Twelve Games of Christmas - 2017 Edition

It has begun. For the fourth year in a row, we have begun the Twelve Games of Christmas.

Dec 22
It was actually a spur of the moment decision to start this night. My brothers ended up coming over for the evening so we decided to pull out a couple of simple games.

First up was Welcome to the Dungeon.

It is a push-your-luck card game. Each turn you can add a monster card to the dungeon, remove equipment from the hero, or pass. Once all other players pass, the last remaining player takes control of the hero and tries to make it through the dungeon. My brother Brian made it through in the first round but later failed 2 dungeon delves to get knocked out. My wife also got knocked out. My brother Brett then managed to defeat 2 dungeons to win the game.

Next was Zombie Dice, another push-your-luck game but this time using dice.

Your goal is to roll brains while avoiding shotgun blasts. Brett managed a run of 6 brains in one turn to rush (or more appropriately shamble) to victory!

Dec 23
This night featured a solo play of One Deck Dungeon. Sad to say that the dragon ate my paladin.

Dec 24

Decided to experiment with some bomb run rules (a la B-17: Queen of the Skies), albeit set in space.

Check out the game report

Dec 25
Merry Christmas!
Sadly too sick (very bad cold) for a game.

Dec 26
Another night. Too sick for a game.

Dec 27

Finally got to visit with my brother and receive my gifts from my family. Got Exploding Kittens and had to try it.

It's a very light card game. I played vs my brother earlier and then with my wife. I think it will work better as a party game with 3+ players.

Dec 28

Now my wife has the plague so she was not up for a game. Instead, I pulled out Castle Panic and played solo.

The monsters managed a rush early in the game and managed to knock down 2 towers. Then I lost a third to a giant boulder. My defenses then stiffened and I managed to save the last three towers.

Dec 29

No game.

Dec 30

We played 2 rounds of Exploding Kittens. Elizabeth won both games.

We did an experiment where we increased the number of Exploding Kitten cards. Typically, there is # of players - 1 cards placed in the deck. We added an extra. I think it made it a little more intense.

My wife then suggested adding in all the kittens. As I predicted, however, the game ended way too soon.

We followed that up with some Holiday Fluxx. I won the first hand but cannot remember who won the second.

Dec 31

I fell asleep early so my wife took up the mantle and played a game with her brother. More Exploding Kittens.

Jan 1

I didn't expect to play a game this evening, but Thomasina was in her game spot. We had to indulge her. this time with a round of Love Letter.

My wife won this time (7-4)

And that wrapped up the 12 Games (although we fell short by a couple of games. I'm back to work today so I don't expect any games until the weekend.

What's in Store for 2018?

As per tradition, I will make my (likely inaccurate) prognostications for the coming year. What do I expect to see from my gaming this year?

The Six Game Challenge
Last year, I participated in Kaptain Kobold's Six by Six Challenge. Now 36 games in a year is actually a lot for me (even though I play quick and simple games), so the challenge did get a bit burdensome. Nevertheless, I found it rewarding in that it spurred me to experiment with some new sets of rules I may not have otherwise tried .

This year I want to leverage the most rewarding part of the challenge - trying new games. So this year's challenge is to play 6 new (to me at least) games. I'm not requiring multiple replays, even one play-through counts.

So far I have tentatively chosen 3 games:

• Dragon Rampant
• Galleys and Galleons
• Blade and Lockpick

I have all of these games; I just haven't bothered to try them yet. I still need to pick 3 more games, although I can wait until later in the year. My goal is to play at least one game from the challenge every 2 months. So this initial selection should last me until July.

A Board Gamer

Last month I mentioned that I was getting jaded with miniatures and was thinking of using more blocks and counters for my games. I expect that this philosophy will continue and that I will have a more extensive inventory of counters.

I have been very pleased with my experiments with boxed games (such as my generic army block kit). I still have some of the items used with earlier games, like this board. I am seriously considering a purge of miniatures and terrain that do not fit into my boxes.

Essentially, I see myself moving away from miniatures and becoming more of a DIY board gamer.

Year in Review - 2017

How did 2017 go? Let's take a peek at some highlights:

I got off to a fast start with the Six by Six Challenge, quickly finishing Four Against Darkness and fantasy battles with my homebrew rules. Here is an example of a fantasy battle with 3mm troops.

I started experimenting with boxed portable wargames, where everything I need fits into an A4 sized plastic box.

I even applied the portable wargame concept to dungeon crawls.

I did manage to complete some 2mm fantasy armies - Presteria (green bases - inspired by the legendary Prester John) vs. the Swartherians (desert nomads)

Then I went on an air combat kick, eventually adopting Kaptain Kobold's Spandau and Lewis as my go-to set of rules.

