Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!







First up: We we plant flowers for the king, or become mulch ourselves in GardenersNext: We hurl devastating weapons and deadly insults as the walls come tumbling down in Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress WarAnd lastly: We turn to the stars to find the right cards in The Lunar Dial







Gardeners







Designed by: Kasper LappPublished by: Sit Down! (2023)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 15 minutes







Gardeners is a simultaneous cooperative game played silently and in real time.







In less than 15 minutes, players must succeed in arranging as many gardens as possible, always composed of the same 36 tiles, but responding to different rules from one round to another.







Everyone must deduce the rules in force by observing where the tiles are placed and from where some are removed.







A game of Gardeners is made up of an indefinite number of rounds. Each is broken down into 5 phases, as follows:









* Draw a Constraint card







* Start the sandtimer







* Arrange the garden







* Check the garden







* Prepare for the next round









During the game, players cannot communicate in any way about what to do or not to do to make the garden. Sounds easy right? We shall see!







Will you satisfy the King’s whimsical desires?  Or will your head end up on display somewhere to motivate the new gardeners?







Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War







Designed by: Stephen Baker, Noah Cohen, Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, Brian NeffPublished by: Restoration Games (2024)Players: 2Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 20 – 30 minutes







Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War is a restoration of Crossbows and Catapults, the 1983 classic game of kinetic warfare. Each player builds their castle, then players take turns using their weapons to fire discs at their opponent’s castle, trying to knock over their warrior figures.







Setup by building a fortress made of wall components at least 2 rows high, and place your dwarves or orcs warriors to the sides of the fortress or behind its mighty walls. The playing field is divided in half, with flag markers representing boundaries. 







On your turn, play one of your cards from your hand. These cards do things like introduce more troops on your side, or give you extra attacks or special moves. Then take two standard actions, such as moving one of your troops, or firing one of your weapons.







Your choices of weapon are – crossbow or catapult. You physically fire the weapon at your opponents troops or at their fortress. Any pieces of the fortress that get knocked down are removed from the battlefield. Any troops knocked over must also be taken off the field.







The winner is the player (or team) who has the last warrior standing.







The Lunar Dial







Designed by: Keith Baker, Jennifer EllisPublished by: Goliath Games (2023)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 20 – 40 minutes







The Lunar Dial is an abstract strategy game. Players are dealt a hand of cards from a 52 card deck. On the main table is the zodiac board, and on that board is a big circle where 12 cards from the deck are placed face up.