#65: 2017 In Review

Happy New Year! We’re back once again with our first episode of the year and our customary recap of the year that was. We take a look back at the biggest news stories in gaming and beer in 2017, share our favorites in a pile of categories, discuss our six favorite beers of 2017, and of course our top six games of last year as well. We’re tying this episode up with responses from our new DM Slack channel’s “Final Round” topic: What was the biggest surprise in gaming for you in 2017? Enjoy!

2017 Superlatives:
Best Artwork:
Danielle: Near and Far (Red Raven Games)
Jake: Flipships (Renegade Game Studios)

Best Non-mini Components:
Jake: Dice Forge (Libellud)
Danielle: Photosynthesis (Blue Orange Games)

Biggest Disappointment:
Danielle: Photosynthesis (Blue Orange Games)
Jake: Yamatai (Days of Wonder)

Game I Wish I'd Played More from 2017:
Danielle: The 7th Continent (Serious Poulp)
Jake: Dojo Kun (CMON)

Best Older Game I Played for the First Time in 2017:
Danielle: Bora Bora (Ravensburger)
Jake: Rococo (Eagle-Gryphon Games)

Best Party Game:
Vegas Wits & Wagers (North Star Games)

Best Card Game:
Danielle: Herbaceous (Pencil First Games/Dr. Finn Games)
Jake: Matryoshka (White Goblin Games/Terra Nova Games)

Most Innovative Game:
Danielle: The 7th Continent (Serious Poulp)
Jake: Magic Maze (Sit Down!)

Favorite Beers of 2017 Six-Packs:
Jake:

• Burial Beer Co. “Houtenhamer” Double-Barrel Imperial Stout. Asheville, NC. 10% ABV, 60 IBU.
• Perennial Artisan Ales “Maman” Barrel-aged Imperial Stout. St. Louis, MO. 11.5% ABV.
• Side Project Brewing “Saison du Blé” Imperial Stout. St. Louis, MO. 6% ABV.
• Bearded Iris Brewing “Chasing Rainbows Three” New England IPA. Nashville, TN. 5.8% ABV.
• B. Nektar Meadery “#DragonsAreReal” Cherry chipotle mead aged in New Holland Brewing - Dragon's Milk barrels with cacao nibs. Ferndale, MI. 14.0% ABV.
• Burial & Interboro & Run the Jewels “Stay G-O-L-D” IPA. Asheville, NC. 6.0% ABV, 50 IBU.

Danielle:

• Boiler Brewing “Quintuple Dog Dare” Imperial IPA. Lincoln, NE. 18.4% ABV.
• Good Road Cider Works “Avogadro's Trail” Semi-sweet Mead. Charlotte, NC. 7.8% ABV.
• Epic Brewing Company “Big Bad Baptista” Mexican Coffee inspired Imperial Stout. Salt Lake City, UT. 12% ABV, 65 IBU.
• B. Nektar Meadery “#DragonsAreReal” Cherry chipotle mead aged in New Holland Brewing - Dragon's Milk barrels with cacao nibs. Ferndale, MI. 14.0% ABV.
• Edmund's Oast “Kvass” Kvass. Charlotte, NC. 2.6% ABV.
• Founders Brewing “Frootwood” Barrel-aged cherry ale. Grand Rapids, MI. 8.0% ABV.

Favorite Games of 2017 Six-Packs:

Jake's Picks:

Downforce
Restoration Games
Designer:  Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, Wolfgang Kramer

Matryoshka
Terra Nova Games/White Goblin Games
Designer: Aaron Dill, Sean Sweigart, John Kovaleski

Flipships
Renegade Game Studios
Designer: Kane Klenko

Danielle's Picks:

5-Minute Dungeon
Wiggles 3D
Designer: Connor Reid

Azul
Plan B Games
Designer: Jun Sasaki

Seikatsu
IDW Games
Designer:  Matt Loomis, Isaac Shalev

We Both Picked:

The 7th Continent
Serious Poulp
Designer:  Ludovic Roudy, Bruno Sautter

Sagrada
Floodgate Games
Designer:  Adrian Adamescu, Daryl Andrews

Near and Far
Red Raven Games
Designer:  Ryan Laukat

Section Timestamps:

Intro

01:00 Show Housekeeping

02:32 Announcing the Draft Mechanic Slack Channel!

