'No matter how eloquently a dog may bark, he cannot tell you that his parents were poor but honest.' Only words can do that. Words are magic. Words are fun. Join Gyles Brandreth - wit and word-meister, Just A Minute regular, One Show reporter, denizen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner, founder of the National Scrabble Championships, patron of The Queen's English Society, QI, Room 101, Have I Got News For You and Pointless survivor - on an uproarious and unexpected magic carpet ride around the awesome world of words and wordplay. Puns, palindromes, pangrams, Malaprops, euphemisms, mnemonics, acronyms, anagrams, alphabeticals, Tweets, verbiage, verbarrhea - if you can name it, you should find it here, along with the longest, shortest, wittiest, wildest, oldest, latest, oddest, most interesting and most memorable words in the English language - the richest, most remarkable language ever known.

Whether you're a nameless Dark Lord looking to conquer the known world, a Champion of Light holding out against the forces of evil or a Northern barbarian facing claimants to a stolen throne, Dragon Rampant allows you to bring those battles to the tabletop. Developed from the popular Lion Rampant system, Dragon Rampant is a standalone wargame that recreates the great battles of Fantasy fiction. Scenarios, army lists, and full rules for magic and monsters give players the opportunity to command unruly orc warbands, raise armies of the undead, campaign across an antediluvian world as the warchief of a barbarian tribe, or exploit the power of mighty creatures and extraordinary sorcery. An army usually consists of 6-8 units comprised of 6-12 individually based figures. These small units move and fight independently, assuming that they follow your orders rather than just doing their own thing. Command and control is just as important on the battlefield as the power of a troll chieftain or the magic of an archmage.

Choosing the subject wasn't easy at all, since the topic of defense requires a comprehensive analysis from different angles in order to give the chess player under pressure useful guidelines during a game. Of course, the technical part is a matter of finding challenging, new and interesting positions. I was struggling with describing the emotions that we have during the game, how they influence our decision-making process and what we can do about that. Hence, I tried the best I could to define the issues the defender encounters during a stressful game. Finally I am confidently sharing with you the lessons that I learned from sport psychologists and literature, and my experience as a player over 30 years. GM Jan Werle November 2021

The Aesir are dead, and the Vanir, now uncontested in their divinity, come to claim what is left of the Nine Realms. The War Clans must oppose, or align with, these new foes.

Ragnarok: The Vanir features new Godsparks that War Clans may harness to combat the marauding Vanir, as well as new scenarios, monsters, and options to further develop players' campaigns.

No opening in recent times has captured the imagination of the chess public more than the Sicilian Sveshnikov. Initially popularized in the 1970s, the Sveshnikov has exploded onto the chess scene at the highest levels and is now regarded by many experts as one of Black's most promising answers to 1 e4. One of its major attractions is that more often than not the opening leads to incredibly sharp and complex play. In such situations both sides must play with extreme accuracy just to stay on the board as a single slip may lead to disaster! This uncompromising and modern approach with the black pieces has found favour with many of today's leading Grandmasters, including Peter Leko and World Champion Vladimir Kramnik, while Garry Kasparov also began playing it towards the end of his career.
This book is a further addition to Everyman's best-selling "Starting Out" series, which has been acclaimed for its original approach to tackling chess openings. International Master John Cox revisits the fundamentals of the Sveshnikov, elaborating on the crucial early moves and ideas for both sides in a way that is often neglected in other texts. The reader is helped throughout with a plethora of notes, tips and warnings highlighting the vital characteristics of the Sicilian Sveshnikov and of opening play in general. "Starting Out: Sicilian Sveshnikov" is a perfect guide for improving players and those new to this opening.
*Learn how to play an ambitious opening
*Includes coverage of the fashionable Anti-Sveshnikov
*Written by an renowned opening expert

Chess is a popular and fascinating game, it's good for the mind, and satisfying to play with others, in clubs, or alone, in travel, against a computer, or an app. This new book will take you quickly through the movement of the pieces to good opening strategies, middle game techniques, and how to either finish off or defend against your opponent.

