Our next meeting will be Tuesday 27^th June 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.  There is currently no food available, so everyone will be eating before they come out.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the Aerial expansion (rules; review; how to play video) to one of our most popular little games, Draftosaurus (rules; review; how to play video).  Since the group first played it online in 2021, we have played it lots of times in person, drafting real, cute, miniature, wooden dinosaurs.  This expansion adds a mountain board and wooden Pterodactyls.  We’ve picked this game because it we know it well and it plays quickly, allowing lots of options for the rest of the evening.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of Pterodactyls…

Jeff and Joe were visiting the Natural History Museum and were staying in a cheap hotel in London.  Joe came into the bedroom and Jeff asked him where he’d been.

Joe said, “I was in the bathroom—can’t a guy go to the loo in peace?”

Jeff apologised, “Sorry, it’s just that it’s a small hotel room and the walls are made of cardboard, and, well, I just didn’t hear you pee.”

“Of course you didn’t,” Joe answered quickly, “That’s because I’m like a Pterodactyl.”

Jeff was utterly confused by this, so asked, “How on earth are you like a Pterodactyl?”

Joe explained, “Because my P is silent…”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 13^th June 2023 at the Horse and Jockey.  As usual, we will start playing shorter games from 7.30pm as people arrive, until 8pm when we will start something a little longer.  There is currently no food available, so everyone will be eating before they come out.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the Earth (rules; review, how-to-play video), where players are building themselves an ecosystem.   Last time, we played Wingspan and remembered how much we liked it; Earth has similarities with Wingspan, so as that was so successful, we thought we’d try the new, hot, card-driven, engine-builder game.

– Image from insideupgames.com

Speaking of environmental matters…

Jeff and Joe were talking about what they were doing to save the planet.

“I’m really getting into recycling,” Jeff commented. “And I’m trying to avoid buying things wrapped in plastics.”

Joe replied, “The best way to reduce your carbon footprint it to become vegan.”

Not to be outdone, Jeff answered, “I don’t have a carbon footprint, because I drive everywhere.”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 16^th May 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.  For those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the Marina expansion (rules; review; how to play video) to one of our most popular little games, Draftosaurus (rules; review; how to play video).  The group first played this online in 2021, but since then have played it lots of times in person drafting real cute miniature wooden dinosaurs.  This expansion adds a bit more river and wooden Plesiosaurs.  We’ve picked this game because it we know it well and it plays quickly, allowing lots of options for the rest of the evening (including a possible rematch of Zoo Break for those that want to have another try).

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of plesiosaurs…

Jeff and Joe were out sea fishing when they got a bite. It was a bigun’, and they tugged and hauled on the line, but there was a sudden snap and it got away.  It was getting late and time to go home, so as they headed back, they compared other near misses.

“A while back, I had a shark on my line,” said Jeff.  “Sadly, it got away though.”

“Wow,” replied Joe, “Last year I had a whale jump right over my boat.”

Jeff was not to be outdone, “That’s nothing,” he said.  “Why, just yesterday morning, I had a plesiosaur jump right into my boat!”

Joe, looked surprised as he had been out on the waves too and hadn’t heard about it.  “What time was that then?” he asked.

Jeff responded, “Time to get a new boat…”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 2^nd May 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.  For those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Zoo Break, a light cooperative game where players are a team of zoo-keepers trying to prevent a mass break-out (rules, video review). The game has fabulous wooden ani-meeples and especially cute panda-meeples.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of pandas…

Jeff was at the cinema when he noticed what looked like a panda sitting next to him.

Jeff did a double take, then asked, “Excuse me, are you a panda?”

“Yes,” replied the panda.

“Umm…” began Jeff hesitantly, “So, what are you doing at the movies?”

The panda answered, “Well, I enjoyed the book.”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 18^th April 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.  For those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the Pearlbrook expansion for the Golden GOAT winner, Everdell (base game rules, tutorial video, review; Pearlbrook rules, tutorial video, review).  Pearlbrook is the river where players send their frog ambassador to gather pearls which can be used to build new wonders and adornments for the cities of Everdell.

