Birmingham, Alabama
February 13 – 16, 2003
We’re still digging out, literally and figuratively, from the aftermath of last week’s storm and our extended stay in the South. As I regain my bearings here, Gulf Games is coming back into focus, separate from the blur and stress of trying to get home….
In singling out any certain people or gaming experiences, I run the risk of forgetting somebody or something really important. Still, I’d like to offer the following impressions from the Week that Was. If I’ve overlooked anything, well, at least I’ll be in good company. So Dave, who won San Marco.
The People:
As much as I enjoyed last year, this year was even sweeter (save for the absence of Rob Derrick. I missed you, man, and am sorry Thor missed you, too!). I was especially glad to see so many of you with your families this time- the Douds, the Bergs, the Hendees, etc. Last year in Pensacola, so many of you [men] attended alone. As great as it was to meet and play games with you then, there’s something special about seeing you with your spouses and families. Of course, this sometimes cuts down on gaming time for those with younger or more involving children (just ask the Cobbs, whose main game of the event appeared to be, “Run, Jessica, Run!”), but: it’s Life, and that abundantly! If Vera Levy and Shari Jackson ever attend, well, then I’ll believe Larry and Mark are actually married….
I was once again tickled to finally meet some of you with whom I’ve corresponded with for some time now, especially the Rozmieraks (or however it’s spelled), the Vander Arks and the Westons, NigglyBitters all. For all the rest of you, thanks for coming, and for playing with us. We had a great time!
The Games, in random order and with arbitrary coverage:
Trendy: another clever Knizia that I would be happy to play anytime. Funky little thing.
Hellas: My 11 yr old son Dillon had specifically requested that I learn Hellas at Gulf Games, and Joe Huber was kind enough to teach it to me right off the bat. I liked it well enough after that first playing, and could tell my son would really like it. Trusting Joe’s appraisal that the game worked together well (which was hard to tell after just one learn-and-play), I snagged a copy off the prize table. If you were one of the three people who donated a copy of Hellas to the prize table, just assume we grabbed *your* copy, and are personally grateful to You and You Alone. I later played Hellas with Sheldon at his house(!), and have played a few more times here at home. I’m sure there’s a way to play this game well, but I’ve yet to find it. I’ve got to do a better job of concentrating my forces, and taking advantage of those momentum swings. I like the simple but frustrating decisions each turn presents. Cool little game!
Carcassonne H&G: I like the water system/hut addition to basic Carcassonne, but far prefer the artwork and (relative) visual clarity of the original. Maybe add an aqueduct system to basic Carcassonne? The prospect of a game of Carcassonne, in any flavor, seldom excites me, but once I’m playing I always enjoy it. Watching others play H&G days later at Leon’s, it looked a little more appealing to me, but… it’s not one I’ll necessarily seek out.
Crokinole: Thor and I had a couple of great contests against Chris L. and Tim, with us each winning one complete game (to 100 or greater, regardless of turns/rounds). As the Lohroffs may be in the Far East come August, I guess we’ll have to wait until 2004 for the rubber match?
In tournament play, Vickie and I squeaked past Lenny and Chris in the opening round, held our ground against Susan and Ty, and… succumbed to the immovable force that was Keith and Mike A. Great, solid play, guys. Next year, Vickie? Man, those tournament games make me nar-vous. Crokinole remains one of my all-time favorite games. Thanks for the great competition, everyone!
TransAmerica: A 6 player contest that was over before I sneezed, at least, that’s how it felt. I think I like this game. I think.
Take It Easy: Optimal, shmoptimal. I tried the Perfect Solution [using a cheat sheet], and as Susan wrote earlier, found it very hard to recover once a non-optimal tile was chosen. When freelancing on my own, I have a feel for what I’m trying to accomplish, and some idea of what to ‘break’ first. Following another’s pattern, I was at a loss, and was left with little of scoring value when all was said and done. It reminds me of music: I can play a host of songs on the guitar by ear, just riding the chord progressions and guessing well. Stick words and chords in front of me, and I’m tied to that piece of paper; if and when I lose my place, I don’t recover well. Okay, so maybe the analogy to Take It Easy doesn’t work that well, but… that’s how it felt at the time, like I’d lost my place in a song I really do know how to play.
Zirkus Flohcati: Always a favorite. I’m really disappointed that Someone is allowing Somebody to release a new, entirely different Reiner Knizia game entitled, ” Flea Circus.” What is the matter with people?
