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Shut Up & Sit Down, Quinns Quest, and The Year Ahead

February 1, 2024SU&SD News

Tom: Hey folks! We wanted to kick off the year with an update that goes over what Shut Up & Sit Down is going to be up to in 2024. This is the kind of thing we normally reserve for the newsletter, but we wanted this to be broadly accessible so that everyone’s in the loop!

First off, Quinns is going to share an exciting new project he’s been cooking up! Then, afterwards, I’ll take you behind the scenes on what to expect from the site going forward! It’s a long one, so let’s get into it…

Introducing: Quinns Quest!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c29Ecut4K_E

Quinns: So! My news, here goes….

I think the TTRPG scene is in a similar place to the board game scene in 2011. When we launched Shut Up & Sit Down it was with a sense of frothing confusion that board games were so good, they weren’t getting the attention they deserved, and at least part of that was because the kind of coverage we wanted to see just didn’t exist. So, we decided to try and make it.

Now I want to tackle that for tabletop roleplaying games, with an entirely seperate new programme I’m calling Quinns Quest. It’s me once again deciding to try and get a whole host of underreported, extraordinarily designers the attention they deserve, and helping everybody to have a bit more fun along the way. Shut Up & Sit Down is of course where I’ll cover board games whenever I feel the itch – and you can expect to see more of me on the new Top 100 Board Games feature – but Quinns Quest is where I’m putting my immediate focus.

This is a bit of a new chapter for me – and so I wanted to take a second to say thank you to the SU&SD community. You folks have been so generous with your attention over the years, especially in the earliest days of SU&SD when I had literally no idea how to be a presenter. I remember my loved ones giving me suggestions in 2012 along the lines of “What if you smiled when you were on camera?” and “What if you talked slower, so people could understand you?”. The fact that you folks stuck with me while I learned the trade, video by awkward video, has been life-changing, and I can’t wait to put all that learning into a new project that I’m more excited about than anything else right now.

But whilst I’m scaling down my role with SU&SD, I wanted to say how happy I am that the site has been in such capable hands!

Tom is editor-in-chief of Shut Up & Sit Down, but that’s been true for a while now. The guy’s a f***ing marvel, and – troublingly – he only seems to be getting better? Have you seen his video on John Company?? Apparently he plans to focus on making equally ambitious videos in the future??? The world isn’t ready.

Tom, you’re an extraordinarily rare talent. You’re hilarious, insightful, and technically-minded in a way I’ve never been (don’t know if you noticed this). But more importantly, you’re hungrier and more passionate about board games than my decrepit ass. Part of knowing when to step back a little is knowing when it’s time to make room for the next generation, and it’s past time I do that.

Matt- my time spent making 2-person videos with you is what I consider my most creatively fulfilling time with SU&SD. I have so, so many happy memories with you, not just of workshopping jokes in your living room, but just playing games with you.

In fact, if I had to name my favourite single instance of a game I’ve played, it would be the afternoon we spent playing head-to-head Tigris & Euphrates in advance of our marvellously unhinged review. London was caught in a sweltering headwave and sweat was literally beading on my forehead as we were locked in a near-silent, utterly intense battle, punctuated only by each of us complimenting the other’s move. You are the kind of collaborator a creative can only dream of, but you’re an even better opponent. You’ve made me so much sharper, in comedy, in editing, and in strategy. I have no choice but to be my best around you. I think you’ve even beaten me at a game once or twice.

And Emily! Holy kittens. Hiring Emily feels like going for a walk and finding a ruby on the ground. Her reviews are so good that it makes me ashamed of myself. It took me the better part of a decade to become as good a video reviewer as Emily was instantly. Emily, your future is inconceivably bright. I also understand you’ll be seeing more of the inimitable Pip Warr in the future of Shut Up & Sit Down, and nothing could make me happier. I also know nothing will make fans of the show happier, since one of the only pieces of feedback SU&SD fans were ever brave enough to give me in person – over and over again – was “More Pip”.

What a team. What an unbelievable, beautiful, side-splittingly funny clutch of folks.

Tom: Wahoo! Anyone who watched Quinns’ fantastic Get into RPGs video, or Alice is Missing coverage has probably felt this shift coming for a while now, and Quinns making a dedicated space for RPG fans is fabulous! We’re excited to keep working with him on the brand new Top 100 Series and any other board game shenanigans that take his fancy, and of course we can’t wait to see all the… roles he…. plays? Is that how it works?

Quinns: You’re sort of making it sound like a sex thing. It’s not a sex thing.

Matt: It’s definitely a sex thing.

Quinns: Shut UP!

Tom: And… sit……?

RIGHT! So! With Quinns taking on this new project, what’s happening with the rest of SU&SD? Let’s talk about the cracking year of board games ahead!

The First Ever Top 100

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ojqjk5k9sA

Tom’s New Hat

Tom: With Quinns formally changing his position within the site to ‘contributor’, I am taking up the mantle of SU&SD’s editorial lead, a hat you’ve already seen me sporting for the last year or two!

To address an obvious question about this change in role, though – “Why not Matt, apparent heir to the cardboard throne”? There’s one reason! It’s because he’s an incredibly talented creative with years of experience making brilliant work who, with all the love in the world, has the organisational talents of a level one goblin.

Matt: It’s true! I once accidentally put my passport in the bin. My wife rescued it for me.

Tom: He’s doing just fine, and we’re very proud. Me, on the other hand? I’m an organisation freak! I’m a dweeb! I like lists and bullet points and sorting my socks by colour! I’m the guy who likes packing away my board games into custom labelled bags. This one’s for me, gang!

