It seems like ages since I last played some games.
Part of the reason is that it has been ages. The last Sunday evening was two weeks ago, and we had six players that night, and spent most of it playing Apples to Apples. Since then I haven’t managed to fit anything in apart from a couple of games of two player Puerto Rico and a round of Lost Cities.
This week Scott joined the regulars (Fee, me, Tony and Bekki). His favourite game is Alhambra (and the girls seem to love it was well) so we started with that.
I had one of those games were everything went perfectly. I’m pretty certain I’m the best Alhambra player in the group anyway, and I won with a score of 104, almost 30 points ahead of second place. At every scoring round I had a majority in Towers (it really helped that only one Tower appeared before the first scoring round and I was able to grab it), a majority or share-thereof in Gardens, and the longest Wall.
This game was the first time that I actually spent any actions redeveloping my Alhambra. I actually bought a Tower that I couldn’t place to protect my majority, and later when I bought another Tower with no wall, I noticed that instead of simply placing it, I could swap it with my only Manor (I bought it to connect all of my walls), and the turn after place the other Tower, both guaranteeing a Tower majority and extending my wall further.
After Alhambra we played Hare & Tortoise. Only Fee and Tony had played this before, and the rules translation Tony had didn’t seem to be the greatest. Having looked at some slightly better rules translations online we were definitely playing some rules wrong. In particular we were playing that you could move backwards to the next empty Tortoise space. At one point I moved back 16 spaces!!! [The reason for this was that it would let me move onto a lettuce space next turn - the lettuce in front of me was occupied.]
After my huge move backwards, I had a large amounts of carrots, and was planning to finish in a few large bounds, but it wasn’t clear whether Tony, who had been plodding along in first place would beat me there or not. I the end Tony reached there on the same turn as I did, but he was sitting before me and took first place.
We were a long way ahead of the other three. Although Fee says she really enjoys Hare & Tortoise, I think the game is strategic and calculational enough for Tony & I to have a large advantage. And once the field gets spread out a little, there’s less ‘multiplayer chaos’ than I would have expected. [This may be because we were allowing the large jumps backwards]
Scott, who had made some good moves early on, before losing lots of carrots on an ill advised jugging of the hare, finished third, and Fee managed to finish fourth eventually. Both her and Bekki had problems with arriving near the finish with far too many carrots.
Scott left after H&T, but we didn’t have time for either of the meatier games I had brought (Domaine or Tigris & Euphrates) so we played a hand of San Juan. I had nothing for the first couple of builds, so saved up for Silver, then built a Black Market. I also get a Smithy, so I figure I’m planning for some kind of Production plan, which is fortunate when I find a Guild Hall mid-game.
Coming to the final builds, it is clear the game is between me and Tony. Tony has been going for the violet plan, and has been using both Quarry and Poor House to accelerate his builds (he’s a couple ahead of me, and I’m a couple ahead of Fee and Bekki), and he has a City Hall. I suspect I might need to slip in a cheap catch-up production build to overtake him, but you don’t get much control in four-player. As it turns out Tony, as governor is able to close the game by building a Palace for 25+6=31 points, whilst my Palace leaves my score as 24+6=30. Very close!
It seems likely that after this weekend the next boardgame session may be some time off to various commitments.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Sunday 02/07/06: One False Step for Mankind, Apples to Apples, Alhambra
A bit of a different Sunday evening this week. I get a text mid-afternoon from Fiona saying Marlena and Becky will be there at six, and can I bring some counters for a game (in hindsight it should have been obvious that this involved playing a Cheapass game).
I arrive just after six, and we spend the next half an hour setting up One False Step for Mankind. It needs so many counters and tokens it’s ridiculous! Scott arrives before we begin, so we end up starting a five player at about quarter to 7, after both he and Fee (who have played before) have read the rules and failed to understand them. I end up speed-reading the rules and run the game more than they do, and I’d never played before. The idea was we were supposed to be starting early so Tony wouldn’t have to wait too long after he arrived about 7:30!
Obviously this doesn’t work (one of the games faults is that it takes too long), so we end up playing for about an hour, and then basically stopping. Fee announces Becky as the winner because she managed to send somebody to the moon! Personally I consider myself a winner at that point, as I’m no longer playing! Not a good game.
