Then I suggested scheduling the big Warhammer 40,000 game that was once the lynchpin of the event on Thursday, so that people disinterested in it could either stay at work, or play something else simultaneously. Then we could return to full-party gaming later Thursday or first thing Friday.
This year, I arrived at G&G XIII just before 1:00 on the Wednesday...and I was the fifth person to arrive.
Rob's flight from Ottawa had come in early that morning, necessitating his presence as well as that of Totty, the host. Pete and Jeff were there as well, and once Earl arrived we wasted no time getting a couple of games in before Island Mike arrived around 5:00.
I had brought along Trivial Pursuit Edge, which no only contains slightly racier questions that usual, but also requires wrong answers to be punished by stamping the erroneous player with a big black x on their forehead (or hand, for those with skin concerns). You don't play to win so much as to not lose; the first player to get 5 Xs ends the game. It was a hard fought competition, with a number of good answers and skilled guesses for pretty much everyone, but eventually the Xs caught up with Pete.
We also got in a 5-player game of Mountains of Madness, that number meaning that everyone started with a madness card, making things chaotic right off the hop. Scoot and then Island Mike showed up midway through, and their bewilderment at watching players hoot and squawk, run away from or around the table while trying to play only added to the experience. It was a very entertaining time, despite being vanquished by the mountain. I am confident we shall return, however!
Then another mystery appeared, Scott's wife had given him a mystery package to be opened once everyone was in attendance. The game, Magic Mall is pretty intriguing; a turnless cooperative game where each player can do 1-2 specific things (move left, go up escalator, etc), but they are not allowed to share their plans with each other, and can only communicate by tapping the "Do Something" icon in front of another player.
After being thwarted by mall security officials, we ordered up some pizza and Chinese food and then deployed JenG&Ga, an oversized variation of the children's classic with party rules bolted onto it. We raised a much more impressive structure than last year, but ultimately I was the one to topple it, giving the first real victory of the weekend to Earl.
The last big game of the evening was the return of Arena of Death (a.k.a. Vintage Miniatures Deathmatch), wherein old D&D models battle each other and the vanquished figures are banished from the game forever. Sadly, I had somehow misplaced last year's champion Bob O'Riley, the nimble unarmored archer Island Mike had dominated much of last year's match with. Another figure was substituted, but too many other players had a score to settle with the bowman, and he quickly succumbed to a hail of blows.
In the end, my tonsured cleric figure, Brother Cadbury, stood toe-to-toe with Earl's evasive knight, Stovion the Flamboyant, and emerged victorious.
Island Mike then introduced us to a new sci-fi card game, Not Alone. In this game, one player is an alien hunting the other human players around the wreckage of a spaceship. It essentially a clever game of hide and go seek with knobs on, but the simple gameplay conceals a cunning array of options for both players. Despite being successfully preyed upon by Mike's hunter, we all had a good time.
A couple of other smaller games preceded our stumbling off to bed after midnight, including a Cthulhu-based trump game Pete brought called Pocket Madness which boasts tremendous artwork. Getting to bed before 2:00 a.m. felt like its own kind of victory, however.
Thursday morning we kicked things off with a game of Bang! The Dice Game. A fast-moving 8-player game that sets the Sheriff and his Deputy(ies) against Outlaws and a Renegade(s). Only the Sheriff's role is known, all the rest get deduced as you shoot randomly at one another and see what develops. Despite Island Mike's best efforts to kill his secret deputy, the two of us managed to dispatch all the bad guys and secure a victory for law and order (of a type, anyhow).
Once everyone was set up, Rob broke out his questions for a big game of Wits & Wagers, a combination trivia/betting game that has been a hit since Island Mike introduced us to it at G&G X. I managed to parlay my knowledge of how many time zones Russia has (11!) into a tidy sum and ended up winning.
Somewhere around this time, Pete got into the kitchen and deployed mass quantities of the Porchcrawler, a beer/vodka/lemonade cocktail that is dreaded and celebrated in equal measure. Cold, tart, and refreshing, at 8% abv this deceptively smooth beverage is not a drink intended for 24 oz. mugs.
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| And yet... |
Jeff and Pete had the most abominable luck trying to make their way through the jungles of South America, failing to roll a 4+ on a d6 for God-knows-HOW-many consecutive turns. (Tragically, this was only the beginning of Jeff's torment at the hands of these innocuous looking cubes.)
In the end, Scott, Island Mike, Earl and Rob managed to secure the victories they needed. At least the Nazis didn't win, something we have come perilously close to on previous occasions!
After supper, we trotted out Earl's Limited Edition of The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31. I was so wrapped up in the game I neglected to take any pictures, and while the additional pieces didn't add a whole lot to the gameplay,.they brought to mind even more drama from the film that inspired the game. Once again, my crewmember, Fuchs, was assimilated after the first area was cleared, and I turned from helping the team to subtly monkey-wrenching the missions I was called upon to participate in. Oh, and accusing other players of being alien replacements.
Soon enough, the base lay in ruins and it was revealed that Scott, Island Mike and myself were the aliens, and a new catchphrase entered our lexicon for the remainder of the weekend: "That's just the kind of thing an alien would say."
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