Brain Teasers Melbourne

Two Puzzled Heads

Are two heads better than one? What about 4 hands over two? Test your puzzling and your communication in our pairs puzzle competition: Two Puzzled Heads. You and your partner have two and a half hours to start and complete a 500 piece puzzle. There will be a maximum of 6 pairs. **This event has 3 of 6 pairs signed only 3 pairs left.** Entry is $35 per person (a pair needs two tickets). If you are a solo, please email us at: [info@egnd.com.au](mailto:info@egnd.com.au) so that we can possibly pair you. Don't purchase a ticket first if solo. The winning pair receives free entry to the next puzzle event of their choosing. The top 3 pairs will also go in EGAD's Quickest Puzzlers scoreboard and August of next year, the top 3 over across all monthly events will be gifted a Puzzle Advent Calendar from Reverie Puzzles. However, you are not obligated to attend any other puzzle events. All pairs will receive the puzzle they have worked on to take home with them. The puzzle in the competition is made by Villager Puzzles. The image in the header is a place holder, and not of the puzzle in the competition.

Thursday night Rainbow Boardgames - Marché Board Games Cafe

Join your fellow LGBTQIA+ folks for a social evening of board games at Marché Board Games Cafe. We have access to the games library at the cafe. If you have a game that you want to share, please feel free to bring it along. We play all sorts of games - card games, party games, strategy games - and we're happy to teach new players. Groups for games usually form between 6:30-6:45, so it's important to try arrive on time to ensure you're allocated to a game/group. Anyone arriving late may have to wait for a game if all groups have started. The cafe has drinks and food available. Check out their menu here: https://mbgcafe.com.au/menu.pdf We only accept payment at the time of booking to reserve your spot. This means you will need to pay the booking amount via PayPal at the time of booking to confirm your spot. If you can't make it to the event, please ensure you get in touch by messaging the event hosts or emailing rainbowbg.melbourne@gmail.com at least one day before the event, and we can reverse your payment via PayPal. The cafe does NOT have a liquor licence. Consuming alcohol on the premises is illegal, and will result in any members being banned from future events. See you on Thursday!

Tricky Tuesday @ The Peacock Inn

Welcome to the **Tricky Tuesday** Meet Up! This is a smaller event but still the same sized fun! Come join us to play and explore modern card games (especially trick-takers and climbing/shedding games)! It's a great chance to learn a new game and meet some new people. You can usually find us at the tables in the side room! * *This event is made possible (and kept free for all members) via the support of [Pretty Tricky Games](http://prettytrickygames.com.au). An Australian online store for niche and unique imported and indie board and card games. Some of these you will be able to experience at our events!* Bring some games to this event if you can. There are none available at the venue. I will always have some packed - feel free to search for the rules and prepare yourself to play! These regular suspects include: Skull King, Farm Hand, The Crew, Space Dragons, VIVO, and Inside Job. Please consider others when coming and in the lead up to the event. We want as many people there as possible. If you are unable to attend mark yourself as such as soon as you can so others can be notified and attend. There's an FAQ below but if you have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out. Your tricky friend, Dave **FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS** **What is a trick taking game? Good question you handsome person.** * Generally speaking, a trick taking game is a card game which is played in a series of rounds known as ***tricks***. * Each trick is evaluated to determine a winner or ***taker*** of that trick and then will usually start - or ***lead*** *-* the next trick. * The goal is usually tied to either winning or losing a number of tricks. This may also come in the form of you guessing how many tricks you will win - known as a ***bid***. * Some games may have a suit that always wins - known as a ***trump***. * Most trick taking games are **competitive** needing between 3-5 players, others are **cooperative**, there are also solo and two-player trick taking games as well! * Popular trick taking/trick taking adjacent games you may have heard of: [The Crew](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/324856/the-crew-mission-deep-sea), [Skull King](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/150145/skull-king), [Cat in the Box](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/345972/cat-in-the-box-deluxe-edition), [Scout](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/291453/scout), [Fox in the Forest](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/221965/the-fox-in-the-forest), the classic games of [Spades](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/592/spades) and [Hearts](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/6887/hearts), **What makes a Trick Taking game fun?** * There's so much to trick taking games! They're generally quick to teach, quick to play, have interesting decision spaces, and a wide variety of novelty. Even the classics though can be played thousands of times without getting tiresome. Part of the fun is in the interaction with others, assessing their moves and countering them, and how to win (or lose) at the right times. You have to stay on your toes, adapt frequently, and keep tabs on the other players, what they have played, and what they may play next! **Do I need to know how to play/have played a trick taking game before?** * Not at all, but it is good to understand the basics and general terminology so you can pick things up a bit easier on the night. You can check out [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7O7QyhKmCsk) for a bit of a general breakdown . **Is this event free?** * Yes, but please support the venue by purchasing a drink or two. **I'm on the waitlist can I still come?** * Unfortunately, no. We have limited capacity and must abide by it. **I don't have a game to bring, is that okay?** * Generally it will be okay, but it is encouraged to bring and share a game where you can! You can always bring a standard deck of cards or tarot cards and learn a card game or two as well! **Can I bring a guest?** * Unfortunately, unless they have signed up too it won't be possible. We have a strict limit on guests and the event would fill up too quickly otherwise. **How do I get to the venue?** * The 86 Tram is your best bet and has a stop pretty much right outside of the venue. * There are two train stations (Westgarth and Northcote) which are within walking distance. * Parking is available in the area but can get busy. If you don't mind a little walk there is parking down the adjacent street. **Dave, I worry you will win all the games we play. Such an intelligent and beautiful man, you must be a master of the tricks, is this true?** * Firstly - thank-you for the kind words, but secondly - no. I suck at trick taking games and lose more than I win. Yet, I enjoy them for their variety, high interaction, and quick nature regardless. You will be fine if you don't take things too seriously. It's about fun and meeting people... (but if you do beat me too often I will ban you from the group and venue...).

