all the world's a board, and all the men and women merely pieces

[livingdeadgirl]

WHO: anybody!
WHERE: Total Recall Games and Hobbies
WHEN: Saturday, May 6, 12-9 pm
WHAT: Free board game day! Despite some of the game pieces being bigger than we are.
WARNINGS: Shenanigans and an adorable puppy

Total Recall is a mid-sized game and hobby shop situated in a strip mall in Tisse, between Wag the Dog (a puppy obedience school) and Road House Pizza (which is also a bar in the evenings. the bar does not deliver). I can neither confirm nor deny that all the other stores in this shopping center are also named after movies.

Anyway, about half of Total Recall's floor space is devoted to retail, selling board games, card games, figurines, role-playing books, and (for some reason) hand-crocheted hats. The other half is an open space with tables and chairs, perfect for playing the stuff from the retail half. And for today's event, somebody actually built a little motorized elevator out of K'nex that they can roll from table to table as needed! It feels rickety as hell, sure, but it'll easily hold something as light as you.

There's a wide variety of games set up to play, and they rotate new ones in every few hours. There's Settlers of Catan, Betrayal at House on the Hill, Clue, Sorry, the Game of Life, Apples to Apples (to be swapped out for Cards Against Humanity after 5:00), and lots more. If you can think of a game, they probably have it (so feel free to insert your own).

One notable exhibit is Crossbows and Catapults, which is a game where you shoot actual projectiles across the table trying to knock down your opponent's wall. It goes without saying that this is probably super dangerous for tiny people to play, as they've got quite a bit of force to them, but hey, hashtag YOLO amirite?

Before you go, there's a couple of specific points where gameplay gets interrupted:

1. Food time! Somebody ordered a large pizza from next door, and fortunately they're sharing, since it's easily big enough to feed everyone in the store. Since actually getting to the pizza is a production and a half, they call rotating time outs table by table, serving the pizza from a picnic blanket in the center of the room.

2. Down, boy, down! Remember the obedience school next door? That didn't stop being a thing or anything. Anyway, a large, rambunctious puppy has escaped from class (can't imagine how) and decided to come in here and see what all the hubbub is. Fortunately, he's adorable and friendly and wouldn't dream of hurting a hooman, even if they are chew toy sized! Less fortunately, he really likes pizza, doesn't understand that the game pieces are where they are for a reason, has a lot of slobber to distribute, and might not be fully house trained yet (hence the obedience school). He's just excited!! and wants to play!!!!! but it gets very disruptive very quickly, especially since he can absolutely jump up onto the chairs and tables. His owners will be by shortly to try and get him back, but they're not gonna be able to wrangle him on their own...

Other than that, though, it's a fun, laid-back day of board games. Go forth and enjoy!

Comments

[true_noir]

Perhaps it would be best...

[The voice came from on top of one of the little mountains. It was that nice, colorful set with the raised material to make it look more like mountains and hills and the like. Chloe sat there in front of her own white piece, situated somewhere next to some clay and wood.]

For us to find something smaller to represent these commodities? I think it might get a little cumbersome otherwise, no?

[onceandfuturemascot]

[Alice looks carefully at the Grain card she's going to be picking up for the placement of her original settlement.]

I don't know. They're not heavy so much as awkward...

[true_noir]

[She nodded as she looked at them. Really, it was the awkwardness of it, but then again what you had was supposed to be a secret, so that did mean it was best to keep them in a stack and just remember what you had.

Finally, with a defeated sigh, she nodded.] No, you're right. We don't have a good substitute. I will take two of the wood and one brick, when you are ready.

I have not really played this before much. Maybe once. Is it fun, usually?

[onceandfuturemascot]

It's one of my favorite games. It's a nice balance of strategy and luck, and it's a strategy board game that's about planning and building instead of fighting. Beats the hell out of doing Napoleonic warfare while turtling in Australia, at least for me.

[Just kind of. Scooting the cards around.]

[true_noir]

[She didn't quite catch the Risk reference, though she was close enough to get that Saber probably meant some war-time strategy game at the very least, considering Napoleon's reference. A nod came after and she put her cards down on the table. At least she could still use all this space to keep them face down.

The all important problem, however, came soon afterwards as she sat there on the mountainside.] Do we have smaller dice, though? I think that I saw a cube of them somewhere. much smaller.

[Still the relative size of a basketball...]

[onceandfuturemascot]

[Alice looks very carefully at the dice that came with the game.]

Yeah...not sure we could both lift these enough to give a good throw. You remember where you saw the little ones?

[true_noir]

[She pointed over in the direction of the roleplaying game section and nodded.] There, next to one of the other games. I'll be right back, since we only need two.

[God bless Shadowrun, or the nearest equivalent. The need for so many six sided dice had made a market for smaller ones. She ran off to find one of the cubes and fetch a pair of the dice. They were still going to be large, but at least they'd be able to roll.]