Jeff's language log

[jeff_lindqvist]

2022 - Summary of week 9

I'm reading a lot.

This Thursday night three of us met up at the local pub. There have been Dungeons & Dragons nights there before. We played Munchkin (I won), Cards Against the Humanity (I won again) and Spank the Monkey (and another victory!). Then another game of StM where one of my friends won. After a short break, we switched rooms and had another two Munchkin battles. The same friend won both of them.

The Friday highlight is the weekly video by Professor Arguelles. For those who haven't seen his channel, it's here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/ProfASAr

IT: Loyal Books. Harry Potter.

NL: Harry Potter.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2022 - Summary of week 10

Almost there.

This Thursday night, our host was back from a month long holiday. But alas, another of the four musketeers was out of town. Tonight's game was our favourite - Mansions of Madness. A scenario called Gates of Silverwood Manor had been chosen by our host. Victory at the eleventh hour.

Side note: the exception to this night was that we spoke Swedish. How about that.

(The Friday night I joined an RPG group online. Call of Cthulhu in the 1920s. Some technical problems spoiled an otherwise fun evening. I haven't played RPGs since the mid 1990s.)

Due to external factors, there is now an increased demand for books in Ukrainian at the libraries.
(Where is my copy of Colloquial Ukrainian....? Found it.)

IT: Loyal Books. Harry Potter.

NL: Harry Potter.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2022 - Summary of week 11

This Thursday night, the whole group was present. Another game of Mansions of Madness. Lost Temple of Yig. Five stars. Victory. It was over in less than 90 minutes. There was time for another scenario. We chose Vengeful Impulses. Two stars. Easy! Yeah, right... Some really difficult puzzles. Eventually all investigators went insane. One died in the last turn. Nevertheless "Investigation complete". A pyrrhic victory! It felt like the most difficult scenario so far.

The Saturday evening was spent attending a concert - Matthäus-Passion / St Matthew Passion (BWV 244) by J. S. Bach. The text is based on the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 26 and 27). Two acts, around three hours in total. I read along the entire time. Those were some enjoyable hours of parallel text reading - German and Swedish, side by side.

IT: Loyal Books.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2022 - Summary of week 12

The latest Ken Follett is on its way (Aldrig / Never). I'm looking forward to it.

This Thursday night, only the host and I were present. We chose to play Mansions of Madness with two investigators each. Astral Alchemy. Four stars. Bad planning already in turn 1. One investigator used her clues at once, never got any more, then got insane, and later wounded (among other things). Another one was extremely unlucky in any test, combat-oriented or other. The third got a decent use of her spell, and the fourth used her asset to nearly full potential. But in the end, the insane one was no longer with us. Investigation incomplete.

IT: Loyal Books.

[jeff_lindqvist]

2022 - Summary of week 13

Reading. Anki. No game night.

IT: Loyal Books.

(Short summary, I know.)

[jeff_lindqvist]

2022 - Summary of week 14

Reading. Anki.

This Thursday night we played Wingspan which is a boardgame where your birds gain food, lay eggs and draw new birds to the habitat. You have 4 rounds to score the most points. The objective in each round may vary. Interestingly enough the three of us all ended on 70 points, which proved that it's a very balanced game.

After that, we played one round of Star Trek: The Next Generation Fluxx which is a card game in the Fluxx family. Rules and goals change along the way. I won.

IT: Loyal Books.

[Dr Mack Rettosy]

Wingspan is good gate-way into games with engine building mechanics, and the artwork is lovely to boot. My wife and I really enjoy these types of games (including Terraforming Mars and Dominion), but struggle to play with other people because we are so focused on building our own little worlds lol.

[galaxyrocker]

Reading about all the board games y'all play really make me miss my biweekly game nights back home. There's a weekly games meetup here in Dublin, but it's so far away from where I live and super early (10:00 on Saturday, and over an hour on the bus) that it becomes almost impossible for me to get there. It's also not free, as you have to rent the tables. Hopefully they restart soon in the city centre.

[jeff_lindqvist]

Wingspan is good gate-way into games with engine building mechanics, and the artwork is lovely to boot. My wife and I really enjoy these types of games (including Terraforming Mars and Dominion), but struggle to play with other people because we are so focused on building our own little worlds lol.

Thanks for chiming in! For me, the chronological progression as regards those mechanics was Dune: Imperium (October 2021)→Terraforming Mars (February 2022) and now Wingspan. I haven't played Dominion (yet).

[jeff_lindqvist]

Reading about all the board games y'all play really make me miss my biweekly game nights back home. There's a weekly games meetup here in Dublin, but it's so far away from where I live and super early (10:00 on Saturday, and over an hour on the bus) that it becomes almost impossible for me to get there. It's also not free, as you have to rent the tables. Hopefully they restart soon in the city centre.

I feel your pain. I was lucky to be invited to a small group, and it has been the highlight of the week ever since. I hope that you can find something.