It's really fun to train people up and then send them out to work (and there are some special villagers which you can only get from "below" which make things a bit more varied) but the undoubted star is the exploration and the "choose your own adventure" stories.

New recruits are then added to your workforce for use in future rounds (though you can build structures that give you the ability to put them into use during the current round). Stay in touch by subscribing, joining our BoardGameGeek Guild, or by following The Thoughtful Gamer on facebook or twitter. The player is also allowed to keep the cave card, which provides space upon which an underground outpost may be constructed.You’ll roll a die and be presented with a tiny snippet of an overall themed story from the underground world, and then be given choices of how you’ll proceed. You'll be given a choice of how to react, and a lot will depend on which villagers you brought on the expedition, and who you're willing to sacrifice to succeed.

Base income is 4 coins, but is supplemented by the number of spaces on the advancement track occupied by resources and certain buildings. It’s not strategic enough to appeal to hardcore euro gamers, but it still contains many interesting decisions. One can send in an exploration party that has a good chance of success, only to see bad dice rolls thwart their efforts. Next, the Harvest action lets you gather some of the resources you’ve accumulated and move them to your player board for increases to your income you gain each round and victory points later.Above and Beyond is certainly an improvement over Tales of the Arabian Nights in terms of being a more strategic game. The building is placed next to the player’s starting board and the player may gain and/or utilize the benefits it conveys. No small part of that charm is Laukat’s art, which is imminently inviting and key to setting the tone of this pleasant light/mid weight euro.