Feb 2008 Catalog

MNG-AJM Games and Collectibles

Feb 2008 Catalog

While I don’t publish my latest catalog on the internet, this older catalog is available for you to look through to get an idea of the sort of thing I generally have. Please be aware that many of the games in this catalog will have already sold, and if they haven’t then the prices are not necessarily still valid – the prices are only valid in the month the catalog comes out! However, if you do see something of interest email me and I’ll let you know if I still have it. Also getting the monthly catalog by email is free and without obligation, so why not just ask to be added to my subscription list, or ask me to send you the latest catalog by email?

165 Card Tricks & Stunts, published by Trolbourne Ltd. Book. Excellent. £3

A book detailing 165 card tricks and manipulations as performed by master magician Jean Hugard. In order to learn these tricks you will need considerable dexterity and practice, but if you want to impress your friends and children with your sleight of hand or just want to know how the pro's do it then this is the book for you.

2300 A.D., published by GDW. 1988. Box. Good. £2. Desc. by Andy.

Roleplaying game set in the year 2300 A.D. when man has made it to the stars but now has to fight to stay there. Adventures suggested include fighting a hostile alien race, police fighting smugglers, pirates and terrorists plaguing human colonies, exploring uncharted systems etc. The set includes: Adventurer's Guide, Director's Guide, Near Star Map, Play Aids.

A Gamut Of Games, published by Hutchinson. 1983. Book. Excellent. £15

Hardback with dustcover, 222 pages, 24x16cm. Probably the greatest book of original games ever written. Many new games are by Sid himself, but others were contributed by his friends such as Jim Dunnigan, Claude Soucie, Robert Abbott. This really is a wonderful collection of 38 original games which every games player should have on their book shelf.

A Toy Is Born, published by Stein & Day. 1973. Book. Good. £2

Hardback with dustcover, 190 pages, 22x15cm. The author details the history of many classic toys and games including: Monopoly, Silly Putty, Bingo, Yahtzee, Twister, Model Trains & Cars, Barbie, Teddy Bears, and much more. There are also chapters which discuss the toy and game industry at the time.

Add-Em, published by Mansell's. ca.1935. Box. Good. £12

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Desc. by Eamon.

Special notes: 1 tab has been taped, but otherwise surprisingly good condition for its age.

Card game, rare to find anything by this company who only seemed to exist for a short period. 52 cards, featuring plus and minus numbers, which playesr use to form equations. If the equation is correct, those cards can be discarded, with the object being to get rid of all your cards first.

Age Of Steam, published by Warfrog. 2002. Box. Excellent. £33

Special notes: This set includes laminated maps for the 1-2 player expansions: Puerto Rico, Barbados, St. Lucia, and Jamaica.

Railway game. This is a further development of Martin Wallace's Early Rails system. Players build track between cities and then ship goods for profit. All the systems have been honed wonderfully to ensure you always have difficult decisions to make. The board and tiles have been very nicely produced too making this a very substantial and attractive game. Track is laid by placing hex tiles onto the board, and each round players bid for a role which gives a special ability as well as taking the standard actions each turn. The objective is to build up a profitable network without spending too much money and shipping goods using your tracks. Highly recommended.

Age Of Steam - Expansion Set 1, published by Warfrog. 2003. Box. Excellent. £30

Expansion set for Age of Steam. This consists of a double sided board and some rules. The maps are: Ireland and England & Wales. The former is specially for 3/4 players, the latter for 5/6 players. This is now out of print and highly sought after.

Age Of Steam - Expansion Set 2, published by Warfrog. 2004. Box. In shrink. £8

Expansion set for Age of Steam. This consists of a double sided board and some rules to change the game slightly for each board. The maps are Western United States (best with 4 or 6) and Germany (4+).

Age Of Steam - Expansion Set 3, published by Warfrog. 2004. Box. In shrink. £8

Expansion set for Age of Steam. This consists of a double sided board and some rules to change the game slightly for each map. The maps are Scandinavia and Korea (4-5 players).

Age Of Steam - Expansion Set 4, published by Warfrog. 2005. Box. In shrink. £8

Expansion set for Age of Steam. This consists of a double sided board and some rules to change the game significantly for each map. The maps are France and Italy.

Air War + Air War Update Kit, published by SPI. 1977. Box. Good - counters unpunched. £14

Special notes: Plastic case shows its age with the edges starting to crack.

Highly detailed simulation of modern tactical air combat. Planes are individually controlled, with a cockpit-like display for each plane, including altitude. Each hex represents 500ft and a turn 2.5 seconds! The rules book has 28 pages of rules + 20 pages of scenarios and notes. There is also a book of tables, with separate tables for each type of plane. The planes represented are from the Korean War to the time of publication. This set also includes the 1979 Air War Update module with more plane stats, counters, scenarios and extra rules. If you only want the update please get in touch.

Alpha Blitz, published by WoTC. 1998. Box. Mint. £2.50

Card game, 108 cards, enabling you to play two different games. Alpha is an interactive anagram game with the set of letters you can use changing as the game progresses. Blitz is similar except that play is simultaneous so you have to see words which can be made from a set of letters quicker than the other players.

An Den Ufern Des Nils, published by Abacus. 1994. Box. In shrink. £18

Players take the roles of farmers on the banks of the Nile, which regularly flood the Nile valley and then dry out to reveal very fertile land. Players have a selection of types of seed which are sown, then grown and then harvested in the fields by the Nile. Players can influence the flooding and drying out process, but cannot predict it precisely, but must decide when and where to grow their crops. Once harvested the crops are taken to market, but even there timing is important as the freshest produce is more valuable and too many batches of one type of crop will not be permitted. Highly recommended, and plays best with 2 or 3.

Antler Island, published by Fragor Games. 2007. Box. In shrink. £35

Privately produced game, but to a very high standard. There are cute painted resin stag models, wooden does and a three level playing board. Each turn the players (as stags) plan their actions and then execute them one at a time. The idea is to claim and then mate with as many does as possible. However, since the other stags are trying to do the same you will need to build up your fighting ability and fight for the does from time to time - especially in the prime position on the top of the hill.

Apples To Apples, published by Tactic. 2001. Box. In shrink. £14. Desc. by Andy.

Amazingly simple game for all the family, and non gaming friends too, but good fun as a filler for gamers. Each player has a hand of cards listing people, places and things, and each round one player draws an adjective card and all other players select one of their cards which seems appropriate. The judge for the round reads them out one at a time, and chooses his favourite. Believe me it is a lot more fun than this makes it sound! This edition is fully English and designed for the UK market.

Arabana-Ikibiti, published by Bambus. 1999. Box. Good. £11

Excellent 2 player game later reprinted as Kahuna. Players use cards to lay their own bridges between islands, and combinations of cards to remove their opponent's bridges and replace them with their own. However, the clever part of the game is that when a player obtains a definite majority of bridges to an island, all their opponent's bridges on that island get removed, which can create new opportunities on adjacent islands too. Highly recommended if you like two player games.

Aristo, published by Dragon Radieux. ca.1989. Box. Excellent. £18

High quality product from France. A game of love, rivalry and favouritism in the Court of Versailles. The game is driven by cards which players use to make money, and gain favour with royalty. Each player represents a family of courtiers. During the game, wars will be declared, marriages take place, kings and queens will be courted, bastard children will be born, and many other events will take place. Game play involves requesting favours and negotiation. The objective is to obtain a monetary target, but generally riches only come with position and power. Nice item.

Auction, published by Avalon Hill. 1989. Box. Good. £7.50

Players buy antiques at auction in the hope of collecting sets. However, cash flow will be a problem, and so antiques which are no longer wanted can be sold, though not necessarily for as much as might be hoped. At the end of the game only complete sets count for anything. Originally released by 3M as High Bid, and later re-released by AH as The Collector.

Ausbrecher AG, published by Ravensburger. 1988. Box. Good. £8

Seven criminals are trying to escape from an island prison, and there are 4 boats available. Initially players make a secret prediction as to the order in which prisoners will reach the boats, and then the game play is trying to ensure that this happens. On their turns the players roll dice which move the prisoners, and have a choice of which dice to roll and also which order to use the dice in. Light but fun game with enough control to be interesting. I also have some house rules which I feel enhance the game further.

Ave Caesar, 2 editions available:

1) Published by Pro Ludo. 2006. Box. In shrink. £18. 2nd edition.

2) Published by Ravensburger. 1989. Box. Good. £36. 1st edition.

Great fun light race game in which the players have to manoeuver their chariots around the course as efficiently as possible while also trying to get in the way of other chariots, ideally forcing them to go around the outsides of bends, and possibly run out of movement cards before they reach the finish. After either the first or second lap a pit stop must be made in order to hail Caesar - failing to do this will get you speared come the end of the race. Very popular game and good fun. Recommended.

Backgammon With The Champions Vol 1 No. 2, published by Kent Goulding. 1981.

Book. Good but cover worn and loose. £2.50

Softback, 28x21cm, 76 pages. Highly regarded magazine format Backgammon publication. This publication walks you through the entire 19 pt match between Mike Senkuewicz and Bill Robertie, two very accomplished Backgammon players. Thus it is useful to keen backgammon players who want to learn more. The author is a very accomplished teacher of backgammon, so you can be sure to pick up many hints and tips.

Ba-Kar-Ee, published by Porterprint. ca.1935. Box. Box and cards show wear. £8

Designer Unknown. No. players: 3-6. Country: British, Desc. by Eamon.

Special notes: The cards show quite a bit of wear unevenly but aren't creased.

Card game, played with two packs of standard playing cards plus 8 jokers and 8 special cards called royal aces, making 120 cards in total. The game is an involved Rummy variant, with a large rule-book and a special reference card to ease scoring.

Bambi, published by Russell. ca.1946. Box. 1 Box side damaged. £1.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: American, Desc. by Eamon.

Card game, Disney related. An early merchandising game for the feature film. 48 cards, featuring Bambi and his friends in the forest. Children's game.

Bambi, published by Russell. 1965. Box. Box good, cards unused. £0.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

Card game, Disney related. Cards feature Bambi and his friends in the forest. The game itself is very simple and targeted at young children.

Batman The Game, published by Paul Lamond. 1989. Box. Good. £1.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: British, Desc. by Eamon. Special notes: Box lid corners damaged

Film related, with half the players representing Batman and the other half, the Joker. Essentially a race game from your base, either the Bat Cave or the Axis Chemical Factory, to a secret destination and back home again.

