Friday, April 29, 2016

Review - Quiver - Gaming Case

Quiver Case
By: QuiverTime
Review - Quiver - Gaming Case
Disclaimer

Usually I review games.  Board games, card games, published games, prototype games, family games, heavy games, games of all sorts.  But one thing every gamer needs at one time or another is a way to carry games.  Game night can't always be at our own house, so we need a way to safely carry our treasures from place to place.  This review is about one of those ways to move our games, so the format will be a bit different.
The Quiver comes packaged in a protective baggie and all the chrome has a protective sticker on it.
The Quiver is a game case that is designed with card games in mind, although it can also be used to carry other smaller games and all sorts of interesting items.  I've been using mine to carry my copies of Star Realms (with the Crisis expansions, Gambit cards, and Colony Wars deck) and Epic.  I also have a few review prototypes in there (Clash of the Battle Goats and Death Wish) and there's plenty of room for some odds and ends, like dice, tokens, clips, rules, etc.  For a while I was carrying around a few small-box games, like Harbour, 12 Days, Thieves, Valley of the Kings, and a few others, too.  And while I've only used the Quiver to carry games, on their website they show it being used to carry other stuff, too, like a bottle of wine to a concert in the park.
Plenty of storage for lots of cards and tons of extras, too.
The Quiver is a nice, solid leather case with a soft padded interior that will protect your valuable cards or a bottle of your favorite romantic beverage in style.  The classy black case has beautiful metal highlights in the zipper pulls, strap clasps, and Quiver emblem.  I've been asked several times if it is a musical instrument because it looks like it should be protecting a $1000 clarinet or something (although at about 18" long by roughly 5" deep and 3.5" tall, it's not quite the right size for any instrument I know of.  But the durable leather protects against rain, wind, and even dog slobber (yes, I was fortunate enough to test all three of those).
Beautiful textured leather and elegant metal accents give the Quiver a classy look.
Inside, the Quiver features five padded dividers that have Velcro edges to keep them in place, as well as two padded inserts that go at each end of the case to ensure any cards have a flat surface to lay against - no bent edges here.  The Quiver also includes four acrylic dividers that are great for separating cards, too, although I wish there were a few more of them.  All of these dividers do slow for a wide variety of configuration options though.  And if you do want to bring a bottle of bubbly to a classy game night the velcroe dividers can be arranged at a slight angle to hold the bottle securely while still allowing enough room for a deck or two.
Five rearrangeable dividers and pads for the ends give you countless configurations to keep your cards and more safe.
The lid of the case features a cargo net of sorts.  This is perfect for storing game instructions, score pads, pencils, a few bucks or a credit card, or any other relatively thin items securely.  It's a handy addition that works well.
All the components that come with a brand new Quiver.
If I have one criticism of the Quiver it's the carrying strap.  Don't get me wrong, I really love this case and it works great, and there's nothing wrong with the included shoulder strap.  It's how the case hangs from the strap that is occasionally annoying.  The strap itself is fine.  It comes with very nice clips to attach it to the metal rings attached to the case (there's also a very nice wrist strap, too).  But the metal rings are so close to the center of the case that if it flips upside down the center of gravity can easily keep the case upside down.  Its a minor inconvenience in an otherwise stellar case, but I do find myself occasionally having to flip the case back right side up.
The Quiver is all class, and super useful, too!
Also worth mentioning is that the Quiver comes with 100 clear standard poker sized card sleeves.  Actually they say they are 92mm long and other sleeves I have are only 91mm, so if that matters to you, be aware.  Quality wise they feel nice and sturdy, not like cheap pent sleeves, but I haven't actually used them to sleeve anything, so I can't comment on their durability or gameplay feel.  I'm not a big card sleever so I wouldn't have anything to compare them to accept a few Ultra Pro sleep es I use for prototypes anyways.  But they're a nice little bonus to go with a case that is still pretty awesome with or without the sleeves.
Four acrylic dividers, 100 sleeves, a shoulder strap, and wrist strap are all included with the case.
So overall I find the Quiver to be an incredible case for cards, games, or whatever else you can think of.  Quality materials and construction combined with a sophisticated style make this a classy way to carry your precious collections.  At $40, if you're looking for a great looking, great functioning card (and more) case, you can't go wrong with a Quiver.  Plus for every Quiver purchased, $1 is donated to a charity that provides games to underprivileged children, so there's a great heart behind the company, too.  Pick up a Quiver, you won't be disappointed.

