Ben Finney

2020-09-16

Thanks @robert for letting us come along for the ride. Now looking into how to migrate to another instance.

Take care of you and yours, stay safe and sane!

2020-09-06

Lessons learned from #Scythe with 2 players on the weekend.

Scythe is great with 2 players! And that is the maximum that could possibly fit at our small table in our small room. I love #BoardGames but rely on cafés, or friends with larger houses :-/

The extra factions in _Invaders From Afar_ are good to add but are designed for high-player-count games. I played one of them versus the Nordics and got trounced. Surely this was because it was a 2-player game, and not related to my skill.

2020-08-24

Recently I received _Tyler Sigman's Crows_ junkspiritgames.com/games/tyle as a gift, and we brought it out for a rainy day #BoardGames afternoon.

It's very striking and stylish! There is good tactical decision making, trying to place map tiles and get the crows to flock to your totem each turn, and deny the same to the other players.

The game of (Tyler Sigman's) Crows mid-way through a 2-player game.
2020-07-12

I think I won't want to get into #miniatures #painting for its own sake; for one thing I don't have the dedicated space, and packing away everything after a few hours work every time is just too annoying.

But the result of an amateurish, yet good enough, paint job on my #BoardGames tokens might become a habit.

I need to use these paints and brushes for something else, after all :-)

2020-07-12

The colour schemes were tricky. I wanted to keep them muted and pale, because the game supplies them white and grey.

This is because the Invaders and Blight are the “enemy” figurines, and should not be associated with any player. So I couldn't have colours that confused or drew attention away from the bright appealingly-coloured player tokens.

For the same reason I decided against fine detail like an oil wash; everything is in plain colour. This helped keep the work easier too.

2020-07-12

This is the first time I've put paint to figurines and I bought all the equipment just for this job.

So I knew that the demands of this one – dozens of identical figurines in 4 different types – indicated I should keep the scheme very simple for each one. That paid off: I was able to make a choice of colour and then paint all the identical figurines of one type in that coat.

2020-07-12

This occupied half a table for most of the past 12 months. For a couple of months they mostly sat idle. I got them primed but then messed about tentatively with colours.

Then the #Covid19 pandemic hit, and space at home became more crowded and the few spaces available to paint became much less available for long hours at a time. So nothing for most of this year.

About half the actual work was done in the past couple of weeks. It felt *so good* to complete this and clear it away!

2020-07-12

My first figurine #miniatures #painting job is complete! All the Invader and Blight tokens for #SpiritIsland base game, painted and varnished.

A mock game of Spirit Island showing the painted figurines.All the painted figurines arranged together: Cities, then Towns, then Explorers, with Blight tokens in front.The figurines still stuck to the bases used to hold them while painting. Cities on one base, Towns on another, and Explorers on top of a third with Blight tokens on its sides.
2020-07-02

@big_chip See now, that's what I want my folding board to work like. It's not easy to make one with paper panels that wrap nicely and won't catch and peel off.

boardgames.social/@bignose/104

2020-07-02

My folding board Town Square for #BloodOnTheClocktower looks alright but doesn't open properly without damage.

The graphic layout is pretty good, but the spine doesn't meet properly and the outer paper panels warp outward when the board opens, instead of staying stuck.

The board laid open face up. A game token sits beside the board for scale.The board folded closed; two photos show each outer side.The board laid open, close up on the edge of the spine. Two photos show the outer and inner faces of the spine.
2020-06-15

Test them for what?

Your needs probably differ from mine @robert, but I just get a machine that runs entirely-free GNU+Linux with decent specs, and keep using it until it's not good enough.

That typically takes a handful of years or more. Never needed to test multiple distributions in that time.

2020-04-22

@big_chip Mayday Games makes two “grades” of sleeve. Their Premium models are thicker and stiffer than their regular ones.

I get them for different purposes. The Premium ones make the deck of cards much thicker and often don't fit in the original game box; also, the corners are very rigid and it's a little less pleasant to play. But they shuffle so much better than the floppy soft regular ones and are tougher against wear.

2020-04-21

The “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” box is finally #DIY transformed into a new #BloodOnTheClocktower Grimoire.

(See boardgames.social/@bignose/104 where I lined the inside of the lid and tray.)

The art panels resemble a huge leather-bound book, with three edges imitating the book pages.

The completed Grimoire box, opened out to resemble an open book, as it will be used when in play.Applying the art panels to the stripped game box. The faces and spine resemble embossed leather; the other sides resemble the book pages edge-on.The protective transparent film is backed with adhesive. I need to very carefully measure and cut it in preparation before removing any of the backing; once the sticking begins, everything must line up precisely.The lid and tray fit together and resemble a huge closed book.
2020-04-21

Found the spare time and room, to line my #BloodOnTheClocktower grimoire with black paper and felt.

Can't play #BoardGames in person, but the #DIY projects can continue!

The Grimoire with finished inside lining. Sides with black paper, inside faces with black felt. This keeps the tokens (backed with felt) fixed in place while carrying the Grimoire.Careful measuring and folding of black paper for each inside panel. These are then sprayed with adhesive to affix them inside the box.With the black paper in place inside the box. Now the face is free for a bed of felt.Spacers temporarily placed at each side around the lid ensures the felt bed will not touch the tray when affixing it to the face. The gap on all edges ensures the box can close completely with room for air to pass.
2020-04-03

For some #SocialIsolation options, I decided to get into #StarRealms. The #BoardGames Interweb tells me the Frontiers edition combines well with the original and makes for good solo play.

After applying card sleeves, the base deck and Frontiers don't fit everything.

So I've removed the starter-deck cards from the base deck, and am now dividing the rest: all starter cards in the base deck box, all faction cards in the Frontiers box.

Can I ditch the duplicates? Have I made a grave error?

2020-03-30

Slow-track #DIY project to make a new #BloodOnTheClocktower Grimoire.

Beginning of the month: acquired _Who Wants To Be A Millionaire: The Board Game_, published 2000, from a second-hand store for $5 solely for its nice sized box.

Last week: carefully stripped off the existing paper panels from the box.

Yesterday: applying the leather-look Grimoire panels to the box.

2020-03-10

They're taking the sparrows to Isengard!
@hannahwritegood

2020-03-10

Current state of my #DIY #BloodOnTheClocktower Grimoire.

Countless trials and discarded attempts to get this far, and I've learned a bunch about making home-brew game components!

2020-03-09

Howdy @hannahwritegood and welcome! What do you like to write about, where can we read some?

Ben Finney boosted:

#intro

I’m Hannah and I work as a reference librarian in a public library. I like to write - and I’m very good, trust me - and I like to play games. Right now I’m running a #dnd game in a home brew world that I’m super excited about.

Also I am super bad at talking about myself???

Bye

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