Ryan Laukat has been designing board games since he was a teenager. He's the principal artist at Red Raven Games and his artwork is phenomenal. I had a chance to chat with Ryan at Gen Con 2016 and pick up a copy of his latest game - Islebound. Even the box is gorgeous! In Islebound, up to four players compete for renown (i.e. victory points) obtained through taking over ports through diplomacy or warfare, constructing or buying buildings, amassing cash, and completing in-game actions such as visiting ports or completing events. Our storyline is that each player is a seafaring captain, managing a crew aboard their ship and interacting with various port communities. It's a lovely theme. The mechanics of the game are fairly straightforward and make sense within the constraints of Islebound's plotlines. They're well detailed in the accompanying rulebook and player summary cards are provided for easy reference during game play. I've played the game on two differ...
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