#80: The Dragon & Flagon (Mark's Top 100 2022)

The Dragon & Flagon

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 3,236
• rating: 6.4
• published: 2016

Print Status

• out of print... but not difficult to find a copy

Why It's On The List

• The Family Englestein strikes again with a 3D homage to the classic fighting game Swashbuckler... and turns it into a free-for-all romp with modern game mechanics. Tip tables, swing on chandeliers, cast spells, pull rugs, and even "Guard! Turn! Parry! Dodge! Spin! Ha! Thrust! Sproing!" with you and up to 7 other of your friends!

Tips & Tricks:

• Obviously, you can play a smarter game if you know your deck well (and the decks of those you are fighting)... but over-obsessing about the details will suck all the life out of this experience game.
• The middle of the tavern is a dangerous place to be.
• Sometimes just causing a bit of mayhem (pushing a table, tipping a bookcase, etc.) in a crowded area is extremely helpful as it frustrates the plans of your opponents.
• The game works just as well with 2, 3, or 4 players playing 2 fighters each as it does with 5-8 players.

Extras

• I'm extraordinarily proud of the very long review I wrote of The Dragon & Flagon for the Opinionated Gamers website.
• There's an expansion for the game as well - The Brew That Is True - that adds more characters, bookcases, and even reprints the hard-to-find promotional coaster for the game.
• Note: I'll say it once again - this is an EXPERIENCE game. Some games will just not go your way... and that's OK.
• This is the second of two games designed by Geoff, Brian & Sydney Englestein on my top 100 list.

#81: Zahltag (Mark's Top 100 2020)

Zahltag

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 16,119
• rating: 5.7
• published: 2002

Print Status

• out of print

Why It's On The List

• Another bidding game... but this time you're trying to low bid the other players to win construction jobs. It's a clever twist on auction games with elements of push-your-luck and hand management.

Tips & Tricks:

• Since idle workers cost money when Payday comes up, it's nice to keep everyone on your work crew employed... but doing so means you can't bid on jobs where you don't have the right guys. 
• Keeping track of what other players have out working and left in their hand can make a definite difference in the bidding - you'll know when to bid high because no one else can fulfill the contract.
• The game is short - part of what makes it enjoyable. But that also means you don't have a lot of time to get your crew working and making money.

Extras

• The translation of "Zahltag" is 'pay day'.
• The designer is Franz Benno Delonge... best known for Big City and Transamerica. Sadly, Herr Delonge passed away due to cancer in 2007.

#82: Traumfabrik / Hollywood Blockbuster / Dream Factory (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Traumfabrik / Hollywood Blockbuster / Dream Factory

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 826
• rating: 7.0
• published: 2000

Print Status

• out of print... again

Why It's On The List

• I'm still kicking myself for not buying the original German version (Traumfabrik) which featured real film names and real film stars of the past... but regardless of what wrapper you put it in, this closed economy bidding game is just the right amount of tense and enjoyable - thanks in part to the elements of randomness that lighten the design.

Tips & Tricks:

• It's usually worth trying to quickly finish one film with same spectacular quality as Ed Wood's Plan 9 From Outer Space... though, if everyone is doing it, zig while everyone else zags.
• Contracts have value at the end of the game... so make sure that whatever you're buying is worth what you're spending.
• I like to get one or two "stars" early so I can have a decent pick at the parties.
• It's an auction game - it's flat out bidding malpractice to not goose someone into bidding just a little bit higher than they originally intended.

Extras

• There's a clear hierarchy of the various printings - Traumfabrik is the best of the bunch, followed by Dream Factory... and then it's a long drop off to Hollywood Blockbuster. (The picture above is Dream Factory.)
• This is the second of seven (7!) Reiner Knizia game designs on my top 100 list.

