerful (but fickle) Chaos Marauders, all of which add flavour to the war-hungry menace gathering on your tabletop. Then theres the simple philosophy behind the game... youre the boss of an Orc Warband and now you want to lead the biggest, nastiest, Orciest army upon the world and prove to everyone that youre as hard as, nay, harder than nails. To do this you will not just need to gather rank and file units however. You will need to amass a horde of typically orcy treasures such as the fiery Spittledung XXXXX grog and gruesome totems such as the poor dwarf Gorak Varokroksenrok who serves as a living regimental banner. The more treasure and other valuable units you collect (such as War Machines) the more likely you will be to stake your claim as leader of the army and ultimately win the game. The game plays very well and most sittings can be concluded in less than half an hour. That is, unless the Chaos Gods cannot pick a clear champion and unlucky dice rolls swing the game back and forth. And power will shift during the game as devious cards are played; key items will change hands thanks to the thieving Venemous Creeps, and your plans will be thwarted by the conniving little Sneaky Gits. That said, should you find you lose the favour of the Dark Lords just as you thought your victory was at hand then you will find the temptation to demand a rematch impossible to resist! By Chris 29/01/2010<hr />I agree with Chris, this game rocks! I particularly like the card reference book which gives Warhammer noobs like me an interesting story behind each card and character, like why those who bear the banner of the Horned Rat cant be attacked superb (I wont spoil it for you if you dont already know). I could easily recommend this game to anyone because even if youve never played or seen anything with Orcs in your bound to love them after the first five minutes& hence why this is a simple and awesome idea for a game. As the Orcs themselves would say, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH! Also, if you like this and want to check out a more serious game with whopping great fantasy Orcs in it then give Warhammer Invasion a try.By David 01/02/2010<hr /> Mon, 1 Feb 2010 08:39:19 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/chaos-marauders-card-game/ Dominion Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/dominion-card-game/ Winner of 7 gaming awards to date the Dominion Card Game is a definite must buy and well worth the 30 odd pound price tag. In short this game gets a 10 out of 10 for its simplicity, longevity and greed-inducing playability. Donald X. Vaccarino, we salute you. Never heard of Dominion? If so then Im guessing your first reaction is that looks like the crappiest game Ive ever seen or what is that supposed to say? but sketchy artwork and indecipherable fonts aside there is a hidden gem lying within the box. The description on the box will tell you that you are a monarch and you want a more pleasant kingdom etc. but all the waffle aside you want to build the greatest, grandest, scariest, most pocket poppingly expensive deck the middle-ages have ever seen! A deck you say? What would I want with a deck? A deck is everything sir! All your land, all your gold, all your attacking and defensive means and anything else thats of use all go into your deck. In short this is where the game gets its pointy-looking name, your deck is your Dominion, so use it well! Servant, bring my gold, there are lords that need outwitting! So how do you build up your deck and why is it a good game? Firstly, this game is incredibly easy to learn (none of this 80-page, see article 2.b malarkey). You start the game with a deck of 10 cards, this represents your measly estate and the pittance you call your lifes savings, the shame of it. From this deck of 10 you shuffle them and take the top 5 into your hand, which you can now look at, the rest of your unused deck stays hidden. Once all players are setup you can begin the game, each player has 3 phases per turn: (1) Action Phase - this is when you do stuff like adding cards to your hand or attacking / stealing from your neighbour, etc. By default you only have one action per turn. (2) Buying Phase - spend as much or as little of the money in your hand on cool cards that do stuff, more money or land. By default you can only buy one item per turn. (3) Cleanup Phase you dont hold all your cards at once, youd need 7 hands with 60 fingers on each, instead at the end of your turn all your cards go on your discard pile (dont worry you get these back again) then take 5 cards from the top of your deck again - done. Its the simplicity and genius of the turn system that really makes this game what it is. Rather than giving away all your money when you buy something and then getting it all back again after youve collected your wages (or passed go for example) you simply keep your money when you buy something and dont receive any wages when the next turn begins, how cool is that? Simple. However, seeing as you can only take 5 cards at the start of your turn you need to make sure you put your well earned kingdom cards (cards that do stuff) to good use and not have a hand of 5 estate cards that do a big fat load of nothing this is where the strategy comes in. What does that mean? Explain yourself! Well heres how it works. Even if you bought the Dominion Card Game five hundred times and finished the game with 65,000 treasure cards (the game has no actual currency just coins) it wont matter one bit because the game is won by having the most victory points, i.e. land. The catch is that every card in your deck that is land is essentially useless during your turn, those victory points are useless right up until the end of the game in fact. However, better land means more victory points so having 3 province cards worth 18 victory points isnt so much a burden as having 18 estate cards worth 18 victory points. Its all about increasing your chances of having a useful hand whilst making sure your deck is balanced with victory points. Money works in a similar way, whist your treasure cards are never useless if you have a hand of 5 copper treasure cards, you can only buy something worth 5 coins, if you have a hand of 5 gold cards you can buy something worth 30 coins. Nothing is ever that expensive in the game but if you have kingdom cards that allow you to buy 2 or more itmes then you can spread the cost and go on a ye olde shopping spree! Capital! A rundown of the cards: <ul> <li>Treasure Cards: Copper = 1 coin, Silver = 2 coins, Gold = 3 coins.