The Big Board-Gaming Catch-All

SommerMatt wrote:
jordn613 wrote:

I'm not totally sure if this is ok to ask in this specific thread, but I didn't know if there'd be a better place. Basically, I'm looking for some cool people in Atlanta to play some board games with. I browsed around some of the meetup.com stuff and over at BGG, but the groups tend to skew older and ideally I'm looking for people in their 20s and 30s who live closer to Midtown rather than out in the suburbs. My girlfriend also likes to play and so a better mix of genders is another reason I ask here. If anyone is in the area and would be interested (or even knows a friend in Atlanta who you think would be), please let me know!

Jordan

Sure, it's OK.

For the best chance of success, though, you should post your own threads on BGG... maybe start your OWN meetup group that fits your specifications. People go to BGG specifically to find other people to play with, so you'll definitely have a better chance of finding people there.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/forum/7...

I was a bit hesitant to post over there because the threads seemed really inclusive and I didn't want to come off the wrong way...I'm gonna give it a go, though, and see what the response is like.

jordn613 wrote:
SommerMatt wrote:
jordn613 wrote:

I'm not totally sure if this is ok to ask in this specific thread, but I didn't know if there'd be a better place. Basically, I'm looking for some cool people in Atlanta to play some board games with. I browsed around some of the meetup.com stuff and over at BGG, but the groups tend to skew older and ideally I'm looking for people in their 20s and 30s who live closer to Midtown rather than out in the suburbs. My girlfriend also likes to play and so a better mix of genders is another reason I ask here. If anyone is in the area and would be interested (or even knows a friend in Atlanta who you think would be), please let me know!

Jordan

Sure, it's OK.

For the best chance of success, though, you should post your own threads on BGG... maybe start your OWN meetup group that fits your specifications. People go to BGG specifically to find other people to play with, so you'll definitely have a better chance of finding people there.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/forum/7...

I was a bit hesitant to post over there because the threads seemed really inclusive and I didn't want to come off the wrong way...I'm gonna give it a go, though, and see what the response is like.

The local area threads are a lot more friendly than the rest of the forums. Good luck!

You should be OK... just post what you're looking for (location, mixed group, younger, etc.), and hope for the best.

1Dgaf wrote:

Did any of you find Battle Line confusing? I was quite tired when I played it and couldn't get my head around it. I couldn't see what all the fuss was about.

Battle Line is scratches the same sort of itch as Lost Cities does when my girlfriend and I play it, which is nice for the sake of variety since we played the latter so much. Both are quick but thoughtful card games. In Lost Cities you're trying to make the best score possible in a row, and being punished by the scoring if you misjudge how well you'll do, whereas in BattleLine you're only trying to do better than your opponent in a given row, and are punished by your opponent if you commit too early. In LC you need a numerical run with to which you can add a multiplier and Battleline has you searching for poker-like sets.

Dgaf, did you play with the second deck of Tactic cards in battleline? They add an extra layer, but aren't necessary to play the game. In fact, I believe players should play awhile without them for awhile, since they add a bit of randomness and confusion in is otherwise a rather clean game. But once a player's more experienced they can offer a chance for a player to save themselves in a desperate situation, or to bog their hand down with cards that are unusable at the time.

jordn613 wrote:

I was a bit hesitant to post over there because the threads seemed really inclusive and I didn't want to come off the wrong way...I'm gonna give it a go, though, and see what the response is like.

As the others have said, just start posting there and voice your wants and your needs. And your opinions. Don't be rattled by the bloviating, gasbag know-it-alls over there. We're really harmless.

re: card sleeving. Using penny sleeves works well, is cheap, and mostly eliminates annoyingly sharp corners on cards. Oh yeah, and they're cheap. Also, I find they perform just as well as "real" sleeves, if not better; they feel better, slide better on tables, and I've rarely had the edges on penny sleeves split, and even if they do, I've got a couple hundred more that I got for cheap. Did I mention they're cheap?

love battleline - it's one of my favorite Knizias. I don't think I'd ever play without the tactics cards though as I feel they add a layer of risk and strategy that makes it a completely different game.

Dany,

I don't know what cards it used. I just sat down and played it. I'll give it another go when I have a chance.

jordn613 wrote:
SommerMatt wrote:
jordn613 wrote:

I'm not totally sure if this is ok to ask in this specific thread, but I didn't know if there'd be a better place. Basically, I'm looking for some cool people in Atlanta to play some board games with. I browsed around some of the meetup.com stuff and over at BGG, but the groups tend to skew older and ideally I'm looking for people in their 20s and 30s who live closer to Midtown rather than out in the suburbs. My girlfriend also likes to play and so a better mix of genders is another reason I ask here. If anyone is in the area and would be interested (or even knows a friend in Atlanta who you think would be), please let me know!

