Chasing Meeples
A lighthearted take on board games with a sprinkling of hilarity - when you listen to Chris and Angie on Chasing Meeples, expect witty banter, game discussions, quizzes, and game night stories. Perfect for gamers of all levels looking for a faith-friendly gaming conversation.
Chasing Meeples
Our Top 3 Game Mechanics and More
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On today's show, Chris and Angie talk about thier favorite game mechanics and also discuss which games stay and which one need to leave their collection.
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it's time for another episode of the wildly popular chasing meeples. On city show. Chris and age are going to talk about their top three favorite board game mechanics. They're going to talk about which games are going to game mechanics. They're going to talk about which games are going to stay and which games got to leave their board game collection. The laughs, the banter it all starts now.
Speaker 3Hello everybody, this is the Chasing Meeples podcast. I am your host, chris, and as always, I'm with my lovely co-host.
Speaker 4Ho, ho, ho, it's Angie.
Speaker 3Angie, how are you?
Speaker 4I'm great, I am absolutely great. It is eight o'clock in the morning, I am on my second cup of coffee and I'm raring to go.
Speaker 3Well, that makes one of us no, just kidding, just kidding, I am so ready to go. What are we going to talk about today, angie?
Speaker 4Well, we got lots of things to talk about. We've got some. We got a Keeper Call episode, we have a top three game mechanisms to talk about, we've got some very interesting banter and, of course, as always, we have.
Speaker 3And I, after the last quiz, I cannot wait to see what you bring to me. Let's hope it has nothing to do with like changing words and all of that.
Speaker 4There is no changing the word to potato, I promise.
Speaker 3Okay, good, I don't want to have anything to do with potatoes, all right. Well, you said we had some interesting stuff to banter about. What is that?
Speaker 4What day is this going to come up? Today is Friday. What day do you think you're going to get this released on?
Speaker 3Well, today is Friday, april 12th, and depending on how hard I work on it, Well, that depends, because tonight we're having fish fry. Yeah.
Speaker 4So let's take it like this April 9th we got married.
Speaker 3We did.
Speaker 4We did. I mean, that's perfect for banter right. Yeah, that's a good I mean, how could I skip that? That would have been horrible. Oh, what are we doing? I don't know. Today I kind of had an itchy nose. What are you talking about, Angie? We got married on a Tuesday at 4 o'clock in the afternoon at a coffee shop.
Speaker 3How cool is that.
Speaker 4It is. It was awesome. We had a pastor from our church, so it was a religious ceremony as well, so it wasn't just a judge there, and we had a small gathering of close friends and our family, and that's all we needed.
Speaker 3Yeah, we didn't need to make it a big hoopla event If you want to call it that, a big, a big event just between Angie, myself and God.
Speaker 4That's it, and we did it was. It was beautiful. It was beautiful.
Speaker 3Yeah, yeah, it was good, it was good. Unfortunately, if we were thinking we should have told AJ or Teresa I guess it would have been Teresa to keep the barista behind the coffee counter I had, out of all of our guests, almost every one of them asked me if they could get a coffee.
Speaker 4I had thought about that. She had closed it early on purpose so it would be clean, and I thought that was really great of her. I had thought about that that morning of asking her if she could technically keep it open with somebody there. I mean they need to be closed by 5. She could technically keep it open with somebody there.
Speaker 4I mean they need to be closed by five, so that kind of you know I mean, we were done by 430, but the person had to start cleaning while everybody was still standing there. Yeah, I was considering that. I really thought about that.
Speaker 3Yeah, but then I thought okay, who's going to really want coffee? Well, just whatever, buddy, I mean your sister doesn't have coffee, my sister?
Speaker 4Well, just whatever buddy, I mean your sister doesn't have coffee.
Speaker 3My sister, well, she's one who asked. Oh, really my sister said oh, did they close it?
Speaker 4Yeah, allie, I know Allie and Kiefer probably would have had. I didn't really think about Carlos until he was the one I was thinking about. I thought maybe Tim, but I thought my parents aren't going to have any.
Speaker 3I said you know, I know your mom went to have any. Yeah, there was quite a few people wondering if they could get coffee and I felt bad for letting them down. But anyway, I guess the million-dollar question which I was asked was why a coffee shop? And my answer to that question was, after I said why not a coffee shop? No, it was well. That's where Angie and I met, so no better place in my eyes than to do it there.
Speaker 4It was, and I think it was, it was. It was kind of neat because that is the business. Um, it's in the business that I work for and when I asked, um, when I asked my, asked my boss, the one that runs the coffee shop she almost started crying. I wasn't expecting that, but she was like almost crying. She was honored that we'd want to get married at the coffee shop. So that was. That was pretty neat.
Speaker 3That is cool. So if anybody happens to ever be on their way through to Rivers, wisconsin, you should stop at the Red Bank Coffee House located in Schrader's Department Store. It's a department store that is over 100 years old. You don't have department stores like this anymore. You should check it out. The coffee shop is awesome. The people who work there are great and they have a well. In Wisconsin we call it a bubbler. In the rest of the nation they probably call it a water fountain. I'm going to call it a bubbler.
Speaker 4It is a bubbler. This is an actual bubbler. This isn't a water fountain called a bubbler. This is the actual bubbler.
Speaker 3It's a bubbler called a bubbler, All right. Well, they have a bubbler there, that is was well, it's porcelain, I guess. And I guess there's so much copper in the pipes.
Speaker 4That changed color.
Speaker 3That it changed the bubbler from white to blue and it actually has its own Instagram page. It does. So, meeple Chasers, you should get there, take a picture, buy the bubbler, post it on Instagram and get yourself a cup of coffee at Red Bank and, while you're there, say hi to Angie. Yeah.
Speaker 4I'd love it. Very cool All right, let's go, let's go. Yeah, let's get this episode started Because we are trying not to make it too long, excuse me.
Speaker 3I don't think we're trying to make it too long. We're trying to make it less editing for me.
Speaker 4Yes.
Speaker 3So we can get this recorded on a Friday.
Speaker 4And get it out and get it out.
