September 20, 2017

Element Promo Cards Now Available!

The promo card packs that came with Element during the pre-order phase are now available through the Boardgamegeek Store

These sets include 4 cards, each depicting a different color sage as a reminder of which sage you are trying to capture in three- and four- player games. Remember: if you capture the wrong sage, you’ve won the game for another player! 

The background of the cards also features a visual reminder of the Rule of Replacement. This rule allows you to replace each element in play with a different element stone in a specific order. One more helpful way to help you master of the elements and gain victory over the other sages. 

Order a set for your favorite Element player

Element is available at your Friendly Local Game Store and in our web store

August 30, 2017

Trading Gets Wild in Hafid's Grand Bazaar

From camels to milkshakes, and spices to steak dinners, everything is up for grabs in the Negotiation Phase of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar.

In Hafid’s Grand Bazaar players bid, bargain, and trade goods to create valuable sets they can sell to customers for points. We recently ran events at Gen Con and witnessed some seriously fantastic bargaining skills. We had such fun watching everyone who sat at the table get in the spirit of the game with clever trades and good-natured haggling. What follows is a case study of one play through that led to an epic trade that became legend during the show.

It started innocently enough with a group of five players, four who knew each other and a fifth stranger (spoiler: he didn’t stay a stranger for long!). The cast of this story is Corey (nephew), Jacqueline (niece), Steve (uncle), Ruth (aunt), and Daniel (stranger, for now).

This game was played in 5 rounds, with each player getting a chance to start the Bidding Phase during the game. The first round was pretty tame as the players familiarized themselves with the rules and flow of the four phases of each round (Bidding, Caravan, Negotiation, and Selling).

In round two, the imaginative trading started and it was the first time real money had entered a game for us. Corey really wanted a card representing Linen in the Textiles category and put up a Finished Goods card, a commemorative Gen Con 50 die, AND all the change in his pocket for it. Daniel agreed to terms and they made the trade.

We were surprised to have this type of trade escalate so early in the game, but we did have previous games where a milkshake was traded for a goat and a player asked a stranger at another table for an onion ring to complete his trade, so we knew it could get creative.

Table talk is highly recommended in Hafid’s Grand Bazaar and Daniel (our non-related player) fell into an easy camaraderie with the other players. There was a lot of laughter and joking as the players discovered a shared love of the show Parks & Recreation and there were a lot of quotes thrown around, particularly quotes from Ron Swanson. Daniel told the group about St. Elmo’s Steakhouse (just across the street from the convention center we were in), how good their steaks are, and that they filmed some scenes for the show there.

In the fourth round, Corey found himself without access to a customer to sell his wares to and had to negotiate with Ruth for access to her customer to score points. She exacted a price for that service and walked away from the trade with all the remaining cards from Corey’s hand, setting herself up for some serious scoring as they entered the final round.

The conversation kept returning to food and those St. Elmo’s Steakhouse steaks were on everyone’s mind.

The final round progressed with everyone furiously trying to make the best deals they could to score big one last time in the Selling Phase. Steve had been a pretty even keel player throughout the game, not buying into any of the crazy deals the other players were offering, and remaining a shrewd bargainer making sure he got the best end of each deal he made.

As the negotiations edged towards a close, Corey counted up his score and what he stood to earn in this last round. Suddenly, he looked Steve right in the eye and said, “I will trade you all of my victory points if you buy me a steak dinner at Elmo’s and a milkshake.”

The table got quiet for a moment while Steve mulled it over. Jacqueline tried to talk him out of the deal. Ruth stated she should get something from Corey as well since it was their money that would be spent on the steak. It turns out Steve REALLY wanted to win so he could hold that over Corey for years to come, and despite the protests and counter offers Ruth, Daniel, and Jacqueline tried to make Steve ultimately agreed to the deal.

Steve ended the game with 442 gold talents/ victory points when he added the 208 he got from Corey to the 234 he had amassed on his own. He wouldn’t have won without Corey’s points. He was 4 points shy of Jacqueline’s score without them.

The rules of the Negotiation Phase are 1) You can’t lie, 2) You can’t steal, and 3) You must honor the deal. This group came by our booth on Saturday with photo proof that Corey DID get his milkshake and steak dinner and that he was satisfied with the deal. And in true Hafid style, Steve negotiated with our show staff to get to take one of our demo copies of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar home with him after the show. That is what we call dedication to a theme!

