Board and card games, BBQ's, movies, and any other excuse to socialise
Hi there.
My name is Mark Hodge and I host game nights every Wednesday from 7:30pm til late for friends and friends-to-be.
Location: 357 North Road, North East Valley, Dunedin, New Zealand (Map)
Contact details: Phone 473 0391 or 021 614 134 or email
Most of the games we play are what are colloqially known as 'German', 'Euro', or 'Designer' games. These names come from the history of designer games - the most popular have predominantly been from Germany, though this has changed slightly in recent times with more coming from the rest of Europe and the US.
If you're completely unfamiliar with designer games -- as I was not too many years ago -- it may take some time before you start to understand why these games have caught on with so many players. But if you make even a minimal effort to learn about them, I can almost guarantee that your time spent with friends will be the richer for it (to quote boardgames.about.com).
The Settlers of Catan is the game that introduced many English-speaking gamers to the world of designer games, and it includes many of the elements that mark the best of the genre: relatively simple rules, deep strategy, trading and negotiation between players, excellent replay value, and appealing to both experienced and casual players
Obviously, not every designer game is going to succeed on every level -- or with every player. There are many who love the work of game designer Reiner Knizia, for example; others would be quite happy to live their lives without ever playing another Knizia game.
Most of the games we play are listed here at boardgamegeek.com if you would like to read reviews and explanations of gameplay.
In order to ensure the night runs smoothly and everyone has fun, please consider the following house rules...
Playing games with new people can make people nervous at first. You will be coming into an established group that normally knows each other well. You will want to make a good first impression. The best advice, as cliched as it sounds, is to be yourself. Just try to enjoy the games.
Some players will take time deciding their moves, particularly in more complicated games, or towards the end of the game. If this annoys you, I recommend you avoid complex games later in the evening when people are more tired and this becomes more common.
Once your first meeting is out of the way you will know the group better. Different people come on different weeks so while you'll probably meet the same people the next time you come, you'll probably also meet some new faces. Make more friends - introduce yourself!
If you would like to use a computer for internet access just ask. We have a guest PC for visitors and can set up a login account for you on request. We also have wireless and most regulars have access to this on their assorted gadgets.
If you would like to be added or removed from the mailing list drop me an email. The list is used to keep in contact for weekly reminders, as well as get-togethers (BBQ's, birthdays, movie nights).
Additions in the last year include Dominion: Seaside, Dominion: Alchemy, Battlestar Galactica, Pillars of the Earth plus expansion, Drakon, Endeavor (designed in New Zealand!), Race for the Galaxy, Weed, Age of Empires III: The Age of Discovery, and the Power Grid: Benelux/Central Europe maps, Railway (2 player), Powergrid Brazil/Iberia expansion map, and the Powergrid New Power Plants deck.
More recent additions include Ticket to Ride card game, Stone Age, 10 Days in Europe, Linwood (another New Zealand game), Metro, Monopoly Deal (theme only - nothing like the old board game!), Forbidden Island, Wildlife, thousands of cards from A Game of Thrones CCG (thanks Israel), Modern Art (thanks Jeff), Thurn and Taxis, Cathedral, and Pandemic.
At some point I will be arranging a session of Shogun, otherwise known as Samurai Swords. This was added to the collection a few years ago, has a high rating on gameboard geeks, but alas, has not been played!
If you are looking for protective sleeves for your cards, the club is the New Zealand distributor for Mayday Games.
We currently have Euro cards protector 100-packs in stock as well as a number of other sizes including ones suitable for Magic or Thunderstone. Mayday games also provide a range of game accessories including wooden game tokens.
I have used the Euro blue size for Agricola, Dominion, Alhambra, and San Juan, and the manufacturer also says they suit Dominion Intrigue, Battlelore, Le Havre, Memoir '44, and Taj Mahal as well as more than a dozen other games. I found Alhambra a good fit and the other three games close to perfect.
These sleeves are made from clear archival safe polypropylene. They are acid free and contain no PVC (see The Poison Plastic).
For a fraction of the cost of your Euro games you can use these card sleeves to protect them from getting worn and dirty during play. Especially important if your friends eat greasy food then play games.
If you have a game not mentioned here, check the Mayday Games sleeve guide. We can supply any of these sleeve sizes.
The price is dependant on how many card covers you order, but small orders are around $5 per pack. Non local buyers can email for pricing or purchase via TradeMe or sella.co.nz for less if I have a current listing.
Any income goes back into covering games for the club and running games nights :-)
I've had a chat with David at Seriously Board , and arranged for a club discount code.
If you are looking to buy games, enter NEXTGEN at the checkout for a further 10% discount. They also (as standard) give free freight on orders over $125 (otherwise a $8 flat rate applies), and will readily look up the availability of any games not listed on their website if you drop them an email.
For comparison, a club member bought all of the Dominion games (4 boxes at the time) for $300 locally a while back, but would only have paid $268.12 through www.MightyApe.co.nz , or $246.60 freight free from SeriouslyBoard using our discount code!
MightyApe will readily give 5% discounts for combined orders, but they NO LONGER give free shipping on orders of $50+ sadly. If you do buy from them I'd be grateful if you can use our referral link since the club gets a 5% credit on ALL ORDERS bought via this link. They also sell computer games, DVD's, and so on - it doesn't have to be boardgames.
The other online reseller we've dealt with, theplayground.co.nz, tend not to hold as much or go out of their way to order things in, but they do occasionally offer us a 20% discount sale (which I usually announce on the email list).
If you buy from SeriouslyBoard using the club discount code (this includes anyone visiting the website for info on card protectors), or MightApe using the referral link, please let me know so I have some figures to use negotiating discounts in the future and can make sure any MightyApe credits arrive too.
Cheers,
Mark
If you have any feedback on this website, how game nights are run, or general suggestions, please email them here.
