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Messages - silent_rob

#161
I picked up a couple of shorter games so I figured I may as well bring them both out.

First up is the recent Spiel des Jahres winner Camel Up. This is a fun family game, fairly light, that involves racing wooden camels around a desert track and betting on which will finish a leg first or finish the whole race first (or one of several other ways to win money throughout the game). The movement of the camels is mainly determined by dice coming out of a "dice pyramid" (though there are other ways to have an impact on the camels) and if camels land on the same space they land on each other and form a stack. Then when a camel lower in the stack moves forward, it takes the rest of the stack with it.

It can handle up to 8 players but I'm going to keep it to 6. Fortunately its footprint is fairly small. It's really quick to learn so everyone's welcome to give it a try.

(6 players, 30+ minutes at 6:30)

Next is the card and dice game Machi Koro. Nicole was nice enough to bring it out a few weeks ago and I enjoyed it so I got a copy, too. Each player develops their own city by purchasing buildings and sites as shown on the cards you get. Rolls of the dice activate the cards you have or those of other players to make you either gain or lose money. You're trying to get enough money to build the larger landmarks - be the first to complete them all and you win.

This one is also quick to learn and play.

(4 players, 30+ minutes at 7:30)




Witness the craziest camel race of all time, as things really go topsy-turvy when camels stack up and entire pyramids turn upside down.

As members of Egyptian high society, you gather in the desert with one simple goal: to gain the most money by backing the right camel to win a leg or even the entire race. However, in this race, it's not just the lucky ones who can beat the odds. Reading the dynamics of the race and having a good sense of timing is just as important when it comes to backing the right camels and taking the victory.

Camel Up is a simple, quick and outrageously exciting family game that can be enjoyed by up to 8 players.




Welcome to the city of Machi Koro. You've just been elected Mayor. Congrats! Unfortunately the citizens have some pretty big demands: jobs, a theme park, a couple of cheese factories and maybe even a radio tower. A tough proposition since the city currently consists of a wheat field, a bakery and a single die.

Armed only with your trusty die and a dream, you must grow Machi Koro into the largest city in the region. You will need to collect income from developments, build public works, and steal from your neighbors' coffers. Just make sure they aren't doing the same to you!

#162
Please mark me down for Among The Stars - I've been wanting to try out the expansion.
#163
So sorry about the late notice but I'm no longer able to make it, tonight, so I'll have to drop out of Concordia. Hopefully you'll bring it out another time & I can try it, then.
#164
It looks like there's still a spot open for Concordia. If that's the case can you please sign me up for it? Thanks kindly.
#165
I'd like to sign up for Keyflower at 830, if there's a spot open from those sticking around after the initial game. Though I haven't played it, before - hoping that's all right.
#166
Avast, me hearties! I'm bringing Libertalia, the pirate card/board game, to play at 6:30 (it's going to be featured on the third season of Wil Weaton's TableTop, along with Five Tribes). It uses simultaneous role-selection, hand management and various player powers along with some bluffing and set collection. Each player is the captain of a crew of 30 scoundrels, scallywags and the like. Each week (round) one player shuffles his deck of cards and draws 9 crew members to use. Everybody else takes the same cards from their own deck and through each of 6 days (turns) plays a crew member they think will best win them booty (the pirate-y kind, not the J-Lo kind) and screw over the other captains.

Everyone's welcome to join, including new players (I'm fairly new at it, myself). The game usually clocks in at around 45 minutes but with a full 6 players and teaching the rules, it'll probably be over an hour.

(6 players, 60+ minutes at 6:30)




Captain Swallow has always dreamed of pocketing a large nest egg in order to retire on a remote island – but he never counted on stiff competition from Captains Stanley Rackum, Dirk Chivers and others, greedy and cruel enemies who always manage to attack the same ships as him. If he wants to finally sink back and enjoy peaceful days in the sun, he must become the most cunning pirate!

In Libertalia, you must thwart the plans of competitive pirates over the course of three rounds while using cards that show the same crew members as your piratical comrades-in-arms. Yes, not only do they attack the same ships, but they employ the same type of ravenous scum that you do! Can you take advantage of the powers of your characters at the right time? Will you be outdone by a pirate smarter than you? Jump into the water and prove your tactical skills!
#167
I just picked-up the game Diamonds (a big hit at this year's GenCon).  It's a great little game and I was thinking about bringing it to play but it's pretty short.  However, I realized that I have a couple of other games that are also short and have something in common with this new one.  With that in mind I invite anyone interested to come out for...

silent_rob's Gem-Encrusted Mini-Tourney

Cheesy-sounding, I know, but hopefully fun, too.  I'm bringing 3 games to play: Indigo, Splendor and Diamonds.  Each of them only takes around 20-30 minutes to play and features jewels in some way.  Participants will play one game of each, keeping track of their scores and the person with the most cumulative points for all three games will be the mini-tourney winner (and get some sort of prize...likely something flashy and cheap from The Dollar Store).  The player who wins each game gets an extra 5 points added to their overall total but even if you lose a game your score is still included.