Big Kini, published by PlayMe.de. 2005. Box. In shrink. £24

Majorities type game set in a tropical archipelago. The game 'board' is made up of 18 large hexagonal island tiles each showing three islands. These islands have various influential positions which can be occupied by the players' people tokens. These positions allow the players to perform the various actions that island permits, which include: recruiting more people, obtaining trade goods, exploring / colonising other islands, initiating an election for premiership on the island group, and getting money. Game play involves managing your money and expanding your sphere of influence using your limited number of actions to best effect. Very well received at Spiel 2005. Recommended.

Bobs Yr Uncle, published by Waddingtons. 1935. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Good. £6

2) Box falling apart, cards good. £2. The lid and half one side of the box are missing, but the cards are Good.

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Card game. Illustrations by Frank H Simpson. Based on collecting cards to complete a nursery rhyme. Nice children’s game. Includes now-banned ‘nigger’ cards. There are alternative ways to win - empty your hand of cards, collect three Bob cards or collect three nigger cards.

Brainiak, published by Aaron Games. 1997. Box. Good. £5.50

Family / party game. Players write down 5 words which fit into a category, as do their team mates. Players score for writing the same things as their partners, so you have to try to get yourself thinking like they do. The board shows a series of tracks around which the teams move their playing pieces as they score points.

Brass, published by Warfrog. 2007. Box. In shrink. £21

Set in the industrial revolution in Lancashire, this gamer's game is played in two phases. In the first phase players develop canal networks, and in the second phase the canals are now outdated and rail networks must be built up. Throughout both phases players invest in cotton mills, ports, coal mines, iron mines and shipbuilding in order to improve their income and gain victory points. There are plenty of options with cards used in a clever way to limit what can be done, and ensuring you need to plan ahead. A good mix of economic management and network building is required to do well. Recommended.

Bridgette, published by Mayfair. 1995. Box. Good. £10

Card game, a unique two-handed version of Bridge. A superb game system, using normal playing cards (with extras), but with a twist so that two people can play (instead of four). The references on the box and in the rules, from Bridge experts world-wide, are very impressive, including one of the all-time greats, Alfred Sheinwold, who considered that “The colons (the special cards that allow just two players to play) are the finest contribution to card play this century”. Recommended to anyone who enjoys whist based games.

Buggo, published by Ravensburger. 2000. Box. Good. £7

Light game in which players take it in turns to draw a card which specifies the maximum number of bugs they can take that turn. The player then turns over tiles on the table to find bugs. One can stop before reaching the required number and play it safe and take the tiles turned so far, but if exceeding the required number, the tiles get turned back face down. As extra twists there are some spider tiles which always cause you to bust and some cards which require you to find spiders.

Buyword, published by Face2Face Games. 2004. Box. In shrink. £20

Word game, but one which will appeal to those who aren't generally fans of the genre. The twist is that letters are bought in batches and have to be paid for with money (points), and then players use them to form words which will score points - hopefully more points than were spent to buy the letters in the first place! Thus as well as skill in forming words, it is also important to be able to work out when a set of letters which is available is worth buying and when it is better to pass them up. I have some house rules which I think improve it further. Highly recommended.

Career Poker, published by Fun Connection. 1992. Box. Good. £6

Designer Unknown. No. players: 4-8. Country: German, Duration: 30 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Popular card game. Players win tricks (but with the twist that cards can be played in combinations besides being played singly - called a 'Climbing' game). Each 'trick' can be only one type of combination (eg. a pair), but players can keep playing higher sets until everyone passes. The objective is to get rid of all your cards. At the end of each round, all players will receive a title, from boss down to the dishwasher. Players change seats between each round in keeping with their 'status'. At the start of each hand players must swap some cards, such that the better positions get more favourable cards while the lower positions get the dross.

Cartino, published by Ravensburger. 1969. Box. Good. £4.50

Attractive game using wooden tiles to represent some of the cards from two decks of playing cards. Players play their cards on to a well designed board, which looks like a tableau of playing cards laid out for a game. Each space on the board can accommodate two identical tiles. Players have a hand of 5 tiles and may play any number in their turn, but only from one suit. Tiles played score for any adjacent occupied spaces, so holding back for tactical advantage would seem to be an important part of gameplay. Nice item.

Catalogue Of McLoughlin Bros, published by Unknown. 1990. Book. Excellent. £5

Spiralbound, 28x22cm, 62 pages. Very nice spiralbound reprint of the McLoughlin Brothers catalog of 1886. This has loads of information on early board games, puzzles, ABC and Picture Blocks, Paper Dolls, Paper Soldiers, and children's books.

Centipede, published by Milton Bradley. 1983. Box. Good. £3.50

Notes: One of the centipede pieces has become unlinked from the others so has to be moved along separately

Board game version of the popular 1980's video game. Each player has a centipede which heads down a track and the first to reach the opponent's home base wins. However, blocking mushrooms can be placed to create shortcuts for your centipede and a spider and scorpion place and remove mushrooms and also attack your opponent's laser cannon. Your laser cannon can be used to destroy blocking mushrooms, the spider and the scorpion and also stun your opponent's centipede, slowing it down.

Centrepoint, published by Ennerdale. 1987. Box. Good. £6.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 1-4. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Strategy game using 76 pieces, all 25mm miniatures of soldiers such as lancers, archers, generals, etc. Probably classed as a multi-player chess variant as the pieces have different moves, although the objective is to get your standard bearer to the central space. The game is played on a circular gridded board, and rules are included for 2-3 players and also for postal play. First edition. Plain black box.

Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, published by Alfred A Knopf. 1978. Book. Good and unpunched. £40

Very rare game / book by Sid Sackson. This is a game inspired by the Roald Dahl book. The three section 'book' unfolds to form a board and with thick cardboard playing pieces and 'cards'. Cards are drawn to determine who controls each of the five children, and players then move one of the children they control on their turn, scoring points by getting them into the major rooms. Willy Wonka also has to be moved, and no child may get ahead of him. Along the way the various children succumb to the various hazards in the book, with the finale of the game at the TV room.

Chess Board Puzzle, published by Unknown. ca.1950. Box. 1 end of box missing. £0.30

Designer Unknown. No. players: 1. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Puzzle comprising of 15 pieces in different shapes, but each piece featuring a number of squares to a chess board. The object is to form them into a regular chess board.

Conquest, published by Denys Fisher. 1975. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Good, but box base discoloured. £8 2) Good, but box edges show wear. £9. Photocopied rules.

A great abstract game, also published as Duell and The George v Mildred Dice Game. The playing pieces are extra large dice, which are placed on a ridged square board, and as the dice are moved, they ‘tumble’ over the ridges. The number showing on top after each move limits its move next time you want to move it. The objective is to either capture your opponent's Key dice (a special dice with 1's on all faces) or to get your Key dice to your opponent's key dice space. Games & Puzzles magazine rated this 6 / 6.

Crown The Queen, published by Waddingtons. 1953. Box. Excellent. £12

Card game, a rare Waddingtons game made to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Cards feature important parts of the Coronation procession, footmen, policemen, archbishops, the Queen herself, etc. and players must 'build' a procession. Invented by a Member of Parliament at the time. I like the last rule - "The game is more realistic if all players cheer as a card is played, louder and louder nearing the end of the procession".

D&D: Hollow World Campaign Set, published by TSR. 1990. Box. Good. £8

D&D Boxed campaign setting with a difference - the world is spherical, but hollow! As well as this there is a huge variety of different cultures, often very close to each other, but kept apart by supernatural powers. Players can either play with 'local' characters or have characters from another setting arrive magically, and discover the Hollow World for themselves. This set includes: 128 page DM's Sourcebook detailing this world, 64 page Players Guide detailing the different cultures PC's could come from and rules for these characters, 32 page Adventure Book with some adventure ideas and new monsters to start you off, 4 poster maps of The Hollow World.

Dallas, published by Yaquinto. 1980. Double LP Case. Good. £11.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 3-7. Country: American, Duration: 2 hrs, Desc. by Andy.

Game using the theme of the popular TV series of the same name - don't let this put you off! Players acquire stock in a variety of companies and attempt to obtain a controlling interest to make their stock more valuable. The board shows several routes to get to the different companies, and cards are played to move. However at the end of each year players must return home to be able to vote at the stockholders' meeting - other players will do their best to stop you getting there. At this meeting players negotiate to become President of Ewing Oil (very valuable), but it is possible to blackmail a candidate and force them to vote for you instead. Ultimately most money wins.

Dare, published by Crown & Andrews. 1986. Box. Good, but 1 corner taped. £2

Party game in which the players answer True or False questions, but have to carry out forfeits if they get an answer wrong. The intention is that the players will often get the answers wrong, and have to choose when to veto a forfeit and when to accept a forfeit.

Der Markt Von Alturien, published by Pro Ludo. 2007. Box. In shrink. £24

Update of Jumbo's 'City'. Neat game in which players purchase shops and then enhance them and buy more shops as the game goes on. The board shows an overhead view of a city centre around which customers wander - some normal, some big spenders and one thief. A special die is used to let you move a customer - the idea being to direct the spenders to your shops and away from those of opponents while making sure the thief stays away from your shops and goes to as many opponents' shops as possible. There are various new features in this edition such as having to buy Prestige cards (which are what win the game) and different types of business expansion. May well play best with 3 players (the original did).

Die Weinhandler, published by Amigo. 2004. Box. In shrink. £8.75

Card game in which players bid for cards showing bottles of wine, and then place them into a pyramid structure representing their wine cellar. The bidding rounds involve using your wine bottles to obtain better ones, and the highest bidder gets the 4 bottles in the display, the next highest bidder gets those the top bidder bid with, and so on. When placing bottles into the wine cellar bottles get more points the higher their value, and also gain bonuses for sets of the same type of wine. There is plenty of scope for tactical bidding, and care needs to be taken when laying down your wine cellar.

Doctor Who - The Game Of Time & Space, published by Games Workshop. 1980. Box. Good. £20

Special notes: 1 blank Key Part counter missing, but it is not used in play.

TV related, with Tom Baker on the cover. Players attempt to find a secret combination whilst travelling in time and space, and fighting such nasties as Cybermen, Daleks, Davros etc. Players represent different incarnations of The Doctor, and each have a different assistant. During the adventures a wide variety of useful items will be found many of which have special powers, and many of the monsters encountered also have special powers. These special abilities and powers are detailed on special sheets which each player has.

