I thankfully didn't have any problems with the wooden pieces, but the board itself is warped just like you showed in the video. I was hoping it would lie flat eventually, but at least now I know that it will not unless I help it.
Hey! just wanted to say I recently got into board games (especially root) due in no small part to your videos. Wonderful review, Ill definitely have arcs in mind next time Im looking to purchase something new
I've only played the base game + L&L twice and loved it. I can't imagine playing without L&L just for the extra asymmetry and flavor over the core. Your video has me seriously wanting to fork over the huge chunk of cash for the expansion now, just not sure how often it would get played considering how long it takes. I've only played Twilight Imperium once and I did enjoy the 7 hours I played with four people, but 12 hours for 3 ppl?? Sheesh. However, I do know a handful of people who might play it with me since they're younger with more free time than me :) Great video that explains the expansion perfectly.
I like your point about the base game vs. BR really being 2 seperate games. While not as enthralled with Arcs as many people are (including most of my gaming group), I enjoy the high level of design and depth of the campaign game. The stories it can craft are truly incredible and the game mechanics can lead to some jaw dropping moments. That being said, I've found the base game sorely lacking. There's no circumstance where I'd play base Arcs (even with L&L) over Root, Pax Pamir, or a host of other games. It's a bit of an odd situation where I really only want to play Arcs as a campaign, which gives some mixed emotions on the title as a whole. Loved the video and breakdown, keep up the good work!
Don't even try to consider thinking about maybe having concepts of an intention, much less a plan; everything depends on things out of your control. I felt like I had zero agency.
How much have you played? You can account for a lot of things and then plan around that, but it takes multiple plays at each level of complexity. I'm 12 games in with my GF and still learning new things in the base game.
I hope I get to try the campaign on TTS before Arcs is published in my country later this year. It seems to be right up my alley, but it's hard to know for sure. I do love the tightness of the base game already, though.
Guess i'm one of the only people who doesn't like Arcs at all. My friend got it and brought it over for us to try together one day. He would prefer it as 3-4 players, and I would prefer to play something else entirely lol. I should mention it was the core game only.
My issue with core Arcs is entirely around the action selection. I love most other aspects of the game, but the action selection burns me so much that it's unplayable. The mitigation is non-existent. Unlike an open draft, it doesn't balance out. You seriously can go round to round and not get the kinds of actions you want every time based on the draw. The trick taking as a concept just is unnecessary to the greater game and I feel a static hand of action cards that don't block other player actions (example El Grande) would be far better for Arcs (and I say this loving trick taking). I don't think anything in the expansions would change my mind from what I've seen after my play.
I mentioned Arcs in a comment on the complexity video and I'm glad I was correct 😁 such a unique blend of design to create such a fun game. I am constantly impressed how they were able to make a tight competitive game and the campaign feel fantastic without either feeling like a hollow tacted on version of the other
Hi there! Thank you for watching and for the comment! I sincerely apologize in advance if I'm misunderstanding your comment, and I apologize for not being clearer in my video. But, the misprint is that there even is an 'Event' card for the Steward. Please see the following Leder Games Card Database for "Navy Reprisal"(cards.ledergames.com/card/ARCS-F115?q=navy%20rep). You'll see the errata is - "This card is misprinted as an event card in the first printing of Arcs: The Blighted Reach Expansion." In other words, the entire 'Event' card was never meant for the Steward at all. The reason I showed the back was to show people that I wasn't just pulling up a normal event card and calling it a misprint. You're definitely right about the backs though! All fates have their character as the backing intentionally, and I should've clarified more with why it was a misprint.
Funny enough the game with the expansion is the original Arcs. The base game has been extracted as a simplified option only shortly before the KS campaign.
Probably a good move on their part that would lead to more sales overall, because a lot of people won't be interested in the full campaign. Yet... the option is there for people to later change their mind and buy the campaign in the future.
