Sasha and Ariel Experience ... Living With My Brother's Wife!

Sasha: OMG, what did we just do to ourselves?
Ariel: Hang on hang on! Before we can talk about that we've got to tell everybody we don't either of us have any brothers! Otherwise they might think the title means we actually experience living with our brother's wife and not a comic called Living With My Brother's Wife.
Sasha: Are you sure that doesn't count as a spoiler? Maybe you should tell them to put their spoiler blankets over their heads if they don't want to find out ahead of time whether one of us has a brother and we live with his wife.
Ariel: Oh no. I'm so conflicted! It's terrible spoiling things for people, but I also don't want them thinking they're going to get a post about us being in some weird racy living situation and then being disappointed when we just talk about a comic.
Sasha: Well, the good news is, you already spoiled that part, so it's too late to do anything about it.
Ariel: Ugh. Now I'm conflicted about whether to feel relieved about nobody getting confused or guilty about everybody getting it spoiled for them.
Sasha: Quick, then -- tell them to put their spoiler blankets on before you decide which emotion to feel. Also, before we start talking about this manga.
Ariel: Mang- ... ack! I forgot it was a manga and called it a comic! Now I definitely feel embarrassed more than anything else.
Sasha: We literally read it in an app that has "Manga" right there in the name of it. Didn't you see it every time we opened the app up to read a chapter?
Ariel: No, I was always busy getting popcorn while you were getting the app ready. Then before I could finish making the popcorn you were always bugging me to hurry up because you got the app ready way faster than I could microwave the popcorn. So that's probably why I got flustered and confused about whether it was a manga or a comic.
Sasha: Really? Because I was assuming what you were confused about was whether it was a manga or a movie. Who makes popcorn to read a manga?
Ariel: Duh, me obviously. Especially with this manga because it was soooo long if you added all the chapters together, and my hands would get all fidgety once we were reading for a while if I didn't have popcorn to eat.
Sasha: I kept saying we could take turns turning the pages on the tablet if you wanted to. Then you'd have had something to do with your hands.
Ariel: But I'd get popcorn butter all over the tablet screen.
Sasha: I meant working the tablet instead of eating popcorn, not working it while still eating popcorn.
Ariel: My fingertip would get all tired and sore from so much swiping then, though. Like, every single page you have to swipe, and then if one of us says, "Huh? I didn't quite follow that, go back a page," there's even more swiping. Plus when there's a really great picture and we want to zoom in on it, there's all that pinching and then more swiping to move around and see the whole picture in closeup and then unpinching to see the page again.
Sasha: So ultimately, you were eating popcorn the whole time just because you're lazy.
Ariel: Am not! Just that one fingertip.
Sasha: This is even more tiring than reading all 150 of those chapters in Living With My Brother's Wife.
Ariel: You mean "Loomboo."
Sasha: What?
Ariel: Here, this proves I'm not lazy because I did some homework!
Sasha: What are you talking about?
Ariel: Well, the abbreviation for Living With My Brother's Wife would be LWMBW. But if you say that, it's actually more syllables than just saying Living With My Brother's Wife, because of the W's. So I went and asked Hettie's help on a better abbreviation and she said it doesn't need to be any different because even though nobody knows this, the letter W can be a vowel!
Sasha: No it can't. That's ridiculous. The vowels are A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y. Everybody knows that.
Ariel: Except it's really "and also even sometimes-er, W." Here, look what happens when I google this word, "cwm."
Sasha: That's not a word.
Ariel: No, look!
Sasha: What the ... "a steep-sided hollow at the head of a valley or on a mountainside?!?"
Ariel: And look here when I put in "crwth."
Sasha: "A bowed string instrument that was once common in Europe???" Is this a joke?
Ariel: No, there's tons of them!
Sasha: Show me.
Ariel: Well ... probably there's tons of them.
Sasha: Okay, but at least show me a couple more.
Ariel: Well ...
Sasha: So there's only two?
Ariel: I mean, those are the only two Hettie knew about.
Sasha: Hettie only knew two? Seriously, this is not a real thing if even Hettie only knows two words where it happens.
Ariel: Gasp! Are you dissing something Hettie said about words?
Sasha: ...
Ariel: Are you?
Sasha: Okay, no. I guess if Hettie thinks they're words --
Ariel: And they're right there in the dictionary, and online!
Sasha: You can't believe anything you read online! And the dictionary ... could have typos. But I guess if Hettie confirmed they're words, I'm going to believe it.
Ariel: Ha! Anyway, you say U like "ooh" when it's a vowel, so instead of saying LWMBW as "el-double-you-em-bee-double-you," you can just say "loomboo." See? Done! Easy! Look how much trouble I saved us from, having to say the whole title every time we wanted to mention it or having to spell LWMBW out loud! Instead of seven or nine syllables, it's just two.
Sasha: So ... you went to all the effort to find that out and explain it to me, just so you could be lazy and say fewer syllables?
Ariel: It's not -- okay, maybe it's a little bit lazy. But you get to be lazy using it too! I'm just totally helping out here!
Sasha: Not really, because now I'm exhausted. And I was already exhausted by reading so many chapters of ... of ...
Ariel: Say it!
Sasha: Ugh. Okay ... loomboo.
Ariel: See how easy that was?
Sasha: I mean ... yes. All right, it was easier. But I'm still exhausted. I don't think I have the strength left to actually talk about the manga tonight.
Ariel: No problem. We can just do a Part Two.
Sasha: This isn't even a Part One! We didn't say anything about the manga. We didn't even say that we liked it!
Ariel: Sash, people are smart. I'm pretty sure if we say we read 150 chapters of a manga, they can figure out we must've liked it.
Sasha: Sure, I guess. Also, it was even more than that, I just rounded 156 down to 150.
Ariel: What! That's so lazy! You're just as bad as me!
Sasha: Uh ... goodnight, everybody.
Ariel: Tune in next time for Part Two!

Sasha and Ariel Experience ... So Much Band-Maid!

Sasha: Okay. Do you think we're finally ready to talk about Band-Maid?

Ariel: Haven't we already talked about them?

Sasha: I mean here on the blog.

Ariel: Oh! Well, I mean, we could have talked about them here a long time ago, couldn't we?

Sasha: Sure, we could have, we just didn't. We could have talked about them three years ago.

Ariel: Three years! We've only been listening to them since May!

Sasha: Yeah, but Akane got here three years ago and played us different videos by different bands from Japan that she liked, and Band-Maid was one of them.

Ariel: Were they? I think if they were I would have said, "Wait, stop showing us videos by different bands and just show us more of that one!"

Sasha: You only think that because we've been overdosing on Band-Maid for the last 4 or 5 months. Akane has really good taste in music, remember? All the videos she showed us were really cool, and the Band-Maid one was like, their first video that was 7 or 8 years old at the time.

Ariel: OMG.

Sasha: What?

Ariel: You always insult me by saying I'm so lazy --

Sasha: It's not really an insult ... more kinda like an observation.

Ariel: -- but now I just realized as far as all those videos she showed us, you're right. They were all so good, and while we were watching them I thought, ooh, I've got to watch more videos by that band. Oh, and that band too. And that one! But then when we finally turned off Metoob I was like, "Whew! It's late! I'm going to bed!" And when I got in bed, I was thinking, "Wow, so many great bands! Tomorrow morning when I get up I'm going to have to zzzzzzzz."

Sasha: You weren't thinking that, you actually said it out loud. Just a lot more mumbly. And probably you should have used all capital Z's there and put more of them, because the snoring was an ear-splitter.

Ariel: Was not! Elle says I have a cute snore.

Sasha: Elle would say that. 

Ariel: It's true!

Sasha: Well, most of the time, sure. But that time it was like GRWONNGKKK!

Ariel: ... mmph. If you say so. I guess I hope I didn't keep you awake making a noise like that.

Sasha: It was only 10:30, Aers. The rest of us stayed up for hours after that anyway.

Ariel: I don't know how you guys do it.

Sasha: Pretty much just by being normal people and not having anything to make us get up the next morning.

Ariel: I'm normal!

Sasha: I mean as far as how much sleep you need.

Ariel: Oh. Okay. Anyway, that next morning I tried to decide on some of those bands to listen to more of over breakfast, but it seemed like too hard a decision so I just ate my Golden Grahams instead and by the time I was done we all got to doing something else and I forgot to go back and listen. I could have been listening to Band-Maid this whole time if I hadn't been so lazy! And so hungry for breakfast, I guess. Maybe it was more the hungry.

