Board games anyone?

[drock]

I kind of have a geeky but fun board game night with my friends and we've been playing games such as:

Settlers of Catan (we play this entirely too much but incredibly fun)
Bang
Twilight Imperium (wtf up to 12 hour game)
Carcassonne
Arkham Horror
Puerto Rico
Ticket to Ride

What does everyone play? and any other recommendations?

[Princess Marzipan]

I'm sure there's a thread for this, but I can't be arsed to go looking.

Board games? You only need one.

Mutant Chronicles: Siege of the Citadel.

[telcontar42]

Junta
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Vinci
Descent
Crimson Skies
Tenjo

[SecondTalon]

I'm sure there's a thread for this, but I can't be arsed to go looking.

There's one discussing why people play board games, the other one was mashed in to Recommend Me A Game, which I'm considering doing to this one.

[drock]

I've gotta check out mutant chronicles. How many players can play it?

I'm sure there's a thread for this, but I can't be arsed to go looking.

There's one discussing why people play board games, the other one was mashed in to Recommend Me A Game, which I'm considering doing to this one.

The reason why I didn't post in that "Recommend Me A Game" was because it's hard to talk about board games when people are talking about "GUITAR HERO 3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" and such. The video game posts are just more overwhelming.

Junta
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Vinci
Descent
Crimson Skies
Tenjo

Which ones do you recommend most?

[CogDissident]

Arkham Horror
Descent: Journeys into the Dark (specifically road-to-legends, which makes a good campaign-game for friends)

[BomanTheBear]

I know this is an amateur suggestion, but I recommend getting the Puerto Rico edition of monopoly, dress in character, and act like ganglords, complete with hostile takeovers and backroom deals. Fun as hell.

[drock]

Arkham Horror
Descent: Journeys into the Dark (specifically road-to-legends, which makes a good campaign-game for friends)

Hmm I've played arkham and it's awesome, but I need to check out this Descent game. Is it more of a D&Dish game?

I know this is an amateur suggestion, but I recommend getting the Puerto Rico edition of monopoly, dress in character, and act like ganglords, complete with hostile takeovers and backroom deals. Fun as hell.

Hahaha nice! All that talk about ganglords, dressing up and backroom deals makes me want to play Illuminati again. haha

[CogDissident]

Descent is referred to by me and my friends as "D&D: The board game". It is as close as you could come to making D&D a board game, in the most literal sense.

Good thing about it though, the DM is actually considered a player, and heavily encouraged to kill the heroes at all times.

[BomanTheBear]

Wait, what's Illuminati?

[CogDissident]

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/859

[pseudoidiot]

Descent is referred to by me and my friends as "D&D: The board game". It is as close as you could come to making D&D a board game, in the most literal sense.

Good thing about it though, the DM is actually considered a player, and heavily encouraged to kill the heroes at all times.

Except, you know, for the actual D&D board game.

My first thought when playing Descent was that it was like Heroquest (the boardgame), only better (although I still pull out my old Heroquest board game every onw and again). I'm not really sure why people would refer to it as D&D the board game, though. Because it's fantasy? Because there's an overlord (GM) vs. the other players? That's similar to a lot of RPG's.

But, anyhow, Descent is a lot of fun. I've only got one of the expansions, though, and I haven't played it in ages, but my wife and I used to pull it out every so often and go through a level or two. I've only got to play with a full party a couple times, though.

Other fun board games:
The D&D board game (as mentioned above). It's not as deep as some other games, but it's still a lot of fun. It sets up super-quick and plays quick, so it makes a good pick-up game.
Also Heroquest (as mentioned above) if for nothing else than for the sake of nostalgia.
Squelf - recently picked this up on a whim and it's a load of fun. More of a party board game.
And as other people have already mentioned, Arkham Horror. But if you plan on getting all the expansions, I hope you have a huge table.
The Order of the Stick board game is also a lot of fun.

[telcontar42]

Junta
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Vinci
Descent
Crimson Skies
Tenjo

Which ones do you recommend most?

