We managed to get a few copies of the much anticipated Super Dungeon Explore, also referred as "SDE", just before Christmas 2011. Being anime fans ourselves, the game is a throwback to classic Japanese role playing (video)games that occupied much of our youth (think Final Fantasy Tactics, DragonQuest, or a Nate favourite, Shining Force - like old school Sega Genesis style). Out of curiosity about all the hype surrounding the game, Nate decided to un-box a copy of the game, for our own, quote-unquote, demo copy (or that's what he keeps saying, though he has more ulterior motives -.O).

Just so this doesn't degrade into an otaku's pet project done in the confines of his basement (not that there's anything wrong with that) that may take years to complete (ok, now that's a bit of an issue), Nate does promise to do a few things as part of this un-boxing...

• paint the figures, so the demo copy at least looks presentable - with a few bottles of paints from a previous fascination of fielding a Menoth/Mercenary army still available (one day, that army will be fielded, says Nate), Nate and his kinder-grade painting skills will get the figures to a non-monotonous state of colour, within a reasonable amount of time (while still making sure WoodForSheep runs efficiently)
• blog about it - at the very least, it will be fun to see how well (or badly) this experiment goes... but it also ensures there's some more content to the site, which will hopefully get Nate to get more organized and into a regular routine, to add more content in the future (where was that worker placement article you keep saying you were going to put together, Nate?)... and, as most writer's try to figure out (or that's what Nate keeps reading), to find his 'writing voice' (or style), besides random ramblings...
• figure out how to use that camera... even though Nate has had his FUJI S5200 for a few years now, he still hasn't managed to figure out what all these buttons and knobs are for (wait, don't do that... uh oh, now it's not turning ON)... -.-

So, with those factors in mind, the goal is to have all (or a decent majority) of the figures in some form of coloured condition by our library-partnered event in March, which is about 11 weeks away (THAT'S NUTS!). You're all free to chime in and make sure Nate stays the course.

As with most things Nate does, the simple route (i.e. painting the figures as presented/suggested by the character cards) was just not enough of a challenge. He wanted something more thematic/recognizable (what an otaku), so he's decided to choose a painting scheme (or several schemes) in tribute... but to what?

First thought was to follow a few schemes from the Fate series of animes (e.g. Fate/Stay Night, Fate/Zero, etc), but got stuck on the minions and villains. As his following of fantasy-genre animes was more limited than he initially thought (Slayers didn't seem to fit either), he figured may as well go with something even more recognizable - comic books! But then comes the question, Marvel or DC? What would look cooler - shaman 'hulking out' to the angry bear or the paladin decked out in kryptonian armour colours? Without having to prolong this article unnecessarily (because it actually did take Nate a few days consideration to settle on a decision), DC won out on this little internal debate. Anyone out there is more than welcome to give the other universe a shot, and send the link back here so we can check it out!

With the painting scheme settled, this week's victims, err... subjects, are (since there's two of them), SDE sub-bosses Rex... and Rex.

As Rex (and Rex) are supposed to represent a formidable challenge to the SDE heroes, Nate whipped out his (now out-dated, thanks to the "New 52") DC Encyclopedia in search of dastardly villains. Flipping through Killer Croc, Gorilla Grodd and a few other heavy weights (BANE!!!), Nate settled on war world tyrant, Mongul (or it could be his son, Mongul II, who looks fairly the same). An initial attempt at a more golden epidermal layer was an epic fail (see facebook gallery, link further below), and Nate had to eventually cut his losses and use a more substantial base for the skin. Apparently, Mongul does not have any fingernails, which sort of made the colour options a challenge - though Nate settled on the purple since that was the other prevalent colour Mongul sports. Throw in some other purplish hues and the blue, and Rex Mongul is ready to bash some SDE heroes.

The other Rex was an easier decision... big, boney and bad... sounds like your unfriendly, Superman-killing Doomsday! Someone (or is that something) warped enough to rip out their own tail, and use it to bash whatever gets in their way (as opposed to Mongul, who'd use another's tail to do that). Grays, greens and bone tones complete this Rex's scheme.

The final products:

Nate was pretty satisfied with the outcome for Rex Doomsday. He looks ready to bash SDE heroes around the dungeon with no abandon. A bit more mixed feelings on Rex Mongul (isn't it cute, Nate's named them)... hard to visualize how the colour scheme would have worked without diving right into it. Then again, it reminds Nate of a Warjack, still unfinished, that had a similar scheme... that also left Nate with mixed feelings. Perhaps its another lesson learned through this experiment. Rest assured that you don't have to despair too much, Nate isn't loosing too much sleep over it.

More pictures on our Facebook page.