Sasha: You're just saying that because you're starting to re-think admitting you're lazy.

Ariel: Well ... but ... if I was lazy, would I put so much energy into arguing over whether I'm lazy the way I always do?

Sasha: That's maybe a pretty good point, but how about if we get back to talking about Band-Maid?

Ariel: Sure, as long as you're admitting I proved I'm not lazy.

Sasha: I am way not admitting that, but let's pretend I am so we can finish this post today.

Ariel: Okay.

Sasha: Anyhow --

Ariel: (you are admitting it though!)

Sasha: -- as far as Band-Maid goes, we're ready to finally post about them, right?

Ariel: We'd better be, with all the work we just did getting this post started!

Sasha: So how are we going to dive into talking about them?

Ariel: We should link to that first video we watched of them, "Thrill."

Sasha: Sure, good idea.

Ariel: It will also give me a rest from all this talking I've been doing.

Sasha: Mm-hm. Here it is, then.

Thrill

Ariel: Wow. That's such an awesome video. I think I love it more every time we watch it. But why didn't you do that thing where people can just click on the picture and watch it here?

Sasha: There's some kind of block on the video, so that won't work.

Ariel: I just hate to make our readers do all the work of going to a whole other page and coming back.

Sasha: I set it so it opens in another window, which means they won't have to come back, just close the window when they're done.

Ariel: I guess if that's how we have to do it. It's still more work than I wish they had to do. What if they get tired and don't want to bother clicking it closed and shut their computer and go take a nap instead?

Sasha: Then both windows will still be open when they come back and open their computer later and because of us, they will have had a nap that apparently they really needed.

Ariel: Okay, I can deal with that.

Sasha: So what part is your favorite part of the video?

Ariel: Hmm. I think it's a tie between the way she says, "Heh" at the start of the song and the way she like, hangs her head and arms down and does that sort of super-low-energy head-banging. It's like, "Whoa, look at how much this chick rocks, and also what a great job she's doing conserving her energy." She's honestly kind of my hero for that.

Sasha: More than the guitarist being a hero?

Ariel: Well, with all the other Band-Maid videos we've seen, I know that the guitarist can kill it even better than she does in this video. But this one's the only one where the singer does that fuel-efficient head-bang. So what's your favorite part? Probably the drummer, right? 

Sasha: I do love her, especially with that cute tiny hat she wears. But it's kinda like you and the guitarist where in later videos she shows that she can just totally stomp the crud out of the drumming in this song -- which is saying something, since it's really good drumming even here.

Ariel: So ... is your favorite part the bass player and that cool slap bass solo she does?

Sasha: Actually, this is kind of goofy, but my favorite part is knowing that the rhythm guitarist couldn't actually play guitar when they made this video. If you watch, you can totally tell she's basically just using it as a prop while she's singing backing vocals.

Ariel: That seems kind of a mean thing to have as your favorite part.

Sasha: No, because it makes it even more amazing when you watch the videos from four or five years later and you're like, "Dang, she's really good on that guitar now."

Ariel: We should put one of those video links in here.

Sasha: Sure. Here, I think this is a good one.

Play

Ariel: Ooh, yeah, she's really fire in that one.

Sasha: Rock star.

Ariel: I don't think we're really telling people how much Band-Maid we've been listening too these last couple of months, though.

Sasha: I figured we were getting to it. Are you in a hurry?

Ariel: They're probably just wondering, is all. Since we put it in the title and everything.

Sasha: True. Anyway, it's a lot.

Ariel: Yeah, our boyfriend keeps buying more Band-Maid albums, and then on top of that we keep watching their videos, and then on top of that we keep watching those videos of people reacting to their videos.

Sasha: And then on top of that we watched those documentaries about each one of them too, remember?

Ariel: Oh yeah, those were really good!

Sasha: And we watched that episode of the Japanese travel show where the rhythm guitarist was being like a travel guide riding the train and going to that town and learning that fish-scooping dance.

Ariel: That was wild. I don't think anybody would watch that and figure out she was a rock star except for that one scene where they show her guitar.

Sasha: It's been a pretty excessive amount of watching stuff about them.

Ariel: But it's all so good!

Sasha: What's another one we should link to, then?

Ariel: The cartoon one!

Sasha: Excellent choice.

Unleash!

Ariel: That one's amazing.

Sasha: I would watch a whole anime series of that.

Ariel: Me too! Except you spelled it wrong.

Sasha: What?

Ariel: It's Unleash!!!!! With 5 exclamation marks.

Sasha: That's not really spelling.

Ariel: Yeah, but I'm not sure I'd spell the punk word right without looking it up and I don't want to have to do that. And if I tried I'd end up spelling it "puncturated" or something and you'd make fun of me.

Sasha: Probably I would, but I like calling it "the punk word." We'll have to remember that one.

Ariel: Not around Hettie, though. I don't think she'd like us making fun of punk mark rules.

Sasha: Anyway, how close do you think we are to wrapping this post up?

Ariel: Mmm ... maybe two more song links? There's no way we can have a post about listening to so much Band-Maid without playing the Hate? song and Freedom.

Sasha: Hate? is a good one. Definitely a song about a punk.

Ariel: Also he gets punctured pretty good in the lyrics, so you definitely have to remember the question mark.

Sasha: Here we go, then:

Hate?

Ariel: Oops. We should have told people to put their spoiler blankets on before showing them that picture though, on account of that guitar and bass part being so amazing.

Sasha: I don't think anything's going to be spoiled by just a picture. You can't figure out what that part's going to be like from a picture or from you saying it's amazing.

Ariel: Oh no! I did say that without telling them to put on their blankets!

Sasha: Seriously, I don't think it's a problem.

Ariel: I guess that's true. I mean, in all those reaction videos we've watched, pretty much every single time the person reacting pretty much freaks out at the start of that part and then keeps freaking out more the more it goes on.

Sasha: I could totally watch that part over and over again. The whole video, really. It's amazeballs.

Ariel: The Freedom video is even better, though.

Sasha: You think so?

Ariel: Uh-huh. Because when you're watching it, you're like, "OMG. These five people are having the best time any five people have ever had doing anything together in the whole history of everything."

Sasha: Wow. That's a pretty bold statement, considering some of us here think we can have a pretty good time doing some of the stuff we do together.

Ariel: Yeah, but there's seven of us, so it's kind of cheating comparing us to Band-Maid.

Sasha: Gotcha. Anyway, here's the video so people can judge for themselves.

Freedom

Ariel: The way they make everything they're doing look so chill and easy and fun, omg. They're just so awesome.

Sasha: And they rock SO HARD.

Ariel: Yeah, I guess we haven't really said all that much so far about their actual music ... what the heck?

Sasha: R - O - C - K, ROCK.

Ariel: Between all the albums MSG got and all the videos we've watched, we must have heard, like, a hundred dozen songs, and not one of them has been bad.

Sasha: Probably more like 70 or 80, I think. But yeah, they don't do filler songs like most bands do. Everything is a banger.

Ariel: If you listen really close, though, I think most of those 70 or 80 songs have enough music in them to count as 3 or 4 songs each, so I don't think a hundred dozen is that much of an exaggeration.

Sasha: Let's not get into the math it would take to figure that out.

Ariel: Major agree on that.

Sasha: Well, if we don't wrap this up we're going to start looking for what other Band-Maid songs we should link to, and that could take all night.

Ariel: Yeah, I'm good calling this one done.

Sasha and Ariel: See you later, everybody!

Ariel and Sasha Experience ... Even More Masterer Heroscape!

