Wrath of Ashardalon board game!

[MerricB]

This might not qualify as "Ameritrash" since it features "cooperative game play" (or is that just one of the ways to play it?).

Only way from what I know.

Cheers!

 

[mach1.9pants]

This might not qualify as "Ameritrash" since it features "cooperative game play" (or is that just one of the ways to play it?).

Thanks for increasing my vocabulary, made me laugh! How cliché

Yanks trashy, style over substance and not co-operative
Euros refined, balanced and posh.. hahaha

 

[Steel_Wind]

This might not qualify as "Ameritrash" since it features "cooperative game play" (or is that just one of the ways to play it?).

Principal indicia of Ameritrash, imo, is:

• Conflict
• Heavy Theme
• Luck plays a significant role
• Lots of Chrome and Fiddly Bits

My guess is that the conflict theme is there and very significant. It still counts as conflict when you are killing monsters. Just because it's a co-op game, doesn't mean you aren't explicitly killing things (and taking their stuff).

Dice? Hell yes - it uses a D20!

Theme is assumed.

As for fiddly bits? Minis and tiles most DEFINITELY qualifies; indeed, chrome appears to be a major selling point in all of WotC's new spread of D&Desque boardgames.

Arkham Horror is most definitely Ameritrash, though it is one of the best co-op games there is. Michael Barnes certainly embraced it as Ameritrash, so I'm not going to lose my Ameritrash Geek badge for calling it one.

The main reason, imo, Arkham Horror is classic Ameritrash is all the fiddly bits and chrome + deep theme. (A FFG specialty.) Rarely a noun in the manual that doesn't have a chit or a counter associated with it.

Compare it to, say, Caylus. 'Nuff said.

 

[Matrix Sorcica]

Are these going to be recycled DDM molds or whole new figures?

Recycled, it seems from these (bad) pictures of some of the Castle Ravenloft minis.

 

[Mark]

Recycled, it seems from these (bad) pictures of some of the Castle Ravenloft minis.

Too bad. That's going to make a $65.00 price tag hard to justify for me if the game isn't very good. Hopefully the dungeon tiles will be all new at least.

 

[Steel_Wind]

As far as boardgames go, that's not a bad price. You will probably be able to pick it up for $40-50 online. I think that's fair.

War of the Ring was a $60-75 game. Admittedly more plastic, but repetitive sculpts. (Great game though)

Looking at Battlelore, the Days of Wonder version had a lot of smaller scale minis - but there so many that FFG can't even make the game in smaller numbers now for a retial cost of less than $150. Hence, their rebranding the game with a whole new theme and full production run as Battles of Westeros.

I don't think it's fair to judge the "value" in this boardgame as a game to just borg for parts for use in RPG play. Now - it's totally reasonable to do so if that's your only purpose in buying it -- not arguing that -- but subjective value for RPG use and objective value as a boardgame are two different things.

Objectively assessed by the standards of the marketplace the game is aimed at, it seems to have more than enough chrome to justify the price tag, imo.

Whether it's a good game or not? That remains to be seen.

Love or hate 4E, Mike Mearls is an talented game designer who had demonstrated skill at developing clever and elegant game mechanics. (The issue of whether you approve of the intention of the design of 4E or not is a completely separate argument.) So I'm hopeful, especially as he is such a fan of Arkham Horror, which is one of my favorite games. (You can even play Arkham Horror solo)

FWIW though, the admittedly heavily Eurogame biased BGG seems not terribly interested in Ravenloft or this game at this juncture. That isn't necessarily a big deal right now and matters may prove otherwise on the game's release, Nevertheless, it does speak to the anti-D&D bias that a lot of the people on BGG have (I'm not saying it's a rational bias -- simply that it is there). Hence, my concern over the HUGE decision to D&D brand the game in the manner that they have.

Did you ever give Tide of Iron a try Mark?

 

[Mark]

I don't think it's fair to judge the "value" in this boardgame as a game to just borg for parts for use in RPG play.

I'm glad I you're not in control of my budget.

Whether it's a good game or not? That remains to be seen.

I've stated the essentially same.

Mike Mearls is an talented game designer who had demonstrated skill at developing clever and elegant game mechanics.

That's not a universal opinion. The 3.X era work he did was prolific though I am not sure much of it stands the test of time. Some people like his work on Iron Heroes but I'm not sure that gained much traction either. I won't bother getting into a discussion regarding your like or dislike of 4E, as that has nothing to do with the "flavor" reference I made above (AFAIAC) and I don't intend to allow an edition war to screw up another thread or discussion.

Did you ever give Tide of Iron a try Mark?

Nope. My days of playing modern-themed games are mostly gone. I stick with pre-gunpowder-themed games mostly with a specific exception for games with tall ships. I have played War of the Ring, Battlelore, and Arkham Horror.

 

[BryonD]

The 3.X era work he did was prolific though I am not sure much of it stands the test of time.

I think most of it stands up very well. Just my opinion.

Some people like his work on Iron Heroes but I'm not sure that gained much traction either. I won't bother getting into a discussion regarding your like or dislike of 4E, as that has nothing to do with the "flavor" reference I made above (AFAIAC) and I don't intend to allow an edition war to screw up another thread or discussion.

I *don't* really care for IH.

But that's the fault of 4E.

Ha.

Honestly, it is not remotely edition war. I really think that IH was still very incomplete when WotC came knocking on Mike's door and so IH was never truly finished.

 

[Steel_Wind]

I'm glad I you're not in control of my budget.

You knew what I meant.

That's not a universal opinion.

I'm iffy on Iron Heroes too. Actually, no I'm not. I plain don't like it.

My point was with reference to his development of mechnics, however, and not necessarily with the flavor, or implementation, as such.

Nope. My days of playing modern-themed games are mostly gone. I stick with pre-gunpowder-themed games mostly with a specific exception for games with tall ships. I have played War of the Ring, Battlelore, and Arkham Horror.

Yes I recall our Wooden Ships and Iron Men game that didn't happen at Gencon a few years back.

I updated Wooden Ships and Iron Men with elements of Fighting Sail, actually, as part of a home brew. Not many huge changes, but the big one I stole from Fighting Sail is that I changed the battlefield from hexes to squares. This sounds a little counterintuitive, until you realize that the Square can easily be used on the diagonal to give you 8 directions instead of just the four. Add in the diagonals and you get a bearing of North-East, easy peasy. It's more satisfying, imo.

Play it on a deep ocean mat with a square grid using constructible ship minis from Pirates of the Spanish Main? It's pretty neat.

Still, I have difficulty in persuading guys in my RPG group to play Battlelore, (or Tide of Iron) let alone something as esoteric as a Napoleonic era / American Revolutionary War sea battle wargame.

Anyways, point of Tide of Iron is that they have these cool bases to insert your squad minis into, which also have a hook on the base so you can stick a counter in it to use as a marker. Add in all the cards and terrain and the maps pieces they have in the box (and expansions) and it is an exceptionally cool boardgame with a deep WW2 theme. (To be clear, it is still a boardgame -- it doesn't have sufficient granularity to be termed a "wargame", imo.)

Whatever the case, Tide of Iron has just about the best "chrome" of any Fantasy Flight Boardgame (and that's saying a lot as they make some very cool products.). Mind you, it is an expensive game. *nods*

And now we've gone way astray from the thread topic so I'll just shut up now

 

[Mark]

I guess the comparison to Descent is most apt, because of the tiles and minis involved. I wonder, however, how game play will compare with Tomb. And since I brought it up, does anyone have Tomb: Cryptmaster?