Can't really say. They are all very fun. I guess it depends on what kind of game you are looking for.

Betrayal is the least strategic of these, so if you are looking for a more casual, fun game I would recommend that the most.
Junta is also a lighter game, but makes for some good negotiation and deception between players.
Vinci is kind of like risk but a lot more interesting and fun and without the random chance of dice rolling.
Crimson skies is a great game with dogfighting planes which sort of plays like a miniatures game, except each player only has the one plane.
Descent is a rpg, sort of D&D light style board game, very similar to hero quest if your familiar with that. It takes a while to play, usually 6-8 hours.
Tenjo is sort of like risk or axis and allies, but set in feudal japan and more abstract. It takes a very long time to play, but you get to trade your family members for strategic gain so its totally worth it.

It's hard to get across what the games are like briefly, so if your interested I can describe any of these in greater detail.

[Cyrion]

Risk, anyone?

It's sad, I never really had the chance to play board games, because my friends weren't interested. I know someone who played Settlers of Catan, but I never tried.

I'm good at Monopoly and Scrabble too.

[pseudoidiot]

Risk, anyone?

I don't think I could ever play Risk after trying Axis & Allies. It felt kind of like a Risk 2.0 to me.

[drock]

Descent is referred to by me and my friends as "D&D: The board game". It is as close as you could come to making D&D a board game, in the most literal sense.

Good thing about it though, the DM is actually considered a player, and heavily encouraged to kill the heroes at all times.

Ooo that sounds pretty cool actually. I don't usually like D&D because it drags on and people talk ooc way too much and it never gets anywhere. I think I'll check this game out. Thanks!

Wait, what's Illuminati?

Basically, every player plays as a certain (fictitious? ) international conspiracy such as Discordian Society, Bavarian Illuminati, etc. You pick certain cards that reflect certain lesser groups such as "BIG MEDIA" and "Boy Sprouts". Certain
conspiracies have different objectives. Stealing from the bank is allowed in the game as long as you don't get caught. Tip: Always get orbital mind control lasers.

Blah blah, it's pretty fun. =)

Tenjo is sort of like risk or axis and allies, but set in feudal japan and more abstract. It takes a very long time to play, but you get to trade your family members for strategic gain so its totally worth it.

Golly Gosh Darn Gee Wiz sounds like I've found a winner. Thanks!

[drock]

Risk, anyone?

It's sad, I never really had the chance to play board games, because my friends weren't interested. I know someone who played Settlers of Catan, but I never tried.

I'm good at Monopoly and Scrabble too.

Dude, you should totally try settlers of catan. It's a pretty simple game which can get kind of addicting. >_> The classics are great though...like scrabble, spades, and big 2.

and pseudoidiot, definitely. I haven't played the Axis and Allies expansions though. Any good?

[pseudoidiot]

and pseudoidiot, definitely. I haven't played the Axis and Allies expansions though. Any good?

Well, to be honest I haven't actually played the physical version of it. A friend was trying to get me interested in it and he had the PC game of it that he let me borrow. I played through it a few times versus the computer, but then never got a chance to actually play it with anyone. I enjoyed, though, but in general I'm not much into the war strategy-type games.

[telcontar42]

I haven't played the Axis and Allies expansions though. Any good?

I've played Axis and Allies Europe and it's a pretty fun game. Instead there being Japan, they just make Germany incredibly powerful. They bring in some cool economic warfare where Germany can attack shipping routes in the Atlantic and cut off the allies oil supply in the middle east.

[Allium Cepa]

I'm a big fan of Parcheesi, which is like an Indian version of Sorry, but better. I'm sure it was actually invented first, but I don't feel like looking it up. Another classic one I love is Stratego, I used to play that one with my dad all the time.

[corkysru]

My friends and I have been playing Descent since it came out. I have all the expansions including Road To Legend. In fact we are about 2 nights of play away from the final battle in RTL. I find it quite enjoyable. I also still play heroquest sometimes. My friends and I refer to Descent as D&D with out the boring role-playing part. i know many people might disagree but i find it an amusing description.