Sasha: Good morning!
Ariel: Ughhh ... what? Is it morning already?
Sasha: Yeah, but actually more like, almost afternoon. Why are you sleeping on the floor in the game r -- whoa. Look at that Heroscape map!
Ariel: I was up soooo late last night building it.
Sasha: It's huge! It looks great!
Ariel: Thanks ... it was exhausting, but once I got started I didn't want to go to bed until I finished.
Sasha: Wow. How late did you stay up?
Ariel: I don't know. Like, at least 10:30.
Sasha: Uh ... that's over 12 hours ago.
Ariel: Only 12?! After building that board, I figured I was going to need maybe 14 or 16 hours of sleep.
Sasha: That would be a lot even for you.
Ariel: You weren't there to see how hard this was!
Sasha: Well, here I am now. But you didn't put the figures on the board like the last couple of times. Did you give up because you were too tired?
Ariel: No. This scenario in the Master Set says you build your own army by getting rid of boats or something. So I had to wait for you.
Sasha: Getting rid of ... what?
Ariel: Look, right here. "Derafting."
Sasha: That's "Drafting." You added an extra "e."
Ariel: I told you I was tired!
Sasha: So did you figure out how we're supposed to do that?
Ariel: No, because I couldn't find any boats, so I figured we'd look for them in the morning.
Sasha: Well, now we don't need to. Let me see what the rules say.
Ariel: The book's over there.
Sasha: Hmm. Mm-hmm ... okay. So basically, we roll the 20-sided die. Whoever gets higher picks one army card to be in their army. Then the other person picks one army card, and we keep going back and forth until all the cards have been picked or we reach the point limit for the scenario. Is there a point limit?
Ariel: It says 400 points, which sounded like a lot of boats to get rid of to me, which is another reason I went to bed.
Sasha: All right, well, I don't think the cards we played with before even add up to 400 points per side, so it sounds like we'll have to be learning how some of these figures that came in the Master Set work. Do we want to include the ones from the smaller box too?
Ariel: OMG, no. That would be so many figures to pick from! Plus, we put that box away and I don't want to open it up and unpack all the bits again. 
Sasha: Here, then. Roll the 20-sider and let's get going.
Ariel: Ooh, I get a 16!
Sasha: 5 for me, so you pick first.
Ariel: Um, duh, I'm picking this gigantic one here. Xeni ... omg, his name is too long. I'm just going to call him X-tra Viney because there are too many extra letters in his first name and his last name is something to do with vines.
Sasha: "Xenithrax the Vineweaver." Yeah, Extra Viney is a lot easier. Holy crap! He's 200 points all by himself! That's half your total points.
Ariel: Yeah, I figure that will let me finish picking quicker and rest a little while you finish picking yours.
Sasha: All right, I'm picking this squad of pirates, since we haven't played with any squads yet. Knaves of the Silver Scimitar.
Ariel: Does it make sense that they're pirates and also that they're knavey? I thought pirates and the knavey were enemies.
Sasha: You pick your next army while I read their card and see if it says anything about that.
Ariel: I'm totally picking this other huge one, Raelin the Kyrie Warrior. She's only 100 points but she's almost as big as Extra Viney, which seems like a bargain to me. Plus they can both fly, and I think Flying is a pretty bad-ass power after the way your owly guy used it last game.
Sasha: Nothing about pirates and the navy on my Silver Scimitars card. My next pick is this Dwarf pirate, Dorim the Bulkhead Brawler. He's got a Chain Axe, which sounds pretty cool to me. Him plus the Knaves makes 165 points, so I've still got a lot left.
Ariel: Are you doing all pirates?
Sasha: I'm not saying, because if I am you might pick some of the pirate cards on purpose just so I can't take them.
Ariel: No, because there's another killer-looking chick with Flying, Lovey Attack the Kyrie Warrior. She's also got dots over one of her A's, which has to mean she's extra-killer.
Sasha: I think it means you say the second A a different way, but I don't know how, so I'll go on to picking my next card, which is Admiral EJ-1M. He's 170 points, so that uses up a good chunk of what I've got left.
Ariel: 170! That's almost as much as Extra Viney! But he looks so tiny next to Extra Viney. I'm going to call him Extra Tiny.
Sasha: I mean, his card says he's a Large figure, and he's bigger than your Lovey Attack chick.
Ariel: Not when you include her wings. They make her taller than him.
Sasha: Whatever. Do you have any points left?
Ariel: I have 20, but there aren't any cards that say 20 points. So I guess I'm done.
Sasha: I have 65 points left, so the only card I can afford is this Misaerx the Kyrie Warrior.
Ariel: Missa what?
Sasha: I'm not sure how you say it.
Ariel: I'm calling her "Missy," because I'm hoping she misses a lot when she attacks.
Sasha: So where do our figures go for this scenario?
Ariel: The booklet has these two areas marked with brown and with navy. You have to go in the navy part, because your dudes are Knavey.
Sasha: Does it say that?
Ariel: No, but it makes sense, doesn't it?
Sasha: I'm looking it up in the book. Oops. We were supposed to place each of our figures when we picked them. Since you went first that means you were supposed to place Extra Viney somewhere right then. So if you want me to be in the navy area, you can just put him in the brown area.
Ariel: I'm putting him right here so he's close to that big tall area in the middle. The scenario said after 4 turns, whoever controls more of those spaces wins so I want him to get there quick.
Sasha: All right. I'll put my Knaves here. 
Ariel: Raelin's gonna go here. Dang, Extra Viney is so big, it's hard to make her fit next to him!
Sasha: I'll put Dorim here, I guess.
Ariel: Okay, here's Lovey Attack then. 
Sasha: All right. I'm putting my Admiral here and Missy here.
Ariel: Ooh, Missy's right up front! Isn't she a cheap card too? She's gonna get waxed hard right away.
Sasha: Maybe. Did you read the rules for these glyph things on the board? I did, and I think they look pretty important. Especially since Extra Viney has his own glyphs he can put down.
Ariel: No. I guess I'd better. Can I have that scenario book they're in?
Sasha: Here you go.
Ariel: Hmm. Wait, what? This one says it makes a big wind that keeps people from flying! That would totally suck for me!
Sasha: Kind of, yeah.
Ariel: And you put your Missy gal where she could fly right to it!
Sasha: That's true.
Ariel: I hate this! She's going down. You better hope you win initiative or she's doomed.
Sasha: We'll see.
Ariel: Ooh, my vine glyphs are pretty cool, though. They make anybody stepping on them weaker ... and if you move off of one they might hurt you. Sweet!
Sasha: There's also a glyph that lets you move three of your guys for free, one that gives you the ability to disengage without getting a leaving engagement attack, and this Massive Curse one that makes every figure have a 1 in 20 chance of being destroyed.
Ariel: Who's going to be dumb enough to step on that one?
Sasha: I guess you'd have to be desperate or have a very specific strategy. Anyway, ready to place order markers?
Ariel: Sure. Done.
Sasha: Done.
Ariel: My initiative roll is ... BLAH! Not the 1!
Sasha: I roll a 7, so I go first, but I have a special power for Admiral EJ --
Ariel: You mean Extra Tiny.
Sasha: Admiral EJ, and it lets me move any order markers I want from him to any pirate or captain figure I control, after initiative has been rolled.
Ariel: Dang. That's fire.
Sasha: Yep. So I'll move these markers here and here ... and then it's Missy's turn, so I move her here to turn on that windy glyph.
Ariel: She's so dead.
Sasha: Your turn. Who's your number 1?
Ariel: Duh, Extra Viney. It sucks he can't fly right now, but he'll move to right here, and then he'll put down a Vine glyph right over here to block your way up to the middle spaces, and then he'll use this Erupting Earth Special Attack.
Sasha: That sounds pretty wicked.
Ariel: It's 4 dice at up to 5 range, plus if there are figures adjacent to the target I can attack some of them too.
Sasha: Yikes. 
Ariel: Anyway, he's erupting all over Missy with ... 4 skulls!
Sasha: Oof. She's above you, so she gets to roll an extra defense die, but this is not looking good.
Ariel: Whoa! Look at that roll! You totally blew it!
Sasha: Major oof. I was hoping for at least 1 shield. She only has 4 life. So she's toast. But I do get to put her figure on another hero card to give them her Life Drain special power.
Ariel: What's that do?
Sasha: If I destroy a figure, I get to heal up by 1 wound marker.
Ariel: Well, that's not happening because Extra Viney and Raelin both have tons of life. No way are you killing them.
Sasha: You may be right. Anyway, I'm putting her on Dorim's card, and my next marker is on the Knaves. They let me take a free turn with a Pirate or Captain Hero I control, so I'm going to move Dorim up to here.
