Sometimes the world of the living gets mixed up with the world of the dead.

Peter reviews The Presence, a ghostly game from Purple Lantern Games.

Ghosts! I love ghost stories. But for some reason the world of boardgaming continues to churn out ‘spooky’ ghost games for children, ignoring the rich history of ghost stories. Until now! The Presence is an atmospheric game of apparitions and haunting from Swedish publisher Purple Lantern Games. Let me tell you all about it – and also answer the question, do I believe in ghosts?

Don’t forget to download my rules & reference for the game. It’s also available on my app, Tabletop Codex.

My heart is not cold. It’s broken.

Peter has some strong opinions about the new Necromunda: Skirmish boxed set!

Necromunda is a game that’s dear to my heart, having played and enjoyed it since the first boxed set way back in 1995. So I’ve had mixed feelings about the direction Games Workshop has pushed it in since the re-release (Necromunda: Underhive) back in 2017. That boxed set wasn’t very exciting and missed the mark by presenting the game in a 2D form, but subsequent sets (Dark Uprising, Ash Wastes), while extremely expensive, at least featured a good amount of terrain, which is what this game is all about.

Since then it’s been hardcover book after hardcover book – a new one every time a new model was released, it seemed,, and I get the feeling that the folks at GW just don’t know what to to with Necromunda (or, I should say, how to monetise it effectively). This new set underscores that impression. There’s been a little bit of rules cleanup, but not enough to upset anyone. We’re back to the 2D format that doesn’t really give a good impression of the game at all, with a stingy single sprue of pipes for cover. And worst of all, the model count per gang has dropped from 10 to 8, for no reason whatsever.

At first I was pleased to hear that all the gang stats would be released in 2 subsequent books (though I wish they’d all been squeezed into one) – but now we discover there’s a series of softcover ‘journals’, one for each gang, coming down the pipe. Is this just a whole lot of recycling? An attempt to get fans of the game to buy the same stuff all over again with just a few tweaks? Only time will tell. Personally, I wish GW had been brave enough to do something new with the game – but I guess that’s a risk they’re not willing to take.

Check out my video for all my thoughts on the new release!

I remember fighting the Romans at Masada.

Peter explains how to play Grimcoven, then tells you what he thinks of it!

At last, my Grimcoven review is here! Before I got a copy, I heard a lot about the difficulty of this new boss battler from Awaken Realms and assumed I’d find it very frustrating, but instead I’m very pleasantly surprised by all the choices it gives me. If you’re ready to make the commitment, this game is ready to deliver. So let’s dive into it as I explain how it plays, and my opinion of it!

Don’t forget to download my rules & reference (and of course it’s also on Tabletop Codex), and good luck!

You’re a formidable opponent, Lady Penelope!

More new regiment boxes for Armoured Clash – Check them out!

Now you’ve seen the new Commonwealth and Crown heavy regiment boxes, allow me to show you two more, this time for the Enlightened and Union factions. Both small boxes contain some very tasty new units to beef up your armies. Enjoy!

It doesn’t matter how hard you try or how brave you are.

New releases for Armoured Clash – plus a solo adventure book!

As you all know by now Warcradle is a great supporter of the Esoteric Order, and I’m very happy to feature their products, because I think their games are excellent and they really care about them. Now that they’ve finished releasing big boxes for each of the 8 factions for Armoured Clash, they’re filling out the army choices with a series of smaller regiment boxes with a focus on heavier units. In this video I tell you about the new boxes for the Crown and Commonwealth factions. Also, out of left field they released a Choose-Your-Own -Adventure-style paperback set in the Dystopian Age called VALIANT. Check out all this new stuff in the video!

It’s invigorating. It’s like… taking a shower in light.

Peter reviews Lands of Evershade by Awaken Realms!

You’ve printed out and laminated the rules & reference PDF, you’ve got the rules summary in your Tabletop Codex app, and now here’s the video rules overview and review of Lands of Evershade. Never let it be said that The Esoteric Order of Gamers isn’t a full service agency! Check out the video and let me know what you think of this epic new RPG-slash-board game from Awaken Realms.

I do not traffic in colloquialisms.

Peter paints and reviews a box full of tabletop terrain for Mantic’s Kings of War!

