Session Report for June 17, 2004

by Susan Rozmiarek
We’ve been having a great turnout lately, giving us more choices and making it easier to get requested games to the table.

 

Industria

This game has hit the table twice now and I haven’t been able to play either time. So, when Adam suggested it, I jumped at the chance. Adam had played the game once before and explained the rules to newbies Jeff, Rhonda and me.

This is one of those games that seems overwhelming the first time you play. I’m not going to try and summarize the gameplay. Instead, I’m just going to make a few comments.

Money is extremely tight and there are plenty of tough choices, the ramifications of which are not always obvious at first. It took me a couple of epochs to understand the flow of the game and I learned a few lessons the hard way. For one, it’s tempting, when you’re the auctioneer, to just immediately take the tile you really want for free and not risk getting stuck with something else. With money so scarce, however, you really need to take the opportunity to milk this chance for all the money you can get. Deciding which tiles are valuable to others and putting them up for auction first is the wise thing to do. However, if you misjudge and nobody bids on the tile you choose to put up, you are forced to take it yourself and pass the auctioneer role to someone else.

Another tricky aspect is the importance of turn order in the building phase. Each epoch introduces new resources that are required to build later buildings, including ones in the current epoch. To get the victory points, many tiles must be built in the epoch in which they are auctioned. Getting caught in a situation where in order to build your tile, you need a resource from an unbuilt tile belonging to a player later in the turn order, is extremely frustrating. Careful planning to hopefully avoid this situation is needed when choosing which tiles to acquire.

The random order in which tiles are turned up for auction, the money managing and the connection bonuses on the board all add additional complications to the decision making.

I pretty much bumbled my way through the first few epochs. I then settled into a strategy of collecting a few bonus tiles and going for factories with the same symbol. Rhonda was able to get several nice connections. Jeff concentrated quite a bit on building technologies, while Adam seemed to pursue a more diverse strategy. The scores were pretty close with Adam and Rhonda tied despite two tiebreaking conditions.

Results: Rhonda/Adam 37, Jeff 33, Susan 32

Now that I’ve gotten a game under my belt, I’m looking forward to trying it again with a better feel of what I’m doing. The constant auctions did feel somewhat repetitious as others have noted, but there were so many tough decisions to make along the way that this was not a detraction for me. More plays will solidify my opinion of the game, but for now, I’m looking forward to the learning curve with this one.

Susan, Rhonda, Jeff and Adam build their business empires in Industria.

After Industria, our poor fried brains needed a light filler so we settled for Zircus Flohcati.

Zirkus Flohcati

I think this game has been republished with a Star Wars theme, which I’ve never seen and can’t imagine. I love the cute, colorful art in this version depicting fleas doing various circus acts.

It’s basically a set collecting game in which you are turning over cards and choosing one to place in your hand. You can turn over as many as you like before you choose, but the catch is that if you turn over a color that has already been turned over, your turn ends and you don’t get a card. The idea is to collect sets of three that you lay down in front of you during the game. Each set is worth 10 points. In addition, the highest valued card of each color left in your hand at the end of the game will be worth its face value. The other way to score points is to put on a Gala Show by laying down a set containing a card of every color. This is worth ten points and ends the game.

I was able to put down three, low numbered sets fairly early, but in the meantime Adam was collecting several sevens in different colors. Of course, instead of laying them down in a set for ten points, he was saving them until the end of the game when each would be worth their face value. Rhonda had rotten luck turning over cards, often duplicating colors and losing her turn. Just as I was getting close to being able to lay down another set, Adam ended the game by putting on a Gala Show. Sure enough, those sevens he’d been collecting were enough to give him a substantial win.

Results: Adam 72, Susan 59, Jeff S 57, Rhonda 41

The hour was late and several people had left, leaving five for one more quick game. We chose Metro and started laying our winding and looping railways. I hope the actual Paris planners were more efficient at building routes than we were!

Adam, Rhonda, Jeff and Susan collect fleas during Zirkus Flohcati.

Metro

I was able to fly quietly under the radar for most of the game while others were targeted as leaders and picked on accordingly. Still, I was never able to connect a route to a central station for double points, but I did have some nice looping ones toward the end of the game. The scores were pretty close.

Results: Ed 49, Susan 47, Mark 43, Helen 42, Adam 39

Helen, Mark, Adam, Susan and Ed close the night with Metro.

Other games played: 10 Days in the USA, Atta Ants, San Marco, Euphrat & Tigris, Crokinole

Mark, Rick, Mike and Ed try out Atta Ants.

Roxana makes a friendly? comment to her husband Jon.

Three tables tonight as Roxana, Mike and Ed break out an older game, San Marco.

More classic gaming tonight as Rick, Jon, Helen and Mark play Euphrat & Tigris.

For more pictures from this gaming session and others, see our Gaming Picture Gallery.

