Episode 189 - Ringyo, Nippon: Zaibatsu, Gruntz, and Green City

In Episode 189 of the Polyhedron Collider Cast, the boys tackle another diverse collection of tabletop games and for once all the games (bar one) are based around a central theme.  We kickoff with a remake of a great economic strategy board game, as we review Nippon: Zaibatsu, exploring how this new edition updates the classic Eurogame while retaining the deep strategic gameplay that made the original such a favourite. Swapping cubes for combat, we dive into Gruntz, the fast-playing tiny abstract wargame that puts tactical decisions front and centre. We chat about building forces, commanding troops, and why you need to take an iron to the pub. We then head into the forests of Japan with Ringyo, which is on Kickstarter right now. Following a demo at UK Games Expo, we've managed to get a few games in on an early prototype! Finally, er attempt to build a thriving city without sacrificing sustainability as we play Green City, a very different take from our favourite Fabio Lopiano. As always, expect lively discussion, honest board game reviews, a few disagreements, and the usual Polyhedron Collider tangents that somehow make perfect sense... eventually. Join the conversation on our [Discord server] and let us know what's been hitting your table this week!   Podcast Contents 00:00:00 Rory's segue challenge 00:03:45 Nippon: Zaibatsu 00:19:49 Gruntz 00:31:44 Ringyō 00:45:16 Green City 00:53:36 How does a game earn its place on the shelf? 01:00:08 App based dungeon crawlers   ⭐Show Sponsor: E Toys World When you sign up to an account with E Toys World use this link [https://www.etoysworld.co.uk/discount/PHC10] to bag yourself a wee discount and help support the show.  Let's face it, you were going to buy a board game anyway 😉 For a 10% discount at Tabletop Dominion (the amazing makers of the dice cubes), go to tabletopdominion.com/POLYHEDRONCOLLIDER or use the code POLYHEDRONCOLLIDER at checkout 👥Follow Us on Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PolyhedronCollider Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/polyhedroncollider Threads: https://www.threads.net/@polyhedroncollider 🎧The latest episode is available to listen on the following pod-cast services: iTunes -  https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-polyhedron-collider-cast/id1087398150  Spotify -  https://open.spotify.com/show/1rAPFNc5rE6JURNYakNzA3  Amazon - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/eba45bc5-0a1d-493c-bbbd-024fe5714147/the-polyhedron-collider-cast YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@polyhedroncollider  Player FM -  https://player.fm/series/the-polyhedron-collider-cast  Podbay -  http://podbay.fm/show/1087398150  Or you can add the http://polyhedroncollider.libsyn.com/rss Polyhedron Collider Cast RSS feed to your favourite podcast player  Intro and Outro Music: "Ouroboros" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/