Speaker 3So, angie and I it's funny, we're going to keep bantering for a minute. So, angie and I, we listen to a lot of podcasts while we're in the kitchen, while we are driving. Let's just say, chris, you could have said we listen to a lot of podcasts and be done. People don't need to know where we listen to them, but that's me. This is why it takes me forever to edit a podcast, because of all this extra fluff that I add to when I speak.
Speaker 4So, it's all your fault.
Speaker 3It's me, it's 100% me, and the fact that don't want to say I'm a perfectionist, but I'm a perfectionist.
Speaker 4At some things. What does that?
Speaker 3mean At some things.
Speaker 4Look around the room.
Speaker 3Okay, well, organizing a board game collection is not something that I'm a perfectionist at. Okay, okay, angie and I listen to a lot of podcasts, and one thing that we normally say when we're listening to a podcast is how do these guys get so many episodes out?
Speaker 4That's because they do them live.
Speaker 3There's no edit they either yes, they either do them live and there's no editing, or that's the, that's the key there's no editing or there's minimal editing.
Speaker 4There's minimal editing where they take out maybe dead air, just dead air yeah maybe sneezes and coughs and stuff like that.
Speaker 4Where you go, and because you do make it so seamless, our meeple chasers do not realize how much work you really put into it, other than just taking out the sounds, mouth sounds, useless talking, things like that, all the music, everything like that that you add to that and that's what creates a perfectionist just you, you know creating these like bumper intros and stuff like that. So, because a lot of it is coming fresh Some of it, you know you recycle, but a lot of it is just fresh and that's where the work you put into this podcast is. What kind of takes up that space between them?
Speaker 3Oh, okay.
Speaker 4Yeah.
Potato Quiz and Banter
Speaker 3Wonderful. No, I thank you. I was just going to say I spend too much time taking out mouth noises and breaths.
Speaker 4Yeah, Sometimes you come downstairs. I said you have it done. No, I got through banter. What?
Speaker 3Yeah Well, 10 minutes of banter takes an hour to edit.
Speaker 4Yeah, cause you need to edit it down to hopefully like five, 10 minutes.
Speaker 3Right? So, anyway, that's that, and now let's finally get going.
Speaker 4All right, you know what time that is. It is quiz time.
Speaker 3All right, you know I'm pretty impressed. I don't want to say the word impressed. Come on, I'm happy. As frustrating as that last quiz was in our episode for me, just that one question. Really, I think I did well.
Speaker 4The one that I replaced the words like card with potato.
Speaker 3Yeah, so just a quick recap for everybody. There was a question on the last episode where Angie took words from a rule a rule, a rule in a game, yeah and changed, changed certain words to potato. So do you have an example? Can you, can you, can you? Do you have it in front of you?
Speaker 4I don't have it in front of you, but it would be your potato to potato potato, three day potato of potato traveling through in a time potato to potato potato moments from the past. So I may have added too many potatoes. And the interesting thing is I was just kind of listening to the podcast that I did not steal that question from, but I may have borrowed an idea from, and so I was listening to that question and how the original creator of it was doing and he did do fewer.
Speaker 3I told you.
Speaker 4I told you Well, ok, not a lot, not a lot, but Not a lot, not a lot, but maybe not a lot, but he did allow one or two items in there. That made the rule a little bit more clear.
Speaker 3Okay, and they say imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Yeah, talking about he, the he that she keeps referring to, that Angie keeps referring to is Nick Murphy, and the podcast is. This Game is Broken.
Speaker 4I don't want to be sued by Nick Murphy. I want to just be his friend someday. I don't want to get sued by him.
Speaker 3Well see, legally distinct, they don't use, he didn't use potato.
Speaker 4He uses banana yeah.
Speaker 3Well, so you just want to be his friend. So, nick Murphy, if you listen to the podcast, angie wants to be your friend.
Speaker 4I just want to be your friend.
Speaker 3And then you can and I would love it if you would be Angie's friend so you can tell her how to replace words, Because her, her example is potato potato, potato potato. What game did I just describe? I?
Speaker 4think I should find an email ad to him. I'll send a message to them or something Another email.
Speaker 3Anyway, OK, we're digressing and I'm sorry about editing I'm editing all this.
Speaker 4All this will be edited.
Speaker 3The whole point that I was trying to make is, I went from starting this year with zero and the last episode. I feel like I kind of redeemed myself.
Speaker 4You did.
Speaker 3Even though I bombed that question, but it's okay. So, angie, what is the? Well, I guess what's the subject of this quiz?
Speaker 4Potato.
Speaker 3What.
Speaker 4The whole quiz is about potatoes. Shut up, no.
Speaker 3What are you doing to me Potatoes?
Speaker 4Potatoes. The whole thing is about potatoes. Oh come on. All right, there are like two questions I have to do about games. Maybe one, maybe there's just one.
Speaker 3We're a gaming podcast and we're doing quizzes about potatoes Okay cool. Awesome, nothing like just.
Speaker 4It's entertainment.
Speaker 3I'm already frustrated, weird, just from the word. I will never eat a potato in my life because of you All right, are you ready?
Speaker 4Hi Each question is worth two points, with a bonus question, a four point bonus question. So it is a 16 point quiz with a possibility of 20.
Speaker 3Are you sure?
Speaker 4Yes, I did count a couple times One, two, four, six, eight, 10, 12, 14, 16, plus four is 20.
Speaker 3All right, so I have a total of 20 points.
Speaker 4Yes, 16. We'll get it.
Speaker 3We'll get you the total 16 is max points. Yep, all right, let's do this.
Speaker 4Okay, Number one. What fast food chain introduced the baked potato to its menu in November of 1993? Mcdonald's, In-N-Out Burger, Wendy's or Carl's Jr?
Speaker 3Wendy's.
Speaker 4Oh, you got that one. That one I could probably did without the.
Speaker 3The multiple choice. Yeah, I strangely recall the commercial for that in my head. I think it had something to do with chili. They paired it up with chili.
Speaker 4Yeah, they poured chili on top.
Speaker 3Yeah, okay See.
Speaker 4Okay, Number two. What month is traditionally designed as potato lover's month February, June, July or December?