Honeybears: Played with Ben Huber and Thor (but alas, not with Patti Adams. Next time?). A favorite little game, except for all that Math. 😛 Go, Red Bear!
Street Soccer: Dave taught this one to Thor and me, and we really like it. Extra thanks to Shea Roz. for coming along and pointing out that, sans Dave, Thor and I were playing “wrong”: we were neglecting to move the black clock marker. If it weren’t for Shea, we’d probably still be playing. I find the presentation very appealing, moving those chunky-big Meeples (with names and numbers so, as Dave pointed out, you can keep stats). We’ll be adding this one to our personal collection soon.
Puerto Rico: Thor’s and my long-awaited initial game of Puerto Rico, played with seemingly little respect for the “why” of all the “how and what” that Larry so patiently explained to us! You know, I think those buildings are kind of important. Maybe I should try to learn what they do? Thor employed the Baffle ‘Em strategy he’s perfected over a variety of different games (and real life situations), leaving Larry et al. stunned but in complete control of the game. I’m ready to play again, but maybe against dumdums such as ourselves. I get the feeling that the more I ‘try stuff and see what happens,’ the quicker things will fall into place. As it was, I had little feel for *why* I would or would not do just about anything. I think I got the rules right, though (that’s a Big Start). Puerto Rico goes on my “Intrigued, but be ready to absorb learning curve” list. Thanks, Larry, Ian and Leon, for your patience and comradery during our maiden voyage!
Rasselbande: Got to get me some piggies. Nuff said!
Goldland, x 2. As borrowed from my report on SpielFrieks, for which I was indirectly taken to task for not Playing Optimally. ?? First, “Duh.” Second, I had fun, didn’t I?! I played Goldland a couple more times this past week, each time with four players. The first game was with Thor, Theresa Vander Ark, and Stven- which removes all the suspense right there, I mean, Stven was playing Goldland. Guess what happened (clue: Thor, Theresa, and I did not win).
In that first game, I made The Mistake that others have referred to from their own previous games, jumping into a tile from which there was No Escape. “The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil,” and when I saw some treasure in a tile ahead, I paid 4 resources to jump into it (there was no path in from where I was), paying to survive the adventure and then paying again to claim the treasure. Hah-HAH! Mine, all mine.
This tile happened to be one tile away from the temple, ie, the next tile placed was The Temple Tile. Had that tile been a clear path, and especially one on which I could gain resources because of my handy shovel, I may well have won the game, and my daring leap would have been hailed as prescient- brilliant- game-breaking! At the very least, I would have had productive-feeling turns from then on out, and at least felt like I was still in it.
Instead, that next tile was another adventure tile, for which I did not have the resources. In fact, all the surrounding tiles were adventure tiles for which I could not gain the resources to overcome. Having jumped in, I had no way to jump out. Stuck, Stuck, Stuck, wasting away in sight of the temple. Argh!
6 turns (count ’em), 6, collecting tokens to buy my way onto… another unleaveable tile. Starving, equipmentless, surrounded by treasure temple. There’s a lesson here….
I didn’t win.
Rather than souring me on Goldland, I took this painful experience as both a Lesson Learned and (of course) a personal challenge. Not wanting the taste of that game to linger, I made sure to bring Goldland to the table again, soon.
This second game was one of the most rewarding ever. I, the first player, once again went hustling off to the temple, helped by very favorable tile draws. In fact, they were a bit too favorable, as I did not rack up enough adventure points/camps/tokens along the way. Hustle, hustle, hustle. So, even though I reached the temple first, I lost any advantage when the following player, Bryan “Mr. Big Gulp” Rankin also reached the temple within that turn- and had more adventure points than I. It turned out to be an advantage I could not overcome. I was sorely tempted to rearrange his knapsack and treasures while he was out at the inevitable bathroom break, but restrained myself. I have a feeling Keith has a keen eye for cheaters, and can crack down pretty hard. He’s a canny one, he is.
One of the reasons I appreciated this particular game of Goldland so much is because of the way Keith, the third player, made the most of the tile layout and used his adventure points to pull out the game. When he realized he would not make it to the temple within that first turn, rather than still running for it ASAP (as I probably would have done), he very purposefully used additional turns to complete adventures on his way there. The adventure points he guarded and gained along the way making the final difference, even as he made sure that he got his amulet and at least one turn’s worth of gold. It was fascinating watching Keith work the board. I forget the final scores, but I came in third- behind Bryan and Keith, who tied Bryan on his last turn. I love this game, and am eager to play again.