Ariel: Into the jaws of death!
Sasha: We'll see. Then I get my regular turn with the Knaves, so I'm going to scatter them to keep them from getting erupted to death next time Extra Viney goes. They don't have range, so that's it for my 2nd turn.
Ariel: Number 2 is Raelin for me. She can fly too, so she goes here. Watch out, because she's got a terrifying aura, and any of your guys within 4 spaces of her lose a defense die.
Sasha: Swell. Is that it for her?
Ariel: Yeah. She doesn't have any range either ... none of my guys do except Extra Viney's Special Attack.
Sasha: All right, number 3 for me is the Knaves again.  Dorim is going to move here with his free turn. Then the Knaves are going to move here ... here ... here ... and here, which puts the last guy on that glyph of sudden movement, so I get to move three figures 5 spaces each. This guy goes here, this guy goes there, and Admiral EJ goes here.
Ariel: Extra Tiny.
Sasha: Now I can attack Extra Viney with these two Knaves. They've got First Assault, which gives them an extra attack die if they didn't start off being adjacent to you. Plus they're higher up than Extra Viney --
Ariel: What??? No way! His head's still like twice as high as they are!
Sasha: Yeah, but you count elevation by the base of the figure, not its head.
Ariel: That's dumb.
Sasha: Maybe, but it means each of my guys gets 5 attack dice on you.
Ariel: Yikes!
Sasha: First dude rolls 2 skulls.
Ariel: I only have 3 defense dice! That sucks, look how big I am! I ought to have 5 or 6 easy!
Sasha: I mean, I notice you have a crap-ton of Life.
Ariel: That's true. I roll 1 shield, so I take 1 wound and I still have 7 left.
Sasha: This guy's up next. Oof. 1 skull.
Ariel: No sweat! I get a shield and I'm safe. Nyah!
Sasha: Here's the moment of truth. Is your number 3 on Extra Viney or Lovey Attack?
Ariel: I put my bluff marker on EV. That kinda sucks. But Lovey can still fly over here and attack down at your knavey guy with an extra attack die for being up high. 3 skulls!
Sasha: I only have 2 defense dice, so he's dead.
Ariel: He's extra dead, because she also has Deadly Strike, which means all her skulls count twice. That's 6 skulls!
Sasha: I guess he's twice as dead then?
Ariel: Maybe even 6 times as dead, since all it takes is 1 to kill your guy and you might not even roll any shields.
Sasha: You're not going to make me roll just to see how dead he is, are you?
Ariel: I guess not.
Sasha: Order markers, then.
Ariel: Done. No, wait! Okay, now I'm done.
Sasha: My initiative roll is 16.
Ariel: I roll 14.
Sasha: Okay, moving these 3 order markers from the Admiral to the Knaves. And the Knaves are my number 1, so I'm taking a turn with Dorim, who moves over here and attacks Lovey for 2 skulls, except that my Chain Axe lets me re-roll 1 die that wasn't a skull ... Yes! 3 skulls total.
Ariel: Lovey Attack rolls ... 3 skulls! Noo! Not only do I take all those wounds, I wasted all those skulls! Now she's only got 1 life left!
Sasha: Time for some Knaving! Since Dorim attacked an enemy figure this turn, he gets to give everybody 1 extra space of movement with his Charge! ability. That means this guy can get up next to Extra Viney. This chick is already next to all 3 of your guys ... and this slowpoke over here has to climb up the last part of the hill and can't get next to anybody. First, the chick Knave is trying to kill Lovey. Rats, only 1 skull.
Ariel: Whew! I get a shield, so she's safe.
Sasha: Next, this guy attacks Extra Viney. He gets an extra die from First Assault ... 4 skulls!
Ariel: Boo! Viney gets an extra die from being higher up, though. Bleh, only 1 shield. He's still got half his life left, though, and it's his turn, and he's pissed! He's gonna Erupting Earth your two guys here and here.
Sasha: I don't think he can, though, because they're not adjacent.
Ariel: They're right next door to each other!
Sasha: Yeah, but they only have a height of 4, and one of them is 4 spaces higher than the other. That means not adjacent, so if one of them was yours, neither of them would be able to attack the other. So you can't vine them both.
Ariel: Grr. And let me guess, now the no-backsies rule means I can't use my normal attack instead, right?
Sasha: Well ... the no backsies rule says you have to make sure you consider height advantage, special powers, and glyphs ... but I guess technically the rules for being adjacent aren't any of those. Go ahead and use your regular attack.
Ariel: Yes! 6 dice, plus I'm higher up than that dude at the bottom of the hill, so ... foo. Only 2 skulls on 7 dice.
Sasha: Yeah, but your Terrifying Aura from Raelin cuts my defense down by 1, meaning I only get to roll 1 die, so 2 skulls kills me no matter what.
Ariel: Yes!
Sasha: Number 2 for me is the Knaves again. Dorim is going to move here and Chain Axe Extra Viney.
Ariel: Do your worst!
Sasha: 4 skulls, plus I get to re-roll the 1 die that isn't a skull ... 5 skulls!
Ariel: No, I really meant your worst. That was your best! This is going to hurt no matter what ... nooo! I didn't get even 1 shield! Extra Viney is dead!
Sasha: Sweet. Now the Knaves get to go. First guy moves here and attacks Lovey. 3 skulls.
Ariel: You're doing that thing again where you're rolling way too many skulls!
Sasha: Sorry.
Ariel: I only get 2 shields and I only had 1 life left. She's dead. And she was my number 2, so you get to go again!
Sasha: Knaves on number 3. Dorim moves up to Raelin. Chain Axe! Well, only 1 skull this time.
Ariel: I get a shield, so she's safe for now.
Sasha: Knaves' turn! This guy moves here ... 1 skull.
Ariel: 2 shields.
Sasha: Last Knave ... 1 skull.
Ariel: No shields! Boooo!
Sasha: Your turn.
Ariel: My number 3 was Extra Viney.
Sasha: Yaasssss .... order markers!
Ariel: There. I roll 14 for initiative this time.
Sasha: Only 13 for me. You go first. But I get to move some order markers off the Admiral.
Ariel: (Extra Tiny.) 
Sasha: Okay, ready.
Ariel: Raelin is going to have her tiger munch on some Knaves. Boo, only 1 skull.
Sasha: Well, I only get to roll 1 die because of your Terrifying Aura. Dead.
Ariel: So there!
Sasha: Knaves go -- well, Knave, since only one is left. She gives Dorim a turn, and he rolls 4 dice against Raelin ... 2 skulls, even after re-rolling a die.
Ariel: 2 shields!
Sasha: Last Knave ... 1 skull
Ariel: Grr. No shields. I still have 4 life left, though, and I'm killifying that Knave! 2 skulls! Dead! In your face!
Sasha: Rats. I made a bad gamble and put my second marker on the Knaves too, so I lose their turn.
Ariel: Yeah! Raelin's tiger is going to make a mess of mister Chain Axe. 2 skulls!
Sasha: Dorim has 3 defense, minus 1 for your aura ... 1 shield.
Ariel: Eat it!
Sasha: My number 3 is the Admiral, though. He's going to move over here and use his Boarding Party Special Attack. It starts off with 2 dice but gets 1 extra because you're adjacent to one of my Pirates. Only 1 skull, though.
Ariel: 1 shield. Obviously I'm putting my order markers on Raelin and you're putting yours on Extra Tiny, so my initiative roll is ... 6.
Sasha: Mine's 7.
Ariel: Dang. So close.
Sasha: First up is Dorim. 3 skulls.
Ariel: You're doing that thing again.
Sasha: Sorry, I can't help it. 
Ariel: Only 1 shield, so I get another 2 wounds.
Sasha: Your turn. 
Ariel: Sigh. Only 1 skull on Dorim.
Sasha: No shields. He's number 2 too, so he attacks you again. 1 skull.
Ariel: Hey, wait. What turn is it?
Sasha: Turn 4.
Ariel: Oh! So if Raelin lives and I can keep your admiral off the hill, I win!
Sasha: Sure, if and if. Are you rolling your defense dice?
Ariel: Yes, and I got a shield! How many life does Extra Tiny have?
Sasha: Only 3.
Ariel: Yes! And how many defense?
Sasha: 6.
Ariel: Oh. Not so "Yes." Dang it. I can move here and the only way you could get up the hill is by going through that Vine glyph that's still there, which might kill you if I can do at least 2 wounds to you. But 6 dice! That's going to make it really hard.
Sasha: Plus you'll get a Leaving Engagement attack from Dorim if you move away from him.
Ariel: Foozers. It's a gamble either way. Heck, I'm going to try it. Boom!
Sasha: Skull.
Ariel: Dang. I still have 1 life left, though! 4 dice on Extra Tiny! 2 skulls! Come on, come on, miss it!
Sasha: I roll 1 shield, so he's still alive. He climbs up to here ...
Ariel: Come on Vines! Nope. It's a shield.
Sasha: I'll attack you with my normal attack now, for 4 dice. 2 skulls.
Ariel: Augh! No shields, I'm dead.
Sasha: That's 2 out of 3 games for me! The champion!!
Ariel: Congratulations, I guess. You need to stop rolling so good, though. It's getting really annoying!
Sasha: I'll give it a try next game, I promise.
Ariel: You do not!
Sasha: Sure, I do. But it's not like there's really anything I can do about how I'm rolling.
Ariel: Well ... as long as you're trying, anyway.
Sasha and Ariel: Later, everybody!

