D&D Attack Wing

It's been a while since I played a game of D&D Attack Wing and it was really nice to get a game in today at Gambit Sunday. It was even better to play a larger scale game than previous. This time we played 200 points which is a pretty good game size.

Nick went for a force made up of a few enhanced characters where as I preferred to go for strength in numbers rather than abilities. Initially this strategy did not pay off for me but fortunately it performed better in the later turns. Eventually I won with just on character remaining and he was on one wound.

From my point of view there were two successes in my list first was the Half Black Dragon at 13 points. With 4 health points these proved quite hard to kill and upgrading one so that it could shot made them fairly effective. The other and probably the star of the game was the young blue dragon. Although not as strong as the adult dragons it was obviously less points but it was also bit harder to hit and more maneuverable.

Time to fine tune the list I think! I really look forward to the next game.

How to play 'The Game'

This week we had some stock of ...

I thought I would have a look and see how this game which is a really simple concept plays. Here is a video fro the Bearded Meeple which covers the basic. I have a demo copy of this game which I will be bringing along to Gambit Sunday tomorrow. If you want to play then let me know.

Melee

Due in next week is a nice little game for younger players ... 

It is the dawn of a new year. The old king has just died childless, and the new succession must be decided before the end of this year. You are a local baron or countess with as good a claim as anyone else, so now is the time to grab the throne. Your peers understand only force, and your subjects understand only gold. Gather your men, pay your knights, and assert your claim. Everyone will recognize the strongest and richest as the rightful monarch.

In Melee you want to be the first person to capture an opposing castle (at which point the game ends immediately) or to have the most land and gold at the end of the year. Money is tight, and gold is used in the game both to build new units and to attack. The more gold you have and spend on your troops, the more motivated they will be and the higher your probability of success.

Each player starts the game with a Castle, one unit of foot soldiers, and 15 gold coins. The game begins with a drafting session in which you purchase units (soldiers, knights, camps and catapults) and bid on special abilities that will enhance your income, attack, or other options in the game.

The game is then played over four turns (seasons), and in each turn players simultaneously choose one of three potential actions: (a) tax, (b) build new units, or (c) move and attack. Each turn ends with players collecting income.

To attack, you move your unit into an occupied area, then secretly decide how much gold you will spend to motivate your troops. The defender then has to guess how much you have spent. If the defender guesses wrong, the attack succeeds; if the defender is correct, the attack fails and you lose your unit. Regardless of success you have spent your gold, so the tight trade-off that players have to assess is whether to be cheap with your men so that you can conserve gold for future builds and attacks, or be generous to increase your chances now but limit future options.

The different abilities available in each game make for varied strategies and strong replayability as no two games are alike. After the initial strategic planning stage, Meleeis fast and highly interactive. Beware as the game can end suddenly with a bold attack on an inadequately defended castle, making for a game that can be very nasty, brutish and short.

Munchkin for Christmas

Today we have had delivery of both the Munchkin Kittens expansion and Munchkin Christmas Lite.

It therefore seemed a good idea to have a refresh on how the original game plays. Here is the tabletop edition where they played this great game. If you have not watched it before it is well worth a watch...

I have not yet opened a copy of the Christmas edition so I thought I would have a look at the Steve Jackson Games video which gives us a quick glimpse. Whether you have played Munchkin before or not this is a really great Christmas present...

Munchkin

How about a nice Christmas themed game?

Kick down the door! Defeat the monster! Take the treasure!

Munchkin has been a gaming phenomenon for fifteen years, and now we're giving you a great introduction to the game. Munchkin Christmas Lite is a standalone game that can also be used as an expansion for existing Munchkin games!

Dice City

On Tuesday we had delivery of the new game ...

The Kingdom of Rolldovia is in turmoil. Her royal highness, the Queen, has decreed that there will be a new capital after the old one was sacked by hordes of barbarians and bandits from the south. As leaders of one of the country's influential noble families, players vie with each other to establish their provincial city as the best home for Rolldovia's new capital. You must choose your city's path in gaining the approval of all others in the kingdom.

Dice City is a "dice-crafting" game in which the locations in your city act as the changing faces of your dice each turn. Use tactics and strategy to press your claim!