Speaker 3February.
Speaker 4You got it and it's because you know why you got it. Because I really, really enthusiastically said the word lovers, so I gave that one to you.
Speaker 3I didn't even catch that.
Speaker 4You didn't.
Speaker 3I was thinking when is St Patrick's Day, but that's in March, right?
Speaker 4Yeah, okay. What would that have to do with potato lovers? Oh, because, okay, irish potatoes, yeah.
Speaker 3Yeah, stereotypes, that's what I'm all about.
Speaker 4Okay, Okay, number three. Let's keep the ball rolling. Let's keep the potato rolling. What potato variety is also named? Oh, excuse me, what potato variety is also the name of an ocean Pacific, Atlantic, Indian or Arctic?
Speaker 3Atlantic.
Speaker 4Oh, you got that.
Speaker 3You know what Little did you know that I am a world-renowned expert on potatoes.
Speaker 4Oh, okay.
Speaker 3I will show you my plaque that I got.
Speaker 4Okay.
Speaker 3Yes, I've got a plaque.
Speaker 4Number four what famous comedian voices Mr Potato Head in Toy Story, eddie Murphy, george Carlin, don Rickles or Carrot Head, carrot Head, carrot Head. For some reason it wouldn't make that carrot head would be a mystery. It's not carrot head. Are you sure it's carrot top? I think I knew that I think I knew that here, right here on this paper. Maybe I should have been typing it up with my phone. Carrot head.
Speaker 3Oh my God. Well, I'm not surprised, considering you didn't know Ollie's name. For how many, how many?
Speaker 4How long? I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
Speaker 3I'm sorry, all right. Well, it's not Carrothead. I know that for a fact. Okay, considering, would you believe, I've never seen a Toy Story movie.
Speaker 4Yes, you have.
Speaker 3I've never watched one from start to finish.
Speaker 4Oh, really Never.
Speaker 3I missed out on the Toy finish. Oh really Never I missed out on the Toy Story.
Speaker 4Oh my gosh, Do you want me to read the name of the comedians again?
Speaker 3Yeah, give me it again. I think I know who it is. I want to say no, I'm just going to answer it. Okay, I am surprised because I thought it was the. I thought you were going to say the guy from Cheers, not the mailman, but the other guy oh the mailman guy does?
Speaker 4does he do Slinky the dog?
Speaker 3he's in there, right, but it's Don Rickles congratulations you got it right, okay, number five.
Speaker 4In what movie does Arsenio Hall say to Eddie Murphy look at it this way, at least we learned how to make French fries. Is it in Meet Dave Coming to America? Beverly Hills Cop or Nutty Professor? Oh that's.
Speaker 3Coming to America, Beverly Hills Cop or Nutty Professor.
Speaker 4Oh, that's Coming to America. See, I have to throw you a softball every once in a while.
Speaker 3Okay, I'm not going to say it.
Speaker 4In what year did Arita begin making tater tots? 1935, 1902, 1954, or 1969?
Speaker 3Ooh, it's a toss-up between two in my mind.
Speaker 4What's the first one?
Speaker 3What's my first thought?
Speaker 4Yeah 54. Yep, you got it. Woo-hoo, See first instinct. Sometimes you overthink things. You're heading to his max points, Chris.
Speaker 3Don't say that, don't say that You're going to his max points, chris, don't say that. Don't say that.
Speaker 4You're going to jinx me, which is not a real game, with the word potato in the title. No Well, I have to have more game-related questions.
Speaker 3So the one I hate the most Okay.
Speaker 4Well, you know why I did this one?
Speaker 3Because you got it right last time. Don't, don't, don't do that to me, just ask the question.
Speaker 4Okay, which is not a real game with the word potato in the title Taco versus sweet potato, potato kingdom saga, potato Kingdom Saga, half-baked Potato Jr or Potato Inferno. Do you want me to read them again?
Speaker 3None of those are real games.
Speaker 4Yes, yes, they are. I saw them on there. I thought wow, these are hysterical.
Speaker 3Okay, and I need to pick the one that's not a game. Angie, you came up with some pretty good titles here.
Speaker 4I only came up with one.
Speaker 3The one that you picked. It's. Taco vs Sweet Potato is not the real game.
Speaker 4No, it is a real game. Half-baked Potato Junior is the game I made up.
Speaker 3See, I thought half-baked potato junior would be like one of those activity games for kids, like a pop the pig.
Speaker 4See, I redeemed myself All right Number eight on Amazon. How much is the potato head yama and yampa toy for kids?
Speaker 3What.
Speaker 4Okay, you know like a yam, so it's yama and yampa. I guess I said it the wrong way. Okay, the potato head, yama and yampa toy for kids. So you get both yama and yampa wrong way.
Speaker 3Okay, the potato head Yama. And.
Speaker 4Yampa toy for kids. So you get both Yama and Yampa Together. Yes, Is it 688, 1699, 2198, or 2999?
Speaker 3At Walmart Amazon. Oh, okay.
Speaker 4Darn, if it was Walmart, it would have been the 98s All right at Walmart Amazon.
Speaker 3oh, okay, darn, if it was Walmart, it would have been the 98s. Alright, so 21.
Speaker 4No, it is 1699. You're at 12 points. Here's a four point bonus question which could get you to 16 points.
Speaker 3Okay, thanks for math.
Game Culling and Keep List Review
Speaker 4Okay, it's a bonus question, so it is not multiple choice. On what TV show does Elaine claim her fictitious boyfriend, art Vandele, imports potato chips? I love this episode.
Speaker 3Well, that just gave it away. I never watched that show, and you know that. But it's Seinfeld. So as soon as you said Elaine, as soon as you started to say I love.
Speaker 4When she made up the name Art Vandele, I thought that was hysterical. I made up the name Art Vandele, I thought that was hysterical. I just love that Art Vandele, that's the bonus question.
Speaker 3That's the bonus question. That's what brought me to Max points. It does. If there was any softball that you could have given.
Speaker 4I know you never watched Seinfeld.
Speaker 3I started laughing, you could have said did a character. As soon as you said Elaine, I was like oh, it's the one that she likes.