With Tony also present we need six player games. That’s a little tricky. We start with a quick round of Apples to Apples, which I win (or Tony won and I came second – can’t remember), and then we play Alhambra. I have Elfenland, which also plays six, but that seems like a game that takes twice as long with six than three players, unlike Alhambra where you’re still selling off exactly the same number of tiles. And everyone likes Alhambra anyway.
I get an okay start and am second or third at the second scoring, but collapse at the final scoring, when my two Towers (which was good for second place at the second scoring) gets overtaken by Marlena and Becky and I don’t manage to connect my wall at all. I finish fifth. Tony gets the majority in Gardens to move through to second place, almost catching Becky who has been leading most of the way. She is in a three way split for Towers with Fee and Marlena and has a good wall.
Alhambra isn’t great with six, but it’s useful to have a game that most people enjoy and can handle that many if needed unexpectedly. Most games wouldn’t (I only had Elfenroads cause it has loads of bits needed for One False Step for Mankind – normally I wouldn’t have any six player games).
Afterwards we just sit around playing Apples to Apples some more, lengthening the game to first to ten. Pete joins us this time, which is good for me, as I seem to have a very good understanding of his warped mind (who else would find Witch Hunts Fabulous, I also got him to pick Electric Chair) and I got four of my seven cards from him! Tony wins though.
I’m not sure how much you can read into the fact that the two most successful players at Apples to Apples were Tony and I, the two most serious gamers. Certainly everyone had fun, and it got very silly at times (some of us had been drinking). An enjoyable change from the norm – it seems unlikely we’ll have six players again any time soon, so it’ll probably be back to more serious gaming next time.
I arrive just after six, and we spend the next half an hour setting up One False Step for Mankind. It needs so many counters and tokens it’s ridiculous! Scott arrives before we begin, so we end up starting a five player at about quarter to 7, after both he and Fee (who have played before) have read the rules and failed to understand them. I end up speed-reading the rules and run the game more than they do, and I’d never played before. The idea was we were supposed to be starting early so Tony wouldn’t have to wait too long after he arrived about 7:30!
Obviously this doesn’t work (one of the games faults is that it takes too long), so we end up playing for about an hour, and then basically stopping. Fee announces Becky as the winner because she managed to send somebody to the moon! Personally I consider myself a winner at that point, as I’m no longer playing! Not a good game.
With Tony also present we need six player games. That’s a little tricky. We start with a quick round of Apples to Apples, which I win (or Tony won and I came second – can’t remember), and then we play Alhambra. I have Elfenland, which also plays six, but that seems like a game that takes twice as long with six than three players, unlike Alhambra where you’re still selling off exactly the same number of tiles. And everyone likes Alhambra anyway.
I get an okay start and am second or third at the second scoring, but collapse at the final scoring, when my two Towers (which was good for second place at the second scoring) gets overtaken by Marlena and Becky and I don’t manage to connect my wall at all. I finish fifth. Tony gets the majority in Gardens to move through to second place, almost catching Becky who has been leading most of the way. She is in a three way split for Towers with Fee and Marlena and has a good wall.
Alhambra isn’t great with six, but it’s useful to have a game that most people enjoy and can handle that many if needed unexpectedly. Most games wouldn’t (I only had Elfenroads cause it has loads of bits needed for One False Step for Mankind – normally I wouldn’t have any six player games).
Afterwards we just sit around playing Apples to Apples some more, lengthening the game to first to ten. Pete joins us this time, which is good for me, as I seem to have a very good understanding of his warped mind (who else would find Witch Hunts Fabulous, I also got him to pick Electric Chair) and I got four of my seven cards from him! Tony wins though.
I’m not sure how much you can read into the fact that the two most successful players at Apples to Apples were Tony and I, the two most serious gamers. Certainly everyone had fun, and it got very silly at times (some of us had been drinking). An enjoyable change from the norm – it seems unlikely we’ll have six players again any time soon, so it’ll probably be back to more serious gaming next time.
Monday, July 03, 2006
Blood Bowl 29/06/06: Dark Elves vs Goblins
The final update to the Blood Bowl playtest vault rules have now been issued (as Living Rulebook 5), and they’ve come at a convenient time. With my recent move to Newport I have more spare time, and opponents within walking distance.