You each have several ways to promote your city; create strong armies; construct wondrous buildings; or open up trade routes. The secret is to manage your city and its natural resources carefully to make the best of your fortunes.

Here is a review video from Tom Vassel showing how the game is played...

Pokemon League Challenge

Today at KD Games we will be running two League Challenges, so here is what you can expect if your planning to join in...

League Challenge tournaments are designed to provide players with small, entry-level events on a local scale. These events are a great way to get your feet wet in the world of Premier Events.

In the Pokémon Trading Card Game League Challenge tournaments, players in each of the three recognized age divisions can work toward earning Championship Points, potentially earning an invitation to the World Championships!

The Pokémon TCG League Challenge tournaments will be taking place all year long, usually at the end of each League season. 

Are there any requirements for attendance?

Players need to bring their own legal 60-card deck.

What are the prizes?

Prizes are awarded to the top players in each of three age divisions. Players must have a Pokémon Trainer Club account with a Player ID attached, and must have opted in to the Play! Pokémon program in order to earn points and prizes. All participants will receive 1 Play! Point just for playing, and the top four players in each age division will win a special promo card.

1st Place

• A Pokémon TCG 1st Place promo card

2nd Place

• A Pokémon TCG 2nd Place promo card

3rd Place

• A Pokémon TCG 3rd Place promo card

4th Place

• A Pokémon TCG 4th Place promo card

Rumble in the ...

Today we have two new games which are ...

Living together in a small house is difficult, and sometimes trouble arises. It's time for a big rumble in the house! Will you able to beat the other characters out of the house, stay inside, and keep your identity secret?

Rumble in the House is a game of bluffing and deduction for the whole family. Each player secretly "owns" two of the twelve characters in the house, and each character starts in a different room of the house. On a turn, a player either moves any character that is alone in a room into an adjacent room or starts a fight in a room that contains at least two characters. Well, it's not much of a fight really, as the player removes one character from the room and places it in a line with other removed characters. Once a single character remains, the round ends. The first two characters removed are worth zero points, while the third through eleventh characters are worth 1-9 points; the character that remains in the house is worth ten points. Each player collects points only for his most valuable character.

The player with the most points after three rounds wins.

and ...

–"The dead king's tomb. Hmm, spooky and mysterious, but the dead king was rich. There must be a big treasure there."–"Yeah, right... And traps, too. And monsters. I'm not sure it's a good idea."
–"Well, can't be worse than when we tried to snatch the dragon's eggs, I reckon."
–"Can't be."
The two thieves looked at each other silently for a while.
–"Y'know what? We split, join other adventurers, let 'em do the hard work, then snatch the treasure."
The thief's twin brother smiled.
–"Sounds like a plan."

There are too many monsters and adventurers in this dungeon. The dead king's treasure is well-guarded, but adventurers are fearless! Try to keep your secret character in the dungeon as long as possible, or to exit the dungeon with the treasure.

Rumble in the Dungeon is a simple bluffing and guessing game for the whole family. The twelve characters start in the dungeon. Each player receives two secret character tokens. In turn, players will move one of the characters inside the dungeon, or pick a victim and eliminate that character from the game. The player who keeps his secret characters in the dungeon the longest wins the round. During play, the other players' moves provide clues to their identity, unless of course they bluffed by moving other characters on purpose... Everyone tries to identify and expel the other players' characters while keeping their own safe. Furthermore, if a character exits the dungeon with the dead king's treasure chest, he wins the round!

Here is a review of Rumble in the Jungle from Tom Vassel..

The Game

Tomorrow we will be receiving copies of ...

Players in The Game try to discard all 98 cards in the deck onto four discard piles in order to win, but they need to do so in the right ways.

Each player starts with 6-8 cards in hand depending on the number of players, and four discard pile prompt cards are on the table: two showing "1" and an up arrow and two showing "100" and a down arrow. On a turn, a player must discard at least two cards from hand onto one or more discard piles, with cards on the 1 piles being placed in ascending order and cards on the 100 piles being placed in descending order. One tricky aspect to play is that you can play a card exactly 10 higher/lower than the top card of a discard pile even when you would normally have to play in a descending/ascending order, e.g., if a 100 discard pile is topped with an 87, you can play any card lower than 87 or you can play the 97.

