Thoughts of a Flying Sheep

Session Report: March 3, 2003
Games Played: 6 Nimmt!, Modern Art, Tigris & Euphrates, Call My Bluff, Hick Hack in Gackelwack
Players: Chip, Lewis, Mark, Josh, Rob, Ralph, Eric, Matt, John

Thanks to Rob for hosting. Thanks to Lewis and Chris for giving me a ride.


6 NIMMT! (0:37)

Lewis: 16 | 17 | 18
Eric: 1 | 6 | 23
Chip: 10 | 18 | 40
Rob: 13 | 35 | 42
Mark: 20 | 41 | 51
Ralph: 11 | 37 | 60
Josh: 19 | 34 | 63

We played until Chris, Matt, and John arrived. Apparently this game requires a specific genetic skill as Lewis and his son did very well. I enjoyed this game and would play again. It seems to be a good quick game for a large number of people.

MODERN ART (1:00 + 0:15 rules and setup)

Rob: 470
Chris: 431
Chip: 406
Ralph: 373
Matt: 349

I did fairly well in this game until I was identified as the leader. I still managed to make a good profit on the last turn, although one piece that I gambled on turned out to be worthless.
There was a little grumbling about the uneven distribution of artists represented in each round. In other words, two of the five artists were worthless for the first three rounds, so players with those cards couldn't make as much money during the auctioning phase.
I think it's very important to avoid buying the artwork that you are selling. Suppose you have a piece has a value of 10. The bidding will probably go up to at least 6. If you sell it for 6, you make a profit of 6. If you purchase it yourself, you'll only make a profit of 4. This simple math eluded me for most of the game.
I think I have a better idea on how to play this game (e.g. save doubles for later in the game) and what the pieces are worth, so I'm looking forward to trying this game again.

TIGRIS & EUPHRATES (0:40 + 0:18 rules and setup)
Chris: 8
Ralph: 6
Chip: 4

I did rather poorly in this game. I didn't understand the strategy of where to place my leaders, and my blac k leader spent most of his time off the board. I did manage to distribute my color points fairly evenly (which was easier considering that I didn't have that many).
I like this game and look forward to playing it again. It might take a few tries before I really improve.

CALL MY BLUFF (0:25)
In order of elimination
Rob
Ralph
Chris
Chip
Matt
John (won)

This is a great little dice game. It's a good filler, and I'd play it again without objection.

HICK HACK IN GACKELWACK (0:10 + 0:03 rules)
Matt: 21
Chip: 26
John: 26
Ralph: 33
Rob: 34
Chris: 36

I've heard about this game, but this is the first time I've played it. It was a lot of fun, without being overly simple. Quick and light, my kind of game.

posted by FlyingSheep @ 3:31 PM 0 comments

Session Report: June 23, 2003
Games Played: Instinct, Hare and Tortoise, Bucket King
Gamers: Mark, Chris, Rob, Sara, Chip

Sara and Mark started off playing Crash Team Racing (playstation 2). Mark was catching on quickly for a new player, but Sara showed him no mercy. Then Rob arrived with a game he picked up at a yard sale, so we started with that.

INSTINCT (0:55)
Chip: 50
Sara: 40
Mark: 30
Rob: 10

Instinct is a trick-taking game by Wizards of the Coast with references to the 5 colors of Magic. The similarities to the CCG end there, however, as Instinct is a trick taking game with 5 suits (1-12) and 6 identical trump cards. Players must follow suit, and the highest card in the suit lead (or the last trump, if any are played) takes the trick. Players bid on the number of tricks they anticipate taking, and certain bids offer bonus points.
The game is supposed to go until the first player scores 100 points, but we decided to call it quits when Chris arrived.

We came very close to playing Quip Qubes, a scrabble knock-off, until we discovered that it is a two-player (or two-team) game.

HARE AND TORTOISE (0:55 + 0:05 rules)
Chip: first
Chris: second
Rob: third
Sara: fourth
Mark: fifth

I decided early on that 4 squares (for 10 carrots) seemed like an optimal move, and stuck to it wherever I could. I didn't go on any of the rabbit squares because I was usually second or third, and didn't feel that the risk was worthwhile.
I thought that this was an interesting game with a cute theme. The choices are non-trivial, but the turns move fairly quickly. I'd be willing to play it again.

We came very close to playing Electronic Catchphrase, but we had technical difficulties. We decided to play one round of Bucket King with elimintation.

BUCKET KING (0:25)
Rob: first
Sara: second
Chris: third
Chip: fourth
Mark: fifth

We only had time for one round, so we decided to play until all but one player had been eliminated. The last two hands were particularly interesting. Sara had 2 buckets, and Rob and Chris each had a single bucket remaining. Sara led with three cards of a single color to eliminate Chris. Rob led a color that Sara didn't have, so she and Rob were each down to a single bucket Triumphantly, Sara put down three red cards for 14(?) points. Unfortunately for her, red was Rob's strongest suit. He countered with even more red cards to win the game.
I like this game with the "match to reverse direction" varient. This is the first time I've played with full elimination, and I think it works well for a short game.

posted by FlyingSheep @ 2:47 PM 0 comments