2GP's Legendary Gaming Presents: Our Favorite Christmas Stocking Stuffer Games (2016)

Jingle dice, jingle dice, jingle dice roll Jingle dice hit and jingle dice crit Draftin’ and bluffin’ up a Gen Con of fun Now the jingle game has begun

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all you brave survivors of the Nerd Wasteland! Whether you celebrate the winter season holidays in honor of religious reasons or just to spread good cheer and love it all boils down to the same thing. Gifts. Big gifts, little gifts, meaningful gifts, and even candy, and tchotchke. It is time of year to give, give, give. Everyone LOVES to tear open all those gifts under the tree like starving bears emerging from hibernation. These often overshadow the Christmas stockings; the poor second-cousin of the Christmas box. Usually filled with sweets and the occasional tchotchke the stockings take second place in the hierarchy of holiday gifts. This year take the stockings up a notch with your gaming friends and relatives. There are plenty of great small box games that sometimes get lost amid the sea of epic, thematic games these days. We hope to make your holiday gift-giving a little easier this year. In keeping with that thought...

Two-Gun Pixie Presents:

Our Favorite Christmas Stocking Stuffer Games (2016)

Deathbed Derby

Designed By: Zach Connelly Published By: Royal N. Games Number of Players: 2 or 4 Suggest Player's Age: 12+ Game Length: 15 - 30 minutes Game Type: Card Game, Robot Combat, Sci-Fi, Shifting Battlefield Game Mechanics: Card Drafting, Board Manipulation, Grid Movement, Modular Board, Variable Player Powers From the Publisher: Long ago, disgruntled fans mourned the cancelation of their favorite robot fighting T.V. show, and took to the underground. Void of caution or regard for public safety, contenders began to build incredible machines of destruction and pit them against each other in one on one death matches. And so was born... The DeathBot Derby! In DeathBot Derby players build their bots using a quick card drafting mechanism and then face off in an ever changing arena. They will have to strategically move and attack their opponent to gain the tactical advantage. The winning DeathBot goes home a champion, and the loser goes back to the scrap heap they came from. Quick Thoughts: We love this game. It scored 4 out of 5 Pixies when we initially reviewed it and we still stand by that review score several months later. This is a great fast-play game for 2 to 4 players. Building your own Deathbot is really fun and not only creates a sense of individuality but adds immensely to re-playability. This extends from the bots to the arena. Thanks to the randomly placed, flip-sided, card-based tile battle-pit arena set-up each derby is different. This game can end up being quite strategic but at the same time the use of the Panic Button – which causes tiles to flip over revealing new dangers on that card – brings a sense of chaos and uncertainty to each game. Fans of sci-fi games or combat games will enjoy this game. Two-Gun Pixie Review of Deathbot Derby http://nerdoverlord.wixsite.com/twogunpixie/single-post/2016/07/31/Deathbot-Derby-Gen-Con-2016-PreSale-Game-Review Two-Gun Pixie NYCC 2016 Interview with Royal N. Games’ Deathbot Derby Artist James Groeling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddKus5zT6t8&t=13s Fate of Akalon: Tribes

Designed By: Robert Nicaise

Published By: Foursight Games Number of Players: 2 - 4 Suggest Player's Age: 12+ Game Length: 15 - 30 minutes Game Type: Card Game, Combat, Fantasy Game Mechanics: Hand Management, Trick-taking, Variable Player Powers From the Publisher: Fate of Akalon: Tribes is a 2-4 player combat card game set on the dying continent of Akalon. Players control a tribe of fantasy races in a struggle for survival. Each turn a player will play a card to the battlefield and compare combat values. The winner's card goes to their discard pile, the loser's card to that player’s cemetery. The winner is the first player to send 30 points worth of combat value to their opponent's cemetery. Each race's deck contains unique thematic powers to influence the combat values when played. Fate of Akalon: Tribes is a quick, thematic card game that surprises with depth of play belying its simple mechanisms. Quick Thoughts: Very fast set-up time. Pick one of the four fixed-deck tribes, shuffle and you are ready to play. Each of the tribe decks has their own strengths; Orcs are damage dealers, the Elves can manipulate their own deck, the Dwarves are very defensive, and the Undead can manipulate the Cemetery Deck. The decks are well-balanced and the game play is simple enough to teach someone in a few minutes. The fact that you do not draw back up to your hand from your deck until you use all the current cards you are holding makes to some very interesting strategies during combat. This is a fun game that any fantasy fan can get into. https://foursightgames.com/ Two-Gun Pixie Review of Fate of Akalon: Tribes http://nerdoverlord.wixsite.com/twogunpixie/single-post/2016/08/10/FATE-OF-AKALON-TRIBES---GEN-CON-2016-PRE-SALE-REVIEW Exploding Kittens

