Additions
- Mystic Vale
- Vale of the Wild
- Through the Ages 2nd edition (the ugly one)
- Nmbr 9
Removals
- Played Mystic Vale
- Played Nmbr 9
- Played Bob Ross: The Art of Chill
Net Change: +1
New Number: 28
Board Games Magic Number: July 2018
Board Games Magic Number: June 2018
Additions
- Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition
- T.I.M.E. Stories
Removals
- Played Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition
Net Change: +1
New Number: 27
Board Games Magic Number: April 2018
Addition
- Bob Ross: The Art of Chill
Net Change: +1
New Number: 26
Board Games Magic Number: March 2018
Addition
- High Command Rapid Engagement
Net Change: +1
New Number: 25
Board Games Magic Number: Year One
It has been a full year since I started tracking my board games magic number and sadly the number has actually increased by one. I suppose that is nearly the same as not changing but the idea was to decrease towards zero instead. I got in a lot more total plays in 2017 than 2016 (increased from 94 plays of 39 games to 154 plays of 89 games) but the bulk of those were my weekly game night with several other people who rabidly buy new games also so we tend to play something new every week but not usually my games.
I think my top targets to get off my list this year are the following:
Rivet Wars: Eastern Front
I picked this up at half price on Amazon in early 2016 or so but don’t get a chance to play two player games much. I saw another FLGS regular had his painted copy on the table recently which makes me more confident that it is a fun game.
Bootleggers
This was the first game I bought based on hearing about it on The Secret Cabal podcast. How could I pass up a game with tiny trucks hauling tiny cases of whiskey?
Book Review: Ire of the Void
I finally broke down and paid what I felt was too much money for such a slim volume, the lure of special alternate investigator cards for the Arkham Horror living card game finally drew me in. I was long overdue to read fluff about the characters in the game however and this was still cheaper than buying the The Investigators of Arkham Horror (although I really want to pick that one up, too).
The story was probably more enjoyable to read for me since I have played quite a few of the board games in the Arkham Files series. For example I had seen the Hounds of Tindalos in various games but it was fun to read about them here. The plot wasn’t great but it was passable. It did at least give some good insight into the Norman Withers character which will add another layer to the role playing aspect of the game when I use his alternate cards that came with the book. Fantasy Flight seems to have a good business model of bundling special cards for the game with a slightly overpriced hardcover novella. I am not the only gamer who has been enticed by the thought of getting a new investigator this way before they are released in the actual game.
Quick Book Review: Annihilation
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
This was a very intriguing story like nothing I have read before. I am not even sure how to categorize it at this point. I need to write a more detailed review but one of the key aspects of the book is apparently ignored in the movie that was just released: the complete lack of character names. I think that the intentional lack of character names in the book was important and added a lot to the story. In fact after reading the book I was surprised that someone decided to make a movie from it as I don’t see any way that a movie could possibly do justice to the book due in large part to the fact that the book was a first person account where a lot of the story took place strictly in the narrator’s mind.
Board Games Magic Number: February 2018
Additions
- Fallout
- Icehouse
- Imploding Kittens
- Unlock: The House on the Hill
- Unlock: The Formula
Removals
- Played First Martians
- Played Fallout
Net Change: +3
New Number: 24
Board Games Magic Number: January 2018
Additions
- Bought First Martians: Adventures on the Red Planet
- Bought The Grizzled: At Your Orders!
Removals
- Played Doughnut Drive-Thru
- Played Cytosis: A Cell Building Game
- Played The Grizzled
- Played The Grizzled: At Your Orders!
Net Change: -2
New Number: 21
Board Games Magic Number: 2017 Catch-Up
I can’t believe I went eight months without posting an update for my magic number. Actually I forgot to press the publish button on the May 2017 post so it didn’t even go live until February.
That being said I was at least posting monthly updates on the BGG geeklist each month so I was able to harvest those updates so I could catch up in this post. The end of June saw the magic number at 21.
July 2017
No updates
August 2017
- Received Tiny Epic Quest, played same day
September 2017
No updates
October 2017
- 10/22 played Martian Dice
Net Change: -1
Current Number: 20
November 2017
Additions
- 11/1 Cytosis: A Cell Building Game from Kickstarter
- 11/3 Food Truck Champion from Kickstarter
- 11/25 Doughnut Drive-Thru
Removals
- 11/25 played Food Truck Champion
Net Change: +2
New Number: 22
December 2017
Additions
- The Grizzled
Net Change: +1
New Number: 23
Board Games Magic Number: June 2017
It is time for another update to my 2017 magic number.
Add to List
6/8 Bought Letters from Whitechapel
6/23 Bought Kamisado
6/23 Bought Martian Dice
Remove from List
n/a
Net Change: +3
Current Number: 21
Review: Goblintown Justice
Goblintown Justice by Matt Forbeck
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this short story which I happened to discover as a free download somewhere. It felt like a police procedural (I think?) but in a fantasy setting. It was well enough written that I am interested in reading the first full novel in the Shotguns & Sorcery series Hard Times in Dragon City
Review: A Monster Calls
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
We recently started a small book club at work and this was our second monthly read. For the most part I only read YA when it is a group selection like this and it is definitely outside of my wheelhouse. I felt like I knew what was coming at a macro level but the details of how it unfolded were still interesting. The writing style was pretty good and I liked the integration of the illustrations.
There isn’t a lot of space for character development in such a short work but I felt that Conor was still interesting. The book was good but not great and was definitely worth my time to read (since it didn’t take all that long).
Review: The Walking Dead, Vol. 16: A Larger World
The Walking Dead, Vol. 16: A Larger World by Robert Kirkman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
While there was a lot of monologue in this installment I didn’t feel that it was too much. Most good stories seem to have an ebb and flow between action and exposition and TWD is no exception. I was initially reading the comics a bit ahead if the TV show which was interesting but now that I have fallen really far behind it is still interesting to see how the two stories diverge.
Review: The Eltingville Club
The Eltingville Club by Evan Dorkin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Outstanding work as always. All the great early stuff is still awesome. I really enjoyed the final chapter of the club even if I am embarrassed that it took me two years after publication to finally read it. I still consider myself very lucky to have gotten a signed Milk & Cheese piece of art from Evan himself at one of his last SDCC appearances.
If you like irreverent humor then you will love this book, it really spears the annoying side of geek culture right in the balls.
