Every tabletop game starts somewhere. Once the box is opened, the pieces distributed, and the board set up, all that’s left is figuring out who goes first.
There are a few traditional ways to sort this out. Sometimes, the oldest person at the table goes first, showing the younger players how to proceed. Sometimes, the youngest player goes first, getting a chance to dive right in. Sometimes, a simple roll of the dice or a few rounds of rock-paper-scissors determines who goes first.
But there are plenty of board games that have their own idea of how to start.
So please join me on a deep dive into the many, many, MANY ways you can choose who goes first in a board game!
Birthdays are a frequent topic when it comes to choosing the first player.
It can be whose birthday is closest to a given date, like in Duck Dealer, where the player born closest to November 24, 1967 begins, or in Agatha Christie: Death on the Cards, where the player whose birthday is closest to Agatha Christie’s begins.
Closest to The Year of the Rat (Fruits Basket: Friends of the Zodiac), February 12th (Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot), or the next equinox (Equinox) all come to mind. In The Stars Are Right, it’s the player whose birthday is next, while in the card game Quixx, it’s the player whose birthday is furthest from the day you play.
Many games determine who goes first by physical characteristics.
In Takenoko, it’s the tallest player. In Guillotine, the player with the longest neck. In Titus Tentacle, the longest arms. In Small World, the person whose ears are most pointed. In Pyramix, the person with the most triangular nose.
The longest hair, the largest shoes, the hairiest, the smallest, the huskiest voice… these are all on the table.
In the cat-themed Hot Tin Roof, it’s the player with the longest whiskers. And if there’s a tie, it’s the person whose breath smells the most like fish. (That one might cause a fight, honestly.)
Other games rely on something more conditional, something that could change from game session to game session.
Who is the hungriest or thirstiest, when the game’s gimmick centers around food. In Roll to the South Pole, it’s whomever has the coldest nose. In Snowblind: Race for the Pole, it’s the player with the coldest hands begins. In the Rick and Morty: The Ricks Must Be Crazy Multiverse Game, the player with the lowest cellphone battery begins.
Or it’s based on the last time you did something related to the game.
Please make sure your sheep consent to caressing before you proceed…
In Sheepland, it’s the player who most recently caressed a sheep. Yes, they use the word “caress” specifically. In Steam Works, it’s the player who most recently built something.
In The Lady and the Tiger, it’s the person who last opened a door. In Golems, it’s the last player who built a snowman. In Flip City, it’s the last player to have flipped a table. (So the person who most recently played Monopoly, I’d bet.)
Who last went hiking, or helped someone, or last petted an animal. Who last visited a museum, watered a plant, read a book, fed a duck, dug a hole, made tea, drank tea, rode a train. Who most recently experienced deja vu, who woke up earliest, who woke up latest. (Each one of these examples showed up multiple times in my research!)
A lot of them involve choices or actions, but some games use a starting criteria that’s out of your control.
In ALIEN: Fate of the Nostromo, it’s the player who most recently had a cat hiss at them. In Let’s Make a Bus Route, it’s the player who recently spent the longest time as a bus passenger.
Were you the person who most recently saw a firefly (Smile), or a full moon (Catch the Moon), or a shooting star (Astra)? Maybe you were the person most recently burnt by the Sun (Solar Storm).
In Copper Country, the player with the oldest penny begins. In Good Cop Bad Cop, the player who was most recently shot (!) begins. (Apparently, it can be in a game or real life.)
A lot of board games have location-specific starting hooks. Often it’s which player has been to the game’s setting most recently.
(At least in Merkator, if you haven’t been to Hamburg, it can instead be the player who most recently ate a hamburger.)
This is especially common with water-based settings. Who lives closest to water (Le Havre), who was most recently on an island (Forbidden Island), or has been deepest in the sea (Nautilus). Builders of R’lyeh gets very specific about this, asking for the player who has been the closest to 47°9′S 126°43′W / 47.15°S 126.717°W in the southern Pacific Ocean.
In Iceberg, it’s the player who most recently was at the South Pole is the start player. (If none was there, the player who got closest starts.) Contrary to Iceberg, in Nanuk, the starting player in this game is whoever has been the furthest north!
Were you the last person to stand on a balcony (Council of Verona) or the last person to travel to a place with less than 100 inhabitants (Boonlake)? That one sounds exotic, until you remember traveling to your home, which hopefully has fewer than 100 inhabitants.
