So, I ask you, does anyone have a better way of handling a gambling skill that does not involved actually playing all the hands of poker? It also must handle cheating and the detection of cheating. The cheating mechanic is too complicated to explain, but suffice it to say it does not work well either.

Thoughts?

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

I do not buy or use miniature transport cases, so I have no personal interest in the Battlefoam v. Outrider case. It is just a noteworthy legal issue in the gaming community, so I write about it.  I bear no particular malice or even interest toward either party. I have more important things to do with my life than fret over the behavior of some game accessory makers.  I really strive for fair and accurate information when reporting business or legal issues (see my rant posts for my opinion) on Livingdice.  For as much as I do not care, I know some people do care and bear real malice towards Battlefoam. I had to shut off comments to extinguish flame wars that rarely break out on LD.  Apparently one of these zealots decided to take action using my site as a weapon, so on to the astroturfing!

Two days ago, I received an email from “Mark”  through the LD contact form informing me of a similarity between two web sites. One is the new Battlefoambrigade.com website and something called “Special Ops Brigdade,” a site for paintball enthusiasts. I took a look and they indeed did look similar, but so do many web sites, so I did not consider it newsworthy. Here is a side-by-side image of the two sites to save you some time.

Though I thought it a trivial issue, someone believed it worthy of my attention and tried very hard to interest me in the topic.

A day passes and I get another email from someone named “Doug” about the same issue and a link to a Special Ops forum discussion. (Update: the forum is no longer available, not sure why.) I took a look at the forum and noted the first poster was a new forum member with only a single post to his name.  At this point, I grew suspicious. I smelled an astroturfing attempt.

A quick check of the two IP addresses provided by my contact form revealed both initial emails came from the same general location (a town north of Atlanta, Georgia).  I also responded to both emails and they bounced as invalid.

Do I have direct rock-solid proof of astroturfing? No, but there is enough evidence for me to believe there is and since it is my site, that is enough.

So, I have a message for potential astroturfers out there seeking to use Livingdice.com as a forum for your propaganda. Keep your petty flame wars on the forums. I want no part of it.  Oh, and go straight to hell.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

Ex illis free trial
By popular demand; Bastion is pleased to announce the Ex Illis 30-Day free trial. Try the richness of its gameplay for yourself and share the experience with friends and family, it’s easy! All you need is a temporary account you can create for free on www.ex-illis.com and you are ready for battle!
For 30 days, you’ll have access to all the features, including leveling and mustering your armies to battle in the fantastic and highly strategic universe of Ex illis.
To make your account permanent all you need is activate any miniature within a months following the end of your trial period (in other words, you have a couple of months to decide what kind of army you want to build). Thus you’ll get to build on all your stats and player level.
For more information: http://ex-illis.com/wikien/Trial

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

Sabol responded to the letter and tabletopgamingnews.com has Sabol’s annoyed response.  I found this fascinating, but one section of the letter mentioned an attached patent application. I contacted Sabol and asked for a copy of the attachments sent with the lawyer letter and they kindly obliged.

Battlefoam Laser Cutting Foam Patent Application

Up to this point, I could not view the patent application or the technical specifications of the patent application because it was not through the US Patent Office’s lengthy review process.  Since Battlefoam moved to publish the document to fortify their case for royalties, I thought it useful to actually publish the Battlefoam patent application. This allows the entire gaming community to examine the source of this legal wrangling.

Update: Battlefoam issued a clarification on their letter.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

If I were to set up a forum on Livingdice, and it is strictly dependent on the response to this post whether I install one, I envision an open community. Open in the sense that anyone may join, but idiots get hit with a ban stick.  I am not interested in massive numbers of subscribers. I would rather have 50 intelligent, thoughtful forum contributors than 2000 “flame warriors” nattering about edition wars and how to min/max their paladin.

There is so much more to RPGs, in the story, the characters,  adventure design, even the mechanics of map making that all too often disappear under rule discussions and flame wars on current forums.  I am also keen to get a discussion started with current RPG designers and aspiring designers in a safe and encouraging environment about the process  and business of game design.

Does this sound like something you, my readership, would use regularly?  If so, please add a comment to this post and make your voice heard! Assuming I get enough of a response, I will get vbulletin installed. Vbulletin is a $200 software forum package and I do not spend this amount lightly, especially since Livingdice does not generate much income (but it does generate much personal satisfaction, which is why I keep doing it). Think of it as proof of my commitment to an intelligent, well-moderated forum about role-playing games.

So, if you want a forum that strives for sanity, intelligence and articulate contributors, please add a comment to this post.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

 ”Duck! Duck! Go!” brings the classic rubber ducky race of many childhood bathtubs to the tabletop. The game comes with four random duckies and a bird dog ducky. The rubber duckies are all themed and randomized for each box. I got a surgeon, surfer, construction worker and a surgeon in my set. The bird dog is in every set.  Also included are ten, double-sided tiles to build the play surface, some tokens and a deck of movement cards.

Components are good quality and the play tiles are heavy-duty cardboard. Printing quality and colors are very clean. I even liked the box design.

Play begins with players deciding on a board configuration. The configuration in my test game came off the beginner list and makes navigation relatively easy. More advanced boards have more choke points and increase the game’s complexity. After building the board, players place their ducks and play begins.

The goal is to visit the “buoy” hexes and then get to the drain to escape. Each player has a hand of movement cards and these decide how your duck moves.  The cards have a pre-programmed set of moves (two hexes forward and then you may choose to turn right, left or forward at the end, as in the example below) that determine your  movement.  Movement is simultaneous, so the lowest value card moves first. Order of movement is critical due to the “bonking” rule. Bonking is when a ducky hits an obstacle, either another ducky, the edge of the board or the escape drain before visiting all the buoys.  You movement immediately ends and your duck spins 180 degrees. Since ducky facing determines your next movement starting direction, “bonking” is something to avoid.

