EXCERPT
We pivoted from OTK Fridays to Casual Fridays post-COVID. And somehow we’ve hosted over a hundred sessions since – without a single sessrep. While that’s a symptom of just how busy the biz has been keeping us, it’s also a regret (tho a shallow one) that we can’t get back to sessrepping. With that said, we broke the duck with the 1st sessrep for Casual Friday. Welcome back! And a little bonus for you at the end of the sessrep.

Session: BGC Casual Friday Meetup CF105
Location: BGC Space, KL Malaysia
Date/Time: 13 March 2026 (Fri) 7pm – 11pm

BGC Casual Friday Meetup Report @ BGC Space
By jack208

It has been yonder years…

…since we picked up a pen and wrote a sessrep for our Friday Meetups. Seems like a pre-COVID thing, this sessrep writing. While we did resume our Friday meetups post-COVID (we pivoted from what was once known as “OTK Meetup” into what everyone now knows as “Casual Friday”), the sessrep practice did not follow.

I kept telling myself that I’ll resume that practice one day. Do ppl still read blog? Maybe not. But that’s never the only reason for posting a sessrep. A write-up also serves to chronicle the session. To put a mark in the timeline that hey, we hosted this, and these were what’s played in that session. So that those who discover us later can read these and go, “Ah so this is what they play”.

Time flies though. And soon, it’s CF105. Yeah.. the 105th iteration of our Casual Friday! And I’m still dragging my feet on the sessrep. Busy yes I am. But surely I can make some time to post a short write-up. Leave the more elaborative write-up for later. Or maybe not at all.

So here it is. A stake in the ground. A post in the blog. And a return to sess-repping. Hopefully (haha).

No AI tho. Writing is also a form of therapy/joy for me. So write I will. With bad English, horrible grammars and all that. tsk tsk.

p/s To induce folks to read these, I’ve left err… a discount code somewhere in this sessrep. tsk tsk.

SHALLOW REGRETS

All the regrets you can take in 18-cards?

The evening started with an 18-card version of Deep Regrets, a popular title among our regulars. SHALLOW REGRETS is a much shortened ver of the game, also designed by Judson but published by Button Shy, arguably the definitive leader in the 18-card game space.

Dun expect this to give you the (full) Deep Regrets experience, but if you have 15 min to spare and wants to play smthing that gives you the Deep Regrets vibes – give Shallow Regrets a go.

• Buy Deep Regrets (KS Edition) | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store
• Buy Shallow Regrets Bundle (KS Edition) | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

LORDS OF WATERDEEP

With Renegade Game Studio announcing the reprint of this evergreen title which has gone out of print for years, we thought it’s time we introduce this classic to a new group of gamers. It can play up to 6 with the Scoundrels of Skullport expansion, but I’ve always felt 4-5 is the sweet spot.

While it has the D&D label attached to its title, there’s nothing really D&D about the gameplay. at it’s core, it’s an Euro worker placement game, set in the D&D world where you go about constructing buildings and assembling teams to complete quests. Similar games to it would be Champions of Midgard and Raiders of North Sea. Unlike these two, Waterdeep has Intrigue cards which add a take-that element into the gameplay, so this may be a deterrent – or attraction – to some ppl.

Beside adding the 6th player, the Skulls of Scoundrel expansion introduces the element of corruption thru buildings that offer you much better rewards, in exchange for a wee bit of your soul. But then if everyone’s dipping into the corruption pool, it can be par for the course.. until a righteous fella stood up and claim victory for the untainted! While the corruption tokens do not DQ you from the game (like Cleopatra and the Society of Architects), they can introduce stiff enough penalty points to hit you hard in the final points tally.

We’ll have both the base game and expansion back in stock soon for a May 2026 release. If you are looking for these, dun miss our preorder.

• Preorder Lords of Waterdeep | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store
• Preorder Lords of Waterdeep XP: Scoundrels of Skullport | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

CAUTION SIGNS

Let’s draw!

A fave of ours when the group is in-between games or waiting for others to arrive. Plays up to 9. The more the merrier, with no downtime. All you need to do is “draw”. And who doesn’t know how to draw, right?

If you enjoy this, other games to check out are Telestrations and Duplik.

• Buy Caution Signs | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store
• Buy Telestrations: The Original | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store
• Buy Duplik Refresh | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

RAILWAYS OF NIPPON

We brought back RAILWAYS OF THE WORLD last week (CF104) and it was well received. So much so, we decided to table another map this week. This time we head to Japan to tackle the NIPPON map, which really shines at 4p count.

As you can see, the “small map” means things get tight – fast – with the full complement of 4. Nippon doesn’t introduce anything new but it’s expensive terrain and compact geography make it a good step-up for those coming off the main Railways of the World map.