San Marco: A close, rewarding contest between Thor, Dave and myself. Someone won, and it wasn’t Thor or Dave. This is another of my favorite games. I’ve thought about looking into Canal Grande, but have decided to reserve any San Marco-ish playing time for the Grand Old Dame herself, complete with board, cubes, and bridges, rather than diluting the experience with 2-player card contests.
Quandary: Love those bits. Another nice Knizia game I play very poorly, but always enjoy the ride. Especially with those bits….
Thor: Marry him, play him, win him…. Oops, I didn’t win. Thor won Thor. Or rather, Thor tied Joe Huber for the win in Thor, as (at a late and game-fried hour) even Joe couldn’t readily determine whether Thor (the game) was played with the Flinke Pinke rule that awarded points (2?) to any player who hadn’t had a full complement of turns. If so, Joe would have won; if not, Thor did. As we’d mistakenly played the game with all 6 (?) suits and thus already thrown off all Game Karma, and having ascertained that there were two Thor medals on the wall, we called it a tie for Joe and Thor– and a night. We were thinking we needed a copy of Thor, just because, but… after the name gimmick wears off, I’d much rather play Quandary.
Flowerpower: I played this twice over the week end, once with Elaine and once with my long-lost cousin from Birmingham (long story), losing both times but not minding (Chris, I’ll leave it up to you to figure out why I enjoy besting you in a game, and don’t mind losing to Elaine. I don’t know, either. Though if Elaine flicks any more of my Blokus pieces off the board, things will change, Fast). Another of my favorite games.
Drahtseilakt: Thor and like this game a lot (which I can now spell from memory, even though I can’t spell Rozmeir… see?), yet do not get to play it nearly as often as we’d like. We were very happy to play with Dave and Chris one sunny Birmingham morning…. Chris won.
Exxtra: I have no idea what I was doing, or if I like this game, but it was very colorful and over fast. I’d be happy to play again, to figure out what that colored blur was.
Speaking of colors, I played
IDO: with Jim, Susan and Sandi. It’s definitely a work of art, and a piece of work. I don’t know if I like it or not; it was hard to tell if all the pushing and shoving could become purposeful, or if you just push, slide, and hop until something good happens, and there you are.
Speaking of More Colors, I also played
Blokus: Which further proves that I should always ask Elaine what she likes to play, because there’s a good chance I’ll like it, too. Blokus appeals mightily to the Tetris fan in me. We’ll be adding this one as well.
Hallo Dachs!: A challenging little memory game…. It’s cute, and Hard for older brains. I like Zicke Zacke Huhnerkacke much better, but would be interested in playing Hallo Dachs with a range of kids to see what they thought. I beat Mark Jackson in a memory game. Surely there’s a medal for that?!
Pueblo: Another favorite game (See, I learned: Play Your Favorites, at the risk of seeming rude when you say no to, say, Tyrannosaurus Ex). I’ve played almost exclusively 2-player, faring poorly in the few 3- and 4- player contests I’d tried. I’d heard there was a strong first-player advantage in multi-player games, which makes sense. This time, I was awarded first-player status through a random draw, and smoked the field. I don’t think the first player will necessarily win, but an *experienced* first player has a potentially insurmountable advantage. At least, that’s how our 4-player game played out.
I’ve been loath to experiment with the Advanced rules, providing options to bid on turn order after 4 (?) turns, but after this last game I’m wondering if they might not be worth a try. I’d hate to weigh the game down, but I think we’d have seen some active bidding for a chance to switch placement order, and I would have been very interested to see the outcome had I been either bumped to a later position or forced to pay dearly for the right to keep my place. The problem is that such a bid system would introduce the potential for the leading player to drive up the cost of keeping the position, only to drop out and force a lagging player to pay even more for an advantage that… ain’t all that. I recognize that that’s the whole point of an auction system (the bluffing/true value/cost thing), but I’m not sure a game like Pueblo needs it. If anyone likes Pueblo well enough to play a series of 4-player games with rotating turn order (maybe not *4* games, but maybe at least 2 throughout the event?), I’d be up for trying it in Williamsburg, just to see.
