Brant Guillory, 24 October 2014

Your semi-weekly wallet-wounding world of wonder!

Wilderness Empires (Worthington Publishing)
$8k of $5k goal, ends 2 December 2014

The French and Indian War, and the associated wars before and after leading up to the American War of Independence, have fascinated gamers for their mix of exploration, politics, colonial combat, and multi-sided mayhem.  Worthington throws their hat in the ring with a fascinating game that mixes historical details with quick gameplay and includes a solo capability.  It’s got a block-and-card look that seems eerily familiar to those that have played Columbia games in the past, but the cards are distinct events and the units include the key leaders that made the colonial wars such a fascinating period.  Stretch goals are still being met, and there’s plenty of time to add more, so sail over to Kickstarter and get your pledge in.

Lone Wolf – The Board Game (Megara Entertainment)
$5500 of $30k, ends 5 December 2014

The UK Steve Jackson had his Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, which were fun, and shared a common universe (for the fantasy titles at least).  But in the late 80s, if you wanted a solo gamebook, or twenty, all set in a living, breathing, shared world where the storylines carried forth through the series, there was Lone Wolf, the gold standard.  The world of Magnamund, and the detail that brought it alive in readers’ imaginations is now back in a new boardgame created by the original Lone Wolf illustrator, Gary Chalk.  While it’s a tactical board game, it incorporates character progression throughout the scenarios, and has a modular game board that offers a huge number of configurations.  Nostalgists (ooh, ooh, me! pick me!) will no doubt rush right out to snatch this up, but anyone looking for a fun, tactical game in a world whose depth has stood the test of time for over 30 years needs to get their pledges in now.

Micro Play-Break: Kingdoms (MP-MSP Games)
$2800 of $2k, ends 18 November 2014

When they say “micro” they mean it – this game fits in your wallet.  And it’s a nifty little game, too, that lets you juggle your knights and fortifications across different terrain, as you expand your control of the map.  You get to place or move knights, or drop some fortifications, to take control of the board, but you determine how many of each you have ‘rolling the pieces’ and randomly distributing what’s available to you.  It’s nigh-indestructible, with a map that’s printed on Tyvek (more companies need to do this!) and can be played in a lunch break with time left over to nuke and extra bowl of soup.  And it’s $8.  You read that right.  Go. Pledge. Now.

WWII Assault – Tactical Skirmish Combat (Mitch Mitchell)
$3400 of $800, ends 25 November 2014

Mano-a-mano WWII skirmishing, with streamlined set of basic rules, and a few mechanical twists that keep wargamers on their toes with some fresh ideas.  They’ve partnered with Wargames Factory to offer some of their figures through add-ons to the campaign, but the real highlight is the ruleset that starts at 5 pages and a handful of initiative cards, and adds on complexity as the players are ready for it.  The basic set includes templates for blast radii and targeting, and counters for marking battlefield conditions.  Stretch goals now include bonus scenarios, cards, and a paper house for battlefield terrain.  Go check out the campaign and plunk down your shekels.

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