Indigo is an abstract strategy game that's similar to Tsuro. Except that instead of moving one piece around the board, you lay tiles to move multiple gems around and, hopefully, get them to one of your gates so you can earn points.

Splendor is set collecting game where you get jewels (shown on poker chips) to buy gem mines and other valuable commodities (shown on cards) and then use all of that to try to get the attention of nobles (and get their valuable tiles).  Many of the cards and the tiles are worth victory points so it's really an "engine-building" game where you're trying to be the first to get a set amount of victory points.

And Diamonds is a trick-taking card game where there's a big pile of diamonds in the centre of the table and every player has a "vault" with a "showroom" in front of it.  On top of the usual trick-taking mechanics, each suit in the deck (60 cards, 4 suits each running from 1-15) also has an action.  So winning a trick means you can take that action and either take diamonds from the central supply, protect diamonds by moving them into your vault or steal diamonds from other players (though you can take suit actions at other points in the game, too).

Two of the games have a maximum of 4 players so we'll stick with that.  I'll start each game by going over the rules so don't worry if you've never played any of them before - they're all pretty simple and easy to pick up.

(4 players, 90+ minutes at 8:30)




Indigo - named for the deep shade of blue obtained from the Indian indigo plant - is a board game of intricate pathways and twists with players competing to gather precious gems, including the blue sapphire. Game play involves laying pathways along the board on which players move gems to the exits on the board's edge. The exits can belong to them or be shared with another competitor. If the exits are shared, each player is rewarded with a gem. If it belongs to only one player, all the gems go to that player. Indigo is a quick-play game with simple instructions for two to four players.




As a wealthy Renaissance merchant, acquire mines and transportation, hire artisans and woo the nobility. Create the most fantastic jewelry to become the best-known merchant of them all! Acquire precious stones to trade them for development cards. Use development cards to acquire more gem stones. Use your gems and gold to create the most fantastic jewelry, and appeal to the nobles to gain the prestige you need to win.




Diamonds is a trick-taking card game in which players collect Diamonds — not cards bearing that suit, mind you, but rather actual "Diamond Crystals" (acrylic crystals) included in the game.

What makes the game of Diamonds different from other trick-taking card games is that when you cannot follow suit you get a "Suit Action" based on what suit you do play. Suit Actions are also taken by the winner of each trick, as well as at the end of a full Round of play.

Suit Actions will enable players to take Diamond Crystals from the Supply, moving them to their Showroom (where they may score 1 point) or to their Vault (where they will score 2 points). The Vault is a secure area, but the Showroom is vulnerable to theft by the other players.

Whoever has the most points in Diamond Crystals at the end of the game wins!
#168
I'd like to give Russian Railways a try.  Please mark me down.
#169
Quote from: omegadirective on September 27, 2014, 06:21:49 AM
Quote from: silent_rob on September 25, 2014, 11:24:44 AM
Quote from: prairieguy on September 25, 2014, 11:10:46 AM
bummer - I hate to back out on the other one. Do you think it will fill if I drop out Rob? I want to play it too but maybe I could get into round 2 instead, depending how long Myth takes

That's totally all right, Murray. I'm sure I'll bring Five Tribes again another night & you can try it, then. If Myth lasts 3 hours then you probably won't be done in time for the 2nd play through on Tuesday (though if there's room and you're done in time then you're more than welcome to join).

And yeah, Lori, if Jim's interested then he can definitely take Murray's spot in Five Tribes at 630.


Hey Rob, It sounds like Murray and I would both be interested in a later 5 tribes, depending on how long Myth takes. Could you tentatively schedule us in and then check on our progress at 830 to see how long we would be?

From what Nicole said & what I've seen online it sounds like 3 hours is a pretty standard play time for Myth. And I don't want to push the later game of Five Tribes to 930 (it would just end up finishing too late). So I'll leave the last two spots open for now and folks who are for sure free at 830 can sign up.

If nobody else signs up & you guys are done at 830, then you can definitely join. But otherwise I'll just bring it again another week & you can try it, then (I really like the game so I was planning on bringing it again, anyway).
#170
Totally all right, Jim. Not a big deal at all.

And sounds good, thomsoda. The spot's yours.