#83: Fireball Island: The Curse of Vul-Kar (Mark's Top 100)

Fireball Island: The Curse of Vul-Kar

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 1,152
• rating: 6.9
• published: 2018

Print Status

• in print

Why It's On The List

• The Restoration Games team took a beloved but not particularly well-designed game from the 1980s and did what they do best... they re-imagined it and made it (a) a game with actual decisions, without (b) losing what we all loved about the original - rolling marbles and knocking stuff over.

Tips & Tricks:

• You don't have to get three photos and jump on the Hello Copter to win - sometimes it pays to forego escape in favor of collecting treasures.
• Under no circumstances should you start by going for the Eye of Vul-Kar... that's a rookie move OR the after-effect of having played a lot of the original game. It's just too darn easy to lose it.
• When playing with the expansions, remember that the Crimson Cutlass and Spider Springs are both relatively safe areas unless someone is specifically targeting you. This can be to your benefit against an opponent who loves dumping fireballs into Vul-Kar.
• There's a nifty free app from Restoration Games that has an electronic scorepad, a soundtrack for the game, a random sound generator based on what just happened (with some very funny taunting from Vul-Kar himself), and a variant way to play the game (the Real Time Fun Run).

Extras

• There are a number of expansions for Fireball Island - of the big boxes, I'd highly recommend Spider Springs over The Wreck of the Crimson Cutlass. We've found that spring-loaded pile of spiders (and how they eventually end up all over the island) has more bang for the buck and for gameplay.
• Of the smaller expansion sets, I can recommend them both: The Last Adventurer and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Bees!. We love the boulder and the tiger... and mix in a variety of cards from the Treasure Trove depending on who we're playing with. 
• The only card set we don't love (in Treasure Trove) is the Injuries set.
• This is the first of eight (8!) Rob Daviau game designs on my top 100 list... and the first of three from co-designer Justin Jacobson.

#84: Würfel Bohnanza (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Würfel Bohnanza

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 2,046
• rating: 6.7
• published: 2012

Print Status

• out of print (but there's a rumor it will be reprinted this year)

Why It's On The List

• Bohnanza itself has spawned any number of expansions and spinoffs... including a Bean Trader board game and an odd but wonderful sci-fi bean game, Space Beans. But my favorite Bohnanza-that's-not-Bohnanza design is this clever dice game that actually has meaningful decisions about which dice to lock (when you're rolling) and keeps the rest of the table involved since you can potentially leech off the active player's rolls.

Tips & Tricks:

• It's OK to give up on a card for only a Bohnenthaler or two... especially if you're playing with 4-5 players and you might get more "freebie" advancement off their rolls from the lower parts of the card. (BTW - "Bohnenthaler" is literally translated "bean coin".)
• You should play Würfel Bohnanza in a room with good lighting - there are two different colors of bean dice (white and light tan) with different faces and it is NOT EASY to tell them apart in bad lighting.
• Pay attention to what faces are on which dice.
• While you're at it, pay attention to the next goals on your marker card... it may pay to switch over to the new card if you can jump a couple of goals there.

Extras

• Yes, I rated this slightly higher than Bohnanza... mostly because I rarely get to play the original game any more.
• This is the third of three Uwe Rosenberg games on my top 100 list.

#85: The Quest for El Dorado (Mark's Top 100 2022)

The Quest for El Dorado

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 146
• rating: 7.6
• published: 2017

Print Status

• in print

Why It's On The List

• Reiner Knizia turns his adept design talent to deck-building... and makes a racing game that manages to stay tense throughout, offer a variety of interesting (and clever) tactical decisions, and be enjoyable with both gamers and non-gamers.

Tips & Tricks:

• Add the caves into the game after your first play - they offer some difficult choices as well as helping deal with overcrowding at choke points.
• Players often undervalue the usefulness of gold... both for movement through villages and for purchasing higher valued cards that make a big difference in the end game.
• Learn to look at the board to figure out the "rhythm" of when you'll need various kinds of cards - sections of the board may have a preponderance of one type of terrain and/or high numbered terrain (3s & 4s) that force you to take a different route. Planning ahead will make a difference!

Extras

• The Heroes & Hexes expansion is excellent... highly recommended.
• The Golden Temples expansion is actually a stand-alone game that can be combined with the base game and Heroes & Hexes to make some truly crazy maps.
• There is an excellent set of maps available on BGG.
• This is the first of seven (7!) Reiner Knizia games on my top 100 list.
• Weirdly enough, I graduated from El Dorado High School.

#86: Survive: Space Attack (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Survive: Space Attack

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 3,108
• rating: 7.0
• published: 2015

Print Status

• I think it's OOP but it's not impossible to find a copy

Why It's On The List

• The Family Englestein turns their design skills to re-imagining a classic mass market game (Survive!)... and manage to make it not only better but much better. And with extra ways to have your opponents eaten by aliens.

Tips & Tricks:

• Initial placement of your crew is important... crew on level 1 tiles are likely to be trying to space walk to the exit.
• You want to make escape pods that you can share with another player - not because you are the King of Kindness, but because (a) the opponent sharing the pod is less likely to target it, and (b) a pod with the crew of a single player might as well have "Kick Me" spray-painted on the fuselage.
• It's a heavy-duty "take that" game - so learn to overlook the slights of others and make the wisest decision on who to target rather than "I'll just hit the guy who just hit me."

Extras

• The 5-6 player mini-expansion works pretty well, though we've only used it once. 
• The Crew Strikes Back card deck is less successful and only recommended for those who play a LOT of Survive: Space Attack.
• I wrote an extensive review of the game for the Opinionated Gamers.
• This is the first of two games designed by Geoff, Brian, and Sydney Englestein on my top 100 list.

Classic: Six-Word Memoirs - The Valentine's Day Edition

Heard these folks talking on Talk of the Nation more than a decade ago... the challenge was to write your love story (or not-so-lovely story) in six words. (There's a book, of course - which may make a nicer gift than a bag of those nasty chalky candy hearts.) My favorite:

"He sees the me I don't."

So, here's my attempt:

Peanut butter, chocolate - just like us.

The Rasp of Memories

I'm not sure

If it is the metallic scrape of a 
Spoon at the bottom of a bowl

Or the ominous clang against the road
Of a vital bit of machinery
Hanging loose beneath my car

But that noise
That vaguely musical abrading of metal
Is the grating note my soul sings when the memories flood in

When my thoughts drift to what might have been
My mind steers into the skid
Sparks fly upward from the undercarriage

I regret what I said

Even more, I regret what I did not say

Notes left unplayed in a song without resolution

Sit with me on the ground

Wait to speak

Wait some more

I stood in the gap
My hands open and waiting for rain

For the drought of truth to end

I longed for a word
Strained to hear a still small voice
Amongst the sounding brass and the clanging cymbals

Did I imagine the call of my name?

Did I unknowingly strike the rock and
Leave myself only the ache of seeing but not crossing over?

Sit with me on the ground

Wait to speak

Wait some more

The wind rushes past and the earth quakes
What might have been is a ghost
What I did not say is an echo

I will stand upon my watch

I will listen for the music to resolve
And I will sing a new song

#87: Bohnanza (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Bohnanza

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 473
• rating: 7.0
• published: 1997

Print Status

• in print

Why It's On The List

• An innovative use of cards (you can't rearrange your hand!), a clever theme (bean farming), and some nifty rules to create a barter economy combine to make a great, great game.

Tips & Tricks:

• Just because you can trade something doesn't mean you should trade something - pay attention!
• A third bean field is only a good idea if you do it EARLY.

Extras

• While the game will play with 3-7 players, I think that the sweet spot is 5-6.
• I'm a huge fan of the High Bohn expansion for the game (which adds Cosmic Encounter-ish powers & a Wild West theme)... but I never get to play it.
• The 2 player version - Al Cabohne - is actually a lot of fun... but kinda tough to locate.
• Here's what I wrote about Bohnanza for The One Hundred.
• Here's a (rather dated) page from my old website (Game Central Station) about rules mistakes & Bohnanza expansions.
• This is the second of three games on my top 100 designed by Uwe Rosenberg.

