Expeditions: Gears of Corruption | Rahdo's Final Thoughts 

Another map token idea: put the token face up on your player board. On any of your future turns you can activate it by turning it face down to the compass side. This adds choice and flexibility.

Great video talking about what you liked mechanically (and why) and not just *that* you liked it.

I like that variant with the map tokens! Also I think being able to peak at the tokens would work too.

I would probably change the map token thing so that you collect it without showing it, then you can use any of your collected (and not yet used) map tokens whenever you want on your on-going or later turns by just turning them face up. That way everyone could have some surprises up their sleeves that others can't see.

Prelude for expeditions!

Glad to hear/see that this expansion drastically changes your opinion of the base game. I understand your reason for a map token house rule, in case the bonus isn't useful to you but I don't like the idea of you peeking and flipping the token for everyone to see. I would suggest 1) you can peek (and keep the token hidden) if you are adjacent, which may help you decide if you'll travel in a different direction OR better yet, 2) no peeking but if you move onto the tile and don't WANT the bonus, you can take $1 instead (and the token gets removed from the game, NOT placed on your player mat).

Thanks for the video! :)

The late player disadvantage came from not being able to play a card (to full effect) because you don't have a worker, and the get-a-worker spaces are taken by the first two players. But that's fixed by having you start with a worker.

It’s curious because Scythe approach to the tokens was to give the player an event card that had 3 options to choose from. I’m wondering if having tokens with similar multiple choice options, where you can only pick one out of 2-3 options could also mitigate the issue with the tokens as the player could at least choose an option that could better boost their strategy maybe?

I feel like another version of the house rule could be to put all the map tokens in an opaque bag, take 2 whenever you flip a tile and choose which reward you'd like. Makes it a bit of a choice instead of a forced potentially unwanted benefit!

I am watching rahdos videos for more than 10 years and he was always a fast and excited talker. But know he acts like a crazy professor on cocain! I had to check if fast forward was on or not. Take it easy my man. We need you at least another 12 years!

For the map tokens, what if you do a house rule where a player can look at a facedown token when they are adjacent to it, but it remains facedown for all other players unless and until they are adjacent to it? I'm not sure I like simply revealing adjacent tokens permanently because it doesn't make much thematic sense that other players would know what is there if their enemy is near that location.

Excited to order this expansion and happy to hear your thoughts. With your explore token variant, how do you think it would work to bank the tokens for later turns?

Thanks for your review! Regarding the face-down exploration tokens, do you think it would work to change it to a system where you can hold the token to be used and discarded at a later time? Having not yet played the expansion I don't know if it would make them too powerful, but it seems like it would be another easy way to fix it like the way you suggested.

Thanks for the video Rahdo! I’ve been enjoying Expeditions base and can see this expansion being essential moving forward. Another map token variant that I will probably try out…randomize and seed certain map tokens in specific regions of the map, and make that information available to all. For example, if I am looking to cycle through the face up cards to hoard a certain type of card, and knowing that a sweep token is “somewhere” in Central West, I can take my chances and start exploring in that area. Maintains the same randomness and excitement of exploration while providing another risk/reward choice. I could get what I was looking for to aid my strategy or I could get useless junk. Seeding could be customized to suit your tastes - e.g. items more useful in late game could be seeded in the northern regions.

So, a game you said was slow to begin with added a component that slows it down even more and it makes the game better?

Another house rule could be, if the token gives you nothing swap it with an unused one from the box.

I think there is so much potential in making the map more dynamic. For example actions that destroy map tiles/change them or modify them. Workers that can be dropped off and have different functions, can obstruct paths or amplify effects. On top of all this (and despite the new exploration tokens) exploration itself is simply not exciting. All the same tiles are always in play and since they are in the same regions it really is only the question in which of X tiles location Y. Eventually though it will show up. I understand this is tied to quests but even those feel so incredibly unthematic. The two resources just become that...two resources. They move up and down and have no meaning whatsoever. I hope this is only the first expansion. And Rahdo I agree with you, this could have been a banger card game and it's still a mystery to me why it is a board game. Also, not sure how the tokens make exploring a high priority. E.g. one of the tokens gives you one guile. After the 50-60% mark I was so flush with all that I would have probably groaned if I pulled that. We had several locations that remained unexplored when we played the game because we had our path, were filled with resources and had completed enough quests so there was no point to explore. I don't see this changing with the expansion. I wouldn't travel across the board to explore for a sweep or a guile. I still think this game has great bones but man it needs a lot of work to get there. Somehow I am disappointed that this expansion isn't smarter about fixing the issues that people have been vocal about and articulated so well.

That is great that game is going to be improved by this expansion. Unfortunatelly player has to pay extra to get that fix - that is a bummer. Sorry for this impression.

Can you get it all to fit in the base box?

No new Landscape Tile?! ☹️

All leading up to a big box