New Bedford: The Game of Historic Whaling & Town Building
Created by Dice Hate Me Games
Manage fleet and town in this Euro-style board game for 1-5 players in the era of Moby Dick and historic New Bedford, Massachusetts.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Ship's Log #17
about 9 years ago
– Sat, Feb 20, 2016 at 08:56:36 PM
Greetings, historical gamers!
We’ve heard the call for an update, and we do not want to let that go ignored.
This update is a little bittersweet. We have some fun stuff to share with you, but we also have a bit of bad news. In the interest of buttering you up, I will gladly present the fun stuff first!
New Bedford is really a game about two different aspects of its historical namesake: whaling and town building. Everyone has seen the grizzled captain that graces the cover and represents the seafaring nature of the game, but no one has seen the faces of the builders. These hardy folks are the ones to hands to tools and give the town its face.
We also have an image I’m personally very excited about. New Bedford, as a whole, is all about invoking the theme, and the rulebook should feel like an artefact of the time. I think it’s a success, but I leave it to you to decide.
Now, unfortunately, all good things need a balance to make them seem that much better. This update does indeed provide both. Due to the complexity of a few of the components, notably the resource sculpts, production on the game will be delayed three to four months, with an estimated delivery date in July (BEFORE Gen Con).
It turns out that getting generic, mass-produced wooden resource items is *much* faster and easier than doing the custom sculpting and tooling needed for the New Bedford resources. While we’ve done some custom wood stuff in the past, this is unexpectedly shaping up to be the most ambitious wooden component tooling we have done to date. While we are disappointed about the delay, we think that the results will be more than worth it. We hope to have some pictures for you in several weeks after the factory gets back in gear following the Chinese New Year.
Thank you for your patience with this. We know you won’t be disappointed.
Ship's Log #16
about 9 years ago
– Thu, Jan 28, 2016 at 06:36:26 PM
Ahoy there!
Are you super excited about getting and playing New Bedford this spring? Then let the world know (or at least the world that visits BGG)!
Voting is open in the annual Most Anticipated Games geeklist on BoardGameGeek and New Bedford is nominated for several categories, including Historical - we really think we can take that one. Please take a moment to check out the geeklist and vote for New Bedford. You have until Sunday, January 24, so cast your vote now!
On a side note, we now have a Kickstarter for two great games from one fantastic designer, T.C. Petty III. Since you're all fans of worker placement one of the games is Club Zen, and it combines worker placement and positive player interaction to create an incredibly immersive experience. Make friends, go to exciting events, meditate, or even take a nap, all to manage that emotional and work stress that can pile up. And if you like social games and cute animals we have Don't Get Eated, too! Check out the Kickstarter to learn more and help us make these awesome titles a reality.
Thanks for all the love and support! Chris
Ship's Log #15
about 9 years ago
– Thu, Jan 28, 2016 at 06:32:03 PM
Hello, everyone!
Wow, it's been a couple months since we've talked. But there's finally something worth talking about!
Currently, we're finalizing files with the printer for New Bedford and Nantucket, and that means we'll be going to print very soon. If you're at all familiar with how printing games in China goes, you may know that we're moving into Chinese New Year in the next month or so. We'd like to have as much in place as possible before that happens, as workers will be taking a well-deserved week off.
I'm sorry that there's not much more exciting to share at the moment, but I'll be hopping back in soon to show you some exciting things as soon as they're approved for printing!
Ship's Log #14
over 9 years ago
– Fri, Nov 13, 2015 at 10:32:51 AM
Greetings, historical gamers!
We don't have a whole lot to share right now, unfortunately, but I wanted to keep you in the loop.
The current state of the project is that Jennifer, our graphic designer, is working closely with the printer to make sure all the tooling is correct for die-cutting. Once this is all managed, the files can be sent to production! There, unfortunately, aren't any pretty pictures to be shown at this stage (that you haven't already seen, at least).
We're right on track for the scheduled April release, and we can't wait to tell you more once it's there to say!
Ship's Log #13
over 9 years ago
– Wed, Nov 11, 2015 at 08:23:40 AM
Greetings historical gamers!
Designer Nat Levan here. I am really excited to share today's update with you.
First, I want to say thank you to everyone who has been providing feedback on the rules for New Bedford and Nantucket so far. I've started a thread on BoardGameGeek to collect any comments and questions about the print and play rules, so we can add any clarifications to the rulebook. You can find the thread here:
https://boardgamegeek.com/article/20479638
Now for the really exciting part. We've been hard at work polishing up the Ship's Log (rules)and solo (rules) expansions, and I can finally share them with you. Keep in mind that these are snapshots of the prototypes, and may change as we wrap up development.
The Ship's Log was a chance to add in more dynamic effects and some direct interaction between ships, as well as some historical flavor that didn't fit elsewhere. Each round, a Providence card and an Omens card are revealed. During the whaling phase, ships may select one of these cards instead of taking a whale. Providence cards include good effects, usually immediately, while the Omens cards have bad effects on the other players, and may frequently be held until an opportune moment. Is it worth skipping a whale to get a useful providence card? Or maybe you need to take that omens card to stop your neighbor from hurting you with it.
Included with the Ship's Log are the four tokens for the White Whale promo. Throw them in any game to add a little variety.
The solo game is called "The Lonely Ocean". Named after the ship's crew from Moby Dick, Starbuck, Stubb, Flask, and Ahab provide a new challenge. Starbuck is well rounded, Stubb prefers to build, Flask favors whaling, and Ahab is wild and unpredictable. Each captain's personality is guided by a unique rondel, and a biased die roll selects the next action to take. But each captain also has a different order of operations that makes them respond to player actions. Captains block actions, own buildings, and go whaling just like regular players. And while the captains don't have to worry about resources, they still track money, so you may think twice before using their buildings.
The solo mode PnP also includes a peek at the new character art created for the Captains. Of course Ahab we've seen before, but Starbuck, Stubb, and Flask are brand new. And of course, the background art is still prototype.
Those are just the basics of the two expansions, and the final game will include some extra buildings, more rules, and even more surprises. As always, feedback is appreciated, so let us know here or on the BGG message board if you have questions or concerns. We hope you have as much fun playing with these expansions as we had in creating them.
