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Rock me, Daniel Zayus – Ep 18 Tabletop Bellhop Podcast

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 This is the 18th episode of Tabletop Bellhop Live, an edited version of our live show recorded on November 28st, 2018. Join us as we stream live every week on Wednesday’s at 9:30 Eastern on Twitch. If you like some video with your audio you can also watch/listen to an unedited version of the show over on YouTube.

Ep #18 - Rock me, Daniel Zayas. We talk Black Friday, Blokus and Cities & Knights of Catan and then talk Kickstarter with Daniel Zayas. [ READ MORE ]

Cities and Knights of Catan 12 Years Later

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A question about Settlers of Catan was the first question I ever answered here on the blog. Our first ever podcast episode was all about Catan and the various editions and expansions.  You could almost say The Tabletop Bellhop started with Catan.

That's why I'm bringing back this classic review of Cities & Knights of Catan for #ThrowbackThursday.
Below you will find my original review,  with only very minor editing. I'm trying to keep the feel and tone of the original post. I will, at times, insert comments or corrections, and you will find these in [square brackets]. After the original post, you can find my current thoughts on the game reviewed. [ READ MORE ]

The Next Round is on You – Episode 12 – Tabletop Bellhop Podcast

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This is the twelfth episode of Tabletop Bellhop Live, an edited version of our live show recorded on October 17th, 2018. Join us as we stream live every week on Wednesday’s at 9:30 Eastern on Twitch. If you like some video with your audio you can also watch/listen to an unedited version of the show over on YouTube.

This week we are talking about gaming in pubs and cafes. Dos, don’ts, tips, and tricks for playing in public. Including some game suggestions for public play. [ READ MORE ]

Do’s and don’ts of tabletop gaming at cafes and pubs – Ask the Bellhop

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Ivan Sorensen, over on Google+ asks,

Gaming in pubs and cafes: [What are some] do's and don'ts.
Thanks for the question, Ivan.
I'm going to make an assumption here. I'm going to assume you are asking about public gaming events where a group of gamers gather at the local cafe or pub to play games with a variety of different people. If I'm wrong on this and maybe you were looking for date night game suggestions or tips for playing with your mates at the local watering hole let me know.
Since launching the Windsor Gaming Resource in 2002, I've run a variety of tabletop gaming events at a variety of venues. Many of these events have been at local coffee shops or cafes and at a couple of local pubs. Playing in public is not the same as playing at home. Similarly playing at a pub is not the same as playing at a cafe. Let's take a look at both of these. [ READ MORE ]

Under the hood – Episode 9 – Tabletop Bellhop Podcast

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This is the ninth episode of Tabletop Bellhop Live, an edited version of our live show recorded on September 26th, 2018. Join us as we stream live every week on Wednesday’s at 9:30 Eastern on Twitch. If you like some video with your audio you can also watch/listen to an unedited version of the show over on YouTube.

This episode we talk about Mermaid Adventures, Terra Mystica, and Gloomhaven before we deep dive into game mechanics. [ READ MORE ]

The Giant List of Top Tabletop Game Mechanics – Ask The Bellhop

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NecroDaddy80 on Twitch asks,

What game mechanics do you prefer?
Thanks for the question NecroDaddy80. This was the first ever question we received on Twitch, while recording our first episode of Tabletop Bellhop Live.
There are a ton of different game mechanics, and for someone new to gaming, all these terms can be confusing. So I think it's worth taking some time talking about the wide variety of mechanics out there as well as talking about those I enjoy the best. [ READ MORE ]

Back to School – Episode 5 – Tabletop Bellhop Podcast

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Welcome to the fifth episode of Tabletop Bellhop Live. This is an edited version of our live show first recorded on August 23rd, 2018. Remember to join us as we stream live every week on Thursdays at 9:30PM ET on Twitch. If you like some video with your audio you can also watch us over on YouTube.

Today's question: How do you approach teaching board games?
In addition to discussing teaching games, we also look back at the last week and talk quite a bit about Board Game Arena. [ READ MORE ]

Insert Tab A – Episode 4 – Tabletop Bellhop Podcast

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Welcome to the fourth episode of Tabletop Bellhop Live. This is an edited version of our live show first recorded on August 16th, 2018. Join us as we stream live every week on Thursdays at 9:30PM ET on Twitch. If you like some video with your audio you can also watch us over on YouTube.

Today's question: Jayden asks, Are custom inserts worth it? For instance, my group has been playing a fair bit of Rising Sun with all the goodies (like 4 boxes worth of unpacking), and it takes about 10 minutes to set up and nearly 20 or 30 minutes to put away properly. I'm wondering if inserts can help with the clean up.
In addition to talking about inserts, we take an extended look back at The Tabletop Bellhop Launch Party where we all played a ton of games. [ READ MORE ]

How do you approach teaching board games? – Ask The Bellhop

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Andrew D, over on the Misdirected Mark #Slackroom4Life asks,

How do you approach getting heavier games to the table in terms of teaching people how to play? Get them to watch a how to play video before they come, do the first playthrough as a teaching session, do a big info dump at the start, or something else?.
This is a great question Andrew,
Teaching is a skill, one that can be learned and one that has to be practiced. Game teaching is the same thing. It's something that takes practice and that you get better at over time. It's also something you can study and learn. I've had a lot of practice myself due to running public events and through that I've learned a few tricks which I hope I can pass on. I really don't think the skills for teaching a heavier game are all that different than those required for teaching a simple game, you just need to use more of them. [ READ MORE ]

Tabletop Gaming Weekly – Aug 13th – #WhatDidYouPlayMondays

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Each week I take a look back at the previous week. Consider it a #WhatDidYouPlayMondays review. I'll be letting you know what I played and share some thoughts on each game.

Monday night I finally got The Colonists off my pile of shame. The big news though, was that Saturday was our launch party. For those of you that didn't have a chance to stop by the live stream, I can tell you that a great time was had by all and we got a ton of gaming in during the 12-hour event. I personally played nine different board games that night and there was lots of gaming going on that I wasn't involved in. Overall it was a huge success and a ton of fun. [ READ MORE ]