Speaker 4So 16 points I got.
Speaker 3Oh, angie, we went from a zero to max points in a matter of Two episodes. Yeah, I, I'm on a roll you are like. I'm not really a role, but I'm on a roll, you are Like not really a roll, but.
Speaker 4I'm going to have to make it harder.
Speaker 3I'm going to go back to the potato questions, I got my wish of max points for Christmas.
Speaker 4Next time they're all going to be potato questions.
Speaker 3Angie, can I bask in this moment here? Sorry, you're sitting here plotting my demise.
Speaker 2Yeah, you bacon it.
Speaker 4Yeah, you bacon it.
Speaker 3Okay, I'm done Roasting it. You ruined my moment. You ruined my moment Like, like forgetting. I can't even do a potato thing I can't even do, I'm just.
Speaker 4Like forgetting the potatoes in the oven.
Speaker 3I don't even know what that means, so burn potatoes. Who forgets potatoes in the oven?
Speaker 4If the timer that's set on the microwave and not the oven and it doesn't go off.
Speaker 3Did we do that? Did you do that yeah?
Speaker 4I've always done that. You just don't know. I just go. Oh yeah, they're kind of crispy today. Hmm, don't know, I just go. Oh yeah, they're kind of crispy today. That is code, for I forgot to put the timer on.
Speaker 3Oh, you know what else is. You know what else? Angie has another code for something and I'm going to watch her eyes roll so far back in her head that she's going to be like the female undertaker. This would make good toast. So there was, there was this phase of my life where I made everything from scratch and it was good. So I made bread, I made pizza dough and it was, it was all from scratch.
Speaker 4You made a good scones.
Speaker 3I made. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. I used to make frozen pizzas, which is awesome too, but anyway, again I'm going off topic. Yes, you are my way of knowing that Angie did not like this batch of bread until I perfected. The perfection that is bread, I don't know Was every time she ate it and tried it was oh, this would make good toast. So, 10 years later, I still use that.
Speaker 4Yes, you do, you go. What do you mean? Do you mean that would make good toast?
Speaker 3Yeah, so this is what do you think of this, Angie? Oh, it's good. Good like as in it would make good toast, or actually good.
Speaker 4You do, you do, that's funny so all right.
Speaker 3All right what was my score, Angie 16 points. Max points. I will take it.
Speaker 1All right, all right, meep Maple Cheesers, it's time to talk about a subject that Chris and Angie have not talked about in quite some time which games are going to go and which games are going to stay.
Speaker 2Stay tuned to find out now. Games, they love games. They know Should they stay or should they go.
Speaker 4It is time for our Keep, our Cull segment, and we are doing H.
Speaker 3Yes, we, you know what. We have not done this in so long that I had to look at you and say you know, we never finished our call conversations. I thought I was on D, but I had to look because I am keeping track.
Speaker 4I didn't think I was keeping track. I was keeping track on our collections list so I am adding an E in there because we did not add that E game to the previous episode.
Speaker 3I am, I am. I thought we were on B, so the fact that we are on H still is horrible, because it's been. Probably I'd have to go back and look, but the last time we talked about it was probably, I think, in our sunsets and shelf space episode. I have no idea which was right after we went, right after we got back from vacation, but which was a while ago.
Speaker 4It was a while ago. It was a while ago, that was like last.
Speaker 3That was last year.
Speaker 4That's yeah.
Speaker 3That was like August.
Speaker 4Yeah.
Speaker 3August of last year. Yeah's, yeah, that was like August yeah.
Speaker 4August of last year. Yeah, I think it was yeah, cause they're usually right around whole chunk time.
Speaker 3Yeah, so, but the point, I guess what I'm, what I'm trying to say is this is a good conversation and, as Angie and I, we have too many games.
Speaker 4We do. I'd like to get it down to 50.
Speaker 3So once we get through this, we're going to go through all our keeps. Oh, we're just going to keep doing that. I would say, once we get rid of like once we get through it the first time all the culls go away.
Speaker 4Yeah.
Speaker 3They don't stick around waiting for somebody to buy or sell. We donate them to a library, we get them to a gaming cafe, we bring them to Goodwill, we do something, or Meeple Chasers. If you hear anything that is interesting to you that is on your list of games that you want to have, reach out to us at ChasingMeeples at Yahoocom. We'll figure out a way to get that game to you. We could probably sell it at a good price.
Speaker 3But if you ask, you give me shipping if you ask really nicely and you cover the shipping, we could probably just send it to you and we take care of all of our games if it wasn't a ding and den game.
Speaker 4Some of them have only been played once. They're in good condition.
Speaker 3We're horrible. We're horrible gamers.
Speaker 4We are.
Speaker 3That's right, that's right, that's okay. Moving on, okay. So we are on the H's and I'm going to let you kick us off.
Speaker 4Alright, the first game which I just said is not an H, is Ex Libris.
Speaker 3Now I got this for you. You did as a Christmas present, as one of the games that I don't want to say you would consider a grail game, but it was one that you've been looking for for a very long time. We talked about it on a previous episode, so I'm not going to rehash it too much, but it was one that you played from a lending library and you've always enjoyed it.
Speaker 4But you did not no.
Speaker 3So I'm going to. I'm not even going to pull the punches. That is a call for me.
Speaker 4I love it. I do love this game. I love the puzzling nature of it, where you're building that library and you need to get it alphabetically as well as numerically in order. I think that's a challenge and I love it, and I love all the different worker placement spaces and they got little, little tiny ghosts and stuff, anyway, so it's a keeper I will just put.
Speaker 3This is the Angie says segment. No discussion Call for me. Keep her, for Angie Got it.
Speaker 4It will be on the last 50 games we actually keep in our collection, okay.
Speaker 3That's fair enough. Fair enough, the last one that will collect the most dust.
Speaker 4Oh, we'll see about that. All right, anyway, next time you ask me what I want to play, You're going to say Ex Libris.
Speaker 3I'm going to say Ex Libris.
Speaker 4Okay, fine, so you will never ask that question.
Speaker 3And you're going to see this. Look, what else.
