I like the ones where you review the game, but have also already solved it, and you explain how to win in the review too. I guess then there's little point to playing the game after that for many people, but I liked it because it kind of "finishes" a game for me, all in one listen.
Sorry, I can't really tell you how to win at Pandante. It's mostly poker, which means be good at bluffing and get lucky!
I like the ones where you review the game, but have also already solved it, and you explain how to win in the review too. I guess then there's little point to playing the game after that for many people, but I liked it because it kind of "finishes" a game for me, all in one listen.
Sorry, I can't really tell you how to win at Pandante. It's mostly poker, which means be good at bluffing and get lucky!
Simple, just Floosh! as much as possible.
Also, this conversation kind of buried my earlier post, but could anyone take a look at the game components that I am planning on submitting to a printer for a prototype copy of my game. Mainly looking to make sure there aren't any glaring issues that I am missing, and if there are any comments or concerns.
To make it easier, here is the link for the gallery of images: Magic Maze Mayhem
After getting some feedback via Facebook, I have edited the cards to have centered text. The consensus was that with the amount of words and spacing, the left justification didn't work quite as well, and also, I was separating the two functions of the spells with a line break after the "Or", which didn't quite look right. Magic Maze Mayhem Centered
Visited a friend yesterday and played some games. I won our game of Splendor, by quite a bit. The next closest score when I hit 15 was 5. I took second in our game of Lords of Waterdeep. I am still enjoying that game a lot. Finally, I got to play Ginkgopolis for the first time. I am very glad that I decided to pick up this game. While there are a couple of semi-vague parts of the rules, the game was very enjoyable, and I found myself in a situation where the other two players were teaming up to take over one of my districts. The game ended up very close, I took second with 66 points, the winner had 70 and third place had 62. I am looking forward to playing that one again.
Went to game night last night. They kicked things off with a 6-player game of Red Dragon Inn. I knew the game looked like crap. It was confirmed to be crap. Just a bunch of screw-your-neighbor Munchkin play.
Second game of the night was a heavier euro, Legacy, which came out last year. This is a game I really wanted to like based on style and execution of theme, but I just can't recommend anyone play it. Legacy is a worker placement game that has you building out a large family tree (four generations long, to be exact) and scoring points based on all sorts of family relations (as new family members are married-in, they can trigger abilities dependent on the nationalities or professions of existing members).
Legacy is an also-ran. It really tried, and it did a lot of neat things in the details, but it is not the total package.
I have Red Dragon Inn solely as an alternative to Cards Against Humanity. Something simple for a large group of people, but something more engaging that CAH. Although I'm having serious thoughts as to taking the whole lot to the Games Keep auction for next year.
Legacy, feels like one of those games where you can pretty much lose in the 2nd turn if you don't take the most optimal actions possible. I did fin the theme kinda interesting. The game goes out of its way to stress that you can start as a male or female. Yes, there's a lot of emphasis on breeding the family line, but at least you can start as a matriarchy or patriarchy.
Istanbul is a simple game that is a lot of fun, the basic setup is REALLY easy to exploit but once you learn the game you can shuffle the pieces and go to town with them.
Also 8 minute empire is a great warm up game for people who play serious board games. Lighter players take too long on what should be a snap decision.
Love Istanbul. Yes, like most games of this type, you definitely need a randomized setup. Solving the new setup is part of the challenge but absolutelt not the whole game.
I got bohnanza pretty recently, and the only bad thing I can say about it is it probably should've come with a card shuffler. Repeatedly shuffling 3 decks of cards isn't very fun.
I got bohnanza pretty recently, and the only bad thing I can say about it is it probably should've come with a card shuffler. Repeatedly shuffling 3 decks of cards isn't very fun.
And have your friends shuffle as well. I never saw shuffling in this game as an issue. Only thing with set that takes up time is getting rid of certain bean types depending upon how many players are involved.
Also, split the large deck into two and you and an opponent shuffle them each.
A few years ago, I took a deck of bicycle cards, watched a youtube how-to, and learned to adequately shuffle and bridge in half an hour. If you play board games, you do it enough that the muscle memory will stay with you - compare that to every time I need to put on a necktie.
