Search
Search results
Would I Lie to You? Presents the 100 Most Popular Lies of All Time
Saul Wordsworth, Peter Holmes and Ben Caudell
Book
The cheque's in the post. I'm still at the office. That looks great on you. Lies make the world go...
Lexica Word Finder for Scrabble Pro
Games and Education
App
Lexica™ Word Finder is a word search utility, with intuitive, simple ways to search for words...
Barry Newman (204 KP) rated The Walking Dead - Season 9 in TV
Aug 12, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
After watching from the start I jumped ship from 'The Walking Dead' a few episodes into season 8 disillusioned and bored. The show had become a relentlessly pessimistic slog that had no idea where it was going with endless filler episodes and the increasingly tedious Negan storyline.
I had heard good things about season 9 and the good things new showrunner Angela Kang had done so decided to give it another shot and I am seriously glad I did as it turned out to be one of the best seasons and I binged it in a week.
The writing has a new sense of urgency (not to mention a touch of humour and optimism) and has been reinvigorated by the six year time jump and the departure of Rick Grimes. It seems they thought they had to up their game after losing their leading man and I have liked the new characters (particularly the older Judith) they've introduced and seeing a much bigger role for Darryl.
I was surprised to see Negan still around but he was actually put to good use with some interesting unexpected scenes.
This season also showed the show can still be scary and shocking ending in devastating fashion following a confrontation with the new big baddie the psychotic Alpha and her whisperer.
Here's hoping the resurrection continues for season 10 as I am starting that next!
I had heard good things about season 9 and the good things new showrunner Angela Kang had done so decided to give it another shot and I am seriously glad I did as it turned out to be one of the best seasons and I binged it in a week.
The writing has a new sense of urgency (not to mention a touch of humour and optimism) and has been reinvigorated by the six year time jump and the departure of Rick Grimes. It seems they thought they had to up their game after losing their leading man and I have liked the new characters (particularly the older Judith) they've introduced and seeing a much bigger role for Darryl.
I was surprised to see Negan still around but he was actually put to good use with some interesting unexpected scenes.
This season also showed the show can still be scary and shocking ending in devastating fashion following a confrontation with the new big baddie the psychotic Alpha and her whisperer.
Here's hoping the resurrection continues for season 10 as I am starting that next!
Celebrity Girl
Games and Entertainment
App
Become a celebrity in the hottest girl game on the AppStore! Go shopping for hot fashion, go to the...
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Cartographers: A Roll Player Tale in Tabletop Games
Sep 13, 2021
I have often wondered how cartography actually works. How was it that people with primitive tools were able to grasp the lay of the land and sea? And are we complete in our mapping of Earth or are there more secrets we have yet to discover? Thankfully, in Cartographers we aren’t really answering those questions, but other practical questions may arise.
Cartographers is a flip-and-write style game where players are competing to gain the queen’s favor and become the royal cartographer. While the main game focuses on finishing with a greater score than your opponent(s) the solo game is more relaxed. The solo player will be competing against their previous scores and comparing against the queen’s title matrix. Each game will be played over four seasons (rounds) and once the year is over the winner or title is claimed. Can you score 30 or more points to become a “Legendary Cartographer?”
To setup, lay out the Queen’s Edict cards that show A, B, C, and D. Shuffle each small deck of like-backed Scoring Cards and randomly place one from each deck underneath the Edict cards. Remove all the enemy Ambush Cards and shuffle one into the main deck of Explore Cards. Set the Season Cards in order: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Each player will receive one Map Sheet and a pencil. The game may now begin!
Each Season Card will feature a time threshold number that when met or exceeded will end the season. This corresponds to the time markings on each Explore Card drawn from the deck. For example, Spring allows 8 measures of time before it will switch to Summer. Explore Cards will usually show from 0-2 time measures on it, so seasons could change after four or more cards. At the start of each season, the player will flip an Explore Card to reveal which type of map element is requested and of which shape. The map elements are Forest, Farm, Water, Village, Mountain, and Monster. The shapes shown on the cards are reminiscent of Tetris-style shapes and also some others as well.
Once a card has been revealed, the player now will draw on their sheet the shape (or one of the shapes if more than one are shown) and fill it in with the matching symbol for map element type. If during this phase of the round the player surrounds the four sides of a pre-printed Mountain square they will score one coin and mark it at the bottom of their Map Sheet.