Speaker 4Hey, I think last time I gave you you know what? Here's the strangest thing ever, and you should all know this Chris can never make a decision. He's absolutely incapable of making a decision. And it is true, he's absolutely incapable of making a decision. And it is true. You will know that once you listen to this bumper music. Anyway, I digress, so normally we do.
Speaker 4We stand in front of our board game collection and Chris looks at I say to him Chris, what do you want to play? No, what do you want to play? I said that to him last time and he picked a game. He immediately grabbed a game off the shelf and that was the first time you've ever done that. No, yes, it has. Oh my gosh, you never hemmed and hawed, you never paused. You didn't pause, you went straight and pulled age of comics off the shelf. I was so surprised because at that moment I had a list, and literally I wrote the list on my phone, of like with your thumbs, of eight games to offer you as possibilities. And literally you just went and grabbed it and I'm sitting there and stunned silence going. And if you see the look on my face, it's my normal look on the face, but it just stunned me. Okay, I get done with that rant. No, no no, I'm.
Speaker 3I feel like I need to defend myself now here.
Speaker 4What you actually did a good thing, like I need to defend myself now here. What you actually did a good thing, you're going to defend yourself at doing a positive thing.
Speaker 3That is ridiculous. No, I did a positive thing. I picked the game Yay me right. And do you know why I did that?
Speaker 4No, okay, why did you actually pick a game when asked, chris? Please tell me. When asked to make a decision, you immediately did it. I would like to know your defense of that. There's no defense.
Speaker 3I'm defending the comment that you made before, that Chris never picks a game.
Speaker 4Or that you can't make a decision.
Speaker 3Right Our game nights sometimes they don't ever happen.
Speaker 4Yes, yes, that is absolutely true that literally, we're so exhausted by the time that we get done debating what game oh for heaven's sakes, we don't have time to play anymore.
Speaker 3We start debating what we're gonna play and by the time we finally bicker and no or you get done, doing what you were previously doing or make the or make our just. By the time we make our decision, it's already nine, ten o'clock at night and it also could be if it's a game that requires a lot of setup.
Speaker 4What game do we play that we decide at 7 o'clock we're going to play a game and it was like 9 o'clock because it took like 40 minutes to set up.
Speaker 3We figured we would play Ares Expedition, terraforming Mars, terraforming. I can't Hold on Terraforming Mars Ares Expedition and we're thinking that's a quick game like. No, we started at nine. I'm starting to think that there is no such thing as a quick game when it comes to us, because you and I never like to go for the end yeah, I just like to play, I was, I was well, I was pushing for the end too, I was.
Speaker 4I was actually, because a lot of times I play and play to build the engine and not so much as to like flip the tiles and to raise the temperature, and I realized that. So I was going after raising that temperature and stuff like that, and it still took us quite a long time to do it.
Speaker 3Yeah, so anyway, we digress. Let's get back to this. No, but thank you, thank so, anyway, we digress. Let's get back to this. No, but thank you. Thank you for allowing. Thank you for saying that I did good. I will do better at making decisions from now on, except for Ex Libris, that'll never be on my decision list.
Speaker 4All right, let's go on Heaven and Ale.
Speaker 3Have we even played this game?
Speaker 4It's punched.
Speaker 3Okay, not applicable at this time.
Speaker 4Because it's not been played.
Speaker 3Because it has not been played.
Speaker 4Okay.
Speaker 3Do I have the urge? Is it a game that I look at and go, oh, we should play that. No, it's not. It's not one of those games. It's one of those games.
Speaker 4That I do because it looks like a nice Euro game. I hear good things about it.
Speaker 3Yes. Does it look like a game that I think, when we sit down and play it, we may enjoy it? Yes, is it a game that it is so good that I'd want to keep getting it to the table? Remains to be seen, so not applicable in my mind.
Speaker 4Your call.
Speaker 3What do you think?
Speaker 4I want to keep it but, like I said, like I'm trying to get the game, I'm trying to get our collections pretty low, so it will be one that we will have to revisit, Yep. We're going to have to play Herbaceous.
Speaker 3Now herbaceous and herbaceous sprouts. We're doing them separately. We're doing them separately. That's a keep. I mean, herbaceous pocket is a keep. I think we could get rid of the regular herbaceous.
Speaker 4Okay, and keep the pocket one, because that's the one we take to restaurants and stuff like that, okay, okay.
Speaker 3I agree on that, okay, okay.
Speaker 4I agree on that Okay.
Speaker 3What about sprouts?
Speaker 4It's been so long since we've played it, that's just my opinion.
Speaker 3I was in the middle of a sentence.
Speaker 4I'm giving you my opinion, okay, I won't miss it.
Speaker 3Okay, so we're keeping the pocket version, keeping pocket, okay, oh, I won't.
Speaker 4I won't miss it. Okay, so we're keeping the pocket version.
Speaker 3Keeping pocket.
Speaker 4Okay, heroes of Terranon. Get it out of here. Okay, I'm going to agree with that one. That's absolutely agree with Hex Rollers.
Speaker 3And it's a rolling right.
Speaker 4It's a tiny little rolling right. It's probably one of the first games I bought.
Speaker 3And it probably has dice flying off the cover and it does I believe it does, I believe it does.
Speaker 4It's got to go. Holmes, Sherlock and Mycroft.
Speaker 3That game. I like, I want to keep that game, Not not that it's one that it to me, to me, this is just based on sentimental value. I think it's a good game, but that was one of the first games we got.
Speaker 4It was very early.
Speaker 3I think I would just keep it for that reason, Because it was a game. I think it was a game did you come home with, or did we pick it out together?
Speaker 4I don't remember, but we got it at the game dealer.
Speaker 3Which is no longer around. But I would say keep. I wouldn't cry if we called it, but I would say just keep it for sentimental value. But that's also the reason why I have stuff in the attic.
Speaker 4Yes, yes, yes, you are a sentimental people. Well, we're going to keep it on the keep pile for now. I like it. It's a two-player game. I mean, I like the game, but the two-player games are kind of hanging in my mind because we play just about everything in two-player. So moving on here, honey Buzz.
