Never a dull moment

September 20, 2018 Gil Hova No Comments

Hi folks, my name is Gil Hova and I’m a board game designer, publisher, podcaster, and teacher living in lovely Jersey City, right across the water from New York City. I’m best known for my board game The Networks (pictured above), but you may also have gotten to try my game Wordsy, a rare word game that benefits longer words.

I started designing board games in 2000, because I ultimately wanted to be a video game designer. As I researched board games, I discovered that I actually preferred them to video games, and it’s been downhill ever since.

I formed my publishing company Formal Ferret Games in 2014 as a vehicle to self-publish my games, and ensure that every detail was done correctly (if not quickly!), and I’m working on my next two releases – Bad Medicine, my first self-published game, will be re-released at the end of the year, and my new game High Rise will be on Kickstarter in February.

I’m also a podcaster! I am co-host of Ludology with Geoff Engelstein, and I co-founded Breaking Into Board Games with Ian Zang and Tony Miller. My first job out of college was working in sound post-production for film, so podcast editing is something I’m pretty comfortable doing. Dirty secret about podcast editing; as you get better at it, you don’t get all that faster at it. You just wind up editing more stuff out.

And yes, I am the proud owner of two ferrets; I’ve owned various ferrets for over 20 years, and I have to say they’re my favorite animals around.

Thanks to Rachel and Heinze for letting me take over their wonderful webcomic for a day! Next time I do this, I hope to work more pets into the strip.

A little message from Rachel and Heinze:
We’d like to thank Gil for commissioning a comic and we’re proud to have this as our very first sponsored comic. Sponsored comics is a new thing that we’re really excited about! Whoever does something board game related can commission a comic which we will publish on Thursdays, so as an extra comic besides the usual weekly updates on Mondays. This is a way for us to make more funny comics to discover and share new games with our audience. For more info, check our Info page or send us an email or message on any social media platform.

What is a show you love but everybody hates?

Not the sound of silence

September 27, 2018 Pepijn van Loon 2 Comments

Hi there, I’m Pepijn van Loon, the designer and publisher of Heroes of Tenefyr and owner of Broken Mill.

I’m super excited to be launching my first game on Kickstarter, and I couldn’t have done it without the help of some wonderful people. Mainly the 4 amazing artists that I’ve found: Frank Attmannspacher, Emanoel Melo, Manolis Frangidis and Jimmy Nijs. It’s been a great working with them all.

You all know the other two artists who have been very supportive of me: Semi co-op. They even helped promote my game a bit at UK Games Expo! I actually met Rachel from Semi co-op about 14 years ago, back when we were all hyped about the Lord of the Rings movies. It’s a crazy coincidence that we both ended up in this industry after all these years.

Heroes on Tenefyr is live on Kickstarter right now!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/brokenmill/2049614510?ref=571676&token=64a6e30d

It’s a cooperative deck-building game for 1-4 players with some push your luck elements.
The bard is actually a lot more competent in the game than in the comic, but his style of music is an acquired taste. Personally, I love some good bagpipe music, especially when it’s combined with folk or metal.

I’d like to close off with a big thank you to Rachel and Heinze for this, and all the other wonderful Semi Co-op comics that brighten our Mondays and Thursdays!

What’s your favorite fantasy class?

Every story has a story

February 28, 2019 Sarah Pretz No Comments

Hello everyone! I’m Sarah and I have one half of the two-person team that invented Story Builders. I’m a teacher and a mother and of course, a gamer. My partner is an engineer, a computer geek, a father and that’s right, a gamer.

You know that moment where you have an idea that seems so obvious you’re sure it’s already been done? And of course, you look it up and, yeah, it already exists.

Except sometimes…. It doesn’t.

Once upon a toy I had an idea, “Wouldn’t it be cool if there was an interlocking toy with pictures on it that can be used to *literally* build a story?” Such a simple idea, I thought.

As fate would have at the exact same time that toy idea came to mind, there was a game in development that both us really liked that seemed impossible to actually make. It required dozens of completely unique objects that would chain together to make ‘quests.’ You can’t just make a game that requires a bunch of unique toys.

Or so we thought.

The day those two ideas met could be thought of as the day Story Builders was truly born.

Well, even a simple idea can explode with passion. We have spent the past two years obsessed with Story Builders. The two of use really fed off one another to bring something to life that can truly call itself a game and a toy. I could ramble on endlessly on the value of play and social intelligence. But if your reading this you already know. This is a wonderful world we live in, the world of play!

Big thanks are due to Rachel and Heinze for their wonderful comic and letting it be a venue for me to share my story. Now, go share yours. Go play.

Story Builders is on Kickstarter right now, click here to check it out: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/storybuilders/story-builders-games-and-toys?ref=ag7s83

The Isle of Cats, part 1

July 4, 2019 Frank West 6 Comments

With Rachel and Heinze sailing towards The Isle of Cats I can only wonder, are they prepared for what is ahead?

We’ll find out next week! [click here to read part 2]

Hi there, I’m Frank West, and I like to design and publish games set within The City of Kings universe, a world full of stories which I have been building for the past few years. The Isle of Cats is the next part in my big adventure, and I would love to invite you to check it out. But be warned! These cats have claws…

While there are many cats, the game offers a much bigger experience than many other cat themed games, and is designed for gamers. Over 90 minutes, you will find yourself challenged and having to make many tough decisions as you manage resources, and balance personal objectives with rescuing cats.

Have you ever tried to rescue a cat? No matter how much they need saving, they aren’t going to make it easy for you!

Don’t worry though, if you prefer easier games, there is a full family mode cutting the rulebook down from 20 pages to 2, making the game accessible for everyone, and a custom designed solo mode for those who would prefer to stay at home and play with their cats.