In a nice reversal of this trope, the game Coney Island states that the player who has NOT been to an amusement park for the longest period of time begins.
As you can plainly see, fellow tabletopper, these starting criteria can get very specific. How specific? Well, check out some of these Who Starts prompts:
The Voting Game: The player who most recently called their mother begins.
Tawantinsuyu: The Inca Empire: The last player to harvest a vegetable begins.
Valentine’s Day: The last player to have been pricked by a thorn begins.
Mech A Dream: The player who has most recently dreamt of robots begins.
Wakanda: The player who last uttered a war cry begins.
These last two deserve their own spotlight for different reasons.
In Tales & Games: The Pied Piper, the player who last saw rats in a bathtub begins. We’ve all been there, amirite?
In Cascadia, the player who most recently saw a bear, elk, salmon, hawk or fox begins. (I love how many options Cascadia allows for!)
Of course, hardcore board game fans know the rules of their favorite games. With some games and their Who Starts rules, this means a devious host might be able to rig who goes first in their favor.
In Railroad Dice, the player who owns the most railroad games begins. Unless you’re in a model train club, odds are the same person will start every time here.
Sucking Vacuum is among the games where the player who owns the game begins. I can see this being a groanworthy moment when trying to decide what game to play, and someone keeps pushing for the game where THEY get to start, heh.
A little bit of foreknowledge comes in handy with these games as well:
Antics!: The player who has carried the heaviest item today (stomachs do not count) begins.
Dragon Farkle: The player who brought the most snacks begins.
Legacy: Gears of Time: The player whose watch is currently set the furthest back in time begins.
Step to it: The player with the most colorful socks begins.
TacTile: The player with the most colors on their shirt begins.
Welcome to Sysifus Corp: The player with the lowest amount of unread emails begins.
Plague Inc.: The player who washed their hands most recently begins.
The Nacho Incident: The player who has the most interesting thing in their pocket begins.
At least with Dragon Farkle‘s rules, you’re guaranteed snacks!
I’d originally intended for this to be a one-post topic, but the field was so overloaded with noteworthy examples that I’ll be continuing this topic both tomorrow AND Thursday, so be sure to come back for more board game-specific fun later this week!
Do you have any favorite Who Starts rules for board games? Let us know in the comments section below! We’d love to hear from you.
Sadly, the start of 2026 has been a rough one for the games industry, as we lost two influential voices in the span of a few days.
Please join me as I take a few moments to honor the lives and contributions of Tim Kask and Steve Dee.
On December 30th, we said goodbye to Tim Kask.
When you think of the early days of Dungeons & Dragons, there are names like Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson that many roleplaying fans probably know. But Tim Kask’s name belongs in the same conversation as those renowned voices.
Tim was hired as an editor for Tactical Studies Rules (aka TSR, the founding company of D&D) by Gygax himself, making him the first full-time employee of the company. He was already a fan of Gygax’s game Chainmail and was one of the playtesters of “The Fantasy Game” (the game that would eventually become Dungeons & Dragons).
And his fingerprints are all over the world’s most famous roleplaying game.
He edited and contributed to Blackmoor, one of the earliest supplemental books for D&D, adding rules, playable classes, and the first published adventure, The Temple of the Frog. Additional supplements like Swords & Spells, Eldritch Wizardry, and Gods, Demigods, and Heroes were also shepherded by Kask’s capable hands.
The first thirty or so issues of Dragon Magazine — formerly The Strategic Review, and then The Dragon, before settling on the name known by most fans — were part of Kask’s ongoing projects for the company as well. It remained one of the premiere D&D-focused magazines for years, and copies of Dragon Magazine are still treasured in RPG collections to this day.
Tim hired influential voices like Kim Mohan, and granted a license to Jennell Jaquays to publish her own D&D fanzine The Dungeoneer, adding new adventures for players to enjoy. (Jacquays would soon revolutionize the concept of the dungeon crawl with her multi-path dynamic dungeons, replacing the linear corridors and encounters that had defined the concept until that point.)
He was one of the first people to call the hobby “role-playing.” Magic Missile automatically hits its target because of Kask. And the Sword of Kas, one of the most legendary weapons in all of D&D, is named after him.