Should a Ruins card be revealed the player will flip another card to reveal the next card in line. Whatever shape and element is shown on the card AFTER the Ruins card will be used, with a twist. The shape shown on this card will now be required to encompass one of the pre-printed Ruins squares on the Map Sheet. If there are no legal spaces to place these shapes (or any shape on future cards) the player will be allowed to place a single 1×1 square on their Map Sheet anywhere they wish.
Should an enemy Ambush card be revealed the player will check which corner of the map the ambush takes place and will draw the provided monster shape in the closest area to the corner as possible. These are awarded negative points at the end of the seasons and can make large impacts on final scores.
After the elements have been drawn on the Map Sheet the player will check if the season ends. The season will end if the total number of revealed cards’ time measures equal or exceed the time printed on the Season Card (again, for example, Spring lasts 8 time). If not, then the player resumes another card reveal. If the time threshold has been met or exceeded then the player will score for the season by referencing the Scoring Cards that were placed under the Edicts at setup. For Spring the player scores Edict Cards A and B. Mark the score in the space provided at the bottom of the Scoring Sheet and flip the Season Card to the next season to begin a new round.
Play continues in this fashion until all four seasons have been played. At the end of the fourth season the game ends and the player will tally up their score to compare against the queen’s title matrix at the back of the rulebook. Not to brag, but my first game scored over 30 points, so I began this journey as a Legendary Cartographer.
Components. This game is 100 double-sided Map Sheets, four golf pencils, and a bunch of cards. The sheets and pencils are just fine, and the cards are good quality. What I really enjoy about the components is that this is “A Roll Player Tale,” meaning that many of the components and art hearken back to the original Roll Player game. As I love Roll Player’s art style, I also love that of Cartographers. There isn’t a ton of art in the game, more of graphic design, the art that IS provided is stellar Roll Player fare. I have no complaints about the components here except my wife thinks the pencil erasers could be better.
I skipped backing this one on Kickstarter and have only recently come to acquire it. I am definitely kicking myself in the rear for that decision because this is an excellent game. Obviously, anything that is enjoyable solo AND multiplayer is a huge boon (my wife scored it a 5!), and being able to play it multiple times in a row is a benefit as well.
We both love the decision-making in Cartographers, and when we first played together I had to shield my map sheet from my wife because she was copying! SHE was copying ME! She ended up handing me my booty in that game (of course) but we both had a great time plotting out our map elements. Determining where and which direction a shape should be placed can certainly be frustrating, but seeing your well-laid plans come to life is very rewarding. I am definitely seeing myself needing to download and print off more map sheets in the future because I have a feeling I am going to be playing the mess out of this one.
If you are looking for something special for your collection, check out Cartographers. If you already enjoy Roll Player, this will feel homey to you while offering a completely different style of game. My wife and I love it, and I am not sure I know anyone who would turn their nose up at it. Once we get into the Post-COVID era I plan to play this all the time at game nights.
Cartographers is a flip-and-write style game where players are competing to gain the queen’s favor and become the royal cartographer. While the main game focuses on finishing with a greater score than your opponent(s) the solo game is more relaxed. The solo player will be competing against their previous scores and comparing against the queen’s title matrix. Each game will be played over four seasons (rounds) and once the year is over the winner or title is claimed. Can you score 30 or more points to become a “Legendary Cartographer?”
To setup, lay out the Queen’s Edict cards that show A, B, C, and D. Shuffle each small deck of like-backed Scoring Cards and randomly place one from each deck underneath the Edict cards. Remove all the enemy Ambush Cards and shuffle one into the main deck of Explore Cards. Set the Season Cards in order: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Each player will receive one Map Sheet and a pencil. The game may now begin!
Each Season Card will feature a time threshold number that when met or exceeded will end the season. This corresponds to the time markings on each Explore Card drawn from the deck. For example, Spring allows 8 measures of time before it will switch to Summer. Explore Cards will usually show from 0-2 time measures on it, so seasons could change after four or more cards. At the start of each season, the player will flip an Explore Card to reveal which type of map element is requested and of which shape. The map elements are Forest, Farm, Water, Village, Mountain, and Monster. The shapes shown on the cards are reminiscent of Tetris-style shapes and also some others as well.
Once a card has been revealed, the player now will draw on their sheet the shape (or one of the shapes if more than one are shown) and fill it in with the matching symbol for map element type. If during this phase of the round the player surrounds the four sides of a pre-printed Mountain square they will score one coin and mark it at the bottom of their Map Sheet.