A chess match seems as solitary an endeavor as there is in sports: two minds, on their own, in fierce opposition. In contrast, Gary Alan Fine argues that chess is a social duet: two players in silent dialogue who always take each other into account in their play. Surrounding that one-on-one contest is a community life that can be nearly as dramatic and intense as the across-the-board confrontation. Fine has spent years immersed in the communities of amateur and professional chess players, and with Players and Pawns he takes readers deep inside them, revealing a complex, brilliant, feisty world of commitment and conflict. Within their community, chess players find both support and challenges, all amid a shared interest in and love of the long-standing traditions of the game, traditions that help chess players build a communal identity. Full of idiosyncratic characters and dramatic gameplay, Players and Pawns is a celebration of the fascinating world of serious chess.

The genius and artistry behind Superbrothers and the making of an indie video game, from inception to its highly anticipated launch. Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery was released in 2011 at the forefront of an exciting era of "indie games" - with the aesthetic of punk rock and the edge of modernist fiction, indie games pushed gaming into the realm of the avant-garde. Superbrothers (Craig D. Adams) was hailed as a visionary in the video game world. Now, his long-awaited follow-up, JETT: The Far Shore, has been released for Sony PlayStation and Epic Games Store. In the decade from inception to launch, Adams brought author Adam Hammond along for the ride, allowing unprecedented insight into the complicated genesis of Jett. The Far Shore offers a portrait of the enigmatic Adams and his team, the genius and artistry, the successes and setbacks, that went into building the world of JETT, in which you're tasked with scouting a new home for a humanoid people after they've decimated their planet. To provide context, Hammond recounts the history of indie games and how their trajectory has followed that of independent art and literature. A riveting insider's look at one of our most popular art forms.

Helps chess-players achieve a more holistic view of the openings

The absurdly adorable art from the New York Times bestselling picture book Stuck turns a game of Go Fish into irresistible fun for kids and parents alike!

Do you have any kites? Do you have any Floyds? Any curious whales?

This deck of oversized, kid-friendly cards is a surefire way to induce family fun, especially for fans of award-winning children's book author and illustrator Oliver Jeffers. A hefty cardstock box holds this deck of 52 playing cards (plus two instruction cards)--each of which is sized perfectly for little hands at 3-1/2" x 5" apiece. With a flip-top lid and Velcro closure, the package is easily portable and tear-openable for any and every game-playing moment. In addition to playing Go Fish, players will also get the instructions for two bonus games: Concentration (a memory game) and Snap (a kid-friendly card game that's similar to Slapjack).

From the author of The Monsters Know What They're Doing comes a follow-up strategy guide with MOAR! monster tactics for Dungeon Masters playing fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. Keith Ammann's first book based on his popular blog, The Monsters Know What They're Doing, unpacks strategies, tactics, and motivations for creatures found in the Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual. Now, in MOAR! Monsters Know What They're Doing, he analyzes the likely combat behaviors of more than 100 new enemies found in Volo's Guide to Monsters and Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes. Your campaign will never be the same!

'The most useful publication in the past twelve months. I unhesitatingly award my accolade to BRIDGE ODDS FOR PRACTICAL PLAYERS because every player should know the material it contains. This cannot be found elsewhere' THE TIMES Backing outsiders has ruined many a punter at the bridge table as well as at the race track. Few players have any idea of how to harness the odds to solve problems that constantly recur. Which is the best line of play? Is it better to finesse or play for the drop? Will the diamonds break? Can the chances be combined? What are the exact odds? Here is a simple guide to solving the problems that arise in assessing the odds in play at bridge. Keeping theory to a minimum, the authors show by means of many practical examples how to calculate the odds and how to come up with the right answer at the bridge table. Anyone who learns to apply the principles set out in this book need never again be accused of playing against the odds.

