illitech

The saving of souls. Game forces cooperation--no one wins if any of the players dies.

This requires one of two things-->money to purchase ship miniatures -OR- time, which can be used to xerox/create ship silhouettes. For a classroom budget, silhouettes are probably more efficient, and students could even be assigned creating the silhouettes, researching ships, etc. before playing. For an added twist, anyone who has a ship sunk has to have their assignment torn up! This recreates hesitation at throwing ships in to battle willy-nilly and creates a very realistic hesitation.

This is a role-playing game and free-form. It explores the horror mythos of H.P. Lovecraft which inspired Stephen King and other writers. References to Cthulhu are quite frequent, including Arkham Asylum in the Batman cartoon series.

Hard to bring a game to class with the name "Cheapass" on it. If used, whiteout the references and then play. Low quality components won't stand up to prolonged use.

Good game, but needs multiple decks. It is possible to have multiple games going on, but at $40/game, that can get pricey for a larger class. The game is a card came. The art is accurate and attractive. Cheap copies are available on ebay.

One player is the German guard, the others are POWs trying to escape. Colditz was the escape-proof castle and was the subject for a PBS NOVA special as well. There is a novel based on the book, along with memoirs.

This would be very good to have in a 5-6 grade class level for rainy days and indoor recess. You have to move pieces to get them in the same order as the pieces in the board’s center, except both players play cards to switch pieces in order, back and forth AND the order in the center!

Simulates the creation of modern civilizations. It comes with an introductory scenario that, while not balanced really, does a good job of showing the key issues in developing an empire in the ancient world. It is also great fun.

Variable dice can be used to determine probability. Or can be used for counting—results can range from 1-30.

Object is to wipe everyone out. It is VERY possible that everyone dies and no one wins the game. It IS possible to win the game without using nuclear weapons. There are expansions, but not necessary or helpful in a classroom. It’s advantage is the game plays fast.