Thursday, November 5, 2015

Constable's Report: Warband


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Hey there Folks, it’s the Constable tasked with the invigorating task of keeping Mr. Ripper on his toes.
In a most interesting letter, dubiously filled with scattered bits of slashed cardboard and smashed meeples, is a piece of stationary that is yet again addressed to my office which reads only one word; Warband. Most certainly there is another foul case of Lusiocide which must be investigated.

In an effort to get into the mind of the Killer once more, let’s go over the evidence.

Warband is a “tactical” boardgame for two to five players where you each compete with each other to lead the strongest resistance against the Darkness (I suppose someone let their five-year-old take part in the plot design) which threatens the world at large. The game is set in a world where multiple races are indeed joining together but none are human and each must assist each the others in fighting off a dark nameless enemy or face extinction, but each wants to come out on top in the end.

Well now, what on God’s Green Earth could be wrong with this setup? This seems like a jolly great concept which could easily make into The Ripper’s stash of games we have yet to uncover. Grand battles, Armageddon, and outsmarting your enemy; let’s see what kind of grand map we are going to be doing all this tactics and battle tomfoolery in shall we?


 



*Turns to Nearest Fellow Investigator* I say, old boy, it appears some bloke has run off with our map and left us only the point tracking board. Dastardly deeds abound; what is this world coming to?

    *Whispers in Constable’s Ear* You mean to tell me that THIS is our grand map for which we are holding a campaign of epic proportions to protect our species? Oh dear, it appears we may have a motive for our Murder already. Now now, fellows, lets’ give this little thing a crack at it. Great things come in small packages, you know.

    To skip all the painful complaining, dear reader, I’ll gloss over the fine details and give you the glaring discrepancies.

Our rating system in the station works as such, we take the most important details we see fit, rate them on importance of 1-3, and we see what our score is.

-10   Bloody worthless piece of shite game which will send me honking at the slightest reference. Games of this ridiculous horridness have yet to be experienced, but should we ever I might start murdering games myself.

-5 Deserves every bit of torture it got and more! Close the case, boys.

-1 to -3 A generally bad game, but could just not be my Cup-of-Tea. Easy to see why a maniac like the Ripper could find justification in forcing this game to pay its debt to nature.

0   Sods all chances of remembering this one ever again. Shred the report, boys.

+1 to +3 Good game, nothing to see here, Blokes, move along; yet another lamb to the slaughter.

+5 A perfectly good, law abiding game with a wife and three kids. You Monster! Or worse, probably kidnapped by The Ripper Himself should he fancy it.

+10    Great blinding mutt’s nuts this game was Stonking ACE; might worship it if I could. God only knows what The Ripper has in store!



    VICTIMS

The game features a money system, which as my fellows know is a free point or two on my scale of Bully to Bollocks. The money, though not featuring a heavy influence over the concept or theme, is important to the game and scoring system so it is a victim in this case, I suppose. +1

        The theme is most excellent. +1

I’m not sure we’re off to a great start, Warband.

    MOTIVES

The theme, though most excellent, is not backed up at all by the actual gameplay and feels as though we are missing pieces to a much larger game. -1

The Game, on the back and in description, really seems promises tactical combat and the working of armies feuding for “oneupsmanship.” There is no such aspect to the game I see. We pushed cubes around for 30 minutes while comparing scores with each other to collect cards. Nothing feels warlike at all.  -2

CASE IMPORTANCE: -1
    It was the unfortunate case that a game with much potential was cut down in its prime. This game’s lofty promises which were never delivered must have sent The Ripper into a fury which links this murder to the nearly endless list of lackluster games which the Ripper has had the morbid pleasure of dismembering. CASE CLOSED






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