Carcassonne Central
Carc Central Community => News and Events => Topic started by: Guy on May 14, 2015, 12:07:53 AM
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Found these beauties on eBay last night.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Castle-Tokens-for-Carcassonne-and-other-board-games-solid-wood/171786737075?_trksid=p2047675.c100009.m1982&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D30989%26meid%3De45eabe5485b4bc1ba1a83942fef0903%26pid%3D100009%26rk%3D5%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D171776008788 (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Castle-Tokens-for-Carcassonne-and-other-board-games-solid-wood/171786737075?_trksid=p2047675.c100009.m1982&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D30989%26meid%3De45eabe5485b4bc1ba1a83942fef0903%26pid%3D100009%26rk%3D5%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D171776008788)
I have always liked the 3D element you get from the bridges and towers - well now there's the opportunity to do the same with the castles. Personally, I think they look fantastic.
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Beautiful castles, but I think they should be larger (4,5 x 2,5 cm) and not like a rectangle for Carcassonne.
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I already have my set of these castles and I think the size is great. I like how it fits inside the city.
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These look great. When I bought a bunch of pieces to pimp my game one of my biggest qualms was how basic the spielmaterial castle pieces looked. http://www.spielematerial.de/en/castles.html
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These look fantastic. Does Basically-Wooden have a website? Or maybe they sell only through Ebay?
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Meanwhile, I have asked them for tower pieces next. They said they'd look into it after the UK Games Expo because they're busy with that at the moment.
I suppose a pimped catapult can't be too far away... emoji code13]
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These look fantastic. Does Basically-Wooden have a website? Or maybe they sell only through Ebay?
http://www.basicallywooden.co.uk/personalised-wooden-gifts/carcassonne
(The castle tokens aren't up there yet.)
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A few more castles:
(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/14/9b130e56f3c74a76607484fbd8a6281b.jpg)
(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/14/4197fb17e35df75d0ec8f17b041df894.jpg)
(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/14/3d66efa4cb0aa7fc9adc724587d3975c.jpg)
Edit: I probably should have left a castle or two without a follower. Oh well, too late now.
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i think they are a bit small! if they were a bit bigger so the followers could just be a little bit in the castle, it would look nicer if you put 1 on it.
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So glad you included a farmer in your photo. It would actually have hurt me to look at it if you hadn't included one (even though one of the castles isn't on the farm).
Castles look great, but they do look a bit small. I'll have a look out for Basically Wooden on Sunday and see what I think of them.
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So glad you included a farmer in your photo. It would actually have hurt me to look at it if you hadn't included one (even though one of the castles isn't on the farm).
It seemed like such a great farm so I made sure to get a green farmer on it! I'd join the last castle to the farm on my next turn :)
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And after that it's purple's turn to score a road for two points. >:D
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So glad you included a farmer in your photo. It would actually have hurt me to look at it if you hadn't included one (even though one of the castles isn't on the farm).
It seemed like such a great farm so I made sure to get a green farmer on it! I'd join the last castle to the farm on my next turn :)
The significance of it being a green farmer wasn't wasted on me ;)
And after that it's purple's turn to score a road for two points. >:D
Ha ha :(y) - Purple will not be popular for that! But I can't help but feel that everyone else kind of deserves this for using their castles when there's so little to go for other than perhaps that cloister...
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Basically Wooden (http://www.basicallywooden.co.uk) has a new website, and a new Carcassonne accessory: wooden score tokens. These look really great because you put them under your meeple on the scoretrack, so that you can see where everyone is directly on the scoretrack without having to look for score tiles in each player's supply.
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:(y) ^These are great. What a good idea!^
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I picked some up at the UK Meetup, along with my travel box, I thought I had included some pictures of these score markers alongside it. Basically Wooden have a few more things up their sleeves coming in the next couple of days.
They also have these, which we saw at the Meetup too: Meeple Puzzles!
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/257899318/meeple-puzzle-in-solid-english-oak?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=PageTools&utm_campaign=Share
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I'm discussing a couple of things with Sue from Basically Wooden at the moment. They are thinking of offering their tile tower dispenser in a flatpack version that would result in cheaper shipping, but that has to be assembled by the user. Do you guys think North American residents and others far from the UK would go for this option to save on shipping? Apparently the assembly would be quite straightforward.
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I'm discussing a couple of things with Sue from Basically Wooden at the moment. They are thinking of offering their tile tower dispenser in a flatpack version that would result in cheaper shipping, but that has to be assembled by the user. Do you guys think North American residents and others far from the UK would go for this option to save on shipping? Apparently the assembly would be quite straightforward.
I assume it's not assembled from the start, they could leave it flat and have a description in the store if they want it assembled or not.
It's more common that items required assembling (especially the straight forward kind) comes flattened so I think it's a good move. Saving on shipping costs is very important for many customers. And it's fun to build things. :yellow-meeple:
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The tile tower is the only thing that Basically Wooden have created for Carcassonne that I'm not convinced by. I found it embarrassingly difficult to draw tiles from (the embarrassment caused by the fact that I had about 10 people watching me fail to get a tile out of the thing, including the guy who makes them :-[) and prefer to draw either from a bag or from stacks.