Double, published by Hiron. 1986. Box. Good. £4

Card game, 72 numbered cards each with three coloured sections. Game play is related to various domino games in that you play cards so they match up with those already on the table in order to get rid of them from your hand, and to try to be the first player to get rid of all their cards.

Drachen Delta, published by Euro Games. 2000. Box. In shrink. £11

German version of Dragon Delta. Players race to cross the delta to their home village by placing stones and planks and moving across them. Card play is simultaneous, with players choosing cards from a wide selection of actions such as: laying stones to place planks on, laying planks on stones, moving various amounts, removing a stone or plank from a critical location, or forfeiting your action to hinder an opponent. While the game is somewhat chaotic, planning is possible, and keeping your options open is always good. I have a couple of house rules and clarifications too. Recommended, and works especially well with 5 or 6 players.

Dungeons & Dragons Board Game, published by TSR Inc. 1991. Box. Several copies available:

1) Good. £7 2) Good but 1 edge taped. £6.50 3) Box good, contents unpunched. £9

Base set of the Dungeons & Dragons Board Game (which is also titled The New Easy To Master D&D). This set provides an adventure for you to play as well as a series of 'Dragon Cards' which teach you how to play in easy steps. The set includes polyhedral dice, many stand up cardboard figures, GM's screen and the rule book. Essentially this is a classic fantasy dungeon bash board game / role playing game crossbreed.

Dungeons & Dragons Board Game - The Dragon's Den, published by TSR Inc. 1992. Box. Good. £11

First expansion to the Dungeons & Dragons Board Game (which was also called The New Easy To Master D&D). This set provides three more adventures which can be played individually or as a single long campaign, for which you will need the base game. There is also a standalone scenario which can be played with this set alone. The set focuses on adventures involving dragons and as well as the scenario books, colour poster map-board of the dungeons, and tiles there are over 60 stand up cardboard figures, plus cards and playing pieces for the standalone game. Essentially this is a classic fantasy dungeon bash board game / role playing game crossbreed.

Dungeons & Dragons Board Game - The Haunted Tower, published by TSR Inc. 1992. Box. Good. £11

Third expansion to the Dungeons & Dragons Board Game (which was also called The New Easy To Master D&D). This set provides three more adventures which can be played individually or as a single long campaign, for which you will need the base game. There is also a standalone scenario which can be played with this set alone. The set focuses on adventures involving undead and as well as the scenario books, colour poster map-board of the dungeons, and tiles there are over 70 stand up cardboard figures, plus cards and playing pieces for the standalone game. Essentially this is a classic fantasy dungeon bash board game / role playing game crossbreed.

Durch Die Wuste, published by Kosmos. 1998. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Excellent. £14 2) In shrink. £16

Superb game, and in my opinion one of Herr Knizia's very best! Players play pastel coloured camels onto a hex gridded board showing a region of desert, but there is always far more to do than you are able to in one turn. Players try to make chains of their camels connect to oases, collect points for smaller waterholes, isolate sections of desert for themselves and also try to have the largest caravan of each colour. All of these score points, but deciding which methods to go for is hard, and deciding which is most urgent is harder still. Highly recommended.

Escape From Atlantis, published by Waddingtons. 1986. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Good but corners taped. £9.50. Photocopied rules, 1 sail missing (does not affect play)

2) Good, but corners taped. £11

Attractive game, and one which plays very well with the family and gamers too. The board starts off with a large island in the centre, but the volcano is erupting and the island sinking into the sea. The players all have people of their tribe who need to escape to the safety of the mainland. This is done by using 3 action points each turn. In addition there are boats and dolphins to aid you (but rarely just where needed) and sharks and sea monsters to hinder. Each turn another bit of the island tumbles into the sea, possibly with an associated event. Whoever saves the most of their tribe wins. I can also supply my house rules to Survive / Escape From Atlantis which combine the best bits of both of these versions. Recommended.

Fairy Tale Playing Cards, published by Unknown. ca.1950. Box. Good. £3.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: Unknown, Desc. by Andy.

Special notes: Box edges show wear, 1 card lightly ceased, 1 has a mark where a little text is missing.

Quartet game, with rules for two games, but many others can be played too. The deck consists of 40 cards, with each set of 4 cards depicting colour printed scenes from one fairy tale, with a paragraph of text underneath. Very attractive period item.

Family Business, Box. 2 editions available:

1) Published by Mayfair. 1989. Good. £8. Country: American.

2) Published by Spielfreaks. 1988. Box. Good. £10. Country: British. This version has helpful reminders of what the cards do on them which helps a lot for the first few games.

Card game. Each player controls a gang of Mobsters during the Prohibition. Times are tough and the gangs are at war - there will only be peace when just one family survives. Cards are played to add gangsters to the Hit List and various cards start the killing spree, while others let you get your mobsters out of trouble - at least for a while. Fun game of chaos and mayhem.

Famous Hands From Famous Matches, published by Maxwell Macmillan Bridge. 1991. Book. Excellent. £3

Softback, 156 pages, 22x14cm. Bridge Book from two well known Bridge writers. A collection of interesting hands with well written intros. In each case the reader is asked what they think happened next, with what happened next on the following page. The hands fall into several categories: Early Days, Well Played Sir - and Madam, Not Quite So Well Played, Penalty Points, Technique In Attack, Technique In Defence, Comic Cuts, Dramatic Endings.

Fantasy Forest 3: Shadowcastle, published by TSR. 1983. Book. Good. £2

Softback, 19x13cm, 76 paragraphs. Fighting Fantasy style solo game book for the younger reader. No dice are used, the reader just makes decisions at the end of each page, which determines which page should be read next. In this book you are Molly, a brave girl who together with Thistle the halfling want to rescue your friends from Shadowcastle.

Feurio!, published by Edition Erlkonig. 2003. Box. In shrink. £11

Rather neat tile laying game. There is a huge forest fire and the players act as fire fighters trying to stop the fire, and the player who does this most successfully will win. The tiles show sections of woodland which are burning, and each turn a new tile must be placed where the fire is currently 'hottest'. Firefighters can then be placed onto spaces on the tiles but with a clever restriction which means that as tiles are surrounded they are less accessible. Players need to get their firemen into large groups and tackle the hottest fires, but also need to be well connected to a good water supply. Very clever, and even includes a solitaire version of the game. Recommended.

Flight, published by Pepys. ca.1955. Box. Fair. £6

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: British, Desc. by Eamon.

Special notes: Box has been repaired and taped, Cards show some wear.

Card game, 44 cards illustrating air routes. Players compete to collect complete routes, planes and landing sites. 1950’s aircraft pictured on many cards.

Flying Carpet, published by Ravensburger. 1987. Box. Good. £14

A very nice game with striking graphics. Players must race their flying carpets from one end of the city to the other (and optionally back again). The board can be set up for an easy or difficult race and the card play and use of special movement tiles requires good planning. I have a few house rules I will include if you remind me. You almost never see this English language edition. The German version is called Der Fliegende Teppich. Recommended.

Formel Fun, published by Franjos. 1999. Box. New. £12

Originally published as Devil Take The Hindmost, this has been rethemed as a motor racing game. The board shows the racetrack, and the spaces show which card type is the most efficient when played to move a car on that space. Players manage a team of cars, and so managing your hand of cards to ensure efficient movement of as many of your cars as possible is what the game is about. After each lap the backmost car drops out, and the others reform into a group ready for another lap. Highly recommended especially if you use individual half packs for each player.

Freight Train, published by White Wind. 1993. Box. Good. £22

Unusual train game in which the players shunt around various types of freight between the public holding yards and their own trains which are being formed as well as their own private holding yards. The game is divided into three sections and after each section points are awarded for the largest and second largest freight train of each type, as well as for the longest mixed freight train. The scoring works slightly differently in each section to discourage players from having left over freight in their holding yards at the end of the game. You will need a large table to play this with more than three players.

Galaxy Trucker, published by Czech Games Editions. 2007. Box. In shrink. £28

Space trading game in which each player first builds their own spaceship, and then all players' ships experience a series of adventure cards, and the most successful ship wins. The building phase involves simultaneously turning over ship component tiles and fitting them onto your board so the connectors match up, and obeying common sense placement rules - an interesting puzzle style challenge. During the adventure phase there can be trade planets, space pirates to fight off, meteor showers, abandoned ships to loot, and empty areas which test your engines. Amazingly good fun quite light space game. Highly recommended.

Game News Batch of 5 + 3 Trade Supplements, published by Associates International Inc. 1986. Magazine.

Good. £0.50. Designer Unknown. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

Magazine issued in America to the trade to be a shop window for role-playing, war games and miniatures companies, with a few mainstream items being covered as well. Every issue carries reviews, adverts, articles, scenarios, etc. Worth a read even now. This batch consists of: Issue 4 inc Trade Supplement, Issue 5 inc Trade Supplement, Issue 6 inc Trade Supplement, Issue 11 and Issue 12.

GameMaster 3: In Search Of New Gods, published by GameMaster Publications. 1986. Magazine. Excellent. £3

A combination of a 32 page AD&D scenario and a role playing games magazine. The scenario is for characters of level 4-7. The party takes on a task which the kingdom's most famous adventurer has failed to complete - persuade a neighbouring kingdom to turn away from their New Gods. The magazine also includes: Defenders of the Faith (AD&D clerics), Pelinor - Armed Encampment (city section details), Moment of Truth (mini AD&D scenario for levels 4-7), News, Letters, Reviews (5 AD&D modules).

GameMaster 4: The Awakening, published by GameMaster Publications. 1986. Magazine. Excellent. £3

A combination of a 32 page AD&D scenario and a role playing games magazine. The scenario is for characters of level 7-8. The party has been hired to protect a dwarven community while all the warriors go out on a major offensive against some nearby goblins. However, the duergar take this opportunity to make an attack, and only cunning can defeat them. The magazine also includes: Race Relations (demi human mythologies), Pelinor - The Old Wharf (city section details and plot hooks), Red Swords (Oriental Adventures mini scenario), News, Reviews (6 RPG scenarios).

GameMaster 5: Rod Of Seraillian, published by GameMaster Publications. 1987. Magazine. Excellent. £3

A combination of a 40 page AD&D scenario and a role playing games magazine. The scenario is for characters of level 6-8. The party must travel to a foreign land and search a lost and supposedly long unused temple for a powerful artifact to save it from falling into evil hands. The magazine also includes: Pelinor - Q&A (a fantasy city series), News, Reviews (Wilderness Survival Guide, Dungeoneer's Survival Guide, D&D Immortal Rules).

