#104: 2018 Redux

Draft Mechanic Episode #104: 2018 Superlatives and Top Games Redux, The Alwaysgreen Garden Kickstarter Preview, Shikoku, Navegador, The Hearmees, and Recent Beer Legislation

Kickstarter:
Classy Dice Buddies (Part 1) (Kickstarter)
Board game Bag & Calendar (Kickstarter)
The Isle of Cats (BGG) (Kickstarter)
The Alwaysgreen Garden (BGG) (Kickstarter)

Recent Plays:
The Alwaysgreen Garden
2019, Splattered Ink Games
Designer: Darryl T. Jones
Artist: Darryl T. Jones

Shikoku
2019, Grand Gamers Guild
Designer: Eloi Pujadas
Artist: Amelia Sales

Navegador
2010, PD-Verlag/Rio Grande Games
Designer: Mac Gerdts
Artist: Marina Fahrenbach, Mac Gerdts

The Hearmees
2017, HABA
Designer: Wolfgang A. Lehmann

2018 Superlatives Redux:
Best Artwork:
Danielle: Root (Leder Games)
Jake: Everdell (Starling Games)

Best Non-mini Components:
Jake: the Mars Open: Tabletop Golf ball (Bellwether Games)
Danielle: The Expancity stacking skyscrapers (Breaking Games)

Biggest Disappointment:
Danielle: T.I.M.E. Stories: Brotherhood of the Coast (Space Cowboys)
Jake: Rising Sun (CMON Limited)

Game I Wish I'd Played in 2018:
Danielle: Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game (Portal Games)
Jake: Root (Leder Games)

Game I Wish I'd Played More of in 2018:
Danielle: The Quacks of Quedlinburg (North Star Games)
Change: Jake: Underwater Cities (Delicious Games)

Best Older Game I Played for the First Time in 2018:
Danielle: Ponzi Scheme (Tasty Minstrel Games)
Jake: Vinhos Deluxe Edition (Eagle-Gryphon Games)

Best Party Game:
Change: Danielle: Just One (Repos Production)
Change: Jake: Just One (Repos Production)

Best App:
Danielle: Ganz Schön Clever (Schmidt Spiele, Developer: BrettspielWelt GMBH)
Jake: Noch Mal! (Schmidt Spiele, Developer: Outline Development)

Most Innovative Game:
Danielle: Nychtofobia (Pandasaurus Games)
Jake: KeyForge: Call of the Archons/Discover: Lands Unknown (Fantasy Flight Games)

Favorite Games of 2018:
Jake's Picks:
10. Decrypto
Le Scorpion Masqué
Designer: Thomas Dagenais-Lespérance

9. Star Realms : Frontiers
White Wizard Games
Designer: Robert Dougherty, Darwin Kastle

8. Teotihuacan: City of Gods
NSKN Games
Designer: Daniele Tascini

7. Blue Lagoon
Blue Orange
Designer: Reiner Knizia

6. Keyforge: Call of the Archons
Fantasy Flight Games
Designer: Richard Garfield

5. Mars Open: Tabletop Golf
Bellwether Games
Designer:  Dennis Hoyle

4. The Quacks of Quedlinburg
North Star Games
Designer: Wolfgang Warsch

3. Cryptid
Osprey Games
Designer: Hal Duncan, Ruth Veevers

2. Coimbra
eggertspiele
Designer: Flaminia Brasini, Virginio Gigli

1. Escape Tales: The Awakening
Board&Dice
Designer: Jakub Caban, Matt Dembek, Bartosz Idzikowski

Danielle's Picks:
10. Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig
Stonemaier Games
Desinger: Matthew O'Malley, Ben Rosset

