I Christen this Site Cardboard Mountain

I’ve thought a long time about starting this site: the first strategy article I’ve ever written was nearly 15 years ago, when I was in middle school. Since then, I’ve taken so many notes, done so much math, tinkered with so many strategies in so many games, but I’ve never shared any of it. I’ve got so much from the community, and I’d love to give something back.

So here I am, brand new WordPress blog in hand, with over 10k words published on the first day, with another 30k written, mostly articles in progress but a lot already on a publishing calendar. I’m currently scheduled to publish twice a week, but I suspect that once I hit around 15 articles, I’ll slow down to once a week.

These strategy guides can take a seriously long time to write, so expecting a regular schedule might be unrealistic. The 7 Wonders Strategy Guide took me dozens of hours to research, test, write and rewrite, if you exclude the years I spent playing the game. I have another article in the works about Hive (I’m aiming for something foundational for new players, but in depth and brief enough to be digestible), which I suspect will take me twice as long to complete.

Is it silly to start a new board gaming website in 2020, when the space is absolutely saturated with quality content? I’d like to think I bring a new perspective, and a new type of content that other people can’t, or won’t bring. I want to write about strategy in a way that speaks to already advanced players, or that teaches novices everything they need to know to participate in that games community. I want my reviews to be aware of the balance issues a game has by the time I review them.

But when it comes to writing about strategy, it’s not quite so easy. You can’t fake knowing a game’s strategy. Fortunately for me, I pick up strategy rather quickly, I love reading other’s strategy guides and posts, and I am quite practiced at technical writing.

If this premise excites you, I’m asking for support in three ways. First, I have a discord channel, which as of this launch, is entirely empty. If you liked anything you’ve read on this site, I’d love for you to join. I love the idea of a community collaborating/consulting on the best gaming related nonfiction out there, that I could bring people together with my own writing. I love that Discord is two way communication, and the types of communities it can foster.

Secondly, I have an email list. If you’re not into Discord, this is for you.

Lastly, if you have a friend who might like what I’m writing about here, please feel free to share it with them.

Thanks.