Top 5 FFG Silverline Games

Y'all know I'm a fan of small collection sizes and I love FFG's Silverline...well...line. In fact, outside of GW's classic 80s titles, I'd say that FFG's Silverline is my favorite line of games. There's a wide array of settings and themes, and sure there are some duds, but they contain the games that have easily given me the most bang for the buck over the years.

Here are my favorites:

5) Space Hulk: Death Angel / Lord of the Rings (tie) - I enjoy both of these co-ops and it's hard to choose one over the other. I still haven't added any of the POD SH:DA expansions, so I wonder if it will ultimately win out over LotR.

4) Colossal Arena - Came for the TITAN tie-in, stayed for the great game-play. I enjoy this betting game a lot particularly mid-game where folks are getting shifty eyed trying to sort out who's hidden bet is still in the arena...

3) Kingdoms - Math is fun! This little Knizia tile laying title is actually quite vicious as once those 2-4 castles tiles are out, they are committed for all to abuse. I haven't played the reprint with the plastic castles. I think maybe there's some new warlock/wizard tile in that set though. Anyone have experience with it?

2) Citadels - Played a lot with my old lunch-time crew, played a lot with the Casual Player's Club, played a lot on the road at BB tourneys. Still not tired of this one. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm ready to proclaim it my favorite Euro, a crown Settlers has held for over 20 years.

1) Condottiere - My most played game. Always a hit with any crowd. The first game I have to buy a second time due to simply being worn out. Maybe it's a euro, maybe it's a wargame, I dunno but I don't ever see myself tiring of this one...and I have yet to even try a single one of the variants listed in the book! I know a lot of folks like the original game better, but the FFG edition seems perfect to me.

There are a bunch of other silverline games I've yet to play (Arcanum, Rune Age, Elder Signs, Deadwood, Drakon, etc) and I'm not sure if LotR: Confrontation is technically a Silverline title or not, but the games listed above are must-haves and will always be on my shelf.

The Space Hulk Death Angel POD expansions are worth picking up if you ever have the extra cash. Mostly they add variety and keep the experience fresh.

The Tyranid expansion is probably the best because it adds another dimension to the enemies you are facing and messes with your target priority in interesting ways.

Through the Desert is Silverline. I'm looking to sell mine for an absurd price.

If I can believe the BGG "Silver line" categorization, my favorites (in order) are: Lord of the Rings, Space Hulk: Death Angel, Elder Sign, Kingdoms, and Colossal Arena.

Notes:

I've actually only played the big-box version of LOTR. I'm assuming the Silver Line update is just as good.

Red November is a close 6th.

My middle three (SH, ES, Kingdoms) are tied for the middle.

I'm not a fan of either Citadels or Condottiere.

Arena Maximus is fun and an appropriate length if you play a single lap.

Drakon is just OK. It wants to be more fun than it is.

Aye Dark Overlord is good with kids.

Cody - Are the Elder Sign expansions essential? If so, do they fit in the base box? Seems lugging around multiple boxes defeats the purpose of being a Silverline title.

Sag - I was going to inquire how low (absurd) you were willing to go thinking you were looking to get rid of Through the Desert, but I see now you mean to go the other way and retire early...good luck!

Does BB:TM count as a Silverline? I think the box dimensions are the same as the new LotR. For that matter, I don't think the new Drakon edition has Silverline on the box. is Silverline even a thing anymore?

I love Space Hulk: Death Angel, and Elder Sign. I don't have any of the POD expansions for Death Angel, but I have everything for Elder Sign. I haven't played in a while... been too busy.

Mr. White wrote: Sag - I was going to inquire how low (absurd) you were willing to go thinking you were looking to get rid of Through the Desert, but I see now you mean to go the other way and retire early...good luck!

You get the Friends & Family price -- $1200.

The prices for this game are absurd for two reasons. They're just absurdly high, and this isn't a particularly gripping game. Through the Desert will not appear on anyone's top 5 Silverline games in this thread for a reason -- it's a pretty basic euro. The little plastic camels are pretty, but seriously, someone could Kickstart this thing for a few bucks without even trying. It's a $24.99 game.

Mr. White wrote: Cody - Are the Elder Sign expansions essential? If so, do they fit in the base box? Seems lugging around multiple boxes defeats the purpose of being a Silverline title.

I quite enjoy both Elder Sign expansions. If you throw out the box insert (as you should with any Fantasy Flight game), both expansions fit. Barely.

Essential, though? 'Maybe' to the first expansion, and 'No' to the second. But both are good.

I have all my Elder Sign stuff in the main box. I'd say neither expansion is "essential" but the first adds a lot of variety to the base game. The second expansion is practically a different game altogether since it doesn't really mix. But it's a lot of fun and has a very Arkham Horror vibe to it.

I have several older silverline games that I like to play with the kiddos.

Against Sag's statement I think my list is:
1) Through the Desert
2) Death Angel
3) Drakon
4) Cave Troll

Is Hey that's my fish! in the silverline... ?

Also I can not stand "Aye Dark Overlord"

edulis wrote: I have several older silverline games that I like to play with the kiddos.

Against Sag's statement I think my list is:
1) Through the Desert
2) Death Angel
3) Drakon
4) Cave Troll

Is Hey that's my fish! in the silverline... ?

Also I can not stand "Aye Dark Overlord"

The price just went up to $1350.

sagrilarus wrote: They're just absurdly high, and this isn't a particularly gripping game. Through the Desert will not appear on anyone's top 5 Silverline games in this thread for a reason -- it's a pretty basic euro.

Careful, you'll bring out the Knizia Defense OrGanization (KDOG)!
...but I'm with you. I always thought it was his take on multiplayer Go, except not as good.

I only like three:
1) LOTR: Confrontation if it counts
2) Colossal Arena
3) Space Hulk Death Angel

I love the special powers in Colossal Arena. I like the brutality of Death Angel. And I think Confrontation is my favorite Knizia game - it's actually really well themed and the gameplay is fantastic. But then my second favorite is Taj Mahal which hardly anyone talks about, so what do I know.

Honorable Mention: Lord of the Rings (the Knizia coop), which will never make it into the top five and always make me a little sad because they never released the expansions for the small-box version. They should have at least made Friends & Foes available.

5) Red November
This still does some really fun things in a coop game that haven't been done well since. The items matter, the time track matters, and then horrible things will happen and you'll probably still lose. But you'll have fun doing it.

4) Elder Sign
The base game is good, Unseen Forces makes it better, and the Streets expansion gives you a new way to play. There's a LOT of gameplay in this little square box.

3) Citadels
I completely wore out the cards on our first copy of this game, to the point where we had to buy a 2nd copy. This is the demon that started me in on card sleeves. Role selection, combos, bluffing, currency, theft, building, destroying, and all in one tight little package.

2) Condottiere
I think I might prefer the Eurogames rules to the FFG reworking, but luckily you can play either version with the FFG components, and the box size makes it a no-brainer. Condottiere is a great game no matter which version you play, but being able to do either makes this a great reprint. If only they had included the original rules like they did with Merchant of Venus.

1) Chaos Marauders
I love Chaos Marauders. It's probably a worse game than the rest of my top 5, but I just don't care because it's so much damn fun. I prefer the old GW artwork and player mats, but FFG smartly put the special card text on the cards so despite my love for the GW components I can't give them the nod. The fact that this is a smaller package and FFG preserved the gameplay means everybody who isn't a fun-murder needs to sit down with a beer and Chaos Marauders and me.

OG: Orcz, Cave Troll, Quicksand.