Jordan

Sure, it's OK.

For the best chance of success, though, you should post your own threads on BGG... maybe start your OWN meetup group that fits your specifications. People go to BGG specifically to find other people to play with, so you'll definitely have a better chance of finding people there.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/forum/7...

I was a bit hesitant to post over there because the threads seemed really inclusive and I didn't want to come off the wrong way...I'm gonna give it a go, though, and see what the response is like.

Robert Solow of CSL Games (sells a lot of games in the BGG marketplace at good prices) is somebody to get to know in the ATL board game circles. If you are looking at buying a few games anyway, give his sales a look. That's probably the best way to make contact, and you might even avoid shipping if he allows direct pick-up. He is very personable and professional. I know he runs several ATL area events.

1Dgaf wrote:

Dany,

I don't know what cards it used. I just sat down and played it. I'll give it another go when I have a chance.

Keep in mind I've only played a couple games of Battle Line now, but I seem to recall in our first game we were unsure of where to start playing cards on the line or what cards would be good to start with. We didn't mess with the tactics cards a whole lot and it felt a bit like Lost Cities at first. On the second playthrough we both started to piece together strategies for where to start trying to win a line and how to counteract what the other was doing. The tactics cards go a long way in giving you additional plans to mess up the other player as well. One thing that we decided after our second playthrough was that it would be a good idea to read through the tactics cards beforehand, knowing what is out there and could still be used can help a bunch.

MisterStatic wrote:
jordn613 wrote:
SommerMatt wrote:
jordn613 wrote:

I'm not totally sure if this is ok to ask in this specific thread, but I didn't know if there'd be a better place. Basically, I'm looking for some cool people in Atlanta to play some board games with. I browsed around some of the meetup.com stuff and over at BGG, but the groups tend to skew older and ideally I'm looking for people in their 20s and 30s who live closer to Midtown rather than out in the suburbs. My girlfriend also likes to play and so a better mix of genders is another reason I ask here. If anyone is in the area and would be interested (or even knows a friend in Atlanta who you think would be), please let me know!

Jordan

Sure, it's OK.

For the best chance of success, though, you should post your own threads on BGG... maybe start your OWN meetup group that fits your specifications. People go to BGG specifically to find other people to play with, so you'll definitely have a better chance of finding people there.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/forum/7...

I was a bit hesitant to post over there because the threads seemed really inclusive and I didn't want to come off the wrong way...I'm gonna give it a go, though, and see what the response is like.

Robert Solow of CSL Games (sells a lot of games in the BGG marketplace at good prices) is somebody to get to know in the ATL board game circles. If you are looking at buying a few games anyway, give his sales a look. That's probably the best way to make contact, and you might even avoid shipping if he allows direct pick-up. He is very personable and professional. I know he runs several ATL area events.

The CSL guy was good when I talked to him about a trade (that I didn't want to make).

BGG people when you ask them about games are very opinionated. But if you ask them in person "hey wanna play a game?" they are the best people in the world

Chumpy_McChump wrote:

re: card sleeving. Using penny sleeves works well, is cheap, and mostly eliminates annoyingly sharp corners on cards. Oh yeah, and they're cheap. Also, I find they perform just as well as "real" sleeves, if not better; they feel better, slide better on tables, and I've rarely had the edges on penny sleeves split, and even if they do, I've got a couple hundred more that I got for cheap. Did I mention they're cheap? ;)

Where do you pick up these penny sleeves? I hear they are cheap

Chumpy_McChump wrote:
Cragmyre wrote:

Where do you pick up these penny sleeves? I hear they are cheap :D

(Something like this, if you were serious. Should be available at your FLGS. )

Yup, was serious. Thanks. I don't have a FLGS in Franklin though so I usually do CoolStuffInc.com

Cragmyre wrote:
Chumpy_McChump wrote:
Cragmyre wrote:

Where do you pick up these penny sleeves? I hear they are cheap :D

(Something like this, if you were serious. Should be available at your FLGS. )

Yup, was serious. Thanks. I don't have a FLGS in Franklin though so I usually do CoolStuffInc.com

Voila!

Cragmyre wrote:

Where do you pick up these penny sleeves? I hear they are cheap :D

(Something like this, if you were serious. Should be available at your FLGS. )

My gaming group got a game of Eclipse in last night and it was simply fantastic. What an elegant design that gives a manageable 4X with all of the important elements you would suspect. The game ran a bit long (4.5 hours with 5 players), but I think that will improve a lot when we're not learning. Even so, there wasn't any suggestion of stopping early despite running well past midnight on a work night.

Make that number two (the other being Labyrinth) on my list of great games I was hooked on from Penguincon 2012 -- thanks guys! We're really looking forward to getting more plays of this one.
IMAGE(http://pcdn.500px.net/22209861/2cf14b59727b42e19478c7484ccb6c7b8369b53e/4.jpg)
Standing planning: that way you know it's good.

