Tabletop Recommendations?

[Gatx]

I'm fairly new to tabletop gaming (unless you count my stint with Yu-Gi-Oh, and occasional sessions of Risk and Monopoly)So recently just bought a non-collectible card game called Anima: Shadow of Omega and absolutely loving it. A big draw for me was the "anime-inspired" art style but also loving the RPG elements. So I'm wondering if there are other tabletop games out there that are kind of similar. Though whatever game gets recommended should have these qualities, in order of importance:

1. Price - the main reason I bought Anima was because it was around $20 and however cool, I just can't bring myself to buy the more expensive games like Arkham Horror.
2. Portability/Simplicity - meaning I'd prefer not to have too many pieces to keep track of.
3. Art - subjective but I was drawn by the really nice of Anima, partly because of the anime style, of which I, and the friends I'd be playing with, are fans, but it's also just really nice art. Though I wouldn't say no to something like what you'd see in Magic the Gathering or the Call of the Cthulhu card game (if that rings a bell with anyone).

So far I've got my eye on Elder Sign, which apparently is Arkham Horror light, but would like to hear some more opinions on it if any of you have played it.

 

[Launcelot111]

Elder Sign's alright, it's all about dice rolling, the whole game is that there's the ancient evil trying to awaken and you have to choose a task and roll certain dice combinations to get points to seal away the evil. There's a faithful iphone app of it for $4 if you have that option and want to test it out. It's fun and quick but shallow and almost all luck.

I can't think of any recommendations for you off the top of my head. I'd ask around at boardgamegeek.com, they'd probably have the best recommendations for you

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

What are you really defining as "tabletop" games? Because things like Monopoly, Risk, and least of all Yugioh are NOT what I would define as one. Where I come from, tabletop means things like Dungeons and Dragons, Shadowrun, Spycraft, etc. What you're describing are boardgames and CCGs in my neck of the woods.

 

[Gatx]

What are you really defining as "tabletop" games? Because things like Monopoly, Risk, and least of all Yugioh are NOT what I would define as one. Where I come from, tabletop means things like Dungeons and Dragons, Shadowrun, Spycraft, etc. What you're describing are boardgames and CCGs in my neck of the woods.

Well, that is why I did specify "unless you count," which you evidently don't. I only brought that up because at some conventions I've been to, in the areas setup for people to play tabletop, while some people play their miniature war games, others are playing Apples to Apples. Also, I guess technically all of these games are played on the tops of tables, and I didn't think the term was limted to pen and paper games.

 

[MajorTomServo]

Munchkin! It's wicked fun. It's sort of like a watered-down tabletop RPG. It's easy enough for your less nerdy friends to enjoy too, but there's enough room for strategy for some intense showdowns.

 

[JesterRaiin]

Citadels by Bruno Faidutti.
It's non-collectible card game.

Pretty much everyone i know falls in love with it after playing it once or twice.

http://gry-planszowe.net/wp-content/cit2.jpg

 

[Zen Toombs]

I'd say Munchkin or Dominion.

If you want to go the traditional Tabletop game route, I'd recommend either Pathfinder or Savage Worlds, the second of which is very inexpensive.

Also, if you want to be a dirty communist, you can split the cost of RPG books with the friends you plan on playing with. That makes the cost of books much more manageable.

 

[ACman]

Delta Green. It's the X-files, mixed with the Cthulhu Mythos thats been allowed to hang-out with drug runners and Len Deighton/John le Carré/Ian Flemming and the KGB.

And Voodoo. And the Stonemasons. And any other Mythology you want to develop it for. Even wussy stuff. Like God. And the Devil. Or mighty Zeus and Morpheus, King of Dreams.

 

[Gatx]

I'd say Munchkin or Dominion.

If you want to go the traditional Tabletop game route, I'd recommend either Pathfinder or Savage Worlds, the second of which is very inexpensive.

Also, if you want to be a dirty communist, you can split the cost of RPG books with the friends you plan on playing with. That makes the cost of books much more manageable.

Well the thing about actual tabletop RPGs, as in pen & paper, is that I just lack the patience to learn all the rules and go through a game. It seems like a lot of planning and management and etc. so for now at least I kind of prefer the facilitated experience of an RPG board game. It's just sheer laziness.

Citadels by Bruno Faidutti.
It's non-collectible card game.

Pretty much everyone i know falls in love with it after playing it once or twice.

http://gry-planszowe.net/wp-content/cit2.jpg

I know it's popular, but have not been able to get much info on what it's actually about, other than that it's really fun. You compete to build cities or something? It does seem like you get the most stuff for your money with it though, since you get the expansion included with the current edition of the game.

Munchkin! It's wicked fun. It's sort of like a watered-down tabletop RPG. It's easy enough for your less nerdy friends to enjoy too, but there's enough room for strategy for some intense showdowns.