Games For Home Travel and Parties, published by World Distributors. 1976. Book.

Good but cover has some coffee stains. £0.75

Softback, 28x20cm, 64 pages. This book details popular card games, paper & pencil games, and board games as well as games you can play in the car or train, and games you can play at a party or family gathering. In all there are 64 games described. There are single colour illustrations and diagrams throughout the book.

Games From An Edwardian Childhood, published by David & Charles. 1982. Book. Excellent. £2.50

Hardback, 22x15cm, 95 pages. A collection of Edwardian games for indoors and out with attractive black and white line drawings to illustrate the games. The games are divided as follows: Romantic (3), Paper & Pencil (4), Dancing & Singing (10), Hiding & Seeking (6), Chasing (3), Animal Chase (5), Blind Man's Chase (3), Acting (6), Competitive Games (5), Laughing Games (5), Practical Jokes (3).

Games Magazine, published by Unknown. Magazine.

Designer Unknown. Country: American, Desc. by Eamon.

A US magazine from the 1980s. It was a more sophisticated version of the UK’s Games & Puzzles, with some of the most original picture puzzles you will find anywhere. The game content was less than puzzles, but attracted decent writers like Sid Sackson and Mathew Costello. If you like puzzles, these are a must-have. The games content was often limited to in-depth reviews. Games content listed by issue below.

Games No. 85 - Apr 1987, 1987. Good. £1.25. Score-Up (a new solitaire game by Sid Sackson), Sale of the Century, Arena, Clutch Football, Checkit.

Games No. 91 - May 1988, 1988. Cover shows wear. £1. Bushka (rules to a new game for you to make), The Wall Street Game, Maze

Games Workshop Fantasy Jigsaw: Slave Trader, published by Games Workshop. ca.1985. Jigsaw. Good. £4

Designer Unknown. No. players: 1. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Special notes: Completeness not certain - if incomplete I will provide a refund.

750 pieces. The picture shows a man with a large beast in the jungle behind him, and in the foreground are three chained female slaves. It is clearly a hot country and neither slavemaster nor slaves are wearing very much...

Gang Of Four, published by Days Of Wonder. 2002. Box. In shrink. £9

Card game, 64 cards in 3 suits with some special cards. This is a 'climbing' game, so in the same family as Tichu and Karriere Poker / The Great Dalmuti. The idea is that players try to be the first to get rid of all their cards, which is done by playing a higher combination than has already been played into the current trick but of the same type (pair, flush etc). The special cards add a level of uncertainty and make play more interesting. While not as deep as Tichu, this would make an excellent introduction to this family of card games.

Glory To Rome, published by Cambridge Games Factory. 2005. Box. Excellent. £14

Rome has burnt and Nero has directed his commanders to rebuild what was lost in the fire, in order to restore the Glory of Rome. The game uses cards, and each card may act as a building, raw material, or patron, thus deciding how to use your cards to best effect requires thought. The game also makes use of the discard pile in a clever way. Scoring is achieved for constructing buildings, storing resources, and various bonuses. Well received game.

Go To The Head Of The Class, published by Milton Bradley. 1962. Box. Good. £2.50

Quiz game in which players advance up the board advancing from grade to grade in a one classroom school as questions are answered correctly. Special questions allow a grade to be skipped and luck cards can prove beneficial or not. One nice idea is that there are three sets of questions for different age ranges meaning the whole family can play the game together and all have a fair chance.

Gouda! Gouda!, published by Descartes Editeur. 2002. Box. In shrink. £8.50

Fun dice game but with plenty of decisions to make. Each player has a team of 5 mice which are trying to be the first to get to the cheese at the far end of the board. However, to get there the mice need to cross various obstacles. Each turn the current player chooses one of the locations with at least one of their own mice on, and rolls one dice per mouse there (his own or others), and the dice will indicate forwards movement, no movement or even backwards movement. These dice can be assigned to the mice as desired. Surprisingly tactical, fun and exciting as the mice get close to the cheese. Recommended - especially with my house rules.

Gran, published by Ravensburger. 1985. Box. 1 Box corner split. £5

Fantasy game with nice components. Players are knights who move across the board trying to deliver a magic ring to three cities in order to gain favour in that city. Players are trying to be the first to gain favour in all cities. During the knights' travels there are various obstacles to overcome and a dragon to be slain before a ring can be obtained. Dice are used to resolve conflicts. Special locations allow obstacles to be placed or moved to clear your route or hinder others. Also published as 'Quest'.

Greyhawk Adventures: Wars, published by TSR. 1991. Box. Good. £10.50

The box shows the AD&D logo, but this is actually a completely stand alone wargame which really has nothing to do with AD&D apart from being set in the World of Greyhawk. Thus what you get is an 8 page set of rules with about 300 counters, two map sheets and over 150 cards. Much of the game is what you would expect of a simple fantasy board wargame, but with added rules for heroes, who can either perform side adventures looking for valuable and useful treasures or command armies to give an advantage.

Guerilla, published by Avalon Hill. 1994. Box. Excellent - unpunched. £16

War based multi-player card game with some very good ideas. Players control the forces in a Third World independence struggle. Players secretly back either rebels or government but there are chances to score VPs by winning a battle even if it won't help your side in the end as it may give the player the use of a valuable resource such as an airfield. It is also possible for the U.N. to intervene and stop open warfare in which case the Secret Police come into their own... Bookcase box.

GURPS Supers - Deathwish, published by Steve Jackson Games. Booklet. Excellent. £2

Adventure module for GURPS Supers. Intended for 500 point superheroes. The characters must investigate odd goings on at and around Deathwish rock concerts from coast to coast of the U.S.

Hell Rail, two editions available:

1) Second Perdition, published by Galloglass Games. 1999. Box. Excellent. £10. The train pieces are small but made of pewter.

2) Third Perdition, published by Mayfair Games. 2001. Box. Good, but one box edge shows wear. £9. The train pieces are wooden in this edition.

The theme is Dante's Inferno. The players create a railway to deliver the souls of the damned to the appropriate circles of Hell. The card play is clever, as every card can be a load to be delivered, or be used to build rails, move trains, or even draw more cards. Additionally, upon arriving at each circle, players have the choice to call forth that circle's powers, possibly putting a serious crimp in their opponents' efforts.

Hera And Zeus, published by Rio Grande. 2000. Box. Excellent. £10

Card game, with 86 attractive cards. It features the feud between the husband and wife of the title, each one trying to gain favour with the other gods. Each player has a face down array of cards on the table representing various characters from the Greek mythology and players get to use actions to draw cards, play cards and make attacks on their opponent's hand and grid. The game can be won in various ways such as eliminating a player's grid of cards or capturing your opponent's hostage from their hand.

Hotel-König, published by Schmidt. ca.1984. Box. Good. £18

Special notes: Edges show some wear and two corners taped

Early German edition of Acquire. Players lay tiles to form chains of hotels - the more adjacent tiles in a hotel chain the more valuable its shares become. Shares are bought, but only 3 a turn, and money is very limited at the start of the game. When hotel chains are joined together on the board a merger occurs which provides payouts to shareholders. Excellent game, which is a real classic. If you don't own a copy, why not ? This edition uses a plastic board into which the plastic hotel tiles slot neatly - similar to the 3M and old AH editions.

Hullabaloo, published by Paul Lamond Games. 1993. Box. Good. £2.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 4+. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Party game. A variant on charades in which by default only noises may be made to communicate to team members what must be guessed. However, sometimes both teams get to perform simultaneously, and it is also possible to hand in a token to force a hard turn to be performed by the opposing team. Tokens can also be played to allow you to interfere with your opponents by making counterproductive noises or to make it easier by allowing gestures to be made. In addition sometimes the volume at which the noises must be made is specified too!

In 80 Tagen Um Die Erde, published by Ravensburger. 1986. Box. Good. £11

Special notes: Comes with a set of laminated English versions of the event cards.

Race game based on the Jules Verne story. Wooden pieces. Game play involves using cards to move from space to space along a track. In order to make a move a numbered card must be played which matches the currently available transport type. Special cards allow the current transport method to be changed, or hinder other players, and landing on certain spaces gives additional benefits, often allowing a further card play, making quite long moves possible from time to time. Recommended as a light but enjoyable game. Also published as Around The World In 80 Days.

In The Year Of The Dragon, published by Rio Grande Games. 2007. Box. In shrink. £23.50

Clever and very well regarded resource management game set in medieval China. The players are Chinese princes who each try to run their province most successfully. Players make use of their advisers' abilities to gain resources and plan for the sequence of disasters which befall the land. Thus sometime players must store rice against famines, or prepare their warriors against Mongol attacks, or ensure their coffers can cope with harsh taxes imposed by the Emperor. Good planning and use of your opportunities and resources are needed to do well.

Iron Dragon, published by Mayfair. 1994. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Excellent - unpunched. £14.50 2) Good. £12

Country: American, Duration: 3 hrs, Desc. by Eamon.

Railway building game set in a fantasy world. Based on the original system seen in Empire Builder. Players use special pens to build their track on the board (which wipes clean after each game), with the aim of reaching as many towns as possible so that the tracks can be used for freight deliveries. In this version each player has the power of a different race, eg. the elves can build track through forest more easily etc.

Jacoby On Card Games, published by Pharos Books. 1986. Book. Good. £3

Hardback with dustcover, 22x14cm, 242 pages. Before his death, Oswald Jacoby, a renowned player and writer on Bridge and other card games worked with his son to produce this book. The book gives the rules, strategies and examples of play for the following: Bridge (10 variations and related games), Cribbage (3-6 handed), Crazy Eights, Euchre, Fan Tan, Five Hundred (2-6 handed), Hearts, Michigan, Oh Hell, Pinochle (4 variations), Poker (28 variations), Rummy (19 variations), Seven Up, Setback, Spades, Spite & Malice, Solitaire (39 with 1 deck, 16 with 2 decks).

Journey Through Europe, published by Ravensberger. 1980. Box. Good. £4

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: British, Duration: 30 mins, Desc. by Andy.