IMAGE(http://pcdn.500px.net/22209859/a7af72a397891a11bfe62a44260d014b6cf944e8/4.jpg)
Massive battle for the center. Carnage ensued.

MisterStatic wrote:
jordn613 wrote:
SommerMatt wrote:
jordn613 wrote:

I'm not totally sure if this is ok to ask in this specific thread, but I didn't know if there'd be a better place. Basically, I'm looking for some cool people in Atlanta to play some board games with. I browsed around some of the meetup.com stuff and over at BGG, but the groups tend to skew older and ideally I'm looking for people in their 20s and 30s who live closer to Midtown rather than out in the suburbs. My girlfriend also likes to play and so a better mix of genders is another reason I ask here. If anyone is in the area and would be interested (or even knows a friend in Atlanta who you think would be), please let me know!

Jordan

Sure, it's OK.

For the best chance of success, though, you should post your own threads on BGG... maybe start your OWN meetup group that fits your specifications. People go to BGG specifically to find other people to play with, so you'll definitely have a better chance of finding people there.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/forum/7...

I was a bit hesitant to post over there because the threads seemed really inclusive and I didn't want to come off the wrong way...I'm gonna give it a go, though, and see what the response is like.

Robert Solow of CSL Games (sells a lot of games in the BGG marketplace at good prices) is somebody to get to know in the ATL board game circles. If you are looking at buying a few games anyway, give his sales a look. That's probably the best way to make contact, and you might even avoid shipping if he allows direct pick-up. He is very personable and professional. I know he runs several ATL area events.

I had this same issue. I started a thread specifically for meetup gaming here and BGG. Got at least 2 people from this site but only one from BGG. I do live in an area with a much lower population though.

Gunner wrote:

My gaming group got a game of Eclipse in last night and it was simply fantastic. What an elegant design that gives a manageable 4X with all of the important elements you would suspect. The game ran a bit long (4.5 hours with 5 players), but I think that will improve a lot when we're not learning. Even so, there wasn't any suggestion of stopping early despite running well past midnight on a work night.

NICE! That looks like it was ferocious! I particularly like the serious demeanor, as well as no iDevices anywhere in sight. But the beer so close to the game does give me a shudder.

Natus wrote:
Gunner wrote:

My gaming group got a game of Eclipse in last night and it was simply fantastic. What an elegant design that gives a manageable 4X with all of the important elements you would suspect. The game ran a bit long (4.5 hours with 5 players), but I think that will improve a lot when we're not learning. Even so, there wasn't any suggestion of stopping early despite running well past midnight on a work night.

NICE! That looks like it was ferocious! I particularly like the serious demeanor, as well as no iDevices anywhere in sight. But the beer so close to the game does give me a shudder.

Provided you don't count the phone at the upper left corner of the table. (which I suppose could be an android).

I really enjoyed the 1 game of Eclipse we played earlier this year and would like to have another run through soon before I totally forget the system. IIRC there is an iOS version coming soon(ish).

Where do y'all buy your games online? Especially interested in knowing what sites Canadian Goodjers use, whether in Canada or the US or wherever shipping is good.

I've bought from Starlit Citadel, and am looking at German Boardgame Company.

Anywhere else, to maximize finding what I might be looking for?

Cragmyre wrote:
Chumpy_McChump wrote:
Cragmyre wrote:

Where do you pick up these penny sleeves? I hear they are cheap :D

(Something like this, if you were serious. Should be available at your FLGS. )

Yup, was serious. Thanks. I don't have a FLGS in Franklin though so I usually do CoolStuffInc.com

Westborough isn't far from Franklin, and these are good ppeople.

Gravey wrote:

I've bought from Starlit Citadel, and am looking at German Boardgame Company.

Those are the best two I've dealt with. GBC gives me a nice flat-rate shipping of <$10, since they're based out of southern Ontario. Starlit will give you free shipping if you're willing to spend >$175 in one shot, and they're based in Vancouver, which is closer to your neck of the woods.

Both stores have a very good selection, and are a fair amount cheaper than local stores if you order multiple items.

thejustinbot wrote:

So played Here I Stand yesterday and had an overall terrible experience overall from a few different things. First off, I ended up my a crushing headache for the last three hours which ruined things a lot. Second, the players for the Hapsburgs, Protestands, Catholics and English all would never plan out their turn during the off time while other people went. That and none of them ever seemed to grasp the rules so after ten minutes of hemming and hawing each impulse they would play a card, get halfway through the action, then realize the card didn't do what they thought it did so would take it back and start hemming and hawing about what to do again. Those things can make a 9 hour game kind frustrating, especially when we only got through 5 turns in 9 hours.