05:27 Meta Mechanic, 2017 by the numbers

08:27 Preface to the Superlatives

11:43 Biggest News Stories of 2017

25:10 Superlative Categories

55:34 Our Top Six Beers of 2017

71:20 Grey Fox Games sponsorship spot

72:08 Our Top Six Games of 2017

96:48 Final Round: Biggest game surprises

103:41 Outro

#55: Gen Con 50 Wrapup!

#55: Gen Con 50 Wrap-up!

Hey all! Episode 55 is going to be a little different! Each day during Gen Con 50, we sat down with our buds (Shane, Tamara, Steven, Dan) and talked about what we saw at the biggest con of the year (and the biggest Gen Con in history). I’ve assembled those recordings chronologically just like last year for over an hour of extra content! We really hope you enjoy our wrap-ups, and we’ll be back next Monday for another episode and a more in-depth look at some of the hottest games of the year, fresh from Gen Con 50!

#54: The Hype List 2017

Draft Mechanic Episode #54: The Hype List 2017: Gen Con 50; Vegas Wits & Wagers preview & on-tap

The Hype List is here! The Summer of Hot Games wouldn’t be complete without our exhaustive look at a big pile of games we’re excited to learn more about at Gen Con 50 this week in Indianapolis. In addition to that big feature, we’re also busting out our Kickstarter preview of the upcoming Vegas Wits & Wagers from North Star Games! But one feature isn’t enough for an episode this big - we’re also putting Vegas Wits & Wagers on tap, we’ve got a special guest popping in to talk about Fantasy Flight Games’ big announcement, and we’ve got a discussion with two of our game group about their plans for their first trip to Gen Con. I hope you’ve got a long drive, because this super-stuffed episode is just brimming with HYPE!

Vegas Wits & Wagers
North Star Games, 2017. 5-21 players. Hits Kickstarter on August 19th, 2017!

On Tap:

• Pipeworks Brewing Co., Chicago, IL.
  "Sure Bet" Imperial IPA. 9.5% ABV, and some IBUs.
  Imperial IPA with Mango and honey.
• Forgotten Boardwalk Brewing Co., Cherry Hill, NJ. 
  "What the Butler Saw." Undressed Wit. 5% ABV, 18 IBU.
  Witbier with ginger, chamomile, coriander, lemon & orange peels
• Grain Station Brew Works, McMinnville, OR.
  "Bet the Farm" IPA. 6.5% ABV, 65 IBU.
  Dry hopped IPA available year round in bottles and draft (the big cans).
• Marble Brewery, Aaaaaaaaaaaaaalbuquerque, NM.
  "Double White" Witbier. 7.0% ABV, 8 IBU.
  Coriander & grains of paradise. 2 GABF medals: 2012 Bronze, 2014 Gold.

Gen Con Events

Sun King Brewing Kickoff Party (Facebook Event Page)
Wednesday, 5pm, Georgia Street Beer Garden

Punchboard Media meet & greet event with prizes! (Facebook Event Page)
Friday, 5-7pm, Georgia Street Beer Garden

Games Announcements & Hype

Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition - Fantasy Flight Games

Renegade Games teases... something?

And of course, here's the complete Hype List that we worked off for this show. Using the Gen Con 50 Geek Preview on Board Game Geek, we ranked all items as Must Have / Interested / Undecided / Not Interested and then ranked it accordingly. Enjoy!

