The Isofarian Guard

Board Games – Narrative solo games can be pretty intense, The Isofarian Guard lives up to this it’s a massive box with miniatures and quest books. The miniatures are unique as each one has two models joined together.

From the publisher:
The Isofarian Guard is a solo/co-op narrative driven adventure board game for 1-2 players.

Welcome to Isofar, a wild land severe in its beauty. The Isofarian people take great pride in their ability to flourish among the hostile wildlife and cruel elements of their mountainous home. As a member of the Isofarian guard, life is never dull. You try to keep the peace among your fellow Isofarians (a never-ending job), as well as deal with constant threats from the aggressive Falmund Empire to the south.

But now, the old patterns are shifting. New forces are at work that will challenge the very underpinnings of reality. You will guide eight different Isofarian Guards throughout 5 interweaving campaigns as they deal with a power that threatens not only Isofar, but the entire world.

In The Isofarian Guard, you will travel throughout the cities and wildernesses of Isofar on a beautifully illustrated world map, fight off enemies using a unique and highly customizable battle system, and use your wits to talk your way out of sticky situations. As you forge important alliances, opportunities will arise for you to craft stronger gear, gain new powers, and step into the destiny you were called to.

Hybris - Greek Gods

Board Games – Hybris: Disordered Cosmos is a worker placement game that combines Greek Myth with a Digital Utopia.

From the publisher:
Hybris is a boardgame of worker placement, opportunity and development. For 2 – 4 players for game session around 120 minutes. A solo mode will be included during the Kickstarter campaign.

Primodials Gods have fallen. Hunted, captured and tortured by their children, Chronos and his congeners are nothing but remnants of an ancient world. Era of Olympians has just begun. After aeons of fightings, a new order is established. Zeus, his brothers and sisters took the dominion of the heavens and the mortals world. Now they are trying to organize themselves to share the remaining realms and know who will be the new ruler.

But Olympians are not yet real gods, they must evolve, activate the spark that will turn them into a true god even if their current strength is colossal. Moreover, they must establish their domination in the realm of mortals, and to do this, use the essence of their father: the Aegis. This energy comes directly from the Primordials themselves who are captured and chained in the underworld. With this energy, Olympians can meet the expectations of the largest cities in Ancient Greece by deploying the most beautiful and promising technologies.

Play your god to build technologies, accomplishing quest, fight heroes, upgrade your Divinity Sparkle and win the game by unlocking all your Divine Enhancements or by victory points in the 6th Age turn.

Anno Domino 1666 - Expansion

Board Games – 1666 is a skirmish board game where player battle using a variety of factions. These two are one of the expansions for the game.

From the publisher:
It is the year of our Lord 1666. Emperor Leopold is dead. The election looms. European monarchs send their envoys to Vienna to participate. But the struggle for the Empire's future takes place not only at the noble courts. In Vienna's slums and alleys swashbucklers, musketeers and thugs wage a secret war on behalf of their powerful superiors.

Anno Domini 1666 is a tactical adventure miniatures game in which two players pit their bands against each other in order to achieve specific goals defined by a scenario. The game takes place on boards depicting 17th-century Vienna with a grid overlay. Dice rolls are replaced by cards either played from a player's hand, or drawn blindly from a deck. A scenario's objectives may include defeating the opponents in combat, but also stealing a valuable object or breaking out a hostage, among others.

The theme and characters of the game are based on real-world history, historical novels (such as Three Musketeers) but also feature magic, alchemy, wizards and fantastical creatures. The participating factions are the Poles, the French, the Ottomans and the evil sect Broken Cross. They can get help from the Vienna locals (thugs, urchins, merchants) and famous mercenaries. The process of building a band is fast and streamlined thanks to a draft system.

Kilforth - Fully Painted

Board Games – Kilforth is a fantasy card game that produced a set of miniatures for the characters featured in it.

From the publisher:
Gloom of Kilforth is a card game of high fantasy with a Gothic edge, playable in 1-3 hours, where 1-4 players, working individually or together, must take their humble adventurers on a journey through a dark world of magic and peril. They will visit strange places, stranger people and overcome powerful enemies in their mission to discover mysterious artefacts and mystical Spells. Players follow their Hero’s tale from modest beginnings through an epic story to an exciting climactic battle for the fate of the world. Gloom of Kilforth takes about 45 minutes per player to play.

Cultist Storm - Fully Painted

Board Games - Cultist Storm is set in the Cthulu Mythos, as a Co-Op game you work together to close portals before the cultist are able to summon a Great Old One.

