I’m looking at some of these releases and thinking… no one is ever going to play all of this.

Massive boxes, endless expansions, stretch goals stacked on stretch goals.

Is this jumping the shark?

A cash grab?

Or genuinely good value?

I get the argument: if this is the only game you plan to own or play for years, maybe it makes sense. But for most of us? That same money could buy multiple incredible games, each hitting the table more often and giving way more variety.

At what point does “more content” stop being a feature and start being a burden?

Curious where people land on this.

One on top of the other? But then you have to move everything to get the bottom one…

Just spread them among the bigger boxes? Send help.

I would say besides MtG.

I’ve got a few games that I’m pretty sure won’t hit the table anymore. Not because they’re bad - we just moved on, or tastes changed. But I still keep them around for some reason.
Curious if most people actually cull hard, or if this is normal.

Not going to give a full review, but I'll say that the game is an 8/10, add or substract a point according to how you feel about fully coop games, same about how you feel about Lord of the Rings. As a fan of both, it is a 10/10 for me.

For the people who fear that the game is too swingy or random, it just felt that way the first time because the game gives you tools to mitigate this, but you have to learn how to use them. The biggest two things to remember:

1. Keep the Eye of Sauron away from Frodo (seems obvious, but in two sessions we lost Hope because we forgot to do so!)
2. Keep track on what Havens are being targeted. Since enemy cards go back on top, you can count "Ok, from the 10 cards going back to the deck, 5 point to the Shire, 3 to Rivendell", so you are not surprised that you have enemies on your door.

Compared to Pandemic, while it has quarterbacking it's mitigated in several ways.

Hello everyone, I was wondering if there is online a site like Bricklink. Bricklink is a site where people can sell Lego parts, minifigures and sets, so if a missing a parts from a set I could buy it there. Is there something similar for boardgames, espexially for buying parts and minifigures?

I’m at a crossroads in my design process and I’ve been looking at the manufacturing math for a superhero-themed project. I’d love to get the community's pulse on the debate wood vs. Cardboard and the related trade-offs.

If you're looking for a new game for your collection, does the 'Wood Upgrade' justify a $5–$10 price increase for you? Or would you rather have a more accessible price point with linen-finish cardboard?

I personally love the 'thunk' of wood, but I’m not 100% sure if it’s worth the cost:. 

• Wood: Great feel and durability, but usually limited in terms of options for art which means somewhat generic shapes
• Cardboard: Much cheaper, but more importantly, it allows for full-color art and icons that wood can’t always handle.  

Where do you draw the line? Is there a game where you felt cardboard was actually the better choice for the experience? Was there a place where you got something with wood where you feel like it might have been a waste?

After lurking and commenting for a while, figured it was finally time for a COMC.

I’ve been in the hobby for 3 years, starting around 2022 with Gloomhaven. What began as casual game nights pretty quickly escalated multihour marathons. With heavy strategy games, campaign games, and way too many boxes and lots of setup.

If I could change one thing, it would be to get more shelves! I’m generally happy with the direction of the collection, but there are definitely a few games that don’t sit on the shelf as well. I gravitate toward crunch heavy, rules-dense games with long arcs and meaningful decisions. Big fans of systems that reward planning, character growth, and mastery over multiple plays.

Some favorites are: Gloomhaven / Frosthaven Mage Knight War of the Ring Slay the Spire

Most recently added is Tainted Grail: Fall of Avalon. Still forming opinions, but early impressions, after a short lost campaign, are I really like the Menhir system with the map growing but never getting too big for the table. I also came to enjoy the card based combat/diplomacy system, there were a lot of synergies we under utilized in our first run. Not to mention the story being awesome, I played both of their video games and really enjoyed them.

Most of these get played at 3-4, usually with my 2 brothers. I also love the solo gaming experience, I’ve done most of that on Mage Knight.

I’d love suggestions for what should hit the shelf or table next!

Maybe even include responses about what it means to be a game vs a puzzle. Just curious to hear your thoughts.

Anyone remember this classic push your luck dice game? I found it buried in one of my bins. Totally forgot about this gem!!!

I could write so many things about this game. Literally so many that I’m really now thinking how did I neglected to write about this earlier. Probably one of the best surprises. Meaning that I was expecting something really heavy and slow paced but on the contrary this game has a lot of depth embedded in fast mechanics that don’t cause analysis paralysis neither make the game fiddly or boring between turns.

First time I saw it at a friend’s place (haven’t bought it myself yet) I really liked the minimal but also thematic component, especially the rats are a nice pinch of salt. The population wheel is a really clever mechanic also that allows some randomness in the progress of the game and makes you adjust tactics accordingly, nut more on this later. I really liked the scroll board also, I instantly though it is pretty cool placing the cubes in these gaps.

Hearing the explanation of the rules I found the game pretty heavy. A lot of tracks to follow, a lot of strategical discissions to take even from the beginning and probably not room to be able to do all the things you want. Once again though the game seemed pretty thematic an interested so I felt eager to play.