Realistically, this expanded role does little to actually affect our creative output one iota – like I say, you’ve been watching this restructured SU&SD for the past two years! Matt and I are creative partners on most everything we put out – we’ve got workflows to help each other with edits, we love filming together, and we’re very much aligned on what we want the site to be.The studio is finally a place where we can easily film (don’t worry, it’s not replacing our classic “reviews from the living room”), and we’re going to get stuck right in, and bring our growing roster of contributors right along with us! It’ll be a treat, and I’m so excited!

Videos and Podcasts

We’ve got one main goal for this year, and it’s sustainability. We’re really proud of this website, and we want it to exist… forever? That might sound crazy, but we truly want the spirit of things to continue on even if the faces might vary. To that end, we’re pushing our resources in 2024 towards creating a dependable and stable slate of videos to gently branch out from.

The precedent set when SU&SD was growing the most was to upload a video every single week, no matter what. This (sometimes!) worked, but simply does not scale with the production values and ambition we’re looking for in videos these days. Attempting this approach in this more modern, less ‘handheld and poorly white-balanced’ era of SU&SD? It led to a whole lot of trying to make more elaborate and high production videos within a schedule that didn’t fit – and subsequently getting said videos delayed, pushed back, completely canned… or otherwise just completely knackering us.

We want everything we put out to be of exceptional quality, and we want to be energised by every project! So, in 2024, we’re shedding that old and often-missed schedule to instead focus on three videos per month, one of which will consistently be an entry in our Top 100 series. It’s not a huge change, but it’s a meaningful one.

Already this simple, semantic shift is making me feel better, more creative, and more in control of my work. I think this is an excellent baseline to work from, and I’m certain you’ll agree that the ‘fewer and better’ approach to video is going to result in some of the best work we’ve done in recent memory. I’m not going to spoil some of the chunkier projects we’ve got planned, but I think they’ll be exceptional.

What about the podcast? Exactly the same deal here. We never truly managed to sort out one a week, so we’ll take a week out for every three podcasts released from now on. I want to make sure those podcasts are of dependable quality – so nailing down our format to three games per podcast discussed by two hosts will be the norm. However, I do want to pursue more ‘topic’ episodes where we have wider conversations with more people involved – but I want to get a dependable offering running first!

What’s Going on with SHUX?

Goodness, deposits are just so expensive. We love it as much as you do, and we really want it to come back… it just might be a bit of a wait. When it does return, we want it to be as good as ever and to be in a position to run it in a healthy way that doesn’t obliterate the team completely! We’re going to be quiet on this front for a good while, but you’ll know about the future of SHUX as soon as we do.

Bonus Bits?

Everything with our bonus bits and donations will stay exactly the same. We’re going to shoot for monthly newsletters with a couple fun extra videos to go along with them. This month, we’ve got a video where I ramble about Shadow Gambit, and a Bonus Podcast! I’m also really excited about some potential weirder directions for this – we’ve heard you loud and clear that early access isn’t as exciting as odd exclusives, so I want to focus on making exactly that.

A Personal Note

Finally, I wanted to take a second to share something from the heart. Shut Up & Sit Down has been around for about thirteen trips around the sun, which is about eighty seven in ‘Internet Years’. Managing the trajectory of this creaky old ship is a real challenge – one that I feel in a uniquely odd position to tackle. I was a fan of the site before I started working here, watching videos whilst I was still in secondary school! I want to make sure I protect the soul of the thing that got me into board games, but I also want to make sure I’ve got my own voice within it. I want this site to be run in a way that’s healthy and exciting for everyone involved, without losing the spark that got me hooked.

But it’s often tricky to achieve that. Foundational to my role as the ‘new face’ on the site is a constant background radiation of comparison. That comparison starts in my own brain, and then takes up more and more room as the internet-at-large pumps air into it until it dominates my headspace and paralyses me to continue. I’ve always felt like there’s another pair of shoes to fill, that I’ll never quite satisfy people’s desire for something they can no longer have.

I’m pretty done with that thinking. 2024 marks a subtle new chapter for SU&SD, where we’re going to play to our tempo and make great work for the people who like what we do for what it is now.

I truly hope you’re as excited for that as we are!

Questions?

Of course there will be! What do you want to know? For a couple of weeks or so we’ll be keeping an eye on this page and will reply to queries to build up something of an FAQ for people to take a peek at when one of those ‘What Happened to SU&SD?’ Reddit posts inevitably crops up within the next… week? Day? Those things are maddening, aren’t they. Thanks to everyone who engages in those in good faith and can accept that we are only human, and that in 13 years, things do change. We’ll do our best to build and maintain a site you can love, and if you don’t? A reminder that we’re out there on the internet as well, and we’re human beings too!

Be gentle, folks, it’s been a mad few years but we’ve still got our whole hearts in this wonderful thing. If you do too, then everything we do is for you, and we hope you’re able to enjoy it with us in the years to come!

Big Love,
Team SU&SD

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15/04/2025
HUTAN: Life in the Rainforest Review
I’m a big fan of games that have a nice table presence, so I was excited when we received HUTAN: Life in the Rainforest from The Op and Sidekick Games. This puzzley, nature themed game is for 1 to 4 players and plays in around 45 minutes. HUTAN was created by the design team of Asger Granerud and Daniel Pedersen who are known for Heat, Flamme Rouge, and Copenhagen. Let’s dig in and see what this game is all about.

Flora and Fauna

Players will have a board made up of four rainforest segments. The first player will decide the board layout that each player has to follow. In each of the nine rounds of the game, players will take two turns as they build up their unique rainforest board.

