Ave Caesar (17th)
Bamboleo (17th)
Das DTM Motorsportspiel (3rd)
David & Goliath (3rd)
Galopp Royal (10th)
Guillotine (10th)
Liar's Dice (17th)
Schnäppchen Jagd (17th)
Spread Bet (17th)
Take it Easy (10th)
I couldn't make it this week, it being the night of one of the two works Christmas meals that I was due to attend. Unfortunately, no-one has passed on to me any information about what was played on the night, so you'll have to use your imaginations...
[Subsequently, I received the following report from Garry:]
6 turned up I think, and we started off with a game of David & Goliath. This is another of those clever little trick-taking games with a twist (like Hat trick and Sticheln). This time, you have to follow suit to the card led if you can, but otherwise can play any card. The trick is won by the highest numbered card (irrespective of suit) and that player wins all the cards played, except for the highest card which goes to the player of the lowest card. At the end of the hand, you score 1 point for each card you have won in each suit, except for suits in which you have taken only 1 or 2 cards. These cards then score face value. This is one of those games where your best laid plans can easily be stuffed by other players, particularly when you are forced to take a third card in a suit (3 points) in which you were previously scoring loads.
We then played Das DTM Motorsportspiel, which you may have guessed was based on touring car racing. Movement is determined by the throw of 3 dice and the die number determines which gear you are travelling in and consequently how far you move. You are however restricted as to how fast you can travel in bends (something I couldn't get to grips with), and from your die rolls, you can choose whether to use the number on the top or bottom of each die and the order in which the die rolls are executed. Infringements are punished by wear on the car, forcing pit-stops, or spins off the track and the mechanics are all pretty simple. The essence of the game though comes through the time pressure. The whole of your turn has to be executed within 30 seconds and this gives precious little time to think about what you are doing and that is when all the little mistakes creep in, much to the amusement of the other players. I really enjoyed this even though my ignoring of the speed limits in bends was my undoing in both races we played. Definitely not a game for those who like to think hard about their moves.
Getting closer to Christmas, but four of us showed up and got in a handful of small games.
First up was Take It Easy. This was another game that I was new to. It is a sort of multiplayer solitaire game where you have to put hex shapes into a grid to try and join up as many like-coloured lines as possible. I found it quite enjoyable as I am quite fond of those spatial awareness kind of things - doesn't necessarily mean I'm any good at them though. I was impressed enough with this game to mark it down on the list of Christmas presents I needed to buy for people (it was well received). We played over four rounds and aggregated the scores, but most of the rounds had a fairly similar result anyway. Result: MH, SG, TC, SO.
And so on to one of my favourite card games - Schnäppchen Jagd. Only Steve G and myself had played this before, and we took it in turns to do well and badly in the two games we played. Results: Game 1 : TC+MH, SO, SG. Game 2 : SG, MH+SO, TC.
Next out was Galopp Royal, a game that I picked up at MidCon. No-one there had actually played it before, I think. It is a pretty light game and seemed to hit the mood of the group quite well - we all had a lot of fun. Result: TC, MH, SO, SG.
And then that damned Guillotine resurfaced! I just can't seem to do well in this game when played at the club. On this occasion I managed to console myself with not coming absolutely last. I still like the game though. Result: MH, SG, TC, SO.
Again, I missed this week. I was due to go on another works meal. As it turned out, though, I couldn't go to that either because I was suffering from Vulcan Death Flu. This wiped me out right up until Christmas, and is also my excuse for this column getting a little late.
Since the following two Thursdays were to be Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, the next club night is due on 7th January (tomorrow as I write this). I won't know until then whether anyone kept a record of the last night.
The only other thing is that a couple of us are due to attend Winter StabCon in Manchester during the weekend of January 9/10. Maybe see you there...
[Subsequently, I received the following report from Garry:]
The week before Christmas and only 4 turned up this week. First out of the bag was Bamboleo, from the makers of Bausack. A circular platform is balanced upon a cork ball sitting on top of a wooden column. On the platform are balanced numerous irregular shaped wooden blocks and the idea is to remove blocks from the structure without the whole thing collapsing. A nice silly game to break the ice, relying on a steady hand and a knowledge of the friction generated between the platform and the cork ball and between the the blocks and the platform.
Following this, we gave Spread Bet a first outing. One player sets the spread for an event or fact (such as the year when the Beggar's Opera was written, for which the player may set a spread of 1760-1770, say). The other players then bet £1, £2 or £3 on whether they think the actual answer is higher (later) or lower (earlier) than the spread. The answer is then checked and winning bets paid out by the bookie or losing bets paid to the bookie by the unsuccessful punter. Obviously the more inaccurate the spread, the greater the potential for the bookie to lose a packet, but the same goes for the punter if he gets it wrong.
We then finished with 2 old favourites: Ave Caesar and Liar's Dice, bid each other a merry Christmas and headed for home, mince pies, pipe and slippers (much the same as every other week).