MBT from 2-2-8

Saturday, February 02, 2008

O:8S 5.6 Well, it's been a good week, not only for snow, but for game playing. Sunday night saw the return of Big Bri and the Princess Cowgirl to the game table. TPC showed up as BB and I were manuvering our way through a second game of All The King's Men. I have referred in the past to this game as 'chess lite', and I dusted off an old chess play I learned from Bobby Fischer to pull out a couple of wins. With the king needing to make at least 2, if not 3, moves to get off the back rank, he is highly succeptible to a 2 knight stacked back rank mate. If the king manages to stay in his 2 knight, 3 archer box, this ploy can be a tad difficult to carry off. But, if the king is open to one side of the board or the other, it becomes fairly easy to trap him behind his own archers, which, in their starting position, are incapable of moving backward to defend. Just to be extra rude, I pulled this off once from the left side of the board, and once from the right. This is a nice light strategy game with a per game playing time of about 20 minutes or so. If you can find a copy, by all means, pick it up. Thanks to Big Bri, who not only reintroduced me to this game, but gifted me with a really nice copy a few years ago. The second game to hit the table on Sunday was Poison. One of my faves for the production values and artwork alone, it's also a quick learn. I have come to the conclusion that it may not be the best choice for a 3 player group, though. The strategy of play loses some flavor when each player can simply pick a color to try and collect in order to be able to discard all those points. This usually ends up being whatever you have the most of in your hand. I've also never benn really fond of dealing out a dummy hand that doesn't enter play. Not that I can count cards, but sometimes you need to have an idea of what's left out there in the other's hands. The odd number of cards in the deck that doesn't make for an even 4 player deal is another odd thing about this game. I still like the game, but it tends to play a little more cutthroat with 4 players. I did have lots of fun watching BB and TPC scrapping it out on the last hand, though. BB, if I go back and find cheese dust on those cards, I am gonna beat your ass. A few days went by, and then Thursday saw the return of The Princess Cowgirl. Along with her came about 17,834" of snow. After Sliding her way to DeKalb and surviving a mauling by my 2 youngest, she opted to open the evening with a session of Connect Four. Pretty sneaky, sis. (Raise your hand if you remember that one....) Didn't take too long to get back into the swing of this strategy quickie. All those games I played against my older sister years and years ago came racing back to mind. This was another of my garage-sale-less-than-a-buck finds. I did notice that even a game as simple as this is being made on the cheap now. Instead of the nice hard plastic checkers that gave that satisfying rattling clatter when you drained the board, now they're using some waxy, soft plastic that just kinda thwacks down on the table. No fun there. It's also still a game, much like several in the Gamemaster series, that just swims in it's box. Waaaaaaay too space, and waaaaay too little packing material guarantee that this will be one of the first boxes in you game pile to cave in. Ah, progress. Why, I remember back when...... Then it was time to move on to something a tad more bovine. As the snow continued to pile up outside, and I was bemoaning the loss of my first love, Cosmic Cows came catapulting from it's container. Completely cool! OK, that's enough of that. WARNING: The Princess Cowgirl is freaking dangerous when you put dice in her hand! Still, she managed to get the better of me in this one. This game has great production value, and cute (yes , I said it) art, but strategy gets sacrificed for luck of the roll. I find it greatly entertaining for the sheer frustration factor that it produces at times. Mooooo. The close of this rather snowy evening was a best of 3 battle of Gobblet!. In the course of the game, TPC did come up with what may not be a million dollar idea, but it could be worth a few thousand: Deluxe Turntable Gold Limited Collector's Edition Gobblet!.Not at all a bad idea, as line of sight can get a bit tricky in this one. This is a good game to park on the coffee table, as the wood board and pieces just beg to be handled. The sturdy wooden box will stand up well to being in a pile of games, but it seems a shame to hide this one in the closet. If you were to crush one of the carved wood playing pieces, well, good luck trying to fix it. This is another one I like, but I haven't put enough games in to have developed any type of strategy whatsoever. Still, I managed to squeak out a pair of victories. As TPC disappeared into the snowy night, I was left to bid farewell to January, and to welcome February with shovel in hand. After a questionable start, and then a late month surge, I exit the first month of 2008 with a total of 8 different games played. Not stellar by any means, but not bad. Did you feel the Earth move with the significance of that moment? Nah, me neither. Bits And Pieces *A lesson learned from an evening with UncleArt and The Educator: Irregardless of how orgasmically good their tiramasu is, never eat at an Italian resturant that doesn't know how to cook pasta. Goodbye Filo Spinatos, hello Villa Verone. *Yes, a dog's digestive tract can process drywall, and if cute enough, said same dog can escape the brunt of Pinklady's wrath. But only just. *Anybody out there got a copy of "Ultraphobic" by Warrant that I can rip? *Happy upcoming birthday to LaLa of Tiki Bar TV! *Adios to AS, JS, and M3 as they wing their way across the Pacific to Hawaii. You know, it would be a shame if Meenah were to have any 'accidents' while you were gone..... Perhaps it would be best to appease the tiki gods as a sign of reverence.... *For anyone who is interested in wasting a chunk of their life, the level cap for a warrior in Puzzle Quest is 50, and by the time you reach that, beating lord Bane and finishing the game is a snap. *The studio sapce remodel continues with the addition of a +2 Loveseat of Unbearable Comfort, which has also proven to be really good at destroying latchplates in an unnoticed manner. *The notion of buying a new-to-us house was abandoned in favor of the idea of finishing the one we have. Sorry M1, no commission for you. *To Cromag, a solution to your purchasing issues in a mere 2 words: Muchkin expanders. I have the base set, and that's it. Go crazy. The list you requested is as follows: Wise Guy, Big Kahuna, Odd Ball, Doozie, Matched Set, and Patience.