A travel game of strategy and planning. Players all start at different points in Europe and must visit 8 different cities around the board before returning to their starting point. First to get home wins. Although a dice is rolled to determine movement points for the turn, these can either be used one point per road segment, or more points for air travel, the number of movement points depending on the length of the flight, and a whole turn for sea travel. Thus there are plenty of route planning decisions to be made, as well as making sure the cities are visited in the optimum order.

League Of Six, published by Czech Games Editions. 2007. Box. In shrink. £26

Set in 1430, the League of Six consists of 6 wealthy Lusation towns who have joined together for trade and political stability. As young and ambitious aristocrats the players take the roles of tax collectors and try to bring in as much revenue as possible for the king whilst also gaining the support of the estates. Each turn you can visit one of the cities, and gain goods and/or influence. Ultimately the player with the most influence wins. Very highly regarded game.

Leave One, published by Valco. 1967. Box. Excellent. £4.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 1. Country: American, Duration: 10 mins, Desc. by Eamon.

Very nice item from the sixties "a relaxing game for the busy Executive" as it says on the box. The board is a triangle shaped grid of 15 holes, into which you place 15 metal pegs, rather like large Cribbage pegs. The object is to jump pegs in such a way that you end up with one peg left in hole number one. A variation of Solitaire, but beautifully produced.

Lost Treasure, published by Parker. 1982. Box. Good. £10

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: Canadian, Duration: 45 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Board game which is controlled by an electronic console. Players each have a salvage ship and try to find and recover lost treasure from the sea floor. The console keeps track of two treasures at once, and players move their ships and then get to narrow down the location of one of the treasures by asking if it is E-W or N-S of their ship. Once a treasure has been located the player dives for it which is resolved using the console - there are 9 places to check, with different sea depths and air is used up as you dive, so you mustn't stay down too long or you will lose everything gained so far on that dive - judging the dives is tense and great fun.

Magic Realm, published by Avalon Hill. 1979. Box. Good. £40

Special notes: The original 16 character cards are missing, but I have colour scanned, printed and laminated a (very good) replacement set.

Complex fantasy game with a board made up of large hex tiles, providing a different layout to play on each time. The rule book introduces rules with each scenario so that you learn them gradually (assuming you play them in order). The rules are complex, but cover all sorts of possibilities, making the full game a sort of board game version of dungeons and dragons, without the need for a GM. There are 16 different characters each with their own characteristics and character advancement possibilities. Quite collectable these days too.

Match Of The Week, published by Unknown. ca.1970. Box. 1 Box corner split. £3.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Soccer game with no company or designer credited. Simple movement system for the players, using dice on a large board covered by a grid of circles. However, there are quite a few options on how and where to kick the ball, including rules for ground level passing and aerial passes / shots and even dribbling. The defending player can also choose to foul if the attack looks too dangerous.

Max Haines Mystery Challenge Books, published by Family Games Inc.

Softback, 22x17cm, 40 pages. Picture puzzle book in which you are posed a mental challenge to unravel by studying the associated picture. Includes 12 puzzles as well as solutions. Nice items.

Vol. 1, 1990. Excellent. £1.75

Vol. 2, 1992. Excellent. £1.75

Vol. 3, 1992. Excellent. £1.75

Vol. 4, 1992. Excellent. £1.75

Mini Black Box, published by Waddingtons. 1979. Box. Good. £7

Travel version of this is an excellent deduction game. One player secretly sets the position of 4 light reflecting 'atoms' and the other player sends theoretical rays of light into the black box, and is told where the ray of light comes out. Since the light may have been reflected by multiple 'atoms' this can get quite complex and requires quite a bit of logical thought. Recommended highly to anyone who likes games of logic and deduction. Neatly designed so the markers are safely stored away during transit.

Miniature Wargames Issue 15, published by A.E.Morgan Publications. 1984. Magazine. Good. £0.75

Nicely produced 48 page magazine with some colour pictures. Covers the miniature wargames hobby and related topics. Articles this issue: Storming The Schellenberg, Warriors & Weapons of the Chariot era, Kamikaze in Miniature, Fiasco 84 Report, English Tactics in the Hundred Year War, Battle of Worcester, Two Ladies of Old Japan, Book Reviews, The Infantry Platoon in Normandy.

Monster In My Pocket Battle Cards, published by MEG. ca.1990. Box. Good. £1

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Top trumps style game in which the cards all show monsters of all sorts with ratings for Intelligence, Strength, Speed and Limitations, as well as card point values. Players take it in turn to challenge each other using the various attributes in order to win their cards.

Monsters Menace America, published by Hasbro Avalon Hill. 2005. Box. Excellent. £16

Fun game with plastic pieces, played on a large scale hex-map of the United States. Players 'wear two hats', first they are a Giant Monster (there are lots to choose from), and secondly they are a branch of the civilian defence force. Obviously, they must wreak havoc with their monster and stop the other monsters with their civilian units. One nice idea is that the monsters can sack nuclear facilities to gain interesting mutations! If you like the theme then well worth playing - silly, but great fun, and this updated edition of the original AH version (Monsters Ravage America) has nicer components too.

Moonstar, published by Avalon Hill. 1981. Box. Good. £7

Incredible game of skill, a real brain-bender, yet when you open the box all you can see are loads of dice! First issued as Corona in Germany. This version doesn't have the nice wooden pieces of the German version, but it does have expanded rules, including 11 variants. The game itself involves rolling the dice to set up a situation on the board and then all players analysing the setup and spotting the highest way to score using the dice. After 1 minute players bid and the highest bidder shows how he gets his score. Some similar ideas to Ricochet Robots by the same designer, but rather more abstract.

Mystery On The Nile / Das Geheimnis Auf Dem Nil, published by Euro Games. Box. Several available:

1) Das Geheimnis Auf Dem Nil, ca.1995. Country: German. Excellent. £8

2) Das Geheimnis Auf Dem Nil, ca.1995. Country: German. In shrink. £9

3) Mystery On The Nile, ca.1997. Country: French. Good. £9

Light mystery game in which the players compete to determine who stole Lokita Posperita's pearl necklace, and where it is now hidden. This is done by looking at pairs of evidence cards in different locations and making deductions. However, players can switch cards to throw other players off the trail. Players also control the length of the game by deciding how fast the steamship moves on its way to Cairo, as once at Cairo the game ends.

Nuclear War, published by Flying Buffalo. ca.1990. Box. Good. £13

Card game, described as a comical cataclysmic card game of global destruction. Players compete to wipe-out their opponent's populations. Players plan two moves ahead, playing cards. These cards can try to gain political influence using propaganda or can set off nuclear weapons in a preemptive strike. Sometimes it is possible to scare other countries with false alarms, and potentially start a nuclear war 'by accident'.

Ogallala, published by Pelikan. ca.1978. Box. Box base shows wear. £10

The original version of this game which was later republished as Blackfeet and rethemed as Chaos Marauders and Starships. Players draw cards, illustrated in full colour, to 'build' canoes. The canoe parts include various creatures, totem poles, lots of Indians, etc. The idea is to complete your canoes, and as each is completed it gets a chance to attack an opponent's canoe, and take some of the booty. Players can try to build small weak canoes quickly or large powerful canoes, but slowly. There is a significant bonus for the player who manages to complete their three canoes first. Recommended.

On The Spot, published by Penguin. 1986. Book. Good. £2.50

Softback, 21x15cm, 265 pages. An intriguing game book of 'moral diversions'. The book consists of over 200 situations in which you are in a difficult situation and have to decide what you do. A series of questions make you and your friends analyse the situation and see who has a heart of gold and who is as ruthless as they come.

On The Underground, published by JKLM Games. 2006. Box. In shrink. £23

Players build their own Underground lines on a map of the London Underground. The objective is to ensure your part of the network will be used as much as possible in order to link up various supply and demand tokens. In addition there are benefits to building to terminal stations and creating a loop (aka the Circle Line).

Organized Crime, published by Koplow. 1974. Box. Good, but corners taped, edges show wear. £10

Second edition, with plastic pieces in the red box. Players try to eliminate all the other players by 'hitting' their Boss. Hitmen are moved around the board in order to build up influence through corrupt politicians, legal and illegal businesses and investments. Hitmen are sometimes penalised for their mistakes (via cards) and attempts can be made to eliminate crime Bosses, and thus their owning player. Negotiation is also an important aspect of the game, in order to gain other people's votes of support in return for money or future favours.

Overlord, published by Condor. 1974. Box. Good. £3

Interesting abstract game, played on a board with a raised area in the centre (the wall). Pieces can jump each other, stand on the wall, and stack to control other pieces, with the object of capturing all the opponent's pieces. Columns of pieces are controlled by whoever has the top piece, and a column of pieces has more limited movement than a single piece which can make special 'hopping' moves, and getting a piece or column to your opponent's back row allows a special and powerful 'flying' move.

Paranoia, published by West End Games. Box. 2 editions available:

1) First Edition. 1984. Good. £5.50. This set includes: 24 page Player Handbook, 64 page Gamesmaster Handbook, 52 page Adventure Handbook, 20 sided dice.

2) Second Edition. 1987. Box. Mint. £4.50. This set includes 136 page Rule Book inc a complete adventure, 16 page Compleat Troubleshooter Guide. 20 sided dice.

Classic roleplaying game set in a future in which everything is controlled by an all powerful computer and the characters find it hard to do anything right according to the computer's contradictory rules. Great fun game which will have you both laughing and crying. Needs to be experienced.

Paranoia - Gamemaster Screen, published by West End Games. 1985. GM Screen. Mint. £0.25

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

GM's screen for the humorous science fiction RPG, Paranoia.

Pickomino, published by Rio Grande Games. 2005. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Excellent. £16 2) In shrink. £17.50

Dice game in which each player gets to roll 8 dice, put aside as many of one number as they wish and then reroll, repeatedly setting aside dice showing a number that hasn't yet been set aside until they are happy with their total or they cannot set aside any dice in which case they have bust. The objective is to score as highly as possible on the dice set aside and doing this allows you to claim a very nicely made 'prize domino', but a failure means giving back one of these dominoes. It is sometimes possible to steal these prizes from other players, and each failure brings the end of the game closer. The player with most points on their prizes at the end of the game wins. Fast and fun - recommended.

Play Better Bridge, published by Octopus. 1979. Book. Good. £5

Hardback with dust cover, 157 pages, 29x22cm. Includes a foreword by Omar Sharif. Includes black and white plates and diagrams. Using over 200 hands the author teaches by explaining how experts bid and played various interesting hands. Chapters include: Bridge Today, Bidding in contested / uncontested hands, The Play, Opening Leads, Defensive Play, Bols Bridge Tips, The Champions, Old Masters. The book is all in English despite being printed in Spain.

