Seattle Qt3ers -- Boardgame Weekend

[Jason Lutes]

Hey there Qt3 Northwest,

The weekend of August 14-15, a bunch of folks will be playing boardgames at my place, and I would like to extend the invitation to include other Seattle-area Qt3ers.

On both Saturday August 14 and Sunday August 15, I'll essentially be having an open house, from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm. There will be piles of boardgames to choose from, and at least three tables at which we'll get people set up with games. There will likely be a shortage of chairs, though, so if you decide to attend, it might be a good idea to bring a folding or portable chair. And a beverage of your choice.

The only scheduled game at this point will be a session of Kings & Things, starting at 3:00 pm on Saturday. The first three people who sign up Saturday can get in on that game (the fourth spot is reserved for Don Quixote). Until more plans solidify, other games will be played on a pick-up basis.

People are encouraged to bring favorite boardgames, games they've been wanting to try out -- whatever. There will be a wide enough selection to accomodate many different styles and difficulty levels.

Please respond here if you're interested and let me know when you might want to attend -- that way I can get a rough idea of total head count to expect.

Thanks!

Jason

[Alan Au]

I'm planning to be there, Settlers of Catan (and whatever else I can dredge up) in tow. I'll take one of the Kings & Things slots despite having no idea what the game is about. (perhaps something to do with kings? and things?)

- Alan

[Anaxagoras]

Count me in.

Thanks for hosting this Jason.

[DennyA]

I'll probably be either too busy unpacking (or cursing the non-arrival of my promised furniture) that weekend, but I look forward to meeting you guys soon.

[size=2](You don't go by names like "Don Quixote," "Anaxagoras," and "Jason Lutes" in real life, do you? :) )[/size]

[jeffd]

I'd like to come, bringing my copy of Game of Thrones (best boardgame ever at least until the next thing I'm smitten with comes along) and possibly Twilight Imperium, but I've got folks in town that weekend. :\

JD

[Jason Lutes]

Hey guys,

Due to a home scheduling conflict, I'm switching one of the game days. Instead of two weekend days, I'm gonna make it two consecutive Saturdays: this Saturday, the 7th, and the following Saturday, the 14th. Hopefully this isn't too short of a notice for people to show up this Saturday, and maybe even Denny or Jeff will be able to make it.

In any case, those of you who can make it this Saturday, the 7th, let me know!

[Don Quixote]

w00t!! It was looking more and more like I was going to be out of town the weekend of the 14th. I'm free this weekend for sure, though.

I'm in for the 7th.


--justin

[Alan Au]

Won't be there until the late afternoon, but otherwise the 7th is fine.

- Alan

[Jason Lutes]

Bumping this up in case some folks didn't see it.

Last Saturday was a lot of fun -- thanks Alan, Don Quixote, and kaiju! for attending. We tried Runebound, which wasn't so great from my point of view, but the wrap-up game for the evening was a rousing game of Knizia's Lord of the Rings, which went over pretty well. Looking forward to trying the expansions next time around.

We're still on for this Saturday, August 14th. Alan, Anaxagoras, looks like it'll be just us three plus maybe my friend Mike again, unless anyone else chimes in. What time would you guys like to start?

We've got lots of good games to choose from, including three new ones fresh out of the FedEx truck: Memoir '44, Game of Thrones, and Ticket to Ride.

[Sunny the Unemployed]

I've heard nothing but good things about Game of Thrones. I really want to get it and try it out. And don't forget that the expansion is coming out this month!

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/va06.html

Lord of the Rings is also a terrific game of cooperation, a mechanic you don't see a lot of in games. The foes expansion is a bit lackluster, I think, but the Sauron expansion is quite neat. By allowing a 6th player to play and work against the party as Sauron, it can make a difficult game even more unlikely to win! Still, I've had a lot of fun with it, and the production values are top notch.


Almost forgot! Be sure to read the errata for Game of Thrones with 5 players! It addresses a game imbalance with the Lannister starting position.

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/agotbgfaq.html

[Jason Lutes]

Well, Alan was the only one who made it over to my place today, but we had a great time playing Memoir '44, which turned out to be an excellent two-player game.


The closest game of four scenarios we tried was the Axis attack on St. Vith, in the Ardennes. I was the Axis, the blue figures on the left. This shot shows my initial right flank push, which went really well until Alan moved his rearward armor over to defend the break in the line.


Here's Alan considering a move around the mid-game. I had the lead by several points, and for several turns was only a single point from victory, but Alan recovered and came back for a narrow and tense win.

Really an enjoyable game with simple rules, tough decisionmaking, and satisfying gameplay. I would highly recommend it to casual gamers and grognards who aren't too uptight about their WWII gaming. We'll definitely be pulling it out again at future gatherings.

[RightWrong]

I really need to make it to one of these, despite my inexperience.