Union Pacific: A first for both Thor and me, and a fun contest. I had trouble discerning the track-types and their location on the board, but figure I’ll catch on with repeated playings and a closer look at the board. I liked the stock draw mechanic, the suspense of the payment rounds (or whatever they’re called) and how (in contrast to Acquire) there’s no constant counting and paying of money. We picked up a copy from the prize table, and I look forward to playing it more here at home. I think I’ll like it even better with fewer than 6. Oh, and Thor won, courtesy of his stock in the good ol’ UP. 🙂
Tigris & Euphrates: Jay Outz was kind enough to teach this to Thor and me, with Ed Roz. sitting in to pick off the easy targets. 🙂 Unfortunately, we embarked on our T&E game immediately on the heels of our lengthy and involving La Citta game- not optimal timing for trying to absorb a brain-challenging game. Even more, my long-lost cousin showed up about 2/3s of the way through, which was entirely distracting. As with Puerto Rico, I picked up on the ‘What” decently (Jay’s a good teacher), but the “why” and “when” proved elusive. I guess I needed to start somewhere, but I’m sorry I didn’t have more brain to bring to the event. I had the unexpected opportunity to sit in on another T &##38; E game a few days hence, at Leon’s. This time, I watched Joe Huber, Phillip and Leon go at it, and was encouraged to realize that I understood as much of the “what” as I did, while picking up on more of the “Why” and “When.” In retrospect, I probably would have learned even more had I played the game through with them, but it would have been at their expense and/or to another player’s distinct advantage (though perhaps Leon would have welcomed having me to his right :-). I’m want to like this one, and am interested in playing again. For all who have pointed me to the Boardgame Geek for online play, I appreciate your thinking of me; while I recognize that playing online would probably bring me up to speed fairly efficiently, I’m going to continue to eschew online play in favor of face to face opportunities, gaming and otherwise. Thanks anyway!
This is for you, Rob Derrick:
La Citta: What a gaming event! The Westons and we had placed La Citta on our short list of games to play together at Gulf Games. I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m finding it hard to coordinate times and games with specific people. Unless I’m willing to absorb some downtime and (gasp) forego a game whilst waiting for someone else, the timing can be such that it’s very difficult to find/make/grab time to play games of any length. Never mind those pesky breaks for meals!
From the time we first met up with the Westons, we were floating titles at each other, La Citta among them. La Citta was still on the list as of Saturday- there just had never been a good time! At that point, I was wondering if it was worth trying to push, as I recognized it would be a definite commitment for all of us. What if we didn’t like it? Finally, around noon on Saturday, the scheduling clouds cleared, and we seized the opportunity. We were very fortunate to have Kevin Gonzalez join us for our Tremendous Tilt. Not only did he add to the fun, he also assumed the task of most of the rules teaching, and did an excellent job.
Many of you enjoy describing mechanics, and turns, and detailed analysis of game play. If you haven’t figured it out by now, I don’t. I welcome others’ reports, and am so grateful for the descriptions that provide such accurate appraisals of games and the playing thereof… but that kind of thought and writing are not my forte. So, I can’t tell you why this particular game was so fantastic, or what the critical junctures were, or what choices any of us made turn by turn that helped or hindered our cause. Here’s what I do know: I loved how this game fit into my brain, so that even though I wasn’t totally clear on my best decision at each turn, I knew what I wanted to try. I was new, but not clueless, and that’s an important difference (Hi, Larry and Jay. Isn’t it fun teaching me games?!). I am continually discovering how much graphical presentation affects my feeling about games; La Citta more than delivers in bits and appearance!
I think I also know that Julie pulled out the win on the strength of her well-rounded cities, ie, 3 types of arches in all(?) her cities (her in-game protestations of crapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrap when she couldn’t do what she wanted notwithstanding). I remember that Kevin couldn’t feed his people at one point, and that cost him the next round (maybe the game?), and that at one point Michael squeaked and squawked and stalled until we realized that, no, we hadn’t repopulated our cities at the start of the round, so he could expand the way he wanted to after all. I remember that the game was ohsoclose throughout, and remained so through the end. I remember comments from the milling crowds about how long the game was:
“Are you still playing that game?”
“Wow, that’s a long one!”
“Are you guys still playing?!”
with the implication that, somehow, the game was Too Long.
The thing is, the game did not come overstay its welcome. I could look at my watch and see how long we’d been playing, but I enjoyed it so much that the time wasn’t a factor. There was nothing else I’d rather have been doing; it truly didn’t get any better than that. What a game. Thank you, Mike, Julie and Kevin.