Section Timestamps:

00:00 Show Housekeeping
03:20 Corrections from Episode 53
05:19 Kickstarter Preview: Vegas Wits & Wagers!
16:48 Gen Con events roundup! Punchboard Media meet up!
18:47 Sun King Brewery events at Gen Con
20:09 The mystery of HYPE
21:12 Twilight Imperiul, 4th Ed. (special guest Chris Kirkman)
37:48 Getting into the hype list!
1:00:54 Checking in with Tamara and Steven
1:23:32 Back to the hype list!
2:13:22 On Tap: Vegas Wits & Wagers
2:17:37 Wrap-up

#50: Summer of Hot Games / Rococo

Draft Mechanic Episode #50: Listener Questions, Rococo On Tap, Flipships, Notre Dame, The Fox in the Forest, Bora Bora, and "Beer" Primer: Kvass

News:
Mega Moose Con
BEST TREEHOUSE EVER GIVEAWAY!

Kickstarter:
Star Scrappers: CAVE-IN
2017, Hexy Studio. 2-4 players. 45-90 minutes. 
Designers:  Filip Miłuński, Jan Zalewski
Artists: Mateusz "Draegg" Stanisławski
Kickstarter: Goes live 7/18/17 $25 base game, $39 base game + token minis

Recent Plays: 

Flipships
2017, Renegade Game Studios
Designer: Kane Klenko
Artist: Kwanchai Moriya 

Notre Dame (10th Anniversary Edition)   
2017, alea/Ravensburger Spieleverlag GmbH
Designer: Stefan Feld
Artist: Harald Lieske

The Fox in the Forest
2017, Renegade Game Studios/Foxtrot Games
Designer: Joshua Buergel
Artist:Jennifer L. Meyer, Keith Pishnery

Bora Bora
2013, alea/Ravensburger Spieleverlag GmbH
Designer: Stefan Feld  
Artist: Alexander Jung

On Tap:

Rococo 
2013, Eagle-Gryphon Games/eggertspiele
Designer: Matthias Cramer, Louis Malz, Stefan Malz
Artist: Michael Menzel

• Relic Brewing Company “Rococo”; Plainville, CT, USA
  9.0% ABV.
  Belgian strong dark ale with flavors of candied fruits and cherries.
• Moonlight Meadery “Red Dress”; Londonderry, NH, USA
  13.9% ABV.
  Semi-sweet mead brewed with honey and red currants.
• Berkshire Brewing Company“Green Gown Double IPA”; South Deerfield, MA, USA
  8.5% ABV, 76 IBU.
  Imperial New England IPA.
• Hoppin’ Frog Brewery “Silk Porter”; Akron, OH, USA
  6.2% ABV, 26 IBU.
  Dark, robust, smooth porter.
• Salopian Brewery “Golden Thread”; Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England
  5% ABV.
  Crisp golden ale with a fruity finish.

"Beer" Primer: Kvass:
-  Beaver Brewing Company "KVASS"; Beaver Falls, PA, USA. Made with rye, lemon, & raisins
-  Fonta Flora Brewery "Underground"; Morganton, NC, USA. Made with pretzels, smoked malt, & sea salt
-  Jester King Brewery "KVASS"; Austin, TX, USA. Brewed in collaboration with Miche Bread
-  Tiny Rebel Brewing Company "AK-47"; Amplified Kvass (get it, AK-) made with strawberries, lemon, and mint
-  Scratch Brewing Company "KVASS"; Ava, IL, USA. Made with house-baked rye bread and wild mixed house culture

Section Timestamps:

Intro
02:13 Con Watch: MegaMooseCon!
03:52 Con Watch: Gen Con 50! 
06:02 The Summer of HOT Games! Double the Draft Mechanic!
08:35 Kickstarter Preview: Star Scrappers: Cave In
18:12 Recent Plays: Flipships
24:58 Recent Plays: Notre Dame, 10th Anniversary Edition
34:02 Recent Plays: Bora Bora
42:07 Recent Plays: The Fox in the Forest
48:09 The First Ever Draft Mechanic Listener Q&A!
76:31 On Tap: Rococo
82:46 The Beer Primer: Kvass
93:10 A Giveaway?!
95:04 Outro

#42: Herbaceous / Well Played

Draft Mechanic Episode #42: A Group Discussion of Games We Played at Well Played Board Game Cafe, Herbaceous On-Tap, and Craft Beer Information Resources

