Another map token idea: put the token face up on your player board. On any of your future turns you can activate it by turning it face down to the compass side. This adds choice and flexibility.

@udovan

Ай бұрын

that was my first thought

@ledbetter10

17 күн бұрын

@@udovansame here. Seems like that would be even more helpful and keep the game pace up.

Great video talking about what you liked mechanically (and why) and not just *that* you liked it.

I like that variant with the map tokens! Also I think being able to peak at the tokens would work too.

I would probably change the map token thing so that you collect it without showing it, then you can use any of your collected (and not yet used) map tokens whenever you want on your on-going or later turns by just turning them face up. That way everyone could have some surprises up their sleeves that others can't see.

@maxdisciple1

Ай бұрын

I like this rule. This helps not waste the benefit of the token while keeping the risk of exploring in place.

Thanks for the video! :)

Prelude for expeditions!

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

pretty much yeah :)

Glad to hear/see that this expansion drastically changes your opinion of the base game. I understand your reason for a map token house rule, in case the bonus isn't useful to you but I don't like the idea of you peeking and flipping the token for everyone to see. I would suggest 1) you can peek (and keep the token hidden) if you are adjacent, which may help you decide if you'll travel in a different direction OR better yet, 2) no peeking but if you move onto the tile and don't WANT the bonus, you can take $1 instead (and the token gets removed from the game, NOT placed on your player mat).

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

yup, taking $1 instead of the power is another thing i thought about, but tbh i think it makes the game a lot more fun with some tokens face up and some face down :)

The late player disadvantage came from not being able to play a card (to full effect) because you don't have a worker, and the get-a-worker spaces are taken by the first two players. But that's fixed by having you start with a worker.

I am watching rahdos videos for more than 10 years and he was always a fast and excited talker. But know he acts like a crazy professor on cocain! I had to check if fast forward was on or not. Take it easy my man. We need you at least another 12 years!

I feel like another version of the house rule could be to put all the map tokens in an opaque bag, take 2 whenever you flip a tile and choose which reward you'd like. Makes it a bit of a choice instead of a forced potentially unwanted benefit!

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

2 tokesn are put back in the box as part of setup, and someone else suggested you could choose from the one you drew and those other two when you go to a new tile :)

It’s curious because Scythe approach to the tokens was to give the player an event card that had 3 options to choose from. I’m wondering if having tokens with similar multiple choice options, where you can only pick one out of 2-3 options could also mitigate the issue with the tokens as the player could at least choose an option that could better boost their strategy maybe?

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

something like how the 'adventure' tokens in darwin's journey: firelands would be awesome :)

@daslaamaii6269

Ай бұрын

I think that event cards could have worked in expeditions just like they do in Scythe. Those are my favourite event cards ever. You have just the artwork and can create the story in your head and then they give you three choises. I understand that those are not just replicated in Expeditions, but it would have been spot on choice for theme and mechanics

Excited to order this expansion and happy to hear your thoughts. With your explore token variant, how do you think it would work to bank the tokens for later turns?

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

i'm sure it would work, but i'd worry that it makes them significantly more powerful than they should otherwise be, which is why i went with a simpler "reduce the luck" approach :)

Thanks for your review! Regarding the face-down exploration tokens, do you think it would work to change it to a system where you can hold the token to be used and discarded at a later time? Having not yet played the expansion I don't know if it would make them too powerful, but it seems like it would be another easy way to fix it like the way you suggested.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

yeah, that was actually my first thought, but then i worried it might make them too powerful (as you suggest), so i went with the alternate approach of simply flipping them when a player is adjacent to them (so functionally nothing much changes other than you never get "unlucky"). another option: leave them face down, and when you collect them, either use their ability immediately or get one $1 if you don't have a use for that ability. in the end, i liked the idea of seeing some face up and some face down on the board as things evolved. it helped add more tension to the race on the board :)

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

oh, another thought: when you first reveal by moving onto a spot, you choose to use it immediately, or sacrifice one point (money, red or blue) or discard 1 card, to hold on to it and use it whenever you feel like it :)

@ericnaessens3463

Ай бұрын

@@rahdo Thanks for the additional suggestions! In the end, I'll probably end up passing, as I always worry with house rules that I'm changing the balance of the game too much, especially in this case since it'd be solo only (my wife really didn't care for this one). It also doesn't help that I already sold the base game; I really did love that solo mode, though - such a fast and easy-to-run AI!

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

oh, well i should add that for solo only, i wouldn't mind the face down tokens at all... in fact, i'd welcome them as a bit more of a roller coaster. it's only in a competitive environment where one player could repeatedly get unlucky while the other one doesn't that i find the random draw unappealing :)

@ericnaessens3463

Ай бұрын

@@rahdoGood point! Ahhh, what have you done, now you’ve made me want to pick it up again!