Ariel and Sasha Experience ...Heroscape -- Master Game!

Ariel: Jeepers. I don't know if I can actually do this game tonight after reading all those Master Game rules.
Sasha: You didn't read them, I read them to you! And a lot of them I just summarized.
Ariel: Well, I looked at all the pictures, and there were a lot of those too.
Sasha: If you're that tired from looking at some pictures, maybe we should wait until tomorrow to play.
Ariel: No way! I totally won't remember all the new rules if I sleep on it. We need to get going on it now or all that effort's going to be a waste!
Sasha: Fine. Since the map's already set up and the figures are already there, I say we play the Master Game version of the scenario we played last time.
Ariel: That works for me. Do I get to be the octo-lady with her cute pet critters this time?
Sasha: If you really want to. But you did win last time with the three piratey guys.
Ariel: Ooh, that's right! I better stick with them. So ... first, we roll for initiative?
Sasha: Close. First we put our Order Markers on the cards of our figures to set up which order we're using them in.
Ariel: Okay, done.
Sasha: Not facing toward me! If I see the order they're in, that gives me a strategic advantage.
Ariel: Oops! All right, there.
Sasha: You just turned them around. You have to at least pick them up and pretend to put them on other cards, or I'll still know what order you're using them in.
Ariel: Sash, I'm trying real hard here to give you a little more of a chance, since I pasted your team so bad last time.
Sasha: Umm ... that's nice and all, but if I win, I want to win fair and square.
Ariel: Fine. Done. Are you satisfied?
Sasha: Yep. Mine are set up too.
Ariel: I bet you put your "X" marker on your doggie critter.
Sasha: Why do you say that?
Ariel: Because X marks the spot, and he's a dog.
Sasha: Haha, cute. But the Master Game side of her card says she's a she, and her name is "Kita."
Ariel: What? No, that sounds too much like "Kitty." That's no name for a dog! When the octo-lady says, "Here, Kita, Kita," everybody's going to think she's calling for a cat!
Sasha: Great -- they'll totally be blindsided when it turns out she's a dog, then.
Ariel: Well ... I guess probably they won't, because instead of "Here, Kita, Kita," she'd probably say, "Glub, blub, blub." Cause she's an octopus and all.
Sasha: Anyway ... now we roll for initiative.
Ariel: Okay, gimme the attack dice!
Sasha: No, we roll the 20-sider in this version, remember?
Ariel: Yeah, I remembered. I just think rolling a fist-full of attack dice would be more fun.
Sasha: Whatever. Roll them, then, I guess it doesn't really matter.
Ariel: Yes! And woohoo, I got 3 skulls!
Sasha: Only 1 skull for me. You get to go first.
Ariel: Same as last time! Things may not be looking good for you this game either, Sash.
Sasha: We'll just have to see. Which one is your number 1 order marker on?
Ariel: It's Burny again. I'm moving him first just like last time, and I'm going to move him to the same place as last time too.
Sasha: Well, just like last time, he's not in range to shoot me either, so it's my turn. My number 1 is on Ewashia, Master of Tides.
Ariel: Who?
Sasha: The octo-lady.
Ariel: What! That's not what you did last game! You're ruining my whole strategy!
Sasha: Sorry. First thing she does is command one of her familiars.
Ariel: Her whats?
Sasha: Critters. And just to make you happy, I'll make it the owly one, Onshu the Welkineye.
Ariel: That's his name? He must blink a lot if he's got a welk in his eye. Whatever a welk is.
Sasha: Maybe. But he's flying to right here, and because he has "Flying" on his card, he doesn't have to pay extra movement to go up elevations.
Ariel: No fair!
Sasha: Aren't you the one who was complaining that he had to climb last game even though he has wings?
Ariel: No, I was just saying it was silly. It worked out great for me, so why would I complain?
Sasha: Anyway, he flies to right here --
Ariel: That's so far! And he totally didn't fly there last game!
Sasha: Life is hard. Now he gets to attack with his Sonic Blast Special Attack, and he gets to do it twice,  with Attack value 2 each time.
Ariel: Plus 1 for being up high. Ugh.
Sasha: No, it's a Special Attack, and those don't get the elevation bonus.
Ariel: Whew!
Sasha: Anyway, he's gonna screech at Burny ... and I roll 1 skull.
Ariel: Easy peasy to beat with my 7 Defense dice -- wait, what? On this side he only has 3!
Sasha: Yeah, but he's got 5 Life, which makes him way tougher to kill.
Ariel: Oh. That's okay, then. I roll ... 1 shield, so there!
Sasha: All right, I screech at him again for ... 2 skulls.
Ariel: I roll 1 shield.
Sasha: So 1 wound gets through. Put this wound marker on your card.
Ariel: That's okay I guess, since I've got 4 more. My turn!
Sasha: No, commanding her familiar was just the first thing Ewashia did. Now she gets to take her own turn.
Ariel: Geez, she's not nearly as much of a wuss as she was in the Basic Game.
Sasha: She's going to move to here and Create Water on this space in front of her.
Ariel: Haha!
Sasha: What?
Ariel: She totally peed herself.
Sasha: No, it's a Special Ability that lets me put down a water tile. No pee involved.
Ariel: Whatever you say. Does she attack me with her pee-water now?
Sasha: No, her normal attack only has a range of 1, and she Creates Water at the end of her turn, so I'm done.
Ariel: Okay, Burny is my number 2 turn too!
Sasha: Just like last time.
Ariel: Yes! Only this time, I'm climbing all the way up to the top of this hill, so I get an extra die, plus I've got this Intimidate thing where if you're within 3 spaces of me, you don't get to use all your Defense -- you've got to roll 1 dice less.
Sasha: That makes me a little nervous, but go ahead and roll.
Ariel: My Attack value's only 2, but I get to roll that extra die, and I get ... 3 skulls!
Sasha: Yowtch. My Defense is 4, but if I have to take 1 off, that's only 3 dice, and I only get 1 shield. Dang, I'm halfway dead.
Ariel: Your biggest guy only has 4 life? All my guys have 5!
Sasha: That's a pretty big edge ... it's my turn now, though, and I can see you only put those two markers on Burny, so I don't have to worry about him blasting me again this round. But I am going to fly Onshu over to ... here. Then he's gonna go shriek, shriek at Burny for 2 skulls.
Ariel: Boo! Just one shield! I take another wound!
Sasha: Onshu shrieks again. 2 more skulls.
Ariel: Really?!? Well, I'm going to do better this time, watch. Nope, 1 shield again. Burny's hurting pretty bad now.
Sasha: Ewashia's turn. She's staying put --
Ariel: Whew!
Sasha: But because she's next to a water tile, she can use her Twister Special Attack. It's got Range 6 and does 4 dice.
Ariel: That's crazy!
Sasha: She can also hit more than one target with it, but none of your other guys are close enough. Here's 3 skulls on Burny.
Ariel: Eek! I roll ... 2 shields! Yes! Still alive!
Sasha: That's it for my turn, then. Who's your number 3?
Ariel: Killin Veins again.
Sasha: Just like last game.
Ariel: I mean, it worked out pretty good then!
Sasha: True.
Ariel: He's moving to here and gonna Blunderbuss Special Attack you. It's got Attack of 3 and it can hit more than 1 figure too, so there! And 2 skulls, so if Wishy-Washy blows it, she's dead!
Sasha: She's one level higher than you, though, so she rolls 5 dice, and gets 2 shields. No problem.
Ariel: Blast.
Sasha: My number 3 is Onshu. He'll fly back over to here and shriek at Burny again. 2 skulls.
Ariel: How are you rolling 2 skulls so many times?! I roll ... Boooo! Only one shield. Burny's dead!
Sasha: Kind of just like last time.
Ariel: That's okay. Last time turned out fine for me. That's the end of the round, right?
Sasha: No, Onshu gets to shriek twice, remember? This time he's shrieking at Killin Veins. 
Ariel: You better not roll 2 skulls again.
Sasha: 2 skulls.
Ariel: You cheater! How are you doing that?
Sasha: I guess I'm just on a streak. How many Defense dice does Killin get?
Ariel: Ugh. Only 2. And he doesn't roll a single shield! This is going so bad!
Sasha: Well, now it's turn 2. Maybe that will work out better for you. Place your order markers.
Ariel: Done.
Sasha: Me too.
Ariel: OMG. I rolled all shields on the initiative. That's it, this way of rolling initiative sucks. Let's do the 20-sider way now.
Sasha: Sure, but not until next round. I roll 3 skulls, so I go first.
