In this issue I'm taking a look into the Tabletop Mentorship Program, which I'm in for the second time.
Background
The Tabletop Mentorship Program is a program run by volunteers, for free, which anyone in the tabletop world can sign up for. Anyone from designers and artists, through to publishers and reviewers, can sign up to either offer their wisdom and experience, or benefit from someone else's.
This is my second time in the program, having initially been a mentee, with Iain from The Giant Brain mentoring me. I had a great experience, made some good friends, so I was very enthusiastic to come back.
As a mentor
I'll admit I was suffering from impostor syndrome when I signed-up to be a mentor, but at the same time, I'm sure there are some who can benefit from my experience.
As it turns out, I've been matched with two mentees. Both live in the US, so we're contending with a time difference, but this Golden Age of communication means we should be okay. I'll talk about each in a bit more detail each week, and first up, it's Christian.
Christian is one of a small team who run Spiralburst Studio, who made the excellent digital adaptation of Maracaibo, which is one of my favourite games ever. The same team also run a board game recommendation site, Good Game Shelf. We had our first meeting yesterday, and I'm really excited to get working towards his goals, and helping to grow the site.
Their fledgling Twitter account is here, so pop by and give them a follow if you get a moment.
As a mentee
If you've got an open mind, and are open to constructive criticism, becoming a mentee is a great thing. I learned a lot during my time with Iain. This time, I've been paired-up with someone I've read a lot of in my time in the hobby.
I've not scheduled a meeting with them yet, so I'll not talk any more about it for now. I've had a lifelong love of learning, so I'm looking forward to seeing how this goes.
The games
There have been a couple of new entries on the Punchboard site over the last week. First up, there's the automotive destruction of Apocalypse Road from GMT Games. I had a great time with this, it's proper fun with plenty of chaos.
Apocalypse Road Review - Punchboard — punchboard.co.uk Imagine if the movies Death Race 2000 and Ben Hur got together and made a baby. And that baby was a game. That game is Apocalypse Road.
And just today, I published a preview of a new game coming from Castillo Games. They're the folks who made Rescuing Robin Hood last year, a great co-op game which got the Dice Tower Seal of something-or-other. This time out it's a card game with a piratey theme, called Guns or Treasure.
Guns or Treasure Preview - Punchboard — punchboard.co.uk Guns or Treasure is a ship-building, treasure-stealing, bomb-exploding card game from Castillo Games which deserves your attention.
That's all folks
Until next time then. Thanks for reading, and your continued support. If you ever want to see anything else, just ask.
Adam