Dice Rolling

Mystery of the Templars

For 200 years, the Knights Templar were a powerful political and economic force, helping to shape Europe during the Middle Ages. Founded to protect pilgrims on their journeys to the Holy Land, the "poor comrades-in-arms of Christ and the Temple of Solomon" would eventually grow a network of strongholds ("Commanderies") throughout the Christian world, where novice knights were trained, and trade goods could be managed and exchanged. By 1307, the “poor comrades-in-arms” were one of the richest organizations in Europe: one that would attract the covetous eyes of the French king.

In The Mystery of the Templars, players become the masters of this secretive organization. They must assign their knights to the critical task of escorting pilgrims, but also to seek out and discover long-lost artifacts of Christian lore. Using their holdings in the Holy Land, they procure valuable trade goods, which must then be transported to the hungry markets of Europe, using the profits to expand the Order’s holdings. But along the way brigands and pirates threaten the flow of goods and wealth, and must be challenged by valorous knights to safeguard the precious caravans and trade ships. To be successful, the players must balance the needs of trade, development, and battle.

In time, the powerful enemies of the Templars will strike, beginning the Persecution which will eventually cause the destruction of the Order. In those last desperate days, the players must flee from their Commanderies with all the wealth and relics they can carry, seeking refuge in the farthest corners of the world. The player who can best manage the resources of the Order during the days of wealth, and who can rescue the most important relics from the Persecution, will be the victor in The Mystery of the Templars.

Doom That Came To Atlantic City

Game description from the publisher:

You're one of the Great Old Ones – beings of ancient and eldritch power. Cosmic forces have held you at bay for untold aeons, but at last the stars are right and your maniacal cult has called you to this benighted place. Once you regain your full powers, you will unleash your Doom upon the world!

There's only one problem: You're not alone. The other Great Old Ones are here as well, and your rivals are determined to steal your cultists and snatch victory from your flabby claws! It's a race to the ultimate finish as you crush houses, smash holes in reality, and fight to call down The Doom That Came To Atlantic City!

You and your fellow players are Great Old Ones competing to be the first to destroy the world. There are two ways to achieve this:

Any Great Old One can win by obtaining six gates, at which point the game instantly ends. You have only five gate markers because if you open a sixth gate, you win!

At the start of the game, each Great Old One receives a Doom card providing a shortcut to victory. If you land on one of your gates and meet the preconditions, you may attempt the action listed on your Doom. If you succeed, you win!

Firefly: The Game

Players begin with a ship, and travel from planet to planet, hiring crew, purchasing ship upgrades, and picking up cargo to deliver (jobs) all in the form of cards. Some crew and cargo are illegal, and can be confiscated if your ship is boarded by an alliance vessel. Travelling from planet to planet requires turning over "full burn" cards, one for each space moved. Most do nothing, but you can also encounter an Alliance ship, have a breakdown, or even run into Reavers. Completing jobs gets you cash. First player to complete the story goals wins.

Game description from the publisher:

In Firefly: The Game – based on the popular Firefly television series created by Joss Whedon – players captain their own Firefly-class transport ship, traveling the 'Verse with a handpicked crew of fighters, mechanics and other travelers. As a captain desperate for work, players are compelled to take on any job — so long as it pays. Double-dealing employers, heavy-handed Alliance patrols, and marauding Reavers are all in a day's work for a ship's captain at the edge of the 'Verse. Firefly: The Game is a high-end thematic tabletop boardgame from Gale Force Nine (GF9) and the first in a series of tabletop hobby board games and miniatures games from GF9 set in the Firefly Universe.

Mousquetaires du Roy

"Mousquetaires du Roy" is based on the novel "The three Musketeers" from Alexandre Dumas.

The Musketeers (a team of one to four players) are fighting against Milady to find the Queen's pendants before the end of the game. Meanwhile, they also have to defeat the plots in several places (Le Louvre, La Rochelle...).

A turn begins with Milady playing plots/cards, and secretely programming a destination.

Then, each musketeer (D'artagnan, Portos, Aramis or Athos) has 3/4 actions to perform amongst: move, draw a card, get equipments, exchange cards/equipments, do a challenge in one of his 4 characteristics, perform a fight against one of Richelieu's guards, reinforce La Rochelle... Milady can reveal herself and send Rochefort to fight the Musketeers.

The game also includes rules for an AI-controlled Milady and can therefore be played as a pure coöp.

One against all, all against one.

Essen 2010 release.

BioShock Infinite: The Siege of Columbia

In the tabletop game BioShock Infinite: The Siege of Columbia, players will play as either the Founders or the Vox Populi and will build up an army to fight for control of Columbia by taking ground and completing important objectives. At the same time, they'll be using their influence to sway various events that arise. They'll also find themselves having to deal with Booker and Elizabeth who are running around Columbia creating havoc.

Bioshock Infinite: The Siege of Columbia has players combating one another, stealing objectives from one another, assassinating leaders, destroying strongholds, bidding against each other for control of unfolding events and more. The first player/team to 10 victory points wins.

The board game, based in the universe of the Irrational Games-developed video game BioShock Infinite, comes with 52 miniatures, cards, dice and a colorful game board. One of those miniatures – the Handyman – comes with the Premium and Ultimate Songbird editions of the video game, however this item was a promotional element to get news of the game out there and no rules have been implemented for this figure.

For additional assistance with the rules you can see the FAQ located here http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1030558/bioshock-infinite-faq or contact Colby on the Plaid Hat Games website.