Thank you for focus on the differences between this and the original. I am so very glad to hear that they are compatible with each other since I already purchased the original. I fully expect that now I will need to add this as well to my growing list of games to purchase this year. It is nice that you and Mr. Launius' varients are given proper homage in this expansion as well. Excellent review.
Can't wait to get my hands on this. I wasn't sure about Thunderstone when i first got it, I wasn't sure if I'd like it as much as Dominion. However Thunderstone is more than just another deck building game. It really is an adventure game. So many great Roleplaying/Dungeon crawling influences in one game! Thanks to the Tom & The Dicetower for championing this game.
Thanks Tom for showing us the difference between this and the old version,But I am amazed that you never mentioned avatars as a major difference included with this version.
I would say that the other bonus of the Regular is that he has a built in combo ("Draw one card if equipped with a Polearm") with the Longspear, unlike the Militia/Dagger, which I nearly always weeded out ASAP. Regular/Longspear gives you a leg up on early enemies if you are lucky, and they upgrade more easily. Everything about Advance is just plain better.
You didn't mention the inclusion of the epic/ultimate/super-duper variant. I figured you would've talked about how they implemented your preferred way of play.
Avatars in Thunderstone Advance allows you to take a certain persona in the game. For example you may want to concentrate on playing a warrior character but you pick the Ranger avatar which allows you to swap places of 2 monsters in the dungeon.
This is not the first card game from AEG to get a face lift. That belongs to their original card game hit that has gone through two front changes and one back change Legend of the Five Rings, or L5R for short. But it is nice to see them produce a "second edition" of a game that is more than skin deep. Thanks for the great review.
I was thinking to get the original game at a discount a few months ago. But something was holding me off.. :) Oh, and i laughed a lot when you started talking about Two Towers and undead ents. They make sense now, aha :))
Seems interesting (I will definetely use the "prepare variant" the next time I play the base game.) However, it seems that while the layout really got better, the art work got worse. Seems like they hired a new guy for some of the pictures which I think is a big mistake (the original Thunderstone had some of the best artwork I've ever seen in a board game!)
The graphic redesign and making cards like militia and daggers (and the other cards which affect them) are really bad ideas. Moves like this feel like changes made just to sell the same game again. They could have added the board, familiars, and prepare action without making other things obsolete. I can always MAKE a board with package cardboard or poster board, and add the prepare action as a house rule. If there were not other expansions, then I would buy this version, but there ARE.
I really don't like the box cover art at all - should be hidden away from kids. For the contents, they look nice, but as I already have the previous series of TS, I don't think that I will go for the "Advance" version...
Thank you for focus on the differences between this and the original. I am so very glad to hear that they are compatible with each other since I already purchased the original. I fully expect that now I will need to add this as well to my growing list of games to purchase this year. It is nice that you and Mr. Launius' varients are given proper homage in this expansion as well. Excellent review.
Can't wait to get my hands on this.
I wasn't sure about Thunderstone when i first got it, I wasn't sure if I'd like it as much as Dominion. However Thunderstone is more than just another deck building game. It really is an adventure game. So many great Roleplaying/Dungeon crawling influences in one game!
Thanks to the Tom & The Dicetower for championing this game.
Tom you alone made me want this ... My wife and I are not disappointed.
To AEG, on your site you asked for suggestions for the game. Do you credit those whom you took ideas from (kinda like "Prepare")? Just wondering.
Thanks Tom for showing us the difference between this and the old version,But I am amazed that you never mentioned avatars as a major difference included with this version.
I would say that the other bonus of the Regular is that he has a built in combo ("Draw one card if equipped with a Polearm") with the Longspear, unlike the Militia/Dagger, which I nearly always weeded out ASAP. Regular/Longspear gives you a leg up on early enemies if you are lucky, and they upgrade more easily. Everything about Advance is just plain better.
You didn't mention the inclusion of the epic/ultimate/super-duper variant. I figured you would've talked about how they implemented your preferred way of play.
Avatars in Thunderstone Advance allows you to take a certain persona in the game. For example you may want to concentrate on playing a warrior character but you pick the Ranger avatar which allows you to swap places of 2 monsters in the dungeon.
This is not the first card game from AEG to get a face lift. That belongs to their original card game hit that has gone through two front changes and one back change Legend of the Five Rings, or L5R for short. But it is nice to see them produce a "second edition" of a game that is more than skin deep. Thanks for the great review.
I was thinking to get the original game at a discount a few months ago. But something was holding me off.. :) Oh, and i laughed a lot when you started talking about Two Towers and undead ents. They make sense now, aha :))
do you guys still really like this game? havent heard much mention of it in your lists
They did say that Thunderstone replaced their Dominion. So i'm pretty sure they love it.
allways wonderd how they pick all the components up
Good call.
It makes the game a lot more strategic, which I like. I was never a fan of discarding everything at the end of my turn.
Seems interesting (I will definetely use the "prepare variant" the next time I play the base game.)
However, it seems that while the layout really got better, the art work got worse. Seems like they hired a new guy for some of the pictures which I think is a big mistake (the original Thunderstone had some of the best artwork I've ever seen in a board game!)
They did a graphic redesign of their 7th Sea CCG, which was unpopular with my gaming group, as well.
What are avatars?
Art look fine to me, can't wait.
Prepare was taken from "A few acres of snow?"
I am so very excited
When does this game hit shelves
Heroes give negative gold now??
I kept waiting for SAM to eat a gamepiece. #poppingnoise
0:55 TENET!
This movie dont want to play, when I come to this video it is done in a second... without seeing anything :(
The graphic redesign and making cards like militia and daggers (and the other cards which affect them) are really bad ideas.
Moves like this feel like changes made just to sell the same game again. They could have added the board, familiars, and prepare action without making other things obsolete.
I can always MAKE a board with package cardboard or poster board, and add the prepare action as a house rule.
If there were not other expansions, then I would buy this version, but there ARE.
I really don't like the box cover art at all - should be hidden away from kids.
For the contents, they look nice, but as I already have the previous series of TS, I don't think that I will go for the "Advance" version...
Agreed.
I found Dominion incredibly dry and boring.
TS is much more fun.
Sure feels like a money grab to me.