Is there much buzz about the new Friedman Friese (Formidable Farm)?
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I don’t think there’s much buzz but I will get it when it’s up for sale over here at all. it looks like a nice smallish game.
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I didn’t buy Masons for a very reasonable price at Wellycon after pondering it for quite a while. It’s not rated super highly on BGG, but from what I saw I had a sneaking suspicion that I’d enjoy it quite a bit. In the end the number of people suggesting that the game tended to devolve into “hoping to draw the cards which are better than the other cards” convinced me to leave it where it was, but I’d be interested to try it some time. BGG says it’s “reimplemented by Castello Methoni” but that only seems partly true, and my vague impression is that I’d like Masons better. Never played either, though, so just guesswork.
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Thanks for that particular information. I had it on my must look into it list.
Ada’s Dream I saw images of before SPIEL and … as much as I would love to own a game about her, none of the games that featured her have come close to becoming/remaining part of my collection.
Railroad Tiles… mimimi big box. I wanted that one. … I will be watching post-SPIEL ratings for games to figure out my shopping list for November. (Am I waiting for Christmas? Nope)
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Turns out my Dad backed this on kickstarter, so I will probably get to compare to Railroad Ink at Christmas
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I’d definitely like to hear about it when you do.
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Hmm… just scanned the rules for Battle of Hoth as the price is dropping.
I don’t know. It looks like a reskin of Memoir 44 without any of the good chrome the system has picked up over the years.
Tanks are split into Walkers and Snowspeeders, with the snowspeeders inheriting the mobility and the Walkers inheriting the firepower - a bit of interesting asymmetry and a nice move to split the benefits.
Artillery is tweaked a smidgeon for theme.
Each player has their own, smaller deck of command cards rather than one big deck - that’s a nice bit of balancing and reducing the luck of the draw.
But Ancients and Battlelore 2e did such wonderful things with the system - battle back and deep asymmetry. I was hoping for something more. I really don’t know what I would do with Hoth that I can’t do with Memoir, and I already have Memoir. Just a theme sell.
Also wondering if some expansions will come with some more goodies, and this is just the intro box.
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Have purchased and played Hoth, you’re not wrong. I would say it sits firmly between Memoir '44 and Battlelore for my preference, but both of those were vastly improved as expansions, additional units, and new (better balanced) scenarios were released.
The fact that Probe Droids (Imperial) and Artillery (Rebel) no longer give VPs when destroyed is a neat tweak.
And each side also has a small selection of Commanders, which add 3 unique cards to their deck when taken (Vader, Veers, and the Admiral that was force choked for dropping out of hyperspace too… close?.. to the planet, and the Rebels get Han, Luke, and Leia). Plus, the decks are slightly asymetric, AND the grunt troops are slightly asymetric (basically the Imperial Snowtroopers are 4HP and the Rebels are only 3HP to represent the better Imperial training and height advantage).
All that stated: for $85CAD, it’s a pretty good deal, and I’m glad I picked it up. I’m extra glad I got the pre-release bonus terrain (generators and an Ion cannon building), although the tokens for those in the box are fine.
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My early take is that if you have Memoir and the people you might play Battle of Hoth with would happily play Memoir, then just play Memoir. Unless you’re a Star Wars fan, in which case Hoth will have bonus appeal.
I think Hoth is going to be a nice gateway to the Command & Colours system for people who’ve never tried it and/or weren’t enticed by the themes of the other games.
I think it’s also a great option for people who would like to have a slightly smaller, faster game for this system.
If neither the theme nor the smaller size particularly appeal, though, and if you have no difficulty getting Memoir to the table, then Battle of Hoth is definitely not a must-have. You’d probably still enjoy it – but you’d enjoy playing Memoir just as much.
Also wondering if some expansions will come with some more goodies, and this is just the intro box.
Failing licensing woes putting an end to it, or an abject commercial failure of this initial offering, I think that expansions (and probably a lot of them) are absolutely inevitable. It’s a blend of a theme and a game system that both love expansions.
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Didn’t buy Galactic Renaissance, which is on sale at Amazon for $30. I loved Inis, and this is by the same designer, but I barely play Inis as it is, so this would just languish on the shelf. I am getting a little better at turning down good deals!
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I’m still horrified at what I payed for Galactic Renaissance. Of course, kickstarter upgrades and 5 player expansion and all that but cash-for-value just isn’t there.
And then the reviews came in…
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My early take is that a) it’s Star Wars and b) It’s C&C so… I’m just going to own that I will eventually buy this thing. Since it’s $40 rather than $60 at the moment…
yoink
Separately, I also got my Mexican Cardboard Mule to buy a copy of Mexican Samurai in Mex City. He’ll be in the states in December so he’s going to carry it across the border and ship it domestically.
sigh I don’t know if any of you all have ever dealt with rich Mexicans. There’s a 45% chance that he’ll send it with “Merry Christmas, buddy, don’t worry about it.” And a 45% chance of “It was only $90 to overnight it with fedex so I just sent it. Here’s my venmo.”
Roughly 10% that it concludes normally.
I think I’m going to send him a pirateship label a week before his trip just to trim the ends off that normal curve.
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Did you just buy a game in the “games you didn’t buy” thread?
I’m pretty sure that’s illegal.
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Quietly puts Hoth back on the shelf.
Sinks behind the umbrella stand.
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Just post it in the correct thread!
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Oh man, Vampire the Masquerade: Vendetta is on sale at Amazon for $6.99. That’s an absolute steal. I already own it, and I’m still tempted to pick it up! It’s horribly balanced, but I do love the game.
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Saw Daybreak for £25. Skipped it. Dont need it.
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I think I didn’t buy Bohemians despite enjoying the premise as put forth in the Spacebiff review a while back. But then I didn’t get around to ordering more games after SPIEL (I might have been busy with the gaming pc shenanigans) and now I’ve cooled on the idea. To cement that fact, I am writing this post. I don’t need that game 
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Didn’t buy the Molly House reprint, despite wanting it, because I don’t think I know anyone who’d play it, let alone three people.
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