Solo word game a fine time filler

This review is perhaps a touch off-brand in the sense it’s really not exactly a game.

Q-Less is a solo ‘game’ without time limit, and without exactly a ‘win’ condition past an inner feeling of satisfaction when you manage the game goal.

So what is the goal with Q-Less?

Well inside a tin that reminds of one good peppermints might come in, you find 12, six-sided dice. The faces of the dice are letters.

You roll the 12 dice and then go at it to create words which use all 12 dice. The words must connect like those in the class Scrabble, and words must contain at least three letters.

The brief rules suggest not all rolls can be ‘solved’ -- I got one with a single vowel that makes success unlikely – but most should be managed.

The game helps a bit in the fact there is no ‘Q’ to deal with.

Oh, and there in no time limit, so you can sweat over a given roll as long as you have the patience.

This one from designer Tom Sturdevant and publisher Grand Isle Games has some age to it created in 2018 according to data at Board Game Geek.

Now there is nothing exactly new here.

Scribbage released in 1963 by E.S. Lowe was the same idea, except it is a competitive game for two. Players roll out the lettered-dice and create words using the same process as Q-Less, except you race against an ‘egg-timer’. In Scribbage letters are valued as in Scrabble so you score words created to a particular point value.

Scribbage was later released as Ad-Lib Crossword Cubes.

Earlier still was the 1956 release Spill and Spell. It is a word dice game where players make words to score points. Scoring is determined by squaring the number of letters in the words spelled (e.g. making a three-letter word and a four-letter word would net 25 (9+16) and subtracting the square of unused letters.

While Q-Less is not particularly innovative in terms of games with lettered-dice, it has merit based on a few factors.

To begin with it is accessible, where others mentioned are basically thrift store finds or online auction buys. You can find Q-Less at qlessgame.com

The presentation with Q-Less is great too. The dice are a good size, and the tin small enough to pocket and take anywhere.

And, while I admit my skill at this one could use some improvement, it is a rather addictive experience. For some that will mean extended study to get all 12 letters into words per the rules, and others it will be a case of ‘surrender’ and a fresh roll. Either way this is a fine time eater that fits when having coffee, or even during commercials of a sport event you are watching.

Well worth looking into as a stocking stuffer for someone a bit hard to buy for.

Quirky characters and simple rules make this a charmer

Some games just charm you from the moment you rip off the cellophane.

Cube Creatures is one of those games.

It starts with the nifty magnetic closing box lid, and the clean front of box design – both a credit to someone wanting to present their game in a most satisfying way.

Inside is a rather straight forward two-player card battler that will remind a bit of Magic the Gathering if you striped it down to its most basic mechanics – critters battling critters.

In Cube Creatures players share a single deck of cards – no pre-game time consuming deck building here, and no expense buying booster packs. (The caveat being if this one sells well you almost know an expansion would be forthcoming).

So each player gets a hand of cards – they are going to be creatures, or creature enhancements for the most part with a spattering of ‘instant’ play cards or spells.

You must have creatures in play and you have to battle. It’s really that straightforward.

You win five battles so that you claim the losing creatures and you win.

It’s quick and it is so much fun.

Helping raise this one a click higher is amazingly charming art – think the best doodles in the margins of a middle school student’s notebook. That is actually the case here since Cube Creatures is the creation of a dad and his seven-year-old son.

That combo is no doubt why this game plays so easily. It is an entry level battler for even the youngest player.

And, while it is all easy and geared to the broadest audience of gamer, grizzled old vets like Trevor and I with years of Magic, Warlord, Flesh and Blood and so many more card battlers, Cube Creatures was still ‘fun’.

Ultimately, fun is all one should want from any game, and with that you really need to check this one out via a Facebook search.

A surprising mind twister

If The Meeple Guild were to categorize 2025 it might be the year of games just a bit different from the norm hitting our table.

It is a year which has included games such as Bloomchasers, Yoink!, Rivages among others which have rule sets which are a bit different, and now we add A Carnivore Did It! 

From designers Daumilas Ardickas, and Urtis Šulinskas, and publisher Horrible Guild, A Carnivore Did It! sort of puts players in the role of detectives trying to determine the culprit from an array of suspects.

Each suspect offers up a statement which may, or may not be true – the game at least tells you how many are being untruthful in each array.

You use logic to determine who is lying and from there you hopefully can finger the culprit.

The game plays one-to-five, although there is no reason a larger number couldn’t co-operate in this one, but the arguments as everyone offers up their ideas might bog down things.

The game is a solid puzzle offering to play solo, but works as a group effort.

Now it was expected by yours truly that The Meeple Guild might not like this one because it’s quite different, but that difference actually enhanced the interest.

A Carnivore Did It! is so different from any other game in The Meeple Guild collection that it was a rather entertaining exercise.

