zakstoiber.com
Milwaukeean who loves board games, photography, a good book, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and his 2 cats. Portfolio at www.slicksnaps.com.
Profile pic is real illustration by my very talented coworker Jason Krukowski - no AI here!!
30 posts
50 followers
331 following
Regular Contributor
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Loved this! Endgame scoring is one of those things that I had the hardest time internalizing, but I think it's worth the struggle.
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This paints the picture that it's unlikely giannis will stay in Milwaukee his whole career, even though he would prefer to win here if possible. And although we never want him to leave, I don't think anyone would think any true Bucks fan could hold it against him.
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Wow this is great. My only wish is that this also leads to the flexibility of an official online platform to play on... 🤞
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This and "Sometimes The Blues Is Just A Passing Bird" fully became my taste in music for a solid year. He's got some other gems and I enjoy all his albums to some extent but I don't think the early period will ever be eclipsed. (Pair these with Anais Mitchell's Young Man in America for peak folk.)
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I would blast this album on repeat in my dorm room (15 years ago 🫠) CONSTANTLY.
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Yeah. Good "teaching moment." The average person probably does not fully consider or understand the ethical concerns of AI art. I get that it's not anyone's responsibility to educate, but just disengaging and judging immediately doesn't seem productive.
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Uggggggh
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I watched some of the final debate and just didn't see a whole lot of fire from him. Ben seemed way more passionate and motivated to meet the moment. So it goes...
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*6 Knizias!
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You know it's a good month when you get to play 5 Knizias and two of them are themed around cats.
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I've only played DVONN and YINSH, but if you see them around you should really give them a go - I particularly enjoyed YINSH and am eager to check out the others in the series. The capstone of the series is MATRIX GIPF which is releasing now and combines pieces/moves from all games in the series.
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Got in our annual Christmastime play of Ticket To Ride: Nordic Countries while listening to Tchaikovsky's Troika - always a blast. Then got first-plays of YINSH (already obsessed), Bebop (brilliant) and Peacemakers. Curious, have you reviewed/played the GIPF games? Would love to hear your thoughts!
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Also really wanted to like Folklore but I think it just has a really weird combination of storytelling and combat that doesn't quite work. I'd rather just play one of Plaid Hat's recent crossroad games like Forgotten Waters, Freelancers, or the new Wandering Galaxy.
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across* 🙃
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It was very strange for me to come access this post! First time I've even heard of another Zak S, I hope I can balance the scales!
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Bloodlines: does it improve the game? Something you can enjoy from your second game or only for the hard-core enthusiasts? Or does it spread the game too thin with options? Also someone already asked but am eager to hear how you take to molly house after your fantastic John Company video.
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As someone who backed a table (that I do legitimately love) years ago, I have some empathy for early-adopter Tesla owners. Their company leadership, especially Doug, is a blight on the product. Can't believe they filmed and published the layoffs for content. 🫣
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This game is fantastic. Disappointed that they felt the need to replace the perfectly functional wooden pieces with plastic, though.
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Yes! A lot of his work still feels singular even if it was rough around the edges, like Material and Lost Soldiers. Maybe I just fell off a bit but that era of Image Comics just hit different and felt like their golden age.
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Still mourning Kot's exit from comics. Zero is transcendent.
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So underrated!! Have you played the Valley expansion? The way you can use the mushrooms to reshape scoring areas is devious!
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Glad to hear it, especially since a copy is headed my way! 😅 Looking forward to the full review!
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Of course I have to ask about Red Dust Rebellion. I'm worried it's crossed the line into too complex - especially for a first time designer - as I've started to enjoy the more streamlined games like The British Way and Robin Hood. Any initial thoughts?
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Tried Dune: Imperium - Uprising. Never played D:I before - it was one of those games where I had no idea what I was doing 75% of the time, but should click fully for play 2 this week. Also got 3 games of Blood on the Clocktower in and graduated to Sects and Violets, which was an absolute riot.
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Elon made it so you can't opt of AI training for anything you post and also ruined the block feature.
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Totally on brand, and wonderful, that the lowest you'll rate a game is simply "Below Great." Nicest guy in board gaming!
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Just went through your list - appreciated! You should consider adding dan thurot!
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When a kickstarter launches with a Dan Thurot review you know they've got their priorities straight!