Should a Ruins card be revealed the player will flip another card to reveal the next card in line. Whatever shape and element is shown on the card AFTER the Ruins card will be used, with a twist. The shape shown on this card will now be required to encompass one of the pre-printed Ruins squares on the Map Sheet. If there are no legal spaces to place these shapes (or any shape on future cards) the player will be allowed to place a single 1×1 square on their Map Sheet anywhere they wish.
Should an enemy Ambush card be revealed the player will check which corner of the map the ambush takes place and will draw the provided monster shape in the closest area to the corner as possible. These are awarded negative points at the end of the seasons and can make large impacts on final scores.
After the elements have been drawn on the Map Sheet the player will check if the season ends. The season will end if the total number of revealed cards’ time measures equal or exceed the time printed on the Season Card (again, for example, Spring lasts 8 time). If not, then the player resumes another card reveal. If the time threshold has been met or exceeded then the player will score for the season by referencing the Scoring Cards that were placed under the Edicts at setup. For Spring the player scores Edict Cards A and B. Mark the score in the space provided at the bottom of the Scoring Sheet and flip the Season Card to the next season to begin a new round.
Play continues in this fashion until all four seasons have been played. At the end of the fourth season the game ends and the player will tally up their score to compare against the queen’s title matrix at the back of the rulebook. Not to brag, but my first game scored over 30 points, so I began this journey as a Legendary Cartographer.
Components. This game is 100 double-sided Map Sheets, four golf pencils, and a bunch of cards. The sheets and pencils are just fine, and the cards are good quality. What I really enjoy about the components is that this is “A Roll Player Tale,” meaning that many of the components and art hearken back to the original Roll Player game. As I love Roll Player’s art style, I also love that of Cartographers. There isn’t a ton of art in the game, more of graphic design, the art that IS provided is stellar Roll Player fare. I have no complaints about the components here except my wife thinks the pencil erasers could be better.
I skipped backing this one on Kickstarter and have only recently come to acquire it. I am definitely kicking myself in the rear for that decision because this is an excellent game. Obviously, anything that is enjoyable solo AND multiplayer is a huge boon (my wife scored it a 5!), and being able to play it multiple times in a row is a benefit as well.
We both love the decision-making in Cartographers, and when we first played together I had to shield my map sheet from my wife because she was copying! SHE was copying ME! She ended up handing me my booty in that game (of course) but we both had a great time plotting out our map elements. Determining where and which direction a shape should be placed can certainly be frustrating, but seeing your well-laid plans come to life is very rewarding. I am definitely seeing myself needing to download and print off more map sheets in the future because I have a feeling I am going to be playing the mess out of this one.
If you are looking for something special for your collection, check out Cartographers. If you already enjoy Roll Player, this will feel homey to you while offering a completely different style of game. My wife and I love it, and I am not sure I know anyone who would turn their nose up at it. Once we get into the Post-COVID era I plan to play this all the time at game nights.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Citadels in Tabletop Games
Aug 13, 2021
It has been documented several times that I, Travis Lopez, would be a horrible city planner. So why do I keep playing these games that require me to build city buildings and components and why do I enjoy them so much? Well, truth be told, this is a game that I had traded for years ago, got rid of, missed terribly, and repurchased. However, this is the newer version that includes a lot more in the box. Does it mean that the game is better? More stuff means better game, right?
In Citadels players will be donning the mantle of potential Master Builders and will need to build the greatest buildings within the city and manipulate the powers of special people within its walls. The game ends when a player has built their seventh district building. The player with the most VP at this time will be crowned Master Builder and winner of Citadels!
To setup, decide which eight characters will be used in the game, gather their cards and tokens, and place their tokens in ascending order on the table. This is to remind all players which characters (and their rank) is in play. Assemble the district (building) cards per the rules and shuffle the deck. Deal each player four of these district cards along with two gold coins. The eldest player will begin the game as the current First Player (complete with crown mini) and will begin the first phase of the first round.
Citadels is played over several rounds, each with two phases played within. The first phase is the Selection Phase, where the current First Player takes the character cards, shuffles them, adds zero to two cards (dependent upon number of players) face-up on the table and one card face-down. They then choose from the cards remaining in hand which character’s powers they would like to enact for the turn. The cards are passed to the next player in line who will do the same, and so on around the table.