Designed By: Matthew Inman, Elan Lee, Shane Small Published By: Self-published Number of Players: 2 - 5 Suggest Player's Age: 7+ Game Length: 15 minutes Game Type: Party Game, Cats, Russian Roulette Game Mechanics: Hand Management, Player Elimination, Press Your Luck, Set Collection, Take-That From the Publisher: Exploding Kittens is a kitty-powered version of Russian Roulette. Players take turns drawing cards until someone draws an exploding kitten and loses the game. The deck is made up of cards that let you avoid exploding by peeking at cards before you draw, forcing your opponent to draw multiple cards, or shuffling the deck. The game gets more and more intense with each card you draw because fewer cards left in the deck means a greater chance of drawing the kitten and exploding in a fiery ball of feline hyperbole. Quick Thoughts: Exploding Kittens is a great game for families or parties (especially if you get the NSFW Edition - A wink is as good as a nod to a blind bat). It really is just a card-based game of Russian Roulette… With hysterical pictures and phrases on them. There is a palpable air of tension when playing this game but thanks to the kittens it’s not unbearable. We have not played a game without experiencing frequent bouts of hysteria. http://www.explodingkittens.com/ Inn-Fighting

Designed By: Rob Heinsoo Published By: Wizards of the Coast Number of Players: 3 - 6 Suggest Player's Age: 12+ Game Length: 20 minutes Game Type: Dice Rolling, Fantasy Setting, Fighting, Party Game Game Mechanics: Card Management, Dice Rolling, Variable Player Powers From the Publisher: The dice game of champions in the Dungeons & Dragons world. From the creators of Three-Dragon Ante, the Dungeons & Dragons in-world card game, comes the perfect dice game for D&D players and characters alike. With a roll of the dice, you determine whether to hurl a mug of ale at the warbling bard or smash a chair over the drunken barbarian's back. Treachery and chaos abound, as every game promises a new and hilarious tavern brawling experience. Inside every Inn Fighting box you'll find a rules sheet, a set of 6 special six-sided dice, 1 twenty-sided die, and 52 character cards. Choose a character, trade some dice rolls with your friends, and see whose left standing in the end! Quick Thoughts: Whenever this game hits the table the Twenty-Sided Warriors have a great time. We find that this game works best with 5 or 6 people but no real fun is lost with 3 or 4. The characters range from the more archetypical D&D characters such as a monk and paladin but also feature more exotic characters such as the Beholder and the Drow to play. This game is all about a bar-room fight and it does a great job of really that feeling of chaos and uncertainty of where the next attack is coming from. The meat-shields, er…I mean the Bystanders are a fun mechanic to the game. This game will be enjoyed by fantasy gamers in general, not just D&D fans. Two-Gun Pixie Review of Inn-Fighting http://nerdoverlord.wixsite.com/twogunpixie/single-post/2016/03/08/The-Pixies-Box Ninja Dice

Designed By: Rocco Privetera Published By: Greenbrier Games Number of Players: 2 - 5 Suggest Player's Age: 9+ Game Length: 30 minutes Game Type: Contest, Ninja, Stealth Game Mechanics: Dice Rolling, Dice Placement, Push Your Luck. From the Publisher: In Ninja Dice, a push-your-luck dice game with a Japanese theme, players compete to see which of them is the greatest Ninja. To play, each player rolls House dice to create unique combinations of challenges including Locked areas, Guards, and nosy Residents. Players roll their Skill dice to come up with three ways to beat these challenges - Stealth skills, Fighting skills, and Lock picking. Players can also roll special Fortune faces that boost dice, but only if the dice they are boosting lie in specific positions on the table, a system that is new and unique to games of this kind! Beat the challenges to score points and escape, and the next player can try to beat a new house. Fail to beat the house and the player can escape with what they've stolen, or remain and roll again - but each re-roll adds the threat of the other Ninja, who can now roll Threat dice, allowing them to shoot the active Ninja – and each other – to steal treasure! Constant interaction between all Ninja forces all players to be alert at all times. Play proceeds in three rounds of increasing difficulty with the highest scoring player winning. Quick Thoughts: Ninja Dice is a fast-paced game that keeps all the players involved with every roll. The zero-player-downtime is a fantastic mechanic. When the active player rolls all other players roll against him or her. BUT DON’T TOUCH THOSE DICE! After they are rolled WHERE they land actually means something. This is another good aspect of the game. The challenges start off easy enough but quickly escalate into a real game of planning and plotting the use of your dice rolls. Oh, we also LOVE the game box. Well, actually it’s a game bag. Ninja Dice comes in a very cool and handy soft square zipper-top bag that looks like a fun ninja head. http://www.greenbriergames.com/main/index.php/product/ninja-dice/ Star Flux

Designed By: Andrew Looney Published By: Looney Labs Number of Players: 2 - 6 Suggest Player's Age: 8+ Game Length: 15 minutes Game Type: Card Game, Family, Party, Science Fiction Game Mechanics: Hand Management, Set Collection, Take-That, Variable Rules.

