Each player controls a colony of ants in Marabunta. On a turn, the active player rolls the six dice, then splits them into two groups. The opponent chooses and uses the dice in one of the groups, then the active player uses the remaining dice.
20 Strong is a new deck-based game system from Chip Theory Games, capable of being played in about 30 minutes or less. We say “game system” because the idea behind 20 Strong is a small nucleus of simple, adaptable rules that can then be applied to a variety of unique decks, each with their own set of mechanics. We are launching 20 Strong with three such decks – one set in the world of Too Many Bones, one set in Hoplomachus: Victorum, and one in the new universe of the space-faring Solar Sentinels. We have more decks in development and plan to release them regularly if our customers are excited by them. For now, 20 Strong is a solo-only game, but even that could differ in future decks using the ruleset.
The object of a game of 20 Strong is to progress through a shuffled deck of cards, each card bearing a unique challenge. This challenge could be in the form of an enemy, a unique scenario, or some other requirement (for example, players of the Too Many Bones deck might expect to see a Lockpicking challenge or two). Challenges usually require a certain number of successes to complete, which you earn by rolling a set of 17 dice with different odds for a hit (these dice, along with three adjustable stat dice, make up the “20” in 20 Strong).
If you roll enough successes, you complete a card’s challenge and gain its rewards. If you don’t, you take damage and move on to the next card – unless, of course, your HP stat is reduced to 0, costing you the game. If you manage to make it through an entire deck, you take on one of the deck’s final bosses, attempting to score enough hits against this powerful enemy to claim ultimate victory.
Of course, it’s never so easy that you’d want to spend all of your dice on a single card. In addition to your HP Stat, you’re also keeping track of your Strategy (which controls how many rerolls and items you have) and your Recovery, which controls how many dice return to your pool after taking on a challenge. If you roll more dice than your Recovery, those dice are exhausted, lowering your pool for your subsequent challenges. It’s a game of pressing your luck, strategic decision-making, and resource management. We think you’re going to love it!
—description from the publisher
In 1958, Demitri Belyaev and Lyudmila Trut started an experiment on domestication. From a large group of foxes, they selected the ones that reacted to humans with more curiosity and less aggression. In each generation, they selected only the friendliest pups to become parents — hoping to recreate the process that originally led to domestication thousands of years ago. The experiment made stunning progress. Even though the foxes were chosen only for their friendliness, they soon started to get many of the physical traits that we associate with domesticated animals — like spots, floppy ears, and curly tails. As communication opened up, the foxes made major contributions to our understanding of how these traits are expressed. The experiment continues to this day.
In The Fox Experiment, you’ll breed your own domesticated foxes. In each round you'll select a pair of fox parents who have certain traits. You'll gain those specific trait dice, roll them, then try to move them around to make complete trait symbols which you'll then mark off on your pup card. You'll then gain trait tokens depending on how many traits you marked off which you'll use to upgrade tracks on your personal player board.
At the end of the round, the previous generation of foxes will be cleared and all of the new pups will be moved to the kennel — thus becoming candidates to be chosen as parents in the next round. The game ends after 5 rounds and you'll gain points for pleasing patrons (end of game scoring bonuses), studies completed (personal player objectives), if you ever won the friendliest fox award, upgrades on your personal player board, and extra tokens. The player with the most points wins!
—description from the publisher
Last Light is a fast-paced 4x game with 3D planets and a rotating board in which players playing asymmetrical alien factions simultaneously gather light right before the heat death of the universe.
Each turn, players select an action card, then all players take their actions simultaneously, exploring planets, mining for resources, gaining new technologies, and commanding fleets all while racing to the center of a rotating board to the last known white dwarf star to gather light for their civilization to survive.
The first player to gather 20 light has what they need to overcome their rivals and lay claim to the last light in the universe and win!
June 2471, and kerosene - KERO - is scarce. Two clans are struggling to survive, exploring New Territories in their tanker trucks. Running out of fuel is a risk each time they leave camp! Fortunately, a local tribe of Tuareks can lend a helping hand…
Kero is a two-player game set in a future unfriendly world, where players will be clan leaders - managing a camp, a tanker truck and 7 Explorers - competing for the same lands. Their ability to win the game will be based on how much kerosene (Jerrycans) they can find and how they use it wisely… Collect as many resources as possible while using as little as possible of the KERO in your tanker-truck to upgrade your camp and claim New Territories! Score the more points (by adding up the points on cards and territories) and become the 2471 Badassest Clan!
The game is played in 3 rounds (ending when a Claim card is revealed), each comprising several turns. Making snap decisions and mistakes under time pressure is part of the game!
5 MAIN STEPS IN A PLAYER’S TURN
1. Fuel up with KERO (if necessary).
2. Choose your dice and roll them.
3. Collect resources shown on the dice and perform actions to upgrade your camp: take cards from the raw, take Tuarek tiles, send out Explorers on New Territories.
4. Deal with Fire and discard any burnt cards accordingly to the results of your roll.
5. Claim New Territories in which you have a majority at the end of a round.
FOCUS ON THE ORIGINAL REAL-TIME PLAY
TO COLLECT RESOURCES …
On a turn, choose your dice and roll them in a self-limited time using your tanker-truck. Tip it and roll your dice however many times you want, to obtain needed resources, keeping results as desired and avoiding fire (the fire dice burns up). When happy with the results, replace your truck flat. You can’t tip it up again! Beware of Kero outage! In this case, you lost your turn!
… AND FUEL UP WITH KERO
As soon as your opponent starts rolling the 8 dice, hold your tanker-truck (cab facing downwards). You gain only as much time as it takes your opponent to roll fires on all the dice. A simultaneous and interactive way to gain time for your sandtimer!
KERO KEY FEATURES
• Light, tactical & frantic game
• Fast & furious play for casual & experienced players
• Unique balanced gameplay mixing strategy & chance
• Uncommon barren theme with beautiful colored art
• Two 6 inch/16 cm tanker-timers inside!
HAVE FUN ROLLING YOUR DICE & REFUELING YOUR TANKER-TIMER!