If you’re new to fantasy tabletop miniatures games, you might be daunted by the prospect of assembling a tabletop’s worth of appropriate terrain. Mantic have you covered twith this new Kings of War Fantasy Battlefield Set however! I’ve painted up the whole set and share my thoughts on it in this video. Enjoy!

By the way, don’t forget to download my rules & reference for Kings of War – you’ll find it in Tabletop Codex too!

My hands are filthy with the blood of UNSC marines.

Peter unboxes some cool new stuff for Halo: Flashpoint – the Noble Team expansion and the Reach Deluxe Gaming Mat!

More Halo: Flashpoint stuff! And I’m very happy to see a larger map area and some changes to the spawning rules in this new expansion. Let’s check out the new Spartan Noble Team models and the double-sized battle mat.

By the way, don’t forget to download my rules & reference!

You are a vault dweller, but if you’re going to survive, you need to start acting like a surface dweller.

Peter unboxes all the extra stuff you can get to expand your games of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. The Board Game!

I’ve been hoping for some time now to get my hands on this extra stuff for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. The Board Game, and the wonderful people at Awaken Realms were kind enough to send me the goodies I didn’t get the first time around. So here’s an unboxing of the miniatures packs, terrain pack, stretch goals and expansions for this excellent game of survival in the irradiated Zone!

By the way, don’t forget to download my rules & reference (and of course it’s also on Tabletop Codex)!

A silver stake? A crucifix? What, did you think we haven’t tried everything before?

Another big unboxing! Peter checks out everything for Grimcoven, the new boss battler from Awaken Realms!

Before I say anything more, yes, someone did point out to me I pronounced ‘Grimcoven’ incorrectly throughout this entire video, and I’m deeply ashamed about it. We all make mistakes! But anyway, there’s a lot of exciting stuff to check out here, in my first video about this challenging new game from Awaken.

Grimcoven is a gorgeous looking game with enough boss battling goodness to last you many years, so let‘s get into it!

Don’t forget to download my rules & reference (and of course it’s also on Tabletop Codex), and good luck!

I gave my word. I made a covenant.

Peter unboxes the top pledge of Lands of Evershade, the new hybrid RPG/board game from Awaken Realms!

I’ve been very lucky to be the recipient of the generosity of Awaken Realms lately, who have sent me some amazing stuff to cover on the channel. Recently ten years in the business, the company is going from strength to strength, churning out some really great games with absolutely peak production values.

Case in point – the PRG-meets-board game Lands of Evershade, which not only looks gorgeous, but has been receiving rave reviews. And the design isn’t just about pretty pictures and extravagant bits; they’re some very clever component design here, especially in the character board designs and cases that preserve your character from session to session. Check it all out in this comprehensive unboxing video!

Stayed tuned for more folks – a rules & reference is of course in th works, and they’ll be a video review a bit later down the pipe!

Were we gods we’d breach these walls to the Eastern Ocean.

Peter and Andy get a fully painted Kings of War 4th Edition starter set on the table to try out the new game!

Mantic Games, though still a relatively small wargaming company, has been very busy lately churning out games and miniatures, most notably their Halo: Flashpoint system. But they’ve also found the time to release a new edition of their old rank and flank fantasy battles rules: Kings of War.

I received the new starter set Claws in the Sand at the start of this year and immediately got to painting it up, but it’s taken me a little while to finally get the game to the table. Please enjoy Andy and I putting the starter set through its paces, and having a lot of fun and laughs as we do so!

I’ll rest easier when I know they’ve reached shore

Peter checks out the packed new starter set for Dystopian Wars – Dominion of the Dragon!

Warcradle keeps hitting it out of the park with their releases and they’ve followed up the recent complete revamp of the Dystopian Wars rules with a brand new starter set packed with goodies – everything you need for two players to start playing this exceptional game of steampunk naval combat. Let’s check it out!

We should have gone to the beach like I told you

Peter unboxes and talks about the new Reichbusters: Reloaded – and showcases his fully painted set!

Let’s have a good look at the new Reichbusters: Reloaded upgrade set, my painted miniatures from the original set, and explore the million-dollar question – is it better than the original game now?