These rules and setup are for a basic game. Advanced players may use the bird dog option. The bird dog moves around the board under the control of the player in last place.  The bird dog is an offensive weapon that sends bonked ducks back to a starting space. On some of the more complex board setups, this is a serious threat.  Advanced game players also have some movement tokens available to move their ducky without using cards. Players receive these “Action tokens” when they achieve a buoy, so they are quite rare and powerful.

I enjoyed  ”Duck! Duck! Go!” from APE Games, but the target demographic is clearly families.  Though the strategy component is relatively complex in an advanced game, I think the theme is a hard sell to hard-core adult board gamers. That said, the easy, no reading required mechanics and kid-friendly theme make this game a guaranteed winner with younger children.  The game does need strategy, so parents will not face serious boredom playing with younger children. A low price-point of $24.95 for nice components that will last for years is also a bonus.

If you are in the market for a family game that keeps both parents and kids entertained, Duck! Duck! Go! is a great choice.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

I am also more than willing to add new categories. If you have any suggestions please drop me a comment on this post.  Livingdice.com does not really generate significant income, certainly not enough to support the travel and expenses related to the GAMA Trade Show and other events I report on for the site, I hope this new site will offset some of those costs.

So, if you are going to make an Amazon purchase (any purchase, not just games)  and want to support livingdice.com, click through the  http://role-playing-games-store.com to do your search. I get a nickel and you continue to support my ongoing game industry reporting.

Thank you,

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

This is critical because “C&C”  adds another victory condition beyond checkmate. On the King’s platform is an “X” square. If the opposing flag bearer piece on to this square you win. This is more likely than one might imagine as the flag bearer is effectively immortal. Only a king may kill a flag bearer, so they wander across the field with relative impunity. The rules mention using them as “blockers” and they do the job quite well.  Oh, they are not allowed to take any piece besides the opposing king.

Dragons in the game move as a king, but have the additional advantage of a flight ability. Dragons fly over their own pieces. Imagine three pawns in a row (on any axis) and an opposing knight at the end of the row. A dragon moves along the line and take the knight.  Dragons also can traverse the levels of the opposing castle in the same way.

Production quality on the box and pieces is very good. I am especially fond of the dragon pieces.

This game comes from Canada, so contains both French and English rules.

One of the reasons I am not a huge chess fan is it is a   game with a thousand years of books, theory and strategies.  I am a casual gamer and do not read strategy guides for board games I play. So, anyone with any interest in chess as a hobby will utterly crush me.  The idea of some new pieces and terrain appeals to me as a way to level the playing field for the non-chess geeks.  ”Crusade and Conquer” does this very well. And should you want a traditional chess game, simply exclude the castles and extra pieces to get a quite nice conventional chess set.

“Crusade and Conquer” is a chess game that I enjoyed and that is a rare thing indeed.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

I will probably review this book at some point in the near future, but I am swamped with work and need to catch up a bit before adding to my workload. I am sorely tempted too, because nothing makes me happier than a nice session of zombie splattering!  “Outbreak:Undead” is available now.

The second entry is the very unusual board game “xPirate” from Exim Games. Take a look at the board before I continue with the description.

Yes, that is an iphone/ipod in the center. The entire center unit rotates and players take their turns by using a software app. Then players adjust the board to reflect the results generated by the software.  A novel idea that  make the entire game extremely adaptable, just add a new app and you have a new game. “xPirate” releases this fall.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer

Sandstorm Productions began in April, 2010 and immediately partnered with four  game publishers. Glowfly Games, Closet Nerd Games, Wildfire and Posthuman Studios.  It is important to understand that Sandstorm, while a traditional game publisher in many respects,  also markets itself as a business service provider for small game publishers.

Business services that include:

• Business administration
• Sales & Marketing
• Convention support
• Production Management services
• Bookkeeping services

This is not a comprehensive list, but it gives you an idea the kinds of services available.  All of these services are provided on an a la carte basis, so you pick which ones your company needs.

Sandstorm’s goal is to partner with between 7-10 game creators/publishers at any given time. As a game publisher becomes more successful, they “mature” out of the Sandstorm relationship and move on as independent entities. This model means Sandstorm is always looking for new game ideas and new publishers to work with.

At this point, we moved on to the game studios  currently working with Sandstorm

Closet Nerd Games:  Closet NerdVersion produces euro-style strategy and board games, and had its resource management/market board game “Globalization” for sale at Gen Con.  Here is the game description:

Globalization brings the exciting world of big business into your living room. You are the head of a multinational corporation with one goal in mind: to make money. Outbid your competitors to acquire businesses within six different industries and grow your conglomerate.

Glowfly Games: “Hecho” is a new card game from Glowfly. Glowfly focuses on the educational game market and “Hecho” is a light, family game that introduces some  Spanish vocabulary, basic math and lots of personal interaction.

Wildfire Studios: Publishers of the “Cthulhutech”  RPG, branch out in to family games with their new “WildThing” imprint. “WildThing” launched with the award-winning game “Poo” and plans future releases in the casual games arena.

Posthuman Studios: “Eclipse Phase,” the oddly fascinating posthuman game with cybernetic octopi and orbital habitats made of bacon. Yes, bacon.  I just finished reading “Eclipse Phase” and will have a review up in the near future.

Jessica also mentioned some secret, upcoming releases from the Sandstorm family. Including a new family game from Glowfly and a storytelling game that serves as a gateway for younger children in to role-playing games.

I would like to thank Jessica for taking the time to speak with me about Sandstorm and I will keep you apprised of  their new releases.

Trask, The Last Tyromancer