Game Profile: Vikings

As leaders of Viking tribes you are
tasked with the scouting and settling of undiscovered islands.

Mechanics Tile Placement, Set Collection, Auction/Bidding
Publication Z-Man Games, 2014
Ages 10+
Time 60
Players 2 – 4
Description

Vikings was originally released in 2007. 
It made the Spiel des Jahres recommended list that year.  Now Z-Man Games has reprinted this excellent
strategy game.
Vikings is played over 6 rounds.  In each round 12 combinations of an island
tile and a Viking pawn will be purchased and placed on players’ individual
mainland game boards.  Island tiles come
in 3 shapes: left end, middle, and right end. 
Ship tiles come in 4 colors which can cause different problems in
scoring based on color. Vikings come in 6 colors with each color representing a
specific use on the island.
The game mechanics are
straight forward. On each player’s turn they will buy one of the island
tile/Viking combinations and place them on their player mainland board.  These island tile/Viking combinations are
purchased from a roundel where in the standard game there is an easy to follow
method used to match up tiles with Vikings. 
In the advanced game there is more player interaction in setting up the
rondel including an auction for first player. 
The price for purchasing the individual island tile/Viking combinations
is based on its position on the rondel at the time of purchase.  After rounds 1, 3, & 5 gold is awarded
based on the position of ships and Vikings on each player’s game board.  After rounds 2, 4, & 6 points and gold
are awarded again based on the position of your ships and Vikings.  At end of game each player’s ships will have a
final scoring.  Additionally,  victory points are awarded for gold, the most boatswain
Vikings, most completed islands, the longest island, and a plus &/or
negative points for fisherman Vikings.
Vikings is a board game that is accessible to players
ages 10 and up, but also has enough decision-making to keep even the most avid
gamer engaged.  As soon as you finish
your first game you will be saying I have to play that again.


Watch this video for a game overview of Vikings.





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Continue to check in for the latest in board games.
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Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, White Mountain, and Cobble Hill.

We proudly serve Gresham and the greater Portland and Vancouver area.

Game Arrivals: Week of May 25th – 31st

Here’s a look at the games that came in this week:



Sail To India
Alderac Entertainment Group
Adding to Alderac Entertainment Group’s line of small box games is Sail To India, a game of exploration and trade for 3 to 4 players.

It is early 15th Century – the Age of Discovery. The
Mediterranean is under Osman Turkish control and the Portuguese are looking for
alternative routes to the East Indies.  Better ships and general centralization of
power help push the Portuguese out into the Atlantic and explorers like Prince
Henry, Bartolomeu Dias and Vasco da Gama lead navel expeditions in search of
new trade routes.

In Sail to India, players are nobles supporting these expeditions in an attempt to be the first to discover India and victorious. In each round players will have 2 action points to use to
try and discover new coastal towns, sell trade goods, construct buildings all of
which can earn them victory points. Players can also acquire technologies, which
grant powerful abilities during the game.

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Pocket Battles
Confederacy vs Union
Z-Man Games
New out from Z-Man Games is Pocket Battles: Confederacy vs Union, the fourth in the Pocket Battles series.  Pocket Battles are 2-player portable war games that fits in your pocket.  Take on the command of the Confederacy or the Union with your opponent taking the other.  Fight on 3 fronts with armies you create for each battle, making each battle a new experience.  The game consists of 60 troop tiles, 20 order/wound tokens, and 6 dice.

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The Downfall of Pompeii
Mayfair Games
New in from Mayfair Games, and one we played at a game trade show earlier this year, is The Downfall of Pompeii.   This game for 2 to 4 players is about the impending eruption of Mount Vesuvius and its ensuing destruction of the the city of Pompeii.  Sixteen years earlier a strong earthquake wreaked havoc and destruction on the city causing most of its inhabitants to flee.  Now Roman citizens are returning to the city and moving into the new and splendid buildings in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius oblivious of the impending danger.  The game is played in 2 phases.  In the 1st phase, players try to bring as many of their own people into the city as they can by playing Pompeii cards.  An AD 79 card signals the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and Phase 2 begins.  In this 2nd phase you are now scrambling to get all of your own people out of the city through the gates before the city is consumed in lava.  The winner is the player who has saved the most of their own citizens.


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Restocks include:

Caverna
The Cave Farmers
Mayfair Games
Sunrise City
Clever Mojo Games
Smash Up
AEG
Smash Up
Awesome Level 9000
AEG

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Continue to check in for the latest in board games!
~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~


Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, Cobble Hill, and White Mountain.

We proudly serve Gresham and the greater Portland and Vancouver area.

Game Events: May 25th – 31st

Come and join in on the fun at this week’s Game Events. It’s a great way to try out some games. Here is this week’s schedule:


This week there will be no Friday Game Night  but there is a special Saturday Game Day Event.