Well Played Board Game Cafe

Recent Plays:

Dream Home
2016, Rebel.pl
Designer: Klemens Kalicki

Celestia
2015, Quick Simple Fun Games/BLAM!
Designer: Aaron Weissblum

Fauna
2008, HUCH! & Friends/Foxmind
Designer:  Friedemann Friese

Ice Cool
2016, Brain Games
Designer: Brian Gomez

Lanterns: The Harvest Festival
2015, Renegade Game Studios
Designer:  Christopher Chung

No Thanks!
2004, Mayfair Games (Currently)
Designer:  Thorsten Gimmler

OutLawed!
2017, Green Couch Games
Designer: Ryan Cowler

Heroes & Tricks
2016, Pencil First Games, LLC
Designer:  Eduardo Baraf, Jonathan Gilmour 

Noch Mal!
2016, 999 Games/Schmidt Spiele
Designer:  Inka & Markus Brand

On Tap:

Herbaceous
2017,  Dr. Finn's Games, Pencil First Games, LLC
Designer: Eduardo Baraf, Steve Finn, Keith Matejka 

• Sage: Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project "Colorado Wild Sage", Denver, CO, USA
  7.2% ABV. 
  Brett Saison with fresh white sage and lemongrass
• Rosemary: Boulevard Brewing Co. "Tasting Room - Rosemary IPA", St. Louis, MO, USA
  6% ABV, 59 IBU. 
  American IPA with rosemary, Chinook, Simcoe, Citra, & Cascade hops.
• Dill: Steel String Brewery "Picklemania", Carrboro, NC, USA
  3.8% ABV, 7 IBU. 
  Dill gose brewed in collaboration with Haw River Farmhouse Ales.
• Mint: Perennial Artisan Ales "17", St. Louis, MO, USA
  10% ABV.
  Imperial stout  aged on cacao nibs & dried peppermint leaves.
• Lavender: No Label Brewing Co. "Forbidden Lavender", Katy, TX, USA
  5.3% ABV, 12 IBU. 
  Belgian witbier brewed with honey malt, lavender flowers, and vanilla.
• Tarragon: Jester King Brewing "Equipoise", Austin, TX, USA
  4.2% ABV, 26 IBU. 
  Saison brewed with ginger salt, dried tarragon, and cantaloupe.
• Bay: Against the Grain Brewery "Bay & Pepper Your Bretts", Louisville, KY, USA
  6.8% ABV, 27 IBU.
  Farmhouse saison brewed with bay & peppercorns and partially fermented with wild yeast.
• Saffron: Mantra Artisan Ales "Saffron IPA", Franklin, TN, USA
  7.2% ABV, 55 IBU. 
  Unfiltered IPA with saffron, caradmom, and Citra hops.
• Thyme: Birdsong Brewing Co "Doin' Thyme", Charlotte, NC, USA
  4.3% ABV, 15 IBU. 
  Witbier brewed with corriander, lemon peel, and fresh thyme.
• Chive: Look for beers brewed with Summit hops.

Beer Information Resource Links:

Beeradvocate
RateBeer
Untappd

Section Timestamps:

Intro
01:00 Intro / Housekeeping
02:30 CMoN News: Eric Lang, Adrian Smith & CMoN Play
08:14 Upcoming: Flipships from Kane Klenko
09:34 Upcoming: Dice Forge from Regis Bonnessee
11:32 Well Played Board Game Cafe in Asheville, NC
18:00 Recent Plays: Dream Home
24:33 Recent Plays: Celestia
29:13 Recent Plays: Noch Mal!
34:16 Recent Plays: Lanterns, The Harvest Festival
40:28 Recent Plays: No Thanks!
44:30 Recent Plays: OutLawed!
50:10 Recent Plays: Heroes & Tricks
59:16 Recent Plays: Fauna
68:05 Recent Plays: Ice Cool
72:19 Reflections on the trip to Asheville
77:58 Recent Plays: Herbaceous
79:36 On Tap: Herbaceous
92:54 Beer Info Resources
96:40 Outro