Play These Hands With Me, published by W. H. Allen. 1976. Book. Good. £5

Hardback with dustcover, 22x15cm, 195 pages. Bridge book in which this world championship winning author takes you through 60 different hands each with a different challenge. You get to see what goes through the mind of such a player, and so can learn from him easily. Intended for reasonably experienced Bridge players who will understand common conventions.

Playing Politics, published by Pelican Books. 1979. Book. Good. £8

Softback, 20x13cm, 126 pages. Book about the games aspect of real life politics which presents seven political games you can play. The games are: Primitive Politics (2-2 Billion players, 90 mins), Entrepreneurs (3-30 players, 2 hrs), Elections (2-30 players, 90 mins), Coalitions (3-30 players, 90 mins), Coalections (3-30 players, 2 hrs), Rolling Logs (5-30 players, 90 mins), Agenda (5+ players, 2 hrs).

Polterdice, published by Kidult Games. 2002. Box. Excellent. £16

Tactical dice game in which the players take turns rolling 8 dice and splitting them into pairs and then using the resulting numbers to advance up the stairs up to various secret rooms in which both a treasure and a ghost can be found. The player who gets their man to each room first will get some treasure, while the others who are on the stairs will get a chance to capture the ghost (or 'polterdice') and gain some treasure that way. Choosing how to split your dice can be interesting as 2s and 12s give special abilities, but 7s are always wasted. Most treasure when the game ends wins.

Pro Action Football - Deutschland, published by Parker. 1993. Box. Good. £2.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Special notes: 1 figure has an arm broken off, and one has a hand broken off. Still entirely usable though.

Set of 11 footballers which the box says is Germany, but the team is in blue shirts, black shorts and blue socks. Not the German strip I know, so perhaps their alternate colours? This is for use in Parker's Pro Action Football game (which is somewhat like subbuteo).

Quandary, published by Spears. 1970. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Good but 1 corner taped. £1.25. The cards numbered 1-12 have been replaced with larger laminated ones (nicer than the originals!)

2) Good, but small label removal mark. £1.25

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Simple but clever race game. Each player has 4 men but they can only move forward or diagonally forward on to a space which matches one of the colours in front of one of their opponent's men. Simple, but surprisingly interesting.

Ra, published by Uberplay. 2005. Box. In shrink. £21

The players seek to obtain the most valuable holdings during three epochs of ancient Egypt. The game is essentially an auction game, but a very clever one, and very nicely produced with attractive ancient Egyptian designs. Players buy batches of tiles which include influence over the pharaohs, civilization advancements, gold, plots of land on the Nile and great monuments. At the end of each epoch these are scored, and some will fade away while others remain for future epochs. Recommended. This is the second edition.

Race For The Galaxy, published by Rio Grande Games. 2007. Box. In shrink. £18.50

Space themed card game in which the players start with a base on a single planet, and develop their own empire as the game progresses. Each turn there are several phases: Explore (get more cards), Develop (play and pay for a new technology), Settle (obtain a base on a new world), Trade (sell goods for VPs or more cards), and Produce (get goods on productive worlds). However, each turn only a few of these phases will occur, and the players decide which will happen by card play. Every card has special abilities ensuring that the game will be very replayable, allowing for different strategies and combinations of strategies. Very highly regarded despite it being a bit confusing the first time played - recommended.

Reef Encounter, published by R&D Games. 2004. Box. New - unpunched. £15

Note: This game does not come in the original box, but a white box. Otherwise it is the same as the original edition.

Strategy game in which the players control parrotfish which patrol ever growing coral reefs. Players get to extend the reefs in the way most favourable to themselves and can also control which of the types of coral is dominant and thus can grow over the top of other corals. The parrotfish are used to claim reefs for a player when it is thought to be worth scoring. The game uses a series of clever interlocking mechanisms which take a while to master, but then allow for a great deal of cunning play. The box is nearly overflowing with colourfully produced components.

Regatta, published by 3M. 1968. Box. 2 copies available:

1) Good. £22. 3 section board. Box clip splitting, but functional. Inner box shows slight water damage, but contents unaffected.

2) Good. £22. 3 section board. Box clip missing, but still stays shut. Photocopied rules.

The original, and better, version of this classic yacht racing game. Design your own course. Given that everybody is equal in theory, you will be surprised by the distances between players by the end. This is the wrap-around box version, with the fold out board (which is also the outer box), the island wind indicator, and vastly superior rules to the later book case version. Metal pieces. Very nice item. I can also supply my own summary of the basic rules which are easier to understand for non sailors. Includes various clever mechanics: stealing the wind, unexpected wind changes, managing the lean of your yacht, usage of puff cards (limited bonus movement), and spinnaker usage. Recommended.

Reminiscing …, published by Paul Lamond Games. Box. 2 editions available:

1) Reminiscing 1950s - 1980s, ca.1990. Good. £5

2) Reminiscing 1960s - 1990s, ca. 2000. Good. £5

Trivia based game which includes 4 question books each with questions on one of the four decades covered in the game. Players are initially given a tricky trivia question, but then get three clues. The more clues read before an answer is given the less points awarded. Sometimes a player will be asked to tell a short anecdote from their past which relates to a randomly selected subject instead of answering a question.

Remy Martin Piquet Cards, published by Remy Martin. ca.1990. Box. Excellent, contents unused. £3

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2. Country: British, Duration: 30 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Piquet card set with rules for this classic two player card game. The set includes two decks (7 to Ace + Jokers) and the rules to Piquet. This is a trick taking game in which the players get a chance to exchange cards with the deck and also to declare sets for bonus points but potentially giving away information about their hand. Attractively packaged promotional set.

Return Of The Heroes, published by Pegasus Publishing. 2003. Box. Excellent. £23

Wonderfully produced fantasy adventure boardgame. A land is made up differently each time using 16 large and colourful region tiles. Players have a character each having different abilities, and they explore the land encountering monsters and various events. Each character has a heroic quest to complete, and can also pick up a selection of smaller tasks to perform, which will often involve finding an item and / or taking it to a particular place. During this the characters improve their abilities with the ultimate goal of being able to take on the nameless evil and his minions which start to oppress the land as the game goes on. The game uses lots of large counters, wooden cubes, glass beads and even semi precious stones as components.

Round Britain, published by Pepys. ca.1960. Box. Good. £6

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Card game, 44 cards in suits relating to the proximity of the places on them to London. A rummy variant that also gets across the recognition of road safety signs. Attractive pictures from around Britain as you would expect from this company.

Royal Flush, published by Edition Spielbox. 1993. Pouch. Good. £2

A colour folded A3 sheet which acts as gameboard as well as having the rules on the back. You will also need a pack of cards and a couple of playing pieces to play. The game is essentially a cross between Liar's Dice and Poker. Players make Poker hands with the cards and then bluff about them, stating a hand which theirs is at least as good as. The next player can either call their bluff or say he has a better hand still.

Rubik's Race, published by Ideal. 1982. Box. Good. £8

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Competitive 5x5 sliding block puzzle game. A clever device generates a 3x3 random assortment of colour squares (like the side of a muddled up Rubik's cube) and players must match this pattern with the centre 3x3 area on their individual sliding block board. Players have to think and move fast to beat their opponent to it. Very intense but good fun. Recommended.

Runequest - Monster Coliseum, published by Avalon Hill. 1985. Box. Mint. £5.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

Runequest roleplaying supplement. Boxed set no. 1. Arena combat and chariot racing for Runequest. The set includes a Monster book (soldiers & gladiators human and non human, natural animals, supernatural monsters); a Coliseum book describing arena layouts and diagrams and chariot info; Play aids - coliseum floorplan, rangestick, etc.

Savage Attack: A Players Guide To Rage, published by White Wolf. 1995. Book.

Good but cover lightly creased. £2.50

Softback, 21x14cm, 208 pages. Players guide to the Rage CCG, which is set in White Wolf's World of Darkness where werewolves and vampires prevail. The book includes an intro (with illustrated story) and designers notes, as well as play strategies, background information on the World of Darkness, and the concept of adding Storytelling to your Rage games. Complete card lists, expanded rules and a short story complete the package.

Schuss Und Tor, published by Franjos. 1988. Box. Good. £5

Card game with a soccer theme. Participants play cards to make passes from soccer player to soccer player using cards which specify the player with the ball and the receiving player eg. "Luigi to Max", and if they can't play a suitable card their opponent gets a shot on goal, and a card is drawn from the special deck to determine the result. Unusually it can be played with 3 players, each scoring goals for themselves, giving a rather odd result such as 4-2-1. With 2 or 4 participants you get more traditional results.

Schwerpunkt Issue 1, published by 3W. 1993. Magazine. Good. £0.75

Designer Unknown. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

Magazine dedicated to the support and expansion of 3W games. Articles this issue include: Operation Barbarossa: The Southern Wing, Salvo!, Salvo II, Blitzkrieg in the South, Deisgner Profile: Rob Markham, Starting a Games Company, Raid on Richmond, The Campaigns of Frederick The Great, Clarifications & Errata.

Scrye's Magic The Gathering Player's Guide, published by Scrye. 1996. Magazine. Excellent. £0.50

This is an unofficial guide to the cards published for Magic: The Gathering up to the time of publishing. The booklet lists all the cards published by type and gives their casting cost, expansion and the text on them. Very useful reference for Magic players who want to have a handy way to see what the older cards could do. Produced in full colour, 48 pages.

Shadowfist Players' Guide Vol. 1, published by Daedalus Entertainment. 1996. Book. Excellent. £3.50

Softback, 27x22cm, 94 pages. Book for players of the Shadowfist CCG. This CCG is themed on Kung Fu movies and players try to control feng shui sites in order to control the world. This book gives an excellent introduction to the world of Shadowfist, and also gives rules updates and strategy suggestions, as well as much of the book showing all the cards in the game at the time, and explaining how to use each one.

Shear Panic, published by Fragor Games. 2005. Box. Good. £30

Tactical game in which players use a variety of movement methods to manipulate the positions of the sheep within the herd in order to improve the scores their own sheep will get. The sheep are wonderfully made resin models, nicely painted and very attractive - there are 11of these miniatures. Highly regarded second release from the Lamont Brothers, which was produced in a limited print run, but has since been reprinted in America.