Your turn starts by drafting a flower card from the market. There are five different flower types/colors represented on the cards. Once you draft one of these cards, you’ll add the new flowers onto your board, obeying a couple of rules:
- The first new flower has to be placed next to a previously placed flower (except for the first round).
- The flower(s) on the card have to be placed adjacent to one another (not diagonal).
- Flowers can be placed on top of flowers of the same color.
Your rainforest board is broken into areas of two to five blocks that are separated by waterways. Ideally, players want to fill these sections with a single flower color to score the points listed on the area. Players want to pay attention to the three water spaces on their rainforest board since flowers cannot be placed in these locations.

After adding the flowers from the card you drafted, you’ll move onto checking for the growth of trees. When you place a second identical flower color on a place, a tree grows on that space. HUTAN comes with four unique tree types which are different sizes and shapes to give player boards some variety. Each tree on a player board will be worth two victory points at the end of the game.

A Perfect Habitat

The final phase of your turn is checking to see if you’ve created the perfect habitat. Players earn big points by filling an area with a single flower color and having trees on each block in the area. When you place the last tree in an area, you can attract an animal of the same color on the space. Having a wildlife token in an area will earn you the points shown on that space at the end of the game.

The wildlife tokens in HUTAN are limited to only three in each flower color. Once a token is exhausted from the supply, they’re unavailable for the rest of the game. Even though you earned a wildlife token, you don’t have to place one. On occasion, players will create two perfect habitats in a single turn. You’re limited to earning one token per turn, so players have to decide on which area receives this token.

Another perk of earning a wildlife token is that they can fertilize the spaces orthogonally adjacent to their location. You can place any color flower in the spaces around the wildlife token. This is an optional perk but is almost always worth taking.

One player will take the start player token during the round which comes with a single flower of your chose. HUTAN is a game where being the start player can be incredibly useful.

Advanced Gameplay

In the early rounds of HUTAN, gameplay is pretty simple and the options are plentiful. It’s in the later rounds where players will start to feel the complexity of optimizing points and trying not to earn negative points.

At the end of the game, areas that have a mixture of flower colors are called mixed areas. Players score negative points for each mixed area and each incomplete areas. Strategically keeping away from some areas can be helpful. An area that doesn’t have any flowers will be zero points, keeping players from incurring negative effects.

Once players get the basics down, players can introduce Ecosystem cards into the game. Pull five Ecosystem goal cards that will award points to each player who completes these goals by the end of the game.

Final Thoughts

HUTAN is a beautiful and puzzley game that draws you in with its table presence. The game has a nice flow to it and keeping your negative points to a minimum is a challenge. After your first game, adding in the advanced scoring of the Ecosystem cards is a must for most gamers.

This game has the same publishing duo as Aqua, a 2024 release that we really enjoy. Not only did Vincent Dutrait do the artwork, but it also includes a couple extras that I love. There’s a family variant that adjusts a couple rules and removes the negative scoring.

In the back of the rulebook, you’ll find scenarios that have preset board layouts and Ecosystem cards. You are working toward hitting a specific score to accomplish the goal. There are also challenges and game modifications that you can tackle at any player count. Having these achievements adds a lot to the replayability of the game.

HUTAN: Life in the Rainforest is a great addition to our game library. If you enjoy games like Life of the Amazonia and Harmonies, two of our absolute favorites, HUTAN is a game that you have to check out.

HUTAN: Life in the Rainforest is available at your local game store, from The Op webstore, or online through Amazon today.

This game was provided to us by the publisher for review. Read more about our review policies at One Board Family.

Highs
- Excellent table presence and box organization
- Puzzley gameplay that gets more challenging each round
- Achievements and scenarios adds to the replayability
- Drafting the first player token in the late game is key
Lows
- Negative points can be a turn off to some (family variant removes this)
- Trees can come apart easily after a couple plays
Complexity

Time Commitment

Replayability
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14/04/2025
Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s Nintendo Switch 2 edition will make you fork out for DLC separately, but hey, it’s not like you’ll already have spent a lot on other Switch 2 stuff

Since Nintendo revealed its new console, the prices of Switch 2 itself, Mario Kart World and the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour have all discourses.

There’s even been some spamming of ‘DROP THE PRICE’ by fans in Treehouse livestream chats and some subtweeting by Reggie Fils-Aimé about the Welcome Tour not being free. It’s ok though, it’s not like if you get the Switch 2 edition of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, you’ll have to buy the DLC/expansion pass separately. Oh no, hang on, you do.

Nintendo has confirmed as much in a statement to IGN, saying: “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition does not include The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Expansion Pass DLC. That DLC is available as a separate purchase.”

Very to the point, but what it’ll mean for you depends on your current Breath of the Wild ownership status. If you already own the game on OG Switch as well as all its DLC, and opt to buy the $10 “upgrade pack” that turns it into the Switch 2 edition on that console, you’ll not need to buy the DLC again.

However, if you don’t already own the DLC, just upgrading isn’t gonna hand it to you for free. The main folks affected by this are people who don’t own the game at all, and buy the Switch 2 edition, which will costs $70. Since it’s not included, they’ll end up paying $90 in total for Switch 2 Breath of the Wild plus DLC, since the game’s expansion pass costs $20.

Is it that egregious a decision on its own? Not really, even if it’s kinda taking p**s with a game from 2017. However, when taken alongside all the other stuff I mentioned earlier, it does seem like Nintando kinda bumbling into kicking itself in the dick again from a PR perspective.