Plus, shuffling the big stack of Bohnanza cards is nothing compared to Race for the Galaxy's giant deck. :P
Most practical way to riffle a huge deck of cards: Take 40% of the cards, another person takes 40% of the cards. Each person riffles a few times, then swaps half their deck with the 20% in the middle. Repeat as required, depending on the nature of the deck you want to randomize.
Imperial Settlers was a lot of fun and a much better implementation of the same mechanics than 51st State. The cutesy and cartoony art may distract you from the fact that there is some serious player screwage going on when you raze your opponent's buildings, but even then, having one of your buildings razed is still beneficial to you because it provides a foundation for an even better building.
Overall, a nice somewhat light card game that's a bit of Race for the Galaxy, a bit of 7 Wonders, and a bit of Dominion.
Hopefully, my kick-started copy of Xia arrives this week!
Plus, shuffling the big stack of Bohnanza cards is nothing compared to Race for the Galaxy's giant deck. :P
I played a Magic: The Gathering deck based around this...
Shuffle that and stay fashionable.
In other news, I got the opportunity to platy my first game of City Hall. I'm a huge fan of auction games so the influence auction on every action was super fun for me. I spent the majority of the game as the only one with a factory so the Tax Assessor was really my jam. I rode the free double a couple of times and then began hitting up Campaign Manager to crank the Craftsman/Captain....Errrr... Tax Assessor/Campaign Manager crank and got my approval up to 4, two ranks from 5. I hadn't built anything other than my 2 starting properties so it was completely lost on my that a certain number of buildings was an end game condition.
Someone built the final allowed building to trigger end game so on the final turn I built Central Park and got my approval up to max. On my final "pick" of actions on the last round one guy REALLY wanted the surveyor to get the lead in most dudes on the board so he paid me a whooping 8 influence.
In end game scoring I ended up with most influence thanks to that and I had the most money and won with a score of 65. It turns out Wall Street and Public influence really DO win at politics. I won the game with scores being 65, 60, 58, and 52.
After that I had a chance to learn Wiz War. I could see it being totally fun as a light, quick play. I didn't enjoy that game because I played with the exact same people that I played City Hall with. 2 of the 3 decided this was the time for revenge for my victory in City Hall so they focus fired on me while the other guy ran off and just won.
I hate vote who wins elements so hard.
My final game of the night was Legendary Encounters. It was actually pretty fun. The set up in hampered by horrible card layouts and graphical design but once we got the game set up and were rolling, it was pretty fun. We played the "Play the movies" option listed in the back so we played out the first movie. No one died and we killed the Perfect Organism its first time in the airlock. Woot, woot.
God damn Essen already just started and there are at least 30 pics of crazy new games already clogging my feed. No time to read anything about any of them. Closing my eyes and ears and waiting to see what gets nominated for awards next year.
Yeah your only hope is to go to Essen yourself, or go to BGG.con a few weeks later. Having a room full of games flown in from Essen, with people to read the German rules for you, is a pretty killer feature for a con.
Dominant Species may look like a traditional Euro, but it's really a wargame in disguise. A vicious knife fight in the dark wargame.
Imperial Settlers is lots of fun and I like the deckbuilding as civilization mechanics. Also, the ability to mess with other players by destroying their cards is a nice twist to traditionally multiplayer-solitaire games. Artwork is very cute.
Machi Koro is Settlers of Catan meets Dominion. Very light and fun game with gorgeous artwork that is very heavily reliant on luck, since it's a dice game. I'm looking forward to future expansions as more card variety will increase the strategies to win. Overall, a good light filler game.
I flipped through the rules PDFs for the expansions after playing two games of Machi Koro - The Harbor and Sharp both introduce a variant where you flip cards from the deck until you have ten different buildings in the supply, and only replenish when a space is left open. It's a clever way to expand a game that has no special setup and about three rules.
