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Pencil games5/27/2023 ![]() ![]() On September 27 2018, I released version 1.1. You may prefer to shop directly on Gumroad's site. To download your files, click the "View product" link (button) in the e-mail you receive. If you are a Gmail user, please check your spam folder! Several game e-mails have ended up in there. It may take up to two minutes to receive your files. I may release paid expansions if it gets popular, but at least half of my future work on this will go into free updates for the base game. ![]() A lifetime subscription to content updates.These printables let you jump straight into the game. For you quantifying sorts, it's over 25k words. That includes 13 pages of modestly-illustrated rules explanation, 4 pages of nifty structures to build, 12 pages of randomized events to keep each playthrough spicy, 3 more pages of mechanical exotica, and a thoughtfully-designed quick reference on the back. If you're looking for a quicker, lighter town-builder, take a look.Ĭlick here to watch an in-depth gameplay primer. Penciltown was succeeded by a sibling game, Pencilvillage. While the overall flavour is wry, broad-minded fantasy, the writing gets dark in a couple of places, so I'd read through it before you give it to your child. but if you like making art, drawing a beautiful town as you play is probably a lot of fun. This game does the most for people who love systems or stories more than visuals. The construction and economy game is also really satisfying. Events offer 220 tiny self-contained stories, and the other moving parts are full of word-based worldbuilding. ![]() Gameplay happens in pencil marks that you make. If you prefer your entertainment bite-sized, you can always play in shorter bursts, but be aware that the arc of your town's ascension takes a while. (It does have a difficulty setting you can lower.) However, if you love lows because they make highs feel amazing, get it - snatching victory from the jaws of defeat never felt so good. If you get frustrated at seeing your progress dismantled, this may be one to miss. You just need everyone on the same page.Ĭhance is a big factor, and it has many ways to mess you around. That said, I have had a lot of fun playing this with a small group. If you love solo deep-dives, it'll be really rewarding. If that's not your intended mode of play, skip it - I don't want to disappoint you. However, my 55-year-old mum taught herself the game in under an hour, so the complexity is quite manageable. The question for you is whether fiddle is worth tasty crunch. It's not "convenient" to play in the way board games can be (move chits from zone A to zone B), which is the tradeoff for the really rich simulation. It gets pretty crunchy when it comes to mechanics. It scratches that city-building and base-defending itch, but in a simpler, paperier package. Later on you can equip adventurers with potions and gear and send them on risky but rewarding quests. The giant events table throws problems at your town which you must solve, including increasingly dangerous attacks. You attract people to your town and specialize them into fighters, clerics, philosophers and more. Buildings give proximity bonuses and space is limited, so placement matters. You make tough tradeoffs since excelling at everything is pricy. You draw and erase resources as you gain and lose them, and gradually expand your town by paying for and drawing buildings. You also need the rulebook, which you can print or use on a screen, and a playsheet, which you can print or draw on graph paper. You need a pencil, an eraser and two six-sided dice. It's heavily driven by chance, and its intention is to create interesting stories. It's print-and-play, and you draw and erase things as you go. Penciltown is a solo resource management and strategy game in which you help a newly-founded town to survive, grow and thrive.
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