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Fast Look: Rebellion Grip Mat
Designer: Eric Salyers
Writer: GripMats Break From Actuality Video games
From the Writer:
NOTE: This merchandise is on pre-order arriving the tip of March or early April.
Official Rebellion: Curse of the Final Emperor Playmat 115 cm x 58 cm with stitched edging, waterproof floor.
Printed on one aspect, black rubber on the opposite. Lovely daring print with appropriately sized token areas, This official mat is bound to make your sport evening just a little extra enjoyable. with the grippy floor protecting these tiles in place!
Floor selections:
Commonplace Floor – Easy and slick, excellent for sliding your ships across the board.
Grippy Floor – Locks chits, playing cards, and ships in place. Not sticky or cheesy to the contact. Press the merchandise into the mat for it to carry.
Overview:
Not too many opinions permit me the chance to debate two merchandise from two completely different corporations. In the present day fortunately gives an exception to this norm, and grants the availability to merge two of my favourite opinions into one, thrilling new product.
You might bear in mind my evaluation of Rebellion : Curse of the Final Emperor and its enlargement. Let me additionally throw in for 2 years in a row now it has been my teams favourite sport of all time.
It might additionally tickle your reminiscence after I speak about Grip Mats, since I additionally tried out their Eclipse : Second Daybreak for the Galaxy mat some time in the past. Sporting not solely incredible aesthetic worth, it has possessed a heaven-sent capacity to maintain map tiles from sliding everywhere in the desk with its one-of-a-kind grip perform.
To be truthful, ever since I examined the unique grip mat, I used to be at a loss, as a result of as nice because it was, one thing felt prefer it was lacking. Certainly, what I needed ever since that monumental second was to expertise the identical Grip Mat high quality paired with my favourite 4x sport, Rebellion. May such a feat show potential? Was the world prepared for such a pairing?
I’ve fortunately had many events to talk it up with Nemesis video games, and its sensible builders, they usually had been type sufficient to not solely present me with a hi-res file of not only one sport board, however all 3 of Rebellion’s boards, sleekly merged into simply 1 simplified mat (even together with an area for the newly upgraded Druid playing cards for the Titans of The First Age enlargement) , if I may simply occur to seek out somebody who may print it out for me…
Eric at Grip Mats was fortunately in a position to deal with such a provision. With the ability to manufacture custom-sized mats of nearly any dimension (so long as I may present the file), he would be capable to do the print. And given the standard I had seen with the Eclipse mat, this may be one thing value paying for this time round, as final time it had been a gratuitous providing I had been despatched for evaluation.
This was one thing I needed to splurge on the exhibit the excellence of each Grip Mats and Nemesis Video games.
And, in an epic Seinfeld second (a lot to the dismay of poor outdated George), worlds collided, and I managed to acquire, in shining radiance, the ultimate product in all its splendor.
And behold, it was nicely well worth the wait. As I had inwardly squabbled with myself for over a 12 months as as to if or not I ought to transfer forth with this prospect. As there have been some reservations I had initially held.
As a result of, as a few of chances are you’ll know, not all mats are created equal. Even so-called “premium” choices, as a result of I’ve skilled letdowns with these as nicely. For instance, as a lot as Too Many Bones touts itself for having top-notch parts, I persistently discovered that the mats that function participant boards all had textual content that was warped, blurred, and in any other case too onerous to learn. How would Rebellion’s board, which depends closely on using textual content on the aspect to streamline sport phases, fare on this endeavor? Would I find yourself feeling like my hard-earned cash was wasted? As a result of on the time of my ordering the merchandise, I had zero body of reference for what textual content would seem like by way of a Grip Mat product, provided that the Eclipse masks has just about none. In order that was one supply of fear for me.
The tip consequence defied my expectations, and proved my fears unfounded.
My key fear with regard to the Grip Mat’s readability was shortly obliterated, because the textual content’s decision blinded me with its sharp radiance. No difficulties studying it in any respect, not like my expertise with mats reminiscent of these employed in Too Many Bones.
And I used to be hit with in on the spot dose of wow, as colours appeared to come out at me. Possibly they’re only a tad extra saturated than the unique Rebellion board, however on this case, it actually helps issues stand out only a bit extra, even when the impact is refined.
And naturally, when bought with the “Grippy” floor (their trademark possibility accessible at a barely elevated price to the bottom mat), the sport was elevated even additional.
This in fact doesn’t imply the gameplay is magically improved, however the sense of move is optimized. The truth that you don’t usually end up fiddling to get hexes to remain in place on the mat means much less distraction to take your thoughts away out of your grasp plan to defeat the forces of Chaos and the Empire, and consequently results in extra immersion. Time is a priceless commodity on sport evening, and when folks have fatigue that may set in throughout lengthy gaming classes, each valuable second counts. The much less seconds and minutes which might be spent reorganizing tiles, the higher.
Different sport parts additionally fared fairly admirably on the Grip Mat, although not all in addition to the tiles they had been designed to include. Picket level trackers, for instance fared fairly nicely, however Legion and Horde playing cards didn’t fare as nicely, most certainly attributable to the truth that the underside playing cards on the stack would in fact cling to the mat’s floor, however playing cards on the highest of the pile, missing the resistance that the mat gives, would in fact often spill off of one another. So there are some incidental little issues that also occur, however these will not be the fault of the product, so no deductions are given right here.
And did I point out how the mat helps to consolidate house by becoming a member of all three of the unique sport boards into one house (sure, I did already, however I simply have to say this once more). This actually helps give a really cohesive heart house on your sport, that once more, gained’t permit for the initially separate boards to get jostled aside from one another and set off somebody’s OCD throughout a session. An all-in-one resolution helps maintain issues trying tidier and extra organized than they may in any other case be.
So my general impressions?
It is a should purchase for followers Rebellion : Curse of the Final Emperor. I do know the dev crew from Nemesis Video games nicely, they usually by no means, ever cross up a possibility to offer the consummate gaming expertise ; the standard of all different gaming parts they’ve produced thus has by no means lacked for something.
And sure, they’ve already had an everyday mat for his or her sport produced previously, however this new Grip Mat version one takes the elegant to the subsequent stage by incorporating a grippy / non-slip floor and being up to date to the most recent customary for the present guidelines within the sport. That is already my favourite sport of all time, and I do know many others who really feel the identical means. However as we followers of the sport know, Rebellion deserves one of the best of one of the best. A Grip Mat helps convey the Rebellion expertise to the perfection that it already enjoys, however can by no means have sufficient of.
Thanks very a lot to Nemesis Video games and Grip Mats for permitting me to mix two of my favourite merchandise into one totally realized dream come true.
To order your mat and help each incredible corporations, please go to the next hyperlink, and let me know in the event you occur to get one! Rebellion is developing with one other crowdfund later in 2025, and information of this sport actually wants your help, as it’s actually among the many better of one of the best! (It IS one of the best, in my sincere opinion, too!).
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