The EPI-log

Fblthp has gotten himself quite the reputation for ending up places he really shouldn’t. Since his card debut in  Gatecrash the  Magic the Gathering fandom had their hearts stolen for the pitiful one eyed homunculus who always hated crowds. The powers that be at WotC ( Wizards of the Coast ) knew they had a winner with the love and endearment that the one-eyed homunculus bought with him on their art and flavour text of  Totally Lost . Since, he has been featured in the background art of many a  Magic card set on the plane of ravnica and even got his very Legendary Creature card in  War of the Spark .  See if you can spot him hidden in the cards below. FIND FBLTHP! EPIC recently found Fblthp in our store but as per his title…. We lost him again. We’re holding a weekly contest to find our adorable friend. Here’s how to enter: He will be hiding in plain sight or stuck somewhere in plain sight, somewhere within EPIC, you mustn’t touch him, quietly take a pic...

Unless you’ve been living in a different reality, you likely won’t have heard of Free RPG Day. The organisation  Gaming Days only formed in 2019 to provide Game Stores (like your friendly neighbourhood  E.P.I.C. Ipswich ), with gaming opportunities, as it stands they only have one yearly global event, the aforementioned Free RPG Day. 2019 was a great year to launch, but unless you lived in a reality where Local Game Stores (LGS) wasn’t affected by Covid-19 or lockdowns, this event likely never reached your ears unless you were part of the 1st Free RPG Day.   What is Free RPG Day? Free RPG Day is pretty much what it says on the label, its a Day when stores are given content and Role Play Games from some of the largest gaming publishers for FREE to run for their stores.   What Games have been announced this year? Starfinder: Skitter Warp, Pathfinder: A Fistful of Flowers Skitter Warp is a short #Starfinder adventure with 4 pre-generated characters to let you quickly l...

Say what you like about the mind of a child, there is no denying the imagination we had as kids vastly changes as we all come into adulthood. For me it’s something I feel is a loss – I could spend hours in the backyard of my childhood home, swinging sticks like they were swords, lightsabers, magic wands or a wizard’s staff. Nowadays I spend time imagining social interactions in my head, playing out a scenario in my head on drives between places or as I make my morning coffee, comparably less cool than being a freaking wizard! The fact I still can recall a lot of those games of make-believe around my junior school playground speaks volumes about the impact imagination has on a developing brain. This is one of the reasons I am constantly dumbfounded when I DM (Dungeon Master) a game of  Dungeons and Dragons for kids and they do something truly amazing that ruminates in my mind and happily lives there rent-free weeks after it’s. This, dear reader, is the story of how my  Dungeon...

IT IS THE 18th OF JUNE! I REPEAT – IT IS JUNE 18TH! Why is this important? Well, beloved patrons, today is the day where we come together as a community to celebrate the birth of our lord and saviour. No not the big JC, that’s what Christmas is for. Today is store owner, professional bingo caller and community celebrity Trevor’s birthday! Does he know that I am publishing this on a blog to inspire the EPIC Community to wish him a “Bloody Awesome” birthday? No, no he doesn’t. Why should we come together to celebrate the man who loves Pepsi Max nearly as much as his own children? Well here is a slight insight: Trevor and Trish opened this store with one goal in mind, to make it community-focused. If you don’t know why that’s so important you can read more in my previous article . Moreover, as a staff under his employ, I have had the privilege to say that he is one of the most kind-hearted and generous employers any individual could hope to have as a boss. It seems an injustice to associa...

To quote Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons “OH WHAT A NIGHT!” Last night at EPIC we held Tournaments for two of our beloved TCGs (Trading Card Games). Yu-gi-oh! had their first in-store tournament and we kicked off qualifiers for the Aus Magic League Store Showcase, an event for the Modern format of Magic the Gathering.   Aus Magic League The Aus Magic League’s Finals are open to everyone, however, the most competitive from each store, will battle head to head to win a separate trophy and prize from those who attend and compete in the finals. Who is representing EPIC in our store showcase? I couldn’t tell you yet, you will have to wait til next week to see as our top eight players in-store battle their way to Store Champion! Here are our match pairings for next week cut to top 8: Yu-Gi-Oh! Tournament On the Yu-Gi-Oh! frontier, we had a whole lot of gameplay throughout the night, a solid 3 round tournament. Check out some of the awesome board states of our Duelists presented! Your...

Flesh and Blood may be the most recent in trading card games, having only debuted in New Zealand in 2019, but that does not mean it isn’t going to be sticking around! Compared to other Trading Card Games (TCGs) where players summon monsters to fight each other, in Flesh and Blood  players take on the roles of heroes already powerful and ready to fight each other.  In my experience with the game, your stories of how games went sound amazing but being a player, it is taxing and brutal – constantly walking on eggshells to outwit and gain an upper hand. Differing from other TCGs your deck will vary depending on the hero you choose to build your deck around. Each hero is unique with a bunch of traits that affect your game. Your health, hand size, and the classes your deck needs to focus on rely on your hero.  From here the game is Equipping your hero and having them don armour (all of which affect gameplay) and then discarding cards and playing cards to joust with your oppone...