#88: Arctic Scavengers (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Arctic Scavengers

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 1,394
• rating: 6.8
• published: 2009 (Driftwood), 2013 (Rio Grande) 

Print Status

• I think it's OOP... but it doesn't seem difficult to find a copy.

Why It's On The List

• This was the first game to take the deck-building mechanic from Dominion and create a game with a thematic arc... too bad it wasn't released by a major publisher for nearly 4 years.

Tips & Tricks:

• Deciding when to fight is key - there is a definite memory element to the game which can get tricky when playing with four players.
• There are multiple expansion levels in the box as published - they add some interesting twists. I'm not sure the Building stuff is entirely successful, but it does flesh out the theme really well - and theme is one of the strong points of this very enjoyable design.

Extras

• The Recon expansion is well worth getting - and the larger box has a storage solution that allows you to put everything in it. With the expansion, you have the ability to craft particular sets of cards that change the flavor of the game (a trait it shares with its parent game, Dominion.)
• This is probably my favorite of the deck-building with a specified set of cards to draft... while I admire the heck out of the innovation of Dominion that led to some really great games, I don't particularly enjoy playing it.)
• I wrote a little bit about Arctic Scavengers in my Gathering 2013 recap post.

#89: Anno 1503 (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Anno 1503

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 3,818
• rating: 6.2
• published: 2003

Print Status

• out of print

Why It's On The List

• Despite all the Settlers trappings, this is a racing game - albeit one with a very nice exploration theme and some very different strategies you can try to win the race.

Tips & Tricks:

• Once you know the game, it's 15 minutes per player - making it a great super-filler at game nights.
• The tendency is to over-emphasize ship-building... but there are perfectly viable strategies that concentrate on production & building your settlements.

Extras

• The expansion to the game (only published in German) had some great ideas... but simply ended up making the game longer & slower (The ideas were, for the most part, reimplemented in the Anno 1701 board game... which you'll be hearing more about later on in this countdown!).
• The game is lightly connected to a computer game I've never played - evidently a civ-building game. (We've just exhausted my knowledge on the subject.)
• Here's what I wrote about Anno 1503 for The One Hundred.
• This is the third of seven (7!) games on my top 100 designed by Klaus Teuber.

#90: Mississippi Queen (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Mississippi Queen

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 2,233
• rating: 6.3
• published: 1997

Print Status

• out of print?

Why It's On The List

• Steamboat racing at it's best - this is a pretty simple game (once everyone figures out how to tell what order everyone moves) that is fun to play & gorgeous to look at.

Tips & Tricks:

• Mississippi Queen is improved by the use of The Black Rose expansion - esp. if playing with 5-6 players. (Note: I originally wrote that back in '05... over time, I've come to believe that the expansion works best as seasoning - use the coaling station & the "evil islands" tile & the extra steamboats - but that the logs & sandbars simply slow the game down.)

Extras

• I'm not sure about the print status of Mississippi Queen - the original edition & expansion have long since gone OOP, but there was a new edition published by Super Meeple in 2019. However, I can't get a good handle on how easy it is to find a copy of the new edition.
• Here's my extensive Game Central Station post on rulings & variants for Mississippi Queen. (Note: if you're new to this blog, Game Central Station is the board game website that I used to run back in the day.)
• Gaming history tidbit: Mississippi Queen won the Spiel des Jahres back in 1997, which has caused a good bit of griping over the years. Tigris & Euphrates, the gamer-y pick of the year, was not even nominated. (You'll notice that I do not include T&E in my top 100 - it's a game I respect but don't like to play.) 

#91: Agricola (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Agricola

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 37
• rating: 7.9
• published: 2008

Print Status

• in print

Why It's On The List

• The theme - farming in medieval times - shouldn't be terrifically compelling (why do I care about the travails of a farmer?)... and yet the game system makes you sweat every purchase, every family member you send out to collect wood or stone or to get a job...