Ariel: Boo.
Sasha: My first order marker is on Ewashia.
Ariel: That's so boring!
Sasha: Maybe, but it's happening. Onshu flies over here where he can beak Killin Veins from higher up, giving him an extra die.
Ariel: I thought you said no extra dice for him.
Sasha: That's only for his Special Attack. His normal Attack value only has Range 1, but I'm close enough now, and it's 3 dice instead of the 2 I get for Sonic Blast. Plus 1 for height is 4, and --
Ariel: This is so unfair.
Sasha: Don't be such a pessimist. I only got 1 skull.
Ariel: Hah! I got 1 shield on my 2 dice. Eat it, Owl-Shoe!
Sasha: I still get a turn with Ewashia, though, so here comes a Twister Special Attack. 2 skulls this time.
Ariel: No shields! Boo! Killin Veins is almost killed!
Sasha: Well, it's your turn. What do you do?
Ariel: My number 1 is Killin Veins, obviously, and he's going to Blunderbuss Wishy-Washy.
Sasha: Sorry, but he's engaged with Onshu.
Ariel: What? I don't want him to marry your owl.
Sasha: No, engaged means he can't attack another figure at range unless he moves away.
Ariel: I'll do that then.
Sasha: But if he moves away, he gets a disengagement attack on him. I'll roll 1 die, and if it comes up a skull, he has to take the wound. No defense dice.
Ariel: But he's only got 1 left!
Sasha: Up to you whether you want to risk it.
Ariel: Err ... no, I better not. Killin's going to climb up here next to Owl-Shoe so you don't get any extra dice. 4 Attack! Blah. Just 1 skull.
Sasha: Onshu has Defense 3 ... 1 shield. He's safe.
Ariel: Fine. Now it's "My number 2 is Wishy-Swishy" again, right?
Sasha: No, I was worried I'd lose initiative and she'd get killed before her turn, so I put it on Onshu. He climbs up one more step and attacks down at Killin Veins. Only 1 skull, though.
Ariel: Come on, Killin! Two shields! Take that, you stupid owl!
Sasha: Your turn.
Ariel: You know who it is, too!
Sasha: Killin Veins.
Ariel: Yep. I roll ... 4 skulls! Holy moley!
Sasha: This may be it for Onshu. He doesn't have that much life. But I do get 4 Defense since I'm above you ... but only 1 shield, which means I take 3 wounds, and that's all he's got.
Ariel: Gotcha, you stupid owl!
Sasha: Wow. Kind of vicious for somebody who didn't even want to attack him last game because he was too cute.
Ariel: Last game he wasn't squawking at me twice every turn!
Sasha: My last order marker is on Kita. Hmm. What do I want to do? I guess I'll move her here so she's between Killin and Ewashia.
Ariel: That's not going to help you any though because I just looked at your card and she's only got 2 life. She's going down next time Killin gets to go.
Sasha: That's not this turn, though, because you only had 2 order markers on him.
Ariel: Yeah. My number 3 is this Fibby Void Siren chick. Hmm. If I move here, I'm on the same level, and I can use my Black Powder Pistol to change my Range from 1 to 5. Kapow on Kitty!
Sasha: Sorry, Kita is an Apparition. You didn't look close enough at her card. You can't attack her at all unless you're within two spaces.
Ariel: What! Well, I don't want to move there, then.
Sasha: You already did. And you removed that Black Powder token from your card to activate your power. The rules specifically say no backsies.
Ariel: No way! Let me see that!
Sasha: It's right here.
Ariel: Seriously? They even called it "You Snooze, You Lose???" I hate these guys. Now I wasted my Black Powder shot, and I've only got two left!
Sasha: That may be plenty ... especially if you win initiative this round. Place your order markers.
Ariel: There. Done.
Sasha: Now we roll the 20-sider. I roll a 12.
Ariel: I roll ... 2! No! I hate this way of rolling initiative. Let's go back to the other way.
Sasha: Next turn, if you really want to. Now ...
Ariel: "My number 1 is Swishy-Witchy."
Sasha: You guessed it. First she gets to take a turn with Kita, who will climb up here so she's above Killin for an extra Attack die. Boo, weak! She only has 2 dice to start, and I got no skulls on my 3 dice.
Ariel: Ha-ha, Killin doesn't even have to roll!
Sasha: But Ewashia still gets her turn.
Ariel: Goldang it.
Sasha: Twister Special Attack! 2 skulls on Killin.
Ariel: I only roll 1 shield. He's dead. That sucks! Both my -- I mean, my first order marker is on him, so I don't even get a turn now.
Sasha: My number 2 is Ewashia again. She's going to move Kita over behind this tree here where your chick can't see her. Then she's going to move herself behind this other tree where you can't see her either.
Ariel: You scaredy squid!
Sasha: Hey, neither of my guys has more than 2 life, and you've got 5.
Ariel: Well, the joke's on you because my second order marker is on Killin Veins, so I don't even get to go this turn. I was totally at your mercy, and you blew it!
Sasha: I guess that's what I get for playing conservatively. Okay, then, my number 3 is Kita. She's coming over here to attack you.
Ariel: Haha, I'm going to get an extra Defense die for being higher up than you!
Sasha: What can I say? You goaded me into snarling action. Chomp! One skull.
Ariel: That's nothing, even if I miss on all my dice. Uh ... which I do. Poop.
Sasha: Your turn.
Ariel: Obviously my next marker is Fifi. She'll attack Kitty with 5 dice!
Sasha: Do your worst.
Ariel: What! No skulls! That really was my worst.
Sasha: Called it. Here we go with order markers, then.
Ariel: Try and guess who I'm putting mine on.
Sasha: I'm done. How are we rolling initiative?
Ariel: It doesn't matter. I'm going to lose anyway. Here, I'll roll the 6 Attack dice and you roll the 20-sider.
Sasha: Are you really that cocky about winning the game even if I get initiative this turn?
Ariel: No, just nothing has worked out for me on initiative so far, so we need to do something different, and I figured no way you'd agree to rolling the 6 dice and me rolling the 20-sider.
Sasha: Fine. I roll a 6.
Ariel: Haha! Tricked you! I got 2 skulls and you didn't get any!
Sasha: I assumed the number on the 20-sider was the number of skulls it would count for.
Ariel: That's what I was counting on. And the no-backsies rule means you can't get a do-over!
Sasha: That rule didn't actually say it applied to initiative, though.
Ariel: I'm applying it.
Sasha: Fine. Take your turn.
Ariel: My number 1 is Fifi. See?
Sasha: I know. She's the only one you've got left, and I can see you put all your order markers on her.
Ariel: Just making sure. She's going to move ... right over here where she can see Wishy-Washy to shoot.
Sasha: But if you break away from Kita, she gets a leaving engagement attack on you.
Ariel: I don't care.
Sasha: Ballsy. But you luck out and I don't get a skull.
Ariel: Now I use my Black Powder Pistol! Kapow! And I'm higher up than you so I get an extra die because the Black Powder Pistol adds to my range instead of being a Special Attack, which means I'm using my normal Attack value plus 1 ... 3 skulls!
Sasha: This looks bad for me ... 2 shields, though. Ewashia is alive. Barely.
Ariel: Do your worst! (See? I noticed how that worked for you so I'm using it too.)
Sasha: Ewashia takes a turn with Kita first. She moves here to get above Fifi, so here come 3 Attack dice. All skulls!
Ariel: How do you keep doing that?
Sasha: Talent, baby. Roll your Defense.
Ariel: Only 1 shield. Well, I still have 2 life.
Sasha: We'll see if that's enough. Now Ewashia takes her main turn. Twister Special Attack! 2 skulls.
Ariel: Jeepers ... okay, well, I'm higher up than you, so that's 4 dice I get to roll ... 1 shield, whew!
Sasha: Hanging on by a thread.
Ariel: Yeah. So I'm gonna go here --
Sasha: Another leaving engagement attack.
Ariel: That's okay. If I don't kill off your wizard I'm toast next turn anyhow. Roll it.
Sasha: Skull.
Ariel: Boo! You cheater!
Sasha: How did I cheat?
Ariel: By rolling more skulls than you ought to. I'm going to have MSG figure out his math on how likely that was.
Sasha: Does it matter how likely it was? My dice rocked! Sometimes that just happens.
Ariel: Fine. Anyway, I'm dead so you win.
Sasha: Yasss!
Ariel: We're still only tied in number of games though, so it's not like you're ahead or anything.
Sasha: But I won a Master Game game and you only won a Basic Game game.
Ariel: I don't care. They're totally equal.
Sasha: Mmm ... I guess that's true. I had fun both times.
Ariel: See? Now we've got to play a tie breaker.
Sasha: Sure. You're on.
Ariel and Sasha: See you next time, readers!
 