Kask resigned from the company in 1980, displeased with the direction of the game, but he continued to contribute to the games industry by starting magazines, making appearances at Gen Con, writing for The Crusader and Gygax Magazine, and founding game company Eldritch Enterprises. His YouTube channel, Curmudgeon in the Cellar, is a favorite of many gamers and roleplayers.
Fans remember him as straightforward, grumpy, and very very funny, happy to share his knowledge and opinions on the game he helped bring to prominence.
Thank you for everything, Tim.
Only a few days later, on January 2nd, we lost Steve Dee as well.
Steve Darlington, better known to board game enthusiasts as Steve Dee, was president of Tin Star Games, an Australian gaming company dedicated to story-driven play and creative expression. Their motto was simple:
We make games. They tell stories.
His games are endlessly repeatable player-driven fun. You’ve probably heard of his most famous creation, There’s Been a Murder (which was on our Halloween game countdown).
But I want to highlight some of his other games that haven’t received as much of the spotlight. There’s Partners, a two-player game that lets you explore the classic TV crime-solving dynamic of the straight-shooter and their wildcard partner.
There’s also The Score, a simple 18-card game that lets you tell the story of the greatest heist movie ever (at least the greatest heist movie not involving bears).
But he was far more than a mere game designer.
Steve was a huge believer in jams: events where you create something in a limited time, marrying creativity with challenge. He participated in 48-hour jams to create 3-minute short films. He hosted jams and panels at cons, teaching people how to make board games in 2 or 3 hours.
He even hosted a challenge where fans yelled roleplaying game ideas at him and he would turn them into a playable game in just one hour!
Steve’s YouTube channel is a treasure trove of hard-won experience and boundless support for gamers and game designers, shining a light on many of the difficulties of running a small game company in the modern day. His videos are loaded with personality, and his unwavering sincerity shines through in every one.
Described by friends and admirers as humble and helpful, generous and inspiring, Steve was happy to help others with advice, guidance, and encouragement. The number of anecdotes across Facebook and gaming sites was truly overwhelming, mentioning kind words, workshops, impromptu lunch-time feedback sessions, and more.
And it’s so very fitting that his last Patreon post was titled something that fit Steve’s mantra and spirit so perfectly: Just do something.
Please let me conclude this tribute with Steve’s own inspiring words…
In times of crisis, heroism often fails; great efforts come to nothing and the casual or cruel can grant salvation. However, the smallest things can still be incredibly powerful and resonate to eternity. You matter, and if you show up, you can change your fate, or someone else’s. And that is everything.
I started supporting projects on Kickstarter back in 2017. One of the first projects I supported was a strategy board game called Trench.
But I had no idea that clicking that button would take me on a six-year journey that transformed from a simple bit of puzzly business to a heartwarming story of a father’s devotion to finishing his son’s work.
Inspired by trench warfare, the game was created by Rui Montero with a limited production run, primarily based in Portugal.
Here’s a brief description of the game:
The 8×8 grid board is diamond-shaped; each player sets up his army on opposing sides of the “trench”, which divides the board into two. As hostilities between the armies commanded by the players grow, each attempts to seize control over the trench in order to take full advantage of its strategic potential, hoping thus to breach the opponent’s defenses and capture the most valuable and important pieces.
From the Soldiers to the General, each piece being subject to specific maneuvers all will have to cooperate in order to occupy the trench, invade the enemy’s territory, and vanquish the foe. The army that manages to survive after two battles wins the game!
In the hopes of achieving greater exposure, a more successful print run for the game, and the creation of a hardcover strategy guide to accompany the game, Montero brought the project to Stan Strickland and his son Mike. With two successful Kickstarter campaigns already underway for their company Outer Limit Games, Stan and Mike accepted this new endeavor.
Stan was kind enough to share some insight into the project with me:
Rui was in the process of writing a book on strategies for Trench. He asked Mike if he could also help him put the book together. Mike was very talented graphically so he agreed. The reason Mike wanted to create a game was he loved graphic designing. His passion was not games but creativity through his graphic designing. He also loved creating music.
Rui said the book would be a little over a 100 pages but ended up being over 200 pages long. Mike and both were busy trying to complete Tau Ceti and Tradeworlds so it was an added responsibility for Mike. Mike always tried to lend a helping hand whenever he could so he agreed to help Rui. Rui had already had great success with Trench in Europe so the game garnered international attention.
