Wargame

Monsters Menace America

As a giant monster, stomping cities is what you do. But now, other giant monsters are moving in on your turf - and you have to put a stop to that. Through a bizarre twist of fate, a branch of the military has decided to focus all its firepower on the other monsters. While your rivals are busy trampling tanks and swatting fighter jets, you'll be out there growing in power and infamy - getting ready for the Monster Challenge. In the end, when the dust settles and the radiation fades, the last creature standing will be crowned King of the Giant Monsters!

Each player is one of six Giant Monsters, stomping across a map of the USA in search of cities to destroy. The monsters run the gamut from the classic (enormous lizards and gargantuan apes) to the slightly more unconventional (giant walking eyeball), and each has its own set of attributes and powers.

Ingeniously, everyone also controls an arm of the military, which can be used to attack and weaken the other monsters on the board. It's a losing battle for the militia -- monsters can wipe out military bases and reduce the total number of forces available to each player -- but you can get a few good licks in early in the game.The battle escalates until the 20th city is reduced to rubble. At that time, all the monsters duke it out in a free-for-all, mano-a-clawo Monster Challenge; when the dust settles, the last monster standing is declared the winner.

This game is a reworking of Monsters Ravage America.

Key differences between this version and the original game include: getting rid of money in favor of a set number of units each turn, streamlined combat (two rounds in the new edition as opposed to three), removal of "bad" cards from the Research and Mutation decks (along with a few new cards from some of the unofficial expansions), removal of terrain effects on the board, miscellaneous balance tweaks between the military branches and the monsters.

Game of Thrones: The Board Game (2nd Edition)

Game description from the publisher:

King Robert Baratheon is dead, and the lands of Westeros brace for battle.

In the second edition of A Game of Thrones: The Board Game, three to six players take on the roles of the great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, as they vie for control of the Iron Throne through the use of diplomacy and warfare. Based on the best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels by George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones is an epic board game in which it will take more than military might to win. Will you take power through force, use honeyed words to coerce your way onto the throne, or rally the townsfolk to your side? Through strategic planning, masterful diplomacy, and clever card play, spread your influence over Westeros!

To begin the game, each player receives an army of Footman, Knight, Siege Engine, and Ship units, as well as a set of Order tokens and other necessary components. Each player also receives a deck of unique House Cards, which are used as leaders in battles against rival Houses.

Each round in the game is made up of three phases: the Westeros Phase, the Planning Phase, and the Action Phase. The Westeros Phase represents special events and day-to-day activities in Westeros. There are three different Westeros Decks, and each denotes a different global action, potentially affecting all players.

The Planning Phase is perhaps the most important. Here you secretly assign orders to all of your units by placing one order token face down on each area you control that contains at least one unit (Knight, Footman, Ship, or Siege Engine). This portion of the game emphasizes diplomacy and deduction. Can you trust the alliance that you made? Will you betray your ally and march upon him? Players may make promises to each other (for aid or peace, for example), but these promises are never binding. The result is tense and compelling negotiations, often ending in backstabbing worthy of Westeros!

During the Action Phase, the orders are resolved and battle is entered! When armies meet in combat, they secretly choose one of their House cards to add strength to the battle. Finally, the Houses can consolidate their power in the areas they control and use that power in future turns to influence their position in the court of the Iron Throne and to stand against the wildling Hordes.

In addition to featuring updated graphics and a clarified ruleset, this second edition of A Game of Thrones includes elements from the A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords expansions, including ports, garrisons, Wildling cards, and Siege engines, while introducing welcome new innovations like player screens and Tides of Battle cards.

Tides of Battle cards are an optional mechanism that brings an element of unpredictability to combat, representing erratic shifts in the momentum of war due to factors such as weather, morale, and tactical opportunity. During each combat, both players draw one Tides of Battle card from a communal deck, and its value modifies the strength of his chosen House card. What's more, such a card may also contain icons that can affect the outcome of the battle...all of which delivers a new level of intensity to your military engagements.

Expanded by:

A Game of Thrones: The Board Game (Second Edition) – A Dance with Dragons (2012)
A Game of Thrones: The Board Game (Second Edition) – A Feast for Crows (2013)

Reimplements:

A Game of Thrones (first edition) (2003)
A Game of Thrones: A Clash of Kings Expansion (2004)
A Game of Thrones: A Storm of Swords Expansion (2006)

BattleLore: Dwarven Battalion Specialist Pack

From the publisher's blog:

This will be our first two Specialist packs: a Dwarven Battalion and a Goblin Skirmishers set. These packs introduce new units to the game, along with the Specialist and Weapon summary cards necessary to field them. For now, let’s just say that they will significantly alter your game.

Contents:

4 Iron Dwarf Bagpipers
8 Iron Dwarf Spear Bearers (16 more are found in BattleLore: Scottish Wars)
8 Iron Dwarf Axe Swingers (8 more are found in BattleLore: Bearded Brave)
14 banners
2×1 Green Bagpiper
2×1 Blue Bagpiper
2×1 Red Bagpiper
2×2 Axe Swingers
2×2 Spear Bearers

4-page Rules booklet with 2 new adventures
3 Specialist cards (Iron Dwarves Axe Swingers, Bagpipers, Spear Bearers)
3 Weapon Summary cards (Bagpiper, Battle Axe, Spear Bearer)

Expands:

BattleLore

BattleLore: Goblin Skirmishers Specialist Pack

The second of two specialist pack releases. Each Specialist Pack introduces 20 new figures and each unit type has new Specialist and Weapon summary cards that detail the fighting capabilities for these forces on the battlefield. Each pack also adds 2 new Adventures that feature the new figures, as well as additional Banners to deploy them within either camp.

Contents:

20 figures
1 Goblin Band Leader (also in BattleLore: Goblin Marauders Specialist Pack)
3 Goblin Drummers (also in BattleLore: Goblin Marauders Specialist Pack)
8 Hobgoblin Spear Bearers
8 Goblin Slingers

10 banners
2×1 Band
2×2 Slingers
2×2 Spear Bearer

4-page Rules Booklet with 2 new adventures
4 Specialist cards (Goblin Band, Goblin Drummers, Goblin Slingers, Hobgoblin Spear Bearers)
4 Weapon Summary cards (Bass Drum, Goblin Drum, Sling, Spear Bearer)

Expands:

BattleLore

BattleLore: Goblin Marauders Specialist Pack

The third specialist pack release (and 2nd expansion for goblins) for BattleLore. This Specialist Pack introduces new figures and each unit type has new Specialist and Weapon summary cards that detail the fighting capabilities for these forces on the battlefield. Each pack also adds additional Banners to deploy them within either camp.

The Goblin Marauders pack features 16 figures including the Goblin Band and mounted Hobgoblins - the Hyena Riders and Ostrich Riders, plus 2 new Adventures.

Contents:

16 figures:
1 Goblin Band Leader (also in BattleLore: Goblin Skirmishers Specialist Pack)
3 Goblin Drummers (also in BattleLore: Goblin Skirmishers Specialist Pack)
6 Hobgoblin Hyena Riders
6 Hobgoblin Ostrich Riders

10 banners (5 for each camp)
2×1 Band
2×2 Green Reflex Bow
2×2 Blue Reflex Bow

4-page Rules Booklet, including 2 new adventures
4 Specialist cards (Goblin Band, Goblin Drummers, Goblin Marauders (2))
3 Weapon Summary cards (Bass Drum, Goblin Drum, Reflex Bow)
1 Unit Summary card (Hyena Riders)

Expands:

BattleLore