Fallout: Wasteland Warfare, Stuffed Fables, fake board games and more: January’s Tabletop Gaming is out in one week!

What’s the best way to kick off the New Year? If you think it’s bubbles, fireworks and a kiss at midnight, you’re sadly mistaken: it’s obviously the latest issue of Tabletop Gaming magazine!

Our January issue will land on subscribers’ doormats and shop shelves on December 29th, letting you brush up on your knowledge of the hottest games you should be playing in 2018 – make sure you’re ahead of the crowd by subscribing now or getting the magazine delivered straight to your door.

Leading the way is Fallout: Wasteland Warfare, the action-packed miniatures game landing on the table with a boom early in the year. We’ve got an exclusive cover feature on the unmissable title, revealing how the series’ roleplaying roots have created a wargame like no other and taking you on an in-depth tour of its gripping post-apocalyptic setting.

On the front of the magazine this month is one of two collectible promo cards for sneaky social deduction game Secrets, featuring one of its two acclaimed designers: Eric Lang or Bruno Faidutti. You can customise the card to replace any of the game’s default characters – why not pick up both for a completely unique experience, or even try and get them autographed by their namesakes?

If you’re a fan of Mice & Mystics, you won’t want to miss our interview with designer Jerry Hawthorne about his latest fantasy adventure, Stuffed Fables. The co-op tale takes place in the dreams of a young girl as her beloved toys battle the forces of the terrifying Nightmare King – what’s more, you play the entire game inside a book! Find out how Pixar movies and sudoku led to one of the most original games in years by checking out the piece.

With Christmas sure to bring plenty of new gaming delights to players, we take a look at the darker side of buying games online as the number of bogus board games finding their way into the hands of fans rises. Major publishers tell us the very real danger of ending up with a counterfeit in your collection and reveal the telltale signs to look for to check if your copy is a fake in a must-read exposé.

As well as visiting the worlds of Fallout and Stuffed Fables, we’re also taking a trip back in time to learn about Hnefatafl, the ancient board game played by Vikings that’s making a comeback in the modern gaming scene. How good is the game? All you need to know is that Viking generals were buried with a copy of it in their arms – it’s that good.

You’re sure to be sticking on Die Hard over the Christmas break, but there’s just as much action-movie goodness happening on the table. Vengeance is a bloody, brutal dice-roller in the mould of revenge flicks like John Wick, Kill Bill and Oldboy sure to get the blood pumping. Its designer tells us what to expect from the hard-hitting game.

In the next instalment in our regular look back at how the tabletop’s biggest games were made, Donald X. Vaccarino tell us how he came up with one of the most influential card games in decades: revolutionary deckbuilder Dominion.

There’s all this and more, plus the regular hobby tips, world-beating designer interviews and reviews of the latest releases you’ve come to expect; this issue we’ve checked out Azul, Civilization: A New Dawn, Xanathar’s Guide to Everything for Dungeons & Dragons, Queendomino, Hunt for the Ring, Sidereal Confluence and Photosynthesis, to name just a few.

You can pick up January’s issue of Tabletop Gaming magazine from Friday, December 29th in hobby stores, WHSmith, Tesco and Sainsbury’s (see the full list of stores here) or direct via our online store, with brand new subscription options (including quarterly and half-yearly rates) available. You won’t want to miss it!