Are you currently staring at your bank account wondering how you’re going to send half of your lide savings to Nintendo and still afford unimportant things like rent and food? Let us know below!

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14/04/2025
SpongeBob Tower Defense codes April 2025
April 13, 2025: One more new SpongeBob Tower Defense code is in for day two of update 15.

What are the new SpongeBob Tower Defense codes? Bikini Bottom is in danger and only the sub-aquatic city’s goofiest goobers can protect it. From SpongeGar to double Krabby Pattied-up Squidward, there’s a wild cast of characters that can be called upon to aid the defense effort.

Of course, these iconic faces come at a cost, requiring you to cough up Gems and Magic Conches to partake in the Roblox game‘s gacha system. Fortunately, the SpongeBob Tower Defense codes often reward you with these precious materials, so load up Roblox, dive into Bikini Bottom, and use the following codes to keep it safe.

SpongeBob Tower Defense codes

Here are the active SpongeBob Tower Defense codes:
- CALLOFTHECONCH – 10 Conches (NEW)
- AFKISBACK – 24 AFK Chests (NEW)
- Update15Yay – 10 rare+ treasure chests and 10k coins (NEW)
- AChallenge2Open – Two challenge crates
- FUNonaTuesday – April 9 rewards
- CrateOfPossibilities – Olympian SpongeBob video code
- StreamLoyalist – Olympian SpongeBob video code
- unitrefinement – Olympian SpongeBob video code
- FactionGrind4Real – Olympian SpongeBob video code
- DelayisOkay – Update delay compensation
- 200MILLIPLAYSWOAH – official tier list video code
- OPCode4RealReal – April 1 code
- FoolMeTwice – April 1 code
- OPCodeVeryOP – April 1 code
- IsItPossible – “FULL SECRET LOADOUT” video code
- XMarksTheSpot – “FULL SECRET LOADOUT” video code
- SummonMeASecretPLS – “FULL SECRET LOADOUT” video code
- BugCrushers – x2 Challenge Token Boost and 50 Challenge Tokens
- AcceptingTheChallenge – x2 Challenge Token Boost
- THANKSFORSUPPORTING – March 25 Life Changing Update video code
- SLEEPYPATRICK – UPD 12 rewards
- KrabsKash – 10k Coins
- MagmaPLS – 1k Spatulas
- Grind4Real – 2 double XP boosts, two double Gems boosts, and 2 double coins boosts
- StacksonStacks – “W patch” celebration rewards
- WPatchChat – 5k Gems, 25 Conches, and 15 treasure chests
- BREAKINGNEWS – Free gems
- 1MillionLikesOP -10k gems, 25 magic conches, and 15 rare chests
- MerchantCash – 10k coins
- MostOPUnit – 25 Trait Rerolls and five Golden Trait Rerolls
- UPD10YAY – 10 Epic+ Treasure Chests
- RAID4LOOT – 1k Golden Spatulas and a Gold reroll
Expired codes
- BuffPatch
- LiveforUpdate9
- SummonMeASecret
- COMPETITIVEREADY
- ELITEBUBBLE
- SHOWMETHEREWARDS
- SaturdayAllDay
- 100MPlayedSB
- EducatedAnchovy
- BubbleBowlTime
- NextStopOneMillion
- 750KLikesThanks
- HeartBooster
- SundayFUNDay2
- 100KONTHECORD
- VDayUpdate
- SATURDAYGRIND
- VDAYREVEAL
- YTLOYALIST
- ImReadyImReady6
- ShowMeDaFormula
- TraitsPLS
- Spatula9000
- GoldenEye
- MidasTouch
- GoldenTraitRoll4U
- DownTime
- WhatATimeToBeLive
- LookAtAllThemFishies
- ThisIsWhatWeLive4
- EXPKrabbyKrew
How to redeem SpongeBob Tower Defense codes

Redeeming codes in SpongeBob takes a little bit of legwork as you have to level up before you can access the in-game codes function.

To redeem SpongeBob Tower Defense codes:
- Reach Level 10.
- Click the ‘Codes’ button on the left side of the nav.
- Enter your code in the redemption box and hit ‘Enter.’
And those are the latest SpongeBob Tower Defense codes. If you’re looking for more top TD experiences, then hit up our best tower defense games guide.
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14/04/2025

Ultimate E.R.P.O. Class Tier List – All Classes Guide

Screenshot by Destructoid

None of them are terrible, believe it or not.

Published: Apr 7, 2025 07:37 am

Let’s be real for a second; evading the monsters is cool and all, but you can’t run away forever. At some point, you’re going to have to put up or shut up. That’s where the class combo of your team comes into play, and to make that easier in particular, we whipped up the ultimate E.R.P.O. class tier list. Take your pick and don’t play like a headless chicken.

E.R.P.O. Class Tier List: Current State of Things

As you might be able to conclude, things are all over the place, even when it comes to the E.R.P.O. class tier list. Most people would tell you to just roll incessantly until you collect all the S-tier classes. However, things aren’t always that simple and Robux don’t grow on trees, sadly. That’s why I’d say Business Man is the best class in E.R.P.O. in terms of rarity-to-value since it’s a top class, but neither Legendary or Godly, for some reason.

Mechanic and Executioner are also quite decent. B-tier classes are nothing to scoff at, while, at the same time, we need to have a serious conversation about Body Builder, Medic and their whole point in this game. Regardless, the whole point is to explore and have fun, so let’s see the top classes

S Tier Classes in E.R.P.O.

The cream of the crop, baby. While some would say the Speedster takes the crown, I’m more Team-Business Man, simply because of the gargantuan cash buff it provides. It’s the best class for grinding, although I personally prefer to buzz around like a boss.