Skull & Crossbones, published by Paul Lamond Games. ca.1990. Box. Good. £7

Pirate themed board game which can be played while a video is played (though it can also be used without the video). The players are pirates who have left Captain Skull's ship and are trying to find his hidden treasure and then escape before their former boss turns up for revenge. Movement is by card play, and keys need to be picked up to open the chests. On the video Captain Skull tries to hinder the players while his parrot helps the players.

Sleuth, published by Avalon Hill. 1981. Box. Box shows wear. £13

A classic game of deduction. A gem has been stolen, and the players have to work out which it is. There is a card for each possible gem, and one is removed from the game unseen, while the others are dealt out. Special question cards allow players on their turn to ask an opponent a question to try to work out who has which cards, and thus by a process of elimination ultimately work out which card is not in play. Highly recommended if you like deduction games - this is definitely a classic.

Space Crusade + Mission Dreadnaught Expansion, published by Milton Bradley. 1989. Box. Good. £33

Designed by Steve Baker. No. players: 2-4. Country: British, Desc. by Andy. Special notes: There are a few very minor items missing, but nothing which will make the game unplayable. The doors also show wear. Figures have been painted. Very impressively produced science fiction combat game. There are masses of plastic figures with interchangeable weaponry, including Space Marines and Genestalkers. Various missions to complete, with a ranking system for surviving troops so that they can improve their skills in future missions. The game was jointly developed by MB & Games Workshop so is a sort of Heroquest set in a Games Workshop's dark future S.F. world. This set includes the Mission Dreadnaught Expansion (without its box) with more missions and more giant Dreadnaught battle machines.

Star Wars: Battle For Endor, published by West End Games. ca.1989. Box. Good. £17

Special notes: One edge of the base has a small 'gouge'.

Solitaire game set in the Star Wars Universe. Imperial Troops surround the Rebel strike team, and the mission looks like it will fail. However, there is one last chance - the heroes from Return of the Jedi and a disorganised small army of ewoks could yet turn the tide by penetrating the secret base and destroying the Imperial facilities there. Play is card driven, with the game rules determining where Imperial forces will move and fire when activated by cards. The player must use their limited forces well to keep the Imperial forces at bay long enough to penetrate and then destroy the secret bunker. An enjoyable and tense solo game.

Starship Tycoons, published by Griffin Games. 1986. Box. Good. £5

Space trading game in a bookcase box. Essentially you travel the galaxy making deals to gain wealth, with the bizarre objective of raising enough money to buy the Moon (which the Earth Government has put up for sale!). Players can choose to buy extra cargo holds for their ships to enhance their trading, but will need to trade more to recoup the cost. Events occur during the game to add adventure to the trading.

Sticheln 2nd Ed, published by Amigo. ca.2003. Box. In shrink. £6.25

Card game. Trick taking game, but with twists to add to the interest. Players seek to gain points by collecting cards in tricks in certain suits, while avoiding other suits which they will be penalised for. Players can choose their 'pain' suit at the start of each hand. During a trick players do not have to follow suit, with the first non-matching card indicating trumps for that trick. The 2nd edition has extra cards allowing the game to be played with up to 8 players. It also has cards and rules which let you play the excellent trick taking game Hattrick, as well as several Sticheln variants. All this makes for an excellent card game package. Recommended.

Swindle, published by Waddingtons. 1976. Box. Several copies available:

1) Fair. £0.50. 1 end of the box discoloured, 2 box corners taped, base indented due to stacking. Contents fine.

2) Box base indented. £1.25

2) Good, but shows some wear. £1.25. The box base is slightly indented, and one corner is taped. 4 / 30 £5000 notes missing - this does not affect play.

Designer Unknown. No. players: 3-6. Country: British, Desc. by Andy. Antique dealing game in which the players must buy cheap, sell high, and deal in the odd fake along the way while avoiding being caught by the police.

Taj Mahal, published by Rio Grande. Box.. 2 editions availabke:

1) 2006. In shrink. £24. 2^nd Editon. 2) 2000. Excellent. £20. 1^st Edition.

Wonderful game of imperial expansion across India. Players strive to build palaces, province by province. Victory points can be accumulated in various ways, such as collecting trade goods, and achieving a good network of palaces across the board. The heart of the game is a very unusual card bidding mechanism in which up to 5 rewards are being bid for simultaneously - very clever, and if you judge things wrongly the bidding can go horribly wrong. Recommended.

Take My Word, published by Condor. 1974. Box. Good. £3

Original word game featuring lettered tiles. Words are made, some letters face up, some face down, but you have an option of bluffing by putting down a made up word. As well as extending your word by taking a new tile, you can attempt to guess opponents' words, steal opponents' words to make longer words yourself, or call someone's bluff. The number of tiles in the game is very limited (31), so you can tell what tiles other players can't have hidden, which should help you work out what their word is (or if they are bluffing).

Talisman, published by Games Workshop. 1983. Box. Good - one box corner damaged. £30

First edition. Famed game of quests and adventure. Masses of cards ensuring that every game is different. Green, bookcase box.

Talisman, published by Games Workshop. 1985. Box. Good, but corners taped. £25

Special notes: 2 of 104 adventure cards and 4 of 140 generic counters missing. The game is still entirely playable despite this.

Second edition. Popular and now highly sought after fantasy game of quests and adventure. Masses of cards ensuring that every game is different. Full colour edition, in the black bookcase box.

Talisman 3rd Ed + Expansions, published by Games Workshop. 1994. Box. Good, but box edges show wear. £65

Special notes: Missing 15/27 miniatures and the huge Dragon miniature, but also includes extra cards and character sheets from an extra base set!

Third edition. Very popular and highly sought after fantasy adventure game. The game play is similar to previous editions, but there have been significant rules changes which make this not really compatible with expansions from previous editions. The game uses loads of event cards and a variety of characters to ensure the play is different each time. This set comes in the big red 3rd edition box, and inside the box (no longer with their own boxes) are the following 3rd edition expansions: City of Adventure, Dungeon of Doom, and Dragon's Tower. An excellent package.

Talisman Dungeon, published by Games Workshop. 1987. Box. Good. £7.50

Special notes: Box missing, all components in a large envelope.

Expansion set for Talisman, the fantasy adventure quest game (1^st / 2^nd editions only). This set includes The Dungeon board, doorway cards, Adventure cards, and new character cards and playing pieces.

Tesco Shopping Game, published by Tesco. 2002. Box. Good. £0.75

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Children's Game (age 3+). Each player has a large shopping basket tile with 6 spaces and a shopping list tile showing six different items of shopping which need to be found in order to fill their basket and win. The items of shopping tiles are placed face down on the table and shuffled, and players take turns to turn one face up, hoping to find items they need, and remember where they are when found by other players. 'Whoops' tiles cause you to discard an item already in your basket.

The Cheers Game, published by TSR. 1987. Box. Good. £0.75

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: American, Desc. by Eamon.

TV related trivia game, based on one of the great comedy shows. Play your favourite character (Sam, Diane, Woody, Carla, Cliff, Frasier or Norm). Special feature is 'Norm's Olympics', where you get to use your dexterity to stop Norm from dropping his beer. Cast pictured on the lid.

The Official BBC Cricket Quiz Game, published by Horsman. 1988. Box. Good. £3

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Cricket quiz game with a very nice cricket style scoreboard to keep track of runs scored and wickets taken for home and visiting teams (which could be used in other cricket games too), and a scoring system which reflects cricket scoring. The batsman decides each time whether to got for 1, 2, 4 or 6 runs and is then given the appropriate question. Special rules deal with being bowled or run out.

The Pillars Of The Earth, published by Mayfair Games. 2007. Box. In shrink. £26. Desc. by Andy.

Excellent resource and action management game. The game is set in the medieval world of Ken Follett's novel of the same name, but you don't need to have heard of it to appreciate this game. The players all want to help build a new Cathedral, and to do so send out workers to the quarries, and decide which actions to perform each round. Resources gained from the quarries can be sold, or used by craftsmen to gain VPs. The game uses an interesting and well thought out action system which means you can't always get what you want, and have to carefully consider the cost of having the best choice of action. Highly recommended.

The Play-It Book, published by Rand McNally & Co. 1928. Book. Good but covers detached (but present). £5

Softback, 25x20cm, 47 pages. Written by a former physical education teacher, the writer wants to ensure that the new generation of children aren't idle. The book includes many very attractive 1920's illustrations of the games and activities described. These fall into the following catageories Play-Lot Days (7), One Day On The Sidewalk (8), A Rainy Day (10), A Day In The Woods (10), A Summer Day On The Lawn (7), One Day At The Beach (10), A Picnic Day (9), Days In Bed And Afterwards (9). Nice item.

The Stock Exchange Game, published by The Stock Exchange. ca.1987. Box. Good. £7.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: British, Duration: 90 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Promotional game, made, I suspect, to cash in on the publicity for the Big Bang in 1986, the transference of share transactions to a computer based system. Very nicely designed, the plastic part trays actually combine to form the board. Includes a 'Guide to Buying and Selling on the Stock Exchange'. Sold with the tag-line "Who Shares Wins". The game mechanics reuse some of those from Monopoly, such as a tracks around which the players move their tokens, and gaining extra money on passing the start space. However, the game involves buying and selling shares rather than developing property,

The Transformers Game, published by Milton Bradley. 1986. Box. Fair. £0.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Special notes: 1 box corner damaged, and 1 plastic robot no longer 'transforms'.

Not the same as the similarly named game by Warren. Themed on the childrens' TV series and range of toy robots. Each player controls 3 robots which can transform into aeroplanes by 'folding' the plastic piece. The objective is to be the first player to get all your Transformers to the Command HQ in robot form. Play involves movement by dice and battles when opposing pieces meet. Battles are resolved using cards.

The Wizard Of Oz, published by Pressman. 1999. Box. Good. £3

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

Special notes: The video is NOT included with this set.

This package includes a video of the classic Wizard of Oz film, and also The Yellow Brick Road board game (for children aged 3-6). In the game the players are trying to be the first to collect Ruby Slippers, A Medallion of Courage, a Heart and then to get to the finish line. Game play involves playing cards to move and sometimes spinning a spinner. There are some special spaces which you action when you land on them.