We are so honored to got to witness these gaming memories when they are made and we now have 5 new friends for life. We ran into our new friends several times during the course of Gen Con and hung out with Daniel (the former stranger, now inner circle member) for a few hours after the event talking about games, escape rooms, hotel horror stories, and all matters geeky and wonderful. THIS is the power of coming to the table with an appetite for fun!

Want to have your own game night of making epic deals and manipulating the market? Get your own copy of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar at your Friendly Local Game Store September 20!

August 28, 2017

Gen Con 50 Success for Rather Dashing Games

It has been a full week since we got home from Gen Con 50 in Indianapolis and we are still riding the high of such a successful show! Thank you to everyone who came by our booth to say hi, check out our games, and give many of them good homes. 

Element continues to be a solid hit for us and all three demos setups were slammed the whole weekend! A lot of new players out there now, it should be easy to find a group to play with. Check out this demo video from Team Covenant from the show. 

This Belongs in a Museum was the favored co-purchase with Element. People really enjoy this “simple” tile-laying game loaded with layers of strategy.

Our fans are so dashing! Check out these dapper fellows!

This adventurous gamer found the right booth and the perfect game to match his attire. So dashing! 

This fan surprised Mike & Grant by showing off his Rather Dashing logo tattoo!!

August 14, 2017

Pre-Order Hafid's Grand Bazaar!

This raucous trading game of shrewd negotiation releases September 20!

We’ve received our production sample of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar and some advance copies for reviewers! We recently shared the Rulebook on the official game page and are working on a How to Play video. That means it is time to get your pre-orders in with your Friendly Local Game Store (FLGS)!

To get you up to speed before the game releases September 20, we will be running demos of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar in booth 1439 at Gen Con and we have a few slots left in our full play-through events scheduled in the evenings after the exhibit hall closes.

To sign up for an event, visit the Gen Con Event Page and you can either search by Title under Board Game events, or use the following event IDs

Thursday, August 17 (7–9 PM) Event ID: BGM17122300
Friday, August 18 (7–9 PM) Event ID: BGM17122301
Saturday, August 19  (7–9 PM) Event ID: BGM17122302

Take advantage of these opportunities to learn from our design team, Michael Richie and Grant Wilson! At least one of them will be on hand for every event. 

SPECIAL BONUS: If you pre-order with your local game store you can get the exclusive promo card pack of Magic Lamp Merchant Cards. These packs include a wild card for each Category of Goods in the game (Textiles, Livestock, Raw Materials, Food, Finished Goods). You can use them to represent any specific good in that category to complete a set of goods for maximum profit!

Brush off your bargaining skills and get ready to wheel and deal to become the greatest merchant in the land in Hafid’s Grand Bazaar! Pre-Order Today!

August 10, 2017

Getting Ready for Gen Con 50!

In ONE WEEK we will be in Indianapolis for “The Best Four Days in Gaming” and the 50th anniversary of Gen Con! Visit us at Booth #1439 in the Exhibit Hall for demos of Element, This Belongs in a Museum, and Hafid’s Grand Bazaar, as well as fun swag and more great games to add to your game collection!

Looking for a bit more than a quick demo of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar? There are still a few slots open in our full play-through events! This is a unique chance to get to play a game before it is released and our team is excited to introduce you to this lively game of bidding and negotiation.

You can sign up for a slot in the following events by visiting the Gen Con Event Finder page.

Thursday, August 17 (7–9 PM) Event ID: BGM17122300
Friday, August 18 (7–9 PM) Event ID: BGM17122301
Saturday, August 19 (7–9 PM) Event ID: BGM17122302

Take advantage of these opportunities to learn from our design team, Michael Richie and Grant Wilson! At least one of them will be on hand for every event.

When you purchase two (2) or more games in a single transaction you will automatically get $10 off your total! Stop by to see the other specials we’ll have throughout the show. We will have Element and This Belongs in a Museum available for purchase as well as We Come in Peace, Dwarven Miner, and others!

You will also want to grab one of our 2017 collectible “I Am Rather Dashing” buttons while supplies last!

Got little ones? We are providing activity pages featuring our characters from This Belongs in a Museum to the kids area. We’d love to see your child’s artistic skills, so swing by booth 1439 with their completed art to show us!

