Everything including the kitchen sink... but with special attention paid to board games, Jesus Christ, my family, being a "professional" (and I use that word loosely) Christian, and the random firing of the 10% of the synapses I'm currently using.
out of print... but not difficult to find at decent prices on Amazon & Wal-Mart
Why It's On The List
Imagine a three-way collision between the Mad Max films, an auction game and a worker-placement city-building game. Throw in a little Notre Dame-ish fend off the invaders (marauders instead of rats)... and allow players to use people as currency in the auctions as well as workers to keep your post-apocalyptic settlement running.
Tips & Tricks:
The artwork is evocative without leaning too hard into the dystopian grimness… and the iconography is very clear once you get the hang of it
I’ve found that it takes players 2-3 rounds (roughly half a game) to get acclimated and then they’re ready to defend their very tiny barb-wire encrusted empire.
The auctions are double-layered... they are "get to choose first" auctions for buildings and for equipment. In addition, the winner of each auction gets a small bonus, and the loser gets a penalty.
Extras
I've been working on a review (complete with fiction sections) of Armageddon for years now... short version: I think all of the elements fit together to make a really satisfying and enjoyable game experience.
I also think this is a criminally over-looked game... and I said as much in a really good Opinionated Gamers article you should check out.
This is the third of three games on this list designed by David Thompson.
A think-y, puzzle-y dungeon crawl that's dripping with theme and story. The designer (Andrew Parks) mixes deck-building with tactical movement on the board to create a rich world for competitive, cooperative, and solo play.
Tips & Tricks:
Dungeon Alliance is not for the faint of heart - there's a lot going on here - but it's incredibly involving. In complexity, it is in the same range as the Mage Knight Board Game.
Speaking of Mage Knight (which I used to own)... I think they're both brilliantly designed games, but Mage Knight didn't hit the table after I got Dungeon Alliance.
While the game works with up to 4 players, there is a substantial increase in playing time with that many players. We have liked it better with 2 - smaller dungeon, less down time.
If you'd like to see more about the intricate stories behind the game, there are two webcomics that keep growing from the Quixotic Games team - I'm just going to link to the very interesting design diary about the comics on BGG.
The game that launched the European "game" invasion... the first true "franchise" game for Kosmos & Mayfair... a game so simple & yet so innovative that it could inspire devoted play with almost any crowd. This infinitely variable game of trading & building is still a personal favorite, even when way too many gamers have left it behind.
Tips & Tricks:
There are lots of strategy guides out there - the best I've ever seen was compiled by Scott MacPherson - and I republished it so you could find it:
While your first game may take 90+ minutes, it's not unusual for experienced players to knock out a game in 60 minutes or less. A lot of that depends on how quickly trading goes and how "aware" the people you're playing are - example: it doesn't matter how many times you ask for "brick", if we haven't rolled it in two rounds, it isn't there for trade. Sigh.
Our local group prefers playing 5 player with the slightly larger board and the "build around" rule.
Extras
The picture above is my well-worn but well-loved original German Die Siedler von Catan collection - which includes (pictured) the base game, Seafarers, Cities & Knights, the first twohistorical boxes, "The Book", and "The Chocolate Market"... and the 5/6 player expansions for all of the big boxes. Not pictured are Settlers of the Stone Age, Struggle for Rome, Rise of the Inkas, Candamir, and the original Starfarers (with the resin figures!). And let's not forget the numerous official country and state maps, a plethora of official variants, and even some oddball scenario maps created nearly 20 years ago and released at Essen by various folks. I've loved Catan for a very long time.
I wrote my Unofficial Guide to Catan back in 2007 - but the basic information is still pretty helpful, if not complete due to age. (Part 2 focuses on Catan spinoffs; Part 3 is a 2010 update of Part 1.)
I also wrote about my visit to the very first CatanCon.
Most recently, I wrote a review of Klaus Teuber's memoir, My Journey to Catan.
Take the basic card combat idea behind Star Wars: Epic Duels... add in the brilliant LOS board configuration system from Tannhäuser...and infuse the game thematically with a "mix of characters across time & reality" vibe from Heroscape... and then do a top-notch production job... and you've got Unmatched.
Tips & Tricks:
One of the biggest issues in Epic Duels (the need of some characters to turtle for multiple turns in order to make decent attacks) is fixed here... both by better balancing the decks AND by instituting a "getting to the end of your deck" penalty.
