Dice Rolling

Sentinel Tactics: The Flame of Freedom is a tactical combat game that uses a hex grid map to represent terrain. Each player controls one or more heroes or villains, each of which has unique powers. Combat is based on the rolling of six-sided dice. Whereas Sentinels of the Multiverse is a fully cooperative game, Sentinel Tactics is a team-based game. Groups of players will cooperate against either a villain player or against another team of players, so while the game is competitive, cooperation and teamwork are still vital to the gameplay.

Theme:
"In the untamed wild, villains lurk in wait, terrors haunt dark lairs, tradesfolk seek riches, and heroes come to prove their valor." As the mayor of a frontier town, you stand in the center, eyeing the roads for talent and trouble. Will you take on challenges or hire help, develop your town or command its heroes? Your strategies, risks, and fortune can transform your village into a thriving city or forgotten ruins.

Overview:
Villagers and Villains is a card game with over 100 unique cards. The game is played over several rounds. Each round has 6 distinct Phases. During each Phase, all players (Mayors) have a chance to take specific actions. The Mayor who builds the most successful village wins.

Game play:
Villagers and Villains is a building game. In the 1st phase players recruit cards from a common pool neutral to all players. 4 classes of cards could appear in the pool: Challenges, citizens, buildings, and heroes. Each card has different game play applications and different effects on end scoring. In the 2nd phase each player has a chance to defend their town from challenges. In the 3rd phase challenges loot towns left unprotected. The 4th phase is when each town earns money. In the 5th phase money can be spent to expand a town by hiring heroes and citizens or creating buildings. The final phase resets the board for a new round of phases. The starting player changes and rounds continue until a town reaches a fixed size. At that time the game is scored.

Goal:
In the end each town is scored based on a variety of facets and features. Players have to assess which facet will score the most points as the game is played--and circumstances dictate.

Features:
The game ships with a basic and advanced version for experienced and novice gamers and special 2-player game rules. In the advanced game players gain access to the king's favor, special card powers, and pairing options for final scoring. In addition, the home site offers a variety of rules variations for added game play. While chance plays a part in the game (via a die-roll for certain elements) choices in recruiting, and how to use town's abilities and resources play a large role.

The game includes:
100 different playing cards (challenges, citizens, heroes, buildings)
10 starting cards (5 citizens, 5 angry mobs)
5 player aid cards
a die
1 kings favor token
1 start marker
1 score pad
2 punch-out sheets of gold coin tokens
rules sheet.

The Eighth Edition is finely produced with thick cardboard counters and a sturdy thick game board. The rules are in full color (with cartoon) and very well done. This humorously entertaining game pits two players against each other aboard a spaceship. One plays the ship's crew, trying to kill the evil and rapidly-multiplying aliens controlled by his opponent. And although the crew members have several weapons available to them, they don't know what effect those weapons will have until they try using them in combat against the Awful Green Things. Originally appeared in the Dragon magazine #28. The Outside the Znutar expansion, published in Dragon magazine #40, is included in the box in the Steve Jackson Games versions of the game.

A similar but more serious game is The Wreck of the B.S.M. Pandora.

Supplemental articles were published in TSR's Dragon Magazine including:

"The Awful Green Things From Outer Space" Tom Wham - Issue 28 (page 26)
Addenda "Outside the Znutar" Tom Wham - Issue 40 (insert)

Prophecy (originally released as Proroctví) is a Talisman-style game by Czech designer Vladimír Chvátil. The players represent fantasy characters on a path through a land full of adventure with the goal of grabbing ancient artifacts from the claws of demons guarding the surrounding astral realms.

Instead of rolling dice to move around the game board, players in Prophecy use a variety of means of transport. The game includes an experience system and loads of skills and spells that your character can learn. A large number of monsters that you can meet and fight also await you, as do random events that will keep taxing your abilities because after you cast a spell or lose a fight, your strength or willpower declines until it is recharged by healing.

Whoever holds four of the five hidden artifacts wins the game and becomes the next king of the land.

Expanded by:

Prophecy: Dragon Realm (2003)
Prophecy: Water Realm (2006)

Pyramid Arcade is a compilation of 22 games that can be played with "Looney Pyramids" and assorted other components. Looney Pyramids are colored pyramids in three sizes that can nest together.

The plan for Pyramid Arcade is to focus on games that can be played with three or fewer trees of each color, and include ten colors of pyramids (ninety in all). Pyramid Arcade will also include numerous boards, nine dice, and a rulebook explaining all the games.

The individual games are:

Black Ice
Color Wheel
Give or Take
Hijinks (aka Pink Hijinks)
Homeworlds
IceDice
IceTowers
Launchpad 23
Looney Ludo (aka Martian Coasters)
Lunar Invaders
Martian Chess
Petal Battle
Petri Dish
Powerhouse
Pharaoh
Pyramid Shambo
Treehouse
Twin Win
Verticality
Volcano (aka Fiesta Caldera)
World War 5
Zark City