Melbourne AWS User Group #161 - July 2026

🎉 **Melbourne AWS User Group – July Meetup** 🎉 📅 Wednesday, 29 July 📍 NAB Events Hub – 395 Bourke Street, Melbourne ⏰ Food at 6:00 pm, talks from 6:30 pm (with live stream) This month we’ll look at how to design scalable Terraform codebases using reusable modules and environment patterns. We’ll also dive into extending AWS DevOps Agent with custom MCP servers to solve real-world troubleshooting challenges in Amazon EMR. This month’s lineup features: • **Dale Orders** presenting on implementing Infrastructure as Code using Terraform best practices, with a focus on real-world modular design patterns. • **Pinaki** **Mukherjee** demonstrating how custom MCP servers can extend AWS DevOps Agent for enterprise troubleshooting workflows using Amazon EMR. A huge thank you to our sponsors: 🥇 **Mantel Group** – Gold Sponsor, 🥈 **Cevo** – Silver Sponsor, 🏛 **NAB** – Venue Sponsor The event will be live-streamed on YouTube as always: 👉 [https://melb.awsug.org.au/live](https://melb.awsug.org.au/live) *** 🗓️ **Agenda** 6:00 pm – Food & Socialising 6:30 pm – Introductions 6:40 pm – What’s New in AWS 6:55 pm – Implementing IaC using best practice (Level 100); Speaker: Dale Orders 7:25 pm – Extending AWS DevOps Agent with Custom MCP Servers for EMR Troubleshooting (Level 300); Speaker: Pinaki Mukherjee 7:55 pm – Marketplace (Who’s Hiring) 8:00 pm – Networking + Close *** 🎤 **Talk Details** Implementing IaC using best practice Speaker: Dale Orders Level: 100 This session shows how to design and implement Infrastructure as Code using Terraform, with a focus on real-world modular design patterns. Dale will cover how to break infrastructure into reusable modules, structure Terraform codebases for scalability, and manage environments without unnecessary duplication. You’ll also look at best practices around state management, versioning, and dependency handling so infrastructure stays predictable as it grows. *** Extending AWS DevOps Agent with Custom MCP Servers for EMR Troubleshooting
 Speaker: Pinaki Mukherjee 
Level: 300 AWS DevOps Agent already provides powerful operational capabilities, but many organisations have specialist knowledge and workflows that go beyond its built-in features. In this session, Pinaki will demonstrate how custom Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers can extend AWS DevOps Agent using Amazon EMR troubleshooting as a practical example. Rather than manually piecing together evidence from EMR APIs, Spark logs, CloudWatch, Amazon S3, YARN, and Kubernetes, attendees will see how a custom MCP server can turn scattered runtime signals into a structured investigation workflow. Using an open-source EMR troubleshooting MCP server, Pinaki will demonstrate how domain-specific tooling can work alongside AWS DevOps Agent, allowing engineers to keep a consistent operational experience while delegating specialist knowledge to purpose-built MCP servers. Whether you’re exploring AI-assisted operations or looking to build your own MCP integrations, this session will provide practical architectural ideas and real-world implementation guidance. *** 🙌 Want to Speak at a Future Meetup? We’re always looking for new speakers and believe everyone has an interesting talk waiting to be shared. If you’d like to present at a future event, reach out at the meetup or via our website: 👉 [https://melb.awsug.org.au/speak/](https://melb.awsug.org.au/speak/)