I managed to get a game of Pandante going today. It is as good as advertised. The clacking of ceramic chips really adds to the game. The only thing I can't comment on is the panda lords, since everyone challenged every hand all the time, usually ending each game in two hands. You'd think someone would have managed to pull it off in 15 games, but it was not meant to be.
Rym or Scott: if you're at ScoJo's in December... we're playing Phoenicia, or Navegador, or both. I know you enough to recommend them, now. Also that Hansa Teutonica expansion.
So Shadow Hunters still comes up a lot in my social gaming circle. I've always wondered about "fixing" a couple things I wasn't super thrilled with. Some of them are super small house rules (rolling the space you are on is treated as a 7) and some of it is just preferences for or against some characters abilities (my group hates bob, loves bryan). Also possibly adding more/different area cards. Some of the translations on some of the cards also bug me slightly, and some specific rules about when you can reveal due to the tiny problem created by a couple awkward timing issues.
Anyway, wrote up a re-skin I'll print out and test here shortly. I expect there to be problems. Here are the big experimental pieces (prototype name is Agents and Aliens, so slightly different theme):
Area Cards
Infirmary (2,3) - Either heal 1 damage to any one player or give one of your Equipment cards to another player. Barracks (4) - Draw a card from the Armory Cards' stack. Mission Control (5) - Choose one of the three card stacks (Investigation, Armory, or Artifact) and draw a card. Research Labs (6) - Draw a card from the Investigation Cards' stack. Hanger (8) - Draw a card from the Artifact Cards' stack. Brig (9,10) - Either deal 2 damage to any one player or take one Equipment card of your choice from one player for yourself.
(Armory is white, Artifacts are black)
Revealing Characters Your character card can be revealed your character at the following times:
When your character is killed. (Mandatory) At the beginning of any players turn. (Optional) After any player has moved. (Optional) After any player has drawn a card. (Optional) After any player has declared a target to attack. (Optional) After any player has completed an attack and dealt damage if applicable. (Optional) When your win condition is met. (Mandatory)
List of Characters and Abilities Each player can only use his/her character's Special Ability when they are revealed unless the ability says otherwise.
Android (Alien) - 14 hit points
Self Repair Unit: You heal yourself of one point of damage every round at the start of your turn. Win Condition: All Agent Players are dead.
Combat Suit Pilot (Agent) - 14 hit points
Powered Armor: You reduce damage from attacks by 1. You deal 1 additional point of damage with your attacks. Win Condition: All Alien Players are dead.
G Man (Agent) - 12 hit points
Neuralizer: When given an Investigation Card, you may always say "Nothing happens" instead of reacting to the card. You cannot use this ability to lie about your identity to trigger the card. You do not have to reveal your identity to use this Special Ability. Win Condition: All Alien Players are dead.
Kaiju (Alien) - 13 hit points
Killer Claws: When you attack another player and deal four or more points of damage, that damage is doubled. Win Condition: All Agent Players are dead.
Master Thief (Neutral) - 10 hit points
Careful Planning: Once per game you can look at the top three cards of one of the three card stacks (Investigation/Armory/Artifact) and rearrange those cards. Win Condition: End your turn on the Hanger Area Card with four Equipment cards.
Oracle (Neutral) 13 hit points
Zealotry: If another character dies, you must reveal yourself. If you do your win condition changes to be "All Alien Players are Dead." Win Condition: Be the first character to die. Alternatively, All alien Players are Dead.
Parasyte (Neutral) - 8 hit points
Spawning: When a character dies due to your attack, you must reveal yourself (mandatory). That Player's health is instead set to 0 and that player now shares your Character Card, Special Ability, Hit Point Maximum, and Win Condition. This doesn’t apply in the case where you kill other characters by the effect of cards such as Area Cards, Surplus Supply Cards, Alien Technology Cards, or Investigation Cards. Each Parasyte tracks hit points and equipment separately. Win Condition: The only living characters are Parasytes.
Rogue Operative (Neutral) - 11 hit points
Double Cross: You respond to Investigation cards as if you are both an Agent and an Alien unless you are revealed. If you kill a character that is either an Agent or an Alien you must reveal your card. Win Condition: Kill at least one Agent and one Alien. Alternatively be one of the last two characters alive having killed at least one Agent or Alien.