@j_atkinson Also, funny, a lot of comments on the KS campaign page at the time were critical about the extracted base game. Calling it a rip off with too limited game experience. :-) I agree that it was a good decision. I take it as yet another piece of evidence that game design by committee would be a terrible idea and backers shouldn't kid themselves that they understand what makes a good game (during design and development).
I have the same component issues. Put a stack of books and other games on it for a week, but kept poppin up. They actually send me a new board. But it has the same issue. And a bunch of the plastic containers were busted 😢
Never has there been a board game that is more polarizing for me. It's everybody's and their brother's GOTY and, even after 8 plays, I just barely like it. Nothing wrong with that, it's just SO night and day haha
14:02 Someone randomly having so much weight over who ends up winning after all that strategizing sounds HORRIBLE. I'm not sure how that could ever be considered good game design.
When you know that's part of the game heading in it affects how you should play the rest of the game. It's like in Survivor where the losing players literally choose who wins, it can create a very compelling narrative because players have to consider it throughout the whole game as they decide which moves to make and how to make them. There have been players who have ignored that aspect and then gotten passed when they lose - as if the game is broken - when they just chose to not engage with that aspect of the game and then got mad when it came back to bite them. Arcs is inherently political, as especially in blighted reach many of the fates need to work together to a degree to fulfill their goals, and this is another (potential) wrinkle in the campaign, that leads to *gasp* players having to interact and consider the other players when they do instead of just focusing on their own little thing and hoping to do it the best. Above the table talk can be great, and in this game it certainly is. But of course if you just ignore that it's a possibility all game and then someone just affects your game at the end, that's just mismanaged expectations by you.
Couldn’t just splurge for the full 10/10 hey?? 😝 Agreed though. We need to give Cole time to iterate. Each game he creates is more ambitious and draw dropping than the last.
Really enjoying your channel. Would love to have a friend as dedicated to games like Root and Arcs and thoughtful boardgame as yourself. Understanding that I could find them online, it still hurts my heart not to have a steady Arcs or Root group. Trying to start one with my students at school!
@@Zwijger Some of my friends still prefer Root. It depends on how much asymmetry you want and how long you want to play a typical session. If you're looking for a crunchy entangled epic game that lasts about 2-3 hours. Root is perfect.
Y'know, I think Root still has a spot in anyone's game collection even with Arcs existing. Root has a very easy to use app (which now has 10 factions) and the game is still being developed on with the new Homeland expansion. While I think Arcs and Root are similar in broad strokes and share a lot of game design approach, I don'tfeel like the overlap is significant enough to rule out the other game.
@@BigPasti Big agree. I'm actually a playtester for the Homeland expansion and I can say with confidence it will be the biggest and best expansion for Root so far. Keep your eyes peeled ;)
I've played both extensively, and I personally like Root more. Arcs just feels kind of dull to me, and I'm not sure why because I really wanted to enjoy it. Maybe it is the dark aesthetic of the board. If I want a Leder Games game, I would rather play Root and if I want a space game I would rather play Twilight Imperium
actually, even if it's a new game I do not expect erratas or fixes. I DO EXPECT a proper testing and quality control! Especially when it comes to respected publisher. Seriously.
Favorite board game content creator, thanks man
Totally. Very unique deep dives.
Great video as always. Makes me wish I had friends who I could play games like this with.
Fantastic in depth video per usual. Keep up the great work my friend!
great presentation, love the detail of each element, thank you .
Great review, I don't think many have covered the campaign. I'll need to play this soon!
I thankfully didn't have any problems with the wooden pieces, but the board itself is warped just like you showed in the video. I was hoping it would lie flat eventually, but at least now I know that it will not unless I help it.
Was expecting this. Awesome. Just ordered the Blighted Reach!!! Brilliant video as usual. Love your brillaint analyses.
Hey! just wanted to say I recently got into board games (especially root) due in no small part to your videos. Wonderful review, Ill definitely have arcs in mind next time Im looking to purchase something new
Yeah, i wouldnt.
