board games & card games for all ages

Monday 29th October 2007

It was the quiet week in our 2-week cycle at the pub this week, with just the five of us in ....

Players:

David F-F, Mark L, Nick, Rich, Sue

Games Played:

Felix - The Cat in the Sack

The first four in decided to play this fun little auction game while we waited for anyone else ...

(Cats + Coins)

This was our first try of this game, and it is a fun little auction game which will only take about 20 minutes once we don't need to learn it at the same time! A clever system where some people know more about what they're bidding on than others, which adds a nice bluffing element to the game. Mark picked up a handful of the best cats, making him tough to catch .. although Rich had a good try, keeping as much cash as he could.

In the Year of the Dragon

David joined us, and so the five of us tried the soon-to-be-released latest game in the "Alea" series...

Nick:    100
Mark:    94
Rich:    89
Sue:    78
David:    62

I've played this twice now, and it's an excellent game. However, it's very punishing as well, and you are constantly on the back foot as you try and survive all of the trials and tribulations that the game sets you. I thought the order of events was actually quite friendly (compared to my only other playing) - leaving us until the 10th month to find enough grain to feed our people. But that didn't stop David suffering, and he finished the game with much, much less than he started it, having one single-storey palace and no employees at all! Still .... they're only people (as David will be reminded of saying many times in the future). Mark and I were neck & neck in the last few rounds, but a famine hit his palaces in the final month, leaving me with an extra employee or two.

Kingsburg

Nick:    41
Rich:    39
David:    38
Mark:    29
Sue:    28

I think this one is definitely the stand-out game from Spiel '07 for me so far. A lot of fun, a bit of luck in the dice rolls (just ask Sue, who kept rolling single-figure totals), and yet plenty to think about and a chance to push your luck with the armies. Rich was the first to build an Embassy, which fed him points for a few rounds before David and I joined him. Mark was trying the religious route of building the top row, but could never get enough gold to finish building his Cathedral, which meant he missed out on 9 points, as well as losing the last battle (thanks again, Sue ... rolled a one!), which cost him a further 5 points. A very tight game, and one where I just managed to hang on to a slender lead.

And that, surprisingly, was all we had time for. Thanks to those who came along.