It does seem pretty cool, though I'm a bit paralyzed by all the editions and expansions.

 

[Satin6T]

always Arkham Horror
super fun and i think the starting set is $40
gotta read the book though, otherwise cthulu will eat your pants everytime

 

[targren]

always Arkham Horror
super fun and i think the starting set is $40
gotta read the book though, otherwise cthulu will eat your pants everytime

Unless the price has just recently dropped, it's $60. I bought it for my best friend for Xmas. Won't even look at the "expansions" though. Not after what FFG did with the "Game of Thrones" expansion.

It was quite fun once we got the rules down, but not quite sure I'll pay video game prices for a board game again.

 

[MajorTomServo]

It does seem pretty cool, though I'm a bit paralyzed by all the editions and expansions.

They're just that though, expansions and editions. You only need to buy one of them to play the full game. The extras are just for the die-hard fans. Which you may become.

 

[Muspelheim]

While this might sound very sarcastic in spirit, but it's honestly not. I'd suggest making your own boardgame. Do you have some old plastic armymen lying around? Get those, a dice, a ruler and some random clutter and give it a try. Like... The guy with the sniper rifle can shoot up to three ruler-lengths and rolls a four or lower to hit, et cetera.

It's an interesting thing to try when you've run out of games to play!

Another thing I usually do is to look for interesting old games at garage sales. They're usually cheap and can turn out rather fascinating. If they're incomplete, you can just butcher them for parts or rules to use in your own game.

 

[Zacharious-khan]

go buy a copy of munchkin original and get 3 friends together. i will say it is probably the best tabletop game ever.

 

[JesterRaiin]

Citadels by Bruno Faidutti.
It's non-collectible card game.

Pretty much everyone i know falls in love with it after playing it once or twice.

http://gry-planszowe.net/wp-content/cit2.jpg

I know it's popular, but have not been able to get much info on what it's actually about, other than that it's really fun. You compete to build cities or something? It does seem like you get the most stuff for your money with it though, since you get the expansion included with the current edition of the game.

Point of the game : everyone builds constructions-districts. Player with most precious buildings wins.

Each turn you gain some money and you may either save it for next turn or build new district.
Each turn you draw random character - Thief, General, King, Priest and such. They have special skills, for example Thief steals money of selected character, Assassin can "kill" (selected player loses his turn) etc, etc.

There's some element of secrecy, bluff, but most importantly, FUN.

Rules are so simple that you need maybe 15 minutes to understand them.
I strongly encourage you to try it.

 

[tmande2nd]

It may be tricky to get into but Warhammer and Warhammer 40k are both insanely fun.

Just dont expect the stories to go anywhere really, mostly in 40k.

 

[drummond13]

always Arkham Horror
super fun and i think the starting set is $40
gotta read the book though, otherwise cthulu will eat your pants everytime

Unless the price has just recently dropped, it's $60. I bought it for my best friend for Xmas. Won't even look at the "expansions" though. Not after what FFG did with the "Game of Thrones" expansion.

It was quite fun once we got the rules down, but not quite sure I'll pay video game prices for a board game again.

You're right. It's more than $40. It's $40.17.

http://www.thoughthammer.com/arkham-horror-p-463.html

(glances at collection)

Some faves of my group are:

Nexus Ops
Small World
Dominion
Revolution
Pandemic
Shadow Hunters
The Adventurers
and Battlestar Galactica

Mansions of Madness is super fun as well, but more expensive and complicated.

 

[targren]

You're right. It's more than $40. It's $40.17.

So the price did drop. Good. It was overpriced at $60 (Still seems a bit steep at 40, but w/e).

 

[drummond13]

You're right. It's more than $40. It's $40.17.

So the price did drop. Good. It was overpriced at $60 (Still seems a bit steep at 40, but w/e).

For the quality of the components from Fantasy Flight Games, I think it's a pretty fair price. But board games in general ARE expensive, no argument.

I don't think the price dropped; it's been this price for a while. I recommend using sites like thoughthammer and others. Virtually all the games they sell are at about 30% less than you'll find in stores, and they often offer free shipping if you buy enough.

 

[targren]

For the quality of the components from Fantasy Flight Games, I think it's a pretty fair price. But board games in general ARE expensive, no argument.

I don't think the price dropped; it's been this price for a while. I recommend using sites like thoughthammer and others. Virtually all the games they sell are at about 30% less than you'll find in stores, and they often offer free shipping if you buy enough.

Well, I know I paid $60 at Christmas.

Not sure I agree about the components, though. From my experience with GoT/CoK and Arkham Horror, it's a few plastic pieces and a LOT of cardboard punch-outs. Might not feel so ripped off if they came pre-punched instead of requiring an hour and a half to do it before getting to play it for the first time (which is the worst when you're excited to just get into it.)