Next week we shall discover whether our heroes make it safely to the island, until then I hope you enjoyed the comic and that they don’t get seasick!

The Isle of Cats, part 2

July 11, 2019 Frank West 3 Comments

Did you miss The Isle of Cats, part 1?

I have a feeling Rachel and Heinze are going to regret putting all those cats on their boat, but we’ll find out soon.
[click here to read part 3]

Hi there, I’m Frank West, and last week I gave a little introduction to myself and The Isle of Cats. This week I’d love to hear from you and find out which of the six breeds of cat you like the best.

You did see the sixth one, right?

Rachel and Heinze have done a tremendous job bringing out the personalities of each of the cats from The Isle of Cats and I couldn’t be happier. I hope you are enjoying this adventure and I can’t wait to share the final part with you next week!

The Isle of Cats, part 3

July 18, 2019 Frank West No Comments

Did you miss The Isle of Cats, part 1 or part 2?

While Rachel and Heinze try to figure out how they are going to get the cats off their boat, it is time for me to say goodbye.

Remember to cuddle your Hissnippers, be careful when approaching a Mhoxxite, and in dark rooms always keep your eyes open for a Crystal Garmin!

I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has joined us over the past 3 weeks, and until next time, keep on adventuring!

– Frank

If you would like to know more, you can learn about The Isle of Cats here.

Do We Have Time For This

January 3, 2020 Steamforged games No Comments

In a shattered world called the Cradle, players take control of mighty champions as they battle to claim the powerful tears of perished gods.

Their goal? To use the godtears to gain immortality…and ultimate power.

Godtear is a hex based tabletop skirmish board game for two players. With its dynamic scenarios and pre-assembled, pre-coloured miniatures, it’s quick to start but hard to master!

Learn more about Godtear here.

Steamforged Games and Semi Co-op are thrilled to announce an exciting new comic set in the world of Godtear!

Don’t miss a single comic!

Follow Semi Co-op on Instagram and Facebook.

And sign up to the Steamforged Games Newsletter to get them direct to your inbox!

Despite being smart and brave, I’m still just a cat in a cave

February 27, 2020 Pepijn van Loon 1 Comment

Greetings from Tenefyr and The Netherlands! I’m Pepijn van Loon, designer and publisher of Heroes of Tenefyr: The Second Curse.

Rachel en Heinze did a comic for my first Kickstarter game, Heroes of Tenefyr, back in 2018, and it only made sense to me to return to Semi Co-op for the expansion.

That expansion (and a reprint of the base game) is live on Kickstarter right now:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/brokenmill/heroes-of-tenefyr-the-second-curse-expansion-and-reprint

Heroes of Tenefyr is a cooperative, push your luck deck-building game for 1-4 players. Each player takes on the role of a hero and you all work together to fight monsters and defend the village of Tenefyr.
This expansion adds new heroes, enemies, bosses and enough cards to double the content of the base game.
And one of the new heroes is a kitten! I mean a Cat-purrson.

I’d like to close off with a big thank you to Rachel and Heinze for this, and all the other wonderful Semi Co-op comics that brighten our Mondays!

Geek Chique

March 5, 2020 Phoebe Wild No Comments

Hey everyone! I’m Phoebe Wild, the creator of LudoCherry and one half of the team bringing it to life on Kickstarter right now.

LudoCherry is a new kind of geeky clothing that lets you wear your love for tabletop games on your sleeve, no matter where you are! Our range includes button-up shirts and circle skirts, in four unique fabrics that we’ve designed to blend in with your everyday wardrobe while also containing references to iconic elements of tabletop games.

One of those fabrics, Meeple Garden, has been designed by Semi Co-op’s own Rachel Kremer so of course we had to ask her and Heinze to create a comic for us! You can see a sample of Rachel’s gorgeous design in the comic, a watercolour-style floral print with meeples hidden amongst the flowers. You really can’t see the geekiness unless you’re looking for it, so you can get away with wearing it to the office or a nice dinner as well as to game night!

LudoCherry is live (and funded) on Kickstarter right now, so please take a look if you’re interested in some stylish geeky clothing: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/markh110/ludocherry-stylish-tabletop-shirts-and-skirts?ref=cdhkog

We’re also proud to say that we are creating our clothing using 100% cotton fabric, and in an inclusive range of sizes (shirts in S-4XL and skirts in 6-24). Our clothes are also ethically and sustainably made (and yes, the skirts have HUGE pockets).

Thank you to Rachel and Heinze for creating the comic for us, and for letting us share our project with all of you!

-Phoebe

Getting even

March 12, 2020 The Ministry of Meeples No Comments

Hello from the Ministry of Meeples!

We have been massive fans of Semi Co-op’s work for a long time, and so we were thrilled when Rachel and Heinze agreed to put together a comic for our upcoming game Theurgy.

Theurgy is an area control strategy game in which 2-6 players take on the role of half-forgotten gods and compete to have temples built in their honour. Holy pilgrimages are undertaken, incredible miracles performed, and monsters summoned in a fierce contest for recognition and reverence.

The core mechanics are streamlined and intuitive. On their turn, a player simply chooses from one of four actions: Pilgrimage, Spread the Word, Divine Intervention, and Test the Faith. These actions will help you to build and position your following, spread your influence, ward of scepticism, and ultimately build the temples you need to meet one of the three winning conditions. Players must choose their actions carefully, however, as you are prevented from performing the same action on successive turns.

The game is live on Kickstarter now, so if it sounds like your cup of tea then please do check it out here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ministryofmeeples/theurgy?ref=90l5u8&token=064c971c

Theurgy has been our first Kickstarter project and we’ve had an absolute blast – working with Semi Co-op has been the icing on the cake.

Semi Co-op

A webcomic about board games and other geeky things.

Webcomics that are part of Sponsored