Friday Five: 5 Brilliant Board Games Based on SF/F Books
Friday, March 06, 2015
This week's Friday Five is courtesy of Mark Gerrits. Mark is avid (not to say obsessed) boardgamer. Each October, he undertakes a pilgrimage to Essen for Spiel, the world's largest boardgaming fair. When not rolling dice or shuffling cards, he can be found with his nose pressed against an ebook. He has a small blog hidden away on Boardgamegeek and can be found on twitter as @MarkGerrits.
Who doesn’t like books? Nobody! Who doesn’t like board games? Okay, I guess there’s one or two of you. But for the rest of you, here are some great board games based on famous works of speculative fiction. And even if you don’t consider yourself a boardgamer, you might want to check these out anyway - they're far more than crappy Monopoly rethemes.
Dune
The Dune board game is as old as I am and I think it went out of print around the time I left kindergarten. So if you want to try this one out, be prepared to scour a lot of flea markets or to pay a hefty sum on the internet. Or you could settle for the recent rethemed version, Rex: Last Days of an Empire. But then you’d miss out on one of the game’s greatest strengths: the masterful way it blends its game mechanisms with Frank Herbert’s world.
On a large map of Arrakis, you will order your troops around to collect the precious Spice and take control of strongholds, all the while avoiding sandstorms and sandworms. Inevitably, fights ensue. The rules are simple but its your unique faction powers that add spice (see what I did there?) to the game. The Harkonnens are extra treacherous, the Fremen know all the ins and outs of the planet, the Bene Gesserit can use The Voice on you, and so on.
In the end, it’s the player who made the most opportune alliances and manipulated his fellow gamers best, who wins. Plans within plans within plans…
The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game
By my last count, there are about 3.7 gazillion LotR board games but this is one of the more interesting ones. It’s a “Living Card Game” which means that new cards come out on a monthly schedule, providing an ever growing card pool from which you can build decks to play with your friends. But unlike Collectible Card Games like Magic the Gathering, you buy all the new cards in one pack and don’t have to chase rare cards in randomized boosters. Of course, you can also just stick with the base set which is already a bunch of fun.
Another big difference between this game and its brethren is that it’s a cooperative game. So when you roll up with your Gimli & Legolas bromance deck and your friend whips out his hobbit deck, your parties will actually go on a quest together, fighting Sauron’s minions instead of duking it out between yourselves.
The game has been going for a long time already and so it covers a lot of Middle Earth, even some of its more obscure nooks and crannies, all illustrated with beautiful card art. And they’ve even introduced some new characters, most notably some more women, as these are rather lacking in the books.
If you like the idea of Living Card Games but can’t be bothered with all this hippie cooperative nonsense, there’s also a Living Card Game based on A Game of Thrones which is far less friendly.
Discworld: Ankh-Morpork
Another game with amazing artwork. Lord Vetinari has disappeared and everybody’s vying for power in Ankh-Morpork. But your identity is hidden from the other players. Will you be one of the Lords, trying to control enough of the city, or Chrysoprase, trying to get rich in the chaos, or maybe poor Sam Vimes who just wants to see game end without too much destruction?
Gameplay is as simple as playing a card and drawing card, but as your henchmen occupy parts of the city, you’ll gain extra income and abilities. And then there’s all the card effects, each one a clever reference to the Discworld books (just don’t play too many wizards because they cause nothing but chaos and grief).
If you’re willing to track it down, there’s a limited edition which avoids any mention of the number between seven and nine.
Legendary: A Marvel Deck Building Game
In a deck building game like this, each player has his own deck of cards which starts off pretty crappy. In this case, you get Maria Hill and some non-descript S.H.I.E.L.D agents. But during the game, you will recruit superhero cards to your deck and watch your team grow in strength. Play well and your team will rival the Avengers, play badly and it’ll be like watching an episode of Heroes.
At the start of each game you’ll combine an evil mastermind with a master scheme, recreating great conflicts from Marvel’s history. Maybe the Red Skull is trying to unleash the power of the Cosmic Cube, or maybe Stryfe has kidnapped Baby Hope (if he’s not too busy unleashing the Legacy Virus). Sometimes the effect might be more comical as when you’re trying to stop Galactus from robbing a bank while he’s eating up the planet. In the end, the player who defeated the most villains will win.
There are plenty of clever thematic touches. Some Hulk cards give everybody a wound (a useless card which takes up space in your deck) while other Hulk cards let you get rid of a wound for extra attack strength. Doesn’t that perfectly capture the Hulk? Or there’s Daredevil, whose cards reward you for knowing the top card of your deck (and who lets you put cards there, to help you along).
If your sympathies have always been with the villains, no worries, there’s also a Legendary: Villains game where you can beat up Spider-Man and Cyclops.
Gormenghast
Okay, to be honest, this game isn’t as good as the previous four games. Those are perfectly playable with friends who are unfamiliar with the source material. This one, on the other hand, is strictly for the fans. BUT IT’S A BOARD GAME BASED ON GORMENGHAST! If you’re anything like me, that’s more than enough reason to make you run out and buy the game.
It plays as a reverse Cluedo. You take on the roles of kitchen boys, trying to influence and manipulate the people of Gormenghast to your benefit. Yes, everybody’s a Steerpike. You will have secret mission cards telling you which characters and objects you need to get to certain places. For instance, send MR FLAY to the SILENT HALLS to search for MICE in your plot to further Lord Groan’s delusions of being the Great Owl.
The game is clearly a labour of love. The character artwork is wonderful and there are quotes everywhere. There’s even a Book of Ritual which you’ll have to consult throughout the game in a random manner, not that different really from its arcane use in the books.
Any other great games based on great books (or comics)? Please share your recommendations in the comments - and if you've played any of the above, let Mark know at @MarkGerrits.