9/5 Featured Games

Greetings Gamers!

After last Friday's FND session we have a very fast turn around for the next one!  We had about 15 people show up for our bonus '5th Friday of the month' session that coincided with Labor Day and we had a great time.  We played Lords of Waterdeep, Letters From Whitechapel, and Werewolf, amongst other things. 

Our next session is going to be on this upcoming Friday, September 5th, at 6:30 PM.  As always we look forward to having our regulars back to game with us as well as any number of newcomers.

In particular we think this will be an exciting Friday Night Dice as the theme of the games is Humor!

Now, an important distinction should be made.  I was contemplating making it "Party Game" week but that would limit us.  Blessedly there are a number of games by modern designers that are more contemplative than simply "Party Games" but still involve a good deal of lightness and humor!  Some of these will certainly be party games, but there will be a few strategy games with extra amusing themes or deliberate attempts at humor.

So, to the featured games.....

Say Anything!

Say Anything is a lot like Apples to Apples, but instead of having a hand of cards from which to choose, you have a small whiteboard and are given the ability to 'say anything.'  One person chooses a question  ("What would my dream job be? What am I most afraid of?") and everyone writes down the answer they think will most likely please the player choosing the question.  After everyone has submitted their answers players 'bet' on which answer they think will be chosen.  The player reveals his secretly chosen answer and points are distributed.  It's a lot of fun!

Telestrations

Telestrations is a very popular game and has hit the table a fair amount at Friday Night Dice - laregely in part because it is the hardest I have ever laughed playing board games, and I've played a lot of them!  This game combines the telphone game and pictionary in a hysterical way.  Each player gets a word and writes it down on their flipbook, passing it clockwise.  The next player draws that original word, and again passes the flipbook.  The subsequent player writes what they think has been drawn.  The next player draws that, then the next player guesses that... It results in the complete annihilation of whatever the original word was.  At the end all of the players 'show and tell' their flipbook to the ensuing laughter.  We have the Party Edition and so this can play up to 12 people.  I expect us to get a full 12-player game going.

Faces

This is an old game that friends of ours from college will be bringing.  It is out of print and so this is a nice chance to play it.  The game is a lot like Apples to Apples in that players are playing cards that they think most appropriately match a description, however this time they are playing amusing pictures of old timey people and animals.  It is quite amusing and is a very light and easy party game.


Smash Up!

This is a good gateway game built around deck-building.  Each player has two decks they mash together, each representing a different fantasy race.  You might be Ninja Dinosaurs, or Cthulu Pirates, or Zombie Bears.  Either way it is pretty zaney and results in a lot of amusing situations.  It is definitely more of a strategy game than a party game, but is very light-hearted.

Tales of the Arabian Nights

This game is almost more of an activity than a game, but it is still great fun and possibly the most unique game I own.  In it, players take control of different figures from the classic book from which the game gets its name - Sinbad, Aladin, etc..   The game itself is essentially a choose-your-own-adventure game in which players receive a small scenario and decide how to respond.  Perhaps an angry beggar approaches you - do you punch him or give him money?  Perhaps you give him money and he turns out to be an enchantress who ropes you into a devilish plot where punhing him would have spared your life.  It's pretty zaney and a fun time.

Bang!

Bang is a deception/card game in which players get various roles.  One is the sheriff (which is public).  Some are deputies whose job is to protect the sheriff. Some are bandits whose job is to kill the sheriff.  One is a renegade whose goal is to be the last person alive.  The theme is that of a Spaghetti Western and throughout the game you play cards that fit this theme well.

Dungeon Petz

This is the most complicated game on this list.  This is a pretty meaty euro-game despite the seemingly cute theme.  Each player is the owner of a pet store - however these aren't ordinary pet stores, they sell monsters for dungeon lords and raise them for curious exhibitions.  Each monster is unique and as you raise them and train them for various purposes you grow quite attached.  It is a very fun game, albeit thinky, and has a quirky and amusing theme.

Ultimate Werewolf

Okay so we've featured Werewolf three sessions in a row now but each time we've had people leave giving us a group of only 8 people.  This isn't terrible as that's still a fun number, but the gang at FND wants to play a bigger game of Werewolf.  Given that most of these games are shorter we are going to play them until 8:00 PM, at which point we are going to do a massive group game of Werewolf - hopefully with 15-20 people.  So be prepared for a delightful time!

That is all of the games!  Bring friends, bring families!  This is a great one for newbies to game as we're featuring a lot of lighter ones.

Many blessings and hopefully we'll see you Friday!!