Game Grinding - Tash-Kalar Review

In The Magicians by Lev Grossman,the main character is sent to a magical boarding school where he is given a certain textbook. This textbook is filled with complicated hand gestures that must be performed precisely to produce their intended effect. The protagonist is made to practice these gestures over and over again, until they become ingrained in his memory and he can produce them all in a moment’s notice. In the process this textbook becomes the bane of his education, a tormentor that reminds him of how far he has to go as a magician. That’s a pretty accurate description of the process of learning Tash-Kalar, the  new game from Vlaada Chvatil. The only difference is that the payoff is getting good at a board game, instead of, you know, actual magic.