The Supermarket Quest - Big Step English

**The Supermarket Quest** *Learn English in a real supermarket. With your own teacher.* You study English. You know the words. But in a real place, with real people, the words disappear. This quest is for that moment. 2.5 hours with an English teacher. Just you. No classroom. **Your mission: plan a dinner for three friends. Spend as little as you can.** **How it works** **1\. Prepare — 30 minutes\, sitting down** We meet and get ready. You learn the words and phrases you will need. Relaxed start, no pressure. **2\. Practise — 90 minutes\, in the supermarket** Now the supermarket is your classroom. You walk, you look, you choose. You compare prices, read labels, and explain your choices out loud. Your teacher is beside you the whole time. When you get stuck, help is right there. **3\. Review — 30 minutes\, sitting down** We sit down again and talk about what happened. You take your new words home, ready to use this week. Two and a half hours. You speak the whole time. No desk. No textbook. Nobody else waiting for their turn. 📍 Melbourne CBD — we meet at the State Library ⏱️ About 2.5 hours 👤 One-to-one, or bring a friend 🌎 All levels. Beginners welcome. $50 for one person. $80 for two. Introductory price while I run the first quests. Send me a message. Happy to answer any questions.

Castlemaine to Maldon – Return by Steam Train (18km, M )

Thought Experiment: A What-if Scenario Event

This week’s story scenario enters **Horrors of Consciousnes**. **This event starts at 3 PM.** **Keywords:** Grief, Artificial Intelligence, Identity, Love, Memory, Consciousness Someone you loved is gone. Then a company offers to bring them back. Same face. Same voice. Same memories. They remember your life together. They say they still love you. Welcome to **The Thought Experiment**—a meetup where we explore large “What if…?” scenarios through discussion, role-play and difficult decisions. Each session places the group inside one unfolding story. New information is revealed in phases, forcing participants to reconsider what they believe about identity, morality, technology and human nature. Some people bring research. Others bring instinct, imagination and personal values. There are no perfect answers. The aim is curiosity, disagreement and the uncomfortable moment when a simple answer stops feeling simple. This event is for curious minds of all kinds: students, professionals, creatives, science-fiction fans, horror fans, philosophy lovers, or anyone who enjoys thinking differently. ## Event Details 📍 **Melbourne Central Lion Hotel** 🕒 **3 PM start** 👥 **Small-group event: 6–14 people** 🎟 **Free for the first 14 people, then $6 plus booking fee** 🌐 **Tickets:** [https://thoughtexperiment.au](https://thoughtexperiment.au/) ⌛ Find the table with the hourglass. Please RSVP, as places are limited. We ask everyone to purchase a drink from the venue. Conversational English is required to get the most from the discussion. ## Format * Introduction and private roles * An unfolding science-fiction scenario * Moral and ethical decisions * Small-group discussion * Final reveal * Debrief and optional post-event drinks No right answers—just curiosity, debate and the possibility that the person you are trying to bring back may not be the only copy in the room.