Once all players have chosen their character card, the Turn Phase can begin. The current First Player (the one with the crown) will announce the characters in rank order, with the lowest character going first. In a typical game using only original base characters, this is “1: Assassin.” Whomever chose the Assassin card will flip over their character card, perform its special power, and then continue with their turn. In this case, the Assassin’s special power is to announce the name of a CHARACTER to assassinate. NOTE: This does NOT mean the name of the PLAYER. So the Assassin could choose to assassinate the King character, not the Travis player. After the character has used their power, the player can continue with the rest of their turn, though some character powers may be used at any time during the player’s turn.
After the character power is used, the player will gather resources in the form of two gold coins from the bank or by drawing two district cards from the deck and choosing one to keep in hand. After this choice, the player may then build one district in their play area if they wish and if they can afford to do so. Once complete, the crowned First Player will call out the next character rank (2: Thief in our example) who will continue their turn in the same way. The game continues in this fashion until a player has built their seventh district. The round continues until all players have had an equal amount of turns. Players then count VP on district cards and bonuses per the rulebook. The player with the most VP at the end of the game is crowned the Master Builder and winner of Citadels!
Components. I have to say that I enjoyed the components in the older version of Citadels I used to have just fine. I had sleeved all my cards, and the gold coins were nice back in the day. This version, however, includes many more components and each one is higher quality than the previous version’s. The art on the cards has been updated and is much much nicer now as well. The addition of the crown mini, the character tokens, and other components not mentioned here merely increases my love for Citadels. Windrider has knocked it out of the park with this version. And that’s saying nothing about all the additional characters now included in the game! Oh boy, so much variability!
Along with that variability is the customization of the game. You can play with one of the six pre-constructed provided suggestions in the rulebook or create your own combination of different characters. With three versions of each rank, many possibilities are… possible.
I do love Citadels, and with the right group can be a show-stopper all on its own. Some players may get a little offended or sassy because there is a fair amount of Take That in Citadels with the character interactions, so if playing with people who don’t understand the difference between a game and real life, I would prep them appropriately. I love being able to outwit my opponents by drafting certain characters they didn’t think I would want. Keeping them all on their toes during the game is sneaky fun.
So for me, with the amount of replayability, high quality and excellent components, and cutthroat gameplay I simply adore Citadels. I can pull it out with different groups and have different play experiences and try to tailor the character offering to the strengths of my players, or simply use one listed in the back of the rulebook. Purple Phoenix Games gives Citadels an underhanded, yet scholarly 21 / 24. It’s a stunning, magical, wonderful game and one of Bruno Faidutti’s best ever! Surely this is already in your collection, right? If not, make it so.
In Citadels players will be donning the mantle of potential Master Builders and will need to build the greatest buildings within the city and manipulate the powers of special people within its walls. The game ends when a player has built their seventh district building. The player with the most VP at this time will be crowned Master Builder and winner of Citadels!
To setup, decide which eight characters will be used in the game, gather their cards and tokens, and place their tokens in ascending order on the table. This is to remind all players which characters (and their rank) is in play. Assemble the district (building) cards per the rules and shuffle the deck. Deal each player four of these district cards along with two gold coins. The eldest player will begin the game as the current First Player (complete with crown mini) and will begin the first phase of the first round.
Citadels is played over several rounds, each with two phases played within. The first phase is the Selection Phase, where the current First Player takes the character cards, shuffles them, adds zero to two cards (dependent upon number of players) face-up on the table and one card face-down. They then choose from the cards remaining in hand which character’s powers they would like to enact for the turn. The cards are passed to the next player in line who will do the same, and so on around the table.
Once all players have chosen their character card, the Turn Phase can begin. The current First Player (the one with the crown) will announce the characters in rank order, with the lowest character going first. In a typical game using only original base characters, this is “1: Assassin.” Whomever chose the Assassin card will flip over their character card, perform its special power, and then continue with their turn. In this case, the Assassin’s special power is to announce the name of a CHARACTER to assassinate. NOTE: This does NOT mean the name of the PLAYER. So the Assassin could choose to assassinate the King character, not the Travis player. After the character has used their power, the player can continue with the rest of their turn, though some character powers may be used at any time during the player’s turn.
After the character power is used, the player will gather resources in the form of two gold coins from the bank or by drawing two district cards from the deck and choosing one to keep in hand. After this choice, the player may then build one district in their play area if they wish and if they can afford to do so. Once complete, the crowned First Player will call out the next character rank (2: Thief in our example) who will continue their turn in the same way. The game continues in this fashion until a player has built their seventh district. The round continues until all players have had an equal amount of turns. Players then count VP on district cards and bonuses per the rulebook. The player with the most VP at the end of the game is crowned the Master Builder and winner of Citadels!