Date: Weds. May 28th
Time: 6 pm

Place: Off The Charts Games Store


Weds. Suggested Games
To learn more about each featured board game click on the game name below it’s picture.


Alhambra
Queen Games
Alien Frontiers
Clever Mojo

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Date: Fri. May 30th
Place: Off The Charts Games Store



No Friday Game Night Tonight
We will be closing early this evening at 6 pm





No experience is necessary! We are happy to teach you the rules and get you started.
Also, while you are here any of the games in our Store Demo Game Library are available for play.



Come Play ~ ~ ~ It’s Free ~ ~ ~ It’s Fun!


Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, TDC, White Mountain, and Cobble Hill.

Game Events: May 18th – 24th

Come and join in on the fun at this week’s Game Events. It’s a great way to try out some games. Here is this week’s schedule:


Date: Weds. May 21st
Time: 6 pm

Place: Off The Charts Games Store


Weds. Suggested Games
To learn more about each featured board game click on the game name below it’s picture.


Flash Point: Fire Rescue
Indie Boards & Games
At The Gates of Loyang
Z-Man Games

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Date: Fri May 23rd
Time: 6 pm
Place: Off The Charts Games Store

Fri. Suggested Games
To learn more about each featured board game click on the game name below it’s picture.


Automobile
Mayfair Games
Relic Runners
Days of Wonder

No experience is necessary! We are happy to teach you the rules and get you started.
Also, while you are here any of the games in our Store Demo Game Library are available for play.



Come Play ~ ~ ~ It’s Free ~ ~ ~ It’s Fun!


Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, White Mountain, and Cobble Hill.

Game Arrivals: Week of May 18th – 24th

This week’s arrivals includes a re-released game and some new game expansions.  Here’s a look at what hit the shelves:

Vikings
Z-Man Games

Vikings was originally published in 2007.  It was on the Spiel des Jahres recommended list that year.  Now Z-Man Games has reprinted this family friendly strategy game. Players are leaders of a tribe of Vikings tasked with the scouting and settling of undiscovered islands off the coast of the mainland.  Craftsmen, nobles, and warriors will need to be stationed at these islands to claim and defend the land that will gain you gold and fame for your tribe.  The acquisition and cost of new islands and Vikings is governed by the game board’s rotating wheel.


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Zombie Dice 3
School BusSteve Jackson Games

Newly released and in this week’s arrival is Zombie Dice 3: School Bus, the latest expansion to Zombie Dice.

The living call it the School Bus.  The zombies call it the Lunch Wagon.

The School Bus is full of tasty brains, but those kids are packing shotguns, too. You might find yourself chowing down on a brain buffet, chasing runners off the bus, getting run over, or getting double-shotgunned! 

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Firefly: The Game
Pirates & Bounty Hunters
Gale Force Nine
Also new and in from Game Force Nine is Pirates & Bounty Hunters, the 2nd expansion to Firefly The Game.

Pirates & Bounty Hunters expansion brings a heavy dose of player versus player interaction the the ‘Verse.  Raid rival’s hips with piracy jobs. hunt down wanted fugitives to collect bounties.  Ready your crew for showdowns with brand new supply cards.  Explore the ‘Verse with 2 new ships.  Aggressive new leaders specialize in anti-social strategies while lawmen reward those bringing justice to the ‘Verse.

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Fleet
Arctic Bounty
Gryphon Games

In from Gryphon Games is Arctic Bounty an expansion to the strategic card based game featuring a unique commercial fishing theme,  Fleet. Arctic Bounty provides players the ability to choose what license and boat cards to include in a given game, adding a multitued of possible card and power combinations.


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Restocks:




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Continue to check in for the latest in board games!
~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~


Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, Cobble Hill, and White Mountain.

We proudly serve Gresham and the greater Portland and Vancouver area.

2014 Spiel des Jahres Game Nominations

The game nominations for the 2014 Spiel des Jahres (Game of the Year) and the Kennerspiel des Jahres awards have been announced.  The Spiel des Jahres award is considered the most prestigious award in the board game world. The Kennerspiel des Jahres award is for the more meatier strategy games.


The three games nominated for this year’s Spiel des Jahres award are:


1. Camel Up




No U.S. publisher has been announced yet.  That will probably change with this nomination.

Camel Up is a camel race with several betting options.  The camels can stack up and move together.














2. Concept
Asmodee





We have Concept in stock and have a game copy in our Demo Games Library.  This is a great party game that using pawns and cubes placed on icons to get someone to say the right word or phrase.


Concept is lots of laughs.














3. Splendor
Asmodee





We also have Splendor in stock and have a game copy in our Demo Game Library.  Players use set of gems to claim development cards.  Sets of development cards are used to claim nobles.


Splendor is 30 minutes of tactical brilliance.
















The three games nominated for this year’s Kennerspiel des Jahres award are:


1. Concordia
Rio Grande Games





Concordia uses a great card selection mechanic at the start of each turn as players work to develop the best economic engine across a beautiful map of Europe in Roman times.