Comments, suggestions, critiques, questions and whatever else are always welcome. Those irrelevant or not very constructive will be simply ignored (Nate's just being upfront about it).

Preview for next week:

Chrononauts for under $5! Get Small World AND Mansions of Madness for under $100. Prices in effect for December 26 only (or longer if Nate forgets to change them back :P). While quantities last.

Full list here

Steve recently had the opportunity to ask Justin Gary a few questions. Besides being owner and CEO of Gary Games, Justin is also a devoted gamer and an accomplished MTG Pro Tour player (don't worry if you don't know what that means).

Some highlights:

Steve: Do you have any favorite boardgames at the moment?

JG: Other than lots of Ascension, I have been playing a fair amount of Citadels, Race for the Galaxy, Ra, and El Grande.

Steve: Are there any other titles that Gary Games is planning to release? If so, could you tell us a little bit about them?

JG: Of course we plan to continue making Ascension expansions (including Storm of Souls coming out this November/December). In addition, we are working on several other titles, but unfortunately can’t reveal any details about them now. Look for some announcements first quarter 2012.

Steve: The new Ascension: Storm of Souls expansion will introduce a new card type, Events. Can you tell us more about them? Will future sets also continue to introduce new mechanics to keep the gameplay fresh?

JG: Events are an exciting new addition to the Ascension world. Event cards represent the different factions of the Ascension world rising to dominance. When an event card flips into the center row, it is set aside and creates a new rule for the game that all players must follow. Some cards interact with the Event cards, becoming stronger when their faction’s events are in play. We have a lot of exciting new ideas for future expansions and I know Ascension fans are going to love what we have in store. Storm of Souls represents a lot of great mechanical changes to the game, not just with the new Event card type, but also with Trophy Reward monsters, and a whole slew of exciting individual cards and interactions.

Steve: Can you tell us about your experiences from being a gamer and a game designer? Any advice for those people who want to venture on their own and publish their own games?

JG: I am very fortunate to have been able to build a career around my passion of gaming. For those out there who want to do the same, I recommend putting in the hours to develop their skills and try to get involved in the industry at any level they can. Playing and doing well in tournaments, writing strategy or community articles, and designing and showing off your own games are all great ways to get noticed and hone your skills. Most importantly, be sure to learn from your mistakes and take criticism well- its the only way you will get better.

You can read the full interview @ his blog.

"Snake Eyes!"

In most games, you would not want to be rolling this with your pair of dice. In many popular board games, this means your progress is at an absolute crawl. If this (or similar low rolls) is the majority of your results, it can be a very long and frustrating session. From personal experience, these are the sessions that you want to end now, even if you lose by a large margin, just to end the misery. Its possibly enough reason for you to swear off board games forever.

For games like Chutes and Ladders (or its snake-y variant), Monopoly and even Risk, winning the game often has less to do with a player's wit and more with where you fall with 'Lady Luck'. While this may be interesting to some players, this reliance on the random can quickly become stale, and feel repetitive (read: boring).

But what if rolling the dice wasn't the only way to win the game? That would certainly change how chance affects one plays the game, and even the outcome. While classic games like Monopoly are still dependent on dice rolling results to win, modern games offer various alternatives to progress and even victory - lessening the impact of randomness on the game.

This then allows the game to be engaging for all the players involved, since each player has an active interest in the game no matter what results from their dice roll. Player's aren't simply counting spaces along the board and waiting for their next turn, but they actively observe what the effect of each person's turn has on their own possible plays - increasing the emphasis on planning and strategy.

A few games where chance plays a part in the game, but isn't central to it:

Settlers of Catan - the classic precursor to modern boardgames, Catan relies on the dice for resources to be produced (though not necessarily for the player rolling the dice)... However, if a player is short on resources, they have opportunities to barter with other players for what they need, or, being more mischievous, they can try to acquire the resource using the robber. As well, with various options in the game, the lack of a resource may just mean a shift in strategy on the way to victory (points).

King of Tokyo - players take the role of a giant monster (based on popular monster tropes: giant primate, destructive lizard, invading alien, etc) out to conquer Tokyo. Dice rolls determine if a player is attacking other monsters, gaining powers or accumulating (victory) points. A majority of results still allow a player to 'do something', especially since there are opportunities to re-roll the dice during the turn. Another game similar in mechanics would be Dice Town - this one is set in the American West.

Alien Frontiers - a colony building game set in outer space. Players race against each other to gather resources and build colonies on the newly discovered planet. Dice rolls determine which actions a player can perform during their turn, provided a previous player hasn't already performed that action. Though there are ways to work around that obstacle, or even just raid resources from other players outright. Considered to be a casual or moderate game, expert gamers may find Troyes a more complex and challenging game.