The new Kickstarter campaign was a success, leading to production of three versions of Trench: a miniature version, a regular version, and a premium edition. By November of 2017, production was underway! Backers received regular progress updates. The game was nominated by Board Game Geek as one of the Most Anticipated Games of 2018.
As with any Kickstarter project in those days, there were production days. The estimated April 2018 delivery date came and went. The factory manufacturing the game pieces for the premium edition ended up changing locations. But the Trench team was optimistic production would be finished by May of 2018. The Strategy Guide was also behind schedule, but Mark and Stan were firm on the idea that the strategy guide would ship with the games.
Production on the premium version of the game was finally completed at the end of August (though the Strategy Guide continued to need revisions). By the end of September, the premium version was ready to ship, but the regular version and Strategy Guide still were not.
By the end of the year, fulfillment still hadn’t happened, due to logistical problems.
While all of this was going on, Rui was still writing the Strategy Guide. Because the cost of shipping had started to rise, we quickly realized we would have to ship the game and book together to save on shipping. We explained it to the backers and for the most part they understood. There were some complainers but we knew we had to do what we had to do to pull it off. Mike continued to work on the graphics for the game, while I worked on securing a manufacturer for the book and the mini version of the game. We were both working full time at the time as well. So needless to say, it was quite a task running 3 campaigns at once.
Mike was hit with a nasty bout of respiratory flu in early 2019. (An unfortunate consequence of 70+ hour weeks working on Trench and the other campaigns.) But the team was optimistic that everything would now ship by April 2019.
The team was incredibly honest about the delays, the challenges they faced, and the reasons why certain decisions were being made. Although a delay of more than a year is obviously frustrating, I firmly believe that such honesty and transparency goes a long way with backers, and the sincerity that suffused every update from Mike kept all of us enthusiastic and patient regarding Trench.
By June, the Strategy Guide was nearing completion and getting ready to head to the printers, marking the final piece of the fulfillment puzzle before shipping out the games in a financially feasible fashion. Communication and quality issues with the printers pushed things out further, with the end of July as the new projected deadline.
Mike Strickland and his father, Stan Strickland.
But in September, backers were informed that Mike would be stepping away from the project:
Fortunately, we’re a two-person business. However Mike is having to drop out for a bit due to health reasons. This project and others have taken a toll on all of us, but Mike especially. So for that reason, he is taking a step back to focus on getting himself back to a point where he is able to balance this business, and all the demands and pressures of life as well. He has been overloaded the past few years and has taken on far more stress than he probably should have, so I’m stepping in to take over all the obligations that he has been trying to handle.
What does that mean? It means that I’ll be doing my best to fill in areas that he was handling, but things are just going to be a bit slower since I’m only one person. I know that’s not what everyone wants to hear, but it’s reality and I’m certainly going to do my best to keep the project moving along as quickly as possible.
At 66 years old, Stan stepped up, handling both the continued logistical challenges of dealing with Trench and communication with the Kickstarter backers through regular updates. Stan continued the tradition of honest, forthright posts, explaining that Trench was overbudget (mostly due to increased production expenses and the ballooning size of the Strategy Guide), but he still intended to deliver the game as planned.
But December caught everyone by surprise.
On December 2, 2019, Mike passed away unexpectedly due to heart failure. He was only 38 years old.
I was heartbroken when I read the update. Mike and Stan had worked so hard to try to deliver on all the promises made by the Kickstarter campaign. I had spent the last two years following all the ups and downs of the project, and honestly, I had grown to really like Mike. His passion, his dedication, his creativity… all of these wonderful qualities came through in every message, every progress update. His enthusiasm for the job was undeniable.
We were totally devastated. I tried to carry on with all three games even though I realized it would be a monumental task especially since I did not have the graphic skills that Mike had. I kept in touch with the backers and some were very kind and others complained because things were running behind. I was moving as fast as I could on all projects, trying to complete quotes, manufacturing, etc.
In April of that year, an official update went out to all Kickstarter backers about Mike’s passing:
It has been a very tough few months and we greatly miss him so much. My wife, daughter, and I struggle everyday with the reality that we no longer have Mike around. It is without a doubt the toughest thing a parent could ever deal with. And of course, our daughter Heather and Mike were very close so it’s been really hard on her.