Speaker 3I'll keep that.
Speaker 4Yeah, there's no question about that. That's definitely always a game that's going to stay in a small collection of ours, even if it gets teeny, tiny and we have to move or something like that. I love Honey Buzz. It's a great game. The contract fulfillment it's got so many good things about it.
Speaker 3And the cool components. I just like the feeling of the little honey drops.
Speaker 4The little rubbery honey drops. Okay, moving on, horrified OG.
Speaker 3At one time it would have been a gotta keep it, but I would be okay with Culling.
Speaker 4What about Horrified American Monsters?
Speaker 3I'd be okay with Culling both. Really, you never played American Monsters I mean to me it seems like the same thing. We should play it. I mean again, we're horrible gamers. We had to go to Target to pick up American Monsters.
Speaker 4Oh my gosh it wasn't even on the shelf. I mean it had released but they hadn't had the shelf. I stood there, waited for some guy to come around and said horrified American monsters, do you have it? He's looking at his little computer. He's like we have it. Where is it? Oh, I'll go look in the back.
Speaker 3You had to go in the back room for it yeah. And there it is still sitting in the shrink. Yeah, no, Probably not even punched.
Speaker 4I'm not really. No, I don't think that there's not too much a punch in those games.
Speaker 3I don't think Still the point is is we suck?
Speaker 4Well, yeah.
Speaker 3Okay.
Speaker 4All right, this is going to be an easy one. The last one is going to be easy, so we're going um, probably call we're going to play Horrified American Monsters.
Speaker 3Who knows, it might be great because it does have Bigfoot in it.
Speaker 4It's a co-op game and we don't have many co-op games, so it might be something we want to keep just for that purpose, that we want to play some co-op with. If we actually play games with friends, we have to find some first, but Hunt a Killer.
Speaker 3I'm calling that. That's a call okay that was, that was a gift.
Speaker 4It was kind of a gift of well, it was a gift, and then they gave back after they finished it.
Speaker 3Yeah, they repacked it, yeah and there's nothing wrong with that those, those escape room games and those things like that. That's that's essentially what you should do.
Speaker 4Here's the thing it takes a lot of, I think, brain power and not like we don't play games, but I think there's something about.
Speaker 3I don't like that theme anyway, okay, all righty. I don't mean to cut you off, even though you cut me off when I was talking about a different game.
Top Three Game Mechanics Discussion
Speaker 4I did. We are at an impasse on Ex Libris, which we are keeping. We have an Aplable for Heaven and Ale. We are going to keep Herbaceous Pocket but get rid of the regular size and sprouts. Yep, because I said so. We're calling Heroes of Taranoff Hex Rollers. We're keeping Holmes, sherlock and Mycroft. We are keeping Honey Buzz. We are getting rid of OG Horrified. We're going to play Horrified American Monsters before we call it Colleen Hunt a killer. So I think that's a good. That's a good you know amount to actually keep.
Speaker 3All right, moving on.
Speaker 2Chris and Angie Giving their collection a questioning stare Some must stay and some must depart. Should I stay? Chief, giving their collection a questioning stare. Some must stay and some must depart. Should it stay or should it go now? This decision has got them in a row now. Games they love, games, they know.
Speaker 1Should they stay or should they go? And now it's time for Chris and Angie to tell you about their top three favorite game mechanics.
Speaker 3Now is what everybody has been waiting for. I'm sure everybody out there listening to this podcast is just dying to know, chris, angie, what are your top three game mechanisms?
Speaker 4I think they are. I think our meeple chasers care. They care about our thoughts, for heaven's sakes.
Speaker 3It's okay, it's okay, but I do, I do, I. Before we get into all of this, angie, I need to confess something to you.
Speaker 4Oh.
Speaker 3Okay, into all of this, angie, I need to confess something to you. Oh, ok, when I was preparing for this episode and, yes, I was typing on my phone using my thumbs, which probably took a little bit longer than you would have liked I started this yesterday, though, while you were at work.
Speaker 4So it took you two days.
Speaker 3Well, yeah, this is called research.
Speaker 4Okay.
Speaker 3When you.
Speaker 4Well, see, the thing is, I knew what I liked.
Speaker 3I knew what I liked. But see, that's the point I'm trying to make. I thought I knew what I liked.
Speaker 4Okay.
Top 3 Game Mechanics Analysis
Speaker 3But I found myself in I don't know let's call it a BGG black hole. Okay, okay, I thought it'd be straightforward. I'd hop on BGG, I'd check out some games that I like, look at the game mechanics that are in the game and get my thoughts in order. Totally easy, right? Well, hours later I'm knee deep in forum debates, cross-referencing mechanics, watching my quick plan slowly evolve into an all night and part of this morning saga. Right, and here's the kicker the more I researched, the more I realized I was on a on a, on a quest to figure out what game mechanics I like.
Speaker 4But have you come back to your originals?
Speaker 3I feel like I was on a quest for self-discovery.
Speaker 4Whoa, that's deep.
Speaker 3I thought, I thought, I mean I started researching. I started researching, confident in my I don't know. I don't know my gaming identity.
Speaker 4And that's funny Confident in your gaming identity.
Speaker 3And this morning, this morning, while I'm working on this, I'm thinking to myself who am I? But it's okay, I will get over this existential crisis that I'm in right now because let's just go, we'll talk about it. So I thought I could just go in and type here she is, I'm not cutting that sigh out either. I thought it would be as simple, as my favorite games are X, y, z, y and look at them and say, oh, what do you know? They share this, this and this. That's got to be my favorite mechanic. That's not what it was. So, because Angie is staring at the floor and sighing and not being supportive of this existential crisis that I found myself in, and I don't even know if that is you have an existential crisis every other day.
Speaker 3Oh come on now.
Speaker 4Okay, every third day. Come on now.
Speaker 3Every, yeah, every third day. We'll call it that. Right, let's get this started. Number three my number three favorite game mechanic, and I'm surprised that this made number three. I thought it was going to be higher on my list, but that is worker placement. So I really enjoy putting workers on the board claiming actions. Before you can claim that action, I just I feel a sense of yes, maybe it's just the you know, and I always said I didn't like, like, take that games. But when I look at a lot of the games that I like, there's a lot of take that in those games, right, so I'm gonna undercover, take that it's, yes, passive aggressive take that.
