Hydras & Otters team up to unlock satisfying combos while exploring reefs and ship ruins for treasure in Reef & Ruins, a Roll & Write that gives you the satisfaction of a crunchy large sheet, small font Roll & Write spatial puzzle engine builder in a smaller, quicker, more approachable manor.
There’s one die for each head of the Hydra, either for them to venture into shipwrecks to search for treasure, work together to enchant their treasure, or send otters to the reef to get pearls. Each head of the hydra typically wants to do something different, but they occasionally can agree to work together, for hydra’s sake.
At the start of each game, players will choose Ship Ruins, Enchantments, and Reef sheets and all compete to unearth the most valuable items. Players play simultaneously, each choosing between sending their hydras into the ruins for treasure, their otters to enchant the treasures, or to send both into the reef to gain bonuses there. After 18 rounds, players figure out the values of their found treasures, then enchant them for more points, then add in any reef benefits. The game ends before players will be able to finish everything, so they must make the best choices for what Ruins to complete, how many enchantments to work on, and when to go searching the Reef for pearls!
Reef & Ruins is a roll and write standalone game set in the Wicked & Wise universe.
-description from publisher
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Roll and Write — Described as a small little uh roll and right game.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- I'm going to try to film three videos today if I can.
- The problem is I direct as I go. My feet are directing the shot.
- The biggest problem is I don't want to push myself to film a game earlier than I'm ready to.
- The problem is you take on too much at once and it all becomes a blur as you try to keep up with just too many too many things, too many balls that you're juggling all at the same time.
References (from this video)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Roll and assign dice — It's a roll three dice and then kind of, you know, assign it to various areas.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- I think this game is objectively bad, but I also objectively have fun playing it.
- The biggest flaw of Excalibur is I don't think the first four-fifths of the game matter. I think the only thing that matters is the last two to three turns in the game.
- The problem with playing so many games is you always want to keep the good ones, but then you play the better ones and you want to keep the better ones and you realize you should probably shouldn't keep the good ones. But then you play the best ones and you realize you probably shouldn't keep the better ones or the good ones. You should only keep and play the best ones.
- It's the Lego of skirmish space battles.
References (from this video)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- super cute um draft card drafting game.
- It is a trading card game with a mech concept.
- So, you're Ruel and I'm Bailey. But then your shield is Rueld and my shield is Shieldly.
- The two ways you can flip your over flip to your overclock which gives you your mech super cool new powers is either for a good reason or a bad reason.
- Looks like a sexy bat.
- Crab fried rice sounds really good.
- So, if I get, you know, if I knock you your shield down to zero, if there's any excess, normally it would just you just lose it, but I get the shockwave that would apply to your your character then.
- Orcs together strong.
- I love this game. I really
- It's got the sauce. I'm going to play this a lot.