We have Concordia in stock.
















2. Istanbul
AEG



AEG is definitely on a roll.  They brought us Love Letter, Smash Up, and Trains.


Istanbul should be here soon.  The game has players moving their merchants across a modular board, dropping off assistants in key location, buying and selling goods on the way to victory.
















3. Rococo
Eagle/Gryphon Games




Rococo should be available soon.  It has a little deck-building, card drafting, area control, and set collection rolled onto a beautiful board.


The player who creates the most impressive collection of dresses in the 5 ballrooms wins.











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Other games that were recommended by the Spiel Committee include:

For Spiel:
Love Letter
AEG
S.O.S. Titantic
Londonaute

For Kennerspiel:

Guildhall
AEG
Amerigo
Queen Games

Russian Railroads
Z-Man Games
Blood Bound
Fantasy Flight

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Continue to check in for the latest in board games!
~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~



Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, Cobble Hill, and White Mountain.

We proudly serve Gresham and the greater Portland and Vancouver area.

Games Go “Off The Charts”: Splendor and Trains

Loving that warmer and sunnier days have arrived.  Earlier this week we packed some sunscreen and a few games and headed to the beach for an overnighter.

The ocean was smooth as glass and the weather unbeatable.







Splendor
Space Cowboys

After wandering along the beach in the morning we chose Ona Beach State Park south of Lincoln City as the perfect spot for some board game play.  First to hit the table was the new game, Splendor.




Trains
AEG
The weather was too perfect to leave so we settled in for a game of Trains.



Read our Game Profiles to learn more about these 2 great games:

Also, both of these games are available in our Demo Game Library for you to come in and try.







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Continue to tune for more games that go “Off the Charts”
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Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, TDC, White Mountain, and Cobble Hill.

We proudly serve Gresham and the greater Portland and Vancouver area.

Game Profile: Trains

Dynamic
deck-building leads to the best railway in Japan.


Classification Strategy Game
Mechanics Deck Building, Network Building
Publication AEG, 2013
Ages 12+
Time 45
Players 2 – 4
Description

Trains is a deck-building game with a couple of interesting twists.  Not only are players building a deck of
cards, they are also building a network of rails and railway stations on the
double-sided map board.  Each player
starts the game with 7 Normal Train cards, 2 Lay Rail cards, and 1 Station
Expansion card.  Normal Train cards have
a monetary value and will be used to make purchases, Lay Rail cards build your rail
network, and Station Expansion cards build stations which score victory points
at game end.  In every game there is a combination
of standard cards and random cards available in a common area.  The standard cards include additional Lay
Rails and Station Expansions, Express Trains and Limited Express Trains – provide
higher purchasing power, 3 types of Victory Points – Apartment, Tower, &
Skyscraper, and a large stack of Waste – provides another game twist.  There are 30 types of random cards from which
8 types will be chosen and added to the area with the standard cards.  These other randomized cards provide various actions,
additional money, and/or victory points.
Waste cards just muddy up
players decks and are acquired every time a rail is laid, a station is built,
or a victory point card is purchased.  While
Waste is unavoidable there are cards in the random decks that if chosen can help
manage your Waste.  Minimizing the Waste build-up
in your deck is essential and adds an additional layer of strategy to the game.

I have played Trains several times.  I really like the crisp artwork on the cards, the building of the network on the board and the challenge that the Waste cards bring to the game.
  

We have an open copy of Trains available
in our Store Demo Games Library for you come in and try.



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Continue to check in for the latest in board games.
~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~


Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, White Mountain, and Cobble Hill.

We proudly serve Gresham and the greater Portland and Vancouver area.

Game Events: May 11th – 17th

Come and join in on the fun at this week’s Game Events. It’s a great way to try out some games. Here is this week’s schedule:


Date: Weds. May 14th
Time: 6 pm

Place: Off The Charts Games Store


Weds. Suggested Games
To learn more about each featured board game click on the game name below it’s picture.


Coal Baron
R&R Games
Airlines Europe
Rio Grande Games





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Date: Fri May 16th
Time: 6 pm
Place: Off The Charts Games Store

Fri. Suggested Games
To learn more about each featured board game click on the game name below it’s picture.

Splendor
Space Cowboys
Edo
Queen Games


No experience is necessary! We are happy to teach you the rules and get you started.
Also, while you are here any of the games in our Store Demo Game Library are available for play.



Come Play ~ ~ ~ It’s Free ~ ~ ~ It’s Fun!


Come and visit us at 30 NW 2nd Street in Historic Downtown Gresham. We have a full range of family games, strategy games, Euro-style games, war games, card games, dice games and more. Also for the puzzle enthusiasts we carry quality puzzles from Ravensburger, TDC, White Mountain, and Cobble Hill.