Stonehome Year End Reflections

In our playgroup, card games have meant Magic: The Gathering or Euchre for a few years, almost entirely played online. Thankfully for Magic, Spelltable has been a blessing to keep us connected through cardboard.   In the last half of the year, Mitch decided to start trying out new collectible games. He picked up some Flesh & Blood decks and a variety of One Piece cards. He is a huge fan of the pirate series. Magic still dominated much of the year when we did get to play. Traditionally Sunday evenings are for cards, though that has been a struggle to schedule.   MTG had more cards released over the last few years than ever before and it has been hard to keep track of them all. While we didn’t get as much playtime as we’d like, it was nice to sling some spells when we could.

Flesh and Blood
This game has been around for a few years but we are new to it. The dueling feel they captured is pretty spectacular with amazing flavor to how the game runs. To anyone unfamiliar, Flesh and Blood is meant to be played in person, hence the name. You control a dueling character, slowly losing equipment and cards as you battle. The math and deck crafting is super in-depth. 2025 will be a deck-building year as we explore the mechanics.

One Piece TCG - Thoughts by Drew
We have played plenty of Shonen anime TCGs in the past, primarily the original Dragon Ball Z game. One Piece plays very similar but far smoother. Mitch and Kyle have been the primary players so far, but Mitch was kind enough to build me an Unta deck. I went 3-1 at Olympia Cards and Comics with only a few games under my belt.   The resource system may be the best I have seen in any card game. You play as iconic characters from the series and each turn reveals DON from a side deck, to a maximum of 10. This DON can be used as a resource, or as a way to increase your character’s attacks. It is such a neat way to keep the mana curve healthy and interesting. This is another game that will see more love in the New Year as we figure it out.

Chuck’s Final Thoughts
I want to do more TCGs, whether it’s Commander Magic, or finally figuring out how to play Flesh and Blood. I hope to look into Sorcery if we suddenly find ourselves wealthy. All my friends are getting into One Piece, but I'm unfamiliar with the manga or show and don't care much about the material.

Board Game Spotlight: Marvel Zombies
  Marvel Zombies (Zombicide) was the most intriguing of the new games we played this year. You play as one of a limited list of zombie heroes and villains, fending off opposition while trying to eat brains and not die. Our friend bought the super hyper mega edition on Kickstarter which includes a giant Galactus statue. The figures, detail, and overall vibe are a great time. It is a fantastic addition to the already existing game. We lost every game and loved it.

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Disney’s Villainous. This game has been around for a while, but we had the chance to play a lot of it. You play as the villain competing against rival villains to be the first to complete your personal deck's goal for victory. While there is interaction, the solitaire nature of most gameplay keeps it moving quickly. We also played the Marvel variation, but it was far too time-consuming. Our favorite personalities were King Richard (Chuck) and Yzma (Drew).   Onitama. This was a fun, turn-based martial arts strategy game with a limited pool of “moves” both players must pull from. A really fun two-person game. Fast and super easy to pick up.   Tokaido. You and your friends take turns playing out the trials and tribulations of a vacation well spent. The game plays like a race where you are frog-hopping over one another to get points.   Too Many Bones. We were new to Chip Theory Games when Kyle broke out Too Many Bones. This company goes all out with materials. Playmats, dice, and chips make up the majority. While there are a lot of rules, the game plays simple once you get moving. There was a pretty steep difficulty ramp in what we got to experience. You play from a giant stack of characters and face against a whole cast of monsters.   Takenoko. The chillest board game ever made, about an emperor's bamboo garden, the gardener trying to keep it together, and the panda that can't help itself but devour everything in sight. This is a go-to relaxation game when wanting to play something.   Aggravation. The classic game of dicking your friends over with marbles. A staple of the Stonehomie household. These marbles have seen some things.

TTRPG Spotlight: The Red Keep Adventure

We are not just saying this because we wrote it. Watching the playtest group go through it has been one of the best experiences of our lives. Yury captured Smolderthorn the Reclaimer so perfectly looming over the keep on the cover. We cannot wait to release its book form in 2025.   The Red Keep Adventure is designed for 4 to 6 people, taking players from levels 3 to 6. Any class combination works, though it is best suited for heroic, good-aligned characters. Encounters are designed to be deadly and test the players' ability to make smart, informed decisions under pressure.

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We tried a few new TTRPGs this year, and our favorite was Hatchlings Games' Cryptid Creeks. We already shared our thoughts on it in a review, which you can find: here.   Savage Worlds. This system was new to some of us and familiar to others. Like many other systems, it has amazing character creation but involves a lot of math during play. This works well when everyone knows the rules, but it is a challenge for new players. This is not unique to Savage Worlds, so we do not hold it against the system. We used the superhero variant for our biggest game and created some wild characters.   Index Card RPG (ICRPG). Kyle introduced this to us, and we played a variety of one-shots with it. It could be long-term fun but feels a bit too loose in some areas while being rules-heavy in others. The included settings are interesting but sparse.

Moot Games

Our regular playgroup began around a Moot gathering years ago. In 2024, we wrapped up our 5e multiplanar escapades across the stars. We had three rotating GMs guiding us toward level 20. Things became rocky at level 18, and we decided to take a hiatus. It was a great game that explored all kinds of worlds, including Ravnica, Theros, Dromaria, and the Forgotten Realms, all centered in Sigil. Our group, “The Strayngers,” was an eclectic bunch.   Our current game is set in Saltmarsh using the 2024 edition of Dungeons and Dragons. Drew’s first character died, and the entire party was captured by pirates. It has been a fun game so far. We are in the middle of a lizardfolk raid, waiting to continue next session. It has been decades since we explored Greyhawk. Drew is playing a halfling paladin of Procan named Terrace Tea, and Chuck is playing an orc cleric of Hextor named Lok’broth.