Each character/team has different strengths and weaknesses... you cannot play each character the same way and be successful.
The character receiving the least love out of the gate was King Arthur... but I've managed to pull off some wins with him by playing the cards in his deck, not the cards I wish he had.
Some of the newer boxes (and there are a LOT of them) have more complicated decks - but I'm happy to have the variety in play styles and characters.
Extras
This is the seventh of eight (8!) Rob Daviau games that will appear on my top 100 list this time around.
Some quick thoughts on the various boxes - all of which are stand-alone expansions:
Robin Hood vs Big Foot - the best introduction if you're not sure about the series... two great characters and two great maps
Cobble & Fog - two more great maps with four excellent characters - though three of the four characters are not quite as straightforward to play
InGen vs Raptors - my least favorite map, though both characters are fun to play
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - two more excellent maps... don't love the Buffy character in 1v1 play but otherwise a fan of this box
Volume II - a great map and four excellent medium-difficulty characters
Bruce Lee - a solo character (no map) that's a lot of fun to play
My boys & I have been playtesters on 3 released boxes (Vol. II and the two Marvel boxes) as well the unreleased Marvel boxes and other stuff which I can't talk about (yet)!
As much as I love Entdecker (the parent game to the Im Reich series), I love this gamer-friendly take on desert nomads & the struggle for water & goods even more.
Tips & Tricks:
The name literally means "in the realm of the desert sons". And while the game rules are in German, almost all of the actual components are language-neutral.
This is designed by Klaus Teuber - the same guy who gave us Catan.
There is one other game in this series: "In the Realm of the Jade Goddess" - which is a little more of a family game. There was supposed to be a third game - "In the Realm of the Demons" - but it was never published. (This continues to make me sad in my heart.)
Water is your friend - do not (if you can help it) run out of water.
Camels are also your friend - you'll need some in order to win the game.
An important rule change was made AFTER publication - in order to complete an oasis on the edge of the board, the outer edge of the piece must be desert. Makes the game trickier - and better.
Extras
I need to actually write a review of this game... which is probably not going to happen any time soon.
I also need to bug my friend (who shall remain nameless) with a connection to Herr Teuber to see if
a. this can be reprinted
b. In the Realm of the Demons could be released into the wild!
Just a thought: a Kickstarter "big box" with all three games in one box. :-)
This is sixth of seven (7!) Klaus Teuber designs in my top 100 games.
In my Opinionated Gamers review of Pandemic Legacy: Season One, I described it as the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup of Games: "...combining the exquisite nail-biting tension of Pandemic with the surprises and story arc of Risk Legacy is a stroke of genius." That goes double for Season Two, which introduces new mechanisms and an even more wide-ranging story.
Tips & Tricks:
The "alpha player problem" is not the game's fault... it's a player issue. Don't be that guy. (BTW, this is true for all cooperative games - rule #1 is "Don't be a pushy dork if you want to enjoy cooperative gaming.")
This is not "classic" Pandemic... and it took us a couple of games to get the hang of the very creative way Rob Daviau & Matt Leacock messed with our expectations of how the game would "work".
Extras
Here's what I wrote aboutthe genius of Risk Legacy... back when it was the very first "legacy" game.
I would have loved to write about Season Zero as well - but I've only played the training game and my copy is sitting there, waiting for the adventure to begin!
This is the sixth of eight (8!) games designed by Rob Daviau on this countdown... and the second of two games designed by Matt Leacock.
Michael Schacht takes the central game mechanic from his card game Coloretto & develops it into a full-fledged board game with delightful artwork & theme. And then, if that wasn't enough, he keeps expanding that world (thanks to the SdJ win) in some very intriguing ways.
Tips & Tricks:
I didn't like Zooloretto particularly the first time I played it... that, as you can see, has changed. (The theme drew me back in, btw.)
Lots of people like Coloretto better than Zooloretto - they're wrong, of course, but I think that's more a function of "liking a clever mechanic" versus "liking a clever mechanic in the midst of a thematic & enjoyable game".
Zooloretto spawned Aquaretto - which I've included in the family for purposes of this list. Aquaretto is the more gamer-friendly of the two - there's more potential for a new player to mess themselves over with bad tile placement.
The plethora of large & small expansions can be confusing - but I like how you can tailor the game to your personal tastes.
The game is best with 3 or 4 players... 5 has a little too much downtime (if you're using any expansions) and 2 is bland.
