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You had to figure it would happen eventually, but the Decemberists are finally releasing their own board game.
Made in collaboration with local game designer Keith Baker, The Decemberists present Illimat is described by guitarist Chris Funk as a "neo-classic card game with a twist." Funk says the band had taken to playing board games to pass time while on tour, which led them to the idea of inventing a game of their own.
But before you get too excited about the prospect of playing as a tiny pewter Colin Meloy, Illimat is sadly not Decemberists-themed.
"We were mindful of being a rock'n'roll band making a game and not being too ham-fisted with the world of the Decemberists," Funk says.
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The look of the game, however, was inspired by a prop used in photoshoots for the band's 2009 album, The Hazards of Love, a kind of "oblique Ouija board" designed by photographer Autumn de Wilde and Meloy's wife, artist Carson Ellis.
As far as the gameplay, the goal, Funk says, was to appeal to fans of European strategy games like Settlers of Catan without alienating more casual gamers averse to anything more complicated than Monopoly.
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"We wanted it to feel like a standalone game you'd find in your grandfather's closet," Funk says.
You can order Illimat through a Kickstarter campaign launched today. Funk says they hope to have the game available in stores by next spring.
On Oct. 5, Baker will lead a free tutorial at the Secret Society, with music provided by Decemberists accordion player Jenny Conlee.
Willamette Week