Tips & Tricks:

• I don't pretend to have a decent grasp on Agricola strategy - particularly when playing with 4-5 players. At the same time, it's important to remember that you don't have to do well at everything - but blowing off a scoring category completely must be compensated by complete success in other categories.
• There's a long-winded diatribe in me waiting to get out on this next tip: don't be "super-gamer" and dismiss the badly named "family game" (the 'simpler' version of Agricola). I don't care how experienced you are as a gamer, there's so much going on that it's worth playing this version multiple times for two reasons: (a) it's a good game w/out the cards!, and (b) you'll play the version with Minor Improvements & Occupations much better if you understand how everything works together...

Extras

• This is a game where adding players to the mix adds substantially to the length of play - so, while the game works very well with five players (and even has cards that are specific to that number), I like it best with two or three players. 
• The Farmers of the Moor expansion is enjoyable, but does increase the complexity of the game another step. On the other hand, I'm not sold on the extra decks - I find the oddball humor to be jarring & some of the cards to have some serious power creep...
• I like Caverna (which some hale as "Agricola improved" - but I don't need both of them.
• This is the first of three (3) Uwe Rosenberg game designs that will appear on this countdown. 

#92: Canyon (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Canyon

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 4,563
• rating: 6.3
• published: 1997

Print Status

• out of print

Why It's On The List

• A trick-taking game (like Spades or Hearts) based on the Wizard model of changing number of cards dealt out each hand - however, the twist in the game is the scoring. You're actually raising canoes around the titular canyon, moving based on the number of tricks you take and the accuracy of your bid.

Tips & Tricks:

• Sometimes the order of players moving their canoes can cause you real problems... the key is to anticipate those situations and (if playing with Grand Canyon) draft the appropriate special power.
• Bidding accuracy is as important if not more important than walloping people with using trump to win tricks.

Extras

• It's just a few pieces of card stock, but I think that the Grand Canyon expansion is a wonderful addition to the game - it adds one-use powers that are drafted before each hand with the player in last place getting first pick.
• I'm guessing this is one of the games that people will be responding in a "really? Canyon?!" - and I get that. But I've enjoyed every game I've ever played of this... and am actually excited each time it comes to the table. 

#93: Route 66 (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Route 66

BoardGameGeek

• rank: not ranked
• rating: 5.3
• published: 1993

Print Status

• incredibly out of print

Why It's On The List

• It's a racing game where you want to travel the ol' Mother Road at blazing speeds from Chicago to L.A. - then want to "get your kicks" on the return trip and move as slowly as possible. 

Tips & Tricks:

• Speed management is tricky - and even more so if you play with a full complement of 5 players.
• That said, the game is probably at it's best with 3-4 players.

Extras

• Wolfgang Riedesser designed the game after traveling the U.S. in a convertible.
• I know it's an extremely "fluffy" game - but I really enjoy the odd combination of races and the nicely done theme.
• There is a companion card game which shares the same art style but is closer to Mille Bornes design-wise.

#94: Flamme Rouge (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Flamme Rouge

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 215
• rating: 7.5
• published: 2016

Print Status

• in print

Why It's On The List

• It's apt to compare this game to the classic 6 Nimmt card game (what with simultaneous action selection and resolution of cards)... but it's really a well-thought-out way to simulate cycling that plays in 30-45 minutes. 

Tips & Tricks:

• Looking at the track and figuring out to shepherd your "good" cards for later in the race is an important skill.
• Drafting is key in this game - holding the lead for most of the game will end up with you sputtering at the end (just like real cycling!).
• Watch for tight spots or crowded groups - you can get caught where you can't catch the leader due to the crowd rather than your lack of good cards.

