🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this second part of the countdown of their top 10 games, they cover games 5-1.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:04:06 - Intro
0:04:21 - Preamble
0:04:37 - Games 5-1
0:41:28 - Questions for audience
0:41:45 - Top 200 Draft: 101-110

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order and The Great Sea together with Sam, and Spirited and Skute with both Shem and Sam.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they count down their top ten games, starting with games 10-6.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:05:16 - Intro
0:05:31 - Preamble, Criteria and Crossover Predictions
0:12:57 - Games 10-6
0:48:14 - Questions for audience
0:48:30 - Top 200 Draft: 91-100

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order and The Great Sea together with Sam, and Spirited and Skute with both Shem and Sam.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship by Matt Leacock. Fate of the Fellowship is a co-operative game in which each player controls two characters, lending their unique abilities to protect Frodo, battle enemies in pivotal locations, and evade the menacing Nazgûl and Sauron's searching Eye.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:07:34 - Intro
0:07:51 - Overview of Fate of the Fellowship
0:10:40 - Discussion of Fate of the Fellowship
0:55:05 - Questions for audience
0:55:28 - Top 200 Draft: 81-90

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order and The Great Sea together with Sam, and Spirited with both Shem and Sam.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss Through the Ages by Vlaada Chvátil. Through the Ages is a civilisation building game. Each player attempts to build the best civilisation through careful resource management, and by: discovering new technologies, electing competent leaders, building wonders and maintaining a strong military. Weakness in any area can be exploited by your opponents. The game takes place throughout the ages, beginning in the age of antiquity and ending in the modern age.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:04:35 - Intro
0:04:52 - Overview of Through the Ages
0:09:33 - Discussion of Through the Ages
1:07:05 - Questions for audience
1:07:25 - Top 200 Draft: 71-80

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss Slay the Spire by Gary Dworetsky, Anthony Giovannetti and Casey Yano. Slay the Spire: The Board Game is a co-operative deck-building, dungeon-crawling adventure based on the video game of the same name. Each player starts with a character with unique abilities and a simple deck of cards that they can improve by adding and removing cards during the game. Slay the Spire is also a rogue-like. That means that when you die you start over from the beginning. The game is divided into Acts. At the end of an Act you can continue, stop and end the adventure there, or save and continue another time! If players defeat the final Boss, they win the game!

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:05:17 - Intro
0:05:34 - Overview of Slay the Spire
0:09:56 - Discussion of Slay the Spire
1:04:45 - Questions for audience
1:05:04 - Top 200 Draft: 61-70

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss Secret Societies by S J Macdonald. This is Sam's second ever solo design after Circadians: First Light. The aim of Secret Societies is to gain the most Power by outbidding and outsmarting your opponents to establish your institute as the one most deserving of total governance. Players step into the role of a highly unique Secret Society, equipped with various tools and abilities to help give them the edge over the competition. Over 7 Rounds you will gain Income, Bid for Deeds, deploy Agents, start Projects, make Investments, and seek to control the all-important Conferences. Secret Societies is currently live on Kickstarter here.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:06:16 - Intro
0:06:31 - Overview of Secret Societies
0:07:56 - Discussion of Secret Societies
1:05:03 - Questions for audience
1:13:35 - Top 200 Draft: 51-60

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss A Feast for Odin by Uwe Rosenberg. In A Feast for Odin, players Viking civilisations. In this game, you will raid and explore new territories. You will also engage in the day-to-day activity of collecting goods with which to achieve a financially secure position in society. In the end, the player whose possessions bear the greatest value will be declared the winner.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:04:41 - Intro
0:04:57 - Overview of A Feast for Odin
0:09:09 - Discussion of A Feast for Odin
1:05:03 - Questions for audience
1:05:23 - Top 200 Draft: 41-50

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this anniversary episode marking one year of Lens and Veil, they answer a variety of questions provided by fans in the Garphill Discord.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Intro
0:00:55 - Which would you prefer?
0:05:36 - Quick Fire with Shem
0:08:48 - Q&A and Discussion
1:11:17 - Top 200 Draft: 31-40

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss Underwater Cities by Vladimír Suchý. In Underwater Cities, players represent the most powerful brains in the world, brains nominated due to the overpopulation of Earth to establish the best and most livable underwater areas possible. Players take worker placement actions, trying to combine the action with correctly coloured cards in order to gain both bonuses. The game is made up of 10 rounds but with production only occurring 3 times during the game.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Which would you prefer?
0:06:12 - Intro
0:06:29 - Overview of Underwater Cities
0:10:12 - Discussion of Underwater Cities
0:54:43 - Questions for audience
0:55:11 - Top 200 Draft: 21-30

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠

🎙️Welcome to the Lens and Veil podcast, join Shem, Sam and Zach as they discuss games they've played together, specifically focusing on game design elements.

In this episode they discuss The Anarchy, and are joined by the game's designer Bobby Hill. In The Anarchy, players take on the role of English nobles loyal to King Stephen during the civil war. Over five rounds, players must build their domain, defend their castle from attacks by the approaching Angevin armies, and storm strongholds loyal to Matilda with their own crafted siege weapons.

You can purchase The Anarchy at garphill.com.

You can find out more about about Bobby's upcoming games on his website here.

📜Chapters:
0:00:00 - Intro
0:00:28 - Which would you prefer?
0:05:06 - Overview of The Anarchy
0:07:06 - Discussion of The Anarchy
0:53:00 - Questions for audience
0:53:25 - Top 200 Draft: 11-20

⭐About the Cast

Shem Phillips is the owner of Garphill Games and has designed a fair few board games, notably Raiders of the North Sea (Kennerspiel des Jahres Nominee) and Legacy of Yu (Golden Geek, Dice Tower Award, Origins Award for Best Solo Game of 2023).

Sam Macdonald is a Game Designer and Developer at Garphill Games, bursting onto the scene with his co-design together with Shem, Architects of the West Kingdom. He has gone on to design a number of other games, most notable among them is Paladins of the West Kingdom which is currently in the top 100 games on BGG.

Zach Smith works for Garphill Games as Marketing and Media Manager, but is also a credited designer, having co-designed Circadians: Chaos Order together with Sam. They also have another game together under development.

🎵 Music licenced from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jessy Ribordy Studios⁠