Each round of Cultistorm consists of 6 phases where players combat cultists and try to close 5 portals. The game is lost if any of the following happens:
● Any investigator goes insane.
● Any Great Old One reaches a location card.
● The number of cultists exceeds the cultist threshold.
● The investigators do not manage to seal all the locations before they defeat every Great Old One
after the activation of the Final Act card.

The Lion Returns

Warhammer 40,000 – The Lion came back at the end of 9th Edition during the Arks of Omen books, he didn’t make a huge splash at the time and in 10th Edition his rules are pretty solid in the index so it’s odd you don’t hear more about him. With Dark Angels set to get a full tenth edition codex soon he may make a bigger splash soon.

Magnus the Red

Warhammer 40,000 - Magnus the Red, Primarch of the Thousand Sons.

Gargoyles - Fully Painted

Board Games - Gargoyles was part of the Disney Afternoon in the 1990’s it was a pretty cool cartoon that was supposed to be appeal to a more male demographic like the films the studio released in the time period (Altantis, Treasure Planet etc) it didn’t really work as intended but the films and shows of this time have a pretty solid cult following.

Battle for Eternia - Wrath of Snake Mountain

Board Games - I don’t think I ever owned any of the Snake Men from the Masters of the Universe, they came out toward the end of the series and I think I had changed my focus to G.I. Joe and video games by then.I remember them from the TV Show and the various commercials.

Monster Hunter - Fully Painted

Board Games - Monster Hunter is a franchise know mostly for the Capcom video game series, there is also a film set in the universe. Now there is also a board game that allows you to battle giant monsters in a Co-Op style board game.

After you successfully hunt down a monster you’re able to craft gear and improve your stuff before you head out to track down bigger game. It sounds like a pretty faithful translation of the core game concepts and the monster miniatures are really nice. The details on the hunters are a little soft but my kids have played several of the video games and were impressed with the armor sets so I guess they’re pretty accurate.

Vampire The Masquerade

Board Games - Vampire The Masquerade is typically associated with LARPing however they recently came out with a narrative board game. Check it out here.

Masters of the Universe - Battle for Eternia

Board Games - He-Man and the Masters of the Universe were a huge influence on my childhood. I had opted to pass on backing this kickstarter just because I’m trying to be more selective due to limited space to store these big box games. Honestly I was a little sad about missing it. Luckily it’s back for a second printing and available on Gamefound.

I was happy to get a chance to paint these for someone else and they brought back fond memories of the Master of the Universe from my childhood.

Thousand Sons - Additions

Warhammer 40,000 - It seems a 40k army is never truly complete. As is evidenced by this Thousand Sons force.

Marvel Crisis Protocol - Starter Force

Marvel Crisis Protocol - Starter Force

Marvel Crisis Protocol – MCP is one of the better games that has come out in recent years, not only does it feature my favorite Marvel characters, but the game is super flexible and fun. While there are benefits to playing an affiliation with a leader, you’re not locked into that choice. If you wanted to you could just buy the characters you like and play with them as your team. Granted this might not be the best choice it is still perfectly viable.

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Titans - 17th Century Area Control

Board Games - Titans is another area control game that has unique figures for each player. The sculpts are well done and fit the theme nicely.

From the Publisher:

Titans is a territory control miniatures game for 1-4 players (up to 5 with an expansion).

The game is set in a historical fantasy setting of 17th century Europe. Endless wars are taking their toll as the people fall into despair. There is no hope for an end, no prospects for a peaceful order. The faith of the people slowly burns out. Dorment Spirits of the Nations wake up from centuries-long rest, rekindling the hearts of the people and raising ancient warriors called the Titans. People, filled with extraordinary powers, standing hand-by-hand with mighty Titans, fight to reclaim Europe. That war will end it all, and a King of Kings will be chosen.

In Titans players take roles of a king that leads an Army with a mythical Titan into Battle. There are 4 Nations to choose from, one of the European empires of that time - Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Russia, Sweden, and the Ottoman Empire.

The game revolves around a unique, yet simple Order Card Mechanics. Players will use a shared deck of Order Cards that will allow them to recruit Units, awake the Nation’s Power and move their Armies across the Game Board. Players draw a specific number of Order Cards and place them face-up for all players to see. Players also see the upcoming Order Cards so they can plan their long=term strategy. In his turn, the active player chooses 1 of the available Order Cards and uses it's available Actions. Players will try to gain strategic positions, move their front line and attack their opponents where they are the weakest. The next player uses the same Pool of Order Cards so the active player may try to anticipate opponents movement and use that to their advantage. When there is only 1 Order Card available it's discarded, the "upcoming Order Cards" become the available pool and new Order Cards are drawn. That allows for dynamic gameplay with a lot of planning, both tactical and strategical.