Now, back home, I’m eager to open a copy and play La Citta again , or to at least sift through the bits and relive the fun. I’ve hear La Citta plays well 2-player, although it would be a decidedly different game. Might it have some of the feel of an advanced/altered Settlers Card Game? We also have good friends how enjoy playing La Citta, but have grown tired of teaching it. Now, Thor and I are ready to roll into a game with them. 🙂
Looking back over my pre- Gulf Games List, I was fortunate to hit almost everything I’d hoped to. This is remarkable, considering how little headway I seem to have made as of Friday afternoon. The main thing I missed, which I regret, was a Real Game with Susan R. I’m glad we played Take It Easy, Zirkus Flohcati and Africa (and that I was able to leave you with a favorable impression of the latter), but I was looking forward to eating some meat with you (sorry, Ian), and I’m sorry we didn’t get to that. Next time?
It seems almost rote to offer thanks to the Watsons, Schloessers, Douds and Bergs for all they do to make Gulf Games the special event it is! Yet, there’s nothing remotely automatic about the extraordinary and thoughtful ways they serve us all. Thanks again, and may God return to you abundantly beyond all that you have poured forth, pressed down, shaken together, and running over!
The Gulf GamesThat Would Not End: Atlanta
Meta-game: So there we were, snowed out of Home as of Sunday morning, wondering what to do. Do we stay at a rapidly clearing hotel in Birmingham, or head to Atlanta and our connecting flight, knowing we could probably go no further? We decided to go to Atlanta, one step closer to Home, forsaking another Breakfast B. As we left the hotel , Thor and I ran into Sheldon in the parking lot, and told him what we were headed into. He asked us to call him if indeed we got stuck in Atlanta…. This is known as Providence.
My long-lost cousin gave us a ride to the Birmingham airport; once there, we hopped out and waved goodbye- without a thought of perhaps having her stay until we knew what was happening. Silly us. Curbside, we learned that our connecting flight from Atlanta to BWI was already cancelled. We next left a message on Vickie W.’s cell phone (zzzzzzz); realizing it would behoove us to have a plan before leaving Birmingham, we decided to call the front desk at Alta Vista, and have them grab Anyone from the game room, to find Sheldon! Not being boy scouts, we had no contact information for the hotel (having shucked it upon safe arrival); “Alta Vista” was not yet in the phone book, and we couldn’t remember offhand what the old name was. Tick… tick… tick…. calling information…. Tick…tick… tick… getting dangerously close to missing our flight to Atlanta… Once Thor connected with Sheldon and we had our Plan, I began quickly repacking our luggage (un-duct-taping our one suitcase), transferring almost everything out of our checked baggage into our carry-ons, as much as we could carry on. Just then, with our games, clothing, and dirty laundry strewn around in haste, Jon Pessano came toodling by in shorts and t-shirt, carrying a little ditty-duffle as he waltzed off to catch his flight to Tampa. A study in contrasts.
Once in Atlanta, we regrouped a little, then took the Marta train up to Chamblee where Sheldon’s wife picked retrieved us from the station. As I’ve reported earlier, given that we could not get home, we could not have landed in a better situation. Sheldon and Regina’s daughter Laura and her college friend Joe were delayed overnight by the storm as well. The Smiths were more than gracious to us, and… we got to play more games!
After dinner, all but Regina headed over to Ward’s store. Ward has done such a beautiful job. He has the best of games, presented beautifully. Wish him all the best! We walked into the store to behold Ward, Leon and Larry (plus some local color) playing Puerto Rico. The next night, we walked into Leon’s house to behold Larry seated at a table playing a game, along with Leon, Ward, Stven, Joe Huber various Hendees and Battys (and a little Huber), and more local color. Tuesday night, we took the Smiths out to dinner, as a small means of thanking them for their hospitality. I was surprised and disappointed not to spot Larry, Ward, Leon and perhaps Stven at a corner table, playing a game. The string was broken.
Games added to our repertoire over those few days:
Ole
Too Many Cooks
Samarkand
Moderne Zeiten
Metro
Hellas (again, vs. Sheldon.
I also observed the above-mentioned T&E game….
Of the above, we’ll be seeking out Samarkand and Ole. Modern Zeiten was pretty neat, though the Deco Babe is a real turnoff for us. Too Many Cooks wasn’t special enough to bump many of the other games with similar weight and feel.
I’ve already related our final trip home, with my game-breaking move to hop on Thor’s plane.
It’s so good to be home!
Well, that should do it for now, and for a long time to come.
Thanks again, everyone.