For the map tokens, what if you do a house rule where a player can look at a facedown token when they are adjacent to it, but it remains facedown for all other players unless and until they are adjacent to it? I'm not sure I like simply revealing adjacent tokens permanently because it doesn't make much thematic sense that other players would know what is there if their enemy is near that location.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

sure, that could work thought it's a bit fiddly. tbh thematically i don't think of the other players as "enemies". we're all explorers and even rival explorers share information because that's how you all stay alive in a hostile environment :) but another easy way to address the luck of the draw is to simply say that after you move into a spot and reveal the map token, you can take that reward, but if you don't like it, take $1 instead :)

Thanks for the video Rahdo! I’ve been enjoying Expeditions base and can see this expansion being essential moving forward. Another map token variant that I will probably try out…randomize and seed certain map tokens in specific regions of the map, and make that information available to all. For example, if I am looking to cycle through the face up cards to hoard a certain type of card, and knowing that a sweep token is “somewhere” in Central West, I can take my chances and start exploring in that area. Maintains the same randomness and excitement of exploration while providing another risk/reward choice. I could get what I was looking for to aid my strategy or I could get useless junk. Seeding could be customized to suit your tastes - e.g. items more useful in late game could be seeded in the northern regions.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

that's a very cool idea, i like it!

So, a game you said was slow to begin with added a component that slows it down even more and it makes the game better?

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

what component is that? the game is overally 30% faster to play with the accelerated beginning. if you watch my runthrough, you'll see that i've half way through a game by the end and i've only recruited one worker. that's massive how much more you can get done in the same amount of time as the original.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

OH you mean the corrupted mech! right, that only slows the game down if you let it. the whole point is to stay away from it because it's dangerous and can slow you down. but if you feel the risk is worth it because of you what you need to grab in its vicinity, go for it. plus, don't forget the corrupted mech is a huge opportunity too... it's much easier to get corruption tokens by fighting it that it is by clearing tokens off the board, so it's a shortcut to rushing the end game if you put yourself in a position to do battle with it. but again, you run the risk of it hampering you in its counterattack :)

@amricke

Ай бұрын

I’m a fan of the Scythe series and was excited to see a new expansion, but your description made me less enthused. Thank you for the clarification.

Another house rule could be, if the token gives you nothing swap it with an unused one from the box.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

that's a very cool idea!

I think there is so much potential in making the map more dynamic. For example actions that destroy map tiles/change them or modify them. Workers that can be dropped off and have different functions, can obstruct paths or amplify effects. On top of all this (and despite the new exploration tokens) exploration itself is simply not exciting. All the same tiles are always in play and since they are in the same regions it really is only the question in which of X tiles location Y. Eventually though it will show up. I understand this is tied to quests but even those feel so incredibly unthematic. The two resources just become that...two resources. They move up and down and have no meaning whatsoever. I hope this is only the first expansion. And Rahdo I agree with you, this could have been a banger card game and it's still a mystery to me why it is a board game. Also, not sure how the tokens make exploring a high priority. E.g. one of the tokens gives you one guile. After the 50-60% mark I was so flush with all that I would have probably groaned if I pulled that. We had several locations that remained unexplored when we played the game because we had our path, were filled with resources and had completed enough quests so there was no point to explore. I don't see this changing with the expansion. I wouldn't travel across the board to explore for a sweep or a guile. I still think this game has great bones but man it needs a lot of work to get there. Somehow I am disappointed that this expansion isn't smarter about fixing the issues that people have been vocal about and articulated so well.

@TorIverWilhelmsen

Ай бұрын

Destroying or changing tiles risks removing actions that are necessary to complete the game, e.g. taking away the Boast actions.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

"i hope this is only the first expansion" in an intro video a few weeks ago, jamey said "let me tell you about gears of corruption, the new expansion... the FIRST expansion for expeditions" so i'd say that's a good sign :)

@elqord.1118

Ай бұрын

@@TorIverWilhelmsen I'm sure there ware ways to handle that. Someone BGG even recommended something like being able to go into caves that just unlock new tiles on the side etc. There's A LOT that can be done.

Can you get it all to fit in the base box?

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

yes, easily fits everything (and there's room for more terrain tiles and more cards (maybe osmehwere down the road?)

No new Landscape Tile?! ☹️

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

not in this expansion.

That is great that game is going to be improved by this expansion. Unfortunatelly player has to pay extra to get that fix - that is a bummer. Sorry for this impression.

@rahdo

Ай бұрын

well the most important element of the expansion you can implement for free without having to buy anything (the game speed up stuff, starting with a wild worker and beginning resources) :)

All leading up to a big box

@kruskisking2062

Ай бұрын

I hate that you’re right. Especially because this box is already ridiculously big.

Unfortunately, this expansion doesn't fix the game's problems of the game being too long at 4 players. Heck, even 3 will still drag on.

@rahdo

12 күн бұрын

from my experience this cuts the game length by over 30%. if you're finding it too long after this, then you're spending too much time deckbuilding and not enough time racing :)

@dcrbdh

11 күн бұрын

@rahdo I definitely had some hyperbole in my initial statement. Adding a prelude to a game definitely makes it faster. I may be wrong, but the expansion doesn't stop the blocking of sites. It's frustrating with 3 players and gets worse the more players. We've added a house rule where sites can't be blocked.