The game is divided into Rounds and the Round ends after the Order Deck is empty. After each Round players collect Victory Points for the Regions they control, so players constantly want to expand their domain. Winning Battles also bring players Victory Points so deciding when, where and how to attack is crucial as well. The player with the most Victory Points at the end of the game is the winner.

City of the Great Machine - Steampunk Boardgaming

Board Games - Years ago when I first started this site I was introduced to Steam Punk, it’s an interesting genre that goes in a sci-fi tilt at the turn of the century. Personally I’ve don’t have a huge amount of interest in it any longer but it’s a unique thing you see at Ren-Fest. City of the Great Machine is a Co-op game in when you play against … The Great Machine a form of AI.

From the Publisher:

City of the Great Machine is a strategy game set in a grim universe of technocratic Victorian steampunk. The game features the conflict between the Great Machine, an artificial intelligence network, and an alliance of Heroes. The Great Machine is either controlled by a player or is automated, which completely changes the gameplay.

The Great Machine controls the City built on mobile platforms in the sky. As the Great Machine, the player (or game AI) commands a force of perfected Servants and mechanical Guards. The Great Machine's ultimate goal is to suppress social unrest and complete its grandiose Master Plan to perfect the mankind.

The other players are Heroes working together against the Great Machine to start a revolution. They encourage discontent in the City, enlist the support of famous citizens, and inflame riots. They also attempt to prevent the Great Machine from completing the Master Plan, as it leads to the enslavement of the mankind.

Game features:

  • City of the Great Machine may be played as One-vs-Many (2-4 players) or cooperatively/solo (1-3 players).

  • Modular board allows for infinite City layouts. The players may reposition the City Districts during the game.

  • Hidden movement. Each round, the Heroes secretly choose the Districts they will go to.

  • Resource management. Both sides of the conflict have multiple actions to take and pay for them in Trust (Heroes) or Bonds (the Great Machine). The same is true for movement and other tasks.

  • Asymmetric gameplay and unique victory conditions. The Heroes need 3 Riots to win, while the Great Machine strives to complete the Master Plan.

  • Secrecy. The Heroes need to conceal their plans from the Great Machine, however, they may discuss their intentions only in the presence of the Great Machine.


Zerywia - Painted and Ready to Play

Board Games - Zerywia is an interesting looking adventure game that links together adventures into an overarching story. It feels a little generic fantasy but the minis has a different look about them.

From the Publisher:

Zerywia is a cooperative adventure board game set in the primeval world of Slavic myths. It includes a campaign mode composed of individual adventures for 1 to 4 players, linked together by an overarching storyline. Each adventure can also be played separately, as standalone episodes. This enables the players to experience each story in different ways and allows to lead their Heroes on a different path during each playthrough.

Each Hero has their own Saga, a tale waiting to be uncovered and told. Progressing through it grants powerful, new relicts, rituals or allies. As they roam the lands, the Heroes will be able to acquire new Sagas, which shall give them more power and unlock new, hitherto hidden parts of the story. This is why our Heroes are a work in progress, so to speak, and it falls upon the players to shape them and lead them to noble (or not quite so) deeds.

Uluk - Painted Up

Board Games - I love big chunky miniatures. Uluk has some really nice idols that are simple to paint up and look great on the board.

From the publisher:

Elders say that our world is a fruit of the sacred uluk tree. No humans have ever stepped on this magical land, and you are the leaders of its hunter-gatherer tribes of sentient animals, collecting food, developing inventions, and erecting monuments in honor of the ancient gods to fulfill their spiritual needs. The winner in this competition will ensure happiness and well-being for their tribe members, and he or she will be praised as the arch leader of all the tribes!

The goal of the game is to have the most Happiness Points at the end of the sixth round (season). There are several different ways to score points, but the most important activity in the game is to send your tribe members (called here "tribers") to various spaces on the main board and take actions corresponding to them.

Uluk mostly makes use of the classic worker placement mechanics. The players send their tribers to spaces on the main board to build monuments and gather raw resources. The resources gathered are stored on each player's tribe board and may then be processed into food. Feeding your tribers brings you HPs and lets you win the game after the sixth season. A single season is divided into six phases in which the players take their actions in a clockwise order:

Errand phase - place your tribers on the main board
Harvest phase - gather resources from the main board
Processing phase - process raw resources from your tribe board into food
Feeding phase - spend food on feeding your tribers
Ecology phase - adjust the harvest levels (quantity of resources available) on the main board
Clean-up phase - build monuments and prepare for the next season

Developing inventions (in the form of invention cards with different symbols) enhances the effectiveness of your food processing, and collecting sets of different symbols brings extra points at the end of the game.