Name	Rarity	Info
Business Man	Epic (7%)	Business Man lowers the quota—20% with one, 5% more for each after. That’s game-changing. You can clear maps faster and safer just by existing. If you stack a few in a team, the entire pace of the game shifts. The problem is that’s all you do. No utility, no combat benefit, and nothing interactive. You’re basically a walking discount. It’s a meta pick, not a fun one. If you want to help your team in the most boring way possible, this is the class. Strong, but soulless.
Speedster	Godly (0.05%)	Speedster is exactly what it sounds like: fast, efficient, and built for hit-and-run gameplay. You move quicker than any other class and have enough stamina to sprint through most of the map without stopping. That alone makes it a top-tier pick. You’re able to grab loot, dodge monsters, scout ahead, and bail out teammates before anyone else even gets there. It’s not just speed for the sake of speed—it’s practical, high-utility mobility. There’s barely any downside unless you’re careless.
Tank	Godly (0.05%)	Tank takes hits better than anyone else, which makes it the only real frontline class. If a monster’s chasing you, you can actually survive a few hits and keep moving. It’s great for soaking aggro, helping trapped teammates, and staying alive in chaotic situations. That said, you don’t do more damage—you just don’t die as fast. It’s not flashy, but it makes bad situations less punishing. Inexperienced teams will always benefit from having a Tank. It’s a safety net. Not always fun, but extremely practical.

A Tier Classes in E.R.P.O.

Not too shabby in their own right, these three classes are a perfect embodiment of the balance between star power and utility. As a result, they can both lead and follow, provide support or clutch it out, but in my opinion, I’d say the skill floor is a bit higher. Some would say the impact ceiling is, too, but that depends.

Name	Rarity	Info
Spy	Legendary (0.2%)	Spy can see valuables through walls, which is a huge time-saver. You’ll find hidden loot faster than anyone else, making you the team’s top earner if you know what you’re doing. It’s not stealthy like Lurker, but it’s arguably more useful for hitting quotas early. This class rewards map knowledge and quick movement. You’re squishy and can’t tank mistakes, but if you like optimization and sneaky movement without full invisibility, this class is for you. One of the best solo picks and easily worth unlocking early.
Executioner	Legendary (0.2%)	Your weapon has an 80% chance to explode on hit, making you the loudest, most aggressive presence in any run. If you’re the type to charge headfirst into danger and don’t care about stealth or strategy, this class lets you live that fantasy. It’s satisfying, destructive, and messy as hell. But there’s a price—Executioner brings no utility. You don’t help with quota, healing, scouting, or survivability. You’re just there to kill, loud and proud.
Mechanic	Epic (7%)	Mechanic earns more bolts than any other class at the end of a round. That’s it. It doesn’t help you during the mission, but it gives you long-term progression faster. You’ll unlock more classes quicker, which is great early on. The downside is obvious—you’re just playing normally and hoping for a bigger paycheck. It’s completely useless in the short term and won’t save you if the team wipes. Only pick it when you’re grinding or trying to speed up unlocks. Otherwise, there are always better options.

B Tier Classes in E.R.P.O.

Lurker is good when it comes to solo play, but it gets knocked down to B-tier because it’s kinda cheeks in group play. The Oracle is basically the opposite: invaluable for some specific purpose, but absolutely useless in everything else. It’s kinda the weird part of this E.R.P.O. class tier list.

Name	Rarity	Info
Lurker	Rare (30.25%)	Lurker is the stealth king. Monsters basically ignore you unless you get too close, which makes this class perfect for scouting, looting, or just surviving. If you hate the chaos of aggro or getting caught in someone else’s screw-up, Lurker gives you that freedom. You’re not invincible, but you can push into risky areas way earlier than anyone else. It falls off a bit in team coordination since no one benefits from your stealth but you. Still, it’s a strong solo class and a smart pick overall.
Oracle	Rare (30.25%)	Oracle shows you all the monsters on the map at the start of each round, and that knowledge can completely change how you plan the run. You won’t be caught off guard by something invisible or charging from across the map. It’s one of the best support classes in the game, but it’s easy to forget its value once the round begins. You’re not directly helping in combat or hauling, but giving your team perfect info early on is massive. A quiet MVP pick for experienced players.

C Tier Classes in E.R.P.O.

Someone’s gotta be at the bottom, right? Unfortunately, in this case, it’s this sad trio. Now, you’ll notice how there’s no D tier in this E.R.P.O. class tier list. It’s because every class serves a purpose—it’s just that these three are the worst, technically, due to their niche utility, but are overall just average.

Name	Rarity	Info
Body Builder	Common (62.5%)	Bodybuilder is great if you’re constantly annoyed by the weight mechanics in this game. You can carry the big stuff without waiting for help or crawling at a snail’s pace. It turns one of the most frustrating parts of E.R.P.O. into a non-issue. The class doesn’t give you combat benefits or help with monsters, but being the team’s designated hauler genuinely saves time. It’s boring, sure, but effective. If you’re running quota-heavy maps, Bodybuilder is a no-brainer. Easily underrated and more useful than it sounds.
Paramedic	Common (62.5%)	Paramedic is all about reviving teammates, and it does it cheaper than other classes. That sounds mid-tier until you hit those later levels where everyone’s falling apart and bolts are tight. It doesn’t help you avoid death, but it lets you undo mistakes without bankrupting the team. Still, you’re basically stuck in a support role, and if your team is good, you’ll just be doing normal work like everyone else. Worth picking in random lobbies, especially if you like clutch saves and don’t mind a passive role.
Medic	Rare (30.25%)	Medic passively heals nearby allies by 1% every few seconds, which might sound minor but adds up fast during long hauls and drawn-out escapes. You’re not reviving like Paramedic—you’re keeping everyone alive in real time. In team play, this class is an absolute win, especially if people tend to panic or take stray hits often. That said, Medic has zero stat bonuses—no speed, no strength, nothing else. You’re basically a walking aura. Solo, it’s garbage. In a group, it’s arguably the most valuable passive support class.

