Our next meeting will be Tuesday 7^th February 2023.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.  The pub will be serving food and, for those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Flamecraft (review; overview video; rules), a game where players take the role of Flamekeepers, gathering items, placing dragons and casting enchantments to enhance the shops of the town.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of dragons…

The villagers down at The Jockey all looked very upset, so Jeff asked why people looked so sad.

“There is a huge dragon at the top of White Horse Hill.  Every week, it comes down and eats one of our virgin girls,” one of the villagers replied.

Nobody was convinced, but Jeff promised to do what he could to help.

Three weeks later, the dragon starved to death.

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 24^th January 2023.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.  The pub will be serving food and for those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Bellfaire (rules; new rules run-through video; review), an expansion to Everdell (review; play through video; rules).  We have picked this because Everdell was so popular when we played it in November it won the Golden GOAT Award just before Christmas and, although the Bellfaire expansion adds a little bit (principally asymmetric player powers and some special events), it doesn’t change the game too much.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of special events…

Joe was preparing for a party, it was his birthday and quite an important one.  He’d cleaned the bathroom, put bleach down the toilet and went to hoover the front room when he discovered the vacuum cleaner was missing.

“Hey, Jeff!” he asked his housemate.  “What’s happened to the hoover?”

“Oh, I sold it” replied Jeff, “It was just gathering dust…”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 10^th January 2023.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Long Shot: The Dice Game (rules; run-through video; review).  Based on the party game Long Shot, this is a light horse racing and betting game in a similar mould to that of Turf Horse Racing.  As it is quick to play, it should give us plenty of time to play some of our other old favourites.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of betting on horses…

Jeff had spent an enjoyable day at the races and was telling his mate Joe all about it.

“I put a bet on a horse to come in at 10 to 1,” he said, “And it did!  Unfortunately all the others came in at 12.30…”

Although there has been a bit of a hiatus, this year, on Sunday 31^st December, we will once again be holding a party for New Year’s Eve.  As the pub will have their own event, we will be meeting at a private house in Stanford with people arriving from 7.30pm with food served sometime around 8pm.  Please get in touch if you would like to come along so we know how much food will be needed.

The plan is to start off with the “Feature Game”, which, as has become traditional at these events, will be the gorgeous, dexterity car-racing game, PitchCar.  After that, we will be eating, popping party poppers, playing games and admiring the village’s fireworks at midnight.

– Image by boardGOATS

And talking of cars…

A policeman sees an elderly woman driving incredibly slowly on the motorway, so he pulls along side and notices her knitting in the driver’s seat.  She remains focused on the road and keeps knitting and driving.

He beeps his horn to get her attention, but she is oblivious and carries on.

Getting more frustrated, the policeman turns his siren on and, as she finally notices him, he signals for her to wind the window down.

After a time she finds the button and down goes the window.

Incensed, the cop yells, “PULL OVER!”

“Oh, no sweetie,” she replies.  “It’s a scarf, see?”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 27^th December 2022.  As it is a bank holiday, we will start a little earlier playing shorter games from 7pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the card drafting animal game, Zuuli (play-through video).  This is a light game that is a bit like Sushi Go!, but with animals.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of zoos…

Jeff was telling his friend Joe about his trip to the zoo the other day.

Jeff explained, “Some of the animals didn’t bring their wallets, so I ended up paying the lion’s share…”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 13^th December 2022 at the Horse and Jockey pub in Stanford-in-the-Vale.

As this is our last meeting before Christmas
we will be meeting early from 7pm for pizzas and Christmas festivities.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Merry Madness: The Nightmare Before Christmas (review & play through video, rules), followed by a range of Christmas and winter themed games like Santa’s Workshop, Christmas Tree, Snow Tails, Carcassonne: Winter Edition, Giftmas at Dungeon Abbey, Gingerbread House and Ticket to Ride: Nordic Countries.   Merry Madness is a real time, dice chucking game where players are trying to gather together all the spooky-themed gifts in Sandy Claws’ Christmas Bag.

– Image from spelhuis.be

Speaking of nightmares…

It was shortly before Christmas when Jeff had a nightmare and dreamed that he was stuck inside a snow globe.

When he woke, he was really shaken up…

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 15^th November 2022.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Everdell (review, play through video, rules), a card-driven worker tableau building and placement game set in a woodland glade.  Players take the role of leader of a group of critters constructing buildings, meeting characters and hosting events by placing workers and playing cards.

– Image by BGG contributor guzforster

Speaking of constructing buildings…

Jeff was working as a builder constructing a shed in a customer’s garden.  It was quite a wet day when he approached the backdoor of the house, knocked and asked the lady occupant if she could use the toilet.

The elegant lady looked down at Jeff’s extremely dirty boots and said, “OK, but let me just lay some newspaper down first.”

Jeff looked slightly offended and replied, “It’s OK, I am already trained.”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 1^st November 2022.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.  Please note that the pub will not be serving food on Tuesdays for the foreseeable.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Downforce: Danger Circuit (rules), an expansion for Downforce (review, play through video, rules).  Downforce is a card-driven bidding, racing, and betting game based on the older game Top Race (which in turn is a reimplementation of several other games including Niki Lauda’s Formel 1).  The Danger Circuit expansion adds two new tracks with dangerous spaces and crossover loops as well as drivers with new skills.

– Adapted from Image by BGG contributor kalchio

Speaking of car racing…

Jeff and his mate Joe were chatting about how they had both been enjoying the current Formula One racing season.

“It’s great that I have Sky, because it means I can watch every race, ” said Joe.

Jeff answered sadly, “I keep trying to watch racing on my computer but every time I press the F1 key it just opens a help window.”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 18^th October 2022.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.  Please note that the pub will not be serving food on Tuesdays for the foreseeable.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Disney Villainous: The Worst Takes it All (review, play through video, rules).  This is an asymmetric card game where players take on the role of a Disney Villain (Maleficent, Captain Hook, Jafar, Red Queen, Ursula or Prince John), and try to satisfy their own personal objectives.

– Image by BGG contributor The Innocent

Speaking of Disney…

Jeff and Joe were discussing their favourite Disney characters one day.

“I’d like to be a Disney prince,” said Jeff.

“Yeah, they’re really good looking,” commented Joe, “Though they are a little bit wet.”

“But they always get the girls,” explained Jeff.  Joe thought for a minute.

“You could be one of the Seven Dwarves instead,” he suggested. “They are much cooler and you’d have loads of great mates too.”

“Nah, I couldn’t be one of the Dwarves,” Jeff replied.

Joe looked at his friend and asked, “Why?  There’s nothing wrong with being short you know and a lot of the shortest people are really, well, you know…”

“Oh no, It’s not their height,” continued Jeff, “It’s just that I heard six out of seven of them aren’t happy.”