Punching Cardboard

It's October. The rains have returned. The World is still in flux. And we played some games. Discussions contained herein.

FRONTS:

00:13:35 -- State of the Podcast (and life)
00:48:15 -- Blitzkrieg! (session, short take)
01:02:43 -- Rift Force (session, short take)
01:18:34 -- Anno 1800 (session, in-depth)
02:17:34 -- Music (bang for your buck)

If you want some takes on what's new in the board gaming hobby, this is not the episode you're looking for.

However, if you want to hear some tales of adventure in the gloaming of the pandemic, and a discussion about the state of the hobby as we see it (Told through Arkwright eyes), then come on in.

YARNS:

00:11:50 -- A Brave New Musical Journey (Live at the Pat Metheny Show)
00:37:22 -- 40 Minutes of Joy: The Horses and the Hounds, by James McMurtry
00:45:25 -- The Last Great TV Show: Mr. In-Between
00:52:07 -- School's In? And Rocking?
01:12:37 -- Arkwright Revisited and a Hobby Gone Wrong
01:47:40 -- Peak Gaming with a Controller
02:19:36 -- A Door Cracked and Unlocked?

The rock came rolling back down and crushed us for a good part of the Summer. We got some levers and some rails and we've managed to push it back up the hill far enough to breathe a little. So, here we be, talking about life and games again. 

LIBATIONS:

00:00:23 -- Last Call
00:34:14 -- Coffee Traders (quick take)
00:45:37 -- Great Conversations and Good Buzzes
01:03:34 -- Oath (in-depth session)
01:35:19 -- The King's Dilemma (in-depth session)

We call this one "The Epic." Press play and enjoy the ride.

HEROIC TALES:

00:04:22 -- Cloudspire (in depth session)
01:03:27 -- BenRiach 21yo Single Malt
01:07:11 -- SpaceCorp: Ventures (sessions)
01:31:10 -- Tawantinsuyu: The Incan Empire (preview)
01:34:52 -- Revisiting, and purchasing, Le Havre
01:40:19 -- When Things Went Well: Lorenzo Il Magnifico
01:49:06 -- 2021 in Music so far.

Maladies, Mortgages and other assorted obstacles successfully conquered, we finally present to you episode 199 of the 'cast. Chock-full of stories about games and games about travel and travelling stories.

It's all in there.

And the book club returns.

Enjoy.

TALES OF WOE:

00:21:02 -- Apex Legends
00:34:06 -- Another Trip, Another Story, or Three
00:59:56 -- Da Games
01:01:25 -- Are You Dexterous? (Cubiko, Carreau, Bamboleo, Hamsterrolle)
01:20:55 -- Knife Tank: Why???
01:28:15 -- Praga Capvt Regni (revisited)
01:41:16 -- Two-Player Showdown (BH: 2045, Wir Sind Das Volk, Space Corp)
01:53:30 -- Die Handler, a Year Later
01:56:34 -- Kaivai
02:03:36 -- Wizard
02:08:00 --The Dwellings of Everdale
02:23:08 -- The Power and the Glory, by Graham Greene

Chirping birds. Barking Dogs. Screaming Children.

Yes, we're back outside to record this episode. The pops and clicks of the previous effort replaced by the flora and fauna of mid-Spring. We weave in and out of various topics, creating some loose connections and trying to show that nothing occurs in a vacuum. 

MELODIES:

00:10:20 -- Libation Time
00:13:40 -- Technical Issues and Memory Loss, and Some Stuff In-between
00:33:25 -- Kicking and Screaming: Getting People to Play Games, Food Chain Magnate Edition
00:46:58 -- A Few Words on Board Game Aesthetics
00:49:53 -- The Journey of 1822
00:57:10 -- Stickering Games
00:59:12 -- Detour: Music on Our Minds
01:27:30 -- Commands & Colors: Samurai Battles
01:35:30 -- Brotherhood & Untiy
01:47:09 -- Better than Board Games: Trials of Fire, Monster Train, Nowhere Prophet
02:19:13 -- 18XX Online and Other Infractions.

Sometimes you just can't get things right. You find a ghost in the signal chain and try to fix it only to find you've made things worse. Apologies in advance for all the pops and clicks.

Among the noisy abberations you will find a fair amount of game discussion and enough salt and vinegar to properly dress your chips.

POPS & CLICKS:

00:09:49 -- Drinkin' and Vaxxin'
00:20:06 -- The Long and Winding Railroad
00:35:05 -- Kickstarting, Streaming, and Video Gaming
00:52:13 -- Freedom: The Underground Railroad
01:00:07 -- Last Will
01:04:03 -- The Sands of Time (Joe's visit)
01:22:15 -- Apocalypse Road
01:42:55 -- The Red Cathedral
01:57:36 -- Nidavellir
02:27:53 -- Of Golden Eagles and T-Shirts

This is us, as you might find us should you wander into a watering hole where we might be holding court at the bar.

This could very well be a prime example of the conversation you might stumble upon.

The nature of this conversation spirals around, over and through the games and topics, so timestamps have been kept to a minimum.

ROUNDS:

00:00:25 -- Baseball, Disease Maintenance and a Word About Home Improvement
00:31:29 -- Rampant Game Talk and Misdemeanors 
01:35:29 -- Random Game Talk (Q&A)
02:25:09 -- That Old Country Music, by Kevin Barry

Winter is gone. The Sky is clearing. Birds are singing. Bees are buzzing. Temperatures are warming. Discussions are getting heated.

Welcome to the latest installment of As the Cardboard Turns.

JABS:

00:29:36 -- Lots: A Game of Weights and Measures (friendly game announcement)
00:33:45 -- Little Bits: Dominant Species Marine (initial take)
00:42:58 -- Merv (Joe's take)
00:50:40 -- Blackout: Hong Kong (Joe again)
00:58:15 -- The Magnificent (forgotten short take)
01:11:30 -- Maharaja: The Game of Palace Building in India (no take)
01:16:38 -- It's a Wonderful World : Corruption and Ascension (in-depth)
01:20:38 -- Stellar Horizons (in-depth session)
01:59:15 -- Rusty Brown, by Chris Ware
02:08:22 -- Pagan Virtues, by Stephen Dunn

Another show emerges from the stasis. We cover several games, new and old. We discuss some vital music and a page-turner of a book. We carry on as that's really all there is to do.

CARNAGE:

00:14:28 -- Newton (finally)
00:34:33 -- Lorenzo Il Magnifico (revisited)
00:52:59 -- Merv: The Heart of the Silk Road (in-depth)
01:42:28 -- Tunes (Nick Cave, The The)
02:03:35 -- Blacktop Wasteland, by S.A. Cosby