For the first time in what seems like ages we have a regular Sunday night of games. (me, Tony, Becky and Fiona at Fiona’s) Happy days!!!
We start by trying to learn Louis XIV. I think I do an okay job explaining the rules, considering there so much going on, and we didn’t have any serious rules problems or queries during the games, although people’s heads were exploding during the game trying to take in all the possibilities.
As I would expect with a first play of a game with so much going on (and Tony’s playing slowly as well, including a couple of long thinks followed by moves which are instantly retracted – god, that’s annoying), the game goes on for a long time (over 2 hours), and starts to drag a bit for Becky and Fee towards the end.
Fee comments that she doesn’t mind games that are hard work if they are fun, but it was obvious she was getting bored by the end. I think Tony and I find games like this fun because they are hard work, but that not obviously going to be the case for everyone.
Tony seems to be winning (he completes two difficult missions in the second round, which gives him a couple of strong powers), but as with Goa (also a Rudiger Dorn game) at the end, despite all the gameplay, and Tony’s endless thinking the scores are in fact incredibly close. Everybody has completed six missions, so it comes down to Shields, and Tony just beats Becky and me.
After that we need something lighter, so we decide to play Ticket to Ride (it makes a change from Alhambra). I get an okay set of starting tickets (Portland – Phoenix, Portland – Nashville), until the opening trains all appear in the Southwestern corner, and after claiming Portland – San Francisco I’m blocked out of the direct route into Phoenix. So I have to regroup, and head across the country via Seattle and Helena.
The thing that annoys me about TTR in real-life (as opposed to online) is that the little cards are so fiddly. Optimum play often involves collecting a load of them, which are awkward to hold, the colours aren’t the clearest, and somebody has to go to the trouble of constantly replenishing the display of wagon cards available, and passing cards to those who can’t reach them. Tonight that person was me – it does keep the game flowing, but leads to one mistake when I make my move too quickly, taking cards when I should have claimed Oklahoma City – Little Rock, that would have cost me if Fiona had stolen it (she didn't).
After this possible detour is avoided I’m able to complete my route into Nashville. It’s clear that I should be able to get into Phoenix from Denver without problems, so now I decide to concentrate on collecting set of wagon cards to score some 15point connections. The key moment (as it turns out) comes when I decide not to block Becky. She has Los Angeles – El Paso – Houston, and then claims Miami – New Orleans. (she already has Miami – Charleston. I could have (& should have) blocked Becky by taking Houston – New Orleans, but I mistakenly thought “blocking is rarely effective in four player”. This is incorrect reasoning – at the time Becky and I probably had the best positions, so I should block Becky, as she is in fact my direct opponent. (Note to self: do not underestimate Becky just because she displays too much cleavage and is almost innumerate). [Actually, I think I may have underestimated the importance of this play because Becky’s score at the time was incorrect – we discovered she was someway short at the end, when we recalculate the scores]
I end the game as quick as I can (completing a couple of 15 point routes and connecting from Denver into Phoenix), but it’s not quick enough to catch anyone with incomplete tickets – I’m one turn off stranding Tony with –20 points. By the end Becky has completed one large line of routes along the South and up the Western coast, and the 10 point bonus is just enough for her to beat me by a couple of points. Fiona is last, which disappoints her, but she had awful tickets, one semi decent ticket and a tiny 6 point ticket up the Western coast, that you have to complete by claming tiny connections, worth very few points.
Next time I see her I’ll have to explain the plan involving ignoring such tickets and playing to score 15 point routes and finish the game. I’m sure that would have been a better plan in her position.
After Ticket to Ride, to Becky and Fee’s obvious disappointment there isn’t enough time left to play Alhambra. Instead we play a couple of hands of High Society. The first sees Becky spend far too much early on a couple of Recognitions, leaving her very little to actually buy possessions with (she acquires the 3, but that only gives her a score of 12, which can easily be beaten). She ends the game the poorest (after also paying to avoid the Thief and Gambling Debts) and Tony wins.
The second game also starts with a Recognition, which I win. Becky then blows most of her money winning the 9 and the 8, but at least this gives her a total of 17, which she might be able to defend. This game goes long (the last four tiles are 7,10, -5 and the final Recognition), and is very close between Tony, Fiona and I. I win the 7, putting me in the lead, but then the 10 comes up, and Tony and I don’t think we can outbid Fiona, and the next tile ends the game, with Fiona winning. Becky is the poorest by a long way - $7,000,000 – but although I ended up with $32,000,000 I still couldn’t have outbid Fee for the 10, as I only had $1, $6 & $25 left. A good game – I think Fiona enjoyed it a bit too, although High Society doesn’t seem to be her kind of game. And it’s definitely not Becky’s kind of game – as well as too much adding, she seems to be unable to stop impulse buying!
Tony has to leave, but we decide to end with a quick three player game of San Juan. Nobody gets a dominating position, nor does anybody get totally left behind (which can be a problem in three player if both opponents end up doing the same things, leaving somebody odd man out), and the final scores are very close. Becky has twelve buildings for 32 points (Fee and I only managed eleven builds), I have a City Hall and Guild Hall for 33, and Fee has a City Hall and Palace for 35 points. Fee wins!
Now Fiona is away again for the next couple of weekends. Maybe we’ll be able to arrange something for the bank holiday Monday instead.
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