RETAILERS: We will have copies of the Quick Start Demo Guides for Element and This Belongs in a Museum for your stores. You can stop by and ask any booth staff member for a couple for your stores and sign up for our mailing list and store locator map!

We can’t wait to see you all in Indianapolis! (Cue the Benny Hill music!)

August 04, 2017

Unboxing Hafid's Grand Bazaar

We thought you would like to know what you are getting with our next release! Check out our unboxing video of Hafid’s Grand Bazaar and learn a little more about the components and how they propel the gameplay in this lively trading game coming your way September 20.

Let’s break it down a bit, shall we?

Hafid Marker – this 3-D representation of Hafid, the market’s grand master, is passed around throughout the game to indicate the leading player for that round. The game is played in a series of rounds equal to the number of players (for a 2-player game you play four rounds). Each player gets a turn to go first in a round and this marker helps you keep track of which player is leading the bidding that round.

Bidding Cubes – Each player will get 6 bidding cubes to use each round to bid on the various Caravans, Customers, and Influence. Once a cube is bid in a round it is forfeit for that round, even if you get outbid by another player, but you do get them all back at the end of the round for use in the next round. Use them wisely to maximize your access to lucrative goods and information!

Game board – a unique hexagonal board represents the marketplace and displays all the different items you will be bidding on during the Bidding Phase. The center circles (1st through 6th) indicate caravans that are coming in from foreign markets carrying goods you will need to combine with your hand to create sets. You will also be bidding on access to 3 different types of customers: Hagglers, Collectors, and Guild Masters. And last, but certainly not least, you will be bidding on Influence, which is our fancy way of saying “opportunities to manipulate the market.”

Merchant Cards – The all important commodities of a bustling market. These cards represent the items for sale in the market that you will be jockeying to collect and trade to create the most desirable sets for your potential customers. The back of the cards display which Category of goods your items belong to, while the front the card shows the specific good that card represents and where it falls in the hierarchy of scarcity for that category. The categories are Textiles, Food, Livestock, Raw Materials, and Finished Goods. These cards are your lifeblood as a merchant and will be your most valued resource in the game.

June 19, 2017

New Rather Dashing games sell out at Origins

Here’s our wrap-up of Origins Game Fair in pictures:

Packed game tables featured Element, This Belongs in a Museum, We Come in Peace and more from Rather Dashing Games.

Element designer Mike Richie demos the game at Origins Game Fair. Element was a hit, rising as high as No. 4 on the BGG Geekbuzz list during the show and ended the show sitting at No. 10. Element sold out, but don’t worry if you didn’t get a copy! More copies are available on our website and through your local FLGS. We’ll also be releasing more “how to” videos on Element very soon so check back on our website.

This Belongs in a Museum, our new tile-laying game released in April, was so popular it sold out TWICE! After selling out Friday, we went on a midnight run for more games to be ready for sales Saturday. And that was a good thing — we sold out again!

Team Rather Dashing Games had so much fun introducing everyone to our games. Look for this crew again at Gen Con in Booth 1439.

We had a chance to play our September release, Hafid’s Grand Bazaar, at the Hyatt Saturday night. If you missed the sneak peek of this fast-paced game of bidding and haggling, come see us at Gen Con!

Rather Dashing art director Grant Wilson leads a game of our first release planned for 2018. Check back on our website for more info in the coming weeks!

We love the visitors to our booth! This one was just too dashing — we had to snap a pic! Thanks for all the fun, Origins!

June 13, 2017

Beware the Mummy!

Strategies for using them in This Belongs in a Museum

The presence of mummies in This Belongs in a Museum adds yet another strategic layer to this tile-laying game of area control and board manipulation.

Mummies begin the game on the Tomb Tile. The Tomb Tile is the foundation tile for building the game board as you play. The movement and placement of mummies throughout the game provide you with opportunities to thwart the movements and actions of other players. A mummy’s location at the end of the game can gain or lose points for you and the other players, depending on their placement.

Movement

Mummies can be moved off the Tomb Tile when an Action Tile is placed in play in lieu of taking the action allowed by the icon on the tile. Mummies can be moved to any unoccupied space on the active game board, except base camps.

Players can move any color mummy, not just their own color.

