Another Farewell

Rose Byington has returned to New York with our sincere wishes that she'll find someone to keep up her Tichu addiction.

Goodbye, Rose, and the best of luck. We'll miss you.

Middletown 08/29/08

With Damascus canceled due to the closing of the rec center... Middletown moved it's gaming to Friday night to avoid a conflict with UMD football

In attendance:

• Scott Fox
• Judy Trent
• Scott Fisher
• Bryan Snyder

Games Played:

• Glory to Rome
• Race for The Galaxy
• Galaxy Trucker

Informal reports tell us the Bryan "Schooled" the others in all three games. Anyone who was there care to elaborate?

Next month, normal Middletown gaming at 3;00pm on Saturday, Sept 27. See you there!

Damascus 08/22/08

Eighteen gamers once again...

• David, Noreen, Corwin & Andrew Fair
  
• Jason Cheng
• Eric & Laura Reinhold
• David & Martha Briggs
• Bob & Ben Jones
• Rick & Linda Pasquale
• Howard Wagner
  
• Paul Harada
• Luke Conte
• David & Nadine Kuijt

Welcome to first time visitors David & Nadine. We hope you had as great a time playing with us as we did playing with you!

Follow the links below to see the scores and the players, or see the full list of games played:

• We had three plays of Dominion.
• We played On the Underground.
• Blue Moon City came back once again.
• Auf Achse put in an appearance, and everyone seemed to like this older title.
• The classic Princes of Florence was another hit.
• There were 2 games of (wait for it) Tichu.
• And a 4-player game of Agricola.

The next two sessions are moved to other locations due to the center being closed for maintenance. See you back here on September 12.

Germantown 08/18/08

My first session back from vacation!

Attending:

• Leslie Barkley
• Aubrey Bell
• David and Martha Briggs
• Richard Christin
• Dave Fair
• Todd Heidenreich
• Doug Hoylman
• Bob Jones
• Carol Loman
• Eric and Laura Reinhold
  

First up, a desperate race to save humanity! Pandemic with Doug, Leslie, Aubrey & Dave Fair. Dave reports their first victory! “It started off with a heavy Scarlet Fever problem, but fast work there led to a quick cure. Once we had that under control, the black death was next, and while a few sudden outbreaks of Yellow fever and the Blues slowed us down, we were able to keep things under control until all the cures were found, and the world was safe.”

Next came a perennial favorite, Showmanager. Capturing top honors in the three most important cities is a sure recipe for success, and by taking only tiny loans and getting some great luck with the cards, Carol managed an easy win. Final scores Carol 63, Eric 41, Leslie 40, Dave Fair 34, Doug 25, and David B. 22.

We’ve played a lot of Cheeky Monkey lately because it’s quick and fun. In this game, Carol destroyed us, taking our animals and making them her own. Final scores: Carol 37, Bob 23, Leslie 18, Dave Fair 4, Doug 3, and Eric 3.

The excellent Race for the Galaxy was played as we all anxiously await the pending expansion. Todd won in a convincing victory. Todd 40, Aubrey 29, Laura 26, Richard 22.

Since Dave’s a playtester for the excellent game, Dominion, we played it twice, both plays with the "First Play" setup. Dave used the Mine/Remodel strategy in game one, and the Village/Market/Smithy in the second, while Aubrey used the Bureaucrat in the second game. First game scores were Dave 44, Leslie 31, and Carol 23. Second game scores were Aubrey 43, Dave 41, and Leslie 20.

Masons involves building city walls and towers, then building homes and palaces. I managed to use my scoring cards most effectively, taking the win. Scores were Bob 132, Eric 118, Doug 112, and Martha 105.

The fun filler of waste disposal and recycling, R-Eco, has seen a good amount of play. Three of the players were overcome by the fumes, apparently, as I crushed everyone else. Bob 20, Eric 3, Martha 2, David B. 1.

Damascus 08/15/08

Thirteen gamers in attendance...

• David, Noreen, Corwin & Andrew Fair
  
• Jason Cheng
• Rick & Linda Pasquale
• Eric & Laura Reinhold
• David & Martha Briggs
• Lance Slifka
  
• John Stup
  

Follow the links below to see the scores and the players, or see the full list of games played:

• Started off the night with Duell/En Garde
• Followed up by herding cows in Zoff in Buffalo
• One round of 6 Nimmt while others played...
• Ticket To Ride: Europe, in a very close match.
• Another election season with 1960; The Making of the President.
• Blue Moon City, once a staple, made another appearance.
• The classic Splotter game Bus was played.
• Two games of Agricola, a 3-player contest, and a 4-player one were played.
• Ysphahan, where no one tried my CCC strategy.
• Tichu, of course.
• And, finally, Cheeky Monkey.

See you soon!

Ten Commandments of Gaming

Shannon Appelcline has a good article posted on Boardgamenews.

Our group seems to practice these rules pretty well already, but I thought everyone might enjoy the article.

