I streamed myself playing the board game Elder Scrolls: Betrayal of the Second Era (ESO: BotSE), made by Chip Theory Games, same people who make the excellent Too Many Bones, and 20 Strong, among others. Here’s the YouTube clip of it, with notes to follow. I originally streamed it to my Twitch.

Now a few notes. First I was playing with an app called Dized, which is used by various board game companies to help people learn to play the game. That is the voice one can hear in the background that isn’t me. Next I’m using my Razer Kiro Pro webcam , attached to this microphone arm that I got with my mic (Fifine XLR/USB Microphone set), though I had to add an adapter to make it fit… This all running to my much outdated computer. Ideally I’d have a proper overhead tripod, ideally with a light on it, something like this, trick is finding one that can be used with a webcam, or action cam, and not just phones, which a lot seem to be focused on, and I stream from my PC for now (though a laptop like a MacBook Neo would be sweet, or better yet a Mac Mini). All of which is sort of besides the point. It was a less than ideal setup, but I think it worked well enough for now.

The main point I’m trying to get to here is things I’d like to add to this game. With Too Many Bones, I got the Premium chips for that game, and I’d LOVE to have the Premium Chips for ESO: BotSE ($40). The Premium chips add a lot to the game feel. The next premium item on my list are the Deluxe Adventure Inventory (4 pack) ($60, sale priced from $80). These help when putting the game away in the middle of a session, or in between sessions, to keep things organized. The next, nice to have premium item, would be the Deluxe Draw Bags ($40). These are the bags one puts the enemy chips in to draw from, and are just a bit nice to have.

I have the first expansion Valenwood ($45 normally) on order from a retailer, where it was less than that, and included shipping. That said, if that falls through, that would be high on my list, but that would have to be gotten through the Gamefound noted below.

Other items direct from Chip Theory Games, but probably after the items that are still on Gamefound below, would be the Blacksmith Pack ($20), where the only really nice bit are the pegs are now premium, and the round tracker is now a nice metal one, instead of plastic, the other part I don’t know if I’d use much, as I sort of like the chip, and there’s a version 2 of this below that I’d probably prefer. The Chef class ($10) adds a class, but not sure when I’d play it in a session. Cheeses of Tamriel ($10), seems like an April Fools product that they make off and on, though sometimes they are actually really cool, like Trover ($30) is a character for Too Many Bones, that if I were wish listing TMB stuff, would be on that list. I don’t know as if I’m obsessed enough to go for the Art Book ($45), I mean I’d take it, but most of the premium stuff, and class items are much preferred.

Now, they recently had a funding campaign for a series of expansions titled The Elder Scrolls: Heroes of Tamriel. I’m likely getting the New Gameplay Bundle. As noted above, if for some reason I can’t get the Valenwood expansion ($45) on sale, this is likely the only spot to get it, but let’s skip that for now. First Premium item wanted is the BotSE Basic Organizer Pack ($18 now, $25+ retail later) which helps to organize all the items… like this is a seriously huge box, and this pack helps split things up to make it a bit easier to organize. Next is Blacksmith Pack 2 ($25 now, $30+ retail later), changes more of the items from the base game from plastic to metal, just like the other blacksmith pack, and between the two blacksmith packs, I’d rather have this one. The Magnetic Bookmarks ($10 now, $12 retail later) are sorta cool too, and cheap enough I might get them myself. Down near the end of the premium things, would be the Alternate Entrance Tiles ($12). I already have a Chip Theory Games dice tray, and don’t have the space for the Battle Mat ($85). The only other premium item left is their Guild Vault ($175 +$20 shipping on top of any other shipping you have), which will hold everything they’ve made, and will make for the game. That said, it is mostly meant for people who have a Kallax, as it fits in one of those squares. Really, for me, the Basic Organizer above is probably the much better fit.