– Image used with permission of BGG contributor bkunes

Speaking of pearls…

Jeff was touring the Rhine Valley and had booked himself into a lovely old castle that had been converted into a hotel.  When he arrived, he entered the foyer and suddenly had the creepiest feeling come over him, like there was a presence that made a shiver run down his spine.

Feeling more than a little uncomfortable, he approached the lady at the reception desk and said, “Excuse me, do you know if this hotel is haunted?”

The lady laughed and replied, “Well, I have been here for three hundred years and I’ve never seen a ghost!”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 4^th April 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.  For those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the filler game, Om Nom Nom.  This is a fun and light little game of think and double-think where players are trying to eat without getting eaten.  As a short game, it should leave plenty of time to play a wide range of other things.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of eating…

Starving after hours of driving nonstop, Jeff and his wife pulled over at a motorway service station.  While she filled up the car with petrol, Jeff went into the restaurant and placed their substantial order to take away.

After writing it all down, the girl behind the desk asked, “Will that be all for you?”

“No,” replied Jeff a bit defensively. “Some of it is for my wife…”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 21^st March 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.  For those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be the Visit from the Rhine Valley expansion for one of the group’s most popular games, Viticulture (review; tutorial video; rules).  This is a very small expansion, just a replacement deck of visitor cards, but it has a reputation for changing the game quite significantly.

– Image by boardGOATS

Speaking of the Rhine Valley…

Jeff was touring the Rhine Valley and had booked himself into a lovely old castle that had been converted into a hotel.  When he arrived, he entered the foyer and suddenly had the creepiest feeling come over him, like there was a presence that made a shiver run down his spine.

Feeling more than a little uncomfortable, he approached the lady at the reception desk and said, “Excuse me, do you know if this hotel is haunted?”

The lady laughed and replied, “Well, I have been here for three hundred years and I’ve never seen a ghost!”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 7^th March 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.  For those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be New York Zoo (review; tutorial video; rules), a tile laying game by Uwe Rosenberg (designer of Agricola, Bohnanza and Patchwork and many other games).  The idea is that players are building pens in their zoo, populating them with animals, and building attractions.

– Adapted from image by BGG contributor aldoojeda

Speaking of zoos…

The kangaroo kept escaping from his enclosure at a zoo. The zookeeper, Jeff, decided the way to fix it was to make the wall higher, so increased its height by a meter.

Unfortunately, that didn’t work, and the next day, the kangaroo escaped again.  So Jeff added another two meters to the wall.  That didn’t work either though, and the following morning the kangaroo had got out again.  It was clear to Jeff that the wall just wasn’t high enough so this time he added another three meters to its height.

But the kangaroo escaped again and again.  When the kangaroo had been brought back for the tenth time, his friend, the elephant asked, “When are you going to stop?”

The kangaroo replied, “When Jeff closes the door of my enclosure, I guess.”

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 21^st 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 Horse and Jockey will be holding a Thai night, so for those who want to eat, the table is booked from 6.45pm.  As this is likely to be quite popular, please let us know in advance if you would like to come and whether you would like food so we can give the pub an idea of numbers.

This week, the “Feature Game” will be Verdant (review; overview video; rules), a card game where players are trying to match plants to rooms and grow luxurious foliage to give them the most points at the end of the game.

– Image by BGG Contributor kalchio

Speaking of plants…

Recently, Jeff had started gardening and he was proudly showing his friend Joe his new plants.

“I like plant all my herbs in alphabetical order,” Jeff explained. “That way I know where they all are and can easily find what I want when I am cooking.”

“That’s really impressive,” mused Joe. “It must take you ages to sort it all out though, especially when you buy something new and everything needs to be moved. How do you find the time?”

“Oh,” answered Jeff, “That’s easy, it’s next to the sage.”