 

Sasha and Ariel Experience ... Heroscape!

Sasha: Hey, what's this?
Ariel: It's a game! It's called "Heroscape!"
Sasha: Hero ... wait, isn't that the game MSG has a whole closet full of stuff for but we've never played?
Ariel: Yes, but now there's new Heroscape, and he ordered some of it because he was excited since they haven't made it in forever, and it came and I decided I would open it for him.
Sasha: Oohhhh ... are you sure that was a good idea?
Ariel: Yeah ... I know he would probably have wanted to open it himself, but it came while he was at work, and I have this great plan about it and I had to open it to do the plan.
Sasha: What's the plan?
Ariel: We'll learn how to play! And then we'll surprise him with us knowing how to play one of his favorite games and he'll be super happy to have someone to play with but not even have to teach us how.
Sasha: I dunno, Aers. It looks pretty complicated. How long do you think it will take us to learn?
Ariel: Mmm ... not sure. But to give us enough time, I kind of hid the package when it was delivered, so that gives us a little more breathing room.
Sasha: ...
Ariel: What?
Sasha: Don't you think if he's expecting the package that he'll get annoyed or even stressed and worried when it doesn't show up?
Ariel: That's why we have to learn fast! But if we hear him complaining, we can say, "Dang, that sucks, but that's what happens when you rely on a company that whoever runs it just got broken up with."
Sasha: Uh ... ?
Ariel: It's called "Fed Ex." Like, the person's ex is living high on the hog, probably from getting half their company in the split, so then they renamed it "Fed Ex" from whatever it was before because all the money goes to keeping their ex fed.
Sasha: I'm sorry I asked.
Ariel: But I guess it's better than that other company, You Pee, sssssss. Like, calling your company "You Pee" was bad enough, but why did they have to include the sound effect?
Sasha: Yeah, uh ...
Ariel: ssssssssssss -- I mean, that's just gross.
Sasha: Where's the instruction manual? Let's just get to learning the game, okay?
Ariel: It's over there. It looked like a lot of rules and the game pieces looked super cool and fun and you get to build the board out of all these different-sized kinds of land, so I wanted to do that first. There's a smaller manual with diagrams of how to build the board. I figured that was a good way to ease into it instead of reading all those rules.
Sasha: Okay then. Here, let's have a look. "Introduction." Uhhh ... blah blah blah, blahbitty blah ... yeesh, this part isn't rules at all, just a bunch of story background. Skipping to the next page.
Ariel: Wait ... what if it's an interesting story? Or what if we need to know the story to know why some of the characters in the game are the way they are?
Sasha: Too bad, so sad. Look, you had your chance with the instruction book before I got here and instead you hogged the fun bit of building the board -- which looks really cool, by the way, good job. But if you got to skip the boring bits I do too.
Ariel: I guess that's fair.
Sasha: "Welcome to Heroscape ... blah blah blah ..." Aha! "Getting Ready to Play a Basic Game!" Sounds like a good place to start.
Ariel: Is that what we want to do? I know there's supposed to be a simple way to play and a fancier way to play. Don't you think MSG will want us to play the more complicated version?
Sasha: Well, flipping through this book, it looks like the Basic Game rules go from page 4 to ... page 8. And the "Master Game" rules go from page 9 to -- looks like the very end of the book, page 21.
Ariel: OMG, that's so many pages.
Sasha: I mean, it's only 12 pages and there are lots of pictures.
Ariel: No, I meant page 4 to page 8! That's ... hm, hm, hm, hm, hm ... 5 whole pages of rules!
Sasha: We've played rpg's with way more than 5 pages of rules.
Ariel: Yeah, but I didn't actually have to read them, I just learned whatever MSG and Claire taught us.
Sasha: You're not having to read them this time either. I'm reading them.
Ariel: Oh. Hey, you're right! Okay, go on.
Sasha: Thank you. So ... blah-blah-blah, we've got these cards, they show our armies, which can be heroes or squads.
Ariel: Wait. A card is an army? And an army can be one hero? That doesn't sound right.
Sasha: Maybe "Army Card" just means a card that's part of your army.
Ariel: I'm going to look at one of them and see. Yikes!
Sasha: What?
Ariel: Look how complicated this card for this one guy is! It's got like a whole page worth of rules about this dude on it!
Sasha: Uh ... so the book says each card's got two sides. Flip it over.
Ariel: Ohhhh. Whew! That looks lots better. Way less stuff to read, and also, the picture of the dude is a lot bigger so you can see it easier. Dang, he's kind of creepy looking. "Bok-Bur-Na." Is that his name? Or is it words in whatever alien language he speaks?
Sasha: I don't know, I'm trying to read these rules.
Ariel: What are these numbers for? Move, Range, Attack, and Defense.
Sasha: I don't know, because you're not letting me read.
Ariel: I bet Move is how much you can move.
Sasha: ...
Ariel: Okay, I'll be quiet.
Sasha: ...
Ariel: Was I right? Is Move how much you can move?
Sasha: Yes. You were right. Are we going to do that for every one of these numbers?
Ariel: No, I don't think the other ones look as easy. Like, is "Range" how far you can shoot? Or is it the number of different ranges you can shoot to? Cause in some games we've played there's a short range and a medium range and a long range, or in others there's adjacent range and close range and distant range and extreme range. So maybe a 3 for range could mean you can shoot in any of short or medium or long, or maybe it just means you can shoot 3 feet away or something.
Sasha: It would really be a lot quicker if you just let me read what each one means and tell you.
Ariel: Sorry.
Sasha: So Range is how many spaces away from you on the board you can shoot.
Ariel: I knew it!
Sasha: And Attack and Defense are how many dice you roll when attacking or defending.
Ariel: Oh, yeah, this way is lots better. I could've been going on all day trying to think of what those numbers were and I wouldn't have figured that out. What kind of dice are they? 4-sided, or 6-sided, or 8-sided, or ...
Sasha: It says you roll "Combat Dice." It doesn't say how many sides there are, but when you roll to attack, you want them to show skulls, and when you roll for defense, you want them to show shields.
Ariel: I want one that's got 20 sides and 19 of them are skulls and one is a shield. Then as long as I go first, I'll probably win because it's almost always going to come up with a skull.
Sasha: Well, look in the box and find them and let's see what they look like.
Ariel: Hmm. These must be them. Looks like they're cubes, which is like a 6-sider, but there are no numbers, just skulls and shields -- oh, and blanks. Let's see, this one has 3 skulls and a blank and 2 shields, and this one has 3 skulls and a blank and 2 shields, and this one --
Sasha: I think they're probably all the same.
Ariel: Well I'm checking anyway because if one of them's better I want that one.
Sasha: Fine.
Ariel: Hmm. Uh-huh ... uh-huh ... uh-huh ... yeah, they're all the same. So when do we roll them?
Sasha: Well first we roll them to see who takes the first turn. You roll 6 of them and whoever gets more skulls goes first. Then you just switch off taking turns.
Ariel: Great! That sounds easy! Ooh! And I rolled 5 skulls!
Sasha: We can't start yet, I've barely gotten to page 5 of the rules.
Ariel: Just read them while we're going.
Sasha: I don't know if that will work.
Ariel: Here, roll these dice.
Sasha: Whatever.
Ariel: Hah! That's only one skull! I totally creamed you. So I go first! What do I do?
Sasha: It says pick one of your army cards to take a turn with.
Ariel: Which ones are mine?
Sasha: I don't know, I haven't gotten that far in the book yet.
Ariel: Well, when I set up the board from the diagrams it had me put one group of guys over here, and another group of guys over here. This group's the one with that Book-Burny guy. He's got a couple of other mean-looking people with him. Then over there is a group with a weird octopus lady, and a horned dog critter, and some kinda owly bat-looking critter. I guess since I'm going first I'll let you pick which bunch to play.
Sasha: I'll pick the octopus lady and her pets.
Ariel: What! I wanted to pick them! I thought for sure you'd take the bad-ass looking ones!