After a player finishes their turn, they refill their hand from the deck. During play, players cannot reveal exact numbers in their hands, but they can warn others not to play on certain discard piles or otherwise make play suggestions.

Once the deck is emptied, players are required only to play at least one card on a turn. If you play all 98 cards, you win! If you get good, the rules suggest that you play at least three cards a turn to increase the challenge.

Dungeon Saga

Due in tomorrow is ...

Over a thousand years ago, Valandor, the greatest known hero fell in battle, fighting to protect the lives of those around him. From shore to shore, all owe thanks to his wondrous legacy. Now, sacred sites across the land have been defiled and plundered by the disgraced wizard Mortibris, who along with his vile undead minions will stop at nothing to obtain the secrets of Valandor’s power. Only the bravest heroes dare oppose him. Thrown together from the far corners of the realm, they step boldly into the depths, ready to face whatever foul evil awaits them…

Hero, your quest begins here!

Embark on a fantasy adventure for up to five players with Dungeon Saga: Dwarf King's Quest. With highly detailed game-pieces and learn-as-you-play rules, this set contains everything you need to transform your tabletop into a deep and immersive world of heroes and monsters. Play a single game in just 30 minutes, or combine the carefully composed adventures for countless hours of classic quest gameplay. When the fate of the world hangs in the balance, which part will you play in the epic Dungeon Saga?

-Epic, story-driven campaign
-Classic quest atmosphere
-Easy rules you can learn as you play
-Characters that develop as the adventure unfolds
-Beautifully illustrated 3D dungeons with doors, barrels, bookcases and more!
-26 detailed and fully assembled miniatures in coloured plastic
-Evocative ‘ancient tome’ packaging in a protective sleeve

One player takes the part of the evil dungeon overlord with the forces of evil at his command, and the others divide the mighty heroes between them. Each hero has strengths and weaknesses and teamwork is the key: The mighty barbarian can slaughter many foes at a time, yet he is lightly armoured and vulnerable to strong enemies. The Dwarf, on the other hand, is steadier as his thick armour can resist most attacks. The Elf is not as skilled a fighter as either of these, instead preferring to stay at a distance where her finely-honed archery skills can best be used. Finally, there is the wizard -the others may laugh at his lack of fighting skill, yet it is often his magic that carries the day. If the others can keep him alive, that is.

This core set will be supported with a raft of expansion products as time goes on, adding new challenges and game modes to your Dungeon Saga. The first of these will be Adventurer's Companion which will add an AI system for solo and fully co-operative play, the ability to create unique characters from scratch using any model in your collection, the tools you need to design your own dungeons and much more!

Starfighter

A game we got in a couple of weeks ago was Starfigher which looks like a pretty cool little card game.

Starfighter is a two-player-only game of space combat in which each player tries to assemble card combinations that deliver effective attacks on the opponent.

The original feature of the game is the fact that an effect will be triggered every time it becomes visible, that is, either when a player plays the card or when the effect icon becomes visible again after being covered. Room for combos!
I have been looking through youtube to find a review of this game and came accross this from Dice Tower that I thought I would share with you...

Nature Season

Pokemon League is changing. From this month we will be running the league in seasons. Each season will last 4 weeks, starting with ...

We will no longer be using the tracking cards instead there will be a poster which will be on display that shows all the league games that you have played. I will have one at the shop and one at the Royal George to track all the games played. 

We will still be giving away code cards and special foil promo cards and we will be giving special prizes for winning the most games each month.

We also have found some Foil Electric Energy that we will be giving away between now and December.

New Pokemon EX Legendary Collections

The new Pikachu EX and Hoopa Ex Legendary Collections have arrived and are on sale now.

Each set comes with 5 full art legendary Pokemon cards ...

Pikachu EX Legendary Collection

 

  

Hoopa EX Legendary Collection

  

  

Zekrom

If you want to see the En

Why not pop in and have a look at the English versions.

Pokemon XY9

The Pokemon Company will release Pokemon TCG: XY--BREAKpoint for the popular Pokemon TCG on February 3.

