How to explain a game, 7 tips

Hi everyone!

Always when you want a board game you need to explain this to the other player. It’s not the funniest part of the game but you are oblige to do this. I will present you 10 tips to do this.

Know your audience

Before starting to explain a game, ask a few questions to the table to determine who you are dealing with: noob, casual or core-gamer?

Knowing your audience will allow you to tailor your lexical field and examples. In short, adapt your explanation to your players!

Overview

Most player prefer to start by understanding two main elements: how to win and how to play.

How to win: for most players play means winning. Rarely plays in the voluntary optical loss. And to win he should know how to do to get there, logic. Start your explanations with the end, victory conditions, the ultimate goals.

How to play: once victory explained, then present how to play: should throw the dice? Playing a card? Place one of his pawns on a box?

Once you briefly stated these two parameters, go to the other rules.

Short term memory

Have you ever experienced the stress of being on the phone and it tells you a number to call at the same time without the possibility of note? This is your short term memory which is then undermined. You must simultaneously focus on voice and data, then you have only one desire, to hang up quickly remember the phone number.

When explaining the rules is a bit the same, or even worse if you do it in a noisy, crowded room that will prevent your players to focus their attention on your words. Keep this in mind when you embark on a long and tedious explanation.

Visualise

Learning can be done visually and/or hearing. Some people are either parameter, several other simultaneously. You are limited to hearing your explanation in risk of losing players at the table. So explain the game with the material can help you.

Repeat

Do not hesitate to repeat some explanations, such as the victory. For the short term memory becomes entrenched, repetition is still the best way. Nobody likes to repeat the same thing a thousand times, we feel badly about losing his time, and yet it is indeed the best way to get your players understand your explanations.

Simplify

Simplify the rules and explain just enough so that your players can do 1-2 turn.

Know about this game

Last tip, do not explain a game that you do not know well, that does not gather your players. It is better to take the rule and read more rather than venture into dubious explanations or calamitous.

All right, now you have all tips to explain your games. So lest go, no more excuse!

6 good reason to play board games

Hi everyone!

Unlike to common beliefs, board games can be beneficial! I will expose to you six reason to play board games.

Play board game develop neural function

Play force player to reflect, that mean training memory, strategy, abstraction, creativity, curiosity, concentration, management, observation… If you want learn more about this point read this article.

Play increase characteristic of relationship

When  we play board games we must be in group and develop communication, listening, respect, openness and meeting. Social network is not the only solution to meet people, you can have human warmth! Board game can help you to meet other people/player, not only people with same age but other age too, because board games are inter-generational.

Play increase imagination

Currently game can have many theme like medieval, science fiction, antiquity, fantastic… and to play this game you must imagine you as a person in this universe, we must commit yourself to this universe and imagine lot of thing.

Play increase competition instinct

Many people play for the fun, but you can play to win, you can go in tournament to win more and more and  be recognize as the best player. That involve self-transcendence and self-worth.

Play make happy

Play help people to temporarily forget his worries, his daily life and cause lot of laugh and make happy and relaxed.

Play cheaper costing

To play you are not oblige to buy games, you can go to association who invite members to play for free.

I think we can find more reason to play board games so I invite you to post more reason in your comments!

Games Festivals 2/2 Part

Hi everyone!

Like I say in previous post today I inform you about games festival in France, previous time I presented the festival “Place aux jeux” in Grenoble. this time it’s “Alchimie du Jeux” in Toulouse.

From 3th to 5th May, during tree days and two night you are invite to discover a multitude of games: board games, classic games, miniatures games, traditional games, games oversized… All these games are free to use and motivated and friendly organizer are here to help you.

You will also find a space to the attention of children, snacks for you on-site dining and shops. Throughout the festival, you can also participate in many events such as tournaments, raffles and quizzes, you will perhaps win a few games. Meet gamers, but also authors will present their latest creations, and share with them a moment of relaxation and discovery in a warm and playful.

This festival are in Halls 7 and 8 in exhibition centers of Toulouse, but the schedule are not finish at this time. You can discover some informations about activities here.

A last thing, the 1st May is a public holyday so if you want discover Toulouse it’s a good opportunity!!

Games Festivals 1/2 Part

Hi everyone!

This time I will talk about games festivals. Many of them are organize in France, you can find video game festivals, game festivals with video games and board games, and board game festivals. Today I will inform you about two board game festival.

The first is “Place aux Jeux” in Grenoble. From 15th to 21th April, the four associations organizing “Place aux Jeux” and their partners have a single goal: to make you play!