Components. I have to say that I enjoyed the components in the older version of Citadels I used to have just fine. I had sleeved all my cards, and the gold coins were nice back in the day. This version, however, includes many more components and each one is higher quality than the previous version’s. The art on the cards has been updated and is much much nicer now as well. The addition of the crown mini, the character tokens, and other components not mentioned here merely increases my love for Citadels. Windrider has knocked it out of the park with this version. And that’s saying nothing about all the additional characters now included in the game! Oh boy, so much variability!
Along with that variability is the customization of the game. You can play with one of the six pre-constructed provided suggestions in the rulebook or create your own combination of different characters. With three versions of each rank, many possibilities are… possible.
I do love Citadels, and with the right group can be a show-stopper all on its own. Some players may get a little offended or sassy because there is a fair amount of Take That in Citadels with the character interactions, so if playing with people who don’t understand the difference between a game and real life, I would prep them appropriately. I love being able to outwit my opponents by drafting certain characters they didn’t think I would want. Keeping them all on their toes during the game is sneaky fun.
So for me, with the amount of replayability, high quality and excellent components, and cutthroat gameplay I simply adore Citadels. I can pull it out with different groups and have different play experiences and try to tailor the character offering to the strengths of my players, or simply use one listed in the back of the rulebook. Purple Phoenix Games gives Citadels an underhanded, yet scholarly 21 / 24. It’s a stunning, magical, wonderful game and one of Bruno Faidutti’s best ever! Surely this is already in your collection, right? If not, make it so.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Destinies in Tabletop Games
Jan 29, 2022
I can recall so many instances of my board game purchases being based on either the designer, artist, or publisher. Surely I am not alone here. Josh will probably always be a Stonemaier Games fanboy. Laura has aligned herself with Daily Magic Games and Button Shy Games. While I am a big fan of the Valeriaverse, I think my current preferences put me on teams Weird Giraffe Games, Blue Orange Games, and Lucky Duck Games. Speaking of the latter, LDG have come through with some seriously excellent hybrid app-driven games that just wow me every single time. I was definitely a hybrid game naysayer when the first Chronicles of Crime came out, but the more I play them, the more I appreciate the accomplishments. Destinies has now come along to me and it has been some time since I have been this jazzed to play a game over and over and over and over.
Destinies is a hybrid app-driven adventure board game for one to three players. In it, players will be choosing their characters and how to play them, along with the path of their individual destinies across several campaign scenarios. When playing multiplayer, the player who completes their destiny first will win. When playing solo (which is also amazing), the player wins when they successfully complete their destiny.
DISCLAIMER: We are using the Kickstarter version of the game. We do have the expansions from the KS campaign, but will not be using those for this review. Also, we do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rule book, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy from the publisher directly or from your FLGS. -T
Usually I list out the steps to setup a game in this section, but there are so many little items and steps to be taken that I will simply show you, the reader, how a scenario may look once setup. The app will instruct players how to create their character’s stats and which map tiles should be placed out initially. Typically, though, each player will receive a player board, Destiny card (with their character headshot on one side and their Destiny choices on back), two main dice, three effort dice, and one gold coin. Once setup, the app will drive the story along and the players will be rolling dice and making choices in order to win the game or scenario.
Each player will be given their Destiny card with two distinct Destiny paths on the backside. These paths correlate with the current scenario, and the player will be able to choose one of the two given paths to help move their games forward. However, sometimes players will switch their Destiny mid-game due to several factors including successes on previous tasks or current inventory. The only way to win the game is to complete a Destiny, so staying on track is paramount in this open sandbox game – it is incredibly easy to become sidetracked and lose sight of specific tasks to be performed.
Each turn a player may move to a new tile, to previously-explored tiles, or points of interest on specific map tiles. These points of interest could be unique characters to be visited, or more general spaces on the tile represented by tokens. Sometimes visiting a POI (point of interest) will have the player rolling dice to complete tests, initiating trade with the POI NPC, revealing information about their distinct Destiny, or even issuing side quests. Players take their chances by visiting a POI because only one may be visited on a turn. Once a player has moved and visited a POI, their turn is over and the next player’s turn begins.