Now that was far from rocket science, wasn’t it? The spins are mostly down to luck, but with this E.R.P.O. class tier list, you can still have some fun even if Lady Lucky isn’t on your side. Once you have the right class combo with your friends, get into the nitty-gritty of our all E.R.P.O. monsters guide and finally beat the game.

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14/04/2025

“Shut Up & Sit Down Presents” Incredible New Games with Play to Z

November 27, 2024SU&SD Special Features

Shut Up & Sit Down is delighted to announce a partnership with Play to Z to hunt down the board game treasures that we think belong in every collection.

“SU&SD Presents” is a brand new line of titles that places a spotlight on some of the very best titles in modern board games. We’ve hand selected a fresh crop of exciting designs, helped to polish them to perfection, and P2Z will publish these incredible games for worldwide distribution.

It’s our goal that every game in the line could be your new favourite game.

We’ve got our first two games arriving next year, with a new title releasing annually thereafter!

First up is a brand new design from the king of co-op himself, Matt Leacock (Pandemic, Pandemic: Legacy, Daybreak, Forbidden Island). Matt has teamed up with Lisa Towell – a real world animal rescuer – to create Animal Rescue Team. You and your friends will puzzle out the perfect rescues of creatures big and small. One game might have you arriving just in time to save a coop of distressed chickens, and another may have you fruitlessly trying to rescue a cow with a motorcycle, or cursing yourselves for ‘unfortunate horse logistics’. The game will be crowdfunded in early 2025, and should find its way to your local game shop by October 2025.

The second in the “SU&SD Presents” line is a remastering of one of our all-time favourites, Dogs of War, from legendary designer Paolo Mori (Ethnos, Libertalia, Blitzkrieg!). This game has been out of print for far too long, so it is not only exciting to see it back, but also with a SU&SD spin on it, packing more punch in a smaller box, at a lower price. This will be the definitive version of a certified classic with a sumptuous new lick of paint by Edu Valls (Bitoku, Redwood, 3 Ring Circus). Dogs of War will be coming to retail in late 2025.

About Play To Z:
Play To Z was founded in 2023 by a group of hobby game industry veterans. Zev Shlasinger, a 27 year game industry veteran who founded Z-Man Games in 1999, is President of Play To Z. Zev has published nearly 400 games in his career for Z-Man Games and WizKids, including huge hits such as Pandemic, Agricola, Fantasy Realms, Tales of the Arabian Nights, Merchants & Marauders, Super Skill Pinball, and many more. With its slogan “Games For All Gamers”, Play To Z publishes a wide spectrum of games, including Ascending Empires, YRO, Lynx, King’s Coalition, and more coming soon.

About Shut Up & Sit Down:
Shut Up & Sit Down has been talking about board games since 2011. With our trademark blend of comedy and critical analysis, we have become one of the largest board game YouTube channels and podcasts. Find all of our work on ShutUpAndSitDown.com.

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14/04/2025
King of Toyko 5-6 players Tokyo Bay Attacker

We played a game of King of Tokyo last night with 6 players. Here’s the scenario:

5 players remain.

The player in Tokyo Bay rolls 5 attack claws and a power charge.

All 3 players outside of Tokyo die.

TC player believes the player from TB now has to leave Tokyo because Tokyo Bay is now closed.

TB player believes he should remain because he killed everyone else, and logically he shouldn’t be punished for success.

The rule examples only depict scenarios where the player in TC is the attacker.when the player count drops under4, (or a player in Tokyo is dying, so the issue resolves itself.)
I’m torn because logically Tokyo Bay and Tokyo city are really just super positions, representing both players being in the attack position. Logically, I’d interpret that as whomever has the dice is in the Tokyo alpha position.

But the rules just say “Tokyo bay closes” so I understand why the Tokyo city player thinks the the TB player has screwed himself and is now kicked out.

What’s the ruling?

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14/04/2025
Capturing the Core of the Combat Commander System – InsideGMT

While the game comes with 12 scenarios, there is also a 2-page roll-your-own scenario system that will generate a HISTORICAL situation in about 5 minutes, after which both players secretly choose from one of many historical forces of platoon-to-company size with which to fight.

-Chad Jensen on Combat Commander: Europe (2006)

Magical Realism

The premise of Combat Commander’s Random Scenario Generator teeters close to absurd for a board wargame. Not Campaign for North Africa absurd where you’re tracking pasta rations, but “is that even possible” absurd. Random variables that generate plausible wargame scenarios across the breadth of World War II sounds like magical thinking. The number of permutations that can be generated from the variables of the RSG are astronomical. Just the two Allies and their troop quality, across the five years in the base Europe box, has tens of thousands of combinations. Balancing the outputs, so that a high percentage of the generated scenarios exist within a margin of error for fidelity sounds impossible. Yet, you roll one up and the evidence is right there waiting to be played. Magical. I became obsessed with that magic, and as I studied it I soon found Chad’s secret – research and data. Understanding how this data bridged the gap between history and the model, was central to our design process for Combat Commander: Vietnam.