If you're going to play Zooloretto & Aquaretto together, you should only play with 3 players... or with Michael's 6-player partnership variant.
Extras
I wrote an extensive post about Zooloretto & the various expansions entitled Renovating Your Zoo(loretto) for this blog.
I translated the Big Boss variant from Michael Schacht's site - it's used w/the Zooloretto: Boss expansion.
One of the proudest moments of my life - my son, Braeden (who was 7 at the time), created a really great variant idea for Aquaretto - and Michael Schacht published it on his website! Check out the Touch Pool...
The picture above shows a game with all the expansions in (the white meeples are workers from Zooloretto: Boss).
While I didn't like Klaus Teuber's attempt to make Anno 1503 deeper via an expansion - I thought it was bloated & made the game much too long - I think his 2nd attempt at a similar game was very, very successful. And that's Anno 1701, which feels like a cross between Catan & Anno 1503.
Tips & Tricks:
There are lots of options to harvest victory points (which can win you the game) - but you can't try to do all of them.
The island tile sets are nearly identical - the brown ones are just farther from the starting point.
Extras
Sadly, this game has never been published in English - there are some translation issues but they shouldn't be an insurmountable barrier.
Not liking Catan does not necessarily mean you'll dislike Anno 1701 - give it a try!.
My hot take: I think this design informed the design of Catan: Explorers and Pirates... they share a number of very good design ideas.
This is the fifth of seven (7!) games on my top 100 list designed by Klaus Teuber.
Gorgeous production coupled with easy gameplay... a classic theme (trains!) coupled with a classic Rummy set-collection mechanic... just as playable with 2 as it is with 5.
Tips & Tricks:
Playing with 3 or 5 players is MUCH more cutthroat than playing with 2 or 4, due to how crowded the board can become.
Figuring out the "choke points" on any map is an important step in choosing tickets both at the beginning of the game and as you take ticket turns later.
We have a house rule that players can keep taking turns while someone decides on tickets as long as their action is to draw cards or take tickets. If a player is going to play to the board, they must wait until the ticket-taker has made their decision.
Most importantly, this is an excellent "gateway" game for non-gamers.
Extras
There are a number of expansions & stand-alone versions of the game. I'm partial to the 1910 card expansion - as well as...
I have played a number of other versions/variants... while I really enjoy the small versions (New York/London/Amsterdam), I didn't think that Heart of Africa or France were necessary expansions.
Yes, it's another combination of worker placement and deck-building... but don't let that fool you. The gameplay is well-thought-out, the artwork/graphic design is gorgeous, and there are meaningful timing and resource management choices throughout.
Tips & Tricks:
Don't lock into a single strategy based on how the last game ended... the game situation can change drastically depending on player choices and the various random decks, so you need to be prepared to react to the game in front of you.
Sometimes, a card is more valuable for the move icon than the special power - one of the tricks of the game is making sure you realize when that is..
The double-sided board (bird temple and snake temple) is a really nice touch to vary up play and tactics.
Extras
I have not yet played the Expedition Leaders expansion - however, I do have a copy on order.
I am playing The Search For Professor Kutil solo campaign again... and while I think it's excellent, you don't need the campaign to play a really enjoyable solo game with Arnak - which is why it's the seventeenth of 18 solo games I recommend on this countdown. (BTW - the campaign is a web app OR a print-n-play file.)
I have always described this game as "similar to playing Dungeons & Dragons with a DM who hates your guts" - it's a short (no more than an hour...and often shorter!), brutal & intensely fun experience game/dungeon crawl.
Tips & Tricks:
While I appreciate what Fantasy Flight did in reprinting Dungeonquest, I wasn't a fan of the goofy combat system they loaded onto it or the seriousness they added to the proceedings by transporting the game into their Terrinoth universe. (Part of the charm of Dungeonquest is the off-beat dark humor - which I attribute to the unique blend of Swedish designer & British publisher.)
That said, I have not played the Revised Edition reprint... which has better buzz than the earlier version.
If you manage to track down a copy of the original game + the two expansions, consider yourself incredibly lucky. It took me nearly 8 years to find the expansions - and even then I had to replace some of the missing miniatures from the used copy I bought.
The FFG edition includes some of the expansion stuff - so if you can find that at a reasonable price, it's still a good deal. (But look on BGG for alternate ways to do combat that don't slow the game down.)
