417Gamer Podcast Episode 36 The One with Matt and Windmill Valley

·39 min·2 clips

Matt's number one game is Terraforming Mars, ahead of Ark Nova, Brass Birmingham, and Scythe.

1. Hobby Gaming Network episode 36 centers on Windmill Valley, a Danny Garcia game published by Board & Dice Games. 2. Rick hosts with Andrea, and Matt returns for the 'seven questions of the 417 Gamer Podcast' after episode 35. 3. The episode asks whether Windmill Valley's rotating action wheels and tulip-farming systems are worth playing often. 4. Andrea starts the 'four' with March 27's 'Magic for Adults' by Eric Eaton at the Blue Room Comedy Club in Springfield. 5. She and Rick also discuss Reed Timmer's storm-chasing presentation at the Nixa ATO Center in Nixa, Missouri, where he brought the Dominator 3 vehicle. 6. Andrea adds OzCon, scheduled for April 25 through 27 at the West Plains Civic Center, and notes that CJ runs the not-for-profit event. 7. The final 'four' item is Metagames Unlimited's flea market on the last Saturday of the month, with Table 3 reserved for Rick and Andrea. 8. The Windmill Valley overview describes 19th-century Netherlands, more than 9,000 windmills, polders, and tulip fields along the Bloemian route. 9. Rick explains that each player board has two interlocking windmill wheels, one with six action spaces and one with five. 10. The main actions include upgrading a windmill, going to the market, foreign trade, securing contracts, and lowering water levels. 11. The review system scores components and rulebook, presentation, gameplay, theme, and the 'it factor,' then converts the total into a grade. 12. Rick and Andrea agree that the player boards have strong table presence and that the rotating cogs make each turn feel different. 13. The rulebook and components are praised for thick cardboard tulips, while Rick's only quibble is that card names make the reference section harder to use than numbers would be. 14. The market action stands out because one action can lead to buying or planting but cannot be split across different stalls in the same sequence. 15. Foreign trade uses a board with four mini-actions, and placing a bulb there unlocks the two actions it straddles. 16. Rick likes upgrading windmills most because the common, silver, and gold spots create combo turns and extra-action symbols. 17. Both hosts say the theme fits the mechanics, but Rick is more focused on the gameplay than on the tulip-and-water aesthetics. 18. Matt's segment stays conversational, with Rick and Andrea following up on his childhood games, color preference, collection size, and favorite genres. 19. Listeners who like medium-weight Euros with action selection and low conflict will probably enjoy this episode. 20. Players looking for heavy narrative, strong confrontation, or puzzle-first content may skip it.

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