</li> <li>Victory Cards: Estate = 1 victory point, Duchy = 3 victory points, Province = 6 victory points.</li> <li>Kingdom Cards: These cards are the bread and butter of your Dominion. When you start the game you layout 10 decks of kingdom cards (there are 24 different decks in total). Some allow you to take more actions, some allow you to buy more than one item per turn and some allow you to attack and defend your Dominion. Some allow you to trash or swap your unwanted cards and some add more coins to your Buying Phase.</li> <li>Curse Cards: All curse cards are worth minus one victory point. Bah.</li> <li>Kingdom/Victory Cards: These cards are worth victory points AND they have special attributes associated with them too. Some are worth gold, some multiply your victory points and some allow additional actions (see Intrigue and Seaside).</li> <li>Trash Card: This is where you place cards that have been removed from the game and can never come back! Until the next game.</li> </ul> A summary of the best bits: Its set loosely around the middle ages, so thats always fun. You get this greed that comes over you and the nicely printed cards become irresistible and you begin referring to the province and gold cards as your precious, which is fun too. You can play this game loads before it becomes repetitive because there are so many kingdom cards to choose from yet you only use 10 sets per game so it feels like there are endless combinations, especially if you mix in the new cards from the expansions. First you can play all of the recommended sets of 10 kingdom cards, then you can pick your own or pick 10 at random! There are kingdom cards I still havent used yet and I play this game as often as I can! Is it good for the whole family? Definitely. As long as one of you knows the rules fairly well before all sitting down to play theyll have no trouble grasping the concept within minutes. Artwork: Okay the cover artwork has received a lot of punishment since its debut but I think its time we forgive it. The cards themselves are actually pretty good and theres something about them that make you want to hold them. There are indeed a few cards that stick out like sore thumbs that have been nicked by the smithys great whopping smithy hammer, but whilst the cards looks arent all up to the usual high standards of Fantasy Flights artwork the game does make up for this blotch on its character with sheer gaming genius. Surely thats what its all about? Many refer to Dominion as a euro-style game; simple rules, shorter game time, no dice, fewer pieces, easier game setup, you get the idea - a game such as Arkham Horror is not a euro-style game. For more great euro-style games check out Carcassonne or Settlers of Catan. If youre hungry for more knowledge then by all means watch all the video reviews by Tom Vasel (one for each game/expansion) or download the official .pdf rulebook. Well thats the end of my Dominion review. I seriously doubt youll dislike this game it really is more than just a big box of cards. Go on, give it a go, before you know it youll be going on about it as much as I have.By David 31/01/2010<hr /> Sun, 31 Jan 2010 09:54:04 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/dominion-card-game/ Letter of Marque Card Game http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/letter-of-marque-card-game/ Letter of Marque (like most of Fantasy Flights Silver Line range of games) is affordable, portable, easy to learn and quick to play. Best of all, due to the nautical-nature of the game, it can provide serious bouts of piratical laughter as you sink your mates ships and make off with all of their booty. Each player (there is room for up to 6 to take part) has a fleet of 5 model ships and 5 treasure cards of differing value. You must send your ships out to sea one-by-one and hope that they make it to their destination without being plundered by one of the lousy sea-dogs you used to call friends. What makes things really interesting is that there are a small number of ships within your fleet that are invulnerable to attack. These ships (or galleons as they termed in-game) are indistinguishable from the weaker ships (corsairs) save for a small cannon marked on the models base which remains hidden. You must use all your Captains intuition to discern which of your scurvy-ridden opponents are ripe for the picking, and all your guile to put off any would-be bearded-assassin aiming his cannons at you. If you read the game right youll make off with the treasure and leave nought but death and destruction in your wake. Get it wrong and youll end up as dinner for the bottom-feeders. Our Top Tip: After a couple of games, try sending your ships to sea without knowing if they are a galleon or a corsair. If no one knows what ships are out at sea it adds a Russian Roulette-style tension to the game, which we find leads to many an incendiary accusation of skulduggery By Chris 27/01/2010<hr /> Wed, 27 Jan 2010 05:40:28 GMT http://www.libermortis.co.uk/site/letter-of-marque-card-game/