The most interesting aspect of this game is the experience tracker and results of tests. Player stats are divided between Intelligence, Dexterity, and Power (Strength for my D&D readers). These stats are constantly in flux due to tests and experience, and levels range from 1-12+ on the player board. A player will roll both main dice and any effort dice they wish on each test, and the total result is compared to the discs present on the main player board. One success is counted for each disc’s value equal to or below the rolled result. For example, if the roll is a 6, and the player has a disc on 3 and another on 6 the player counts two successes. Effort dice add values to the rolled result, and one side of these dice depict a star, which counts as one success. Throughout the game players will be moving their skill marker tokens (discs) up and down the tracks. Sometimes this is due to a test being failed or succeeded, but sometimes experience tokens are earned. A player may improve their skill levels by two total values on the tracks for each experience token discarded. Players may choose which tracks, and may maximize their character’s skill or spread out the experience across multiple skills.
Play continues in this fashion of referencing the app for story and plot items, players working toward completing their Destinies, and adventuring across the land rolling tests and improving skills until one player finishes their Destiny and wins the game!
Components. As always, I am going to be honest here by stating I believe that Destinies packs the box with the best components I have seen in a game. The multi-layered insert is perfectly formed and well-thought out, all the cardboard tokens are super-thick, the dice are so fun to handle and roll, the cards and other components feature incredible artwork, and did I mention there’s about a thousand minis in this game? I am reluctant to even call some of these things minis as they are large and in charge for SURE. I have zero complaints or comments on the components present in Destinies. Lucky Duck knocks it out of the park once again. Incredible.
I actually backed this one on Kickstarter just because it comes from Lucky Duck Games. I had played Chronicles of Crime and loved it, and just wanted to try something different but using a similar system. Typically I don’t keep up with the comments and updates to a game I have backed because I enjoy being surprised by the product that arrives at my door. Destinies was certainly a surprise to me, and I have been kicking myself in the butt for not getting it to the table the very first day I received it.
Destinies is my favorite Lucky Duck Games title, and that is saying a ton, as I rave about every game of theirs I have played. I hope you all back me up here, and if you haven’t yet tried this one, I hope you visit your closest friend or board game cafe that owns it. The tutorial scenario is great, and the campaign scenarios have been awesome so far. Okay, yes, when I first played it with Laura, my wife made several comments about it being a 3 hour game, but once that first one is completed, the subsequent plays run much smoother.
What I love so much about this is how indefinitely expandable it is. Most of the components are multi-use (akin to all the character cards in the Chronicles of Crime games), and can be used in campaign after campaign. The drawbacks I see for this, though, is any sort of waning interest in it forcing designers to abandon plans to create more scenarios. Could a new scenario pack be an acceptable expansion versus a large expansion box with oodles of new components and minis? I think so, but I am no designer. Could the Millennium Series treatment be given to Destinies? Absolutely! This system does not need to be played in a medieval fantasy world. It could be molded to almost anything, and that gives me excited shivers over the future of this game.
If you are anything like me and have now embraced the hybrid gaming trend, I highly recommend Destinies. I plan to also review all the expansions in the near future, so do look out for those, but please do yourself a giant favor and pick up Destinies. The excellent storytelling, great components, and just amazing fun helps Purple Phoenix Games give this one a perfectly deserved 12 / 12, and a Golden Feather Award! I can’t stop thinking about it and how I would play it differently next time, and hopefully after I have played through the expansion material I will be able to restart from the very beginning with different characters and choices. It’s a sign of a great game when I can’t stop thinking about it, and I do believe Destinies currently is knocking at the door of my Top 10 Games of All Time. No, it’s there. It’s totally there. TOP 10 BABY!!
Destinies is a hybrid app-driven adventure board game for one to three players. In it, players will be choosing their characters and how to play them, along with the path of their individual destinies across several campaign scenarios. When playing multiplayer, the player who completes their destiny first will win. When playing solo (which is also amazing), the player wins when they successfully complete their destiny.
DISCLAIMER: We are using the Kickstarter version of the game. We do have the expansions from the KS campaign, but will not be using those for this review. Also, we do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rule book, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy from the publisher directly or from your FLGS. -T
Usually I list out the steps to setup a game in this section, but there are so many little items and steps to be taken that I will simply show you, the reader, how a scenario may look once setup. The app will instruct players how to create their character’s stats and which map tiles should be placed out initially. Typically, though, each player will receive a player board, Destiny card (with their character headshot on one side and their Destiny choices on back), two main dice, three effort dice, and one gold coin. Once setup, the app will drive the story along and the players will be rolling dice and making choices in order to win the game or scenario.
