Despite a busy month of May with scouting for the college team, my "real job", music gigs, renos at the cottage... I've found time to get to the table and it's felt good (as usual). 16 times this month so far to be exact, with more coming this weekend for sure. 😀
A few days ago, it was Expeditions that hit the table, for a CLOSE loss. Not only was it because (as much as I'm LOVING This War of Mine), I needed a break from the theme and heavy decisions that game brings. The other reason was because of the announcement of the first expansion for Expeditions being released June 5th (yes it's marked on my calendar) - Expeditions: Gears of Corruption
Directly from it's BGG page, here's what the expansion is offering:
The Gears of Corruption expansion to Expeditions adds elements of risk and danger in the form of secret bonuses on map tokens and a corrupted mech that roams the land. To counter these threats, the expansion offers 2 new mechs and 4 new character/companion pairs, as well as components for a 6th player. Gears of Corruption also accelerates early gameplay by giving players starting resources and a hero worker that can act as any type of worker.
Will I buy it - You've probably figured that answer by the title of this post. 😁 I'll also add; DUH! It's in the Scythe world. OF COURSE I WILL! However, I will say it's not what I was expecting or even hoping.
I think it's going to be great and (as the ST gang knows) I love many Stonemaier games and no Stonemaier expansion has ever failed to deliver for me. I love the additional mechs and new character/companion pairs coming. The risk and danger element, including a corrupted mech was unexpected for sure however it completely fits the world and storyline without question. So I'm excited still and enjoy the surprise of "Oh THAT's what it's going to be!"
My biggest hope was adding more location tiles. One of my favourite aspects of Expeditions is the exploring side of the game. Flipping a tile to reveal what location you've just discovered in this frozen, eerie world. I really thought the first expansion would bring more of these to shuffle into the game.
Regardless, I'm excited and plan to purchase the expansion on June 5th. Depending on price, most likely I'll grab another "must have" wishlisted expansion from them at the same time. My immediate targets:
-Tapestry: Plans and ploys expansion
-Viticulture remaining expansions to complete my collection: Tuscany, visit from the Rhine Valley and Moore Visitors
Again - all dependant on the price of the Expeditions expansion. The box is pretty small though, so I'm hoping it's in the $40-$50 CDN range. Fingers crossed.
I am glad you are getting your enjoyment out of both games. I am curious how you feel about Expeditions vs Scythe overall. Also, I actually struggled with the bot in Scythe somewhat so I am wondering if you find it easier to manage in Expeditions. I have a feeling I would like the game, but it may be some time before I decide on a purchase since its been so long (a year?) since I played the original.
That’s great that you are enjoying This War of Mine. I’ve owned the PC version for years but never tried it yet. I can bet money I would enjoy it on PC as well as tabletop!