tableto pgaming.co.uk
July 2018
Back to the mythological RPG that reinvented roleplaying
MAGIC THE GATHERING
Designers, artists and fans celebrate the world’s biggest card game 10 PAGES!
PLAYED | HISTORY OF THE WORLD D & D : T O M E O F F O E S | I M A G I N A R I U M | A S O N G O F I C E & F I R E SHARDS OF INFINITY | THE MIND | DECRYPTO | FAE + MORE CENTURY:
EASTERN
WONDERS
Display until 30/7/18
£5.25
2 6 -
PLAYERS
20-40 MINUTES PLAY TIME
Every year the Emperor walks through the Imperial Gardens to greet the spring, every year he stops beneath the sakura trees, and every year you try to paint his picture. This will be your year! is Sakura is
Jostle to the front of the the crowd ready for your opportunity to shine, or keep yourself yours elf in the backgrou background nd only only to leap forward at the right moment. But beware! The emperor has a mind of his own.
a light tactical game of pushing your luck and pushing your friends. Each player will simultaneously decide how far to move both their character and the Emperor. The player closest to the Emperor when the cherry blossoms are reached will gain a huge amount of prestige, but if you push too far you risk bumping into the Emperor and walking away in disgrace.
TIPS FROM CREATOR REINER KNIZIA
It’s the turn of the century, and it’s time to live large!
Life offers many temptations and aspiring to reach the echelons of high society comes at a price. Spend your money wisely, but keep some reserves for the challenging days ahead!
Reiner Knizia’s classic auction game returns in a new edition from Osprey Games! Players must out-bid one another in an effort to acquire the social status to surpass their peers, whilst avoiding scandals which will ruin their reputation. The player who achieves the highest status without going broke will be crowned the winner!
3 5 -
PLAYERS
20 MINUTES PLAY TIME
TIPS FROM CREATOR REINER KNIZIA
BROWSE OUR FULL RANGE OF GAMES AT WWW.OSPREYGAMES.CO.UK WWW.OSPREYGAMES.CO.UK
EDITORIAL
EDITOR Matt Jarvis 01778 392 400
[email protected] CONTRIBUTORS Sam Desatoff, John Dodd, Owen Duffy, Robert Florence, JR Goldberg, Holly Gramazio, Sam Illingworth, Richard Jansen-Parkes,, Dan Jolin, Andy Jansen-Parkes Leighton, Josher Lumpkin, Phil Robinson, Alex Sonechkina, Charlie Theel, Paul Wake, James Wallis
Welcome I
HEAD OF DESIGN & PRODUCTION Lynn Wright DESIGNER Richard Hallam COVER IMAGE FROM MAGIC: THE GATHERING CORE SET 2019 Illustration by Magali Villeneuve Courtesy of Wizards of the Coast ADVERTISING
TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL GROUP ADVERTISING MANAGER Claire Ingram 01778 391 179
[email protected] GROUP TELESALES EXECUTIVE Ben Jackson 01778 391 129
[email protected] ADVERTISING DESIGN AND PRODUCTION Nicola Lock 01778 Lock 01778 392 420
[email protected] MARKETING
MARKETING BRAND MANAGER Nicola Lumb
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This publication is printed by Warners 01778 395111 The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those tho se of the the publi publishers. shers. Ever Everyy care care is taken takento ensur nsure e that that
Matt Matt Jarvis
QUICKSTART
I thought that a game where every card broke the rules would be like magic.
responsibility for any effect from errors or omissions. While every care is taken with unsolicited material submitted for While every care is taken when accepting advertisements, we
Editor
[email protected] | @liquidmatt
the con content tentof this this mag magazin azine e is accura accurate, te, but we assu assume me no
publication, we cannot be responsible for loss or damage.
t’s hard to imagi imagine ne my child childhood hood withou withoutt TCGs: TCGs: hours hours spent spent swapping Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh! cards in the playground, hundreds of pocket-money pounds spent on rares and shinies, binders full of complete collections (and stacks of dupes). It’s just as tough to consider what gaming today would look like without the first collectible card game, Magic: The Gathering, which turns 25 years old this month. A quartercentury on, though, and Magic’s gameplay and universe feels as fresh as ever – as our massive 10-page celebration of the game alongside its creators and fans f ans shows. Also marking a birthday this month is RuneQuest , the influential fantasy RPG that 40 years ago rewrote what an immersive roleplaying world could be, as Greg Stafford and Steve Perrin reminisce in our exclusive interview. The latest edition continues this legacy of invention and imagination – you’ll be able to read our full full thoughts in the Played section. There’s plenty more crammed into this issue, including reviews of the next Century game, game, this year’s controversial Spiel des Jahres hopeful The Mind and and the A Song of Ice & Fire miniatures game – plus a look at the previously top secret games developed by the CIA to train agents. Plus, don’t forget to check the latest announceme announcements nts for Tabletop Gaming Live on page 6 to see why there’s no place more exciting for gamers to be this September.