Now if you really like the game – it could easily be a go-to solo time sink – this one can stay fresh for a very long time.

While the most basic ‘case’ has only a few suspects and one culprit to find, it ramps up the difficulty if you think you’ve got the game figured out as being too easy.

There are cases where you're searching for two culprits — or even three, and more than one of the suspects may be lying.

A Carnivore Did It! includes 2,000 cases, each with a single solution, with the difficulty increasing to have up to seven suspects, conditional statements, and varying levels of truthfulness.

The sheer volume of cases provided here really sets this game apart.

Admittedly though you will need to fall deeply in love with A Carnivore Did It! to ever complete 2,000 cases, but the sheer volume will keep the game interesting for as long as it intrigues you.

Now, while we liked this one quite a lot it’s brain burner nature – we tried a more complicated case and failed miserably – it isn’t a game for all evening play at our table. Reasonably it tops out at about a half dozen cases – certainly no more than 10 – at a session for us, and not week after week either.

But drag it out every couple of months to give the brain a bit of a workout and A Carnivore Did It! is going to shine.

As a solo it would be an interesting self-challenge to track how many cases you successfully solved when you finally check the answer – I fear my success rate would be less than impressive.

In the end A Carnivore Did It! is an acquired taste, but if it interests, it will provide hours of game time.

Check it out at www.horribleguild.com

 

Clans of Chayil offers RPGers much that is fresh

Yes there are many role playing games out there, so when a new one pops up the question must be; do we need it?

Well, when it has bipedal moose – the Ud'lan – the answer is a resounding yes.

It was a picture of an Ud'lan that caught my eye initially with Clans of Chayil, and that led to a request for a sneak peek of this one – soon to hit Kickstarter to raise funds to publish.

Recognizing previews are not full-blown looks – one should expect more in the finished book – at more than 150-pages this preview gave a pretty good look at what should be expected with Clans of Chayil.

Now initially the book suggests typical player character races – humans, elves, dwarves, halflings – but an experienced game master should expect at least one player to be begging – maybe to the point of bribing with Pocky sticks – to play an Ud'lan PC.

As the name implies this one is based around the ideas of clans, and their importance in the world. Many are detailed in the book, and they provide some definite insights into possible player development. Ties and responsibilities to one’s clan can really help a player flesh out who they are ‘in-game’ and what their motivations are.

The clan aspect leads to what designer Robert Porras sees as one of the more unique aspects of the game.

“One of the mechanics of the game is Essence. We don't have magic like magic users and mages. Every creature and every clan both good and evil have an essence. The essence of a creature gives them life,” he related via email. “In the clans of Chayil, there are two different realities. One is physical and the other is Essence. Your Essence is that which does not originate from the physical world. It is life and power. Essence is the purest form of existence, an ethereal force that does not originate from the physical world. It is the very breath of life and the wellspring of power that flows through all living things. Essence is not bound by matter or form; instead, it is a timeless energy that transcends the limitations of the material realm.

“In Chayil there is a good essence called the "Naofa Fiain" pronounced "Nafa Fane", which means "The Holy Wild".  The darkness has an essence as well called the "Dorca Anon" "Dark Soul" and both Essences run like lightning and a gentle wind through the world of Chayil. 

“So you have the physical world to deal with but at the very same time there is the world of Essence. For example a battle may be fought on the battlefield physically, while on the Essence level a battle will be fought to attack the mind, body and soul, all at the same time. It offers a deeper aspect to the world.

It’s a world-building, and character building mechanism different enough to be rather fresh.

Porras said being immersive was a goal.

“Clans of Chayil is more than just a game—it’s an immersive world designed to pull players into living, breathing stories,” he said via email. “Each scenario unfolds like a television episode, with drama, conflict, and unexpected twists that keep players on the edge of their seats. But the real magic lies in how it invites people to step into the spotlight. Players are encouraged to let their inner actor emerge, to not just play a character but to become one.

“It’s a rare opportunity to set aside the everyday weight of work, bills, and school, and enter a world where the impossible becomes possible—a world where ordinary people can rise up and become legends. In Clans of Chayil, every player’s journey is more than dice rolls and statistics; it’s a living story.

“The world challenges players to engage deeply across all four aspects of life: mental, social, physical, and spiritual. Each adventure weaves these elements together, offering moments of strategy, teamwork, endurance, and personal reflection. The result is not just a game session, but an experience that lingers. Adventures that they will talk about as though they were real.”

To create the world which creates the broad opportunities Porras wrote it takes time to create – years actually he noted.

“The idea for what would eventually become The World of Chayil  was first sparked more than 20 years ago, while I was working with a group of teenagers,” he said. “I wanted to create something that would capture their imagination and encourage them to engage with each other face-to-face, rather than disappearing into their social media.