None of this goes anywhere towards answering your question, but if they're able to sell to a wider audience by offering these flatpack, and they're easy to assemble, then it seems like a no-brainer to me.
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the embarrassment caused by the fact that I had about 10 people watching me fail to get a tile out of the thing, including the guy who makes them :-[)
To be fare, there were only 5 of us in the room the second time you had difficulties :(y) O:-) O:-)
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the embarrassment caused by the fact that I had about 10 people watching me fail to get a tile out of the thing, including the guy who makes them :-[)
To be fare, there were only 5 of us in the room the second time you had difficulties :(y) O:-) O:-)
Enough said?
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For my next order from Basically Wooden, I asked for them to make some more dividers:
- Winter Crop Circles
- H&G / H&G special tiles / H&G Scout
- The Castle Falcon expansion
For H&G, I made suggestions for potential designs and they ended up making four dividers, so you have two to choose from for the base game (the mountain or the mammoth), the stone temple for the special tiles, and the tile back image for the Scout.
For the Falcon, they were going to do the nest but there was too much detail in it so they did a falcon instead.
As always, I think they all look great and I'm looking forward to receiving them very shortly. They also did a Star Wars one for anyone who has that spin-off.
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Looks good! It still is too expansive for me :P sadly.. :'(
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My latest things from Basically Wooden: the Carcassonne travel box and the ruined dice tower. Both are spectacular! The wood and craftsmanship is beautiful.
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160208/eaa34dee58a544becc64435b6d80e325.jpg)
With my two big boxes:
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160208/11a5665c987525c7c8694c14ed9afcf7.jpg)
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I love my dice tower - how do you find yours?
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I love my dice tower - how do you find yours?
I think it's superb. I couldn't decide between the ruined one and the gothic one, and at one stage I was going to get both. But in the end I decided to just get the ruined one (which means I can get the gothic one next time!).
The only problem is that I currently only own one game that has dice, and I've only played it once: SPQRisiko (which is essentially Risk: the Roman Empire). Although my current Kickstarter and other games binge should take care of that soon enough. Imagine playing Escape: Curse of the Temple with every player having their own dice tower! I also realised the other day that I have somehow lost my die for the Flier mini-expansion, so we improvised by putting 1, 2 and 3 sheep tokens from Hills and Sheep into a bag and pulling that out to activate the Flier.
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I forgot to mention it! Today is Basically Wooden's second Birthday - to celebrate they are offering 10% off all the things!
Place your orders now!
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Amongst other things I went to order some additional dividers - slight bug that it calculated the postage on each additional divider as an additional £2 - 30 dividers, £60 post.
Emailed sales@BW and my order is placed now. Keep thinking I've got all I need from BW but keep finding just one more thing to buy...
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Amongst other things I went to order some additional dividers - slight bug that it calculated the postage on each additional divider as an additional £2 - 30 dividers, £60 post.
Emailed sales@BW and my order is placed now. Keep thinking I've got all I need from BW but keep finding just one more thing to buy...
While you've figured it out now, a good tip for others is that you can always contact BW by email and they're very responsive and helpful. I've never actually placed an order on their website, I always do it through email correspondence as there always seems to be much to discuss!
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The point was more that at 2015 (my time and theirs), I had a reply in 10 minutes... I wasn't expecting a reply until tomorrow...
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Keep thinking I've got all I need from BW but keep finding just one more thing to buy...
I find that, that's when I start to send them requests for new things!
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Just to let you all know, due to the discount code glitch BW have extended the offer for another day. Let's get shopping!!
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I commented on the Kickstarter Thread - BW are running a kickstarter:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2040841793/plug-sargent
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My latest thing from Basically Wooden: an absolutely beautiful box for The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game (http://www.basicallywooden.co.uk/our-collections/card-game-boxes/), with an etching of the inscription of the one ring on the lid.
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160705/10b855a13e73eeec276307614379c85d.jpg)
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That box looks amazing jungleboy - what wood is it?
I had a note from Basically Wooden today - they wanted to let everyone know that they will be attending Essen Spiel 2016 (Hall 2 on Stand E2 118). They have kindly offered to let people pick up any orders and their booth, and save on postage! :(y) :(y)
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A member of BGG: Ad Best recently visited the Basically Wooden workshop and took some pictures:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/132738721@N02/sets/72157671649159260/
You can see some prototypes they are working on and the biggest box of castles and skew bridges you'll ever see.
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I am surprised that Basically Wooden uses the C from Carcassonne.
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A member of BGG: Ad Best recently visited the Basically Wooden workshop and took some pictures:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/132738721@N02/sets/72157671649159260/
You can see some prototypes they are working on and the biggest box of castles and skew bridges you'll ever see.
Cool, I am thinking about going to Hereford in December as a side trip from a visit to Birmingham so I might pop in too :)
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I am surprised that Basically Wooden uses the C from Carcassonne.
Me too!