Pardon the late response. I love the game, but even that kind of experience would ruin it for me, too. It's certainly not the easiest multiplayer game to play, and the Wars of Religion on their own can have the other players pulling out their hair. Had anyone in the group played before, to act as a leader of sorts?

DanyBoy wrote:
Gravey wrote:

I've bought from Starlit Citadel, and am looking at German Boardgame Company.

Those are the best two I've dealt with. GBC gives me a nice flat-rate shipping of <$10, since they're based out of southern Ontario. Starlit will give you free shipping if you're willing to spend >$175 in one shot, and they're based in Vancouver, which is closer to your neck of the woods.

Both stores have a very good selection, and are a fair amount cheaper than local stores if you order multiple items.

I go GBC exclusively. They've been fantastic to deal with and I love their website, and they consistently have the best or near the best prices so I don't have to bother browsing. It mostly boils down to their Ontario shipping price being really good. If I were in BC, I would probably go Starlit.

For you New Yorkers, there was yesterday a $40 Battles of Westeros available at the 5th Avenue and 18th St. Barnes & Nobles at their Sale Games stand. Can't promise if it's still there, but I snagged a copy yesterday, and that's a lot of game for $40.

Natus wrote:

For you New Yorkers, there was yesterday a $40 Battles of Westeros available at the 5th Avenue and 18th St. Barnes & Nobles at their Sale Games stand. Can't promise if it's still there, but I snagged a copy yesterday, and that's a lot of game for $40.

It's definitely my favorite of the C&C/Battlelore systems, but as usual, the components and additional systems that FFG layered adds to the setup time. But the things I value most from this treatment of the system are the options with commands (you aren't limited to what you pull from a deck or roll with the dice) as well as better die distribution (in lieu of using d6). It results in always having something interesting to do on your turn and reducing the wild swings between success and failure in attack that plagued some of the other systems.

HedgeWizard wrote:
Natus wrote:

For you New Yorkers, there was yesterday a $40 Battles of Westeros available at the 5th Avenue and 18th St. Barnes & Nobles at their Sale Games stand. Can't promise if it's still there, but I snagged a copy yesterday, and that's a lot of game for $40.

It's definitely my favorite of the C&C/Battlelore systems, but as usual, the components and additional systems that FFG layered adds to the setup time. But the things I value most from this treatment of the system are the options with commands (you aren't limited to what you pull from a deck or roll with the dice) as well as better die distribution (in lieu of using d6). It results in always having something interesting to do on your turn and reducing the wild swings between success and failure in attack that plagued some of the other systems.

Agreed. I'm the last gamer to have a favorable impression of an FFG release, but I quite liked BoW the first time I played it, and I own all the other series games except BattleLore. Other design kinks can be readily excused for their bravery in trying to get rid of those "wild swings".

Natus wrote:
thejustinbot wrote:

So played Here I Stand yesterday and had an overall terrible experience overall from a few different things. First off, I ended up my a crushing headache for the last three hours which ruined things a lot. Second, the players for the Hapsburgs, Protestands, Catholics and English all would never plan out their turn during the off time while other people went. That and none of them ever seemed to grasp the rules so after ten minutes of hemming and hawing each impulse they would play a card, get halfway through the action, then realize the card didn't do what they thought it did so would take it back and start hemming and hawing about what to do again. Those things can make a 9 hour game kind frustrating, especially when we only got through 5 turns in 9 hours.

Pardon the late response. I love the game, but even that kind of experience would ruin it for me, too. It's certainly not the easiest multiplayer game to play, and the Wars of Religion on their own can have the other players pulling out their hair. Had anyone in the group played before, to act as a leader of sorts?

No one had played before though we had all read the rules. What made it worse was the guy who owned the game was the worst offender.

In happy gaming news, taught several more people Dreadball last night. Looking to gear up for a season of that at one of the local stores in February. Every is constantly impressed by how much faster it plays than Blood Bowl.

Is Dreadball available in stores yet? I know the Kickstarter backers just got the game before Xmas, yes?

Dysplastic wrote:
DanyBoy wrote:
Gravey wrote:

I've bought from Starlit Citadel, and am looking at German Boardgame Company.

Those are the best two I've dealt with. GBC gives me a nice flat-rate shipping of <$10, since they're based out of southern Ontario. Starlit will give you free shipping if you're willing to spend >$175 in one shot, and they're based in Vancouver, which is closer to your neck of the woods.

Both stores have a very good selection, and are a fair amount cheaper than local stores if you order multiple items.

I go GBC exclusively. They've been fantastic to deal with and I love their website, and they consistently have the best or near the best prices so I don't have to bother browsing. It mostly boils down to their Ontario shipping price being really good. If I were in BC, I would probably go Starlit.

Okay, looks like those two are it then. Thanks, guys.