Many club members (including myself) find themselves getting prepared for the 2009 World Boardgaming Championships.  I for one am hoping for good results for EPGS.  The club has done quite well over in recent years and given the line-up that will be present this year (see below) it seems there's a good chance this will continue.

I intend to write a review of how well our club does at the WBC for the August newsletter.  I ask anyone who has anything they feel is worth mentioning to please send me an email.  Also, to anyone writing their own review on Board Game Geek or any other forum or blog; please give me a link to your review so I can refence and link it.  Thank you very much!

Also, I should be expanding the "Upcoming Events" portion of the newsletter starting in August.  If anyone knows of a upcoming gaming event that should be included here, by all means let me know.  Thank you once again!

Happy Gaming!

-Ken

New Membership Payment Options Announced
At the July 18th meeting, the EPGS officers presented new payment options for club membership.  The price for a full year is still $25, but now there are some alternatives availble:

• Pay Per Meeting: an option of simply paying $5 for a single meeting is available.
• Prorated Rates for the Remainder of the Year: At this point, $15 will allow you to become a member until the end of 2009.   This is subject to change as we approach the end of the year.

The EPGS officers hope these alternate payment plans will be enticing to those who want to join but are apprehensive because they can only attend a few meetings in a given year.  Please note: your first meeting of the year is still free.  Please don't hesitate to contact us with if you have any comments or suggestions.

EPGS Sending Four Teams to the World Boardgaming Championships
Once again EPGS will be well represented at the WBC.  EPGS president Keith Layton submitted four teams to Don Greenwood:

Additionally, Alex Bove will attempt to defend his Ra championship as a member of The Line of Succession, a team not submitted by Keith.  My apologies to any EPGS members not listed here; please email me so I can include you in my upcoming review.

EPGS member Bob Stribula to have game published by Mayfair Games
The man who created Lunar Rails has done it again.  Bob's latest edition to the Empire Builder family of railroad games, Martian Rails, is due for release on August 13th.  As the name implies, play takes place on the red planet. Players need to construct rail lines and deliver all sorts of exotic goods in order to win.

The Games We Played - July 2009
Forty seven different games were played at the July meetings. Just like last month, Race for the Galaxy and Tichu were the games played most often with eight and six games played respectively.  Running a close third was the classic euro Puerto Rico with five plays.  Also notable are Italia and Battlestar Galatica with three plays each.

John Kerr's Pennsylvania variation of Power Grid was playtested once more.  Another new offering from Dave Seidner called Arms Race: WW1 got its first playtest at the July 18th meeting.  This is a card-driven game involving both an auction phase and the ability for players to align with one another.  Dave will most certainly be playtesting this game again in the near future.

This month's list includes games played at the Games Keep in Westchester on July 11th and, thanks to Steve Fitchett, several games played at Alternate Universes during this month.   Click here to see the complete list of games played.

Ticket To Ride Tournament Rescheduled for August 15th
All aboard!  After expericing some delays, the Ticket To Ride tourney is finally back on track.  The tourney will take place on August 15th at 2:00PM.  Just like the Puerto Rico tournament, there will also be a training session on how to play 30 minutes before the tourney begins.  Good luck to all who participate!

Upcoming Events

August Oxford Valley Mall Meeting Dates:

August Games Keep Meeting Date:

August 3-9: 2009 World Boardgaming Championships at the Lancaster Host Hotel in Lancaster, PA. For more information, visit the Boardgame Players Association website at http://www
.boardgamers.org/.