Rating: 9/10
Classy storage in a quality case!
Did you like this review?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.




Even the instructions are elegant.



GJJG Game Reviews are independent, unpaid reviews of games I, George Jaros, have played with my family and friends.  Some of these games I own, some are owned by friends, some are borrowed, and some are print and play versions of games.  Where applicable I will indicate if games have been played with kids or adults or a mix (Family Play).  I won't go into extensive detail about how to play the game (there are plenty of other sources for that information and I'll occasionally link to those other sources), but I will give my impressions of the game and how my friends and family reacted to the game.  Quick Reviews will only get a single rating of 1-10 (low-high) based on my first impressions of the game during my first few times playing.  Hopefully I'll get more chances to play the game and will be able to give it a full review soon.

Monday, April 25, 2016

Quick Review - Blend Off! - Kickstarter Preview

Blend Off!
Designer: Scot Eaton
Publisher: Thunderworks Games
Quick Review - Blend Off! - Kickstarter Preview
Disclaimer

So, what happens when you work at a smoothie bar and five minutes before close you get swamped with a bus load of boisterous customers?  You have a Blend Off! Of course!  Blend Off! is a game I first saw at Protospiel in 2014, and although I didn't get a chance to play it then, nor in 2015, I heard a ton about it from all sorts of people.  When I heard that Scot Eaton's Blend Off! was coming to Kickstarter, to be published by Thunderworks Games, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to finally play and review the game everyone was talking about.

Overview:
Blend Off! is a light simultaneous play, dice rolling and set collection game for 2-4 players (a solo variant is in the works) ages 6+ that lasts 15 minutes or less.  There are several variants, including some very frantic, fast variants suitable for adults and older children, and a slower, turn based variant for younger kids.  The game is on Kickstarter through June 9, 2016 for $19.

Since Blend Off! is an action packed speed game with no turns or downtime I wasn't able to take any pictures while I played.  But my 6 year old son took some while I played with my 9 year old.  So enjoy these pictures taken from a slightly shorter perspective than what you might be used to =)
Ready, set blend!
The premise behind Blend Off! is that you are a master mixer at a smoothie shop.  You must mix more smoothie orders than any of the other master mixers.  The game consists of a collection of wooden fruit tokens (colored cubes in my prototype), four custom dice, five decks of smoothie recipe cards (one per player, plus a small set of common recipes), eight blender cards, and four reference cards.
The fruit cubes will be fruit shaped in the final game.
In a standard game each player gets one custom die and then an order deck is created by shuffling each player's recipe deck with the common recipes. This creates the Orders deck.  Each player also gets two blenders and a pile of fruit tokens is added to the middle of the table.  The first few orders are revealed and then with a call of "Ready, set, blend!" All players start rolling their die as fast as they can, trying to successfully complete as many orders as they can.
There is no down time at all!  Rolling the die is fast and furious!
Each order consists of a recipe card and possibly a special order card as well.  A recipe consists of a combination of four or five fruits a special order card can tel you to exclude one of the fruits or add an extra fruit.  To collect the fruit you need, simply roll the die.  Whatever comes up on the die is the fruit you can grab and add to one of your two blenders, or you can send it back (ignore the die and re-roll).  Once you have the appropriate fruits in your blender to fulfill an order you can call "Blend!" and claim the order for the points it is worth.  Then you reveal a new order in the lineup, empty your blender, and work on fulfilling another order.
One La Dulcita coming right up!
Special orders can have you add or remove fruit from a recipe.
 Sounds easy, right?  Well, it mostly is.  Except for the fact that you have several other master mixers also trying to fulfill orders.  So, what happens when someone else mixes that smoothie you've been working on?  Well, if you're lucky, you'll be able to use the fruit you've already mixed as part of another recipe.  But more often than not your partially completed smoothie won't match another order.  So you'll be forced to dump your blender (return all the fruit in it to the stockpile).  And it's all or nothing.  You can't dump part of a recipe you've already started mixing, although you can pour the contents of one blender into another.
You need to be careful because if you can't use what you've already blended you'll need to dump your blender.
Another thing to watch out for is the durian!  This pungent fruit can make any smoothie a failure.  So if you roll a fruit that isn't available you can take the durian instead.  But this doesn't go into your own blender, no, it goes into an opponent's, forcing them to dump their entire blender.  This adds an element of take-that interaction to an otherwise fairly solo game.  The game can be played without the durian and it still requires you to watch not only your own recipes, but also what your opponents are working on.  But with the durian, games get personal.  

