Search This Blog

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Which Non-RPG Games Do You Dig?

Back in Jacksonville, the guys I hung about with were designing dice games like, Stomp the Roach, where a handful of d6s were rolled and some results Stomped, and others Hatched new roaches. It was an amusing game, especially while I was under the influence of Hornsby's or Woodchuck Hard Cider.

I'm not known to play many board games, and fewer card games (Aquarius, and Guillotine being two notable exceptions), but I have been taken to task by a minis wargamer that games like AMBUSH! or SHELL SHOCK! are, in fact, board games, and I've played plenty of those.

I'm curious which non-RPGs readers of this blog are fans of, and which features of them are best liked, and why.
--Too much to ask of you folks? I hope not. :)


On a mildly-related topic, I Refereed a friendly BLOCKMEN v. LEGOS scenario last night, with the dice favouring the invaders (after losses) of a base, and an alien saucer as the prize. Simple d6 pools of varying sizes compared to other d6 pools, with the higher roll winning, and the difference taken as hits in an attack action.
--The young player asked if this counted as 'wargaming' and after a moment's thought, I replied, 'yes.', thinking of Wells' Little Wars basic conceit of a War Game.


Have fun. :)

13 comments:

  1. Scrabble, Chess, Risk and Poker are my favorite non-RPG games because they are widely known and simply easy to find someone to play with.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Blood Bowl, for it is the greatest game ever created by the hands of man, and certainly the greatest creation of the chaotic mutants of Games Workshop.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well, yes, of course it's "wargaming"! The actual figures don't matter; after all, Dave Arneson's famous dragon in Blackmoor started out life as a big lump of Plasticine that Dave molded into what we all politely agreed was a ferocious fire-breathing giant dragon. Gertie eventually assumed a metal form, but it should always be remembered that she started out as an idea and a package of clay...

    yours, Chirine

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jenga, Cribbage, Dark Tower, Blood Bowl, Pictionary, Apples to Apples, Stratego, Star Wars Epic Duels. I used to be big into Chess and (later) Magic cards, but it's tough to find people with the same skill level + competition level as me.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'm still a huge fan of my Metagaming Microgames like Ogre, WarpWar, Chitin I, etc., and some older wargames like John Carter, Star Explorer and The Creature that Ate Sheboygan. I have some obscure Japanese Godzilla, Ultraman and Star Trek wargames that I bought both as a translation exercise and to play. I love the FASA Trek starship game, but strangely can't stand the long line of Star Fleet Battles games. I have (but have not yet played) WoTC's new Ravenloft game, and am mightily tempted by FFG's new Mansions of Madness. Sometimes I feel like the only Bay Area boardgamer who has never played a single Euro-style game like Cataan. I think I tend to gravitate toward boardgames that (in my mind at least) tend to support some sort of roleplaying, even if that "character" is a starship or a 600 foot tall radioactive monster :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Tetris, ADOM, Transcendence (free space shooter / roguelike), Puzzle Quest, Need For Speed series, and some board games: Micro Mutants Evolution, Twilight Imperium, Galactic Emperor, and one ccg: Vampire the eternal Struggle.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Scrabble is a serious game for me. I'm also a huge fan of Carcassonne and it's variants, and have recently been addicted to Small World

    ReplyDelete
  8. Munchkin is, by far,the most played game around the house. It's quick, easy, and gives an rpg feel while still being able to backstab the other players at the table without feeling too guilty. :)

    - Ark

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow!
    --Thanks! :D

    Here's the running Title List:
    (not in alpha-order)

    Scrabble [2]
    Chess [2]
    Risk
    Poker
    Blood Bowl
    Jenga
    Cribbage
    Dark Tower
    Blood Bowl
    Pictionary
    Apples to Apples
    Stratego
    Star Wars Epic Duels
    Magic ccg
    Metagaming Microgames:
    :: Ogre
    :: WarpWar
    :: Chitin I, etc.
    John Carter
    Star Explorer
    The Creature that Ate Sheboygano
    bscure Japanese Godzilla, Ultraman and Star Trek wargames
    FASA Trek starship game
    Mansions of Madness
    Tetris
    ADOM
    Transcendence
    Puzzle Quest
    Need For Speed series
    Micro Mutants Evolution
    Twilight Imperium
    Galactic Emperor
    Vampire the Eternal Struggle ccg
    Carcassonne
    Small World
    Munchkin


    Very different games present in the list.

    Some with the immediate sensory stimulation (racing console games, for example), while others are more concerned with constructing and maintaining a business operation of some sort in a competition of successes among several players.

    Most are direct conflict games, even if they involve elements of diplomacy or exploration.


    Thanks. :D

    Not only will I have to try those games, but I hope more of you will share what/which aspects of the games are enjoyable, and how they enhance the game-play experience.

    --For example, the tactile sense of holding cards, or rolling dice and then moving a pawn. Some may enjoy the tactical decisions they need to make from Round to Round, while others may enjoy the speculative market aspect of certain games (Supremacy, as memory serves).

    Thanks again. :D

    ReplyDelete
  10. Chirine: Thanks for that re-affirmation. :D

    ReplyDelete
  11. Oh, I forgot about Scrabble - I play it on my girlfriend's cellphone :D

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey! I count TWO Blood Bowls.

    [but I would also add I play a lot of Scrabble and love Risk, too...it's hard to remember all the board/card games I play, 'cause I love 'em all!]

    Ooo...and dominoes!

    ReplyDelete
  13. @Omlet: Thanks. :D

    @JB: Yeah. Sorry. Until Blogger allows folks to modify their comments, I'm bound to make visible mistakes.
    --Sorry.

    Dominoes, eh?
    --They are a big pastime down here, but I've not yet felt the draw of the game.
    ---What is the big draw for you?

    ReplyDelete