Cool, I am thinking about going to Hereford in December as a side trip from a visit to Birmingham so I might pop in too :)
Let us know, I'm sure a few other forum members might make the trip too! :(y) :(y)
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Cool, I am thinking about going to Hereford in December as a side trip from a visit to Birmingham so I might pop in too :)
Let us know, I'm sure a few other forum members might make the trip too! :(y) :(y)
It would be during the week so I'm not sure how convenient it would be for anyone else, but of course I'd welcome any companions. It would almost certainly be the morning or early afternoon of Friday 16 Dec, because my commitments in Birmingham end on Thursday afternoon but my flight out isn't until Friday evening. My primary reason for going to Hereford is to see the Mappa Mundi and the chained library, but it'd be nice to see the BW studio too.
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Are we still up for 16th December? - I'll drop BW a note!
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Are we still up for 16th December? - I'll drop BW a note!
Yes, I'm staying in Hereford on the evening of the 15th (arriving at about 7:30pm), and taking the train back to Birmingham at 2:30pm on the 16th. I mentioned it to Basically Wooden at Essen but didn't give them the exact dates, so I'll do that. I know it's mid-week and all, but if anyone was up for some games on the night of the 15th, that would probably make the most sense.
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In the "love it" or "hate it" category: BW have been asked to make Carcassonne tile grids by a customer to hold tiles in place. They would like to know if the wider community is interested in something like this. So, do you like them or not?
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20161217/30bb0e3f5f63ea79048a231ba21896d4.jpg)
At the moment they are working with 4x4 squares which can link together. So at the start of the game you just place one square on the table and expand as you go.
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In Essen I talked to andrew about whether he could make these grids. A few days later, he showed me the results.
Oh yes. I love it. ;D I have the grids in order and we have with 3 people from the German forum already which ordered. The grids are just before delivery. I'm looking forward to it. Andrew has also developed a box to fit into the 25 grids. 8) :)
However, the crosses must be glued in the middle. But this is not a problem. The box (flexiti box) must also be assembled.
The grids cost £ 3 each. I have ordered 25 pieces 8) :)
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Here are some more photos:
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I love the wooden tile holders!!! Presently I have the 3D printed plastic 3x3 tile holders from Thingiverse. They make playing so much neater, and free from worry of being jostled. Their only drawback was their cost. [approx $7 / grid]. These wooden ones are definitely affordable, and well worth our support.
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I like this grid. In addition to it's obvious pros, it can help in situations, when you reach the edge of the table: some tiles could be off the table without problems. But still I don't consider buying it at the moment. Firstly, 18 EUR just for the base game is too pricey. Secondly, IMO, this set is worth buying only when you often play on uneven surface, which isn't a case for me.
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I definitely agree on the table-edge point, and actually I was talking about that with Basically Wooden yesterday. In my games we play a 'if more than 50% of the tile is on the table, you can play it' rule. But having the grid would be much better as it would really make clear how many tiles you can still fit on the board a few moves earlier.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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I wasn't initially very excited about this idea but having seen the photos it looks like they could work well. Probably a little frivolous for me as I only usually play quite small games with physical tiles (larger games are played on JCloisterZone) and we've never run into any problems with table space. I like the look of them though, and would consider getting half a dozen or so just to avoid the annoyance of careless people placing tiles clumsily and me having to straighten everything up before I can consider where to put my next tile...
So it's a :(y) from me!
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I wonder if there would be a subconscious effect on gameplay. As in, would you be more likely to place a tile in an existing grid rather than expanding the landscape to a new grid?
Or, you could even create a variant rule using the grids: that each grid must be filled (if possible) before a new grid is placed on the table. That could be a fun alternative way to play occasionally.
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I've used the plastic grids for quite some time now, over a year, and can say that I don't feel any pressure to place tiles based on the availability of space on the grid. I just play as I decide, and add grids as play dictates. But if it were subconscious, I guess I'd never know. ::)
The beauty of using them is for those of us who are borderline compulsive and must straighten out the tiles before taking their turn. Yes, and even those who are compelled to straighten them after each play. C:-) No more bumped table mishap.
Our House Rules include being able to shift the entire game if the tiles develop off to one side. Thus we do not include the "edge of the table" limitation until we absolutely have to. This ensures that the play focuses on the rules of play, rather than an artificial limit, such as the edge of the table. But these are just our house rules.
Maybe not for everyone. But grids are definitely appreciated in our house. :(y)
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Our House Rules include being able to shift the entire game if the tiles develop off to one side. Thus we do not include the "edge of the table" limitation until we absolutely have to. This ensures that the play focuses on the rules of play, rather than an artificial limit, such as the edge of the table. But these are just our house rules.
That's a really good point. If you want to shift your whole landscape on the table, it would much easier with grids.
Or if you need to move it even more...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyNWVdExM24
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£3 each seems pretty good. I'd be a bit worried about the soot getting onto the tiles, but hopefully it can be brushed off easily.
I've considered a few fan-expansions that need something like this!
Looks like you had a great time on Friday by all account Jungleboy - sorry I couldn't make it - work's been far too busy in the run up to Christmas...maybe another time :(
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That's a really good point. If you want to shift your whole landscape on the table, it would much easier with grids.
or just pull the tablecloth
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gently now
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I said "gently"
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"Oh, just let me do it ..."