Sectoid (Alien) - 11 hit points
Mind Control: Instead of making an attack on your turn, you can make any other character make an attack. This attack uses the controlled creature's range, equipment, and special abilities. Win Condition: All Agent Players are dead.
Xeno-biologist - 10 hit points
Targeted Antigen: At the start of your turn select one player. That player cannot use his special ability until the start of your next turn. Win Condition: All Alien Players are dead.
Comments
Also, this conversation kind of buried my earlier post, but could anyone take a look at the game components that I am planning on submitting to a printer for a prototype copy of my game. Mainly looking to make sure there aren't any glaring issues that I am missing, and if there are any comments or concerns.
To make it easier, here is the link for the gallery of images: Magic Maze Mayhem
Magic Maze Mayhem Centered
One Night Ultimate Werewolf Daybreak - A Board wi…:
Finally, I got to play Ginkgopolis for the first time. I am very glad that I decided to pick up this game. While there are a couple of semi-vague parts of the rules, the game was very enjoyable, and I found myself in a situation where the other two players were teaming up to take over one of my districts. The game ended up very close, I took second with 66 points, the winner had 70 and third place had 62. I am looking forward to playing that one again.
Legacy, feels like one of those games where you can pretty much lose in the 2nd turn if you don't take the most optimal actions possible. I did fin the theme kinda interesting. The game goes out of its way to stress that you can start as a male or female. Yes, there's a lot of emphasis on breeding the family line, but at least you can start as a matriarchy or patriarchy.
Also 8 minute empire is a great warm up game for people who play serious board games. Lighter players take too long on what should be a snap decision.
Also, split the large deck into two and you and an opponent shuffle them each.
Plus, shuffling the big stack of Bohnanza cards is nothing compared to Race for the Galaxy's giant deck. :P
Overall, a nice somewhat light card game that's a bit of Race for the Galaxy, a bit of 7 Wonders, and a bit of Dominion.
Hopefully, my kick-started copy of Xia arrives this week!
Shuffle that and stay fashionable.
In other news, I got the opportunity to platy my first game of City Hall. I'm a huge fan of auction games so the influence auction on every action was super fun for me. I spent the majority of the game as the only one with a factory so the Tax Assessor was really my jam. I rode the free double a couple of times and then began hitting up Campaign Manager to crank the Craftsman/Captain....Errrr... Tax Assessor/Campaign Manager crank and got my approval up to 4, two ranks from 5. I hadn't built anything other than my 2 starting properties so it was completely lost on my that a certain number of buildings was an end game condition.
Someone built the final allowed building to trigger end game so on the final turn I built Central Park and got my approval up to max. On my final "pick" of actions on the last round one guy REALLY wanted the surveyor to get the lead in most dudes on the board so he paid me a whooping 8 influence.
In end game scoring I ended up with most influence thanks to that and I had the most money and won with a score of 65. It turns out Wall Street and Public influence really DO win at politics. I won the game with scores being 65, 60, 58, and 52.
After that I had a chance to learn Wiz War. I could see it being totally fun as a light, quick play. I didn't enjoy that game because I played with the exact same people that I played City Hall with. 2 of the 3 decided this was the time for revenge for my victory in City Hall so they focus fired on me while the other guy ran off and just won.
I hate vote who wins elements so hard.
My final game of the night was Legendary Encounters. It was actually pretty fun. The set up in hampered by horrible card layouts and graphical design but once we got the game set up and were rolling, it was pretty fun. We played the "Play the movies" option listed in the back so we played out the first movie. No one died and we killed the Perfect Organism its first time in the airlock. Woot, woot.
http://elbowfish.myshopify.com/collections/our-games/products/antimatter-matters?variant=733443535
Imperial Settlers is lots of fun and I like the deckbuilding as civilization mechanics. Also, the ability to mess with other players by destroying their cards is a nice twist to traditionally multiplayer-solitaire games. Artwork is very cute.