The game ends when all orders have been fulfilled and scores are based on the number of stars each player earned.
Games are action packed, fast paced, fun!
Blend Off! also includes several other variants.  Excluding the durian keeps the game civil, and still somewhat interactive because everyone is trying to fulfill the same orders.  But you can also have a straight up race (with or without the durian) with each player working on orders from their own, color coded deck.  Or, if the standard game isn't quite cutthroat enough, you can add in spill cards.  Once a game you can call "Spill!" and flip over your spill card to make everyone else dump their blenders.
Spill cards aren't for everyone.  They'll add quite a bit of meanness to your game.
Blend Off! is also good for kids.  The frantic pace of the main game can be slowed to a crawl without sacrificing the bit of strategy in the game with the turn based junior variant.  My sons (6 and 9) really enjoy the junior variant (although my 9 year old likes the main game, too).
Fun for all ages!  (He even forgot all about his new braces while playing, so that's a big success!)

Final Thoughts:
I've really had a lot of fun playing Blend Off!  It's not very deep and you won't make an entire evening of playing the game, but it's a great filler or starter game.  It plays in under 15 minutes, so it's perfect to pull out while waiting for game night to start, to wind up a night of games, or for those short breaks between longer games.  It only takes about two minutes to explain, so it's great for non gamers, too.  At under $20 there's no reason why this shouldn't be in everyone's collection!  It's satisfying on many levels for just about anyone.
Whether you're playing with family, other gamers, non-gamers, or professional smoothie makers,
Blend Off! is sure to be a hit!
So don't miss out on the Blend Off! Kickstarter campaign, through June 9, 2016.  $19 will get you this awesome little game, shipped right to your door (US shipping included, +$8 Canada, +$12 worldwide).  It's a game I'm sure you'll be thrilled to have in your collection!  I think it was worth the hype!
Blend Off! is simple, fast, fun, and really looks great, too!  From the gameplay to the look, it's an attention getter!
Preliminary Rating: 8/10
This review is of a prototype game.  Components and rules are not final and are subject to change.

Did you like this review?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.



















GJJG Game Reviews are independent, unpaid reviews of games I, George Jaros, have played with my family and friends.  Some of these games I own, some are owned by friends, some are borrowed, and some are print and play s of games.  Where applicable I will indicate if games have been played with kids or adults or a mix (Family Play).  I won't go into extensive detail about how to play the game (there are plenty of other sources for that information and I'll occasionally link to those other sources), but I will give my impressions of the game and how my friends and family reacted to the game.  Quick Reviews will only get a single rating of 1-10 (low-high) based on my first impressions of the game during my first few times playing.  Hopefully I'll get more chances to play the game and will be able to give it a full review soon.

Sunday, April 17, 2016

Quick Review - Clash of the Battle Goats - Kickstarter Preview

Clash of the Battle Goats
Designer: Brent Critchfield
Publisher: Studio Woe
Quick Review - Clash of the Battle Goats - Kickstarter Preview
Disclaimer

Last year a new, tactical card game burst on the Kickstarter scene.  With awesome artwork featuring an odd set of bizarrely mutated goats and an equally quirky collection of shepherds, Gruff was a huge success.  Now, about a year later, Studio Woe is back with the first Gruff expansion, which also plays as a stand alone two player game.  Clash of the Battle Goats is fully compatible with Gruff and adds two new shepherds and six new gruffs (mutant goats) to the mix (and more with stretch goals already being hit).  I don't have Gruff, however, so this review is strictly about Clash as a stand alone game.
Fully compatible with Gruff, but playable with two as a stand alone game, too.
Overview:
In Clash of the Battle Goats two players each take on the role of a shepherd with a small flock of thee mutant goats called gruffs.  Mix and match shepherds and gruffs between Clash (which will come with at least six shepherds and six gruffs) and Gruff (with seven shepherds and fifteen gruffs) and then head out to do battle.  Each shepherd has a unique ability and each gruff has a set of 15 ability cards with a variety of cool effects. 

