11 posts tagged “nerd”
Did you see "Big" Michael's "scary" "challenge" in the comments of yesterday's post?
Here's what I just wrote on that other blog:
Don’t worry. This will be settled shortly.
And you will all have a voice in the matter.
It will take time to assemble all of the necessary elements, but rest assured: It’s happening.
Hey, do you smell that? Mikey’s sweating somewhere.
Keep your eyes peeled. There's a storm a'brewin'.
In a recent interview, Michael Gladis, ex-friend and current jerk, had this to say about me:
You already know what a geek Rich Sommer is. Do you know that he is one of the foremost experts in the world on Uno? He’s literally been quoted in books about like games because he has one of the most extensive Uno collections in the world, and sold it with a friend of his. That is how big a geek Rich Sommer is. ... I think there’s very definite geek compartmentalization and specialization. And he’s definitely gone towards the board game end.
Well, la-di-dah Mr. High-and-Mighty. At least I wasn't interviewed in Chess Life.
And in response to your accusation, I give you this: My two-hour interview with BoardGameGeek.
That'll show you how big a nerd I'm not. Not.
Wait.
Crap.
I think I may have proved his point.
Ah, screw it. Michael's still a jerk. Even if he's right.
Also, in more me-news, did you see that I was in The Enquirer in December? No? Well, here's the hot and dirty scoop:
The onslaught of nerdery you are about to sustain may be unbearable.
Remember when Andy created the beautiful Ewok Gospel?
Well, apparently, some people challenged his nerdery. He answered.
I relented.
Hoo boy. Get ready.
by Rich Sommer
Remember when I mentioned the new version of Risk being released this summer?
I had the chance to try the new rules while I was in the Frosty North last month during two games with Pat, Joe and Kris.
Sorry the review took so long.
How to begin?
How about: Holy. Shizoli. The game of Risk has become awesome.
Some may argue that it was awesome the whole time. I'm not sure that I entirely concur. The game we grew up playing, and that the generation before that grew up playing, was moderately unique when it came out in 1957. But it was long, repetitive, and led to people being eliminated and forced to sit on the couch playing Nintendo (or Pong (or Spirograph, depending on when you were playing)).
But there was something there that appealed. A nugget of a game that drew cocky teenagers to stake their reputations on a roll of the dice. And mean it, too.
I liked that Risk. It was fun. And I really liked the Lord of the Rings version that came out a few years back. I thought it sort of cleaned up what was an otherwise clunky, random, and overly simple system: point, roll, shrug.
But the version being published this summer fixes everything. I mean: everything.
Key elements that have been added:
Fifteen Cities. These raise the value of inhabiting a territory by allowing you to recruit another army for each city you control. That's huge, since you usually get 1/3 of a troop for each territory. During the initial setup, territories containing cities are likely to be snatched up first. Unless your name is Kris. At least that was our experience.
Capitals. Each player gets a capital of their color to be set with their first troop placement at the beginning of the game. Maintaining control of your capital garners you another troop during reinforcements. You can usurp others' capitals as well, getting you yet another troop. Also, you can only win the game if you have control of your capital when you meet the victory conditions. So those are kinda important.
Objectives. Speaking of victory conditions, here's where the new version really departs from the original. Also included with the game are twelve objective badges, eight of which will be used in each game. Six of the objectives are "Minor" and six are "Major." Four of each category are randomly drawn and form the core of the game. Objectives may require you to take over a certain number of territories on one turn, or to control a certain number of cities, or capitals, or whatever. Whomever is first to earn three objective badges wins the game. There are two ways to get an objective badge: Completing the objective printed on it, or eliminating a player who had already earned a badge.
Each objective carries with it a reward. This is given to the player who achieves the objective, and does not carry over to a player eliminating the player who earned it. Some rewards include an extra attack or defense die for the rest of the game (huge), two additional troops during recruitment, die roll modifiers for selected territories (an "Airfield"), et cetera.
Some people have stated that this sounds suspiciously like Risk with Mission Cards. Um, kinda, 'cept the objectives are out in the open, so it's much easier to see what opportunities your opponents have to crush you. Instead of taking some country, flipping over the card, and saying, "I win." Which blows.
Why the game is so awesome. Ultimately, it's Risk. But it's Risk that gives you the same vibe in a much, much shorter playing time. We completed two games in under three hours, and anyone who has ever played Risk knows how ridiculously amazing that is.
You can see pictures of the review copy I received here. The version that will hit stores this summer will look markedly different, but will utilize the same rules. It's rumored to look something like this:
Frankly, I like the look of the mass market copy a little more, since it evokes a flavor of old-timey war room maps. I will be picking up a copy when it hits shelves.
You should, too.
Because you don't have to spend an entire weekend waiting for your brother-in-law to wipe you off the map. You only have to wait, like, forty-five minutes.
And that makes it a much easier pill to swallow.
This made me happy today.
Our stuff is here.
Our. Stuff. Is. Here.
It came last Sunday. Life has improved immensely.
Our lovely pad has a large closet near the front door. I have been given permission to make this my personal area. I now present: My Den of Nerdery.
And, yes, the item to the right of the giant Dawg Head up top is a Browns Dice Tower my brother created, thereby marrying my two most beloved passions.
Like I said, Twilight Struggle hit the table yesterday. I played the USA (High Life hat and all), and Jeff played the USSR. Jeff made shirts. It was awesome. I love that game.
My wife has informed me that my blog has gotten very nerdy.
Yeah, so?
Well, to make up for it, I have decided to take this opportunity to remind you of the funniest video anyone has ever seen:
So there. I still plan on being nerdy, though. It's what I do best.
Boy, I've had some bad auditions before, but none where I ended up crashing into what I presume is a pile of samurai swords.
Beautiful.
National Games Week 2006 is this November 19-25.
Yes, that's the week of Thanksgiving.
No, I don't get why they do that.
You lucky, lucky people.
I have decided that when I have nothing else to write about, I will compose a list of my choices for Top 3 [somethings]. Mainly because I know how important my feelings about this world are to you, and I want you to learn something instead of just working your day job and being bored. I want you to learn, and I want to be the one to teach you.
So I will be sure to make these Top 3s as informative, enlightening and inspiring as possible.
Because you deserve it. You deserve my opinions.
So here we go! Top 3 #1!
Top 3 Long Words I Know
- pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis -- I can remember Todd W. saying this word on
the playground in fourth grade or so, and I thought it was fascinating (read: we were dorks). So Matt P. and I learned not only how to pronounce the word, but how to spell it. We had serious social issues.
- antidisestablishmentarianism -- I learned this word because it was always the answer given when I would ask, "do you know what the longest word in the dictionary is?" Then, after they finsihed saying it, I would thwomp them with pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis. (Note: I retyped that instead of cutting and pasting it from above (read: I remain a dork))
- psoriasis -- I imagine I know some better ones, but after the first two, who needs to know any other long words that they'll never use for anything other than attempting to sound smart? And failing? Plus, it was the first word that popped into my head. Huh.
Yep. I think you've all learned something today, and I feel better for it.
(are you currently asking yourself why you're reading this blog? me too.)
