Civilization at Last!

We love board games in our family. Everything from ‘Downton Abbey Clue’ to ‘Twilight Imperium’. Many of our games can get pretty complicated. (did I mention ‘Twilight Imperium’?) So I have come to really appreciate a well-designed and executed game organizer insert. Sure, they make the game look nicer. Better still, they can make setting up and putting the game away SO much easier!

Civilization: the Board Game

So I was thrilled when my wife gave me Sid Meier’s Civilization: A New Dawn for my birthday last year. (She wisely included the neoprene game matt to go with it.) That was soon followed by the Terra Incognita expansion from my daughter and son-in-law shortly afterward. This game became an instant favorite at my home. I love most Fantasy Flight (Asmodee) games but this one was special. Fast rules, easy to teach and intriguing game play. I knew from the first that I need to find an insert to get this organized!

I haunted my usual places online — Br0ken Token or Meeple Realty — and couldn’t find anything. Somewhat desperate, I followed unfamiliar paths to an Etsy shop called GeekyGameyGadgets. There, at last, was my hoped for insert!

Need a Little Organization!

My order arrived quickly on my doorstep. I opened the box and discovered — lots of packing. When the packing was removed I was confronted with this initially daunting sight:

Oh … and no instructions.

Mildly panicked, I emailed the owner … only to discover that he had ALREADY sent me the instructions. They were included in a previous email as a PDF attachment which I had forgotten I had already received. Having the instructions before you get such a ‘do-it-yourself’ kit is actually very helpful. You can review the build plan before the parts arrive.

I was so excited that I set aside my other projects and set up to tackle this one at once. I prepared my area well (ruining the kitchen table is a punishable offense). Not only did I lay down a proper impermeable covering but a layer of wax paper as well. Working with wood glue demands a wax paper surface. The glue does not stick to it even when dry. Very helpful when my rush gets sloppy.

I first separated out all the pieces into each component assembly. Not only did this organize my work but it let me know all the pieces were in the box. Then I progressed through each assembly in turn. I was so excited that I finished the entire project in a day.

Civilized Game

I was wondering how GeekyGameyGagets would approach this insert. A very basic problem is that five of the game components will ONLY fit in the box diagonally. This is not conducive to building little boxes to fit into the box.

GeekyGameyGadgets design not only managed to fit EVERYTHING into the original box but with room to spare! If you have 3D printed additional components for trade boxes, Wonders or Barbarians — this insert will accommodate them all.

Each of the five players in the expanded game will also have their own trays holding each player’s complete components. Just hand each player their tray and you’ll soon be ready to play.

And absolutely everything from the base game to including the expansion fits beautifully in the original box. No uplift.

Now I’m especially looking forward to our next game so I can show off this insert — and get to playing almost at once. Thank you, GeekyGameyGadgets! You’ve made this old gamer very happy.