Clash plays with two players (although Gruff handles four) ages 11+ in 15 to 40 minutes.  It's currently on Kickstarter through May 10 for $20 and is already over 200% funded, so it's just a matter of how many stretch goals are reached now.
It's Vim versus North in this battle.
Gameplay:
After selecting a shepherd and three gruffs, each player will then choose 8 of the 15 ability cards for each gruff to use in the game.  This allows each player to construct a unique deck that caters to their intended strategy.  The depth of this deck construction isn't anywhere near Magic the Gathering levels, but it allows a level of customization that is quick, yet meaningful.  Alternatively you can play with eight random cards for each gruff, but that does pose the risk of getting unbalanced decks.
North is one of two shepherds that came with my copy of Clash of the Battle Goats.
The Kickstarter is already unlocking a ton more shepherds and other additions!
Once each player has their shepherd, three gruffs, and 24 ability cards selected the battlefield is constructed.  The three gruffs line up on each side to protect their shepherd.  Gruffs have three stats each, Mean (attack), Fat (defense), and Weird (a resource the gruffs supply).  Shepherds have two stats each, Life (health) and Crazy (how much of the resource the shepherd has).  Small clips are attached to the cards and can be slid up and down as the characters gain and lose stats.
Track stats with special clips on the cards.  They can occasionally be fiddly, but overall work OK. 
On your turn the first thing you do is resolve any battles they declared on your previous turn.  That sounds odd, but it's one of the main mechanics that set Clash and Gruff apart from other tactical combat games.  When you declare an attack your opponent has their entire turn to adjust their defensive strategy.  This requires a drastic change to how you strategize for combat.  You'll end up having to plan several turns in advance to make sure you have the right gruff in the right position and that your opponent won't be able to defend.

After resolving any attack from a previous turn the main part of your turn begins.  First draw an ability card.  Then choose a gruff to activate (turn it sideways to show it has been activated).  Some gruffs have abilities that trigger when they are activated (like increase their Fat, Mean, or Weird stat, or sometimes something else).  If the gruff has any Weird, your shepherd increases its Crazy level by the amount of Weird the gruff has.  These are the only resources in the game, Weird and Crazy.  In order to play ability cards your shepherd must be crazy enough.  So activating weird gruffs allows your shepherd to play crazier ability cards.
The crazier your shepherd is the more powerful ability cards you can play.
After a gruff has been activated, any activation abilities are triggered, and your shepherd gains any available Crazy, you may play any number of ability cards from your hand.  The catch is the total amount of Crazy that the abilities cost can't exceed the total amount of Crazy your shepherd has.  So if your shepherd has eight Crazy you can play a single card that costs eight, two cards that cost four, or any combination of cards as long as the total Crazy does not exceed eight.  Your shepherd doesn't lose the Crazy, but it must be Crazy enough to play the cards.

There are three types of ability cards, Actions, Conditions, and Mutations.  Actions are resolved immediately.  They can do things like increasing a gruff's stats, moving a gruff, removing Conditions and Mutations, and more.  Conditions are active for an entire round (i.e. until the beginning of the active player's next turn, after combat).  These are usually cards that provide benefits (or penalties) to a gruff as long as they are active and certain conditions are met.  They'll usually provide combat benefits in certain situations, although they can do other things, too.  Mutations are generally permanent effects.  They can be positive (so you'll place them on your gruffs) or negative (you'll place them on opponent gruffs) and sometimes are global mutations that affect all gruffs on on team.  They'll generally stick around, but there are some abilities that allow you to discard mutations.
Different ability cards provide different benefits.
After cards are played comes the critical decision.  What to do with your activated gruff.  You have four choices.  You can either Grow, which means you increase any single stat for your gruff, Shift, which means you swap places with an adjacent gruff, Resurrect, which allows you to revive a gruff that has been defeated in combat, or Attack.  Attacking is obviously what this game is really all about, but attacking is a lot more thoughtful in Clash than it is in most games.  As I mentioned above, you don't resolve your attack right away.  Instead, you simply declare your attack and move your gruff into position.  Then you wait to see how your opponent is going to react on their turn.
Toof has six Fat, two Conditions, and one Mutation that make him a pretty solid defensive wall.
You won't be able to activate your gruff again until after you've activated every other gruff on your team, so you must pay careful attention to which gruffs you activate when.  There are some cards and situations that can change this, but generally you'll only get to use a gruff's abilities once every three turns.  This is something to be aware of not only when activating your own gruffs, but when deciding what to do with them since which gruffs your opponent will be able to activate may be critical to your strategy.  Sometimes it takes a couple of turns to make sure you have all your gruffs in just the right position to spring your trap for the big attack.
Lockjaw goes in for the attack!
The mechanics of an attack are pretty simple.  You compare the attacker's total Mean (attack strength) and any modifiers from Mutations or Conditions to the defender's total Fat (defense) and any modifiers.  If the total attack damage meets or exceeds the total defense the gruff is defeated.  This means the gruff gets flipped over and can't be used any more during the game until the owner uses a Resurrect action to bring the gruff back into play.  Any excess damage passes through to the shepherd.  If the total attack damage doesn't equal or exceed the defense nothing happens and the attack is over.  There are no counter attacks, no reacts, nothing like that.  But remember, the opponent has an entire turn to mount a defense, whether that means increasing the defending gruff's stats enough to fully block the attack, adding defensive Conditions and Mutations to the defending gruff, adding crippling Mutations or Conditions to the attacking gruff, moving a stronger gruff in to defend, or choosing which gruff to sacrifice to protect the shepherd as much as possible.
Lockjaw has a whole bunch of mutations from the opponent, but is it enough to stop his meanness?
Turns continue until one shepherd's Life is reduced to 0.  Then it's time to reset and battle again!