Hello!

Hope everyone is enjoying their summers.

Our next "Game On!" session is coming up this Sunday, August 28 from 2PM to 8PM (yes, extended hours). Looking to get some games in of Quarriors, Qwirkle and Angry Birds! Based on the turnout, we hope to have a tournament going with some unspecified prize(s). :)

Details:

• Location: Cornell Community Room - 2722 Bur Oak Avenue, Unit 2, Markham, ON
• Date/Time: Sunday, August 28, 2011 from 2PM to 8PM
• Admission: $4.00

Next "Game On!": Saturday, September 17 (same place)

For something lighter, our last summer session @ the Milliken Mills Public Library will be this coming Thursday, August 25, from 6PM to 8:30PM. I know, its a little sad that its the 'last'. However, "Casual Gaming" comes back to the library on Monday, September 12 (same times) and runs through to December!!!

Hope to see you during the week!

When Donald Vaccarino sat down one day by the seaside and came up with the concept for the card game Dominion, I wonder if he realized this would revolutionize the world of games. Of course, he could have thought, "This would be a really cool game mechanic" - which also works (The part of the story about the seaside is pure speculation on my part).

In Dominion, Vaccarino has literally filtered down the challenge and intrigue of deck construction, aspects commonly found in collectible card games like Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh and Magic: The Gathering, and made a game unto itself. In most of these card games, commonly referred to as CCGs, deck construction is a balancing act of strategy, synergy, combinations and also actual costs. As with any economic model, limited supply and high demand will cause certain cards to rise in value.

Short of some form of alchemy that would change a Mahamoti Djinn to Jace two-point-oh (Magic reference, don't worry if you don't get it), the frustration with most of these CCGs is the arms race mentality that goes on. As new sets are released every few months, another chase for the- next-big-card begins and starts the cycle anew of finding and acquiring. The challenge among those who play is to accurately predict which cards among the cornucopia of choices will contribute to a winning deck strategy, which would then raise the market value of the card. Prosperity, whether as a collector or a player, is fleeting.

Dominion though, makes this challenge of acquisition part of the game itself. While it may still be a frustrating experience (foiled in getting that last Festival), its contained within the game environment, and doesn't linger when the game ends (or rather, it shouldn't). Different combination of kingdom cards (cards that allow you to take various actions during game play) may make one card good in one setting, but quite useless with other kingdom cards. Using only 10 of the 25 kinds of kingdom cards offered in the game, each session is almost guaranteed to be a new experience; unless you are able to play 3,268,760 times. With the multitude of variations the game can be configured to, increased even further as new expansions are released every now and again, the game certainly doesn't get old or too done.

Another aspect of Dominion that is surprising is the general appeal of the game. The appeal for CCG players is already evident. Game enthusiasts are intrigued by the game since it offers a unique mechanic and even a glimpse into collectible card games, without the large (financial) commitment associated to it. And even females (whether casual gamers or not) find a theme in the game that they can understand and get into... shopping.

What's amazing though, is not just the game Vaccarino has created, but the whole genre of gaming it has spawned. Before Dominion (i.e. before 2008), there was no such thing as 'Deck Construction'. In just a few years, the genre has exploded with many popular games, each with its own theme and unique twists. However, they all have similar mechanics, so if you get a chance to learn Dominion, you already know how most of these other games play.

A quick run through of some of the other 'Deck Construction' games (those that I've played at least):

Thunderstone

Fantasy themed game where each player must fight monsters in a cave. Players can have heroes aid them in the search for the thunderstone, who then can be improved through the game.
My initial play of this game was with the base set and an early version of the revised rules - which from what I understand, wasn't very polished at the time. I didn't quite enjoy the experience and haven't gone back to it since. However, as its now on its 4th expansion (with another one on the way as of this writing), they must have fixed it enough to be worth playing still.

Resident Evil DBG

Based on the popular video game series, players explore the mansion and try and bring the monsters to an end. Most recent rules update has each player controlling two characters from the Resident Evil universe. By arming their characters with weapons and other gadgets, the player must navigate them around the mansion to face the cliche of any adventure video games, the boss.
Of all the thematic deck construction games, I would have to say I enjoyed this one the most. The gameplay gives the same eerie feeling as playing the video game (when you open the door, is there a monster behind it?). However, being one of the more affordable games (retail price is UNDER $30.00), the trade-off is less card choices. Of course, expansions fix this lack of choice issue and RE-DBG has a second expansion coming out soon.