9. Spring Meadow
Stronghold Games
Designer: Uwe Rosenberg

8. Coimbra
eggertspiele
Designer: Flaminia Brasini, Virginio Gigli

7. Dice Hospital
Alley Cat Games
Designer: Stan Kordonskiy, Mike Nudd

6. Ganz Schön Clever
Schmidt Spiele
Designer:  Wolfgang Warsch

5. Keyforge: Call of the Archons
Fantasy Flight Games
Designer: Richard Garfield

4. The Quacks of Quedlinburg
North Star Games
Designer: Wolfgang Warsch

3. Welcome To…
Deep Water Games / Blue Cocker Games
Designer: Benoit Turpin

2. Just One
Repos Productions
Designer: Ludovic Roudy, Bruno Sautter

1. Escape Tales: The Awakening
Board&Dice
Designer: Jakub Caban, Matt Dembek, Bartosz Idzikowski

Beer Legislation:
CNN: Supreme Court strikes down Tennessee residency requirement for liquor licenses
Brewbound: US Supreme Court Strikes Down Tennessee Residency Requirement
Brewbound: Maine Governor Signs Self-Distribution, Franchise Reform into Law

Section Timestamps:

01:00 Show Intro, News & Updates

03:00 Games News: BGG’s Convention Tools

04:52 Kickstarter Updates

07:13 Kickstarter: Classy Dice Buddies Part 1

08:20 Kickstarter: BoardGameTables.com Bags & Calendar

12:51 Kickstarter: The Isle of Cats

14:53 Kickstarter: The Alwaysgreen Garden

26:45 Recent Plays: Shikoku

38:05 Recent Plays: Navegador

51:23 Recent Plays: The Hearmees

59:32 Grey Fox Games Sponsorship Spot

60:35 2018 Redux: Superlative Categories

67:27 2018 Redux: Top 10 Games Re-Lists

96:00 Recent Beer Legislation News

104:18 Outro

#99: Hero Realms

Draft Mechanic Episode # 99: Variants - Hero Realms vs. Star Realms, Hero Realms On Tap, Bosk, St. Petersburg, Carcassonne: Gold Rush, and Spent Grain

Kickstarters: 
Terraforming Mars: Turmoil (BGG) (Kickstarter)
On Mars (BGG) (Kickstarter)
Anachrony: Fractures of Time (BGG) (Kickstarter)
Doublesix Dice (Kickstarter)

Recent Plays:
Bosk
2019, Floodgate Games
Designer: Daryl Andrews, Erica Bouyouris
Artist: Kwanchai Moriya, Matt Paquette

St. Petersburg
2004, Hans im Glück/Rio Grande Games
Designer: Bernd Brunnhofer
Artist: Doris Matthäus

Carcassonne: Gold Rush
2014, Z-Man Games
Designer: Klaus-Jürgen Wrede
Artist: Claus Stephan

Variants:
Hero Realms
2016,  White Wizard Games
Designer: Robert Dougherty, Darwin Kastle
Artist: Randy Delven, Vito Gesualdi, Antonis Papantoniou

Star Realms
2014,  White Wizard Games
Designer: Robert Dougherty, Darwin Kastle
Artist:  Vito Gesualdi

Hero Realms: The Ruin of Thandar Campaign Deck
2017,  White Wizard Games
Designer: Ben Cichoski, Robert Dougherty, Darwin Kastle, Daniel Mandel
Artist: Randy Delven, Vito Gesualdi, Adam Lachmanski, Antonis Papantoniou

On Tap:
Hero Realms
2016,  White Wizard Games
Designer: Robert Dougherty, Darwin Kastle
Artist: Randy Delven, Vito Gesualdi, Antonis Papantoniou
    •Saranac Brewery "Hoppy Hour Hero, Moe.saic IPA"; Utica, NY, USA
    7.8% ABV, 90 IBU.
    Imperial IPA with Citra, Mosaic, & Simcoe hops.

    •Cambridge Brewing Company "Working Class Hero"; Cambridge, MA, USA
    4.5% ABV, 75 IBU.
    American Saison with Citrus Peel  .

    •TrimTab Brewing Co. "Breakfast Hero"; Birmingham, AL, USA
    8.5% ABV, 35 IBU.
    Doughnut stout.