This festival is organize by four associations:

• maison des jeux de Grenoble
• Comité des Jeux de Simulation du Dauphiné
• Jeux En Société
• Jeux et Vous

Many type of games are possible: Skill games and launch, board games, traditional games worldwide, spaces for babies and children, miniature games, collectible card games, role-playing …

Associations offer to you discovery time, parts of initiation, tournaments where the competition is in full swing! But also meetings with game authors, publishers …

Schedule for this week:

• Monday 15 April 2013 from 6 pm to 11 pm in “La Bobine”.
• Tuesday 16 April 2013 from 8:30 pm to 12 pm in ADAJE.
• Wednesday 17 April 2013 from 6:30 pm to 11 pm in “Campus de St Martin d’Héres”.
• Thursday 18 April 2013 from 8 pm to 11 pm in Game House of Grenoble.
• Friday 19 April 2013 from 6 pm to 1 am in “K fée des jeux”.
• Weekend all the day in “Halle Clemenceau”.

Now you have all the information to this festival so lest go to this and have fun!! In the next post I will inform you about a festival in Toulouse, so stay with me and go to the next post!

Munchkin

Hi everyone!

Are you ready for new adventure?

Today we go to a dungeon! But how?

Munchkin is a card games where you play a human adventurer.

Characteristics:

• Players: 3-6
• Duration: 60 minutes
• Theme: fantastic, monster, medieval-fantastic

In this game the goal is to reach level 10 to increase your level you must kill monster. Other means include selling a thousand gold pieces worth of items.

You have two type of cards, treasure and door. Each person’s turn begin with open the door, behind this you can discover a monster who want kill you, to kill him must  the player’s level plus bonuses from the player’s equipment is higher than the monster’s level plus any bonuses the monster might have , then the player wins the fight and moves up one level, and takes the monster’s stuff. Each other player can help you and negotiate one or more treasure, or help the monster with bonuses. If the monster is to hight level to you, you can run away but for that you must launch the dice and make 5 or 6.

Other car is possible behind the door, you can have some curse.

If players don’t fight again monster they can invoke monster and fight with him, or they can pick a treasure card.

Munchkin is not a very serious game.  There are many cards which interact with or are affected by a single other card, despite the rarity of the two cards entering play together.

I think it’s good games, you can help your friend or monster, but make attention of the other player’s level!

And other trick the rules explain all player can cheat if the other player don’t see him! So good game and have Fun!!

Magic The Gathering Part 2/2

Hi everyone!

I think you want know more about Magic The Gathering, if you read the first part of this post you know the base of this game now you will learn how to play!

The game starts off with you shuffling your deck and drawing 7 cards. Then you pick up half of your deck and flip over that card. The player with the highest mana costing card goes first. The mana cost of the card is on the top right of the card. Colorless mana is a gray circle with a number of how much mana you need. Example: I draw “Guard Gomazoa” which has a mana cost of one blue mana and two colorless mana. That is a total mana cost of three. My opponent draws a card that has a total mana cost of two. I get to choose who goes first. I choose him because the player who goes first can’t draw a card at the beginning of his first turn.

When it is your turn there are certain things you have to do in order. The first thing is you untap any of your cards that got tapped from last turn. You tap a card to use its special ability or to attack. When you use a sorcery card it goes to your graveyard which is right next to your deck. You have to put it facing up. After untapping all of your cards you then draw a card. During your turn you can play a mana, and then use as many spells as you want as long as you have mana for them. Then you attack with your creatures if you choose to. You can only attack once when it is your turn. After you attack you can either play more cards if you have the mana for them or end your turn. Whenever you play a spell, its mana cost at the top right is how much mana you tap. If you tap your creatures to attack then you can no longer defend with those creatures until it is your turn again. Only flying creatures can block flying creatures unless your card says otherwise.

Now that you know how to play the game, the next step is to try your deck against your friends. You play against them to see what is working well in your deck and what you need to change in your deck. To change your deck you are going to go out and buy new cards and test them until you get a deck that works well with the deck you have. Eventually you will have a collection where you can make multiple decks to use and have fun with. In time you can make a really good deck and compete in magic the gathering tournaments to get even better cards for your deck.

Magic The Gathering Part 1/2

Hi everyone!

When I was in secondary school all children play only one card games. This game was about monster, elements, enhancement, spell… It was Magic The Gathering! I will separate this games in two post, the first is about how prepare your first game and the second is going to be about how to play Magic The Gathering.