Tanto Cuore

The most popular deck building game in Japan (with 2 expansions already out in Japan) gets an english translation and a release in North America. Each player is the master of the house and is in charge of hiring servants to make it the best home possible. Unique to the game is one 'kingdom' deck only has unique cards in it. Anime. Maids. What's not to like?
Anime. Maids. Sold.
Ok, so a bit of a guilty pleasure game since the game does have good art. The gameplay itself is similar to other deck construction games, but has enough unique elements to make it a fun experience. I would play this ahead of the more fantasy based games, but that's more of a personal preference.

Puzzle Strike

Deck construction with chips, instead of cards. Puzzle strike takes from another popular video game (Puzzle Fighter) and attempts to simulate it in the context of a physical game. In the game, players try to keep a tower of jewels from building too high. Unlike Dominion or Thunderstone, which at times can feel like a solitaire game, Puzzle Strike is all about interacting with other players, well, more like attacking, since one way to get jewels off your tower, is to send it to someone else.
The game mechanics certainly mimic the video game and the variety of characters does make each game unique in its own way. What should conceptually be a fast game though, feels it drags on at times, as there is a tendency for PBA (paralysis by analysis) due to the many options available in terms of actions that can be taken. Genre fans will certainly enjoy it no matter the drawbacks, but unless you 'get' the charm, there are some better options out there (or until there's some revision to the rules).

A few that I haven't played yet:

Ascension

Fantasy themed game

Heroes of Graxia

Another fantasy themed game (I know, there's quite a bit) where players can fight monsters or attack other players.

Nightfall

Horror themed game with focus on player versus player combat and a unique chain mechanic when playing cards.

A few other games coming down the line:

Quarriors

Instead of cards, its dice... by Heroclix makers, Wizkids Games.

Star Trek DBG

From initial previews, this will be set in the TNG universe so players will have access to Picard, Sisko and Janeway. Also from Bandai - who made the Resident Evil DBG.

Eminent Domain

Science fiction based game from an up-and-coming game company, lots of positive buzz and I can't wait to try it out myself.

Penny Arcade

Based on the popular web comic... that's about as much as I know.

"Why boardgames?"

That's one of the more common questions we've heard since Steve and I started this WoodForSheep venture.

In today's world, where everyone is trying to stretch the value that they get for every dollar spent, our response is... "Why not boardgames?"

Like most forms of entertainment, boardgames are all about the experience. In particular, boardgames present a unique opportunity for a social, interactive experience since most games require at least 2 players (and some get better with more). Also, as the title suggests, its an affordable alternative to more common entertainment options.

Let's take a (biased) look, comparing boardgames to some of these alternatives based on the following factors, for a group of 4 people (be it a family spending time together or friends hanging out):

• Price/cost - how much will the entertainment cost, whether its initial, peripheral or on-going
• Level of interaction - how much social interaction takes place when doing this activity
• Replayability - how often can the activity be done (and redone)
• Commitment - amount of space and/or time required to participate in this activity

Movies are a bit high on the cost, and not much on the replay value. DVDs and Blu-Rays have some cost benefits, but lack in the interaction. Video games offer a higher level of interaction, but have high cost and the quality of interaction is suspect. Boardgames are comparable on the positive points and even excel in the aspect of interaction, that is unmatched by any of the other entertainment forms.

So, take a chance. Dive into the world of modern boardgames. At the very least, you have some time to kill until the next movie showing starts.

Check out Nate's mad paint skillz... MS Paint that is...

Ok... Moving to more important matters. We're sure everyone wants to get their summer schedules set, and WoodForSheep wants to make sure Game On! is on your schedule.

Here's our current Game On! lineup

• May @ CCC
• June @ Paintlounge
• July @ Cornell

UPDATE (July 9): WoodForSheep will be holding events in the Cornell community in Markham over the next several months! More events planned.

UPDATE (May 19): Due to circumstances outside of our control, July and August events are under review. We hope to have an update soon.

No need to re-invent the wheel on this one...

Paintlounge teams up with Wood for Sheep to host our first game night! Join us for an evening of fun and laughs, as you meet new people and learn a game or two. Feel free to bring your favourite board game, or we will be on site to teach you to play the featured games of the night.

About Paintlounge:

At Paintlounge, our goal is to transform art into an interactive activity for everyone through freestyle social painting. We provide all the materials, tools and clean-up for an all-inclusive, walk-in painting experience. All you have to do is simply express yourself on the canvas!

No painting skills are required - we encourage you to take a hold of the paintbrush and let your creativity flow while jamming to great music.

Come relax and be inspired!

UPDATE: Games going on all over the lounge. Standing room only. WOW! Thanks to everyone who came (or thought of coming but couldn't). Next one(s) just around the corner. Event pics here.