    •101 North Brewing Co. "Heroine"; Petaluma, CA, USA
    7.2% ABV, 64 IBU.
    NorCal IPA.

    •Revolution Brewing Co. "Anti-Hero"; Chicago, IL, USA
    6.7% ABV, 65 IBU.
    IPA brewed with Citra, Crystal, Centennial, and Chinook hops
Hero Series/League of Heroes

Spent Grain:
CraftBeer.com - Sustainable Uses of Spent Grain
Inc.com - Beer Production Powered by...Beer? It's a Sobering Idea!
Entrepreneur.com - ReGrained Markets Food Made From Upcycled Brewery 'Spent' Grain

Section Timestamps:

01:00 Show Intro, News & Updates

03:49 Episode 100 Plans!

04:53 Kickstarter Updates

07:01 Kickstarter: Terraforming Mars: Turmoil

15:44 Kickstarter: On Mars

20:28 Kickstarter: Anachrony: Fractures of Time

23:44 Kickstarter: Doublesix Dice

25:31 Recent Plays: Bosk

37:18 Recent Plays: St. Petersburg

45:52 Recent Plays: Carcassonne: Gold Rush

65:59 Grey Fox Games Sponsorship Spot

66:52 Variants: Hero Realms v. Star Realms

67:53 Variants Gameplay Overview

71:06 Variants Discussion

90:47 Variants Final Thoughts

92:58 On Tap: Hero Realms

98:21 Using Spent Grain

95:47 Outro

#92: 2018 In Review

Draft Mechanic Episode # 92: 2018 In Review, our 2018 Superlatives, Six Packs of our Favorite Beers and Board Games of 2018, a quick MetaMechanic, and biggest gaming surprises of 2018.

Kickstarter: 
Vital Lacerda’s Railways of Portugal (BGG) (Kickstarter)
Folded Space Board Game Inserts - Campaign 3 (Kickstarter)

2018 Superlatives:
Best Artwork:
Danielle: Root (Leder Games)
Jake: Everdell (Starling Games)

Best Non-mini Components:
Jake: the Mars Open: Tabletop Golf ball (Bellwether Games)
Danielle: The Expancity stacking skyscrapers (Breaking Games)

Biggest Disappointment:
Danielle: T.I.M.E. Stories: Brotherhood of the Coast (Space Cowboys)
Jake: Rising Sun (CMON Limited)

Game I Wish I'd Played in 2018:
Danielle: Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game (Portal Games)
Jake: Root (Leder Games)

Game I Wish I'd Played More of in 2018:
Danielle: The Quacks of Quedlinburg (North Star Games)
Jake: Star Realms: Frontiers (White Wizard Games)

Best Older Game I Played for the First Time in 2018:
Danielle: Ponzi Scheme (Tasty Minstrel Games)
Jake: Vinhos Deluxe Edition (Eagle-Gryphon Games)

Best Party Game:
Danielle: Monster Match (North Star Games)
Jake: Mars Open: Tabletop Golf (Bellwether Games)

Best App:
Danielle: Ganz Schön Clever (Schmidt Spiele, Developer: BrettspielWelt GMBH)
Jake: Noch Mal! (Schmidt Spiele, Developer: Outline Development)

Most Innovative Game:
Danielle: Nychtofobia (Pandasaurus Games)
Jake: KeyForge: Call of the Archons/Discover: Lands Unknown (Fantasy Flight Games)

Favorite Beers of 2018 Six-Packs:
Jake:

• Orpheus Brewing “Atalanta Slays the Beast” Barrel-aged plum wild ale. 6.2% ABV. Atlanta, GA, USA.

• Cascade Brewing Company “Primordial Noir” Bourbon barrel-aged cherry sour. 10.5% ABV. Portland, OR, USA.

• B. Nektar Meadery “Apple Pi with Crust” Apple cyser with spices and graham cracker. 15.3% ABV. Ferndale, MI, USA.