Speaker 3That should be a category. There you go. That would have solved everything for me. So, anyway, passive aggressive take that. But anyway there is. I didn't go with the. I'm pretty sure you've got a list of game examples of that mechanic. But I just want to say when I think about one game that's worker placement, that sticks out in my mind that I enjoy playing, and that's worker placement that sticks out in my mind that I enjoy playing, and that's lords of waterdeep. So I think it's. I think there's more, more. I mean, obviously there's more to it than just worker placement in that game. But it's a worker placement game that also sort of has a narrative pulse to it that you're building, you know you're, you're sending out your quests.
Speaker 4That's a great example You're sending out your agents for quests.
Speaker 3You're, you're, you're collecting whatever resources you need to be able to fulfill those quests and and every, every decision. It just it feels, it feels like you're telling a story and and and then really like that game um, I really like that game.
Speaker 4I think it's easy to teach, I think it's easy to grasp onto that idea. I think people who like that rpg game dungeons, dragons, because that's what this is based off of I think getting them into board games, that's an easy segue into board games. So I think that is like I'm not gonna use the word gateway, but I think that's a really good introduction to worker placement, because it's worker placement and it's contract fulfillment and there isn't a lot of stuff in between. You know, you're not doing a lot of other stuff to confuse two of these two mechanics that are, you know, really really primary to games. So the games you're going to play throughout the board game, your board game in life.
Speaker 4Okay, my number three and this this is a name, and it actually is a name because I looked up a BGG it's called follow and follow mechanism is one in which players take an action and then other players are either going to take the same action or a variant of that, and my first example is a game that we just mentioned was Ares Expedition. In that game you have a phase card. So if we play the same phase, we can each only do the top action, because each card has an action and a bonus action. If I'm the only one that plays the phase, I get to take the top action and the bonus action.
Speaker 3Yeah, no, that's an excellent example.
Speaker 4You get to take the top action. So on my card so I play the card you can take the top action.
Speaker 3Yeah, I really.
Speaker 4I think that's a that's that's very fun and my other example of that is earth, where those actions at the top of board, or your primary actions that you take at the top of board, are also very similar to that.
Speaker 3Yeah, Earth does have.
Speaker 4so it's their worker placement. Spaces are like that.
Speaker 3So good, good.
Speaker 4Number three follow follow.
Speaker 3So I you know what I have to ask you a question how many crossovers? You usually ask me this how many crossovers do you think we're going to have in our little tiny top three?
Speaker 4Probably just one.
Speaker 3Just one. Okay, Now that you know what my first one is don't get the bell.
Speaker 4I knew that one was going to be Okay. Well, actually you did mention that you were very surprised at yours, and so I thought, maybe that wasn't going to make it Now my number two.
Speaker 3All right, everybody, this is where you know me. If you listen to these lists that Chris makes and go back, you know that I take a little bit of creative license and when I do it, okay. So this is my number two, but it's a tie that I'm going to blend together Like all right, I'm just going to go out and say it. My number two is hand management slash set collection. They're kind of like peanut butter and jelly, yeah, and they go together, yeah, and it's that balance.
Speaker 3So you have the right cards in your hand. You have to know when to play them, know when to hold them, when to fold them, Ha ha, anyway, you gotta yeah, I'm not even going to do a Kenny Rogers impression here but the thrill, but the thrill like the thrill, but but you're also, you're also collecting a set that propels you to like your and your angle victory, right. So one game that pops into my head that is an excellent example of what is number two on my list, and that is it's a Wonderful World. So here you're drafting cards, you're building your empire, right, and you decide what to keep in your tableau and what you need to recycle for resources to keep going. So you're constantly making decisions and you're building a puzzle, and I really enjoy the feeling of doing that in games. So my number two is the hand management and set collection. Peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Speaker 4All right, peanut butter and jelly. I have a similar peanut butter and jelly here. My number two is bag building, slash, bag pulling. However you want to look at it, you put something in your bag. Obviously you have a bag. So there's a little bit of randomness to this, because you're going to, for whatever reason, you're putting something in the bag and you're taking something out, which is kind of the randomness. So my example for this is Resurgence by Stan Krodansky.
Speaker 4In Resurgence, you will use your workers to take a variety of actions and to gain resources, but some of your workers are basic, while other ones are specialized. So you're going to begin with a captain and you're going to have I think it's like seven basic workers and you put them all in your bag and you're going to pull four at the beginning of your turn and then you have to decide where you're going to place them. There is a little screen and you have three options on the course. Bond with the board that you're going to decide where to pull them. But you have an opportunity on one of those spaces to gain more workers and you can gain the specialized workers and those that you put into your bag during the next round, and so, like a deck builder, you can cull your basic workers and try to have your bag full of specialized workers. So that's where the roundness of the pull is also going to be maybe mitigated with what you're putting in your bag and if you're doing your culling. So that is it.
Speaker 4I really love Resurgence. It was probably a nine for me, if I can remember. It's a post-apocalyptic game that I'm not fond of the theme, but it is a worker placement game and it does have these other bag pulling and bag. So, yeah, I think that's why I gave it a nine, and I am a fan of Stance. So bag pulling and bag. So, yeah, I think that's why I gave it nine, and I am a fan of stance. So bag pulling, slash bag building.
Board Game Mechanics and Faith Sharing
Speaker 3Number one and finally, my number one is all right, I'm going to take some creative license on this, so get ready, get ready, Meeple Chasers, to send those emails and tell me why I'm wrong. But that's okay, we have very nice listeners. They won't. So here's my top pick, my top pick, my top pick Pick, my top pick is deck building. Now this is where. Huh, what did you say? Surprise, surprise. Now this is where. Huh, what'd you say?
Speaker 4Surprise surprise.
Speaker 3See, it was a surprise to me.
Speaker 4Really it wasn't, it was not to me.
