Full animated rules on Murray's website.

A simply stunning game evoking Irish legends and producing ever-changing Celtic knot designs as players build ring forts and link their kingdoms with bridges. Every detail has been thought of with consummate artistry for visual, mental and tactile pleasure, even the packaging. Two games, 8 variants to play: "Sacred Hill" and "High Kings of Tara." Score with kingdoms or with knots as the intricate connections intertwine. We first met this game in its deluxe handcrafted version, with pieces like pottery shards; we moved a few continents to get our own copy. The somewhat smaller plastic edition offered here also has excellent production values, at a popular price. Are we raving? Aye, and rightly so. This highly original game well deserved being named by Games Magazine as the No. 1 strategy game for the year 2006. We've thought of some interesting puzzle designs to explore with it, as well. For two players, ages 9 to adult.$40

Project Kells and Tara are trademarks of
Murray Heasman. Patented and made by
Tailten Games, Ireland.

The ten different 3-color dice carry all the combinations of how three colors can be apportioned to cover a cube. A point-scoring game (any number of players) gives each player 5 rolls to gain the most of one color. Quaint notion:  the player who owns the game gets to play first. We've added tricky color puzzles, including a series in 3-D. The cubes make a good travel game for all ages, easy to pack in a small drawstring pouch. Custom-made white plastic sets have jumbo 1" cubes as shown at left. For any number of players, ages 9 to adult.$25

The cleverness of this game is a tribute to its teenage inventor. The handpainted 4x5 gameboard (it's also the storage bag) is numbered 1 through 20. Roll 5 dice and add their numbers in any combination to produce a total that matches an unoccupied number on the board. Place your pawn on that square. Use your wits to choose the most strategic places. The number on the black die must be used; the others may be used or ignored. Get 3, 4 or 5 pawns in a straight line in any direction to score points. Largest score wins. Solitaire quests included. For 1 or 2 players, ages 8 to adult.$12

So simple yet ingenious an idea: each player has 4 "amazons" (start position shown) who, being powerful ladies, move like chess queens. An amazon moves, then stops and shoots an arrow, that again travels like a chess queen, and where it stops a block is planted that remains as an obstacle for the rest of the game. Wall in your opponent's amazons before yours get trapped. You can also play this game on the elegant Transpose board. This paper grid version has little plastic tokens. For two players, ages 8 to adult.$12

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Out of print, while they last!

Guest appearance —
IMAGO^TM
.... invented by Anatol Holt

The history — Those with long memories may remember from the 1980s a remarkable game called MeM. Out of print and nearly lost, it was brought back in the 1990s by Das Spiel in Germany under the name, Imago, and discontinued in 2002. We have the last few of their deluxe edition with exquisite semi-precious stones — jasper, aventurine, obsidian, snowflake obsidian, tiger eye, quartz, hematite, rose quartz, sodalite, moonstone and agate. If you collect fine games, this one's for you.

We found this game at a gaming convention and fell in love with its clean, distinctive style and logical structure. It's different from standard four-in-a-row games, even 3-D ones, in having only a few specific winning positions. The four plates represent layers in a cube. Players take turns placing chips on the spaces, but each player may be defining the order of the plates a different way, so visualizing all the possibilities makes for an intense bout. Numbered spaces earn bonus points. Clear lucite plates are held aloft by Telly's clever cantilevered design. Advanced game rules included. For 2 players, ages 10 to adult.$25