Machi Koro is Settlers of Catan meets Dominion. Very light and fun game with gorgeous artwork that is very heavily reliant on luck, since it's a dice game. I'm looking forward to future expansions as more card variety will increase the strategies to win. Overall, a good light filler game.
Anyway, wrote up a re-skin I'll print out and test here shortly. I expect there to be problems. Here are the big experimental pieces (prototype name is Agents and Aliens, so slightly different theme):
Area Cards
Infirmary (2,3) - Either heal 1 damage to any one player or give one of your Equipment cards to another player.
Barracks (4) - Draw a card from the Armory Cards' stack.
Mission Control (5) - Choose one of the three card stacks (Investigation, Armory, or Artifact) and draw a card.
Research Labs (6) - Draw a card from the Investigation Cards' stack.
Hanger (8) - Draw a card from the Artifact Cards' stack.
Brig (9,10) - Either deal 2 damage to any one player or take one Equipment card of your choice from one player for yourself.
(Armory is white, Artifacts are black)
Revealing Characters
Your character card can be revealed your character at the following times:
When your character is killed. (Mandatory)
At the beginning of any players turn. (Optional)
After any player has moved. (Optional)
After any player has drawn a card. (Optional)
After any player has declared a target to attack. (Optional)
After any player has completed an attack and dealt damage if applicable. (Optional)
When your win condition is met. (Mandatory)
List of Characters and Abilities
Each player can only use his/her character's Special Ability when they are revealed unless the ability says otherwise.
Android (Alien) - 14 hit points
Self Repair Unit: You heal yourself of one point of damage every round at the start of your turn.
Win Condition: All Agent Players are dead.
Combat Suit Pilot (Agent) - 14 hit points
Powered Armor: You reduce damage from attacks by 1. You deal 1 additional point of damage with your attacks.
Win Condition: All Alien Players are dead.
G Man (Agent) - 12 hit points
Neuralizer: When given an Investigation Card, you may always say "Nothing happens" instead of reacting to the card. You cannot use this ability to lie about your identity to trigger the card. You do not have to reveal your identity to use this Special Ability.
Win Condition: All Alien Players are dead.
Kaiju (Alien) - 13 hit points
Killer Claws: When you attack another player and deal four or more points of damage, that damage is doubled.
Win Condition: All Agent Players are dead.
Master Thief (Neutral) - 10 hit points
Careful Planning: Once per game you can look at the top three cards of one of the three card stacks (Investigation/Armory/Artifact) and rearrange those cards.
Win Condition: End your turn on the Hanger Area Card with four Equipment cards.
Oracle (Neutral) 13 hit points
Zealotry: If another character dies, you must reveal yourself. If you do your win condition changes to be "All Alien Players are Dead."
Win Condition: Be the first character to die. Alternatively, All alien Players are Dead.
Parasyte (Neutral) - 8 hit points
Spawning: When a character dies due to your attack, you must reveal yourself (mandatory). That Player's health is instead set to 0 and that player now shares your Character Card, Special Ability, Hit Point Maximum, and Win Condition. This doesn’t apply in the case where you kill other characters by the effect of cards such as Area Cards, Surplus Supply Cards, Alien Technology Cards, or Investigation Cards. Each Parasyte tracks hit points and equipment separately.
Win Condition: The only living characters are Parasytes.
Rogue Operative (Neutral) - 11 hit points
Double Cross: You respond to Investigation cards as if you are both an Agent and an Alien unless you are revealed. If you kill a character that is either an Agent or an Alien you must reveal your card.
Win Condition: Kill at least one Agent and one Alien. Alternatively be one of the last two characters alive having killed at least one Agent or Alien.
Sectoid (Alien) - 11 hit points
Mind Control: Instead of making an attack on your turn, you can make any other character make an attack. This attack uses the controlled creature's range, equipment, and special abilities.
Win Condition: All Agent Players are dead.
Xeno-biologist - 10 hit points
Targeted Antigen: At the start of your turn select one player. That player cannot use his special ability until the start of your next turn.
Win Condition: All Alien Players are dead.