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Fun Time Without Screen Time

Quarantine Edition

By Nicole "ChaseThePen" SanchezPublished 4 years ago 4 min read
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Especially in the days of quarantine, having entertainment is important. By now, you’ve probably watched all the shows you’ve had in queue and are pretty sick of just staring at coronavirus memes and news on your social media feeds. I know all that screen time has started to affect my eyes, so I thought now was the perfect time for a new edition of Fun Time Without Screen Time.

Spell Smashers

This game combines the mental obstacles of Scrabble with classic fantasy game elements. It can play 1-5 people, which makes it perfect for our wonderful quarantine time. Create words to fight heinous monsters and accrue the most victory points in the party. Now, you don’t create as many words as Scrabble, as there are only seven rounds, but they go pretty quickly, so a second game is always a possibility.

My favorite attack word from my last game. It vanquished a mighty foe.

There are two general phases, battle and town. In battle, you fight with your words and claim money from the monsters you fight. Watch out though, the monsters wound you. Those wounds are difficult letter combinations that take up space in your hand. I seem to get “HI” a lot and I have more trouble than I’d like to admit getting that one into a word. Once you vanquish the monster, you can now use their letter to create even more powerful words. In town, you can pick up quests, gear, or potions to aid in your coming battles. To purchase, click here.

Big Book of Madness

I do love a good cooperative game and this one fits the bill. You are one of 2-5 students at a magical academy who has decided to open a forbidden book. Unfortunately, that book has unleashed monsters. Each character has its own special ability, but there are also spells and element cards to help you defeat the monsters. I enjoy playing as the one who gets to know an extra spell. Spells are pretty useful and integral to defeating the monsters, but the other characters do have some pretty cool special powers as well. Now, as long as your group of students can defeat the last monster in the book, you win the game, but defeating the other monsters makes that a whole lot easier. There are different difficulties, and the difference is pretty stark, so go easy on yourselves the first time. Hard is for seasoned players. Be sure to have a good balance of characters as well. All elements are necessary for winning the game. To pick this one up, click here

Turn 1 of round 1

Cards Against Humanity

As you are probably holed up with your family, you may be wondering why I have added Cards Against Humanity to the list. After all, it is a wildly inappropriate game. The reason is twofold: I played it with my mom shortly before her death and I’m publishing this on the 3 year anniversary of that death.

DO NOT PLAY THIS WITH CHILDREN, but if you happen to have the right family dynamic, try it. On one such occasion, I went to visit my mom with my boyfriend and we brought this tasty gem with us.

We played and it was abso-f***ing-lutely fantastic. After we got past the turbulent teenage years, my mother and I had been getting closer over the years and no subject was actually off limits, but we still had some boundaries as many parents do. Cards Against Humanity doesn’t allow for boundaries. So, the evening before her surgery, my boyfriend and I played with my mom and laughed soooooooo hard. Some cards we had to explain to her, but that was funny in its own way. I remember her outright saying that she “couldn’t play that card because” her daughter was right there. It is a very fond memory and, if I had the opportunity, I would have done again.

The game play is simple enough. There are white and black cards. The judge reads the black card and the other players put down the white card that best fits. There are cards like “8 Ounces of Mexican Black Tar” and “50,0000 volts to the nipples.” I have a friend who will almost always pick “Mecha-Hitler.” Bottom line is that it is an outrageously fun game to play with friends and, under the right circumstances, maybe family too. To purchase from Amazon, click here.

I hope that you are well and handling the current state of our world well. Board games can be a great distraction for such a time (or really any time). Remember to stay safe and healthy. Click here to check out the chainmaille shop. Remember, I’m currently running 10% off with code STAYSAFE and half of profits will be donated to Humanity Forward.

Humanity Forward is a non-profit dedicated to pushing policy and candidates that will benefit the people. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, they are currently providing micro grants to those most affected financially. If you are in need of a grant, apply here. Check out their whole website while you’re there. You’ll see a formidable case for providing a universal basic income and data property rights.

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Nicole "ChaseThePen" Sanchez

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