Hey Game Fans, today we’re back with another mysterious package on our desk, trying to figure out exactly what it is. Today’s Mystery Box features Arcknight Games and their amazing product line. The folks around the office know that i am an absolute sucker for things that i can touch and physically manipulate during a game, and Arcknight has some of the coolest, most brightly colored products that I’ve seen in quite some time. Let’s take a closer look.
The neatest thing i see with this company is that while their products work extremely well together, they can be used as separate products. Their maps are absolutely fabulous, but you can use any tokens, minis, or pawns from any manufacturer and they work just as well. You can take any of the bits and bobs from their product catalog and use them in your game. Their maps are neat. The objects sheets are fantastic. The flat plastic minis are bananas. The Spell effects are astonishingly useful. I like the whole thing, and it’s a neat approach to take with gaming accessories.
Maps
The AKM series of gaming maps offers an interesting take on similar products like Dungeons Tiles. Each map sheet is a double sided, laminated map with a surface that readily accepts Dry Erase markers. Sold in thematic map packs like Graystone Castle, or Cobblestone City, each pack has 8 sheets, for a total of 16 maps that can be arranged to the DM’s desire. For a DM looking for a generic castle, or city, or cavern system, these are hard to argue with. Additionally, When ordering your maps, you can have grid maps added, either as square grids (the typical norm for most fantasy games in the last 10 years) or you can have hex grids. If you change your mind later, you can also order map overlays in case you have a map you’re trying to add gridlines to later, or you want to make sure the furniture doesn’t move on an existing map.
Overall, i like these map sets. With a price point of around $30 for a pack of maps, I can certainly justify spending the cash to pick up a pack. Quality materials means that these maps are going to hold up with repeated use, and i personally like not having to draw maps for every tavern that the characters i play with are going to try to burn down. Definitely a neat product, and you can slip a pack of these in a gaming bag without having to rearrange internal storage.
Object Sheets
The only thing i can say that i don’t like about these is that i have to cut them out myself. The Object sheets adds an essential range of scenic details and features to a variety of play areas. Are you sick of drawing tables, chairs, and barrels? Don’t want to draw in fissures or cracks, or trees? These are the things you didn’t know you were looking for.
Featuring a themed set of scenic details, each one of these double sided sheets is packed with accessories and dressing elements to help you stage your game encounters in a fun and enjoyable way. Whether you’re packing a tavern, a home, the streets of a major city, or populating a dungeons, these object sheets have a lot to offer for $15 per sheet. Like i said, the only thing i don’t like is having to cut them out myself, but that’s certainly not a deal breaker.
Flat Plastic Miniatures
These are an absolutely wonderful new addition to the miniatures available for fantasy gaming. Made from the same high quality plastic as the object sheets, the Flat Plastic miniatures are incredibly thin, vivdly colored miniatures that are no thicker than a sheet of paper. They store easily, accept a multitude of bases, and fit a wide range of potential needs. WIth variable price points ranging from $10 for a set of familiars, all the way up to $120 for the 310 piece Core set bundle, you can find the options you’re looking for with either a specific theme or just build up a collection.
Spell Effects
The Spell Effects are actually the first product i saw from Arcknight Games. A bundle of templates and tokens that help a Wizard maximize their spell effectiveness by letting them see the exact areas they are going to cover with their spells. It’s incredibly useful for brand new spell casters tossing their first magic missiles, and adds more resources to the more practiced spell casters. For a price point of around $40, this kit can save a lot of time for the particular spellcaster who needs to see all the angles before casting his or her spells. This product works best with a map, but it can be used in more theater of the mind style games.
Conclusions
Honestly, i like just about everything i see from Arcknight, and i hope they continue to have smashing success after smashing success. They have a solid product family that both supports other internal components of the family while being usable with external options. They’ve had a run of excellent customer support with their Kickstarter programs, and i hope they continue to run away with success.
Let’s see what the Mystery Box reveals next week, and have a fun week of happy gaming.
Game On, Game Fans