Each player will be given their Destiny card with two distinct Destiny paths on the backside. These paths correlate with the current scenario, and the player will be able to choose one of the two given paths to help move their games forward. However, sometimes players will switch their Destiny mid-game due to several factors including successes on previous tasks or current inventory. The only way to win the game is to complete a Destiny, so staying on track is paramount in this open sandbox game – it is incredibly easy to become sidetracked and lose sight of specific tasks to be performed.
Each turn a player may move to a new tile, to previously-explored tiles, or points of interest on specific map tiles. These points of interest could be unique characters to be visited, or more general spaces on the tile represented by tokens. Sometimes visiting a POI (point of interest) will have the player rolling dice to complete tests, initiating trade with the POI NPC, revealing information about their distinct Destiny, or even issuing side quests. Players take their chances by visiting a POI because only one may be visited on a turn. Once a player has moved and visited a POI, their turn is over and the next player’s turn begins.
The most interesting aspect of this game is the experience tracker and results of tests. Player stats are divided between Intelligence, Dexterity, and Power (Strength for my D&D readers). These stats are constantly in flux due to tests and experience, and levels range from 1-12+ on the player board. A player will roll both main dice and any effort dice they wish on each test, and the total result is compared to the discs present on the main player board. One success is counted for each disc’s value equal to or below the rolled result. For example, if the roll is a 6, and the player has a disc on 3 and another on 6 the player counts two successes. Effort dice add values to the rolled result, and one side of these dice depict a star, which counts as one success. Throughout the game players will be moving their skill marker tokens (discs) up and down the tracks. Sometimes this is due to a test being failed or succeeded, but sometimes experience tokens are earned. A player may improve their skill levels by two total values on the tracks for each experience token discarded. Players may choose which tracks, and may maximize their character’s skill or spread out the experience across multiple skills.
Play continues in this fashion of referencing the app for story and plot items, players working toward completing their Destinies, and adventuring across the land rolling tests and improving skills until one player finishes their Destiny and wins the game!
Components. As always, I am going to be honest here by stating I believe that Destinies packs the box with the best components I have seen in a game. The multi-layered insert is perfectly formed and well-thought out, all the cardboard tokens are super-thick, the dice are so fun to handle and roll, the cards and other components feature incredible artwork, and did I mention there’s about a thousand minis in this game? I am reluctant to even call some of these things minis as they are large and in charge for SURE. I have zero complaints or comments on the components present in Destinies. Lucky Duck knocks it out of the park once again. Incredible.
I actually backed this one on Kickstarter just because it comes from Lucky Duck Games. I had played Chronicles of Crime and loved it, and just wanted to try something different but using a similar system. Typically I don’t keep up with the comments and updates to a game I have backed because I enjoy being surprised by the product that arrives at my door. Destinies was certainly a surprise to me, and I have been kicking myself in the butt for not getting it to the table the very first day I received it.
Destinies is my favorite Lucky Duck Games title, and that is saying a ton, as I rave about every game of theirs I have played. I hope you all back me up here, and if you haven’t yet tried this one, I hope you visit your closest friend or board game cafe that owns it. The tutorial scenario is great, and the campaign scenarios have been awesome so far. Okay, yes, when I first played it with Laura, my wife made several comments about it being a 3 hour game, but once that first one is completed, the subsequent plays run much smoother.
What I love so much about this is how indefinitely expandable it is. Most of the components are multi-use (akin to all the character cards in the Chronicles of Crime games), and can be used in campaign after campaign. The drawbacks I see for this, though, is any sort of waning interest in it forcing designers to abandon plans to create more scenarios. Could a new scenario pack be an acceptable expansion versus a large expansion box with oodles of new components and minis? I think so, but I am no designer. Could the Millennium Series treatment be given to Destinies? Absolutely! This system does not need to be played in a medieval fantasy world. It could be molded to almost anything, and that gives me excited shivers over the future of this game.
If you are anything like me and have now embraced the hybrid gaming trend, I highly recommend Destinies. I plan to also review all the expansions in the near future, so do look out for those, but please do yourself a giant favor and pick up Destinies. The excellent storytelling, great components, and just amazing fun helps Purple Phoenix Games give this one a perfectly deserved 12 / 12, and a Golden Feather Award! I can’t stop thinking about it and how I would play it differently next time, and hopefully after I have played through the expansion material I will be able to restart from the very beginning with different characters and choices. It’s a sign of a great game when I can’t stop thinking about it, and I do believe Destinies currently is knocking at the door of my Top 10 Games of All Time. No, it’s there. It’s totally there. TOP 10 BABY!!