On the bright side, we know we will see Mike again one day in Heaven. It is that assurance and our faith that has gotten us through this tough time. My wife, daughter and I are together in Upstate NY taking much needed time together in order that we might heal, reflect and deal with the loss of Mike.
…
Mike was the impetus of OLG [Outer Limit Games], and truly a creative genius. Unfortunately with Mike’s quick and unexpected passing, I had no time to prepare for the task ahead of me. I was his sidekick and truly a novice at all of this.
The project had stalled again due to the pandemic and worldwide lockdowns. But Stan continued to update the backers on how the family was doing, how the manufacturing process was changed during COVID, and wishing everyone well.
In October of 2020, we learned that the Strategy Guide was finally in the hands of the printers. Sadly, the anniversary of Mike’s passing was also the projected delivery date of Trench to all of the Kickstarter backers.
Unfortunately, both illness and COVID struck again early in 2021, as mentioned in this update:
I hope everyone is doing wonderful and staying safe and well. I ended up with Covid double pneumonia in January. It has been a very tough last few months as my wife, daughter and mother-in-law all ended up getting Covid too. Fortunately, they recovered quickly. Me on the other hand, with Covid double pneumonia, my heart became enlarged too. I am slowly but surely recovering.
It would take the lion’s share of 2021 for Stan to recover from double pneumonia.
At this point, to save on money, Trench would be shipped alongside another Outer Limit Games project, Tradewinds, in order to save on shipping costs. Tradewinds was projected to be fulfilled by late fall 2021.
But once again, December rolled around with some bad news in store.
The premium edition was done and ready to go. The miniature version of the game had already been scrapped, but there were now serious challenges regarding what was now known as the basic version of Trench.
I believe about 50+ backers backed this game. When it was conceived, it was to be a much smaller and basic version of the Trench game. The backers who backed it, paid $29 USD for it. That portion of the KS donated about $1500 USD to the campaign. As of today, we have spent over $4600 on the basic version. I recently contacted the manufacturer, to let them know we were getting ready for shipment. He surprised me with a storage fee of almost $1500. This caught me totally off guard because Mike wasn’t aware of it before he passed away, which was 2 years ago yesterday. Boy do I miss him!!
In short, to deliver the basic version of the game would cost $200 per copy of the game. It would catastrophically affect the entire campaign. The manufacturer gave Stan an ultimatum: either pay the $1500 or he would destroy the games.
Looking at his storage fee and the cost of shipping, and then fulfillment costs, I had only one decision I could honestly make. With that said, those of you that backed that level, I will gladly refund your money or give you a credit to purchase one of the deluxe games. I am so sorry about this but I am sure you would agree the basic version really is cost prohibited. We should have a limited number of the deluxe versions available. I hope you understand the tough decision I had to make.
In spite of every obstacle, Stan soldiered on.
In April of 2022, logistics finally began to fall into place for Trench. Printing of the Strategy Guide had been pushed to May to avoid potential damage to the books during storage or transit.
In May, Stan mentioned that the increase in fees, fuel costs, and shipping costs due to COVID might force him to reach out to the backers to help handle the final cost of fulfillment. Further updates followed in September and December.
In January of 2023, the backers were asked to cover the shipping of the games in order to complete fulfillment.
This is where I will need your help. As much as I would love to cover the costs of fulfillment, it just isn’t possible. I realize this was part of the plan in our KS campaign but all costs of shipping, fulfillment have skyrocketed. When my son Michael passed away unexpectedly in 2019, I was forced to make a tough decision on whether to cancel the project or continue. I decided I would do my best to complete the project. It has been anything but easy without him as I knew very little about this game or project. Needless to say; I wanted to see it come to fruition for Mike’s sake as well as yours.
At 69 and living on a fixed income, I don’t have the money to pay for fulfillment. There are just so many unknown and unexpected expenses that came along during this project. Not to mention, dealing with the ever changing global exchange rates. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion, the only way to get the game and Strategy Guide to you will be for you to cover your own shipping.
I asked Stan how the backers reacted to this, and he said, “For the most part, the backers were understanding. There were some games that weren’t shipped but most were delivered.”
As a backer myself, I was happy to contribute once more to this project to see Mike’s dream delivered.
But the question of the Strategy Guide still remained.