[segmentation fault]

Risk, anyone?

risk is only fun if you are feeling masochistic at 1 am while drinking and there is nothing better to do.

anyway, this:

[SecondTalon]

Risk, anyone?

risk is only fun if you are feeling masochistic at 1 am while drinking and there is nothing better to do.

After playing the 2210 version, I'm beginning to think that Original Risk is a perfectly wonderful game when you slap a time limit on it - that is, five, ten rounds or whatever, and it's over.

[Mr. Beck]

One of my favorite games is Attack!
It's sort of like Risk++. There is a wide variety of possible actions, but you're only allowed 3 per turn. Production is based upon land ownership, but certain resources are associated with each plot rather than the "own-a-continent" model. One nice thing is that each player only starts with four plots, and they must control neutral nations though either might or propaganda.

It's amazing how deep strategy can develop from a simple rule set. Combat is very game-theory-esque, with deployment of units requiring careful consideration. Is it better to build three tanks, or two planes? Is artillery occasionally worth the additional three cost over infantry, even though their raw combat ability is the same? Should I move few aircraft Carriers so the landing force can't cross the Sea of Japan, or would it be better to gain a beachhead in America?

My favorite part of the game is the Capitol City mechanic. Each player gets a Capitol, which grants a big production bonus to whoever controls it. This leads to such fun as suicide forces to storm the castle, or hideous back-stabbage between allies.

Give it a go!

[musashi1600]

Out of curiosity, does anyone here play Axis & Allies: Naval Miniatures? It happens to be the only board game I own at the moment. >_>

[Flesh_Of_The_Fallen_Angel]

Chess? Or is that too nerdy . . . or not nerdy enough?

EDIT: If you chose "not nerdy enough" then you should try the Lord Of The Rings chess set. It's awesome!

[Okita]

I saw Bang listed here so I'm assuming this sort of includes card games that are played out on a board?

Anyway, Arkham Horror I think is quite badass when you understand all the rules. I've been playing it every other Sunday or so for the past month or two.

Mag Blast is a great game. Technically it's a card game but it sort of plays like a board game -ish? Maybe not. Still is fun though.

The one time I tried to play Mutant Chronicles, someone tried to explain the rules to me which I couldn't get in the slightest and we eventually sort of gave up for reasons that have nothing to do with the game itself. But it seemed interesting. The backstory is nice anyway.

Btw, other fun card/board games = Guillotine and of course anything Munchkin or Fluxx. Specially Zombie Flux and Munchkin Cthulhu.

[Kaneda]

I love Descent, I'm trying to finally get around to trying out the road to Legend expansion, which looks awesome.

Also Shadows over Camelot is a great game, Co-op like Arkham Horror but with a potential traitor in the mix.
Settlers of Catan is another favorite, with the Cities and Knights expansion when everyone knows how to play.
Inkognito is a fairly quick, fun game. kind of a cluedo-esque play mechanic but a bit more complex.
Agricola is one I want to get hold of as my friends got it recently and its been really good on the couple of times I played it.

[towerofturtles]

Hey there. Here are my quick thoughts after looking through this thread.

Puerto Rico - you're onto a total winner there. Man, it's endlessly tactical and has great variation.
Arkham Horror - Ouch, you better be prepared to spend, like, A WHOLE NIGHT playing this. Found it a bit slow myself. Nice theme though. Cthulu books are great too if you haven't read them.
Carcassonne - Find it gets a bit boring, a bit simple. Found the tile laying action more fun in Tigris & Euphrates.
Junta - I've played this once. Pretty fun - involves a lot of Diplomacy-style backstabbing. Potential to make your friends cry.
Illuminati - Found it had a great theme; didn't find the gameplay too good. Also didn't like having to buy more and more cards (MTG style)

Anyway, my recommendations for games you might want to try (ie games I'm enjoying most right now that you haven't mentioned here)

Race for the Galaxy: Quick, tactical card game, good for 2-4 players and... it's in space! Not much player interaction though.
Chinatown or Traders of Genoa - Nice bidding/deal making games. Good for talking a lot to your gaming pals, you can make up for the silence that hangs over race for the galaxy.
Tigris and Euphrates - Fantastic tile laying game, lots of conflicts, heaps of decision making - v.fun.

