Board Game
A box that contains everything needed to play a game, usually on a tabletop.
Some things that are similar but different:
- Classic board games are those that are not owned by anyone. Examples include Chess, Go, and Mah-jong.
- Pen and paper RPGs require pen, paper, and a rulebook only
- card games by comparison use only cards, no pieces.
- tabletop games such as Warhammer 40000 require players to create their own team or army of miniatures, to play a campaign or scenario on a tabletop. These games might offer a starting box that includes some miniatures, or may offer the rulebook alone for players to choose their own miniatures. These games tend to require enormous time commitments to acquire the miniatures, as well as play the games.
I take a lot of pride in How I choose board games for my friends.
Things for board games enthusiasts
Board game events
PAX West here in Washington has huge areas devoted to board games and I like to go when I can.
Zulu's Board Games holds a yearly board game marketplace that I like to attend and find cheap board games in great condition.
Gen Con is the largest board game convention in the USA, and it's held annually in Indianapolis, but I have never gone.
Upgrades and accessories I recommend
A dice tower is a great upgrade. A friend printed this one for me, and my gaming group enjoys it. The only downside is that it is a bit loud. It requires a 3D printer and some springs.
Collapsible dice trays are a cheap and high return on investment accessory. Ideally choose colours that your players like.
A card shuffler is a great way to shuffle cards. Some players insist on riffle shuffling, but this damages cards over time. If you value the cards in your board games and don't like card protectors, this can help.