We have a house rule... you can't win by simply surviving (running in a couple of spaces & running right back out). You must find SOMETHING of value - and no, a potentially poisonous healing "potion" does not count.
Do not under any circumstances (a) get too attached to your character, or (b) take the game too seriously. It's just a rousing chance to roll dice, fight monsters & generally find creative new ways to die.
Extras
I still have trouble believing that I haven't written more about Dungeonquest. I will have to remedy that... someday.
Queen Games has a new dungeon game coming from designer Dan Glimne that (according to the KS) "captures the same system [Drakborgen aka Dungeonquest] which is designed to kill players in a shorter, dice game format." Yep, sounds like a spiritual heir to Dungeonquest.
Bag-building and whimsy combined to produce an easy-to-teach press-your-luck game that has been 100% successful with everyone I've introduced it to.
Tips & Tricks:
You need to look at what powers are available - and remember that you can't do everything.
Not worrying about scoring for the first couple of rounds is sometimes worth it for the rat-tail catch-up mechanic.
Extras
I like both of the expansions... though they make the game a little trickier to teach and get into for new players. I'd recommend you wait on Herb Witches and/or Alchemists until everyone at the table has a game or two under their belts.
I have two nifty add-on things for my Quacks collection - the splendid GeekUp Bits tokens (seen in the picture) thanks to a very good friend (King Bob!)... and the Folded Space organizer.
This is the second of two games designed by Wolfgang Warsch on the countdown.
Taking the Marvel universe of super-heroes and creating a working LCG (Living Card Game) that isn't impossible to teach and/or read across the table.
Tips & Tricks:
If you get into the game in any serious way, bookmark Marvel DCB - it's a fantastic site on building hero decks.
Decks are built differently for solo and team play - an effective solo deck sometimes won't be much help in a multi-player setting.
I think the game is strongest at 1-2 players, though 3 works well. Four is fine against weaker villains, but takes entirely too long against foes with multiple level schemes.
Extras
While I think the LotR LCG is quite good and the Android: Netrunner LCG is spectacular, both have a rather high barrier to entry in learning the game. Moreover, LotR LCG is incredibly difficult to read in low light and/or playing multi-player.
If you're new to the game, the big boxes are your best bet - the original set gives you a great start, then I'd add one or two of the large box expansions. Around that, you can add the heroes you're interested in. You can save the smaller villain packs for later - they have less replayability.
A civilization-building game that packs in the game mechanics: deckbuilding, resource management, tableau building, asymmetric factions, multiple game timers, keywords to differentiate similar actions… and each individual civilization has a uniquely structured deck.
Tips & Tricks:
Know what's in the deck you're playing... they do NOT work the same way and tactics can be very different.
Don't forget about Innovate (dropping your hand to get a card you want from the market)... sometimes, it's the best thing you can do.
It will take a few plays, but watching what other players are doing is key to winning.
Extras
I'm on the fence about buying the 3D-printed bits from MeepleSource - but they look really nice..
Here's the review I wrote about Imperium Classics/Legends for the Opinionated Gamers website. (I've played the game nine more times since I wrote that review.)
It is a brilliant solo system - so it's the twelfth of 18 solo games I recommend on the countdown.
This is the second of two games on my list by designer Dávid Turczi.
This is truly a sandbox game with epic scope - I liken it to FFG's Outer Rim but without any guardrails. Fantastic production values added to gameplay that encourages creating swashbuckling stories makes this one of the best pandemic purchases I made.
Tips & Tricks:
Note: all but one of my plays of Xia has been solo - so take this as a strong recommendation for solo play. (Many have noted that the game slows way down with more than 3 players, which seems obvious.)
This is an adventure game with a lot of moving parts... strategies that work in one game will not necessarily go as well when the map lays out differently.
Stop and smell the roses - there is a lot of wonderful color text and background story buried in the game. Since it is very much an experience game, enjoy it!
The sprawling space opera nature of the game reminds me (in a good way!) of my one online-moderated play of Star Saga: One.
The solo campaign system is excellent - but it's not short. Five games in, I've only accomplished two of the ten objectives... but my overall campaign score is positive!
Extras
With games like this, more is more. Embers of a Forsaken Star is an essential expansion (particularly if you want to play solo).
The Missions and Powers expansion is also great... but not quite as necessary. (Still glad I own it.)
Because it's from a very niche company, the game goes in and out of print. Keep your eyes open - I found my complete copy via the BGG Marketplace.