The Scandinavian (also known as the Centre Counter Defence) occurs when Black meets White's 1 e4 with 1 ... d5, immediately countering in the centre. White invariably continues with 2 exd5 when Black can choose between two systems, both of which are covered in this book. Firstly 2 ... Qxd5, which regains the pawn immediately but exposes the black queen early on - a feature that complicates the play for both players. Secondly 2 ... Nf6, which invites White to risk attempting to hold onto the d5-pawn. If White goes down this path then a complex tactical struggle can easily develop. ----- First Steps is a new opening series and is ideal for improving players who want simple and straightforward explanations. First Steps emphasizes: ----- the basic principles --- the basic strategies --- the key tricks and traps ----- First Steps books are based around carefully selected instructive games which demonstrate exactly what both sides are trying to achieve. There is enough theory to enable the improving player to get to grips with the opening without feeling overwhelmed. If you want to take up a new opening, First Steps is the ideal place to start.

Learn from the professionals: how to beat the odds at poker with winning strategies, skills and tactics. This is a complete introduction to the basic elements of the game, including the rules, how to play a good hand, betting structures, calculating odds, card reading, the art of bluffing, and tips for success for players at all levels. It explores the history and culture of the game, including poker legends, the traditions of the American Wild West, memorable games and notable players around the world. It includes draw poker, five-card stud and seven-card stud, Texas Hold 'em and Omaha, as well as online poker, the casino experience, cash games and tournaments. Poker is a game of skill, bluff, deception and sometimes a little luck. This book details the house rules, sequence of play, betting terms, structure and showdown, as well as card reading, body language and the art of bluffing. For more advanced players, the betting structures are outlined, as are the subtle differences between cash games versus tournaments. The casino experience is explored, along with the regulations and conventions in different parts of the globe.This comprehensive, practical book is suitable for beginners and advanced players alike, and will teach all the tips, tricks and tactics that make poker one of the world's most thrilling games.

Celebrate your campaigns and conquests with these 75 fun, RPG-inspired cocktail recipes your whole gaming group will love! Make your next gaming adventure even more fun with this collection of 75 RPG-inspired cocktails! Featuring fantasy-themed libations from the boozy Dragon the Beach and a Potion of Strength to a sneaky Stealth Check shot and a Never Split the Party Punch, you'll keep spirits high and your friends happy during your next dungeon-crawling tabletop adventure. Complete with easy-to-follow, accessible instructions, Dungeonmeister also includes funny jokes and hilarious asides that will take your campaign (or your next gathering) to the next level!

Spend more study time on whats really decisive in your games! The average chess player spends too much time on studying opening theory. In his day, World Chess Champion Emanuel Lasker argued that improving amateurs should spend about 5% of their study time on openings. These days club players are probably closer to 80%, often focusing on opening lines that are popular among grandmasters. Club players shouldnt slavishly copy the choices of grandmasters. GMs need to squeeze every drop of advantage from the opening and therefore play highly complex lines that require large amounts of memorization. The main objective for club players should be to emerge from the opening with a reasonable position, from which you can simply play chess and pit your own tactical and positional understanding against that of your opponent. Gerard Welling and Steve Giddins recommend the Old Indian-Hanham Philidor set-up as a basis for both Black and White. They provide ideas and strategies that can be learned in the shortest possible time, require the bare minimum of maintenance and updating, and lead to rock-solid positions that you will know how to handle. By adopting a similar set-up for both colours, with similar plans and techniques, you will further reduce study time. Side-stepping Mainline Theory will help you to focus on what is really decisive in the vast majority of non-grandmaster games: tactics, positional understanding and endgame technique. Gerard Welling is an International Master and an experienced chess trainer from the Netherlands. He has contributed to NIC Yearbook and Kaissiber, the freethinker's magazine on non-mainline chess openings. Steve Giddins is a FIDE Master from England, and a highly experienced chess writer and journalist. He compiled and edited The New In Chess Book of Chess Improvement, the bestselling anthology of master classes from New In Chess magazine.