Memorial Day Gaming

by Susan Rozmiarek
At our house, a holiday from work means a long day of gaming with lots of food. LOTS of food. I’ve never seen so much good food. Thanks to everyone who contributed!

 

Winds of Plunder

I’ve seen this being played a few times at conventions, but the timing has never allowed me to get in one of those games. Ed has played it a few times now, and likes it quite a bit. So much so, that he preordered it from GMT Games. With a very nice prototype copy of the game ours to play for a short time, I made it a priority to get it to the table.

Ed wrote up the following summary of the gameplay on a r.g.b. post awhile back:

“The game is played over nine rounds. Each round you sail your pirate ship to one of the 12 ports of call thought out the Caribbean divided evenly into four north/south zones. Each port has a treasure token that gives you 2 to 5 victory points as well as other goods (extra crew, weapons, provisions or a treasure map).

The neat mechanism in the game is the wind that controls where you can sail your ship. Each round the players vote on the wind direction (N, S, E, W) and the wind strength. The direction that receives the most votes wins and controls the movement of the ships that round. If the wind blows north or south, you must move within the zone in the wind direction or go east or west by one zone but still traveling in the direction of the wind (i.e. southwest). However, the east/west trade winds are stronger and if they are blowing, you must move 1 or 2 zones in the direction of the wind (although you can move anywhere within the destination zone). Players vote with wind cubes to control the wind. Each player starts with ten cubes and can buy more each round by using one or more action points.

Each turn players also get three action points. These are used to buy action cards, play action cards and buy more wind cubes. There are a variety of special actions you get to perform with the action cards, such as stealing wind cubes, limiting another player to only two actions, getting extra provisions, taking a second turn (only if in last place and by burning a crew), etc.

Players score victory points in several ways. The main way is by sailing to the ports. Players can get bonus VPs by collecting treasure maps and then visiting the ports with the treasure. You also get victory points at the end of the game for the provisions, crew and weapons you have collected during the game. These three items also have other uses during the game. Having the most provisions scores you a bonus victory point at the start of your turn. Having the most crew gets you an extra action each turn. For weapons, if you arrive at a port with another ship there and you have more weapons then the other ship, you may board that ship. If you board a ship, you may trade supplies or steal 2 victory points. Also at the end of the game, leftover wind cubes score you victory points (1 VP for each 3 cubes)”.

I spent the early part of the game fleeing from the very aggressive Pirate Doug. He acquired some advanced weaponry early in the game and was plundering anyone within striking distance, usually me. After getting a few zones away from this menace, I was able to make some progress, although I still came in last. Part of problem, I think, was I diversified a bit too much. I think concentrating in just a few areas may be the way to go.

I definitely agree with Ed’s assessment of the game. The pirate theme fits very well. The multiple ways to score victory points along with the unique wind mechanism make this a very solid, enjoyable Euro-style game. There were a few complaints of downtime during our game, but overall this wasn’t a problem and our game took a reasonable 90 minutes. Hopefully, this game will get the orders it needs to be published.

Results: Doug 65, Jon 61, Mark 53, Susan 50

Starting the day with a demo copy of Winds of Plunder, currently on GMT Games P500 list.

While a loud and vicious game of Chinatown was in progress at the other table, I settled for a more peaceful game of bribery and growing crops. Thank goodness. The simmering resentments and desires for revenge from Chinatown carried over into the following games for the rest of the day!

Santiago

This is one of my very favorite releases from the last year. Yet again, someone has come up with a new twist on auctions and tile-laying to make a game that is full of tough, tense decisions. The subtleties of the once around auction phase are interesting with the lowest bidder getting last pick of the tiles, but control of the irrigation that round and possibly money from bribes. Sometimes where to place a tile is obvious, but other times you have to consider where the current overseer would be more likely to irrigate and whether or not you’ll have another player adding to your bribe to help him make up his mind.

I missed out on a big, well-watered pepper plantation, which hurt my score. Fortunately, my respectable crop of bananas at least placed me in the middle of the pack.

Results: Ed 73, Mark 64, Susan 63, Adam 58, Jeff S. 43

Just before the ninth and final round of Santiago.

Next on the table was Favoriten, which Roxana had been requesting for a few weeks

Favoriten

This is often compared with Royal Turf because both are horse racing games with betting. In addition, in both games none of the horses belong to individual players and are moved each round with die rolls. However, the way in which bets are placed makes the two games feel different. In Royal Turf, bets are placed before the race and are hidden. As such, it is more a game of bluffing. In Favoriten, you place your bets openly during the race, with earlier bets getting more points should that horse place. Thus, it feels like more of a game of “chicken,” not wanting to commit to a horse to early, but wanting to grab the higher potential payout for the horse before someone else does. I consider both games pretty decent fillers for occasional play. I really like the funky art of Favoriten.