• Triptych Brewing “A Wizard Is Never Late” New England IPA brewed with Citra & Apollo hops. 7.07% ABV. Savoy, IL, USA.

• Other Half Brewing Co. “Space Hallucinations” Imperial oat cream IPA. 10.5% ABV. Brooklyn, NY, USA

• Burial Beer Co. “The Earth As We Now Know It” Triple dry hopped imperial IPA. 10% ABV, 65 IBU. Asheville, NC, USA.

Danielle:

• Burial Beer Co. “Mexican Hot Chocolate Skillet” Mexican hot chocolate stout. 8% ABV. / “Griddlecakes” Imperial waffle espresso stout. 10% ABV, 40 IBU. Asheville, NC, USA.

• Three Taverns Craft Brewery “Lord Grey” Lacto-fermented Earl Grey sour. 5% ABV, 5 IBU. Decatur, GA, USA.

• Kane Brewing Company “Morning Bean” Imperial milk porter with bourbon vanilla beans. 9.2% ABV. Ocean, NJ, USA.

• Stoup Brewing/Mirage Beer Co. “ÆGIR” New England IPA fremented with kveik yeast and dry-hopped with Galaxy, Mosaic, & Sabro hops. 6% ABV, 40 IBU. Seattle, WA, USA

• D9 Brewing Company “Brewer’s Day Off” Cucumber melon Gose. 4.8% ABV. Cornelius, NC, USA.

• Fremont Brewing “Bourbon Barrel Aged Dark Star: Spice Wars” Bourbon barrel aged blended imperial stout with spices. 8.0% ABV. Seattle, WA, USA.

Favorite Games of 2018 Six-Packs:

Jake's Picks:

6. Mars Open: Tabletop Golf
Bellwether Games
Designer:  Dennis Hoyle

5. Pasaraya: Supermarket Manager
BoxFox Games
Designer: Seh Hui Leong

3. Decrypto
Le Scorpion Masqué
Designer: Thomas Dagenais-Lespérance

Danielle's Picks:

6. Monster Match
North Star Games
Designer: Ken Gruhl, Quentin Weir

3. Welcome To…
Deep Water Games / Blue Cocker Games
Designer: Benoit Turpin

2. Ganz Schön Clever
Schmidt Spiele
Designer:  Wolfgang Warsch

We Both Picked:

The Quacks of Quedlinburg (Danielle’s 5, Jake’s 4)
North Star Games
Designer:  Wolfgang Warsch

Cryptid (Danielle’s 4, Jake’s 2)
Osprey Games
Designer:  Hal Duncan, Ruth Veevers

Escape Tales: The Awakening (Danielle & Jake’s 1)
Board&Dice
Designer:  Jakub Caban, Matt Dembek, Bartosz Idzikowski

Section Timestamps:

01:00 Show Intro, News & Updates

04:42 Kickstarter Updates

05:46 Kickstarter: Railways of Portugal

07:58 Kickstarter: Folded Space Inserts

10:56 Meta Mechanic: 2018 Podcast Stats

15:40 2018 In Review

20:24 2018 Superlative Categories

53:19 2018 Six Pack: Favorite Beers

65:52 Grey Fox Games Sponsorship Spot

67:11 2018 Six Pack: Honorable Mentions

69:45 2018 Six Pack: Favorite Games

102:03 The Final Round: Your 2018 Moments

111:53 Outro

#80: The Hype List 2018

Draft Mechanic Episode #80: The Hype List 2018 - Our Gen Con preview; Villainous (on tap); Star Realms: Frontiers; Downforce: Danger Circuit

Full notes coming later today! In the meantime, check out our full BGG GeekPreviews for our personal HYPE lists:

Danielle's List

Jake's List

#51: Sentient / Bärenpark

Draft mechanic Episode #51: Double Feature Review of Sentient and Bärenpark, Bärenpark On Tap, Medina, Fields of Arle, Stockpile, and Can Beer Really Quench Your Thirst?

