CHIPPENHAM BOARDGAMES CLUB – 26/04/2012

1.       We were 10 players in attendance so we split into 2 groups of 5. On table 1 Kevin led a group on “CYCLADES”, a game about the construction of 2 cities on the island group of Cyclades. This is achieved by employing the favour of one of the 5 gods each turn to grant actions such as movement; building; hiring of priest and building temples; worship; and income. Each turn players bid for the god of their choice and carry out its favour. The game looked good and was well received and the eventual winner was Paul.

2.       On table 2 Mike led a group playing “PFEFFERSACKE”, a game about building branches in cities and towns and forging links between them with a view to gaining income and, in certain instances, Influence Points. IP’s can be gained in 3 ways, these being by a) completing the building of cities whereupon half the city’s value is awarded to the majority contributor. b) 2 points are awarded at game end for presence in each different region on the board. c) each 20 dinar at the end scores 1 IP. Briefly a player’s turn consists of placing a new City token on the board which enables the building of branches within it ranging from 2-7 and to open up new routes, then taking either income or placing new branches in a city, then receiving basic income, then founding new branches in adjacent town or cities where they have a viable link, and finally gaining IP’s when a city or cities are ‘completed’. The players have to balance the need to take sufficient income to afford later construction of links to other cities against the need to get enough branches built in a city for scoring purposes. Furthermore they need to expand their network so that they have presence in as many regions as possible, or maybe they could generate lots of income for game end conversion to IP’s. Each player has 2 tokens from the start which they can use during the game to double the outcome of any action they take, i.e. double income or placing 2 branches in one turn. Donna built up an early lead with Roger closeby. Jon then used his double tokens effectively to gain presence in several cities which gave him the chance to  earn good income. Mike was spreading his links over the board hoping to be present in more regions than the other players. Kelly concentrated her efforts in one particular corner of the board. Donna completed 3 cities in one turn to burst away but she was almost caught near the end when Mike did likewise and scored for his regional presence and lots of cash for IP’s. However Donna had sufficient cash reserves to maintain her lead.

3.       On Table 1 Freya and Lucy left but Richard arrived so 4 players played “CARCASONNE”, which has been reviewed before. The winner was Kevin.

4.       Table 2 saw 5 players playing “MONTGOLFIERE”, the ballooning game which was reviewed on 19/01/2012 so see details there. Donna was the leader after round 1 but Jon made a strong recovery in round 2 but Donna still held a healthy lead. In the final round Donna was picked on and therefore Jon was able to go storming through to win whilst the others were close behind Donna. Final scores were Jon 33; Donna 30, Mike 29; Roger 28; Kelly 27. A good laugh, enjoyed by all .!!

Games played and Winners were:

Cyclades – Paul Bulpin;

Pfeffersäcke =Donna Harris;

Carcassonne – Kevin Ward;

Montgolfiere – Jon Bradford.