The World Of Motor Racing - Parts 1 & 3, published by Lambourne Games. ca.1991. Packets. Excellent. £10.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 1+. Country: British, Duration: 75 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Motor racing replay game, which covers the 1965 and 1990 Grand Prix seasons and the British Touring Car Championship. Unusually for this company the game comes with a plastic board. The game attempts to recreate only the highlights of various motor racing championships. The idea being that there is no need to replay every lap, but only the highlights, while tracking relative positions and problems with the cars etc. In this way a full Grand Prix can be replayed in about an hour and a quarter. There are numerous charts and tables, and starting grids etc for the seasons covered.

Theakston Brewing Cards, published by T & R Theakston. ca.1997. Box. Excellent. £2

Designer Unknown. No. players: 1+. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

An interesting promotional deck of playing cards produced by Theakstons Brewers, who famously make Old Peculiar ale. The set of cards all have information on the history of Theakstons on, with a small picture of the playing card in the corner. This has all been done in the style of promotional playing cards of the early 19th century, and so makes an intriguing item for the playing card collector or drinker of Theakston ales.

Top Quartets: Flowers, published by Dubreq. ca.1985. Box. Excellent. £1

Designer Unknown. No. players: 3+. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Quartet game made by the same people as make Top Trumps. This set of 32 cards all depicting flowers from around the world is divided into sets of 4. A rules card explains how to play a version of 'Go Fish' with the cards, but you can play any quartet game with them.

Top Trumps: Ships, published by Dubreq. ca.1990. Box. Good. £1

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Card game, 32 cards featuring modern ships (passenger ships and freight ships) and their statistics, plus a rules card. Players take it in turn to challenge the other players to beat one of the statistics on their top card in order to win more cards.

Top Trumps: Sports Cars, published by Winning Moves. 2000. Box. Good. £1

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Card game, 30 cards featuring high-performance cars and their statistics, plus a rules card. Players take it in turns to challenge the others' cards with one of their cars' specifications in order to try and win their opponents' cards.

Top Trumps: The Beano, published by Winning Moves. 2001. Box. Good. £1

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: British, Duration: 20 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Card game, 30 cards featuring Dennis The Meance and all his cronies and their statistics, plus a rules card. Players take it in turns to challenge the others' cards with one of their characters' attributes in order to try and win their opponents' cards.

Totem, published by Queen Games. 1995. Box. Good. £8. Desc. by Andy.

Players manage a tribe of indians each, and every turn must assign their people amongst 3 huts. Then players use their resources to play enhancing spells on their own huts and unpleasant spells on opponents' huts. The spells are resolved, food is gathered, babies are born and the population ages. The biggest tribe each turn gets an extra totem pole segment which allows more spells to be cast but also makes that tribe more of a target. It is quite possible for a tribe to become unviable and have to start again from scratch. Clever game with good mechanics. Very nice bits too.

Toys & Games, published by Smithsonian Institution. 1981. Book. Excellent. £3

Hardback with dustcover, 28x23cm, 128 pages. Many colour plates. The author takes the reader on a tour of toys and games from Ancient Egypt up to the time of writing. The chapters cover: Introduction, The Earliest Toys, Wooden Playthings, Dolls Dollhouses & Playthings, Tin & Cast Iron Toys, Soldiers, Paper Playthings, Card Table & Board Games, Optical Devices, Banks, Advice for the Collector.

Tribond, published by Patch Products Inc. 1998. Box. Good, 1 corner taped. £6

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2+. Country: American, Duration: 1 hr, Desc. by Andy.

Family game in which players or teams of players try to spot the common element between three things listed on cards. The cards come in various categories: Entertainment, Sports & Recreation, Academics, Riddles & Wordplay. Identifying the thing in common is rewarded by movement around the board and landing on an opponent's playing piece results in a challenge round.

Triumph, published by Creative Crusade Ltd. 1986. Box. Good. £4

Strategy game, with a chequered board of black and white triangles and 4 sets of 10 conical plastic pieces. It is essentially a multi-player draughts variant. Because triangles are used rather than squares each piece has 4 legal directions in which to move, adding considerably to the possibilities. The winner is the player with men left standing but in cases of a stalemate the player who has taken the most enemy pieces wins. Includes rules for promotion of a piece to king. The board is double-sided as a different initial layout is required for the 4-player game.

Two Busy Books, published by Young World Publications. ca.1965. Books. Excellent - unused. £0.50

Designer Unknown. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Softback, 21x15cm, 64 pages each. These two childrens activity books have pages to colour, dot to dot pictures, word puzzles, spot the differences etc. The illustrations are very much from their time period, but the activities can amuse children just as much now as they could when they were published.

USAC Autoracing, published by Avalon Hill. 1979. Box. Good. £7

Special notes: Unclear which year's drivers are included. My guess is 1978.

Very nice statistical game of the Indianapolis 500 race in America. You can play with up to 30 cars to each race, and you get to decide if you are going to drive normally, ease off or put your foot down each turn for each car. Replaying the whole Indy 500 takes about 4 hours. Generally you will play shorter races, perhaps treating them as qualifiers for the main event. It is quite possible to play with less cars and run less laps, as well as divide up ownership of the cars between several players.

Victory Insider Issue 2, published by Victory Games. 1984. Magazine. Good. £0.10

Designer Unknown. Country: American, Desc. by Andy.

Magazine devoted to printing articles about the products of Victory Games. This issue includes: Allied Strategy in Hell's Highway, New Scenario for Gulf Strike.

Viking Fury, published by Ragnar Brothers. 2004. Box. In shrink. £24

Game that spans the time of the Viking Sagas. The Norsemen raid, trade and settle the known and unknown territories of the northern hemisphere, with the objective of accumulating the most gold. The game includes an A1 size cloth map, a deck of 4-colour cards and wooden and plastic playing pieces. There are lots of different ways to gain victory points but working out which will be more efficient in your situation, and when you should interfere with other players makes it interesting. Limited print run of 500.

Visions 01 May 1999, published by Tau Press. 1999. Magazine. Excellent. £0.25

Designer Unknown. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

British roleplaying magazine. This issue has articles on: Fistful of Dwarfs - GURPS Discworld; Star Trek TNG review; Deadlands review; Chivalry & Sorcery Light review; Dork Tower cartoon; and lots more.

Walt Disney Fun With Games, published by W.H. Allen & Co.. 1989. Book. Excellent. £1

Hardback, 30 pages, 20x20cm. Book of fun and games, featuring many Walt Disney characters. There are 13 activities which are the sort of thing you might get kids to do at a party. Attractively illustrated.

Weltreise, published by Ravensburger. 1981. Box. Good. £2.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: German, Duration: 45 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Update of a Ravensburger staple game. Very popular as a family game in Germany. Players race round the world and have to visit 3 cities in each continent before returning to their starting point. Each player has a different set of cities. The map has air and road connections, but air routes use more movement points, and you cannot use an air route if another player is currently using it. Movement is by dice roll, but sometimes a plan may need to be changed on the fly depending on what is rolled and where other players are.

Who Did It..?, published by Cheatwell Games. 2004. Box. Good. £5

Designer Unknown. No. players: 3-6. Country: British, Duration: 30 mins, Desc. by Andy.

Special notes: One cardboard playing piece's base has been replaced with a colour printed equivalent - does not affect play.

Deduction game in which there are cards for 7 suspects, victims, weapons, locations and motives. One of each is secretly removed at the start of play and players try to determine which these are. This is done by going to various carriages on a train and collecting unclaimed cards, and getting to see cards in other players hands. Thus by a process of elimination the correct combination can be deduced.

Wild Flower Sevens, published by Pepys. ca.1960. Box. Good. £10

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-6. Country: British, Desc. by Eamon.

Special notes: The box shows a little wear, but otherwise very nearly Excellent

Card game, 44 cards featuring families of wild flowers in 4 suits of 11 (Marshland flowers, etc.). The game is based on the playing card game Sevens. The illustrations of the flowers are fabulous, in colour and quite detailed.

Wildlife Adventure, published by Ravensburger. 1986. Box. Good. £14

Excellent game and one of Kramer's best games. It is played on a map of the world. Players must direct 3 expeditions to reach animals they have cards for. This is done by laying coloured arrows onto the board and gaining special actions at various locations and using up valuable travel vouchers to get you extra moves or special actions when it is most important. This or one of its derivatives should be on every gamer's shelf in my opinion! Highly recommended.

Win, Place & Show, published by Avalon Hill. 1977. Box. Good. £13.50

Special notes: Bookcase box

Classic horse racing game. Players make money by owning winning horses and by gambling on their own or other's runners. The race system is very clever, with a combination of fixed form for the horses on an individual basis, small occasional bonuses according to dice rolls and a random base speed for all horses each round. This means that a horse which starts fast but runs out of pace at the end really needs high 'base' rolls to do well, whereas a fast finisher wants the reverse. There is also a lot of positional play and different quality jockeys, as well as the possibility that a player may not actually want his horse to do that well! Stats for 6 sets of horses included.

X-It, published by Millenium 2. 1996. Box. Good. £1.50

Designer Unknown. No. players: 2-4. Country: British, Desc. by Andy.

Card game, with dice. Match your hand to die rolls to get rid of your cards. The cards show the numbers 1-6 or an X, and each player starts with 6 cards. 3 dice are rolled and a card may be discarded for each of these dice if it matches or is a wild card. You win if you discard your last card, otherwise draw 1 new card ready for your next turn. The skill is deciding when to use the wild cards.

Zatre, published by Peri Spiele. 1993. Box. Good. £10

Tile laying game. The tiles show the numbers 1-6 using dice pips, and each turn a player plays 2 such tiles onto the board in order to score points. Points are scored whenever consecutive tiles add up to 10, 11 or 12, but they may never add up to more than 12. In addition each time a score is made the score is noted on a pad, and keeping the number of times 10, 11 and 12 have been scored level will give greater bonuses. The final twist is that making a scoring move on a doubling square doubles the bonus you get for an extra line on your scorepad. It makes an interesting game in which luck plays a role, but so does skill.

Zug Nach Westen, published by Mattel. 1987. Box. Good. £15

Railway game, originally published as Rock Island Line by Hans-Im-Gluck. The 'board' is built during play using over 100 hex tiles. The object is to build a complete route from Chicago to Kansas City and run your engine on this route. Play involves moving a construction team around on the map and exposing or rotating the tile on which it stands and moving your train forward as possibilities allow. It is possible to interfere with other players in this way too.

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