This expansion set is designed around the growing rift between worlds of technology and nature, and features more BREAK monsters, including Greninja BREAK, Luxray BREAK, and Mega Scizor-EX. The set will include more than 120 new cards, with five new BREAK Pokemon, 11 new Pokemon-EX, and two Mega Evolution Pokemon.

The Elite Trainer Box will include 8 BREAKpoint boosters, 65 card sleeves with artwork depicting Mega Gyarados, 45 Energy cards, a player guide, 6 damage counter dice, a coin-flip die, 2 acrylic condition markers, and a collector’s organizer box with 4 card dividers. A code for the Pokemon Trading Card Game Online is also included.

Finally, a Collector’s Mini Album with artwork from the expansion can be used to hold up to 60 cards and comes with a XY--BREAKpoint booster pack.

Zombicide : Black Plague

Releasing February 13th 2016 Zombicide: Black Plague takes the zombie apocalypse into a fantastical medieval setting! The arcane powers of the Necromancers have unleashed a zombie invasion in the age of swords and sorcery, and it’s up to your group of straggling survivors to not only stay alive during these dark times, but to take back the realm and punish those responsible for the apocalypse! Zombicide: Black Plague allows you take control of paladins, dwarves, knights, and magicians, wielding powerful swords, crossbows, and even magic spells to defeat the zombie hordes and its Necromancer overlords. The classic Zombicide rules have been revamped for this new incarnation of the game, while still retaining the nonstop action, tense atmosphere and easy-to-learn rules that made Zombicide a classic. Equip your survivor with equipment like chainmail armor or shields to defend against the undead, pick up spell books to perform fantastic enchantments, or light up a pool of dragon bile to create an all-consuming inferno of dragon fire!

Celestia - Game Review

Today we have received stock of a great new game and although we do not currently have a demo copy I thought I would have a look to see what reviews I could find online.

Here is a pretty good one from Game Boy Geek...

Celestia

Due in tomorrow is ...

In Celestia, a revamped version of Cloud 9, you board an aircraft with a team of adventurers to perform many trips through the cities of Celestia and recover their wonderful treasures. Your journey will not be safe, but you will attempt to be the richest adventurer by collecting the most precious treasures!

At the beginning of a journey, all players place their pawns within the aircraft; the players start the game with six cards in hand (or eight depending on the number of players). At the beginning of each round, one player is chosen to be the captain of the trip and he rolls 2-4 dice to discover the challenges that they will face: fog, lightning bolts, killer birds, or pirates. He must then play the appropriate cards — a compass, a lightning arrester, a foghorn, or even cannons — to continue on the journey and reach the next city. But before the captain plays the appropriate cards, each player must decide whether to stay within the aircraft:
If you exit, you're guaranteed the victory points that come from exploring the current city.
If you stay on board, you hope to make it to the next city in order to catch more precious treasures. If the captain can't overcome the challenge, though, everyone comes crashing down empty-handed and you'll need to begin a new trip with all passengers on board.

During the journey, each adventurer can try to pull out of the game with fabulous objects (a jetpack, astronomy glasses, etc.) or by changing the trip (modifying the travel or abandoning an explorer in the city). As soon as a player earns treasure worth at least fifty points, the game ends and this player wins.

New for Pokemon Fans

Next week sees a lot of new exciting stuff for Pokemon Fans...

     

If your interested on get any of these then please let me know as soon as possible as many will be limited editions.

Star Wars Risk

We have had stock of Star Wars Risk for a couple of weeks now but as yet I have not had opportunity to play it. So as this game is causing a bit of interest I thought it was time to see how to play it. Here is Tom Vasel's review of the game ...

It is clearly not just a licensed version of Risk, but a game in its own right. It certainly looks like it could be fun and has a cinematic feel which is what I was hoping for. With a playing time of about 45 minutes and something that has a fairly simple mechanic this will something that we will be playing in the shop in the next few weeks.

Game of Thrones

Every wanted to play Game of Thrones LCG? I have and I think it is about time I learnt.