“With 60 kids under my care, I began experimenting with a simple, homemade game. It blended the principles of role-playing games with hands-on, real-world problem solving. Some of the challenges weren’t just on paper—they took physical form as puzzles the players had to solve together. At times, each teenager fully embodied their character, stepping into the adventure as if the story were their own.

“For most of them, this was their very first exposure to the world of RPGs. The result was beyond anything I expected. The kids showed up week after week—sixty strong, gathered in a rented hall—ready to dive into this new world we had created together. The experiment was an overwhelming success.

“Years later, as I moved into retirement, the memory of those sessions still burned brightly. Along with a few close friends, I decided to take that early spark and shape it into something larger, something lasting: a fully realized game world others could explore and play for themselves.”

Perhaps the best aspect of Clans is that it avoids a world painted in blacks and whites, opting for a world where old RPG stereotypes don’t hold true – which opens new game experiences for players.

“One of the aspects I love most about writing Clans of Chayil is the living, breathing quality of its world. Creatures, characters, and entire races aren’t locked into rigid roles—they adapt, evolve, and surprise,” said Porras. “Take the orcs, for example. In most fantasy worlds, they’re painted as mindless brutes or villains. But in Chayil, the story is more complex. There exists a tribe of orcs who have broken away from their warmongering kin and chosen the path of peace, seeking alliance with the Chosen Ones.

“This is the kind of twist that reshapes how players view the world. What appears to be an enemy may, in fact, turn out to be an unexpected ally. The surface tells only part of the story, and not everything is as it seems.

“Walt Whitman once wrote: “Be curious, not judgmental.” That spirit runs deeply through the veins of this game. Adventurers in Chayil will find themselves in situations where a second look—and an open mind—may reveal hidden truths, unlikely friendships, and deeper meaning than they first imagined.”

For Porras Clans is supposed to be about an experience which is more memorable than most.

“On a social level, my vision for this game goes far beyond dice and character sheets. I want it to become a catalyst—something that draws people together in ways that are increasingly rare in our modern world,” he related. “Imagine a group of friends, or even total strangers, gathered around a table. Before long, the walls of unfamiliarity begin to crumble. Laughter fills the room, conversations spark, and bonds are formed through the simple act of shared adventure.

“At its core, this is what we are trying to achieve with Clans. The game will give the player permission to stretch themselves beyond the ordinary—to imagine, to take risks, and to explore new parts of who they are. What I saw with those teenagers is that when they stepped into a character, they weren't just pretending; they were unlocking a part of their creativity that everyday life often pushes aside. We are trying to awaken the imagination again for a larger audience.”

Now to be fair any RPG can be more encompassing depending on the players at the table.

For some that means going deep ‘in-character’ at the table, focusing entirely on the in-game persona.

Our group is more free-form, jumping from in-game to talk of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, or civic affairs, or a good book. The experience is more camaraderie than role-playing.

In Clans how the experience is ultimately as much in the hands of players as in the source material.

Overall Clans is just too intriguing – at least the preview taste – to not suggest – especially for experienced RPG players wanting something new.

Check it out at clansofchayil.com

 

A lot of game in a small wooden box

When a game arrives in a wooden box with labelling which reminds of something done by a wood-burning set – still very nice mind you – it intrigues before you even open it. There is a ‘vintage’ or ‘older’ feel to it, and for a game based on the First World War that is a good fit.

Inside the box – barely as there is a lot of stuff and it takes some careful placement to re-close this one – is a game which is a bit different. Behind the Trenches is touted as a resource management / deck builder, and of course at its core remains a war game. It is not a game trifecta one immediately thinks even exists – so points for a game approach which is a bit different than most.

Now as a preview copy this one was ‘home 3D printed’ or at least it appears that way,  so the finish might not be up to big company print standards, which in this case sort of works.

The entire ‘vibe’ of Behind the Trenches ‘feels’ a bit like something you might find in grandpa’s attic – a bit old school.

Now because you have a bit of a hybrid in terms of game mechanics here there is something of a learning curve – albeit no more than anticipated at first look.

And Behind the Trenches comes with a digital trainer that teaches players the rules and basic strategy. At this point any game that is offered up really needs to have a ‘how-to-play’ video online before the game hits the market. While experienced gamers are likely good at deciphering all but the most poorly written rulesets, watching someone well-versed in the game run through the rules is a benefit for many.

Now in Behind the Trenches you rely on a hand of cards with each country offering some unique options, that ultimately combine into a battle strategy.

The battle begins in earnest with the goal to push the front line into the opponent’s headquarters – you can think of it as a battleground tug of war.

Behind the Trenches plays two-to-four, but probably is at its best with two – it fits the theme best when you think about it.

The game’s greatest drawback might be that it can play a little long – although this one is likely to garner its greatest interest from staunch war gamers and war games tend to be rather immersive and as a result longer on the table.