News:
Mega Moose Con
BEST TREEHOUSE EVER GIVEAWAY!
Friedemann Friese's Fast Forward Series

Kickstarter:
Star Scrappers: CAVE-IN
Star Realms Frontiers

Recent Plays: 

Medina (Second Edition)
2014, Stronghold Games
Designer:  Stefan Dorra
Artist:  Eduardo Bera, Hans-Georg Schneider  

Fields of Arle   
2014, Z-Man Games
Designer: Uwe Rosenberg
Artist: Dennis Lohausen

Stockpile
2015, Nauvoo Games
Designers:  Brett Sobol, Seth Van Orden
Artist: Jacqui Davis, Ian O'Toole 

Double Feature Review:

Sentient
2017, Renegade Game Studios
Designer:  J. Alex Kevern
Artist: Chris Ostrowski 

Bärenpark
2013, Mayfair Games/Lookout Spiele
Designer:  Phil Walker-Harding  
Artist:  Klemens Franz 

On Tap:

Bärenpark
2013, Mayfair Games/Lookout Spiele
Designer:  Phil Walker-Harding  
Artist:  Klemens Franz 

• Catawba Brewing Company “Brown Bear Ale”; Morganton, NC, USA
  5.2% ABV, 30 IBU.
  Brown English ale.
• Off Color Brewing “Bare Bear”; Chicago, IL, USA
  7% ABV, 20 IBU.
  Finnish  style sahti brewed with rye malts and juniper berries.
• Horse & Dragon Brewing Company “Sad Panda”; Fort Collins, CO, USA
  6.8% ABV.
  Coffee Stout.
• Rhinegeist Brewery “Koala”; Cincinnati, OH, USA
  6% ABV, 50 IBU.
  Red Ale with Ella, Kohatu, and Vic Secret hops.
• Creston Brewery; Grand Rapids, MI, England
  “Polar Bear”
  4.2% ABV.
  Multigrain golden ale brewed with W. Michigan hops.
  
  “Koala Bear”
  4.2% ABV.
  Golden ale brewed with Rowster Italian coffee.
  
  “Panda Bear”
  4.9% ABV.
  American pale ale brewed with local raw honey, whole chai spices, and rooibus tea.
  
  “Pooh Bear”
  4.6% ABV.
  Pale wheat ale brewed with local raw honey and lavender.

Quenching Thirst:
Public Library of Sciences: Oral Cooling and Carbonation Increase the Perception of Drinking and Thirst Quenching in Thirsty Adults
USA Today: This beer hydrates you. No, really, it does

Goses:
-SeaQuench Ale; Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, 4.9% ABV.
-Jammer; Sixpoint Brewery, 4.0% ABV
-Key Lime Pie Gose; Westbrook Brewing Co., 4.0% ABV
-Blood Orange Gose; Anderson Valley Brewing Co., 4.2% ABV

Pilsners/Kolsches:
-Episode 46: Beer Primer - Pilsners
-Billows; Burial Beer Co., 4.9% ABV, Kolsch
-Kolsch; Schlafly, 4.8% ABV, Kolsch
-Summerfest; Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, 5.0% ABV, Pilsner
-The Crisp; Sixpoint Brewing, 5.4% ABV, Pilsner

Section Timestamps:

<p>Intro
01:00 Show Housekeeping
02:42 Con Watch: MegaMooseCon August 4th-6th!
04:04 Contest: Best Treehouse Ever!
05:42 Kickstarter: Star Scrappers Cave-In update
06:20 Kickstarter: Star Realms Frontiers
10:58 Upcoming: Fast Forward - Fear, Fortress & Flee
16:28 Recent Plays: Medina
23:15 Recent Plays: Fields of Arle
36:01 Recent Plays: Stockpile
45:01 Review: Sentient
57:41 Review: Barenpark
75:42 On Tap: Barenpark
83:27 Can beer quench your thirst?
92:08 Outro