Extras

• I reviewed Flamme Rouge for the Opinionated Gamers... and also advanced my theory of the Three Buckets of Sports Games.
• There are two "big" expansions for Flamme Rouge - Peloton (which adds two more teams and more kinds of road to race on) and Meteo (which adds weather conditions).
• There is another expansion coming in 2022 - Grand Tour (which is supposed to add multi-stage campaigns, new track, and specialist riders.) Color me excited!
• I'm a little sad that Um Reifenbreite didn't make it into my top 100 games... it's a wonderful racing game but I've had immense difficulty getting it to the table in recent years.

#95: Rule the Realm (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Rule the Realm / Kauchuk

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 5,678
• rating: 7.3
• published: 2019

Print Status

• in print

Why It's On The List

• Using rubber bands & a peg board for area control (in a stunning variety of modes) is genius. This doesn’t work quite like anything you’ve played before… and it is well worth seeking out.

Tips & Tricks:

• Keep your eyes on the prize - remember what you're trying accomplish rather than just do stuff.
• Interfering with your opponents can work very well - but not if it distracts you from what you need to do to win the scenario.
• There are eight different scenarios in the box - and some of them are VERY different from the other scenarios.

Extras

• Dale Yu wrote a great review of the game for the Opinionated Gamers. (Note: you're likely to see a lot of Opinionated Gamers references in this series... it's the website I write for quite a bit and has an amazing stable of writers.)

#96: Entdecker (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Entdecker

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 3,025
• rating: 6.4
• published: 1996 

Print Status

• out of print

Why It's On The List

• First, I need to note that I'm talking about the original Goldsieber edition of Entdecker, not the mess that Klaus Teuber created when he attempted to create a more gamer-friendly version for Kosmos/Mayfair. My beloved original game is a family-friendly exploration game with beautiful components and a board that develops in different ways each time you play.

Tips & Tricks:

• In most games, cash is pretty tight - it can be useful to "lay off" for a turn (place one tile, place one scout) in order to save some money to make a big play in a future turn..
• The event tiles are roughly 50% good / 50% bad... you don't need to count tiles, but it's good to know if a bunch of the good stuff comes out early so you can avoid taking them (and vice versa).

Extras

• My specific problems with aforementioned (or, more accurately, aforemocked) Entdecker: Exploring New Horizons: the hut system, the preset mountains on the board, and the increased building costs from the various edges.
• There are a number of home-grown variants out there for Entdecker: the Manu variant was my favorite for a long time... though that's been eclipsed by Mark Johnson's mash-up of the best of the two games. Both are available in a very nice pdf file compiled by Shawn Low.
• Klaus Teuber also created a small box spin-off game (Oceania) which I enjoyed but not enough to keep from trading it away. As well, there are 2 other "Entdecker" games (and a promised but never published 3rd game) that I really like - but you'll hear more about those farther down in my list.
• Here's what I wrote about Entdecker for The One Hundred.
• This is the second of seven (7!) Klaus Teuber game designs that will appear on this countdown. 

#97: Dice Town (Mark's Top 100 2022)

Dice Town

BoardGameGeek

• rank: 934
• rating: 6.9
• published: 2009

Print Status

• in print (new edition)

Why It's On The List

• A gambling game using poker dice, poker hands, and a host of interactions with the western town (aka "board") that rewards clever play, reading your opponent's intentions, and the luck of the dice.

Tips & Tricks:

• There are ways to win without trying to claim lots of land... or hoarding gold... or whatever. In other words, there are multiple paths to victory.
• At the same time, it's wise to dip into those areas every once in a while to make sure that a single opponent isn't grabbing up all the goodies.

Extras

• I have played both the original game (which I own) and the new edition (which I do not)... in both cases, the Extension (original) or Wild West (new) expansion is a "must buy". It adds more variety to each space and helps create more room for interesting things to happen.
• The Cowboys expansion adds variety but isn't essential... and I haven't had the chance to play the Fistful of Cards expansion yet. (But I know it's waiting for me, since I gave it to my friend who owns the new version as a birthday gift!)