Every month BHG staff pick out 1-2 of their favorite games to share! We strive to highlight a diverse range of tabletop games!

What would be your top pick this month?

Josh's Pick

Sagrada - Dice Rolling, Set Collection, Grid Coverage, Solo Mode, Family Game

As a skilled artisan, you will use cleverness and careful planning to craft a stained glass window masterpiece in the Sagrada Familia. Players will take turns drafting glass pieces, represented by dice; carefully choosing where to place each one in their window. Windows have unique color and shade requirements, and similar dice may never be adjacent so placing each die is more challenging than the last. Fortunately, you’ll have just the right tools to help you through. Gain prestige by adapting to the preferences of your fickle admirers, and of course, by adding your own artistic flair while completing your glass masterpiece in Sagrada.

Kyndra's Pick

Ransom Notes - Word Spending, Player Judge, Party Game

Jeff's Pick

Qwirkle - Hand Management, Pattern Building, Tile Placement, Abstract Strategy Game

The abstract game of Qwirkle consists of 108 wooden blocks with six different shapes in six different colors. There is no board, players simply use an available flat surface.

Players begin the game with six blocks. The start player places blocks of a single matching attribute (color or shape but not both) on the table. Thereafter, a player adds blocks adjacent to at least one previously played block. The blocks must all be played in a line and match, without duplicates, either the color or shape of the previous block.

Players score one point for each block played plus all blocks adjacent. It is possible for a block to score in more than one direction. If a player completes a line containing all six shapes or colors, an additional six points are scored. The player then refills his hand to six blocks.

The game ends when the draw bag is depleted and one player plays all of his remaining blocks, earning a six point bonus. The player with the high score wins.

—description from boardgamegeek.com

Soby's Pick

Mountain Goats - Dice Rolling, King of the Hill, Animal-Themed, Family Game

In Mountain Goats you work to move your goats to the top of 6 different mountains where they can score points as long as they stay there. You can share spaces with other goats on the way up, but there is only room for one goat at the top of each mountain. If someone else's goat moves to the mountain top, they will kick you off and you'll have to start your trek over.

It's a game about timing. You need to not just get to the top of the mountain, but get there when no one else is in position to knock you off.

It's a game about keeping your eye on your opponents. Maximizing your score, but also making sure you don't let anyone else score too much.

There is the fun chance to knock each other off the mountain. But it doesn't feel too mean because you can only knock back goats that are in a scoring position, and it isn't a huge setback. It is just a normal part of the cycle of the game.

—description from the publisher

Aidan's Pick

Space Team - Real-Time, Science Fiction, Cooperative, Hand Management, Memory, Party Game

Spaceteam is a fast-paced, cooperative shouting card game in which you race to repair your malfunctioning spaceship.

Your goal is to ensure that all ship systems are functioning properly before time runs out. Each player must deal with the various malfunctions in their sector by flipping cards from the malfunction deck in front of them, and fixing the ship's systems. You'll have an arsenal of disorganized space tools spread among all players' hands, but finding the right tools can be harder than you think, especially when your Spaceteam is franticly worrying about malfunctions in their own sector. If that wasn’t hard enough, you’ll also have to deal with complications such as wormholes and asteroid fields, which require the coordination of the entire Spaceteam. There are no turns; everyone plays and shouts at the same time. Victory is achieved if enough malfunctions are corrected to reveal the 6 hidden System-Go Cards before time is up.

Wes' Pick

Splendor - Open Drafting, Set Collection, Economic, Renaissance-Themed, Family Game

Splendor is a game of chip-collecting and card development. Players are merchants of the Renaissance trying to buy gem mines, means of transportation, shops—all in order to acquire the most prestige points. If you're wealthy enough, you might even receive a visit from a noble at some point, which of course will further increase your prestige.

Sophi's Pick

So Clover - Cooperative, Communication Limited, Word Party Game

So Clover! is a cooperative word-association game. Play as a team to get the highest score. Get Keywords and secretly write their common features on your Clover board; these are your Clues. Then work together to try to figure out each player’s Keywords. At the end of the game, add up your score according to how many Keywords you found and write it in the Record of Legends. Try to beat your high score each game!

—description from the publisher

Brendan's Pick

SpellBook - Set Collection, Hand Management, Solo Mode, Fantasy-Themed, Strategy Game

In Spellbook players compete to become the greatest wizard of the Annual Grand Rite!

Players take on the role of wizards, gathering to participate in the Annual Grand Rite. During this competition, they work to fill their Spellbooks with new Spells. The wizards gather around a Vortex (represented by the Pouch), which emits various magical components known as Materia, some of which are placed on the Altar. The wizards use this Materia to learn new Spells or store the power within their Familiars, both of which will earn them points. The contest ends as soon as any wizard’s Spellbook or Familiar is filled. The wizard with the most points wins the competition.

—description by Asmodee, distributor

Jordan's Pick

Qawale - Grid Coverage, Grid Movement, Layering, Pattern Building, Two-Player, Abstract Strategy Game

Lay stones on the path and try to line up four stones in your color. Simultaneously simple and tactical, Qawale is inspired by piles of stones found along paths. On your turn, add a stone on top of any pile and move it. When moving a pile, you must leave a stone on each space you cross. The first player to get 4 of their stones in a row, looking at the board from above, wins the game.

—description by distributor

Matthew's Pick

Apples to Apples - Player Judge, Hand Management, Simultaneous Action Selection, Party Card Game

Apples to Apples consists of two decks of cards: Things and Descriptions. Each round, the active player draws a Description card (which features an adjective like "Hairy") from the deck, then the other players each secretly choose the Thing card in hand that best matches that description and plays it face-down on the table. The active player then reveals these cards and chooses the Thing card that, in his opinion, best matches the Description card, which he awards to whoever played that Thing card. This player becomes the new active player for the next round.