Speaker 3Well, I hear I'm thinking my number one is dice rolling and locking in like a you know dice thrown.
Speaker 4You said mitigation. I thought you said Well luck. Mitigation, right you thought it was going to be Because to me, you said mitigation.
Speaker 3I thought you said luck mitigation, because to me I love rolling dice, I love seeing that.
Speaker 4Okay, let's get on to your number one. Now we're digressing, you've got to keep the growling.
Speaker 3You've never pushed me through a podcast like this before. I don't know how to feel about that. Anyway, okay, my number one. I will start this now and I'm not editing any of that out. So there, all right. Anyway, deck building, okay, but here's the here's, the here's the twist I'm going to throw at everybody. The game example that I'm going to use is 51st State. Sure, it's not deck building. It's not a deck building game in its purest sense. It's not, but it embodies what I like about that mechanic. So the strategy, the combos that you pull off in that game, the way each card feels like a building block to, to building your, your empire, your postal apocalyptic empire, right, um, it just, it feels good. You're not just collecting cards, you're you're each location good. You're not just collecting cards. Each location, deal and resource shapes your game. You can recycle cards, like in it's a Wonderful World.
Speaker 2Sure.
Speaker 3And I just like it, and that's that. That's all I'm going to say. My example for deck building is not a deck building game, but what else would you expect from me?
Speaker 4Yeah, I wouldn't expect anything else. You know, I thought engine building was going to be on your list Because, especially since you gave that, it's a Wonderful World.
Speaker 3Yeah, well, think about it, it was the engine building.
Speaker 4Think about it Now.
Speaker 3Let's look at it's a Wonderful World, yeah, well, think about it, it was the engine building. Think about it Now. Let's look at it's a Wonderful World engine builder. Let's look at 51st State engine builder. Right, I know it should have been on that list, but oh my.
Speaker 4God, you're changing your list. Okay, no, editing to the engine building Not changing my list All right, number one. Okay, no editing to Dengie Billy Not changing my list All right, number one. And this is my obvious thing here, and it is worker placement. But I'm going to give you my example, because there are a lot of great worker placement games and most of them, like our Phil, shem Phillips and Sam McDonald, have a great, great, great collection of worker placement games, like Architects of the West Kingdom, where you can place a worker multiple times and each time your resources grow. They also have Raiders of the North Sea, where you place a worker, take a worker. But my number one game and it also has to be my number one game for 2023, rated a 10, nova Roma by Stan Krodansky.
Speaker 4I know that's a surprise to all of you listeners, but the example I'm going to give you in Nova Roma is that where you take your actions and your worker placements are in the center forum, and the center forum is a grid, and when you place your worker on a grid, so you get to take the vertical and the horizontal action. So, while you're taking a worker, a grid, so you get to take the vertical and the horizontal action. So while you're taking a worker placement state, you get multiple things here. So you actually get multiple actions. But the wonderful thing about these actions is sometimes they have multiple steps to them, like you gain something and then you can increase that gain by placing, you know, by using a resource or something like that. So I love the way that happens. I love how there's two spaces. But here is the kicker Okay, if you've already placed one of your workers in a row or a column, that is going to be in the same row or column. Or if the emperor is it the emperor, is it the Emperor? Mm-hmm Is placed in that roar comp, you multiply. So not only do you get two actions, you can multiply those again. So the idea that you're doing this, this, this, on your turn and they do they're kind of well. Two-player games tend not to drag on a lot. I suppose if you had multiple players, it might drag on too long, but I love that game. That's why I got a 10. That's why it got my 2023 number one game of the year Nova Roma by Stan Kravatsky Yay.
Speaker 4Now to close out the show, we are going to do what we're calling the Chasing Faith segment of the show, and I know the last time we did this, I read out of my devotional. Today, I'm going to tell you a short story about me and something that happened to me, and it's a revelation that I do believe came from God. Chris and I have been on a search and, through prayer and discussion, finding the best way to serve our church, shout out Hope, hccc Alive. And I've gone through, I've gone back and forth through things, and serving your church, serving your community, I think is a very integral and maybe a very, very important part of the Christian faith. So I had come to a determination through prayer and realized that when it comes to leading, leading people, you start at children, and I maybe think back to when my children were young and what I would have liked for them and that's have a very beginning, and what I would have liked for them and that's have a very beginning our foundational understanding of Christ and of their faith. And I thought, okay, how can I do that? How can I do it? And the obvious thing finally came to me, in that we have Hope Kids at our church and I'm going to be volunteering with Hope Kids. So we go to church, obviously on Sundays, and I also work on Sundays, so my opposite Sunday I do have time. So I'm going to be volunteering with Hope Kids. I am excited, maybe a little nervous, but I am excited about it. And here comes in the very, very neat part.
Speaker 4After I made this decision, I was communicating back and forth, filling out, you know, an application. You're working with children, you need to have background checks and everything like that. I had wandered into my kitchen and I, for the first time, read I feel bad because it's the first time I did it, but I read the April memory verse and this is it, and it's from Psalms, chapter 71, verse 18. So, even to old age and gray hairs, oh God, do not forsake me until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come. I thought A yes, I am one of those people that kind of complain and I shouldn't complain about my gray hair and the idea of proclaiming to another generation young people.
Speaker 4How I recently came to that decision. This was something. When I read that I thought yes, this is something God said to me. He's like yep, girl, you made the right decision. This is just a confirmation that this is where I was supposed to serve in the church. So I thought that was really neat and I did. I sent out a text to a couple of people and I stuck it on Facebook and God was working. God is good.
Speaker 3Amen, praise God. That is awesome, angie. Thank you for sharing that. And that wraps up another episode of the Chasing Meeples podcast. Keep chasing those meeples.
Speaker 2Bye, the show is over. We had our fun, but wait, before you go, there's something to be done. Subscribe, rate and leave a review. Share the love. It's the thing to do. Chasing people, simply the best. Tell a friend. Chasing people, simply the best. Tell a friend. Youasing people, simply the best. You never know they might, like a zim, Become your friend. Chasing people, simply the best. Get our fish on the sand. Chasing people, simply the best. Thank you, that's it now. Thank you.