The local league meets every Thursday, and has six players. Last week I started a new Dark Elf team with a bad matchup against the Dave’s Norse (I’m not really in a position to take advantage of his armour of 7, as with all of his players having block or strength 4, my players are the ones falling over). I really suffered with the injury rolls (of three casualties two were dead, and I made one out of eight KO rolls), so my team was somewhat depleted this week, with two journeymen required to make up the numbers.
This week I played against James’s Goblins. I get a dream start – I’m kicking to him and roll a Blitz! Two Blitzers are able to get tackle zones on the player under the ball (James had setup without wide tackle zones, and the ball scattered right behind the centre of the line of scrimmage) and after James fails to catch it, the ball scatters to one of the Blitzers who does.
The next six turns sees me slowly move the ball towards James’s end zone. A couple of times he is able to recover the ball, but he’s never able to protect it sufficiently, and I always have enough Elves around the ball to recover it easily. I would stall and score in the last turn of the half, but there is a Bombardier on the pitch (and James had already had one direct hit with throw team mate), making it impossible to get 100% safety, so I score on turn 6.
We both setup in a similar fashion again. This time the ball scatters wide. James throws some blocks, and seems to move everybody else before dealing with the ball and it costs him. He used all his rerolls in the first three turns, and turnovers without a tackle zone on the ball. I run in and pick it up (I still have one of my two rerolls left), then James provides a repeat performance next turn and I score probably the easiest touchdown I’ve ever scored.
2-0 at halftime, and I’m receiving, and the secret weapon players are gone (under the current rules they only play one drive). The second half kickoff is the first time the ball has been in my half, but it doesn’t stay there very long. I walk the ball into the endzone, the Goblins putting up almost no resistance.
The second half plays much like the first with me scoring another fairly easy touchdown. Only two really memorable events ocurred. Firstly, ones of the Trolls gets KO’d by a rock thrown from the crowd, and secondly, James had one turn left after I score for 4-0, and manages to make all the rolls needed for a one-turn, throw team mate touchdown. Very nice, and he probably deserved it. He did have some bad luck with some rolls I think, but he didn’t help himself by not always getting his priorities straight, so that when the bad luck struck, he left me in a good position.
Blood Bowl should be a weekly occurrence now I expect.
The local league meets every Thursday, and has six players. Last week I started a new Dark Elf team with a bad matchup against the Dave’s Norse (I’m not really in a position to take advantage of his armour of 7, as with all of his players having block or strength 4, my players are the ones falling over). I really suffered with the injury rolls (of three casualties two were dead, and I made one out of eight KO rolls), so my team was somewhat depleted this week, with two journeymen required to make up the numbers.
This week I played against James’s Goblins. I get a dream start – I’m kicking to him and roll a Blitz! Two Blitzers are able to get tackle zones on the player under the ball (James had setup without wide tackle zones, and the ball scattered right behind the centre of the line of scrimmage) and after James fails to catch it, the ball scatters to one of the Blitzers who does.
The next six turns sees me slowly move the ball towards James’s end zone. A couple of times he is able to recover the ball, but he’s never able to protect it sufficiently, and I always have enough Elves around the ball to recover it easily. I would stall and score in the last turn of the half, but there is a Bombardier on the pitch (and James had already had one direct hit with throw team mate), making it impossible to get 100% safety, so I score on turn 6.
We both setup in a similar fashion again. This time the ball scatters wide. James throws some blocks, and seems to move everybody else before dealing with the ball and it costs him. He used all his rerolls in the first three turns, and turnovers without a tackle zone on the ball. I run in and pick it up (I still have one of my two rerolls left), then James provides a repeat performance next turn and I score probably the easiest touchdown I’ve ever scored.
2-0 at halftime, and I’m receiving, and the secret weapon players are gone (under the current rules they only play one drive). The second half kickoff is the first time the ball has been in my half, but it doesn’t stay there very long. I walk the ball into the endzone, the Goblins putting up almost no resistance.
The second half plays much like the first with me scoring another fairly easy touchdown. Only two really memorable events ocurred. Firstly, ones of the Trolls gets KO’d by a rock thrown from the crowd, and secondly, James had one turn left after I score for 4-0, and manages to make all the rolls needed for a one-turn, throw team mate touchdown. Very nice, and he probably deserved it. He did have some bad luck with some rolls I think, but he didn’t help himself by not always getting his priorities straight, so that when the bad luck struck, he left me in a good position.
Blood Bowl should be a weekly occurrence now I expect.
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