Calling All Smarty Pants! Trivia Night at a popular venue in BRIGHTON! 🦊🦊🦊

Red Creek Asylum escape room, St Kilda - tentative date and time

I'd like to do another escape room experience - I did one years ago and it was interesting. It goes for an hour and you arrive a little early for an induction of sorts. I have the groupon - $25 each. 3 of us already confirmed / paid. 1 left to go. \*\* Sorry no refunds if you have to cancel as I will have bought the groupon by then. You would need to arrange for someone else to take your place. As always, afterwards there's the option of food/drink and chat. ... Extreme Escape offers an exciting room escape game experience for groups of 2 to 7 people, challenging them to solve mysteries and puzzles to escape a themed room before time runs out. It's a thrilling adventure that promotes teamwork and critical thinking! ## Highlights *Participants delve into a **mysterious room** filled with intricate puzzles, providing an engaging mental workout. - Players collaborate to **uncover clues and solve challenges**, fostering communication and problem-solving skills. *Experiences are available for groups of **2 to 7 people**, making it perfect for various gatherings and social events. - The thrill of escaping **before time runs out** delivers a focused and adrenaline-pumping entertainment option. ## What To Expect Prepare for an exhilarating adventure as participants step into a **specially designed, themed room** at Extreme Escape, immediately immersing them in a world of mystery and intrigue. They will discover a series of **cleverly crafted puzzles and challenging riddles** that demand keen observation and critical thinking. The environment is designed to spark curiosity, with every detail potentially holding a vital clue to their escape.

Respawn Gaming Yu-Gi-OH! TCG Edison Format Tournament 2026

Welcome to Respawn’s Tournament edition Event! 🛡️ Respawn is going to be doing a yearly Yu-Gi-Oh! Tournament. The Edison Format is a format that took place in the Shonen Jump Championship (SJC), the 75th SJC in Edison, New Jersey which occurred April 24-25, 2010. Decklist reference: https://img.yugioh-card.com/en/downloads/forms/KDE_DeckList.pdf What happens if you don't have any Yu-Gi-Oh! Cards? Proxies will be printed out for you guys before the tournament. You cannot use April 2010 cards. Swiss Rounds with 45mins per round, Best of 3 and best of luck! 🃏 Nothing to worry about as it’s not serious, more casual. Entry is $4 per person (seperate to entry fee). Prizes awarded to podium finishers worth $5-$20. Ages +6, supervised until +18 years old. 🫶 TOURNAMENT PRIZES: * 1st Place: Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Magician (Attack) Pop! Vinyl Figure. 🥇 * 2nd Place: Fanattik Yu-Gi-Oh! Blue-Eyes White Dragon Silver Pin. 🥈 * 3rd Place: X1 Yu-Gi-Oh! Retro Pack 2 2020 Reprint. 🥉 🏆 You can also come hang out, meet fellow gamers, and enjoy a chill vibe with great food and drinks. Spectator game stations available!🥤 Entry is $4 or buy yourself a drink or food. 🍲 At the “Gamers Citadel”, we provide the consoles for you and this time have 2 multiplayer (2-4 player) game stations (A and B). For our board games area you are allowed to BYO! 😯 ♟️ Currently available are: Switch, PS1, PS2, PS3, PS4, SNES, N64, Vanguard, Yu-Gi-Oh! and more! If you’re bringing anything, please DM us so we can accommodate. ❤️ Conditions of entry are to either purchase any food or drink of your choice and we will provide you a reusable badge to show that you’re one of us! ✌️ Whether you’re a casual player or a hardcore fan, this is the place to be. Don’t miss out on the fun! 🤩 Our games list is below! 👇 Game Station A - Emulator N64 & PS1 - Dean: • Conkers Bad Fur Day - 4 player. • Battle Arena Toshinden. Game Station B - Wii U - Michael: • Smash Bros Wii U. • Wii U Party. Game Station C - PS4 - Abaan: • FIFA15 • Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown Game Station D - Yu-Gi-OH! TCG Edison Tournament dedicated station. You can bring your own board games, controllers, equipment etc. 👍 You can pre-register on the Tournament Ladder Link: https://challonge.com/kupzkt47. Please email your deck list to us or pre-register here: RespwnzZ@hotmail.com Edison format rules and banned cards: https://formatlibrary.com/formats/edison Follow us on Instagram: @respawn.social 📱 Join us on Discord: https://discord.gg/phscMtBqpW 🎧 Find Respawn on Facebook: https://facebook.com/events/s/respawn-gaming-social-club-lau/940165205164472/ 🔗 Visit our website for all info: https://intermingle.au/respawn/ 👩‍💻 IT’S TIME TO D-D-D-D-DDDUEELLL! 🔥