In September, we endured the wrath of Hurricane Irma. We were without power for 5 days during the most blistering part of the Florida summer.

Around that time, I started experimenting with various board games. This is Manoeuvre by GMT Games.

In October, I made my own Dracula-themed board game. It is inspired by Fury of Dracula but plays much quicker.

Manoeuvre led me to creating my own block armies. I cut up a Pathfinder battle mat and used dry-erase markers to create a simple, variable battle board.

Then I went on a post-apocalyptic road wars kick, eventually adopting Machinas for my games. This inspired me to watch Mad Max Fury Road, which I had not seen. I tend to agree with this review, even if it is a bit gratuitous with bad language.

Finally, I started messing around with rules for sci-fi bomber runs.

How did I do with my 2017 prognostications?

• The Six by Six Challenge
• I completed Four Against Darkness, and 3 miniature games (although 2 were mid-year substitutes)
• I dropped DC Rivals instead of completing it. I came close but did not quite complete the replacement - Machinas.(I got 4 of 6 games in).
• I did not dither on deciding the sixth game; I choose Ticket to Ride fairly early. I also only completed 4 of 6.
• In all, I completed 4 games in the challenge and 32 out of 36 sessions.
• Portable Dungeon Crawl - As predicted, I have a basic boxed set completed by the end of the year. I am using wood tokens and meeples instead of minis, but the set is functional.
• A New Army - I did complete a new fantasy army (two in fact). They are my Presterians and Swartherians (mentioned above). It was 2mm instead of 3mm. I also created 2 air forces for battles in the skies of Aetheria (my 1930s-style imagi-nations)
• Board Game Purge (Not!) - This never came up. My wife is tiring of board games so we did not pick up many new ones this year therefore did not have to worry about storage.

Raider Wreckage

After 4 games of Star Raiders, I have lost 2 ships (both on long raids - Zones 6 and 7).

Here is the latest debacle:

Early on, the raider was swarmed by 5 scout rockets. The gunners managed to destroy 3 and drive off 1.

Later, the raider ran through heavy AR (anti-rocket) artillery, taking out its shields and dramatically weakening the hull. Finally, the hull was breached and the raider destroyed.

I'm still tweaking the rules to improve survival odds. One idea I have is to add a repair phase at the end of each Zone. I may also add escorts, like B-17.

Star Raiders

I've been a a kick lately for bombing run rules that will create a gaming experience similar to B-17 Queen of the Skies.

Rather than replicating World War 2 bombing campaigns, I decided to do a sci-fi version, which I am calling Star Raiders.* This allows me to streamline and simplify without worrying about realism.

I tried 2 runs today.

The first one was fairly easy - a short run to a target 4 zones away. The star raider (i.e. the bomber) only took 3 hits. Unfortunately, its torpedoes were off target.

It seemed a bit too easy, so I tweaked the rules so it was harder for the raider. I then ran a long raid on Zone 7.

Early on, things seemed easy again. There was no contact with the enemy until Zone 6.

Afterward, the enemy flung wave after wave of interceptors at the raider. It managed to take down 6 interceptors.

 (I know, I need to switch to a black board. Next time)

But then some anti-rocket artillery caused damage to the bridge.

And multiple interceptor attacks damaged the rocket engines. This slowed the raider (it took 2 turns to traverse a zone, which allowed for a LOT of opposition

The interceptors closed in for the kill.

After a failed torpedo run (zero hits), the enemy brought the raider to bay in Zone 5. Interceptors brought down the shields and caused a hull breach. The raider was destroyed.

Overall, I am pleased with the rules. They are streamlined compared to B-17 but created a similar experience. At first, the raider was cruising but as opposition stiffened, the tension mounted. By the time engine damage slowed the raider, it seemed like it was just a matter of time before BOOM.

I need to work on the damage rates a little bit, but the basic framework seems functional.

* I'm calling them raiders instead of bombers because they are armed with torpedoes. Because, unlike Star Wars, bombs don't fall in space in my universe. ;)

Merry Christmas

"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:10-11 (KJV)

The Kat-huber Line

Played a session of  "On a Wing and Prayer - Bomber Command in the Battle for the Ruhr, July 1943" (an addendum to the updated copy of  Donald Featherstone's Air War Games)

The bombing run was stopped cold when the Germans deployed the Kat-huber line.

Ollie sitting on my bomber

 Eventually, the bomber got through, although it had to shake off a night fighter attack.

Imagi-nation air forces stand in for the Brits and Germans

Rather a disappointing game. Flew through 11 zones with only one attack, which was easily evaded. It needs more action.

Boargamegeek has the charts and rules for B-17 QOTS so I may make a DIY version.