Richard Garfield revisits the origins of Magic: The Gathering, p18
That is my favourite high – better bett er than all the drugs I have hav e so cheerfully poisoned myself with. Greg Stafford is hooked on RuneQuest ’s ’s spiritual world of Glorantha, p28
It’s a long journey, journe y, I just keep driv d riving ing and the stories keep writing themselv them selves. es. The 30-year saga of sci-fi wrestling game Champions of the Galaxy , p58
are not responsible for the quality and/or the performance of goods and/or services advertised in this magazine. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) exists to regulate the content of advertisements. Tel: 020 7429 2222 © Warners Group Publications Plc, 2018
tabletopgami tabletop gaming.co.uk ng.co.uk
3
THE GAMES Arkwright
54
Art Deck
37
Barker’s Row
79
Big Trouble in Little China: The Game
75
Catan
74
Century: Eastern Wonders
64
In this issue 06 AT A GLANCE
37 KICKSTARTING FROM SCRATCH
08 FIRST TURN
38 HOW WE MADE
First Martians’ Ignacy Trzewiczek looks back on Machina
Turning Fudge into the flexible roleplaying of Fate Core
58
10 10 OF THE BEST
43 THE INDEPENDENT SHELF
Chess
53
13 ROLE CALL
46 OGRE
Civilization
10
Collection Deck
50
Cosmic Encounter
34
Decrypto Drop It
Champions of the Galax y
Dungeons & Dragons
Steve Jackson hops back in the driving seat of his titantic wargame
Back to the game that changed everything: Settlers of Catan
48 THROUGH THE AGES
68
17 MY FAVOURITE GAME
49 SPY GAMES
72
Wordsy creator Gil Hova hooks up with the electrifying Power Grid
We play the board games created to train real CIA agents
ON THE CO VER
53 PLAY IT SMART
18 MAGIC: THE GATHERING
54 CAPSTONE GAMES
70, 88
Fae
14 ALL THE JAHRES
78
Fantastiqa: Rival Realms 80
25TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL
Meet the man on a mission to bring heavyweights t o the masses
The people who made Magic – and the fans enchanted by it – join us to celebrate a quarter-century of the card game
57 UNEARTHED ARTEFACTS
53
28 RUNEQUEST
58 CHAMPIONS OF THE GALAXY
Gloomhaven
48
The story of the sci-fi wrestling game 30 years in the making
Helionox
77
As Glorantha returns, Greg Stafford and Steve Perrin reveal how they crafted a fantasy world like no other
Hexpanse
81
34 HAVE YOU PLAYED?
This month’s unmissable new releases, reviewed!
History of the World
73
Imaginarium
69
Kero
71
Kingpin: The Hunt for El Chapo
49
Machina
08
Fate Core
38
First Martians
09
Flamme Rouge
63 PLAYED 83 PAINTING GUIDE Tips on turning Stuffed Fables into a tabletop dream
88 DM’S GUIDE TO ROLEPLAYING Finding the right words to bring your world alive
91 EVENT REPORT
Magic: The Gathering 18
92 CLUB DIRECTORY
Mechs vs Minions
10
The Mind
66
The Networks
17
Newsdesk
37
98 TABLETOP TIME MACHINE
Ogre
46
Ring, ring! Newsdesk here. Give us the scoop!
Pandemic
48
Power Grid
17
The Ruhr
54
RuneQuest
28, 67
Settlers of Catan
74
Shards of Infinity
76
95 SHOP SPOTLIGHT
28
18
A Song of Ice and Fire: 65 Tabletop Miniatures Game Space Base
74
Stuffed Fables
83
Techno Bowl
43
Unlock!