Sasha: I thought about it, but then I thought, "Aers is not going to want to kill a cute horned dog thingy or a cute owl-looking thingy." So I figured if I took them you'd have a hard time deciding to shoot at them and that would give me an advantage.
Ariel: Boo! That's no fair at all.
Sasha: What can I say? You shouldn't have offered to let me pick.
Ariel: Sigh. Okay, so what do I do now that it's my turn? Pick one of my cards? And then what?
Sasha: You move the figure up to as many spaces as are in its Move value.
Ariel: Okay, my Book Burner dude can move 5, so I move him here.
Sasha: Well, you can't move him there because he has to climb up the side of that terrain. Each layer of terrain costs one space to climb up.
Ariel: Why didn't you tell me that?
Sasha: I just did tell you that. I would have told you before you moved, if you'd waited. 
Ariel: But I can't move nearly as far if I have to climb up stuff! Plus I want him to get up high so he can see your dudes better to shoot them. His Range is 5. Does being up higher make his Range better?
Sasha: I don't know, I haven't even finished reading all the moving rules.
Ariel: You're kidding. There are more moving rules?
Sasha: Yeah, like you can't move through your enemy's figures, or through those trees there, or through water --
Ariel: There isn't any water. The diagram for this board didn't tell me to use any.
Sasha: Good, then we can skip that rule for now. Other than that ... looks like the only other moving thing to know is that it doesn't cost any extra spaces to move down from up high.
Ariel: Okay, great. So this is where I move Burny. What now?
Sasha: Now it's the part of your turn where you can attack with him.
Ariel: Yes! What do I do?
Sasha: First you check the range. How many spaces is it to the figure you want to attack?
Ariel: Seven, because I want to attack your octo-lady. But my Range is only 5. Do I get more range for being up high?
Sasha: No ... but you do get to roll an extra attack die if your figure's base is higher than my figure's base.
Ariel: Except I don't because I can't reach you.
Sasha: Right.
Ariel: So now what do I do?
Sasha: That's it. Your turn is over.
Ariel: Boo! I barely got to do anything!
Sasha: Sorry. Now it's my turn. I'm moving my owl dude here. One, two, three, four, five. He's got Move 6, but I don't need to get any closer to you because he's also got Range 4. So I'm shooting your Burninator dude.
Ariel: This sucks.
Sasha: My Attack is 3, plus my base is higher than Burny's, so that adds an extra die for a total of 4.
Ariel: This sucks even more!
Sasha: So I'm going to roll 4 dice and then you roll however many dice your Defense says. If my total number of skulls beats your total number of shields, that kills your guy.
Ariel: Well, I've got 7 Defense at least, so I ought to beat you easy.
Sasha: Yeah, maybe so. I only roll 1 skull.
Ariel: Two shields! So there!
Sasha: You're safe.
Ariel: Now I get to take a turn with one of my other guys?
Sasha: If you want to. Or you can use the same guy again. You get to pick every turn.
Ariel: Ooh, awesome!
Sasha: I guess Owly is in trouble then, since you can climb up to that spot there and add an extra die to your attack on him.
Ariel: No, because you're right, he's too cute and I don't want to attack him first. I'm going to move over here instead and shoot down at your octo-person. I still get that extra die because she's all the way down there. Wait, what?! My Attack value sucks! It's only 2!
Sasha: But you do get to add 1 for being up high.
Ariel: Whee, a whole 3 dice. Oh! But I do roll 2 skulls. How many dice does Octo-shmockto get to roll?
Sasha: Mm ... 8.
Ariel: What! That's crazy! I'm never going to be able to kill you if you've got 8 dice!
Sasha: Definitely not this turn at least. I got 3 shields. My turn now. I'm climbing up to that tall spot you passed by so I get an extra die.
Ariel: Why don't you just fly? You're an owl. Or an owl-bat, or something. Look at those wings!
Sasha: There weren't any rules about flying, so I'm assuming I still have to climb.
Ariel: I hope there are rules about flying in the Master Game because it will sure be dumb if critters with wings can't use them to fly up places.
Sasha: I'm guessing that's where the flying rules are. Anyway, I get 4 dice again, and this time I roll ... another 1 skull.
Ariel: Whew! I get 2 shields again. Now I'm shooting Octo-person again with 3 dice ... 1 skull. Boo.
Sasha: That's 4 shields for me.
Ariel: But you only rolled 6 dice.
Sasha: We only have 6 dice.
Ariel: But your octo-gal is supposed to get 8, so you need to roll 2 more.
Sasha: I can't get negative shields, so I already beat the 1 skull you rolled. It's kind of wasting time if I roll more dice.
Ariel: Sure, but not as much time as we just wasted arguing about it.
Sasha: Fine. I roll 2 more dice and get no shields on them, but I still live because I already got 4.
Ariel: You don't have to rub it in.
Sasha: I -- whatever. It's my turn again, and Owly is going to beak you for a total of ... yes! 4 skulls!
Ariel: What? No fair! How did you get 4 skulls on 4 dice if only half the sides are skulls?
Sasha: Luck, baby. Roll your Defense.
Ariel: Bleh. Only 2 shields. Now Burny is dead. Well, this dude here is coming to get revenge. His name's Killin Veins with 3 i's.
Sasha: He has 3 eyes?
Ariel: No, look: i, i, i.
Sasha: That's roman numeral 3.
Ariel: Fine. Killin Veins 3, and he's got Range 4 so if I move him here I can shoot you with my, what do we got? Woohoo, 5 Attack dice! Kapow! That's 4 skulls!
Sasha: Yikes. I'm higher up than you are, though, so I get a total of 6 Defense dice ... dang, so close. I got 3 shields, but that's not enough.
Ariel: Yes! Eat it, Owly!
Sasha: Foo. And he was soooo cute, too.
Ariel: ... you don't have to say that.
Sasha: Sure I do, poor cutesy-hootsy Owly, flying up to heaven now because your guy blasted him to bits.
Ariel: Are you trying to make me not like this game?
Sasha: Sorry. Okay, my turn. My dog with the horns has Move 6, so he'll climb up as close to you as he can get, but his Range is 1, so that's all he can do.
Ariel: Yes! Killin Veins will climb up where he's on the same level as you and blast you! I roll 3 skulls!
Sasha: Oh no! My poor cute doggie!
Ariel: Quit that!
Sasha: He has 6 Defense, and I roll ... rats, only 2 shields. He goes, "Yipe! Yipe! Yipe -- urk!" and falls over dead with his legs up in the air.
Ariel: You're so mean.
Sasha: You're the one who killed him. Here comes Octo-lady. Her move is 5, so she can get to here.
Ariel: Can she reach me with all those tentacles? Those have got to have some Range, right?
Sasha: Nope, she's got a 1 just like poor Fido-horns did.
Ariel: Great -- then Killin Veins climbs up to the top of the hill here and goes ker-blammo with 6 dice for being higher up than her. 3 skulls!
Sasha: This could be it if I don't roll well with my 8 Defense ... agh. Only 2 shields.
Ariel: Yes! In your octo-face, Octo-lady! That means I win the whole game, right?
Sasha: I don't know. You're the one who read the scenario and put together the map. Maybe you were supposed to force me to surrender and now we both lose because you killed everyone.
Ariel: Oh. That better not be what it says! Where's that ... okay, whew. It just says we were supposed to kill each other off and whoever toasted the other player's dudes first is the winner. Which is me! I rule! I totally see why MSG likes this game now.
Sasha: You think? Because I'm guessing he plays it with the Master Game rules and isn't all that impressed with this Basic Game version.
Ariel: Dang. You're probably right. I bet he never even played this version.
Sasha: Yeah, knowing him he probably went straight to the more complicated rules. But if you think about it, that means now we know something about this game that he doesn't, which is that it's pretty fun even with just the Basic rules.
Ariel: Sigh. I guess we're going to have to work on learning the Master Game rules next though, if we really want my plan to work.
Sasha: Cheer up! I'm sure the Master rules aren't too much harder than these ones.
Ariel: That's because you didn't look at the other side of the army cards! Every one of them has all these different rules!
Sasha: Let me see here ... ooh! Owly gets to attack twice every turn in the Master version. And on Octo-lady's turn she can take an extra turn using one of her critters -- sweet! What can your guys do? 
Ariel: I don't know, I'm too tired to get into that tonight.
Sasha: Okay, well, maybe we can find out tomorrow!
Ariel and Sasha: Goodnight, everybody!