EPIC is no stranger to tabletop wargames, with multiple ‘Warhammer’ games both ‘40,000’ and ‘Age of Sigma’, and the recent introduction to regular games of ‘Star Wars Legion’, it was inevitable that the community is constantly expanding and dare I say thriving. So much in fact that EPIC is now getting calls and enquiries regarding running games of Fantasy Battles’ ‘The Ninth Age’ as one of the most requested games we start to facilitate and stock. If you’ve not heard of it, you’re not alone, whilst many veteran tabletop wargamers have either heard or played it, newer gamers may not have and surprisingly the staff at EPIC hadn’t until we received enquires. What exactly is ‘The Ninth Age’ and why does it have staff (naming myself) excited to potentially start running games of it within our store? Before I delve any further, I will advise you that I have never played a game and am in no way an expert on Ninth Age, that being said, I have done some research and what I’ve read has excited m...

When I first started my job here there was one looming question I had for the owners; “Why are you wanting to start a games store if you have never worked in one before, nor had you ever been involved with one before?”. Their answer was all I needed to hear to sign-up immediately – “We wanted a place for our kids and their friends to hang out and play board games.” EPIC Ipswich has been centred around the idea of community and a safe place of inclusivity since day one. It’s something I have kept close to my heart every day since working here. It begs the question, why is it so crucial that Game Stores listen and grow with their community? I’m prefacing this with some of my own observations as well as thoughts from other gamers I play with.    Mistakes of game Stores Unfortunately, too many game stores open up without thinking about their client base. Many open with the owner’s own game preferences in mind and try to build a community of like-minded individuals. Multiple proble...

Flesh and Blood and One Piece Trading Card Games are officially their way to EPIC! Interested in learning some new and exciting card games? Whilst Flesh and Blood has been out for a while the community is rapidly growing and due to demand (and the fact we’re unable to keep any whole boxes from selling in-store), we’re now starting regular games at EPIC on Wednesdays. New to the game? No worries, we sell premade decks and have enthusiasts ready to grow the game even more! Speaking of learning new trading card games – One Piece has an official trading card game that is coming to EPIC. The official release isn’t until December, however, we at EPIC can’t wait that long! We signed up for the Super-release. Sign-up is required and all participants get a starter deck. Flesh and Blood start games at EPIC on Wednesday 22nd of June. One Piece Super-release is Friday the 30th of September. Registration is required. More details will come closer to the release, you can bet we will keep you updated...

Take cover! The aesthetics are attacking! We never stop changing the shop’s layout, for those who recall the early days of EPIC when we opened in the eye of the storm that was Covid-19 lockdowns, this place was less enticing to look at. The place consisted of a lonely glass cabinet, a whole lot of tables and chairs and a much less impressive wall of board games. Today we have isles of stock you can walk through, a noteworthy wall of easily accessible games to play in-store, a new counter set up for Magic the Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokemon! Not everyone can recall but we originally designated the different zones of EPIC by their coloured floor tiles – something that staff will still frequently end up doing when delivering your hot meals and drinks to your table. Why am I mentioning the different zones? Well, the orange zone (with the large game tables near the back of the store) is getting another makeover!  As an excited and enthusiastic fanatic of EPIC’s community, I couldn’t he...

Dungeons and Dragons (DnD) has flown into the mainstream with its 5th edition’s publication and the now heavily entwined hit Netflix series of Stranger Things . There is no denying that it’s more accessible than ever with players and aspiring players of all ages and backgrounds yearning to roll polyhedral dice and better understand the game. It begs the question – How does DnD differ from other board games? Is it child friendly and are there any benefits to playing? Whether you’re a  curious parent or a young enthusiast that needs that little bit of a helping hand persuading your parents to let you start dice rolling, here is an account from someone who has played many games and seen (and experienced) many of the benefits themselves.   What is Dungeons and Dragons? DnD at its core is a game about storytelling, there are no winners or losers in this game. Players work together as a team to survive and save the day, exploring the world together. The main goal if there is one in...

“Why not just call it a launch party?” Because it’s so much bigger than your standard launch party! MEGA-Launch Party may sound like an exaggeration, however, with $3000 of giveaways throughout the night, I for one am inclined to call it just that – mega. Save the date for EPIC Ipswich’s MEGA-Launch of Double Masters 2022. This one-off event is sure to be the largest Magic Launch Party that Ipswich has ever seen. The almighty and generous owners (who may or may not be looking over my shoulder as I type this) are opening AN ENTIRE CASE of Double Masters 2022 that they are just giving away. Everyone on the night will get booster packs split among them after the last game. Still not incentivized? Then you must want me to mention something along the lines of “ If you pay for entry before July 8th, then you’re entered into the draw for a FREE DRAFT BOX of Double Masters 2022″ …. oh did I forget to mention that’s a thing? (and yes we can layby those payments). That’s not all. If you have a F...

“We should do draft more often!”  – the most commonly spoken phrase of the night. Magic the Gathering’s newest set release ‘Commander Legends Battle for Baldur’s Gate’ had a lot to offer: Returning mechanics from ‘Adventures in the Forgotten Realms’ including dice rolling and dungeons A new partner like mechanic with the introductions to ‘Background’ enchantments A new designation (similar to the ‘Monarch’ from previous sets) with ‘The Initiative’ The return of mechanics with Adventure, Goad and Myriad A load of new Legendary Creatures for Commanders There was still a twist to this set that stole the show and got everyone more excited to crack their packs. Battle for Baldur’s Gate was not your typical limited sealed prerelease, instead, it focused on participants drafting their prerelease kits with each other. For many patrons at EPIC Ipswich, this was their first time ever experiencing a draft and the feedback was incredible! Players pulled their packs, opened them, drew two cards...