From the Publisher: Just when you thought that Fluxx had gone as far as it could go - it blasts off for the Stars! Explore the vastness of space-themed humor with your valiant Captain, Engineer, and, of course, your Expendable Crewman. Go check out that Small Moon – or is it really a Space Station? You may be swayed by Unseen Forces, held hostage by Evil Computers, or find your ship infested with Cute Fuzzy Aliens. Like its brethren, Star Fluxx is the game of ever changing rules. It starts out as Draw 1, Play 1, but even that can change. When a Goal card is played, you can win by meeting the Goal, usually by having the correct Keeper cards in front of you. Action and Surprise cards help you to meet the Goal, or stop your opponent. Creeper cards usually prevent you from winning, but are sometimes necessary to meet the Goal. Quick Thoughts: The ever-shifting series of rule changes and altering end goals to win might seem frustrating, and it is, but the whole take-that format makes it all worth it as you whammy your buddies makes that frustration worth it. Star Fluxx is a comedy card game that plays well with both families as well as at parties. It makes a great filler game or can be played in a series of games. http://www.looneylabs.com/games/star-fluxx Zombie Dice

Designed By: Steve Jackson Published By: Steve Jackson Games Number of Players: 2 - 100 Suggest Player's Age: 10+ Game Length: 15 minutes Game Type: Dice, Horror, Humor, Party Game, Zombies Game Mechanics: Dice Rolling, Push Your Luck From the Publisher: Eat brains. Don't get shotgunned.

In Zombie Dice, you are a zombie. You want braaains – more brains than any of your zombie buddies. The 13 custom dice are your victims. Push your luck to eat their brains, but stop rolling before the shotgun blasts end your turn! Whoever collects 13 brains first wins. Each game takes 10 to 20 minutes and can be taught in a single round. Each turn, you take three dice from the box and roll them. A brain symbol is worth one point at the end of the round, while footsteps allow you to reroll this particular dice. Shotgun blasts on the other hand are rather bad, ‘cause if you collect three shotgun blasts during your turn, it is over for you and you get no points. After rolling three dice, you may decide if you want to score your current brain collection or if you want to push your luck by grabbing new dice so you have three again and roll once more. Quick Thoughts: There are a lot of zombie games out there but not many where you actually get to BE the zombie! Zombie Dice plays very fast and can be taught to anyone in mere moments. We highly recommend the two expansion, Double Feature and the School Bus to enhance the game. It is a fun game for kids and families as well as older, more seasoned gamers. Yes, it may just be a filler game but it is a really fun filler game. Zombie Dice has become one of my most requested game toplay while waiting for the rest of the group to show up on game day. http://www.sjgames.com/dice/zombiedice/ Dragon Slayer

Designed By: David J. Mortimer Published By: Indie Boards & Cards Number of Players: 2 - 5 Suggest Player's Age: 12+ Game Length: 15 minutes Game Type: Dice, Family, Fantasy, Fighting Game Mechanics: Betting/Wagering, Dice Rolling, Press Your Luck.

From the Publisher: You are the world's most fearless dragon slayers, competing to be crowned the master slayer. Your brave warrior must search far and wide for these ferocious beasts, defend yourself against its attacks and be ever ready to strike them down. Even in victory your companions may challenge your courage, demanding that you prove your valor with foolhardy audacity or cower in their mocking taunts. Dragon Slayer is a new push-your-luck game that's a deceptively difficult challenge. Like all great PYL games, the rules are simple, with you repeating the Dragon Hunt until you decide to stop. The very interesting twist is the player challenges. The ability to challenge — and rewards for passing or failing when challenged — add a dimension to everything that you do on your turn. What order do you go after dragons? When do you stop? When do you challenge? Who do you challenge? How do you get others not to challenge you?! Quick Thoughts: Although this may appear to just be a simple press your luck game we really enjoyed the challenge aspect. Being able to goad another player into continuing their quest against their will or be penalized is a good addition to the game mechanics. There is no set-up time for this game, just open the box ad grab some dice and you are ready to play. Kids and families will enjoy this game. https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/158243/dragon-slayer Crazier Eights: Camelot

Designed By: James Wallace Gray Published By: Self-published Number of Players: 2 - 4 Suggest Player's Age: 10+ Game Length: 15 - 30 minutes Game Type: Family, Party, Uno Game Mechanics: Hand Management, Trick Taking

