I have been looking at endless youtube games review channels and review sites and seen that increasingly the thing to have if you are serious about gaming is a gaming table. I’m sure everyone knows what I mean, one of those luxurious looking items, hewn from some expensive looking hardwood, looking like it was built to survive a nuclear blast, built in cup holders, dice tower, card holders and finally a smart looking surface made from the finest of smooth non-snagging man made materials, atop a surface so soft and cushioned that you would be happy sleeping on it, all topped off with some wholly unnecessary but ‘oh my god do they make it look cool’ LED lights. As described these things come at a price, generally a hefty premium over a respectable dining table and chairs, in the region of many hundreds if not several thousands of pounds/dollars for something approaching the specifications described above. I decided to try to replicate at least some of the gaming table experience as cheaply, and with as little skill and effort as possible.
Continue readingAuthor: MMAM
I have never really been in to the idea of Kickstarter because of paying money up front for something you may not ultimately receive, the potential for the game to not actually be very good (a lot of the previews that are available are paid for by the publishers themselves so they cannot be guaranteed to be impartial), or for the high prices some of these kickstarters command only to find them discounted in shops or online shortly after release, does not really appeal to me. Now whilst this does come across as negative let it also be known that I have been following kickstarters for some time and have kicked myself for not pledging for a game only to find that, yes I do really fancy playing it, and now I have to pay significantly more than the original cost of the kickstarter for the privilege – I am looking at you Gloomhaven and Nemesis!
Continue readingFirst Impressions – First Play reviews are a series of reviews from initially opening the box to the completion of the first game, these are not designed to be in depth reviews of the game itself or an explanation of the rules, more of a quick precursor. As (if?) the game gets more play time a more in-depth review will be added.
What’s the game about?
Building a cathedral during the reign of Ivan the Terrible, to do this you are to take on the role of architects. The game is a bit of several things including area control/majority (the sections of the Cathedral built by you are critical to scoring points), and worker placement via dice on a rondel, there is also a bit of resource management thrown in for good measure. The game has elements of luck to it (the dice rolls determining how many spaces on the rondel the workers/dice can be moved) but there are enough options and mechanisms (such as spending money for extra movement spaces and the choice of multiple dice when selecting resources) to mitigate much of the luck element within the game.
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Players 1 – 4
Playing time 25 – 40 minutes
Sometimes I feel like playing a game, but can’t be bothered to set things up. Sometimes Mrs Middle-Aged wants to play a game but is tired from a long day at work and doesn’t want something that takes too long or has too many options/decisions. Enter Sagrada, a game of placing coloured dice to form a stained glass window; this is our current default go to when we want something light and simple to while away some time in the evening.
Continue readingPlayers 2
First time to play 45 minutes
Subsequent games 20 – 30 minutes
For some, I can probably say Uwe Rosenberg and that will be enough to know whether this is a game they will like, tolerate, or loath (sounds like the name for a new series of articles…). For others, I will explain further.
Continue readingFirst Impressions – First Play reviews are a series of reviews from initially opening the box to the completion of the first game, these are not designed to be in depth reviews of the game itself, more of a quick precursor. As (if?) the game gets more play time a more in-depth review will be added.
Continue readingIt’s been a while since my last post, with fewer than promised (in fact none) updates on anything be it passive income, 3d printing, or games. Sadly the reason for my lack of posts is not because I miraculously started making massive piles of passive cash and decided to retire. It is far more mundane – the work life balance tipped in favour of work for the first time in a while and work deadlines beckoned with more urgency than the more interesting things, like the pursuit of the passive, or any other form of hobby or interest. Add to this the lockdown whilst working a day job and educating kids… free time has not just a rarity, more of a myth of distant times long forgotten!
Continue readingIn the first of a series of reviews of 3D printed accessories for games I have token holders for the fantastic Quacks of Quedlingburg. I have played this many times, and this is definitely a household favourite. I will get around to reviewing the game proper, but for the time being I have a short review of some token protectors I printed for the tokens.
Continue readingThere is a lot of information floating about these days about FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early), side gigs, passive income streams etc. The consensus seems to be that in order to achieve either part of FIRE if you don’t have a significant income it needs to be supplemented by an alternative stream such as a method of passive income. While there is a lot of information about methods to generate passive income, there seems to be little information on how easy (or not) some of these income streams are to implement, how much effort is required to maintain them, how much income they generate for the average person, and how quickly the cash comes rolling in.
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What…is this website?
It is (or will be) a collection of general things that are important to me at the moment. Primarily it will be a blog documenting my financial aspirations approaching my middle years, the theoretical peak of my career, looking at my life approaching middle age, the decisions I have made, my plans for the future, and the things I do and enjoy to keep me sane.
Who….is the person behind the blog?
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