Over a quarter of a century ago, the first edition of this book (published in East Germany in 1981) was a huge best seller. Yet unfortunately it was never reprinted and it soon became a scarce collector's item. The reason: one of its co-authors, the chess trainer Gerhard Schmidt, left for the West. He thus became persona non grata in East Germany and the book was banned there. Despite the book's excellent qualities, which were acclaimed in chess circles, from then on its success could only be an underground one. However, the subject of the book is timeless and transcends frontiers, and so at last we have a new edition, fully revised by the original authors themselves to include modern games by world-class players such as Garry Kasparov, Vishy Anand, Vladimir Kramnik and Judit Polgar. The book explains, clearly, systematically and comprehensively, the strategy and tactics associated with the open file: how files are opened, blocked, occupied and exploited as roads along which to invade the enemy position. A brief introduction lays the theoretical foundations and is followed by carefully selected and organised material in the form of illustrative games, in all of which the open file is the dominant or deciding factor. In each game there is a pause at a key position where a clear verbal assessment is given; these assessments alone are of huge instructional value, since they do nothing less than teach the reader how strong chessplayers think: what to look for, how to assess, how to plan. The book benefits not only from Gerhard Schmidt's experience as a trainer but also from the huge knowledge and skill gained by Grandmaster Wolfgang Uhlmann during his long and successful career in top-class chess, which at one point brought him close to the world title, and made him indisputably one of Germany's greatest ever chessplayers.

Play Cards and Learn to Identify Wildflowers in the Northeastern United States! Anyone who enjoys nature, plants, and gardening will love these cards for playing your favorite games or to use as flash cards. Inspired by Jaret C. Daniels and the popular Wildflower Identification Guides, this gorgeous deck of playing cards features professional photographs of 54 of the most notable wildflower species in the Northeastern states of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont, as well as Washington, DC. Each card depicts full-color photographs of such wildflowers as the Columbine, Common Blue Violet, Painted Trillium, and more--so you can begin to learn what 54 different species look like. Card Features 54 of the most notable wildflower species Beautiful photograph on every card Ideal for card games or as flash cards Play games like blackjack, poker, rummy, and solitaire while learning more about wildflowers. Get Wildflowers of the Northeast Playing Cards for yourself, and you can also give this deck of cards as a fun and thoughtful gift.

In 1939, Germany shattered the peace of Europe with a lightning-fast strike against Poland. The next year, it captured Denmark and Norway, before launching its famous Blitzkrieg against France, Belgium and The Netherlands. In less than two years of fighting, Nazi Germany became the master of mainland Europe. This new Theatre Book for Bolt Action allows players to command armies of German tanks driving across the continent or to lead the desperate defense of the outgunned Allied armies. New scenarios, special rules and units give players everything they need to recreate the devastating battles and campaigns of the early war in Europe, including the fall of Poland, the breaking of the Maginot Line and the dramatic retreat to Dunkirk.

Something in the multiverse has shattered, and now the universe is bleeding. Throughout Mega-City One there are reports of invaders wreaking havoc. Celtic barbarians in Ezquerra Block. Russian nobles in Apetown. And rumours of fragments of other universes, waiting to be claimed. Head to the streets of Mega-City One with Judge Dredd: Helter Skelter, a new miniatures board game combining Martin Wallace's critically-acclaimed Wildlands rules with the worlds of 2000 AD. Four unique factions bring iconic characters from Slaine, Nikolai Dante, and Strontium Dog crashing into Mega-City One, all intent on finding the shattered fragments of their own universe and crushing anyone who gets in their way. Things are going to get rough, but one thing is certain. No matter what universe you are from, you still have to answer to the Law! Players: 2-4 Ages: 14+ Playing Time: 30-60 minutes Contents: 20 unique ink-washed miniatures, 188 cards, double-sided playing board, counters and tokens