TIP: Use another player’s color mummy to block movements and your color mummy to steal points.

Blocking Other Players

When moving an archeologist, players cannot move through sections that are occupied by a mummy. This applies to the entire connected section of the same color, and not just the single temple space on which the mummy sits. Mummy influence does not extend past mountains, rivers, or airports. In the image below, an archeologist could NOT move through section A, but could move through section B, even though the two sections are connected via the mountain tile. 

To get to the other side of a mummy-occupied section, archeologists will need to spend movements to go around or use an airport.

TIP: Placing a mummy in the path of an opponent’s archeologist can force them to take multiple turns worth of movements to collect a single artifact or spend an action tile or airport tile prematurely to get around a mummy. 

Scoring Benefits

At the end of the game, any section occupied by a mummy claims the points for that section for the archeologist of the same color as the mummy. In the image below, the entire connected green section that would equate 6 points would be taken away from the green archeologist and given to the blue archeologist because the blue mummy is inside that section. Note: you get the points for the entire section, not just the single temple space. Mummy influence for stealing points is limited by rivers and mountains. 

TIP: Holding on to an action tile until the last turn can give you the opportunity to remove a mummy from one of your scoring sections and move it into another player’s section. Or, you may choose to move your color mummy into another player’s highest scoring section to steal their points for yourself.

Did these tips help you develop some new strategies? We hope you are eager to get back to the table and try new combinations. This Belongs in a Museum is available now at a Friendly Local Game Store near you and online through our web store!

June 10, 2017

Making Connections in This Belongs in a Museum

In This Belongs in a Museum your main objective is to create the largest network of connected dig sites by placing your color tiles strategically to maximize points. There are multiple ways to make those connections and we’re going to show you those today.

Touching Tiles

Multiple tiles of the same color laid next to each other with at least one quarter touching the same color are considered connected. You can create large or small sections of connected tiles by placing the tiles next to each other or using the action icons to rotate, swap, or replace tiles so that your colors are touching.

Rivers & Mountains

Some of the tiles have terrain segments representing rivers and mountains. Separate sections of the same color that can be traced back to each other through rivers and mountains are considered connected to each other and count as part of your network.

In the image below, the green sections are connected by a mountain and the blue sections are connected by a river. 

Placing tiles to create smaller sections that are connected via rivers and mountains (or using the action tiles to rotate, swap, or replace tiles to create those connections) helps protect you from the point-stealing mummies at the end of the game.

Airports

There are six airport tiles in the game that allow you to move your archeologist around the board more quickly by jumping from airport to airport as a single space movement. Airports connect to each other, so any tiles connected to an airport are considered connected to networks that have a connection to another airport in a different location in play.

Your base camp tile also acts as an airport, so any tiles connected to another airport are considered connected back to your base camp.

Archeologists

Lastly, if you have a section that is not connected back to your base camp by any rivers, mountains, or airports, it is still considered connected if your archeologist is in that section at the end of the game. This is a way to utilize your movements once you have collected all your artifacts to connect a stranded section back to your network.

Bonus Scoring: Artifacts

Each archeologist has their color represented on two tiles featuring artifacts, if an artifact space with your color background is connected to your network, you receive three (3) points for that space instead of the one (1) point you receive for each of the temple spaces.

With the myriad of ways to make connections, this game truly never plays the same way twice and you have many strategies at your disposal to maximize your score.

See more about This Belongs in a Museum on the official game page, including a How to Play video and testimonials. 

June 06, 2017

Rather Dashing Games available soon in Denmark, New Zealand

Great news! Rather Dashing Games will soon be available in two new countries. 

We’ve recently received orders from Vengeful Games in Denmark and Pixel Park in New Zealand. If you’ve been wanting to get your hands on our games in these countries, check in with your local game stores to see if they’re in yet! If not, be sure to ask them to stock our games.

We’ve been thrilled about the overseas demand for our games, especially our award-winning abstract strategy game Element, so we are so pleased it, and our other fine games, will be available soon in Denmark and New Zealand. We’re working on more distribution channels as well, so stay tuned.

In the U.S. and Canada, Rather Dashing Games are available through ACD, GTS, Southern Hobby, Peachstate, Aladdin and Universal. New distributors and retailers interested in ordering from us can email us at sales@ratherdashinggames.com