Orders of Battle and Support Tables from Combat Commander: Europe

Wargame systems are notoriously data driven. Variables on counters placed in hexes with scale measurements and visual references for terrain with modifying effects. Detailed play sequences, with phases referring to one or more charts to resolve actions with sub sequences. Where Combat Commander differs is that the majority of charts in the game are for the Orders of Battle (OoB) and Support. In other words, the tables are focused on the receipt of units and their weapons, not about their use.

A design decision Chad made was to put most of the actionable data onto the unit counters and in the fate decks. Many mistake this shift to card driven mechanics as an abstraction that might reduce the game’s fidelity. Yet these asymmetric decks pack more faction and game data across their card counts than you would find in most of the tables and charts from other wargames. They also keep the games flowing smoothly, the actions immediately resolved, with little need to consult a table to determine a result. The heavy lifting of the design is not in the play itself but rather how each game is set up. Becoming a strong Combat Commander player includes understanding how setup impacts play. This is taken one step further with the RSG, which includes scenario as well as unit set up. For Combat Commander: Vietnam we wanted to provide a similar level of agency for players, grounded in the history, but balanced by their choices.

Page from the RSG rules in Combat Commander: Europe

The Balancing Act

To shape the balance of the RSG system, Chad provides agency in the setup process. Players are able to build formations with a bid for initiative balanced against available support weapons and fortifications. Playing through the RSG and having to make these decisions takes practice but it is where the model reveals itself. With experience, players will find the fidelity of the scenarios they generate increase. This comes from an increased understanding of the Orders of Battle and Support tables, and their competitive values in various situations. That they map closely to their historical values for the theater and period generated reinforces the decision space of a historical company commander, and we wanted to take the same approach with Combat Commander: Vietnam.

The first two volumes of Combat Commander, Europe and Mediterranean, were originally designed as one box, a point stressed to us by Kai Jensen when we first started working on Combat Commander: Vietnam. In order for the system to work across multiple years and areas, all of the faction data had to be balanced against each other, which meant that they all had to be designed at once (the following volume Pacific, redesigned the system to account for the additional theater). The primary reason for this was the central role the RSG system had on the whole design. Even some designed scenarios are balanced against what the RSG might generate.

This is a testament to just how powerful Chad’s design approach was. By putting so much of his research and data into getting the variables of the RSG system right, he designed a sandbox from which any WWII engagement at the tactical level could be modeled and validated. Appreciative of this, our first goal for Combat Commander: Vietnam was to build from the premise and design an RSG system that could generate scenarios for any region, with historical combatants, across the 15 years of the Indochina conflict. If we got the RSG right it would mean we could design and validate scenarios for any engagement at the game’s scale.

Anderson, Arnsten, and Averch, Insurgent Organization and Operations (August 1967).

We went through a number of iterations for the Order of Battle tables for Combat Commander: Vietnam, sourcing documentation of the force composition and weapons across the factions. Translating this data to unit values on the OoB formed the basis of the RSG system. As we started working on building out the maps for the base game, pulling from the 1:50,000 scale maps used during the conflict, we could immediately check the composition of forces from the primary sources against how they would be represented by the RSG. After months of iterations we started to find the magic.

Orders of Battle with Support Tables from the Combat Commander: Vietnam Playtest Kit

Campaign for Randomness

As the map count for Combat Commander: Vietnam increased and we continued playing RSG scenarios across them, something started to feel missing. In isolation the playthroughs gave a decent overview of the types of small-scale engagements seen across the conflict, but, without the context to really place where and how they fit into the broader war effort. To provide that context, we had to bring something completely new to the Combat Commander system.

When it comes to military operations, the easiest way to provide context is to go up in scale, and understand the significance of an engagement to the higher command. Combat Commander was originally called Company Commander in reference to the scale it models. Going up from the company is the battalion. We posited that if Combat Commander: Vietnam players could play a series of connected games as a battalion campaign it would contextualize the choices made in the individual engagements to better understand why fighting in Vietnam was so different.

Records of an ANZAC Battalion’s Operations. The Combat Commander: Vietnam Campaign system is built to represent this level of operation.

Campaigns have been in Combat Commander since John Foley introduced them in the second battle pack. To this point however they have primarily been a way of sequencing scenarios, both designed and randomly generated, to play in a historical succession. This allowed players to fight out multiple days of battle in Normandy or Stalingrad to great effect. Yet, these campaigns have only existed as add ons, not parts of the core rules. The last challenge we gave ourselves with the Combat Commander: Vietnam design was to build out a campaign system that was a part of the core. This meant expanding the system to be able to generate random campaigns across the factions, for any region, at any time during the conflict.

Composing the large battles are any number of small fights, little connected, and sometimes at cross-purposes one with the other. Each is local and limited in the feelings of the men who engage. Company fights company, platoon goes against platoon. How the regiment or brigade fared as a whole is something that has to be computed later.

-S.L.A. Marshall, Battles in the Monsoon (1967)

From the Combat Commander: Vietnam core box, using the Random Campaign Generator (RCG), players will be able to generate an area of responsibility for a battalion commander over a month-long operation as a campaign. The perspective provided by this form of play contextualizes the individual engagements in a way that allows players to experience the decision space of Vietnam at the tactical level with the context to understand the implications of their decisions operationally.

Campaign Map showing a Free World Forces Battalion operating in a relatively remote, Communist controlled area of II Corps.

With the RCG system in place we are also able to design historical campaigns which allow players to replay known operations. So much of the research that went into the design captured primary accounts from all sides including their operational maps. The campaign framework is a direct reflection of this, with the historical campaigns providing the decision space of their historic counterparts.