I've only played the base game + L&L twice and loved it. I can't imagine playing without L&L just for the extra asymmetry and flavor over the core. Your video has me seriously wanting to fork over the huge chunk of cash for the expansion now, just not sure how often it would get played considering how long it takes. I've only played Twilight Imperium once and I did enjoy the 7 hours I played with four people, but 12 hours for 3 ppl?? Sheesh. However, I do know a handful of people who might play it with me since they're younger with more free time than me :) Great video that explains the expansion perfectly.
This Thumbnail slaps. Big Time. It's laser brain time.
I like your point about the base game vs. BR really being 2 seperate games. While not as enthralled with Arcs as many people are (including most of my gaming group), I enjoy the high level of design and depth of the campaign game. The stories it can craft are truly incredible and the game mechanics can lead to some jaw dropping moments.
That being said, I've found the base game sorely lacking. There's no circumstance where I'd play base Arcs (even with L&L) over Root, Pax Pamir, or a host of other games. It's a bit of an odd situation where I really only want to play Arcs as a campaign, which gives some mixed emotions on the title as a whole.
Loved the video and breakdown, keep up the good work!
Don't even try to consider thinking about maybe having concepts of an intention, much less a plan; everything depends on things out of your control. I felt like I had zero agency.
How much have you played? You can account for a lot of things and then plan around that, but it takes multiple plays at each level of complexity. I'm 12 games in with my GF and still learning new things in the base game.
I hope I get to try the campaign on TTS before Arcs is published in my country later this year. It seems to be right up my alley, but it's hard to know for sure.
I do love the tightness of the base game already, though.
Guess i'm one of the only people who doesn't like Arcs at all. My friend got it and brought it over for us to try together one day. He would prefer it as 3-4 players, and I would prefer to play something else entirely lol.
I should mention it was the core game only.
My issue with core Arcs is entirely around the action selection. I love most other aspects of the game, but the action selection burns me so much that it's unplayable. The mitigation is non-existent. Unlike an open draft, it doesn't balance out. You seriously can go round to round and not get the kinds of actions you want every time based on the draw. The trick taking as a concept just is unnecessary to the greater game and I feel a static hand of action cards that don't block other player actions (example El Grande) would be far better for Arcs (and I say this loving trick taking).
I don't think anything in the expansions would change my mind from what I've seen after my play.
I mentioned Arcs in a comment on the complexity video and I'm glad I was correct 😁 such a unique blend of design to create such a fun game. I am constantly impressed how they were able to make a tight competitive game and the campaign feel fantastic without either feeling like a hollow tacted on version of the other
The misprint you mentioned (Steward Event card) has that back on purpose. You can find more of these in the other B,C decks
Hi there! Thank you for watching and for the comment!
I sincerely apologize in advance if I'm misunderstanding your comment, and I apologize for not being clearer in my video. But, the misprint is that there even is an 'Event' card for the Steward.
Please see the following Leder Games Card Database for "Navy Reprisal"(cards.ledergames.com/card/ARCS-F115?q=navy%20rep). You'll see the errata is - "This card is misprinted as an event card in the first printing of Arcs: The Blighted Reach Expansion."
In other words, the entire 'Event' card was never meant for the Steward at all. The reason I showed the back was to show people that I wasn't just pulling up a normal event card and calling it a misprint.
You're definitely right about the backs though! All fates have their character as the backing intentionally, and I should've clarified more with why it was a misprint.
This game and John Company! Love ‘em!
Funny enough the game with the expansion is the original Arcs. The base game has been extracted as a simplified option only shortly before the KS campaign.
Probably a good move on their part that would lead to more sales overall, because a lot of people won't be interested in the full campaign. Yet... the option is there for people to later change their mind and buy the campaign in the future.
@j_atkinson Also, funny, a lot of comments on the KS campaign page at the time were critical about the extracted base game. Calling it a rip off with too limited game experience. :-)
I agree that it was a good decision. I take it as yet another piece of evidence that game design by committee would be a terrible idea and backers shouldn't kid themselves that they understand what makes a good game (during design and development).