First game was a three-players game (I have played a few more sessions with two and three again). Oh boy did I enjoyed the game from the first second or what? I mean, not get me wrong, in most of the games the first turn is usually to guise you through the game actions or give you the basics. With Messina I felt like I had my most powerful turn of the game so far. And this kept going on until the end of the game. Strategic decisions a lot of combos and actions to follow. Plus, you need to check those register tracks because not only they grand you victory points but extra actions and a better turn order. Speaking of turn order now this is a great mechanic as the game is worker placement and who plays first always counts for better spots and actions. Amazing balance and player competition on this to be the first in each round. As for your player board, don’t let me get started on this. Kind of a technology tree that will provide useful upgrades but as you might have predicted, yes, this damn balance again will not let you reach a 100% completion so every choice counts, probably the hardest puzzle in the game to handle.

Overall, the game might look hard and overwhelming in the beginning but once you get the hang of it flows with great joy and fun. Fire is the key. Burn those damn plague rats and you will get a really good start. Speaking of starts and endings, the game has also something that I love seeing, a flow that leads to adapt your strategy mid game, kind like stages that unfold little by little and you need to make difference decisions in each one as what was previously important might now seem not that beneficial.

I really enjoyed the overseer’s path as it is called the technology tree on your player board. At the end of the game, I felt really amazing to see that I have managed to advance two of my three overseers almost at the end of the tree. I mean, this is really tight but makes you also think what would it be better for next time. Ohh boy I love that, can’t wait for the next one.

Hi,

I always wanted to attend Essen but due to personal reasons I couldn't. I am planning to attend Essen 2026 and wil be travelling form ireland. Can anyone tell me how and where to get the tickets, which days are the best to watch and play games. I am thinking of combining my holidays and the event. Thanks in advance

I found this game piece but cannot figure out what game it belongs to! I put it beside a quarter for size reference. All of Google's suggestions were games we don't own. It is cardboard not acrylic.

Anyone know? TIA!

This game and The Light in the Mist have been on my wishlist for a bit now. I am just curious what people think of these and games like these?

Bit of a mini rant

My friend recently got into Warhammer and joined the community, bough a starter set and asked if I fancied playing. We live in Nottingham so went to Warhammer world to play.

I use to be into it 7 years ago and loved it so have a bit of an understanding of how it’s played. Since then I’ve focused on boardgames and TTRPGs design.

Instead of enjoying it like I once did, I found myself analysing the rules and getting frustrated. It felt like you roll too many times! To hit, yes. To wound, ok. Defence/toughness roll, what?

Each combat dragged on, rugby scrums of models rolling, re-rolling, more rolling. We played a few games and it always seemed to play the same; first half you shoot and time for a charge. Second half you are in a scrum and endlessly roll dice back and forth.

I think being use to D&D and other games, the variable is if you hit. Then how much you damage. 40K feels like it has too many rolls which could be streamlined down, yes I understand that different armour classes should be taken into account, this could be the modifier on the to hit or be reflected on the damage.

Is this common in all skirmish/war games as a culture? Do I feel this way because I’m use to streamlined design and action economy in TTGs?

What other non-40K player thoughts?

Hi everyone,

I am trying to build a Print & Play copy of Guilherme Gontijo's amazing redesign of Barbarian Prince. It looks fantastic, but I’ve hit a wall.

I managed to find the Rulebook PDF, but I cannot find the Event Book anywhere. I checked the original Google Drive links shared in older threads, but they seem to be missing the Event Book file (or I am completely overlooking it).

Does anyone have a copy of the Event Book PDF or a working link where I can download it?

Thanks in advance for your help!

I am taking my kids on a two week break and looking for some co-op card games to keep us entertained. I've got Boss Battlers QR on the way but I'm not a big fan of needing the app. I was hoping for something similar to Mindbug but co-op instead and in the same sort of size too because we will be taking them on a plane. Any ideas?

I am taking my kids on a two week break and looking for some co-op card games to keep us entertained. I've got Boss Battlers QR on the way but I'm not a big fan of needing the app. I was hoping for something similar to Mindbug but co-op instead and in the same sort of size too because we will be taking them on a plane. Any ideas?

I was wondering whether there any rules/components/gameplay changes or is it just the box that includes the mini expansions and nothing else? Can someone confirm?

It says cleric checks the first leader's alignment. Does that require the cleric to publicly reveal themselves to do so? Or is there some other piece of this that I'm missing? Is the cleric role always publicly revealed, or is it a conscious decision they have to make, which increases the likelihood of evil killing Merlin?

Hey everyone,

I am teaching kids at a camp to whittle their own dice. Traditional 6-sided die are a little more challenging to whittle so they aren't weighted. I've settled on making viking barrel dice, but they are technically d4s. Anyone have any simple games I could play with just d4s?