Final Thoughts:
When Gruff came out last year it won a number of awards.  The innovative twist on tactical battle card games is definitely worthy of attention.  The mechanics behind Gruff and Clash are simple: draw a card, activate a gruff, play cards, and take an action, but the delayed resolution of attacks, combined with the wide combination of characters and abilities, along with the simple deck construction choices make the battles in the Gruff universe unusually deep and tactical.  Allowing your opponent an entire turn to mount a defense requires a completely new way of considering strategy.  No longer are battles simply about getting the strongest attackers out at the right time.  Now you have to coordinate to get them ready at a time when your opponent won't be able to respond.  Sometimes this means going on the offensive right away with a series of small attacks.  Other times it means biding your time until you can go for a big attack.  Despite the simplicity there are a lot of bits of information to take into account.  And, although most of the information about each player is public (aside from the ability cards in their hands), with a lot of moving parts even the best laid plans can sometimes be foiled.
Vim is the other shepherd that is standard in the game, but a bunch more will be coming with the Kickstarter stretch goals.
As for how Clash holds up on its own though, the game I played felt a bit lacking in variety.  With only two shepherds and six gruffs to choose from there didn't seem to be a whole lot of spice.  The games I played all felt very different, despite playing with the same combinations most of the time, though.  Depending on who I played against the games were fast, vicious battles, or longer games of push & pull while we maneuvered into position for the killing blow.  Games lasted anywhere from 15 to almost 60 minutes.  So, even with a limited variety of characters, the prototype of Clash of the Battle Goats does provide a breadth of interesting game play experiences.
The artwork is fantastically bizarre.  Each goat is a treasure!
However, the Kickstarter version of Clash is already being packed with four additional shepherds. This will add tremendously to the scope of Clash, making it feel more fleshed out as a stand alone game experience and less like an expansion that can also be played on its own.  I'm not sure if there will be any new gruffs in the stretch goals for Clash, but if you pair Clash with Gruff you'll have an incredible amount of variety to choose from. Billions of different combinations, not including the Legendary Gruff cards that are included with Clash's stretch goals and the ability to refine each gruff's ability deck.  I'm sure there will be future expansions as well, which will only add to the richness of the Gruff universe.
Back now and you can have this adorable critter in your herd!
So, overall I highly recommend Clash if you are interested in a very different tactical card combat game experience.  It'll be unlike any other game you've played.  And if you already have Gruff then backing Clash should be a no-brainer!  If you don't have Gruff, consider grabbing both in the Kickstarter now.  The campaign runs through May 10 and you can pick up Clash for $20, both Clash and Gruff for $55, or a complete collection, including a playmat and more for $75!

Preliminary Rating: 7.5/10
This review is of a prototype game.  Components and rules are not final and are subject to change.

Did you like this review?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.








GJJG Game Reviews are independent, unpaid reviews of games I, George Jaros, have played with my family and friends.  Some of these games I own, some are owned by friends, some are borrowed, and some are print and play versions of games.  Where applicable I will indicate if games have been played with kids or adults or a mix (Family Play).  I won't go into extensive detail about how to play the game (there are plenty of other sources for that information and I'll occasionally link to those other sources), but I will give my impressions of the game and how my friends and family reacted to the game.  Quick Reviews will only get a single rating of 1-10 (low-high) based on my first impressions of the game during my first few times playing.  Hopefully I'll get more chances to play the game and will be able to give it a full review soon.