CHIPPENHAM BOARDGAMES CLUB – 14/07/2011

1.       9 in attendance at the start so we split into 2 tables. On table 1 a group of 6 players played “CITADELS” to its full extent of 8 districts, which meant it went on rather longer than usual as there was more district reduction than normal. The eventual winner was Richard.

2.       On Table Mike introduced Jerry and Poppy to “FRUIT FAIR” but unfortunately part way through he realised that he had not issued the correct number of Planter cards at the start, which is why the fruit was running out!. Also the turn order rules had not been invoked properly and Mike suffered as a result, being in 3^rd place most of the game and therefore not having much fruit left to pick when it was his turn. Play was adjusted and things improved but it had already distorted the game but it did not really affect the eventual outcome. By keeping a large store of fruit Jerry was able to buy the higher valued medals at the Fruit Fair and yet still retain enough fruit to have control of the Raccoon for several turns, which gave him a great advantage. The final scores were wide-ranging, with Jerry on 92, Poppy 60 and Mike 42. An unsatisfactory outing for the reasons stated and Mike takes full responsibility for that.

3.       At this point Jerry and Poppy left so the 7 remaining players played “7 WONDERS LEADERS” an updated version of the popular game. This introduced a new level to the game, with a recruitment phase at the start in which players select 4 Leaders from a pack that is passed around in the normal fashion. Each Leader has different costs to build and they bestow different abilities but they are introduced in the same fashion as the normal resource cards. Mike suffered hugely due to a lack of money with which to buy the resources needed to build his wonder, whilst Rob created a huge Military presence, much to Tony’s dismay. Paul pursued the Civic option, whilst Richard went for Science, as always. Roger used his leader’s ability to obtain resources for nothing so built an impressive number of cards in all the resource categories. Kevin went for the guilds option, with good scoring options from his neighbours. If we discount Mike’s pathetic showing the Final scoring was very close, these being Mike 40, Paul 62, Rob 64, Richard 65, Tony 65, Roger 66, Kevin 67. Everyone agreed that the addition of the leaders were a success without adding too much extra time to the game length. Thanks to Kevin for buying it and we can look forward to many more outings with it in the future.

Games played and Winners were:

Citadels Richard Piesse;

Fruit Fair Jerry Jabelman;

7 Wonders Leaders version Kevin Ward.

CHIPPENHAM BOARDGAMES CLUB – 07/07/2011

1.       11 in attendance at the start so we split into 2 tables. On table 1 Mike introduced 2 new members Cath and Richard , plus Lucy, to the game of “DURCH DIE WUSTE”. This is about building camel trains through the desert such that they connect to oases and water holes, which score the players Victory Points. The twist in the game is that there are 5 colours of camel trains and players cannot extend a train of the same colour next to one of a rival. Player turns are simple, you just select 2 camels of your choice from the stock and extend your camel trains in those colours, scoring points if you can. In addition to the scoring described above if a single camel train completely encloses an area the player will score 1 VP for each hex enclosed. The game ends when the supply of one colour runs out, and then game scoring is completed by awarding 10 VP’s to the owner of the longest chain in each of the 5 colours, with ties gaining 5 points each.  The game is easy to explain and plays quickly, around 45 minutes. The newcomers soon embraced the rules, so much so that Richard won the game by 2 points from Lucy. Well done Richard !!

2.       Table 1 then played a 5-player game of “UNION PACIFIC”, the train game of building track and laying down shares of 11 railroad companies. Players earn money for being the Majority and 2^nd majority shareholder in each company when scoring occurs, which is randomly encountered on 4 occasions, depending when the scoring cards are drawn from the large deck. A highly interactive game, driven by the players extending the length of a track, which increases its value. The owner of the majority shareholding is constantly changing as play progresses. In a tight finish Lucy managed to win with 78 points to Cath’s 76.

3.       Table 2 played a 6-player version of “INFINITE CITY” which has been reported upon before.  Robert continued his recent run of victories with another easy win.

4.       At this point 4 players left so the 7 remaining players played “THE GREAT DALMUTI” at Robert’s request. Paul was playing the game for the first time but he soon picked it up and emerged the winner. The game caused much hilarity in play, with the roles of Great Dalmuti and Great Peon changing hands frequently. A lightweight game, good fun for 30 minutes or so.

5.        With Geoff and Lucy departing the remaining 5 players played the ever-popular “7 WONDERS”. The scores for 4 of the players were quite close as can be seen below but Robert scored an enormous amount of points for his Science cards at the end, which resulted in an overwhelming victory. Final scores were 42; 46; 47; 49 and 73. Well done Rob !!

Games played and Winners were:

Durch die Wuste Richard Chapman;

Union Pacific Lucy Newbury;

Infinite City  Robert Piesse;

The Great Dalmuti Paul Bulpin;

7 Wonders Robert Piesse.