2012 / Board game mini expansion / 2-6 players
***
Someone was selling off their old pieces, so I got to upgrade the unofficial placeholders I'd been using, though I still base them around the Shrines for want of bespoke tiles. It adds some supernatural drama/annoyance.
2021 / Adventure gamebook / 1 player
***
Back for another round of punishing ordeals and inappropriately traumatic deaths that are impossible to deduce using logic or any method other than brute-forcing all avenues. I do find it quite comforting that they still make this shit.
2021 / Doodling game / 1-4 players
***
Another one you could do yourself, but it was only £1 from a charity shop and it was good to have the prompts provided, plus ever-useful spare pencils.
****
The unpopular diet, card-bonated version of the esteemed board game has one advantage in being several orders of magnitude cheaper than its parent. I was tempted by an unloved eBay listing for several months until it eventually dropped to a desperate enough price to be worth a try.
It's no 7 Wonders Duel, but it's convoluted enough to be an engrossing contest of wits, fortune and risks, though admittedly less risky when you're playing against yourself and have a rough idea of whether the other you has any reds or not. To solve this, I came up with a moderately engaging solo bot:
I get to play multiplication landscaping enough with my daughter, but when she's at school I sometimes want something lighter and quicker than Gloom of Kilforth, so it's good to have options. Here are some that players have come up with.
Crown of Thorns ****
Its single rule (the better the tile you choose, the more limited your options next time) is easy to remember, simulating a four-player game in 5x5 grids without bothering with the other three players. The only downsides are you don't get the satisfaction of denying someone their coveted tile and there's no one to blame for your rubbish options but yourself.
Dwindling Choices ***
A less distinctive title and more unnecessarily convoluted approach to doing basically the same thing, this time restricting your options to one of each of the four positions per four-round phase. I'd happily play this if he hadn't already come up with the more straightforward version above.
Princess Dorothy **
Simulates the two-player game with unclear scoring rules that seem to put the greedy automated opponent at a great disadvantage. More trouble than it's worth.
Bruno ***
Simpler automated placement and scoring if I ever feel I really need to beat an imaginary opponent rather than my high score, or if I really need to play with the giants.
