I decided to start writing this blog shortly after I was introduced to Flesh and Blood at my local game store. I have always been a fan of board games and very much enjoy playing these with my family. Ticket to Ride, One Key, When I Dream, and Forbidden Island are amongst our favourites, and I believe that games are a great way to teach kids important life skills (problem solving, strategic thinking, teamwork) in a way that is enjoyable and doesn’t feel like learning. I had previously bought most of my games online, or occasionally from Travelling man in York, but after reading an article about EH Gaming (www.ehgaming.com) – a local game store about fifteen minutes from home – I decided to pay them a visit. COVID made things a little difficult, but EH Gaming offered buy online/collect in store which was perfect for me.
It was clear from the first time I met the owner Ross, that this was someone who loved games, who played a wide range of different game types himself, and someone who wanted to share his passion with others. I have quickly come to trust his advice on what games would be suitable and enjoyable for me and the kids. I thought my first visit – to pick up a copy of Root – would be a quick in and out trip, but I ended up talking to Ross for about 40 minutes. As it turned out, we are originally from the same area of the North West and share a lot of common interests – as I have got to know more people involved in the local gaming scene, it is clear we all share quite a few common interests.
But anyway, back to Flesh and Blood. I had read about the game in a recent edition of Tabletop Gaming magazine and had been interested enough to go online, visit the official Flesh and Blood website (www.fabtcg.com) and check a few fan sites and YouTube videos. I had been playing a little bit of Magic: The Gathering Arena during lockdown (but hadn’t gone the whole hog and started investing in physical cards, other than a couple of prebuilt arena decks) and had enjoyed that, but did feel slightly daunted by the history and the thought of coming new to a game with such a well-developed community and large catalogue of cards to get to know. As a much newer game (a little over a year old at the time), Flesh and Blood felt much more accessible to me. It just so happened that Flesh and Blood was a game that Ross at EH Gaming was a big fan of, and was happy to recommend some Monarch Blitz starter decks as way for me to get into the game…
Cracked Bauble 