Gamertell

If, like me, you’re a student, you’re probably nearing finals and are on the verge of an educational burn out. Sometimes all you need is something fun to play to distract yourself for a short time and so you can relax. After all, a calm mind will help you in the long run.

Here are a few tabletop games you can play to help you relax along with a few additional suggestions that should help rest (or reset) your mind.

Tabletop Mayhem

For tabletop gaming there are several types of games you can go through at varying prices. Still, in the pursuit of calming yourself for your educational benefit, even the more expensive games may prove to be well worth the cost.

Strategy Games: If you’re willing to pick up tabletop strategy games, cost will be a very big factor. Warmachines, Hordes, Warhammer, Warhammer 40,000 and Flames of War tend to have some of the best miniatures out there. The minimum you’ll pay for box with a couple units with be in the US$20 to $50 range. In terms of Warhammer or its sci-fi counterpart, your best best would be one of the two-player starter boxes like Assault on Black Reach, which sells for $60. You can also get different battle/strike forces that will quickly bulk up your army and save you anywhere from $50 to 100. For those it’d be best to go in on with a friend. Battle forces run you about $90 and strike forces, which contain a 1500 point army with vehicles (normally), are $240.

Card Games: There is also a number of different card games and board games. You could go in for some packs of Magic: The Gathering cards to play with some friends.  If you get some of the pre-constructed decks you don’t even need to build a deck to play, just improve the deck to play more. You can also get into the Legend of the Five Rings game and get a deck and some boosters. Munchkin is also a good bet. You just need to figure out which of the clans you’re willing to play. The card games are less expensive for boosters will normally run you no more than $8 before tax whereas tournament packs and pre-constructed decks would run you about $13 before taxes. Sure, if you’re going for certain older editions it can be more expensive but still, very cost effective and fun.

Board Games: As for board games there’s War on Terror, Risk in all its forms, among other games. Good board games usually run you about $50 but there is the added benefit of not feeling the need (or even ever needing) to get more supplies unless you lose pieces.

Have Role, Will Play

There are a various assortment of pen-and-paper role-playing games (RPGs) you can pick up. You can go for the traditional RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons or its offshoot Castles & Crusades. These are straight forward and easy to get into unless you’re looking for an older edition of D&D. Then you’ll have to look a bit harder since people started focusing mostly on fourth edition. Warhammer Fantasy Role Play and Dark Heresy are also pretty solid games. The character creation is pretty straight forward since you roll for everything. The biggest problem is character evolution because you have so many options. You can also do Rifts, GURPs or Call of Cthulhu, the last being really good if you’re big on horror. Regardless, the books necessary will usually run you $40 to 60. Due to the fact that no two games - or sessions - played will be exactly alike, it’s well worth the money.

Time Management

No, this isn’t a game. Time management is key. Even though there are tons of gaming options to help you relax, whether it’s a video game or any format of tabletop gaming, you still need to remember to study. You’ll want to maximize your studying time while avoiding mental (pr physical) burn out before you’re officially done. This can be a little tricky if you pick up a new game and have to learn the rules from scratch. Either look at the rules before you bring it a tabletop game home to make sure you’re not creating another mental hassle for yourself or grab a game that is similar to one you’re already familiar with.

While playing with another person or two should be fine and will likely help make any game more enjoyable, avoid pulling in too many people or anyone who wants to play until they pass out. A small gaming party is usually less likely to degrade into a raucous, well, party. In the same light, watch what you drink since too much caffeine or alcohol can be counter-productive.

Remember to have fun but have it at the right time and in the right amount. An easy way to game effectively in some cases, especially in p&p RPGs, is to stop a session at the right moment. The best times are either when there is a lull in the action or have a cliffhanger ending where the party might die. For the board games, just know when to step away if it’s taking too long.

If someone’s winning after a couple of hours and you all need to study, call it or, in the case of War on Terror, have everyone go rogue and you all win.

With card games you can set a time limit, much like tournament play. If the game isn’t done, the person who is winning wins.

For tabletop strategy games, it’s easy to limit the time of. Use small armies that are less than 1,000 points. Games using 500-700 point games can go as long as 2 hours if played right and it’s relaxing.

Also, whether you are studying or gaming, simply do not burn yourself out.

Read [Office of Health Education]

Note: With contributions by PJ Hruschak.