80
Wild West Exodus
05
Wildcatters
54
Wildlife Safari
57
4
July 2018
58
38
HOW TO BUILD AND PAINT YOUR FREE WILD WEST EXODUS K9 ATTACK DOG Y ATTACK DOG 1 L B M E 1 S S A
ATTACK DOG 2
2
3
1
2
G N I T N I A P
2
3
2
BODIES
GLOW
STAGE 1
STAGE 1
ZINE A G A TM N I R P . U K E O H C T . G WITH G A M I N E E R GS F TOP O E D L K B TA T A C T T A A 9 DUS K T I S S U E O X E ST ES E T A W L D WIL THE R E ORD Doombull Brown: Apply a coat over the whole model and base.
STAGE 2
Leadbelcher: Apply a light drybrush over the dog.
STAGE 3
Drakenhof Nightshade: Apply a light wash over the dog.
STAGE 4
Runefang Steel: Apply an edge highlight to the dog.
Bloodletter: Apply several glazes over and around the area you would like the glow to originate from. STAGE 2
Troll Slayer Orange: Mix one part water and one part Lahmian Medium. Apply a small amount to and around the glowing area. STAGE 3
Fire Dragon Bright: Make a mix with one part water and apply a small amount to the centre of the glow. STAGE 4
LugganathOrange: Water down slightly and apply a dot/dash to the centre of the glow. Apply a very fine edge highlight to any hard edges.
BASING Baneblade Brown: Apply a fairly heavy drybrush to the sand. Agrellan Earth: Apply a generous coat to the areas of the base with no sand. Karak Stone: Apply a light drybrush to the sand and an edge highlight to the cracks. Painting guide and pictures by Andy Leighton
N O I T I T E P M O C
For a chance to win, simply submit your image to
[email protected] with the subject line "Wild West Comp" along with your full name and telephone number before midday on Monday July 30th 2018 For full terms and conditions, visit t abletopgaming.co.uk/competitions
AT A GLANCE
KING OF TOKYO, SUSHI GO!, KINGDOMINO, SUB TERRA AND THE CHAMELEON CREATORS BRINGING AWARD-WINNING FAMILY FAVOURITES AND PARTY HITS TO TABLETOP GAMING LIVE Big Potato, Blue Orange, Iello, Inside the Box, North Star and more join dozens of studios showing their latest games This year’s Tabletop Gaming Live line-up continues to grow with the addition of some of the most exciting games studios in the world. Joining already announced board game, RPG and miniatures studios such as Fantasy Flight, Days of Wonder, Catan S tudio, Mantic, Cubicle 7, Warlord Games and many more is a fresh slew of creators behind smash-hit family favourites and crowd-pleasing party games. These include Blue Orange, the family publisher behind Kingdomino – last year’s winner of the Spiel des Jahres – Queendomino and Photosynthesis, as well as many other games.
Also on the show floor will be Iello, the team responsible for games including dice-rolling smash hits King of Tokyo and King of New York . Joining them is Big Potato, the British party game makers of The Chameleon, Obama Llama, Truth Bombs, Scrawl and Bucket of Doom. Meanwhile, fellow Brit studio Inside the Box will bring along its hit co-op game Sub Terra, plus hot fresh title NewSpeak , to the show. You’ll also find Sushi Go! and Forbidden Desert creator Gamewright, plus Dice Hospital studio Alley Cat Games and North Star, which will have its Happy Planet series – including the
hilarious Happy Salmon and upcoming dancing game Funky Chicken, new for this year. The number of miniatures specialists continues to grow, too, with Titan Wargames, Pendraken Miniatures and more adding to an already extensive line-up. Tabletop Gaming Live will take place in London’s Alexandra Palace this September 29th and 30th, and will include participation games, live seminars and an open gaming area. Tickets are on sale now from just £10, with family and weekend bundles available. Visit The Ticket Factory and search “Tabletop Gaming Live”.
KNOW YOUR NUMBERS
15 Ticket to Ride: New York is a dinky version of the t rain game that plays in a quarter of an hour
EThe final chapter of Uwe ERosenberg’s puzzle trilogy, Rafter Cottage Garden and HIndian Summer , will be T Spring Meadow
2
Crime caper RPG Fiasco is plotting a second edition
4
Knizia’s couples favourite Lost Cities will invite twice the players along on its costly expeditions in spin-off Rivals
42
Cosmic Encounter celebrates a birthday and Douglas Adams’ wit in its upcoming 42nd Anniversary Edition
22 Innovative ‘90s storytelling game City of Chaos is being resurrected, two decades after it debuted
REASONS TO SUBSCRIBE • SAVE UP TO 10% PER YEAR • GUARANTEE YOUR FREE GIFT EVERY MONTH • DON’T MISS OUT IF THE SHOPS SELL OUT 6
January 2018