First quarter backtracking

After Zerbique posted what the Bat backed so far this year, I got a call from our boss inquiring what kept me from posting my own overview. I guess my sick leave has been withdrawn. No matter. I am almost able to walk again. So I crawled to the computer and checked my track record.

Check the record

Check the record

Check the guy's track record!

Not counting some expansions, I backed 29 games on Kickstarter in 2018. Then 14 in 2019, 7 in 2020. I wanted to keep it at seven this year. But with the first quarter finished I'm already at four, leaning towards five. So forget it.

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Maeshowe: an Orkney Saga

The first one I backed this year is also the first on Z's list. I'm fond of small games. It looks to me that I'd enjoy playing Meashowe solo even more than Lee Broderick's earlier game Dwarf (that I've played around 30 times now). Athena's report on the PnP version made it sound very interesting.

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Doom Machine

Yes, another small game, it comes in a tin. Dice rolling, re-rolling and allocating are right up my alley. The theme of trying to stop an ever-evolving machine of death and destruction sure looks fun.

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Pingyao: First Chinese Banks

I went all-in on this one. Well, gameplay-wise - I could barely stop myself from buying a pretty lacquer box for $30. I cried a little about leaving it out though.

I think this will be a great worker placement game. And yes, it has dice rolling and allocating as well. I like that it has a historic theme, and one that I know nothing about yet (the beginning of nationwide banking). The solo mode looks well-done to me. It's a good-looking game as well. I like Eastern artwork. A no-brainer, really.

But.

The next game in this list came too close in time, and was expensive as well. And I had to back that next game. So I cancelled my pledge.

But.

I wanted this so much and I was so curious for the gameplay. So I backed it again, this time for $1. And I finally returned to all-in in the Pledge Manager, so I could pay for it in another month.

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Aeon's End: Legacy of Gravehold

Aeon's End is a game I both love and hate. It's fun building your deck and deciding the turning point for switching to all-out destruction. But some of the fights are very frustrating. And I did not enjoy it one-handed. At all. There was a time when I wanted to sell some boxes. I don't think I really need five of them. Then, I was disappointed with The New Age (I don't feel like playing Expeditions), and Outcasts sometimes felt unbalanced... So, yeah.

But I found that it's a perfect family game, my wife and daughter both enjoy it. So I didn't sell anything just yet. And apart from that: this is Legacy 2 !

I absolutely love Aeon's End Legacy. It was Game of the Year in 2019 for me. I know it's considered as an introduction, but I am not a hardcore gamer. I bought Reset Packs and just went through the campaign again. And again. And again.

So I absolutely had to back the second legacy game for Aeon's End. And get a reset pack or two in advance. And one for the first legacy game while I was at it. I can hardly wait.

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Card decks

I've started playing Patience (and variants) again, so I was on the lookout for some standard card decks. I went for:

1. A Newfoundland Deck of Cards (KS link)

Based on a woodcut print by the designer, the cards depict traditional activities - and the animals involved - in Atlantic Canada.

Image source: Kickstarter campaign

2. Warrior Women Playing Cards: Volume II (KS link)

Another deck about history, this time depicting famous or sometimes forgotten women. From monarchs to warriors, from pirates to prophets.

Image source: Kickstarter campaign

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I went in on the following campaigns, then later backed out:

• Pingyao: First Chinese Banks (but see above)

• Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Board Game (based on a great comic book series)

• So, You've Been Eaten. (a very funny theme)

• 2022 Quest Calendar: An Adventure-a-Day RPG (KS link) (could be nice)

• Monuments (Civ game by a Dutch designer)

• Sentinels of the Multiverse: Definitive Edition (I like the new artwork, and I love the setting)

I just don't have the money for all of this. Choices had to be made.

But.

Of course I started re-reading Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. And it is great. And I read Batman comics as a kid. There's so many memories. I really regret not backing.

But.

It is expensive. And for moving-around-in-a-city, I already have Freedom Five: A Sentinel Comics Board Game incoming. I should not fall into the nostalgia trap. And I don't really need those minis, do I?

But.

Holy hole in a doughnut, Batman! Aaaaargh! I see there's still place available in a group pledge. And I'd save me a $10 bill as well. I can feel the money burning in my pocket.

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#Maeshowe #DoomMachine #Pingyao #AeonsEnd #LegacyOfGraveholt #Batman #TheDarkKnightReturns

All images were taken from the respective games' pages on Board Game Geek (unless noted otherwise).