A Barbarian for Dinner -- trailer

Edward, the king's champion, has just knocked off a legendary dragon, a fine end to a fine career. Now it's time for the knight to journey home, be a hero to his people, and to marry a chaste lady of the court. Only one thing stands in his way—a hairy, half-naked barbarian named Gvundjar. Gvundjar thinks he's found a friend in "Eddie" and does his best to help the knight find his way back home. But it's always one step forward and ten thousands steps back, and what should be a simple journey turns into a comical ordeal.

A Barbarian for Dinner by Mike Mayer

Buy it on Amazon. Available: 4/24/2014

Youtube instruction video for Perhaps She'll Die

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCF6_Hn9_lH6b049XQostnVMwUFKlrJwN

A Barbarian for Dinner -- Cover!

Here's the likely cover to my upcoming comedic fantasy novel:

Invasive Species updated cover

Updated the cover to my Invasive Species book on Amazon. Added a bit of color and a better font choice.

Variant made official!

My Goat King variant has been adapted into an official expansion for Fantastiqa. (Changed to become Castle in the Air).

Take a look here: http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1126059/new-fantastiqa-expansion-fantastiqal-landscapes

I predicted that Magritte's Castle of the Pyrenees would serve as the artwork for the tile, but apparently the licensing fees for it was too expense. The artwork they went with in the end, though, works nicely in any case.

Variant for Fantastiqa

Created a variant Region for the Fantastiqa game:

Rules:

Place the Goat King next to the board and place a randomly drawn quest on him. The quest must be a 2-point quest or greater (discard and replace any 1-point quests). A player may travel to the Goat King from any Region by playing a Flying Carpet, but may only go to him if the player is able to complete the quest. A player completes the quest by playing the symbols required for the quest (disregard the text saying what Region you should be in to normally complete the quest). Completing the quest is a turn action. When the quest is completed, the player does not gain gems or points, but instead draws one card from the Beast Bazaar, the Artifact Tower, and the Quest Chest. He keeps all three cards. He does not pay for the Beast and Artifact cards. He must keep the Quest Card. If the player plays an ‘extra card’ symbol, he may draw an additional card from any of the decks, but must pay for the card (if payment is needed) if he wants to keep it.

On his next turn, the player must move away from the Goat King and may go to any Region on the board. This is a Free Action. Once the Goat King is vacant again, place a new non-1pt quest on him.

Perhaps She'll Die -- trick-taking game overview

My new trick-taking game is now available for print-n-play:  http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/152266/perhaps-shell-die

There was an old Lady who swallowed a fly... This trick-taking game is themed on the popular children’s song. The object is to take tricks by playing the highest-ranked animal card. Problem is, when an animal card is played, its rank changes and usually for the worse.

Before each round, ranking cards are placed on the table in a row in order of rank: fly, spider, bird, cat, dog, goat, cow, horse. The fly is the lowest ranked at the start, and the horse is the highest. The animal cards are shuffled and dealt. The start player plays a card, and the corresponding card in the rank row is shifted down one space. If an animal is already the lowest ranked animal, it is moved to the furthest space on the right and becomes the highest ranked animal.

Play proceeds clockwise. In turn, each player plays a card. A player must follow suit if possible, otherwise he may play any card. Each played card causes the corresponding card in the rank row to shift down as described above.

After everyone has played, the player whose card matches the currently highest ranked animal wins the trick (regardless of suit). If two or more players have played the same ‘winning’ card, the player who played first wins the trick.

This is a 3-4 player game. Partnership rules are included as well.

---Here are what some of the cards look like: