Review: Biblios and Biblios: Quill and Parchment

Oily Cathedral, what is an job, hasta la vista monkey

Ava: Well look at that! It’s an Ava video. This cathedral of content has been in preparation for several generations now, and it’s finally here. Biblios: Quill and Parchment is a recent release from Dr Finn’s games that I was able to pick up and try at PAX Unplugged. It was the perfect excuse to talk about one of my top card games of all time, the original Biblios! So here is a double review that definitely shows no signs of me biting off more than I can chew.

A whole world of monk tracks and illuminations are right there waiting for you. Except Biblios might not entirely be in print right now, sorry! There’s suggestions for games to keep you going at the end though, I promise.

Also, I realised while writing this script that I can just say ‘Matt make me a trailer for an imaginary cinematic universe’ and he just HAS to do it. And because he’s Matt he’ll also put approximately ten thousand times the required effort into it. Brilliant. Even when I’m still learning the ropes, this job is lovely. Thanks audience for keeping me in work!

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This Week On Shut Up & Sit Down…

no letter clues this week, on-stream-accidents, the blandest names ever made

Tom: Congratulations, reader! You are the 1,00… th… reader of the Shut Up & Sit Down Monday Post! The prize, of course, was in your heart all along! A scalpel and a vacuum cleaner are in the post. But what other treats can you folks look forward to in the meantime?

Wednesday bears the fruit of the oft-delayed, mythologised Ava review – arriving after a long period of Matt chipping away in the After Effects mines. ‘This is maybe the best thing I’ve ever done!’ he cries from the depths. We solemnly nod along, knowing well he is lost forever.

Thursday stream! We’re playing more Teardown! Stream will be on the Twitch sometime in the ‘English Afternoon’ – a period of time that occurs after a second cup of coffee but before kissing the Queen goodnight.

Friday is pod-day, and Tom and Quinns have kind words to say about Imperial Steam and The Guild of Merchant Explorers. Good luck keeping those titles in your head for the rest of the day, let alone the rest of the week!

And that’s all for this week! I’ve managed to grievously injure my finger in an act of Aubergine Revenge, so this entire post was typed with my ‘non-dominant’ fingers, or, if you’d rather, my submissive fingers *eyes emoji*. I’ve lost a lot of blood.

Week! Everybody up to what’s goinn onnnnnn….?

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Podcast #180 – Marauder Management

Kleptomaniac Rats, SWAT Badgers, Factory Farming, The Outro Cometh

In this marauding episode of the Shut Up & Sit Down Podcast, Tom and Ava have been let loose on games once again. Someone stop them.

First up, we’ve got some disclaimer-laden chats about Root’s latest Marauder expansion, followed by some hot-off-the-(im)press(ions) of Little Factory – the latest edition to the Little™ Expanded Universe. We also have a brief chat about Tom’s obsession over Knotwords and other Word(le) games at the end!

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Tap below for full timestamps and more info!

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This Week On Shut Up & Sit Down…

Hearty Heists, Peculiar Pods, The Monty Hall Content

Tom: Hello and welcome to another episode of This Week On Shut Up & Sit Down! There are three doors in front of you, and only one contains a prize!! Just kidding, just a little joke, just a bit of joshing between pals; they all have prizes, and zero goats. 

Tomorrow (Tuesday) I’ll be doing streaming more Teardown in the afternoon – you can find that over on the Twitch channel for some incredibly poorly planned heists. I’m loving it so far, so please do come say hi and give me more terrible ideas for what to do with explosives.

On Thursday, it’s video day! You can expect another outstanding performance from Ava Foxfort in a searing hot double-review! This, of course, will be a review of the other B-Based game as alluded to in last week’s post. And like a cardboard Carol Vorderman I will reveal another letter…. it’s an S! Tune in next week for another sweet drop.

Matt: You’ve somehow managed to misunderstand both Countdown and our website in just two sentences.

Tom: And on Friday, as always, we’re podcastin’. Tom and Quinns are going to talk about whatever they end up playing on Thursday – who knows what that’ll be! Find out then for a nice surprise.

Until then, have a great week! I’m enjoying my bank holiday Monday playing some Knotwords and writing this post on the sofa. I have become truly decadent with a cheap keyboard and a trusty Steam Link. What have you been up to, everybody?

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Podcast #179 – Small Game City

Farty Noises Tee Hee, Sponsored by the London Graphics Center, Questionable Advice

In this meagre episode of the Shut Up & Sit Down podcast, Tom and Matt are talking about three whole boxes with games inside of them!! First up is MAGIC BINGO, also known as Via Magica – a game of wizards and crystals that your (imaginary) family might enjoy. We then talk about the disastrous urban planning of Next Station: London, before getting thoroughly confused by Cryptid: Urban Legends.

Finally, we take a trip to the forbidden zone to chat about Square Valley – a delightful little mobile game that is… ‘Quite Boardgames’.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Tap below for full timestamps and more info!

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Review: The Battle of Five Armies

If you’re a fan of red and blue plastics then GOSH do we have a treat for you today – Matt has a review of a – still very large – SMALLER cousin of the behemoth that is War of the Ring, The Battle of Five Armies. Can this Hobbit-based wargame tickle the same sensations as the esoteric giant we reviewed a few years ago? Are games getting bigger generally, or are our tables shrinking? How many orcs could a wood-orc orc if a wood-orc could-orc orc? None of this, and more!

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This Week On Shut Up & Sit Down…

oh no, it went all cursed, make it stop

Tom: Good evening boardgames! Welcome to another wonderful week of Shut Up & Sit Down; where we bring the games into your house and put them on the table and play them with you, but we do not really. Still working on the slogan, there. And the header image, as you can see.

On maybe Wednesday this week, I think I’ll stream some Teardown – the heisty puzzly destructy game that I’ve been waiting to sink my teeth into for a good while now. I was chuckling away to myself playing the first few missions, so you can see some of those chuckles LIVE on Wednesday (maybe).

On Thursday, you can expect A VIDEO. We’ve got two cooking simultaneously, so it’s whoever gets their edit to the finish line first! Place your bets! I’m really bad at writing the tease for these things, but know that both of the games have a ‘B’ in them somewhere. And one of the reviews is for two games – each with its own B. Ferocious.

Friday? It’s pod-day. We’ll talk about ‘some games’ – I have no idea which. I created that really quite ghastly deep dream image for this post to avoid any responsibilities about games that will or will not be covered, but honestly all I’ve done is scare myself. Stick that in your earholes!!

That’s this week! What have you been up to, everybody?

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Review: Doodle Dash and Pictomania

In this double feature, we pay homage to humanity’s oldest art form: the board game review. Also, the art of drawing something and your friends having no idea what it is.

Better yet, Quinns claims that both of the games in this video – Doodle Dash and Pictomania – are better than the classic game of Pictionary. Although the question of which one you should buy is a little bit trickier.

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This Week On Shut Up & Sit Down…

SecretStreamin', Potential Podcastin', Very... Video... in'?

Tom: Monday! Monday! Monday! Don’t let anyone tell you differently, it sure is Monday today. What a day it is to tell you all about what’s going on “This Week On Shut Up & Sit Down”.

On Wednesday, which is another day, Quinns is going to be catapulting a video over your castle walls and slap-bang in the middle of your donjon. You might think that the game in question has a medieval theme but no! I’ve just got castles on the brain and a dictionary at my fingertips.

After missing a TUNIC last week, I should be able to slice off a little time to partake once more, hopefully finishing it sans-secrets. I might do a secret-hunting stream at some point too! Though I’m thinking about switching the combat off after not enjoying that particular part of the game that much, especially whilst streaming.

Aaaand on Friday you can expect some kind of podbeast with myself and Ava, or maybe no podcast at all? Ava has been experiencing turbo-illness, but signs are pointing to hopefully everything being right as rain come Thursday – but if not, you know why!

That’s all this week! If you’ve any questions they will go unanswered! What have you been up to, everybody?  

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Podcast #178 – Voices in the Walls

Rich Tea Boardgames, Rodney Smith Simulator, Comfy Carpets

In this semi-cooperative episode of the Shut Up & Sit Down podcast, Tom and Matt are talking about two very unusual games! First up is Voices In My Head’s handsome-man-sentencing, followed by a small course of Decorum; a passive-aggressive living simulator. We also chat a few nice words about SHUX (and the carpets within) as well as Matt’s review of the Quacks expansion.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

 Tap below for full timestamps and more info!

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