Originally budgeted for a physical printing at 100 pages, all the additional edits and changes more than doubled the size of the book.
Mike always had too much on his plate. I know he was stressed trying to complete the Strategy Guide for Trench because Rui continued to add more and more changes to the book. Even after Mike completed pages, he’d have to go back and redo them.
In April of 2023, the decision was finally made to cancel printing the Strategy Guide as a physical book and deliver it to backers as a PDF.
Stan explained the financials to the backers with his typical honesty:
Before the shipping/freight to the US, we had $3280.70 left in the KS Campaign funds. After paying the $4406 for freight, the campaign is -$1,125.30 in the red. I still have another $1939.31 to spend for storage and shipping to our local shipping service. I will have paid $3,064.61 out of my pocket when it’s all said and done. If I had spent the $1680 to print the Strategy Guide, I would be a little over -$4744.61 out of pocket. With me living on a fixed income I just can’t afford that.
With a confirmed deadline of May 31, 2023 to get the shipping paid for, the light at the end of the tunnel had finally neared.
My copy of Trench arrived that summer. It felt unreal to actually hold the game in my hands. I was so moved by the journey and effort that went into it.
On August 28th, Stan sent out his final email to Trench backers, nearly six years after the game had initially reached its funding goals:
I wanted to personally thank all of you that supported Trench. I wish you all the very best.
Trench has an average rating of 7.7/10 on Board Game Geek. Four hundred and sixty-four backers supported the project.
And one incredibly dedicated father worked his fingers to the bone to make sure his son’s promises were kept.
When all was said and done, I had lost thousands of dollars on the projects but knew I did the best I could to finish the projects, and more so, for the legacy of Mike. Some backers were still upset and I understood but I knew I did everything I could to make each project a reality. As much as a task it was, it was worth completing it for Mike’s sake. Before he passed away, he had put hundreds of hours in each project.
After playing Trench again recently, I went back through my emails and reread all of the updates from Mike and Stan over that six-year period. I decided to reach out to Stan, to see how he was… and to let him know I was thinking of him and Mike.
Mike’s dog, a regular feature on his Facebook feed…
He was kind enough to not only respond, but share so many of his thoughts and insights on the project as a whole. I asked his permission to share this story with the world, and he very kindly obliged.
I asked him how he was doing, and his reply felt like the perfect conclusion to this post:
We are doing fine but miss Mike so much. We know we will see him again in Heaven. I am truly am thankful to be finished with all of the games. I was determined to finish each one the best I could in the memory of Mike. I know Mike is looking down from Heaven and smiling. As tough as it was, I am thankful God gave me the ability to complete them.
I hope this helps you understand more about Mike. I hope you and your family have a blessed Christmas and New Year.
If you’re a puzzle and game enthusiast, there are many dates and events to look forward to each year. There’s Free RPG Day, National Tabletop Day, the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, and all sorts of tournaments and contests and reasons to gather.
But after Thanksgiving, as the holiday season arrives, there isn’t really a puzzly or game-fueled event that comes to mind. (Though the Boswords Winter Wondersolve is coming in February!)
That is, there isn’t an official puzzle or game holiday in December.
But in 2013, there was a holiday festivity that brought together the worlds of puzzles and games in truly delightful and chaotically creative fashion.
For 2013 marked the birth of the White Heffalump Gift Exchange.
A heffalump… according to Disney, anyway…
You’re probably familiar with the concept of the White Elephant gift exchange, wherein everyone supplies a gift, and then a game of keeping or swapping takes over, allowing people to take turns, develop friendly little rivalries, and generally enjoy a bit of holiday frivolity.
A White Heffalump gift exchange works the same way, but with one marvelous twist: every gift is imaginary.
That year, puzzle constructor and game designer Mike Selinker brought together more than 50 puzzlers, game designers, artists, and creators from all walks of life to participate in the first ever White Heffalump gift exchange.
Constructors like Eric Berlin, Brendan Emmett Quigley, and Debbie Manber Kupfer joined artists like Stan! and John Kovalic of Dork Tower fame. Game designers like Steve Jackson, Paul Peterson, Matt Forbeck, Elisa Teague, and James Ernest showed off their imaginary creations to other attendees like writer and RPG actual play icon Patrick Rothfuss and cookbook author / Geeky Hostess Tara Theoharis.