A nod to Eagle Games as well: they’ve continued supporting this series with several maps after Nippon i.e. Portugal (designed by Vital), Australia, and Sweden. I’ve followed this series since its very first release as Railroad Tycoon back in 2005, it’s subsequent rebranding to Railways of the World, and all the expansion maps that followed- the latest being the Australia/Sweden maps in 2022. If you are looking for a game of network building and cube delivery without the heavy cutthroat intensity of Age of Steam, do give this a try. I’m always happy to table this. Call for a game if you are in one of our meetups.

Check out all the RAILWAYS OF THE WORLD SKUs we’ve in our webstore
Railways of the World series | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

Q.E.

There are bidding games, and then there is Q.E.

A bidding game where you do not start with any money but can “print” as much as you need in order to win your bids. How does that even work? That’s the question most asked of Gavin when he showcased his first “prototype” back in Essen 2017. That edition – meticulously hand-crafted in wood and sold under the Cubiko Games label – came in a tiny print run of just 50 set. One of them made its way back to Malaysia with me. 🙂

The game has since been reprinted by Boardgametable, and now widely available in retail, complete with the Commodities expansion which supports a 5th player. But given how all sets come in 4, I would still think this game is best for 4.

Q.E. can be sandboxy, so the mileage will vary wildly among playing groups. Some will love its “absurd gameplay”, some will wonder what’s the game about. We just love the sheer drama brought about by this game. This game does remind me of Ponzi Scheme tho that’s a very different game than this. The similarity in both games is that you just gotta go all-in but… just make sure you are not the biggest All-in sucker fella i.e the one left holding the bag.

Buy Q.E. | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

THE RICH AND THE GOOD

In this game, be RICH and somewhat GOOD (heh).

THE RICH AND THE GOOD features hidden/shared info with market manipulation, similar vibes to STOCKPILE – but adds a “charitable” spin to the game. You are encouraged to donate part of your earnings after each buy/sell round. Obviously money donated no longer features into your cashflow or final points tally.

Here’s the catch – is the one who donated the least is immediately “knocked out” when it comes to game end, even if you are the richest. Ouch…

Buy The Rich and the Good | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

HOLLYWOOD 1947

Of all the DARK CITIES series, the fave among our regulars is HOLLYWOOD 1947. Plays best at 7-9, this game has the perfect balance among all three factions – Patriots, Communists, and the solo Rising Star. Yes, the solo Rising Star has much better odds of winning the game than it’s counterpart Renegade in BANG!

Add in the extra gameplay features of the Deluxe Edition, and I can say this is a game where even the non-social-deduction player may enjoy. Everyone has a job, everyone has smthing to do, and everyone is involved every turn.

Without the Deluxe Edition, there’s only 9 job cards and if you are playing with the max (the best player count IMHO) then players can’t freely “Change Job” as an action and has to depend on the Producer (role) to change jobs for them. This I feel, weakens the game. The Deluxe Edition adds another 4 job cards so everyone can change jobs on their own. It’s still an “expensive” action as it takes you out of the game for one turn – but at least you can’t say you don’t have the choice.

Buy Dark Cities series | Boardgamecafe.net Malaysia Board & Card Game Store

p/s If you are a fan of DARK CITIES, watch out for our preorder of their latest ROMA XLI (KS Edition).

Wrapping up…

Here are some pics of the other games that were played in this evening’s session.

TROPICHAOS – one of Oink’s recent (2025) releases. Fruit sellers trying to “time” the market to sell, and hope the seasons do not pass you by. Quick punchy game in 15-20 min.

INSIDER. Another Oink fave. Haven’t seen this for a while in our CF sessions. Good that this made a return to the table. Our fave remains Werewords, with it’s twist in the tail ending.

STAMP SWAP – stamp collecting may not be a hobby that’s still popular now, but Stamp Swap offers a pretty decent implementation of the I Split, You Pick mechanic with set collection and board placement. And the quality components one would expect from a Stonemaier production.

For another I Split, You Pick game that’s more casual and plays up to 7, check out The Great Split.

RAILROAD TILES – a tile-version of the popular Railroad Ink. As a “board” person, I actually prefer this implementation. Comes with a bunch of add-on expansions to extend the replayability.

I’d planned to table WORLD WONDERS in today’s session. Since Railroad Tiles were tabled, I’ll keep World Wonders for the next session as it presents another tile laying mechanics.

And that’s a wrap! Here’s the Playlist for CF105.

If these games are your jam, join us in our next meetup. Get your RSVP here: Boardgamecafe.net Meetup | Meetup

Wait, where’s the discount code you promised?

Oh yes.. here you go – use this code ” CF105BLOG” at our webstore to get 10% off your next purchase. No minimum order. Valid until 7-Apr (Tue).

• Valid for purchases made on our webstore https://boardgamecafe.biz
• Discount code does not stack with others
• Not valid for Kickstarters, Preorders, Backorders, and NoDiscount items