Enjoy!

[Clumpy]

It's pretty casual, but I enjoy a good game of Munchkin (with its various expansions).
Bang!
Killer Bunnies
An awesome old game my dad used to have called Conquest
And there's always Catarn, Fluxx (though you might as well just be playing Killer Bunnies) and Skip-Bo. Frickin' Skip-Bo.

[Aradae]

From what I hear of the new version of risk it has a lot faster gameplay.

Instead of trying to take over the world you just need to have three "objectives" which include "capture 10 territories in 1 turn" or "control Europe"

Reinforcements also don't grow with each turn in. Instead it has a new system for reinforcing. Each territory card has 1 or 2 stars on it and you can hold however many cards in your hand as you desire. Your reinforcement amount is based on how many stars you turn in and it doesn't increase with every person's turn-in. Meaning that games that are very close to ending aren't suddenly extended another hour because someone turns in a set for reinforcements.

Though I haven't played it yet, from what I hear it lasts approximately 1-2 hours. Though if you are a fan of those long epic campaigns that last many sessions then it should still be easy to develop a couple house rules to extend the game such as changing the goal to world domination, having the reinforcement amounts increase by five with each turn in, etc.

[Dayman]

The original civilization is fun to play with enough people. Its a shame they don't make it anymore.

[towerofturtles]

From what I hear of the new version of risk it has a lot faster gameplay.

Instead of trying to take over the world you just need to have three "objectives" which include "capture 10 territories in 1 turn" or "control Europe"

Reinforcements also don't grow with each turn in. Instead it has a new system for reinforcing. Each territory card has 1 or 2 stars on it and you can hold however many cards in your hand as you desire. Your reinforcement amount is based on how many stars you turn in.

Though I haven't played it yet, from what I hear it lasts approximately 1-2 hours.

This sounds so much better. The one and only game of Risk I played when on to infinity. Will have to try this new version.

[The Mad Scientist]

I like chess...

[Alasseo]

Diplomacy > risk and A&A. Settlers of Catan is a whole different sort of fun, though.

[adunebutt]

Risk, definitely a good way to waste time.

[Kag]

After playing the 2210 version, I'm beginning to think that Original Risk is a perfectly wonderful game when you slap a time limit on it - that is, five, ten rounds or whatever, and it's over.

I was beginning to think I would never have fun with Risk again, but this actually sounds really awesome.

[Vaniver]

Risk, anyone?

Ew. There's a reason Risk has a ranking of around 4000 on BoardGameGeek.

The original civilization is fun to play with enough people. Its a shame they don't make it anymore.

It is, but it's got a number of serious problems- the first being you need the right number of people, or someone gets an easy 9 cities while others are squabbling to just 5 or 6. The second is that it's a horribly long game- which isn't something I mind, unless you're playing it with people who haven't played the game many times, and so a rookie mistake can put them out of the running, pretty much. Civilization's calamities help counteract that a little- but if you need "rocks fall" to balance things out, you're doing it wrong.

[Tajfoon]

Me and my friends mostly play
War of the Ring
Starcraft the bord game (brood wars expansion)
and most of all Arham Horror ( just got the Dunwich expasion)

I totally love AH, tog us five different tries to beat Chtuhlu and now we have started on the Expansion bosses.
And it doesn't take that long if everyone knows the rules.

Played Twilight Imperium a couple of times. Must be the most advaced board game ever. it has everything. But it takes freaking AGES to play, and has millions of rules to remember.

Currently i'm thinking about buying Descent, but it is fairly expensive, and it's getting harder to find the time to play :/

[rrwoods]

Tossing in another hand for Settlers of Catan. Love this game. Cities and Knights is very fun, and Seafarers is fun too. Haven't yet played a game with both.