Being the lone or almost lone bettor on a horse is not a good position to be in, as the other players are going to use their low dice rolls to move that horse. I made that fatal error twice in this game and my score shows it. It’s a good thing I stay away from the real track, as I’d probably lose my shirt betting on long shots!

Results: Adam 140, Mark 130, Ed 106, Susan 96, Roxana 60

After dinner, Adam, Mark, Susan, Roxana and Ed play the ponies with Favoriten.

Early on in a Favoriten race.

Next up was another filler, Coloretto. There’s not too much more I can say about this game other than that our group is still enjoying its simple play with its light decisions and hosage opportunities

Die Schlacht der Dinosaurier

The fluffiness continued with this game of dice rolling, dice rolling, and more dice rolling. We’ve had this hard-to-find game, beloved by my son, for awhile, but I’d never played it. The bits are over-the-top, with plastic dinosaurs and riders on a colorful board with a volcano in the center. Players play cards on their turn to activate a certain type of dinosaur and those dinosaurs use the number on the card to either move or as an attack bonus. Combat is resolved with dice rolls, with the number of dice depending on the dinosaur type. Also if you have any, little red lava balls can be dropped into the volcano to re-roll dice, but only if the ball comes out the bottom. The game ends when one player is eliminated and the player with the most dinosaurs left on the board is the winner.

The rectangular board and the corner starting positions encouraged much of the early fighting to be between the closer neighbors on each end. Ed and I slugged it out while Clan Mike and Clan Mark waged a bloody war on the other side. Combat heavily favors the attacker, which makes it possible for a wimpy, little velociraptor with a good attack bonus to take out a mighty t-rex. There are some other nasty cards that can be played, including the Extinction Card. This depicts one of the dinosaur types and a die is rolled for every dinosaur of that type on the board. A roll of “0” is an instant kill. I lost at least two dinosaurs this way. Thanks, Mark.

Mike, cursing the Dice Boot, was the first one eliminated. I went out next, followed by Ed, leaving Mark victorious.

This is the kind of game that brings out the little boy in you, the one that used to stage massive battles with little plastic figures when he was a wee tyke. Unfortunately, I’m lacking the little boy in me, so I had to pretend, but it was fun for at least one playing.

Boys with their toys... Ed, Mike and Mark play with their Die Schlacht der Dinosaurier dinos.

Mike's green army faces down Mark's blue army.

Under Cover

We ended the day with this old, classic bluffing game. I’ve never tried the newer version with the action cards and have no real desire to do so. The simplicity of the older version works just fine for me.

I did a pretty good job of bluffing this time with everyone sure that I was either the green or the purple agent. I was actually the gray agent, and had a lot of fun whining when people gave green or purple the shaft.

Results: Mike 42, Susan 39, Mark 21, Ed 18, Adam 9

The older Under Cover board.

The definition of chunky, wooden bits.

Other games played today: Igel Ärgern, Power Grid, Attika, Chinatown, Ticket To Ride, Fresh Fish, Puerto Rico

Adam, Mike and Ed start off the day with a three player game of Power Grid.

Igel Ärgern, a classic lighter game with many, many variations.

Mike's happy to be playing Ticket to Ride again. This time with Jeff, Doug, Jon and Rhonda.

Adam, Doug, Roxana and Jon play Attika.

Overheard at the table:

Chinatown: “Did you take your medicine today?” (Said in an irritated voice)
Winds of Plunder: “Don’t touch my booty!”
Igel Ärgern: “Are you doping me?”
Die Schlaht der Dinosaurier: “Fear my balls!” “Velociraptor – tastes like chicken.”

This wrapped up a long, tiring, but thoroughly enjoyable day of games and socializing. And eating. Did I mention all the food? Next holiday – July 4th!

For more pictures from this gaming session, see our Gaming Picture Gallery.

Interviews with Gamers From Around the World

by Susan Rozmiarek
Once upon a time, there were only a handful of websites devoted to German-style games. Flush with discovery, I frequented them all regularly, lapping up every crumb of info about my newfound hobby. Nowadays it is a completely different story. Gaming seems to have just exploded on the Internet and it is simply hard to keep up with it all. If something interesting doesn’t find its way to me via forum emails or RSS feeds, I’m likely to miss it. Once in a while though, I’m sitting at my computer procrastinating and I’ll click on some of those old bookmarks and discover some worthwhile goodies I’ve been missing. This is a perfect example:

Rick Heli’s Spotlight on Games website has always been a great place to read capsule reviews of games, and if you poke around you’ll find lots of other interesting articles as well. Recently, he has posted a series of interviews with gamers from different countries that are really fascinating. Each interview includes not only personal stuff, but also a perspective of gaming in that particular country – the prevalence and how it is perceived. Numerous links are also included with each interview. Check out the pictures of the homemade Settlers of Catan by Brazilian Mario Lucio Zico!