In the end there is more game in the wooden box, although with a bit of a nostalgic look, which may, or may not appeal.

Check it out at behindthetrenches.com

A fresh look at Kobolds for RPG classic

In no way can I say I am a fan of D&D 5th edition. It is a homogenized creation to appease the legion of gamers who want to do it all, cast spells, carry the great sword, and do it regardless of race and its apparent limitations.

You can kit characters so they feel more like a group of clones rather than a diverse group coming together for adventure.

So when I get my hands on a supplement for D&D 5E, I am looking to see how it might wedge into an earlier incarnation of D&D when diversity and uniqueness reigned based on class and race.

That was why I was intrigued initially by The Kobolds of Frostwind Forest by Canadian Mark Charke, as it is written with 3rd edition in mind – a huge win for me.

Charke “has been writing since the early 90s. He has published over 70 works including 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Edition and Vampire the Masquerade manuals, several novels and a LARP card game,” noted his Kickstarter bio.

The writing pedigree suggests this one should be good, and that it offers up a rather different view of Kobolds was exciting.

Among the list of fairly standard RPG fantasy races Kobolds have typically been at the bottom of the list – a minor annoyance to a low level adventuring group perhaps, but from there they might be offered up as cannon fodder as a baddie escapes at some point, but otherwise you won’t see them offered up often by the Dungeon Master.

Of course one has to expect not every Kobold is an evil little coward with a pointy stick – or at least that is how Charke looks at the race.

Canadian creator 

In The Kobolds of Frostwind Forest Charke simply builds a broader vision of the race – one where the range of the good, the bad and the neutral of a more race than most associate with ‘mere Kobolds’.

Again I must turn to the Kickstarter campaign for this tome as it paints a fine picture of Charke’s effort.

“This is a story about the underdogs, the little race that has long served not as the villains but rather the pushed aside annoying minions of villains,” the campaign page details. “I suppose they haven't gotten that much better, but they are trying. In Frostwind Forest, the Kobolds have become something a little more, guided and influenced by forces beyond them and having a teacher to elevate them, they may actually become a threat in their own right. Protected by their resistance to cold, the Kobolds are hidden in the Frostwind Forest where their numbers and their might is growing. They aren't all good. Not even most of them are good. The important thing is that some of them are good and they are trying.”

Now simply slapping a more varied array of alignments on Kobolds would not in itself been worth a great deal. In an RPG alignment typically comes from how a player portrays a character through their actions anyway.

But ‘Frostwind’ goes further with a bit of everything to make Kobolds worth another look – “new spells, new races, new prestige classes, mutations, maggot therapy rules, yes you read that right and a story with many different personalities all around the forest region with their own motives and capabilities,” details the KS campaign.

There is world building here too, taking us inside this unique realm of Kobolds, with the forest being home to “three dragons, a dryad venerated by the kobolds, powerful treants, giants and even human explorers.”

There is just enough here to make one want to either roll up a Kobold from the ‘forest’ and take them adventuring, or as a GM send a party into the forest realm and have a party dealing with the mind twist that all Kobolds are not the same.

This is the kind of D&D supplement that truly enhances the game, without simply tossing all into a blender and pouring out glassfuls of ‘sameness’.

 

Going last typically a key

It’s always interesting when a game hits the table and you learn something new as a result.

HOD is one of those games.

A hod, according to an online dictionary is “a builder's V-shaped open trough on a pole, used for carrying bricks and other building materials,” something I didn’t know previously – which I suppose may allow me to know one additional clue on Jeopardy.

But back to the game. HOD is another among the many by designer David McCord, and publisher  at newventuregames.com – a combo which equates to a fine quality game.

This one is played on a 4x4-inch wooden peg board, and 64 coloured wooden pegs, all of which are very nice.

There are also a couple of dice that play a role in the set-up, so they are not influence play through random rolls once the play begins.

HOD is a peg game for two-to-four players – with our group’s experience leaning toward more interesting play with more involved.

The placement of a peg scores you points – multiples of the points on which it is placed, so 15 on the intersection of three and five.

Some holes will be blocked – that is why you roll dice so the board changes somewhat each game.

Now the game plays quick – yep another game that seems a fine ‘in the cabin for rainy day play’ option – but lacks the depth to become a regularly suggested game. That is a result to the last peg to be placed is generally going to be at the intersection of six and six, scoring 36 points which is a big swing.

Scores by the nature of HOD stay close and that 36 looms as the determining score rather often – meaning it’s positioning to get that final peg – which typically goes to the last player in rotation. In HOD going last tends to be a big benefit – so you need to play multiple games with each player going last then adding up overall scores to determine the winner – at least we feel that way.

Nice components with short term interest but not the longer term appeal of some other McCord creations.