The Ten Commandments of Gaming

Here's a sample:

1. Thou Shalt Be Even Tempered and Good Natured. Be not surly if the game goes poorly for you, if a neighbor breaks a deal, or if you feel your position is impossible to win. Instead, go forth with a smile, and thus continue to enjoy the game yourself and make it enjoyable for others. Further, address your temperament to the mood of the game. Do not be loud and boisterous if your gaming partners are not, and similarly do not be dour and sullen when there is an air of frivolity upon the table. If the temperament of the table does not suit your own, then find another table rather than forcing your mood upon others.

2. Thou Shalt Not Blame Thy Failings On Others. Neither blame the dice nor the game for your loss. Do not harp upon how badly designed the game is--unless perhaps it is the sentiment of the entire table. And especially, never blame your losses upon the bad play of others. He who sayeth “The winner of Puerto Rico is he who sitteth to the left of the newest player” is an arrogant ass who was not invited back for the next game. If you can, instead speak well of others’ plays, congratulating them upon the brilliant moves which pushed you down into ignoble defeat.

Damascus 08/08/08

Eighteen gamers in the eight day of the eighth month, in the eighth year of the new century...

• David, Noreen, Corwin & Andrew Fair
  
• Jason Cheng
• Rose Byington
• Bob, Carol & Ben Jones
• Rick & Linda Pasquale
• Eric & Laura Reinhold
• David, Martha, & Rebecca Briggs
• Bryan Snyder
• Dan Barnett

Follow the links below to see the scores and the players, or see the full list of games played:

• First up was a game of Ice Flow. This is a fairly abstract game with a unique theme of trying to cross the Bering Straits in an arctic race.
• Next to finish was Tal der Abenteuer: Die Schatzsuche im Himalaja. An interesting game with similar mechanics to Honeybears.
• A quick game of Can't Stop was next...
• Followed by Alhambra.
• A classic game of betting on the ponies, Royal Turf was a big hit.
• Metro is another classic game that hit the table.
• The elections came early, or late depending on your perspective, in 1960: The Making of the President.
• Power Grid ENBW is a special map for a German power company. It is brutal.
• There were 2 games of Dominion, using 2 different card mixes.
• 4-player Agricola may be the best way to play.
• Tichu hit the table twice

See you next week!

Farewells

Just a quick moment to say a heartfelt goodbye to the following gamers who have recently left the area:

• Lance Jones (Moved to Atlanta)
  
• Marshall Miller (Moved to Boston)
  
• Brandy Cunningham (Also Boston)
  
• Bill Trac (Also, Also Boston)
  
• Melinda & Ruben Carbonell (Moved to Colorado)
  

You will all be missed, and we enjoyed our time together. It was too brief.

Good Luck, and Good Gaming!

Germantown 08/04/08

Bob has by now traded in his Tinkerbell outfit for space diaper...

A total of 9 gamers showed up...

• David Fair
• Doug Hoylman
• Eric & Laura Reinhold
• David Briggs
• Aubrey & Shannon Bell
• Leslie Barkley
• Bill Salvatore

Games Played:

• Pandemic: The world succumbed to disease as Dave, David, Bill, and Doug proved unable to do anything to control the massive outbreaks in Asia.
• Pandemic: Trying again, we came closer this time, but still failed, this time with outbreaks everywhere.
• Ticket to Ride: The Card Game: Eric (81), Laure (91), Leslie (93). Eric reported that he had 5 (!!) left over, unused wild cards in his stack.
• Cheeky Monkey: Leslie (5), Eric (7), Laura (15)
• Race for the Galaxy: The Worlds Greatest Mining cards kept coming Dave's way, and he put them to good use. Final scores: Aubrey (27), Bill (33), Eric (33), Dave (61). Dave scored 34 points just in shipping!
• Dominion: It was a first game for both Bill and Aubrey, but the game was well received. Final scores: Eric (17), Bill (17), Aubrey (25), Dave (48)
• Stone Age: David B. (95), Leslie (161), Doug (170), Shannon (205)

See you in 2 weeks, when Bob returns and goes back to his lawyer clothes.

Damascus 08/01/08

And, the final of the catch-up posts for Damascus!

14 Gamers:

• David, Noreen, Corwin & Andrew Fair
• Doug Hoylman
• Jason Cheng
• Rose Byington
• Rick & Linda Pasquale
• David, Rebbecca, & Martha Briggs
• Jared King
• Nathaniel Klinger

Games Played:

• Flaschenteufel: Doug (33), Dave (79), Jason (92)
• Shadows over Camelot (with Merlin's Company): Traitor Doug earned 3 Black Swords while remaining undiscovered, and the Loyal Knights (Linda, Rick, Jason, Rose and Dave) earned 10 white ones
• Ticket to Ride: Switzerland: Martha (136, David (90)
• Blue Moon City: Martha (5, David (4)
• Caylus: Rick (80), Doug (95), Jason (112)
• Tichu: Dave & Linda: (975) vs. Rose & Noreen (1025)
• Dominion: Noreen (17), Dave (11), Nathaniel (10), Jared (4)
• Metro: Dave (29), Doug (30), Jason (42), Nathaniel (44), Jared (59)

See you on the 8th!