Fantasy

The Dragon Hordes expansion (55 cards, two small pages of rules) to Warriors adds a new creature, the Dragon, along with additional Catapults and Attack Cards, and makes the game playable by up to 6 players.

Dragons, unlike other creatures, must attack and defend individually, but just one can wreak havoc. They roll two dice on both attack and defense, adding one to each die roll. Catapults have only one chance in 6 of killing Dragons, and their defense can be augmented by "Flames" (basically, extra lives that must be eliminated before the Dragon can be killed). Having the most Dragons at the end of the game also gains victory points.

Warriors is a card and dice-rolling game with a fantasy military theme. Each player begins with a randomly dealt army of 11 units. Most will be creatures of one of the game's 6 types (Barbarians, Goblins, Elves, Trolls, Dwarves, Undead). A lucky player may also get Wizards (which protect creatures of one type from attack) or Catapults (one-use weapons that have a 50/50 chance of destroying a target card). Creatures come in three varieties (infantry, archers, cavalry).

Armies are placed face-up in front of the players, and three rounds of warfare ensue. At the start of each round, players receive additional cards, including the vital Attack Cards, without which an army can only stand on the defensive. Attack cards are of two types. One ("Battle") allows all of a player's creatures of one type to attack creatures of either the same type or the type that the attacker most dislikes. Elves, for instance, may attack an opponent's Elves or his Trolls (the Elves' "natural enemy".) The other type of Attack Card ("Mercenary Army") allows creatures of different types to combine in an attack against creatures of any one type, but limits the number of attackers. Attack Cards also provide various bonuses to the attacker.

The resolution of attacks is modeled on Risk. The attacker rolls up to three dice, the defender up to two (the number depending on how many infantry each side has in the battle). The side with more archers, if either, adds one to its high die roll. The highest and second highest rolls for each side are compared, and the low roller in each loses a card (with the defender winning ties). The attack continues until one side is wiped out or the attacker voluntarily breaks off. Attackers with surviving cavalry can then make further attacks.

Players gain victory points for enemy units destroyed and for having the most creatures of a particular type at the end of the third round of play.

The Abyss power is once again vacant, so the time has come to get your hands on the throne and its privileges. Use all of your cunning to win or buy votes in the Council. Recruit the most influential Lords and abuse their powers to take control of the most strategic territories. Finally, impose yourself as the only one able to rule the Abyssal people!

Abyss is a game of development, combination and collection in which players try to take control of strategic locations in an underwater city. To achieve this, players must develop on three levels: first by collecting allies, then using them to recruit Lords of the Abyss, who will then grant access to different parts of the city. Players acquire cards through a draft of sorts, and the Lords of the Abyss acquired on those cards grant special powers to the cardholder — but once you use the cards to acquire a location, that power is shut off, so players need to time their land grabs well in order to put themselves in the best position for when the game ends.

Waterdeep, the City of Splendors – the most resplendent jewel in the Forgotten Realms, and a den of political intrigue and shady back-alley dealings. In this game, the players are powerful lords vying for control of this great city. Its treasures and resources are ripe for the taking, and that which cannot be gained through trickery and negotiation must be taken by force!

In Lords of Waterdeep, a strategy board game for 2-5 players, you take on the role of one of the masked Lords of Waterdeep, secret rulers of the city. Through your agents, you recruit adventurers to go on quests on your behalf, earning rewards and increasing your influence over the city. Expand the city by purchasing new buildings that open up new actions on the board, and hinder – or help – the other lords by playing Intrigue cards to enact your carefully laid plans.

During the course of play, you may gain points or resources through completing quests, constructing buildings, playing intrigue cards or having other players utilize the buildings you have constructed. At the end of 8 rounds of play, the player who has accrued the most points wins the game.

Yomi is a card game that simulates a fighting game. It tests your ability to predict how your opponents will act and your ability to judge the relative value of cards from one situation to the next. Also, it lets you do fun combos and be a panda. There are 10 characters to choose from, each with their own deck, abilities, and style. Each deck also doubles as a regular deck of playing cards with beautiful artwork (the complete game features a whopping 120 different character illustrations).

Yomi is the Japanese word for “reading”, in this case as in reading the mind of your opponent. Yomi: Fighting Card Game is a simple competitive card game that simulates a fight between two characters. Each deck in Yomi represents one character, with 10 decks in the first release.

Champion fighting game tournament player and tournament organizer David Sirlin designed the game to test the skills of Valuation and Yomi. Valuation refers to your ability to judge the relative value of moves (or cards) as they change over the course of the game. Yomi, the game's title, refers to your ability to guess which moves your opponent will make. There is more to it than guessing, though: some players have the uncanny ability to “guess” right almost every time, no matter the game.

The core mechanic is a paper-rock-scissors guessing game between attack, throw, and block/dodge (sometimes modified by special ability cards). Attacks and throws usually let you follow up with combo cards from your hand, while blocks let you draw a card. While it first seems "just random," you soon discover that the unequal and uncertain payoffs in this guessing game allow you really read what the opponent will do. Yomi captures the kind of mind games that occur during the high level in fighting game tournaments.