Hey Now Cabalists! The gang is back from Origins Game Fair with some stories to tell, including Chris' doggie bag, alpacas running around the meetup, Flat Steve scaring the shit out of everyone, Sasquatch running amok, and more! Then we chat about a bunch of games we've been playing, including Defenders of the Realm, Feya's Swamp, Warhammer Quest: Darkwater, Raising Robots, Runebound, and our future review, Orloj: The Prague Astronomical Clock, from designers Abraham Hermida and Paloma Pascual. Then Tony T gives us the news roundup, and we discuss satisfying game endings. Do you prefer a decisive victory or a nail-biter? Defenders of the Realm: 00:22:03, Feya’s Swamp: 00:30:15, Warhammer Quest Darkwater: 00:42:41, Raising Robots: 00:51:28, Runebound: 01:02:40, Orloj The Prague Astronomical Clock Review: 01:14:42, News with Tony T: 01:54:52, Decisive Victory or Nail-Biter: 02:52:45. Check out our sponsors Restoration Games at https://restorationgames.com/, Game Toppers at https://www.gametoppersllc.com/ and Prester's Painting at https://www.presterspainting.com/
Julie recounts her adventures at Origins 2026 before we delve into questions about Authenticity of Theme, Fan Interactions, and Teaching Race for the Galaxy. And of course, we close the show with a healthy dose of Roses, Thorns, and Hula Hoops.
It is Inadvertent Surprise Railway Week (ISRW, pronounced "is raw") here at SVWAG, and we take a look at some train games without directly addressing the raging controversy of what, exactly, constitutes a train game.
02:25 AYURIS: Wilmot's Warehouse (Ricky Haggett, Richard Hogg, and David King, CMYK, 2024)
Even though our regular game night has been on pause for a few weeks, we still managed to squeeze in some great plays with family and friends. Marty kicked things off with Bomb Busters, a title getting a lot of well‑deserved praise. The way he described it reminded me a bit of Hanabi—that same feeling of relying on your teammates to guide you toward the right moves. There’s something deeply satisfying about working together toward a shared victory, especially when the puzzle finally clicks.
He also finally got Obsession to the table, a game that’s been floating around one his radar for a while. I’ll admit it’s one I wasn’t familiar with, but that’s hardly surprising given how many games slip past me. Marty had some thoughtful pros and cons, but even with those caveats, it still sounds like something I’d love to try on a future game night, there’s a charm to that Victorian engine‑building vibe that’s hard to resist.
And of course, El Grande continues to shine as a perfect introduction to area control, teaching new players the tension and timing that make the genre sing. Every cube, every power card—it all matters. Lincoln, on the other hand, offers a lean, card‑driven take on the American Civil War, capturing momentum, attrition, and asymmetry in a way that feels brisk yet thoughtful. If it weren’t for a few rulebook hiccups, this would’ve been one of those plays that makes you wonder why it took so long to get it to the table in the first place.
Thanks for listening and until next time, keep rolling dice and taking names.
Happy Pre Play Con Episode everyone, to get in the groove for our celebration of all things board games by listening to the latest ep of the Board Game BBQ Podcast!
This week Jules has been collecting pretty pearls in 12 Rivers while Conor has been cleaning up the city of Chicago in Raising Chicago while also ruining friendships in Cyclades.
Jules fawns over his current TCG obsession 'Riftbound' for his sizzle, Conor on the other hand laments his losing in 'Spacebase'
All that and more on this week's episode of the Board Game BBQ Podcast!
Clef starts quick with music with Tim before going into his recent disc golf adventures. When that is all taken care of, we start another Battle of Board Games with our recent plays of Renature, Container, Churchill, Bohnanza, Forbidden Stars, and Shadow Hunters. Tim also tries to explain gatekeeping to Clef and how we can try to move past it and include everybody in this amazing hobby.
Board games start at 19:45.
Join the discord at discord.gg/s8hYtWkMS3 to jump into the discussion!
On this glittering and golden episode of the Shut Up & Sit Down Podcast, Matt and Tom are sitting atop a dragon’s hoard of card board! Wahey! That’s what we in the business like to call “Rhyme Style”, and you can find many examples of it in the youthmusic of today :) Right atop the pile is the latest from frivolity enjoyers Weast Coast - Loners! It’s a card game that has an entire clown car of variably ripped dudes. Proceed with caution! Hachi Machi!!! We follow that up with the latest game from the Reiner Knizia Cardboard Industrial Complex: Gold Country! It’s camel speculation. You’ll see what we mean. Last but by no means least, Matt chats about some strange dream he had about a kind of figure-of-eight draconic salad spinner - completely unrelated to our discussion of 8 Dragons. Have a great week, everybody! Timestamps: 2:47 - Loners 12:57 - Gold Country 23:24 - 8 Dragons
Ambie and Crystal discuss a couple games they played recently, including The Case of the Curiously Quiet Theater, Alibi: 3 Intricate Mysteries, and Flip 7: With A Vengeance. Then we talk about the similarities and differences between deduction, social deduction, and bluffing in board games.
Acronyms and initialisms are a tricky thing. In SVWAG circles, one must be careful to use proper punctuation, lest GOA imply 2022's Game of the Year (GotY, not Gotye) Guards of Atlantis. Mark remains enraged that the SC2 acronym was robbed from Greatest of All Time (GOAT, not goat, obviously) Star Control 2 by the usurper StarCraft 2.
Anmelden