So far, Rick has interviewed gamers from Brazil, Australia, Japan, Italy, Singapore and Ireland and it sounds like he plans to do more. I really hope so. I find it fascinating to get a glimpse of the hobby in these faraway, exotic (to this Texan at least!) places. It also gives a me a sense of connection to a worldwide community that includes many cultures, a very nice feeling indeed :-)

Formula Dé - June race

by Ed Rozmiarek
Racing this month on the 60th anniversary of D-Day found us in Europe, but not France. I guess if I had been thinking I would have scheduled a race at Magny-Cours, France, but instead today found us at Zeltweg, Austria.

Only six racers entered the starting grid today as we had a couple regulars no-show. Although I would have liked to have had more, this at least made for a quicker race as we were finished in a little over 2 hours.

Highlights from this month's race included:

• Mark's second win. He's on a hot streak with two wins in a row. Mark was in the middle of the pack for over 2 laps of the race after starting in last place. However he took the lead about midway through the third lap. He battled Jon for several turns but once Jon crashed, Mark didn't look back.
• Susan won the pole position for the fourth straight race and continued the bad luck of the polesitter, finishing fourth.
• Jon once again pushed his car to the limits and unlike last season (when he seemed to defy odds and win several races with a highly damaged car) he crashed for the third time this season (this time only taking out 2 innocent spectators). Will Jon learn his leason and drive more cautiously next race? Probably not.
• Roxana giving Mark the evil look.

With his second win in a row, Mark pulls into a seven point lead in the standings. Ed and Roxana remain in striking distance, but the rest are starting to fall dangerously far off the lead to be much of a threat. Robert, Susan and 2003 champion Jon are about 20 points off the lead with only 4 races left. They need to make a move in the next race to have a decent shot at the 2004 points championship.

See our Formula Dé webpage for the detailed results of today's race or visit the picture gallery for the pictures from the race.

Check back with us again next month as we travel to the USA to race at Monterey, California.

Memoir '44 Scenario in Game Trade Magazine

by Susan Rozmiarek
Okay, the number of blog entries here about gaming magazines is approaching the ridiculous, but I have another one.

Ed was at our local game store this past week and picked up the new June issue of Game Trade Magazine. This publication lists upcoming stuff available from Alliance Distributors and usually doesn't even garner a glance from either of us, but this month it contains a scenario for Memoir '44 which includes six plastic playing pieces. We don't even have the game yet, but anticipation is running high in our household. We all adore Battle Cry, so this one's a must.

Counter Issue 25 is out

by Susan Rozmiarek
A slightly mangled copy of Counter arrived in our mailbox Saturday. This was indeed a pleasant surprise, as I hadn't realized one was due out. I’ve been hauling it everywhere with me today, reading bits while waiting for my kid’s swimming lesson and doctor appointment.

As usual, it is crammed full of gaming goodness. Ivan Hanley has an excellent article about starting a games club. There are mini-interviews with three American game publishers - Rio Grande, Überplay, and Fantasy Flight Games. Joe Casadonte’s Re-Reviews are always an interesting read, and he also has a preview of the upcoming Essen offering from Warfrog and Martin Wallace, Struggle of Empires.

These are just a few of the highlights. I find that I almost always read Counter from cover to cover as all of it seems to interest me. This amazes me, given how many discussions and reviews are available free on the Internet.

New Gaming 'Zine online

by Ed Rozmiarek
There's a new online gaming magazine from DaVinci Games, the publishers of Bang! and King Me! (Viva il Re!). It's called GiocAreA and the English edition can be found here.

This month's edition contains an article with tips on submitting your game designs to publishers, one comparing three Formula 1 racing games, one on the Red Empire card game from GDW and more. Check it out.

Starship Catan Mission in Undefeated Issue 6

by Susan Rozmiarek
The new June/July issue of Undefeated includes another Starship Catan mission. This time it is Mission 2: The Asteroid. While you can download and print the expansion from Klaus Teuber's website, it is nice to have it printed on the heavy stock insert that comes in Undefeated.

I'm still undecided as to whether or not it is worth subscribing to Undefeated. It suffers from trying to be "everything to everybody." A large portion of it is devoted to CCGs, collectible "click" games and miniatures, as well as board games. It usually has lots of short reviews of games typically found in an American game store. What's kind of nice is that it also includes many strategy articles each month, including at least one board game strategy article. This month the feature game is Eagle's Civilization: The Boardgame. I'm not too interested in that one, but past articles have included Empire Builder, A Game of Thrones, and Puerto Rico.

Most of this kind of thing is readily found on the internet, but it's nice to have hard print to carry around and read at my leisure anywhere. I can't exactly lug my computer to the doctor's office or the swimming pool. Plus, I'd like to encourage more magazines of this type. I only wish it would focus MORE on board games. Who needs all that other stuff!