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Game Of Thrones - Season 6 in TV
Jul 19, 2019
Hold the Goddam Door
Contains spoilers, click to show
Season 6 of Game of thrones is another incredible display of television spinning so many plates.
The season kick starts with the immediate fallout of Jon Snows death at the end of season 5. As many predicted, it doesn't take long for his death to be reversed, thanks to Melisandre, freeing Jon of his duty to the Nights Watch, as he marches off to free Winterfell from the clutches of Ramsay Bolton.
Talking of Ramsay, he continues to show how much of a wretch he truly is (his worst point would be feeding his own infant brother to rabid dogs.)
In King's Landing, the High Sparrow continues to manipulate the crown, and makes them seem powerless whilst doing so, as fanatic religion takes hold of the capital.
Danaerys is still just being Danaerys. The writers continue to subtly hint at her being similar to her mad father before her, and I usually love the slow burn of Game of Thrones, but her story still continues to sort of plod along.
Another storyline that became a bit tiresome this season was Arya training in Bravos. When I look back on GoT, that storyline seems to stick out as the one I found most trying, even if it did result in the much awaited death of Merryn Trant.
Beyond the wall, Bran is still firmly stuck in a tree, but we see some great glimpses into the past history of Westeros in the process - the Tower of Joy scene being a highlight. This infamously leads to the 'Hold the Door' which pretty much tore everyone's hearts in two :(
It's all just very good, and the season ends on a double whammy of two of the best episodes this show ever produced.
Firstly, the Battle of the Bastards is incredible, and surpasses many Hollywood movies in terms of on screen battles. It's a fantastic hour of television (Justice for Rikkon)
And then the last episode - just wow. The opening 15 minutes holds little dialogue, and an incredible piece of score (Ramin Djawadi take a bow), as Cersei ruthlessly and quickly takes her revenge on many who have wrong her, in one fell swoop, killing off a good handful of characters in seconds - GoT was never a show to do things by halves.
The season ends with Cersei as queen, and Danaerys (finally!) crossing the sea to Westeros.
It's all really thrilling and top tier TV.
The season kick starts with the immediate fallout of Jon Snows death at the end of season 5. As many predicted, it doesn't take long for his death to be reversed, thanks to Melisandre, freeing Jon of his duty to the Nights Watch, as he marches off to free Winterfell from the clutches of Ramsay Bolton.
Talking of Ramsay, he continues to show how much of a wretch he truly is (his worst point would be feeding his own infant brother to rabid dogs.)
In King's Landing, the High Sparrow continues to manipulate the crown, and makes them seem powerless whilst doing so, as fanatic religion takes hold of the capital.
Danaerys is still just being Danaerys. The writers continue to subtly hint at her being similar to her mad father before her, and I usually love the slow burn of Game of Thrones, but her story still continues to sort of plod along.
Another storyline that became a bit tiresome this season was Arya training in Bravos. When I look back on GoT, that storyline seems to stick out as the one I found most trying, even if it did result in the much awaited death of Merryn Trant.
Beyond the wall, Bran is still firmly stuck in a tree, but we see some great glimpses into the past history of Westeros in the process - the Tower of Joy scene being a highlight. This infamously leads to the 'Hold the Door' which pretty much tore everyone's hearts in two :(
It's all just very good, and the season ends on a double whammy of two of the best episodes this show ever produced.
Firstly, the Battle of the Bastards is incredible, and surpasses many Hollywood movies in terms of on screen battles. It's a fantastic hour of television (Justice for Rikkon)
And then the last episode - just wow. The opening 15 minutes holds little dialogue, and an incredible piece of score (Ramin Djawadi take a bow), as Cersei ruthlessly and quickly takes her revenge on many who have wrong her, in one fell swoop, killing off a good handful of characters in seconds - GoT was never a show to do things by halves.
The season ends with Cersei as queen, and Danaerys (finally!) crossing the sea to Westeros.
It's all really thrilling and top tier TV.
My Dolphin Show
Games and Entertainment
App
- YOUR FAVORITE DOLPHIN GAME JUST GOT EVEN BETTER! - Now’s your chance to become a dolphin...
Baseball Beyond Our Borders: An International Pastime
George Gmelch and Daniel A. Nathan
Book
Baseball Beyond Our Borders celebrates the globalization of the game while highlighting the...