What will come in the base box for Combat Commander: Vietnam will be all of the things players already love about the system. 24 scenarios that can be set up at any time for a dynamic game full of the flavor but grounded in the historical realities of the conflict. The RSG system will expand the scenario potential from those base maps increasing replayability. The amount of variety you will get playing one off scenarios will be satisfying to system veterans and newcomers alike.

The Hurricane II, FFV Magazine, May 1967

For those looking to form a better understanding of the war and how it progressed over time, Combat Commander: Vietnam’s Random Campaign Generator will prove to be the central experience. Playing campaigns with a single faction will provide a deeper understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. Across multiple campaigns you can see how their capabilities changed over time. Explore how the terrain in the different corps zones affected how formations operated. With the historic campaigns you can face the decisions of your historic counterparts.

All of this has been done in an effort to make Combat Commander: Vietnam the most comprehensive tactical wargame experience on the conflict. It gives players infinite replayability with the opportunity to enrich their understanding of the challenges faced by all sides during the war. Even more, all parts of the design are fully extensible which means future battle packs and expansions will provide even broader coverage. For anyone looking to immerse themselves in the Vietnam Experience, this is the starting point.

Previous Article: For Everything There is a Season: The Origin Story of Combat Commander: Vietnam

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14/04/2025
PASS Review – One Board Family
Small box card games are the easiest games to get to our table. PASS is a ladder climbing game the was brought to the US from Grand Gamers Guild toward the end of 2024. The game from designer Wang Yu supports two to five players with mechanics and card combinations that feel pretty traditional. So is this game a keeper or will we pass on it?

Follow the Leader

In each game of PASS, the cards will be dealt out evenly among the players at the table. Over the series of rounds, players are trying to shed cards from their hands by leading or following the card arrangement that was played. The player who was dealt the number “2 start” card will go first and can play any arrangement they would like.

You can play a single card, pair of cards, three of a kind, run of five cards, or a full house. Players can also play four of a kind and five of a kind, but might want to hold these for a critical moment since they will beat all the other card arrangements.

After the leader plays a card(s), players must follow in beating the previously played card(s). Player A plays a pair of fours, Player B must play a higher pair or they are forced to pass.

Each card in PASS is double-sided, giving players two options. Players are rarely out of options because of the range of values on the cards.

Tokens

In the game of PASS, choosing to pass during a round gives you more flexibility in your card play in the future. When you pass, you earn a two-sided PASS token that can be used in future rounds. Each token gives you two options.

Use the Upgrade (yellow arrow) side of the token to flip as many cards as you want when you play. Use the Augment (multi-colored plus) side of the token to play a better version of the same card that was previously played. You can use as many tokens as you want when playing cards.

I really like how the Augment side of the PASS token works. If the player before me played a pair of threes, I can also play the same value cards and spend an Augement token to increase it’s value. Players can continue playing pairs of threes, augmenting them with one more token than the previous player if they’d like.

The more PASS tokens you accumulate, the more flexibility you have. Cards follow a traditional range of Ace through King, with the Ace being the lowest card or the highest card in a run. PASS also gives the Ace cards a yellow value of a double digit number that can be played as a high single card, or as a pair of numbers. Aces can be very powerful in the right hands.

Empty Handed

The ultimate goal of PASS is to be the first player to empty their hand. There are two options when it comes to scoring. The player who goes out first gains a crown token, with the first player to earn three crowns winning the game. Or, players can earn point tokens with 4 points being awarded to the first player to go out, 2 points going to the player with the least cards in their hand, and 1 point to the player with the second least about of cards. The first to have 10 points worth of tokens wins the game.

In our plays of the game, the point scoring system is absolutely the way to go at five players. When playing with three or four players, the crown scoring tokens work just fine. The point scoring variant usually means a shorter game in our experiences.

Final Thoughts

I really enjoy the ladder climbing genre of card games. It reminds me of playing cards with my grandma and PASS is no different. I was able to teach my Mom how to play the game on a recent family trip and she immediately connected with the gameplay. Following the standard hierarchy of a deck of cards also means it’s accessible to a wide range of gamers.

It’s tough not to compare PASS to Scout which was released in 2019. They both have this double-sided card layout but in a lot of ways, PASS feels less restrictive. In each game we’ve played, PASS tokens are readily available when you need them. Because they carry over from round to round, it’s not unusual to have half a dozen tokens at your disposal at some point in the game.

There’s also a variant in the rulebook where players have to spend a PASS token for every card they want to flip. This is nice for gamers who are wanting more of a challenge.

PASS has a classic card game feels that has been very easy to introduce to new players. The gameplay is smooth and each card giving you two values allows you to pivot quickly in the game.

This is a card game that will absolutely stay in our collection. I’m not sure I would choose it over Ladder 29, my absolute favorite ladder climbing card game. PASS is definitely a solid entry into this genre of card games and has enough twists to keep players engaged.

PASS is available at your local game store, or online through the Grand Gamers Guild webstore today.

This game was provided to us by the publisher for review. Read more about our review policies at One Board Family.

Highs
- Double valued cards give players more control
- Passing gives players more options in future turns
- Using a token to Augment your cards keeps players in the game.
Lows
- Games can drag at the highest player count
Complexity

Time Commitment

Replayability
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14/04/2025
سلام دنیا!

به وردپرس خوش آمدید. این اولین نوشتهٔ شماست. این را ویرایش یا حذف کنید، سپس نوشتن را شروع نمایید!

14/04/2025