"The world of Westeros is wracked with war, intrigue, and strife. The Great Houses muster armies and meet in titanic battles, while their assassins and spies struggle in the shadows. Across the Narrow Sea, the first dragons in years have awoken, while in the barren lands beyond the Wall, a nameless threat is stirring, eager to crush the world with freezing cold and endless night. Westeros is unforgiving of mistakes, and in the end, only one game truly matters: the game of thrones!"

This Tuesday at KD Games Night at the Royal George, Nick will be teaching me and any one else that is interested to play this great game. As the second edition came out a few weeks back we will be using the demo copy for the new base game.

This week the idea is to do some 2 player games so that we can get to grips with the basic mechanics and then if there is interest play a bigger four player game the week after.

“When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground.”
   –George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones

MTG Commander Decks

The new commander decks for Magic the Gathering are arriving today, but there are not many so if you want one then please let me know as soon as possible. He is a quick summary of what is new ...

The Magic: The Gathering—Commander (2015 Edition) release consists of five different game packs. Each game pack contains a deck with 100 cards plus an oversized foil commander card. The five decks are "Call the Spirits," "Seize Control," "Plunder the Graves," "Wade into Battle," and "Swell the Host."

There are fifty-six cards within the Magic: The Gathering—Commander (2015 Edition) decks that are completely new to the Magic game. These cards are legal for play in the Commander, Vintage, and Legacy formats only. They aren't legal for play in the Standard or Modern formats.

The other cards in this release are legal for play in any format that already allows those cards. That is, appearing in this release doesn't change a card's legality in any format.

Each Magic: The Gathering—Commander (2015 Edition) deck comes with an oversized foil card that corresponds to the commander of that deck. This card is for fun only and isn't required for Commander game play.

Theme: Experience Counters

The five commanders in this release each have an ability that gives you experience counters and another ability that refers to the number of experience counters you have.

Experience counters are the second kind of counters a player can have, joining poison.
All experience counters are identical, no matter how you got them. For example, Ezuri's last ability will count experience counters that you got from the first ability, from another ability, from proliferating, and so on.

Each game pack includes a card labeled "Experience" with the suggestion "Place your experience counters here." This card isn't required for play. It's simply a convenient spot to put your experience counters, which can be represented with dice, glass beads, or other small items.

New Ability: Myriad

Myriad is a new triggered ability that effectively lets a creature attack in all possible directions.

The official rules for myriad are as follows:

702.115. Myriad

702.115a Myriad is a triggered ability that may also create a delayed triggered ability. "Myriad" means "Whenever this creature attacks, for each opponent other than defending player, you may put a token that's a copy of this creature onto the battlefield tapped and attacking that player or a planeswalker he or she controls. If you put one or more tokens onto the battlefield this way, exile the tokens at end of combat."

702.115b If a creature has multiple instances of myriad, each triggers separately.
The term "defending player" in the myriad rules (or any other ability of an attacking creature) refers to the player the creature with myriad was attacking at the time it became an attacking creature this combat, or the controller of the planeswalker the creature was attacking at the time it became an attacking creature this combat.
If the defending player is your only opponent, no tokens are put onto the battlefield.
You choose whether each token is attacking the player or a planeswalker he or she controls as the token is created.
Although the tokens enter the battlefield attacking, they were never declared as attackers. Abilities that trigger whenever a creature attacks won't trigger, including the myriad ability of the tokens. If there are any costs to have a creature attack, those costs won't apply to the tokens.
The token creatures all enter the battlefield at the same time.
Each token copies exactly what was printed on the original creature and nothing else. It doesn't copy whether that creature is tapped or untapped, whether it has any counters on it or Auras and Equipment attached to it, or any non-copy effects that have changed its power, toughness, types, color, and so on.
Any enters-the-battlefield abilities of the copied creature will trigger when the token enters the battlefield. Any "as [this permanent] enters the battlefield" or "[this permanent] enters the battlefield with" abilities of the copied creature will also work.
If myriad creates more than one token for any given player (due to an effect such as the oneDoubling Season creates), you may choose separately for each token whether it's attacking the player or a planeswalker he or she controls.

Cycle: "Confluences"

This release includes a cycle of modal spells that allow you to choose three modes. Unlike previous modal cards, these spells allow you to choose the same mode more than once.