From the Publisher: To play Crazier Eights players start with seven cards in hand. During your turn, you draw a card, play up to one card for an effect, and discard one card. The first player with zero cards in hand wins. Crazier Eights: Camelot has fifty three unique cards, each with a different effect. It has a fantasy theme in the world of the King Arthur stories. Merlin, Morgan le Fay, Avalon, Excalibur, and many elements from the stories are unique cards in the game. Quick Thoughts: This is a fantastic version of Crazy Eights/Uno. The Camelot theme is fun and these cards all look stunning, like the images were ripped right out of a museum. The addition of events and assets on the cards really brings an added level of fun intrigue and strategy. This game can be a great addition to the family game shelf. Two-Gun Pixie Review of Crazier Eights: Camelot http://nerdoverlord.wixsite.com/twogunpixie/single-post/2016/08/14/Crazier-Eights-Camelot---Gen-Con-2016-Pre-Sale-Review Get Bit!

Designed By: Dave Chalker Published By: Asmodee, May Day Games Number of Players: 3 - 6 Suggest Player's Age: 7+ Game Length: 15 - 30 minutes Game Type: Animals, Bluffing, Family, Racing Game Mechanics: Hand Management, Player Elimination, Simultaneous Action Selection.

From the Publisher: "You don't have to be faster than the shark, just faster than your friends!" Get Bit! is a card game where players are competing to stay alive as the others are being eaten by the shark. The order of the swimmers is determined by simultaneously playing cards face-down then revealing the values. The number on each player's card determines position in line (higher numbers in front, lower numbers in back), however ties don't move. The swimmer at the back loses a limb to the shark and is flung to the front of the line! The process is repeated until only two swimmers remain on the table. When this happens, the swimmer at the front of the line wins the game! Quick Thoughts: This has become one of my main go-to games whenever I travel to a friend’s home or a relative’s place that has kids. Everyone loves the fact that the little people playing pieces come apart; legs, arms, head. The card system is very easy to understand and teach. This game will be a very good addition to any family’s game shelf. https://www.maydaygames.com/collections/get-bit Odin's Ravens

Designed By: Thorsten Gimmler Published By: Osprey Games Number of Players: 2 Suggest Player's Age: 10+ Game Length: 15 - 30 Game Type: Birds, Card Game, Mythology, Racing Game Mechanics: Hand Management, Tile Manipulation

From the Publisher: Every morning Odin sends his ravens, Huginn and Muninn, across the entire world to bring back news of what life is like on Earth. Naturally, after thousands of years, they've gotten a little competitive. Race through the landscape in opposite directions to be the first to return to Odin. Focus on speed, or enlist the help of the trickster god Loki to create shortcuts and hinder your opponent. Can you be certain Loki's changes won't help your opponent instead? There's only one way to find out! The revised edition of Thorsten Gimmler's award-winning Odin's Ravens has been completely redesigned, with new rules and a beautiful new art style inspired by Norse mythology Quick Thoughts: I usually do not like games designed exclusively for two players but this game really stands out. It feels like a strange game of chess as the players plot their use of Loki cards to shift the land around. I also notoriously do not like race games but this overcomes my dislike of race game. By altering the number of land cards laid out for the game you can easily shift the play time shorter or longer as you want. Whether you are looking for a game for your family or for your gaming group this will be a enjoyed. Two-Gun Pixie Review of Odin’s Ravens http://nerdoverlord.wixsite.com/twogunpixie/single-post/2016/04/26/The-Pixies-Box-Pt-3 https://ospreypublishing.com/odin-s-ravens Secret Santa

Designed By: Duncan Molloy Published By: Osprey Games Number of Players: 4 - 8 Suggest Player's Age: 9+ Game Length: 30 - 60 minutes Game Type: Card Game, Family Game Mechanics: Hand Management

From the Publisher: At Christmas, it's important to remember that it's better to give gifts than to receive them — but what's better than that is to be the best. Secret Santa is a festive card game of proving to friends and family that you're a better person than they are. Be the first to give away every gift you've got to win the round. Some gifts trump others but good presents are rare, and a big stack of stuff is always exciting. Mix things up with Santa's Elves and Christmas Carol, give away all of your Gold Rings, and try not to get stuck with the Fruitcake. Quick Thoughts: Yes, the obvious choice for this list. Secret Santa is another Great family game that is a twist on Uno. The cards are amusing and perfect for the season. The holiday twist/take on this mechanic with the special Christmas characters such as Christmas Carol, Santa’s Elves, and even the jolly one himself – Santa, are thematically fun. Holiday theme aside, this game is fun any time of the year. https://ospreypublishing.com/secret-santa