Fantasy

Dungeon!

In many ways Dungeon! is similar to Dungeons & Dragons, although much simplified and transformed into a board game. Players explore a dungeon that is divided into levels of increasing difficulty, fighting monsters for valuable treasure. As players venture deeper into the dungeon, the monsters become more difficult and the treasure more valuable. Several character classes each have slightly different fighting abilities – most notably the wizard, who can cast spells. Combat is simulated using dice; players roll the dice to attack a monster, and if unsuccessful, the dice are rolled to determine the effect of the monster's counter-attack.

The winner is the first player to bring a certain amount of treasure back to the Dungeon's entrance.

Reimplemented by:

The Classic Dungeon
The New Dungeon

Descent: Journeys in the Dark (2nd Edition): Lair of the Wyrm

Game description from the publisher:

Descent: Journeys in the Dark (Second Edition) - Lair of the Wyrm introduces five new quests that can be played individually or used to supplement a larger campaign. With inventive objectives like rescuing survivors from a burning inn and protecting valuable ore from a greedy ettin, the Quest Guide in Lair of the Wyrm delivers fresh new challenges to your adventures.

What's more, Lair of the Wyrm brings two new heroes to the fight against the forces of evil. Reynhart the Worthy is a fearless warrior whose prowess in combat means he rarely makes mistakes. He can reroll misses once per attack, helping to ensure that every strike is righteous and true. Meanwhile, High Mage Quellen is a master of body and mind, and is able to quickly recover from exertions that would devastate lesser men. Quellen has developed the ability to feed off the fatigue of those around him, gaining strength where his fellows fail.

But even as the heroes of Terrinoth gain new allies and tactics, their great enemy silently grows in sinister power. In addition to the Wyrm Queen herself, a fearsome Dragon Lord lieutenant seemingly formed from solidified flame, the Overlord gains two new monsters: mischievous and destructive Fire Imps, and flying Hybrid Sentinels...half-dragon monstrosities with a cruel penchant for preying on the weak. The Overlord's new advantages are not limited to his minions, however. His new available class, Punisher, specializes in making heroes pay for every inch they advance. With abilities like Trading Pains and Exploit Weakness, the Punisher class will make the hero players flinch with fear every time something seems to go their way.

Mice and Mystics

Game description from the publisher:

In Mice and Mystics players take on the roles of those still loyal to the king – but to escape the clutches of Vanestra, they have been turned into mice! Play as cunning field mice who must race through a castle now twenty times larger than before. The castle would be a dangerous place with Vanestra's minions in control, but now countless other terrors also await heroes who are but the size of figs. Play as nimble Prince Collin and fence your way past your foes, or try Nez Bellows, the burly smith. Confound your foes as the wizened old mouse Maginos, or protect your companions as Tilda, the castle's former healer. Every player will have a vital role in the quest to warn the king, and it will take careful planning to find Vanestra's weakness and defeat her.

Mice and Mystics is a cooperative adventure game in which the players work together to save an imperiled kingdom. They will face countless adversaries such as rats, cockroaches, and spiders, and of course the greatest of all horrors: the castle's housecat, Brodie. Mice and Mystics is a boldly innovative game that thrusts players into an ever-changing, interactive environment, and features a rich storyline that the players help create as they play the game. The Cheese System allows players to hoard the crumbs of precious cheese they find on their journey, and use it to bolster their mice with grandiose new abilities and overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.

Mice and Mystics will provide any group of friends with an unforgettable adventure they will be talking about for years to come – assuming they can all squeak by...

Expansion advice:

For those who have expansions for this game the recommended order by the game designer for playing them is as follows (see original post HERE):

Sorrow and Remembrance (Base game)
Cat's Cradle (Lost Chapter 1)
Heart of Glorm
The Ghost of Castle Andon (Lost Chapter 2)

Claustrophobia

Claustrophobia is a dungeon crawl, miniatures based game set within the universe of Hell Dorado.

The box contains pre-painted miniatures which are placed on large tiles showing the dungeon spaces. Also included are character boards, dice, counters and markers, and dice.

One player controls a small group of determined Humans, while the other plays an almost unending army of demonic creatures.
The game is thematic and highly asymmetric: human characters are stronger, but the demon characters are more numerous.
Gameplay is very straightforward with a minimum of rules, and each game plays in an hour or less.
In essence dice are allocated after rolling to perform actions, while cards or special abilities are also available. The game is about managing decisions and choosing what to do with the resources that you have, managing difficult events and out-thinking your opponent. Combat is handled by dice.
Complexity is low, with the focus on theme and building towards a tense, climactic ending.
Claustrophobia is played through scenarios of which there are several in the rulebook. Generally speaking the human characters are attempting to complete a task (e.g. escape the catacombs, close a portal) while the demons are focussed on stopping them.
There are varying win conditions depending on the scenario chosen.
Many more scenarios are available at http://www.claustrophobia-theboardgame.com/en/?cat=8

Lyssan

It is an empire of changing flags. The old crown fell, and many stepped forward to claim it. That was two centuries ago.

Now the barons and the princes swear loyalty to whichever claimant-emperor garrisons the nearest army today. The clergy sell their sermons for the highest bidder, and spies whisper promises to mercenary generals.

You are the one true ruler of the broken Empire of Lyssan, and it's up to you to put the pretenders (the other players) in their place before their endless squabbling tears your nation apart. You (and others) will attempt to take control by using castles, knights, nobles, priests, and spies:

Knights hold territory and fight masterfully.
Nobles hold territory, support priests, and fight poorly.
Castles hold territory, spawn new units, and protect knights and nobles.
Priests manipulate influence and support spies.
Spies assassinate priests and other spies, and have the devastating power to steal other players' court cards.

Lyssan is an intense board game of strategy, cooperation, and betrayal for two to four players. The winner is the player who claims the most trophies, and each trophy can only be claimed by a single player. One trophy card might call for the player to control the most mines, the next to have most spies deployed, and the next to have the most sophisticated court. An upcoming trophy is revealed each turn, requiring strength, cunning, and adaptability to win.

Lyssan combines tightly designed euro-style rules with the interactivity and flavor of an epic wargame. Lyssan has slim rules comparable to many family friendly games. Yet the play is as rich and interactive as the crunchiest, most grognard-friendly wargames. And Lyssan plays fast. A typical game of Lyssan runs a full hour quicker than comparable games.

Lyssan combines:
A map to be conquered (like Risk)...
...with a few different unit types that act a few different ways each (like Chess or Diplomacy) ...
...with cards that let players pull off devastating surprise moves or permanently improve their abilities. To play one card, you discard others. (Like Race for the Galaxy) These cards can be very powerful, but they can also be stolen by spies. The whole landscape of the game can change in the blink of an eye as ownership of a card changes hands. Get one of your spies into a rival's castle, and you can take over his improvements or turn his own followers against him.

All interrupting effects have been stripped out of the game, so each player can complete their turn quickly, without waiting for the others. The game has been designed from the start to allow timed play, like a tournament chess match. This is good for players who want extra-brisk play, or who just have one slowpoke at the table who needs to be reined in.