And the entire exchange took place on Twitter, so fans and friends alike could enjoy the madcap holiday cheer.
Just some of the amazing White Heffalump offerings from its inaugural year…
A pet squid, a pocket pet named Prudence that GRANTS WISHES, “time to play with toys”, a dapper platypus, and a 29-word crossword were among some of the other silly, impossible, imaginary gifts brought to the exchange.
And although we’ve never seen anything like it again — publicly, at least — there’s no doubt that this festive explosion of maniacal creative expression inspired others to organize their own White Heffalump exchanges.
How do I know this?
Well, because I’ve hosted one for fellow puzzlers for the last eight years now, and the array of ridiculous, delightful, impractical, and mind-bending gifts have been an absolute delight to see shared.
Bob Ross’s Happy Little Trees, complete and total dominion over the planet Pluto, a paid internship with Carmen Sandiego, the ability to harness the magic of unicorn farts (*unicorn not included), a puppy-summoning button, and Your Very Own “No Pickle” Person are just a few of the glorious gifts that have been bandied about over the years of our annual imaginary get-togethers.
It’s an absolute blast, a reason to gather (virtually OR in-person), and all it costs is a little time and imagination.
Given that puzzles and games all start with that — that elusive mote of inspiration, the spark that ignites a creative wildfire — nothing feels truer to both the spirit of the season and to the heart of gaming and puzzling than a bit of White Heffalump fun.
It certainly brightens my holiday season every year. Give it a shot and see if it stirs your soul as well.
Timing is a fascinating thing. You never know what will suddenly become relevant again, or how something from the past will reemerge with new context and impact later.
Now, Feast of Legends made a big splash in 2019, but it’s fair to say that six years later, it’s not as relevant in RPG circles as it once was.
However, it’s funny that I wrote about it just a few weeks ago, and now it seems like Burger King is suddenly getting in on the roleplaying game scene!
Yes, Burger King’s Quest is a playable supplement for Dungeons & Dragons, featuring the Burger King Kingdom as its setting, and resurrecting several characters from Burger King’s promotional efforts in the 1970s and 1980s to counter McDonalds’ McDonaldland and its characters.
You definitely know the Burger King, but do you remember Sir Shake-A-Lot, the Duke of Doubt, or The Wizard of Fries? I sure don’t! (Who knew that The Home of the Whopper was a real place, not just a slogan?!)
Well they’re getting new life in this RPG supplement, which was unveiled at Lucca Comics & Games as part of Milan Games Week.
Right now, the game is only in Italian, so we’re not sure if English-speaking roleplayers will get their own version in the future. But thankfully the hardworking crew at the Burger King WIKI have some details on the game for non-Italian readers.
I don’t speak Italian, but I did download the game’s PDF, naturally. The art is beautiful, and clearly a lot of work went into this promotional stunt.
But you can already see a rivalry brewing with the Feast of Legends loyalists in the RPG community. (After all, I only found out about Burger King’s Quest BECAUSE of the Feast of Legends subreddit!)
I reached out to the Burger King Public Relations team to try to learn more about the promotion and any plans for it to expand beyond Italy, but I haven’t heard back yet.
So, for now at least, this remains a roleplaying curiosity. But who knows what the future holds. Wendy’s, Arby’s, and now Burger King. The fast food/roleplaying crossover space is certainly heating up!
Happy Holidays and welcome to the PuzzCulture 2025 Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide!
Each year, we scour the world of puzzles and games for the best, the most engaging, the most creative, and the most enjoyable products we can find, and we think this year’s collection is the best we’ve ever had!
We’ve got three different versions of the Gift Guide for your perusal, each of them absolutely loaded with all sorts of puzzly goodness and designed to make your puzzle and game shopping as easy as possible!
You can scroll to your heart’s content or use our handy quick search links to jump to different sections! The products in this year’s Gift Guide are organized by category, by age group, and by price below!
So, if you’d like to view products sorted by category (puzzle games, board games, puzzle books, etc.), click the wreath!
And if you’d like to view products sorted by price from lowest to highest, click the tangram candle!
A lot of terrific companies and puzzle constructors are taking part in our gift guide this year, and we’re sure you’ll find something for every puzzle lover on your list!
Happy browsing and happy puzzling to you and yours!
PuzzCulture 