Why all children play this games? It is one of the first card games ever made. Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and other childish card games were based off of this. Magic is an easy game to learn but a hard game to master. It requires a little luck, a lot of strategy, and a good game plan. There are many different ways to play this game. I am going to explain the basic way to play Magic the Gathering.

Characteristics:

• Players: 2-2
• Duration: 30 minutes
• Theme: Strategy, reflection, chance

The first step in playing Magic is finding a deck to play with. There are plenty of stores that sell decks ( look this post to know where: Where buy Board Game). There are 5 different colors to choose from. Black decks are used for destroying your opponent at the cost of your creatures or your life. Blue decks are used to counter spells and control your opponent. Red decks are used to deal a lot of direct damage to an opponent. White decks are used for defending. Green decks are used to get a lot of monsters out at once. The color is all personal preference.

The next step is to separate all your cards into different categories.  You should put your creatures, sorcery spells, enchantments, lands, and artifacts in different piles. You can tell the difference between the cards by the center of the card. If it is a sorcery, artifact, or enchantment spell then it will say sorcery in the middle of the card, and under it will be spell description. If it is a creature card then it will have 2 digits at the bottom right of the card. It will be in the form 2/2. Land cards will have land written in the middle of the card. A third of your deck or more should be lands.

Basic lands used for mana in Magic the Gathering.

Example of creature’s card.

With this base you have the mainstay of Magic The Gathering, in the next post I will explain to you how to play so stay online the post continue!

Where to buy board games?

Hello every one!

You don’t know where to buy board games?? So this post is for you! Two separation in this post first I show you an address in Paris and after some web site to buy board games.

Many address are possible in Paris, I present one :

L’Oeuf Cube it’s a small store specialist in “Magic the Gathering” (I will speak about this games in an other post).

This store is near the University “Pierre Marie Curie “, I you are a fan of “Magic the Gathering’ I encourage you to go here they have lot of cards and they have very good occasion card. You can also buy cards in weight, with this you are not sure to have very good cards but you have more of them to build your deck. But it’s not this only item they sell, you can found lot of board games, like Perudo, Puerto Rico, Cuba… And the more important in L’Oeuf Cube is the seller, you can ask, discuss or play with them. They know lot of thing about board games and can oriented you if you search a game for friend.

The store are very attractive because you can speak with other players and maybe play with them in future, but if you don’t have time you can go in web to have lot of reference and advice about games.

If you search online shop :

• http://www.reservoir-jeux.com/
• http://www.gamesparadise.com.au/
  

To discovered new games and have some opinion:

• http://www.trictrac.fr/
• http://www.petitpeuple.fr/

I hope you have found in this post all you need to buy or have opinion about all games you search.

See you next time with “Magic the Gathering”!!

Happy new year, let’s go to Cuba!!!

Hello every one! To begin I wish you an Happy New Year!

It’s been long time since I didn’t post a new article, so sorry but today I propose you a trip in beautiful island. I wish you to go in Cuba island and invite you to be an broker. You dream to have a villa, and why not a villa with tobacco, citrus, rum…? So let’s go come with me to Cuba!

 

Characteristics:

• Players: 2-5
• Duration: 2-3 hours
• Theme: Strategy, diplomacy, reflection

 

 

Now what happen? You are a broker and you will product cane, citrus fruit, tobacco, rum and cigar but how?

This games is organize with six turn in it you must play character,   five character are possible: worker, seller, architect, supervisor and mayor. Each of them can make specific actions. With them you can build, collect resources, sell…

If you know Puerto Rico it’s similar games but the most important in this games is the law because you can loose many points if you are not attentive of their.

Games of thrones

Hi every one!

I think the most of you know the title, Games of Thrones, but today I will not present to you the book or the series  I will present you the board game create on the universe of the book. I discover the games during the last week end and I spent a pleasant time with my friend.

So what is this game?

Characteristics:

• Players: 5-6
• Duration: 5 hours
• Theme: Strategy, diplomacy, reflection

In this game you play one family of the story, Stark, Baratheon, Greyjoy, Lannister, Martell or Tyrell. Each of them have one started region with some troop, six family card with characters who have special abilities.

The objective of each player was to control seven castle or fortress before the end of the tenth turns if nobody success before the player with more castle won the game.

During the game the most important was to make alliance with other players.

The most complicated in the games was to read all the rules, but when you start your first game you understand all of this very quickly.

To me this game was a very good boarder game, if you want to win, you have to make at least one alliance and most of time your partner will be a traitor ! Be aware traitor are coming. You must look all the map before choosing any actions.

Make attention this game can change your real life, some of your friends can betray you during the game and change your opinion about him!!