Tabletop Gaming

NOW PLAYING… Red Cathedral: Contractors This issue we’re going to the moon, back to Anglo-Saxon England, the weird wild west, a completely fan generated world and the home of the modern indie RPG scene without even taking our foot off the gas. But first of all we’re popping in to check out the whimsical world of The Land of Eem, a roleplaying game that’s pitched as ‘The Muppets meets The Lord of The Rings’. It’s entirely as charming as it sounds. Which leads us to our Studio Profile of Exalted Funeral – an example of when you want to order a few copies of a game for your buddies and it gets so out of hand that you’re now running huge Kickstarters. Plus, they might be the nicest people in the…

LESS THAN 100 DAYS TO TABLETOP GAMING LIVE 2022 The hit gaming convention run by the teams behind Tabletop Gaming and Miniature Wargames magazines is now less than 100 days away, and there will be 100+ games to play when you get there. The show, running for two days over the weekend of the 17th-18th September 2022, brings together gamers from all across the country – for the first time in Manchester. The show is taking place at Victoria Warehouse, Manchester, in the historic Cotton Sheds, and is sponsored by local hobby titans Steamforged Games, who will be demoing Bardsung and showing off upcoming titles. Fanboy 3, who have been at the heart of the Manchester Gaming scene for years, will be showing off some of the biggest publishers from…

The great thing about board games, is often portability. All we need is space to play, a table and chairs if you’re feeling fancy, and some fellow gamers for the perfect time. Where you place that table though might change – do you play at home, at a local game store, or somewhere entirely different? We asked you your thoughts. You said… St Albans Board Games Club – friendly people wide selection of games played from High Frontier to Tokyo Highway in its tenth year with over 500 members many of who have become my friends. Matthew West Finchley Games Club Cole Leadon Anywhere where we have good players, the coffee is hot and the cake is scrumptious. Jeff Stokes Anywhere we can sit around a table and snack! Thomas…

The balance of luck and skill obsesses us. In many games, the best players are those who put themselves in situations where luck is on their side – where more rolls of the dice or drawn cards are more likely to help them than harm them. But what if you eliminated luck completely? I feel justified in assuming that most readers find that the combination of careful play with the (limited) whims of chance makes for a great night of gaming. Many of the Whist players of yore (and the bridge players of today) felt differently. While the rules of whist eliminate much of the luck of earlier trick-taking games, like getting points for simply having been dealt a face card, how can you really say who is the better…

1 AGRICOLA Are animal meeples meeples too? We think so, but this is one of the tough moral questions posed by this farmyard mogul simulating classic. Starting from humble beginnings players must build up their farmstead and create a future for their family, and their tiny wooden animals. Create pens to contain your flocks and herds – and watch your empire grow. If your fellow farmers don’t get in your way. Agricola is a satisfying example of the ‘block the worker placement space’ game, with the twist of progressively improving spaces over the span of the game. A classic for a reason. 2 ROOT A clash of woodland clans which is most often admired for its asymmetrical play. Each faction has its entirely separate way of playing the game from…

BLADE RUNNER – THE ROLEPLAYING GAME Explore the dark and moody world of Blade Runner with a brand new RPG from the folks over at Free League. This licensed game promises to throw players into the boots of trenchcoat-clad Blade Runners – bounty hunters tracking robotic ‘replicants – in the neon future. Expect a beautiful book and solid rules. Free League | £39.99 SLA INDUSTRIES Get ready to battle the robot menace at the tabletop (before we need to do it in real life) with this nifty adaptation of everyone’s favourite Arnold-based blockbuster. SLA Industries promises innovative mechanics pulled from the Terminator universe, such as replacing dead characters with versions pulled from different times. SLA Industries | £40 TOME OF HEROES FOR FIFTH EDITON Kobold Press have been doggedly pumping…