Yep, I recommend this as a solo game unreservedly - the eleventh out of 18 on this list.
Please be praying for the family of the designer, Cody Miller. As he's shared as a part of the Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread Kickstarter, his son is undergoing treatment for cancer.
You'd think that a game with an eight card individual player deck would feel claustrophobic - instead, it's the entry point to a brilliant Tom Lehmann design that challenges each player to build a victory point engine while defending themselves against the direct and indirect challenges of the other players.
Tips & Tricks:
Proper assessment of your deck at the beginning of the game is vital.
Like many of Tom's designs, the speed curve is slow for the first couple of turns and then accelerates rapidly toward the end of the game.
You can win without taking a Place of Power - but it's not easy to do.
You don't have to "crank" every card in your tableau - sometimes it's smarter to pass and grab the magic item you need.
Extras
The first expansion - Lux et Tennebrae - adds some nice variety to the system and a couple of new mechanics that don't overwhelm game play. (Note: my son noted that there's a lot more Tennebrae and not very much Lux in the expansion.)
I haven't had a chance to play with the newest expansion - Perlae Imperii. (It's held up with my pre-order for Tom's Dice Realms!)
The production of this game is gorgeous - and the box is appropriately sized for the components.
This is the fourth of five Tom Lehmann game designs on my list.
Despite not being a particularly big fan of Dune (the books or the movies), the game manages to combine deck-building & worker placement to evoke the feel of the Dune universe in an incredibly playable format.
Tips & Tricks:
One of the things I like best about the game is the ability to adapt your tactics/strategy to the character you are playing and the ever-changing board situation.
You don't have to win every conflict - in fact, sometimes the smartest thing you can do is let two other opponents duke it out and save your troops for a later battle.
The House Hagal mechanic (an AI deck) makes sure that 2 player games have enough filled board space without complicating the game unnecessarily.
I've played the game at all player counts (1-4 players) and enjoyed them all.
Extras
The Rise of Ix expansion has some great twists/additions to the game... highly recommended.
The solo design uses the House Hagal deck to create two feisty AI opponents - making this the eleventh of 18 games recommended for solo play on my top 100.
The app (available as part of the Dire Wolf games app) automates the House Hagal deck and helps walk you through set-up... as well as offering some alternate play modes.
This is the second of two Paul Dennen designs on my list.
Take the basic deck-building combat design of War Chest and ground it in the theme and combat tactics of WW2... for this old AH/SPI wargamer, it's the best of both worlds. It feels like the best games of Squad Leader without the long playing time or the rules headaches.
Tips & Tricks:
It has all the feels of a classic wargame - with the deck-building system that adds fog of war and command & control issues with extremely low fiddliness.
So far, scenarios in both boxes seem to be well-balanced... even those with asymmetric objectives.
Like any squad-level combat game, cover is important.
Lessons learned in the Command & Colors games work here as well - try not to strand units in indefensible positions.
Both boxes reflect a solid understanding of the different kinds of WW2 tactical warfare they work to portray - impressive.
Extras
The Reinforcements box not only adds new units and scenarios for both of the original boxes - it also adds a complete storage system for both games... and, more importantly for my purposes, a sophisticated solo system that is challenging and makes pretty solid tactical decisions.
So, yes, this is tenth of 18 games recommended for solo play on my top 100.
A new game in the series has been announced for later this year - Undaunted: Stalingrad.
This is the second of three David Thompson designs on my list... and the first of two Dávid Turczi designs.
A re-imagined version of the classic dice game To Court the King - imagine Yahtzee crossed with Magic: The Gathering. You use dice to obtain card powers in order to manipulate dice to obtain more power (and dice) to finally win the favor of the Pharaoh.
Tips & Tricks:
You need dice - and a few manipulation powers. Going the other way (dice manipulation powers and a few extra dice) will lose you the game.
The game works well with 2-4 players.
The variability introduced in this version is excellent - each game has its own feel.
I do wish I'd sprung for a second set of dice... with 4 players, you have to do a lot of trading around of base dice.
Extras
I had the privilege of Tom Lehmann (the designer) showing me the unpublished expansion for To Court the King some years back... many of those great ideas ended up in Favor of the Pharaoh.
This is the third of five (5!) Lehmann designs on my list.
follower of Jesus, husband, father, "pastor", boardgamer, writer, Legomaniac, Disneyphile, voted most likely to have the same Christmas wish list at age 58 as he did at age 8
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