I have the same component issues. Put a stack of books and other games on it for a week, but kept poppin up.
They actually send me a new board. But it has the same issue. And a bunch of the plastic containers were busted 😢
Woah! I started my campaign yesterday. I got very overwhelmed but I do see potential. It just need way more energy than a midnight run of base arcs.
The One Piece subplot made this video for me. Nice.
Man, this game is consuming all my thoughts. And mostly "how can I play it more"
Never has there been a board game that is more polarizing for me. It's everybody's and their brother's GOTY and, even after 8 plays, I just barely like it.
Nothing wrong with that, it's just SO night and day haha
14:02 Someone randomly having so much weight over who ends up winning after all that strategizing sounds HORRIBLE. I'm not sure how that could ever be considered good game design.
When you know that's part of the game heading in it affects how you should play the rest of the game. It's like in Survivor where the losing players literally choose who wins, it can create a very compelling narrative because players have to consider it throughout the whole game as they decide which moves to make and how to make them. There have been players who have ignored that aspect and then gotten passed when they lose - as if the game is broken - when they just chose to not engage with that aspect of the game and then got mad when it came back to bite them. Arcs is inherently political, as especially in blighted reach many of the fates need to work together to a degree to fulfill their goals, and this is another (potential) wrinkle in the campaign, that leads to *gasp* players having to interact and consider the other players when they do instead of just focusing on their own little thing and hoping to do it the best. Above the table talk can be great, and in this game it certainly is.
But of course if you just ignore that it's a possibility all game and then someone just affects your game at the end, that's just mismanaged expectations by you.
Couldn’t just splurge for the full 10/10 hey?? 😝 Agreed though. We need to give Cole time to iterate. Each game he creates is more ambitious and draw dropping than the last.
Really enjoying your channel. Would love to have a friend as dedicated to games like Root and Arcs and thoughtful boardgame as yourself. Understanding that I could find them online, it still hurts my heart not to have a steady Arcs or Root group. Trying to start one with my students at school!
How much of the video would I have to watch to find out what the asterisk means? Is it "With the expansion?"
Of course just as I get Root, a bigger better game comes out. 😂😂😂
Then you got them in the correct order (if this is better) because you can play one till boredom and then get the "better" game.
@@Zwijger Some of my friends still prefer Root. It depends on how much asymmetry you want and how long you want to play a typical session. If you're looking for a crunchy entangled epic game that lasts about 2-3 hours. Root is perfect.
Y'know, I think Root still has a spot in anyone's game collection even with Arcs existing. Root has a very easy to use app (which now has 10 factions) and the game is still being developed on with the new Homeland expansion.
While I think Arcs and Root are similar in broad strokes and share a lot of game design approach, I don'tfeel like the overlap is significant enough to rule out the other game.
@@BigPasti Big agree. I'm actually a playtester for the Homeland expansion and I can say with confidence it will be the biggest and best expansion for Root so far. Keep your eyes peeled ;)
I've played both extensively, and I personally like Root more. Arcs just feels kind of dull to me, and I'm not sure why because I really wanted to enjoy it. Maybe it is the dark aesthetic of the board. If I want a Leder Games game, I would rather play Root and if I want a space game I would rather play Twilight Imperium
My wife's boyfriend loves Arcs!
So long as the special place in his heart is reserved for Patchwork, in shrink, of course.
This or SETI?
Do you get bonus points for developing a game without a story or themes?
actually, even if it's a new game I do not expect erratas or fixes. I DO EXPECT a proper testing and quality control! Especially when it comes to respected publisher. Seriously.
asterisk, not asterix
love ya
meh, I won't play it - trip taking is not my thing and usually if a mechanic is there the game won't click
ok?
It is an ARCSterisk.
"Arcs" is really not that good. It's only for Cole Wehrle fanboys.
AsterISK. Asterix is a Gaul.
what a stupid game name 😂