Pelopennes & Tichu - 4 January 2012

Another great game of Pelopennes with the seas expansion, six player expansion and (thanks to Kieron) the Hellas expansion, which introduces another round (D) with six new powerful tiles, 2 more sea tiles, and 3 new civilizations - all of which were randomly selected.  We generally managed to avoid the earlier errors like buying things we couldn't place but unfortunately David had most of his population wiped out at the very end, and Stuart didn't have the necessary conditions to benefit from the last tile he bought.  Despite other strong scores, James managed to get the win this time, with the unusual result of his population and prestige values matching.  Final scores for population and prestige (with the one that counted underlined): James 33/33, Kieron 27/28, Adrian 21/33, Stuart 18/30, Andy 18/17 and David 12/27.

We then tried Stuart's new game from Orhan, Tichu.  After some difficulties with the translated rules, we tried the simpler variant called Grand Seigneur.  Initially confusing, the rules were actually quite simple, but it isn't as simple a game as it first appears.  In this variant, players are just getting rid of their hands as quickly as possible, by playing and winning tricks, and those that finish first are given aristocratic titles and get to improve their hand by swapping cards with the peasants (who finished last) in the following game.  We played a couple of hands where James and Andy swapped the Great Lord and Lord titles, and David and Kieron were the Wretches!

Show and Tell, 1 January: French 2nd Hussars

Christmas Holidays have allowed time for supplementing my 15mm Napoleonics for Shako.

First up, the French 2nd Hussars. The figures are from A&B.

Navegador, 27 December

Navegador - Orhan's Xmas present to Adrian in 2010 - came out for post-Xmas games with Guest Gamers Fred and Felix. In this rondel-based game players take the role of Portuguese explorers trying to found colonies and exploit resources from Africa to Japan. There are various ways in which to acquire victory points, essentially optimising against the different categories of ships, buildings, colonies etc. Asymmetric play predominated from the start with Felix and Fred opting for early exploration and colony building, Adrian going for workers and factories and James and Orhan going for a balanced approach. Fred and Felix found themselves in very beneficial positions with nicely complementary colonies and factories - the one producing goods which the other could then process, playing the market very effectively. This led to the brothers generating vast amounts of cash which they could then use to buy more buildings and colonies. The game end for this game was initiated by all the buildings being built as the players specialised in the buildings that would lead to maximum victory points. The final scores were closer than we might have supposed, but still showed a commanding victory for Fred: Fred 98; James 89; Adrian 88; Orhan 70; Felix 67.

Shako - Rivals Games Weekend 2011

We played Shako as the last of our games at the alternative Anderida weekend in November. The scenario was set in April 1809 with the encounter between the French and Austrians at Teugen-Hausen as its basis. The 10' by 4' table was configured as the sloping ground from the Austrian entry point at the village of Hausen down, over a couple of ridges, to the river at Teugen.

Having sent light cavalry on ahead (out of view in the point of view photo below because of the dead ground beyond the woods), Prinz Hohernzollen's (James) Austrian infantry divisions entered Hausen...

As Marshal Davout's (Andy) lead French units marched at full speed up the hill from Teugen.

The Austrian cavalry screen (commanded by Kieron) was driven off the French ridge by Alan's rapidly deploying infantry...

Meanwhile the French cavalry under Orhan advanced at full speed up the French right flank and encountered an Austrian infantry division (David) already deployed in the woods as more whitecoated fusiliers emerged from Hausen to take up battle positions....

As the infantry deployed on their respective ridges, artillery and musketry fire decimated the retreating Austrian cavalry caught between the lines (who quickly became desperate for a change of orders - 3 ADCs died or were injured trying to get through - no doubt victims of Jonathan's forward deployed skirmishers). Davout's lead infantry division then advanced down the slope on their side of the depression and prepared to assault the Austrians...

A fierce battle ensued in the centre with Alan and Jonathan's French attackers beaten off having taken heavy cannon fire from the Austrian batteries at the edge of the woods. The next Austrian wave of infantry then pushed forward on the Austrian right to assault the French ridge line...

As the Austrian infantry toiled up the ridge and the Austrian heavy cavalry erupted from the woods down the central road, the French cuirassier regiments deployed and attacked the flank of the Austrian right. The infantry attacked was halted, just as the French were stalled in the centre. Time was called at the end of a full day, with divisions broken on each side. Both the Austrians and French were in position of 'their' ridges and both armies intact enough to fight another day. Overall it was a great game and excellent to get the 15mm Napoleonics out again.

City Tycoon, 21 December

Pre-Christmas games at Adrian's with Guest Gamer Felix and we tried out City Tycoon, Kieron's birthday pressie. This new, semi-abstract game involves the players creating a tile city grid of power plants and buildings. Once buildings are built, powering them with electricity or water cubes (generated by the power plants) creates money to buy new buildings, or goods which in turn can be used to acquire victory points or intermediate benefits. It took us a few turns to get the hang of the game but we then realised its subtlety and cleverness. Not only a cracker in terms of gameplay, the design is also attractive and the construction solid. All in all a great little game. For this first play, the power of combiner cards meant that Adrian developed a pretty unstoppable lead. The final scores were Adrian 35; James 28; Kieron 27; Felix 26 and Andy 18.

Peloponnes & Ra - 7 December 2011

A welcome return for Pelopennes which we haven't played for a little while but all of us remembered the rules.  Except Kieron.  Who slowly and steadily remembered each rule just a little bit too late to take advantage of it.  We must play again soon so he can get his own back.  Orhan stormed it with (Population/Prestige with the score that counted underlined) 27/23, then Andy on 18/22, Adrian on 15/28, James on 9/27 and Kieron on 9/14.  I did remember the rules and only just squeaked past Kieron - I had a devastating population disaster (12 to 3 in one turn) that I never recovered from.

Time enough for old favourite Ra and another win for Orhan on 44.  James luckily achieved 2nd place with 23 after Kieron and Adrian tied for the lowest sum of bidding chits at the end losing them 5 points each to take them respectively to 22 and 20.  Andy was 4th with 21.

Whitewash City - Rivals Games Weekend 2011

The first of three games over the weekend of 18-20 November 2011.  James put together a big multiplayer Wild West skirmish game using the Warhammer: Legends of the Old West rules, the Whitewash City cardboard town, the Redoubt Enterprises train set, and a variety of figures and others bits and pieces.

The seven posses and their missions were as follows.  Stuart was the Lawmen, starting the game practising their skills at the gunsmiths, and outside the Sheriff's office, from where they were to take the captured Mexican leader to the gallows at noon.

Kieron's Mexicans arrived in the other corner of the town, desperate to save their Leader from a stretched neck.

Orhan's US Cavalry rode into town intent on a bit of R&R before collecting their wages from the bank.

David led the Hole-in-the-Wall gang who mosied into town planning to kidnap the Governor's wife and daughter and hold them to ransom.

On the other side of the rail tracks was Andy's Apache camp...

...who were headed into town to rescue the Chief's daughter from working at the Grand Hotel.

Alan's Texas Rangers were in town to see the hanging and ensure the Governor's wife and daughter were safely delivered to the Governor's residence.

Kieron kicked things off by shooting an innocent citizen who was unloading barrels outside the dry goods store.

Andy's Apaches began their slow and sneaky progress into town, climbing in and out of windows of the buildings alongside the railway tracks.  Stuart began slowly escorting the prisoner, using another passer-by's horse and cart as cover, whilst the other posses started moving in on the bank.

Miraculously timed with Adrian's delayed arrival, the noon stagecoach arrived, hotly pursued by the James-Younger Gang, eager to relieve the coach of its weighty casket of gold.

Mayhem swiftly followed.  Lots of exchanged lead and fistfights.  Invisible Indians.  The US Cavalry lost their horses after forgetting to tie up their reins.  An Apache was killed by a lady with an umbrella.  Stuart hanged the Mexican despite Kieron attempting to shoot the rope ("a frayed knot").

Adrian's bank robbers almost wiped out half the US Cavalry in one go after chucking a stick of dynamite into the bank.  Sadly it failed to go off but it was worth it for Orhan's face for those few seconds when his posse was facing obliteration...

On balance, a win for the good guys, but all the posses played their parts well despite taking heavy losses.

The rules worked well.  We randomised the turn order every time but afterwards decided that next time we would randomise the move order, and then again the shoot/fight order, to introduce more uncertainty about who shoots first.