Study Technology FREE Workshop! - How to improve your study or teaching.

Applied Scholastics Study Technology is able to improve anyone's ability to study. Millions of people are already using this technology and whole countries are now adopting it. - You can learn Faster with less stress - You don't forget the information - You stay interested in the subject - Your marks increase English literacy rates routinely improve by 25 to 35 percent. Likewise, student test scores improve dramatically with students routinely meeting or exceeding grade level expectations in EVERY ACADEMIC SUBJECT. Our workshop will be focusing on how students learn. Study Technology can easily be incorporated into any educational activity—from classroom instruction and curriculum design to employee training or homeschooling. It provides a stable foundation enhancing all educational efforts. Study Technology is what teachers, tutors, trainers, parents and students can use to improve the quality of teaching and learning. No matter the curriculum in your current academic setting, Study Technology offers proven teaching strategies and resources that can help resolve classroom issues and improve student achievement. No matter if you are a teacher yourself or a good students or bad student we can all do better at study once we have this technology under our belt. Teachers who use this technology report amazing turn around with once troubled students. The application of Study Technology has quite literally changed millions of lives. You are most welcome to bring along a friend or those that struggle with study. (any topic) If you are unable to attend this meetup then let me know, We can arrange for you to meetup at a different time and date. Light refreshments will be provided.

Unrealistic Expectations: Improv Speaking Games for Business & Life

*NOTE: doors will be locked after 6pm, so there will be someone there to get you into the lift and up to the right floow.* *The generous people at Compass Offices have allowed us to use their Collins Street Office for this event. Check our their co-working space here* https://www.compassoffices.com/locations/360-collins-street/ **Unrealistic Expectations** is an entertaining, slightly chaotic evening of business and life related improv speaking games designed to help you practise action over certainty. Sign up as an audience member or a speaker, both are fun and packed full of laughs. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "This was a safe environment to fail." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Audience reactions are hilarious." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I learnt that it was not as scary as I thought." **6:30** Arrival + Drinks **7:00** Games Begin **8:15** Wrap Up + Hangout ❓ **Why we do this** Entrepreneurs are often told their ideas are unrealistic. Too big. Too early. Too hard. This night is for people who feel that fear and want to build the courage to act before they have all the answers. **Volunteers get 1-4 minutes to talk on wacky topics:** * Pitching a slide deck they have never seen before * Taking questions from the audience on a topic they know nothing about * Being handed a random object from the office and explaining your "revoulutionary discovery" * Explaining a graph that has no numbers or legend * *More "fun" and chaotic games to come...* **Spectators get front row seats to:** * Brave attempts and clever recoveries * Watch brilliance appear under pressure * The exact moment someone realises they are more capable than they thought * And...comedy gold! 🎲 **How the night works** Some people will step up. Some people will sit back and enjoy the show. Both are welcome. You don’t have to participate but most people end up tempted as the night goes on. We’ll rotate through a variety of short games across the evening. Each one stretches a different entrepreneurial muscle: • Thinking out loud • Explaining half-formed ideas • Handling pressure • Committing before certainty 😉At the end of the night, one brave participant will receive a completely meaningless but highly coveted honour. 👀 **Who this is for** • People building something and tired of waiting until they feel ready • Anyone who wants to build the courage to act before they have clarity You don’t need confidence You don’t need experience You just need a willingness to give-it-a-go **Because most worthwhile things start with unrealistic expectations.**