Six of the best attended the Hop Pole Inn on Wednesday 14th January. Old faithfuls Neil, Aaron and Peter M set off on an Arcadia Quest while Simon, Sam and I would play the Indian map of Power Grid for the first time. While still the same game in essence, the India variant offers some interesting rule modifications. For instance, resources are scarcer and very restrictive early in the game; garbage-powered plants require an extra resource to power and the threat of power cuts is always prevalent. As soon as a combined total of 7 cities have been built in one round, everyone’s revenues are affected. Also, in the resource-purchasing round each player can only buy a maximum of 1 resource at a time. The bidding rotates as per normal until all players have finished buying goods to power their plants.
As per normal, the key to success in Power grid is timing; that is, lagging behind in last place until right before the finish so as to ensure access to the cheapest resources and building cities before the other players. 3 diverse strategies were in evidence; Simon strived for the best value and efficiency in purchasing plants powered by the most available resources (and hoarding cash like Scrooge); Sam dominated the uranium and free energy markets while I eventually gained a monopoly on garbage-powered plants and attempted to grab the cheapest cities. Like many of my most highly-rated games, the joy of being able to create my own strategy and make my own choices, whilst remaining competitive, is not to be underestimated in Power Grid. Sure, the winner is the player who powers the most cities and so a lot of the tactics are set from the beginning, but every journey to the finishing line is different from the last. Throw in the variety of different maps and here is a game that will provide entertainment for an awful long time. Just ask Simon, the biggest Power Grid fan I’ve met yet. This game was particularly exciting as Simon finished in 3rd place having powered the 17 cities necessary to finish the game, Sam came stunningly from behind to power 18 cities and equal my haul but I gained victory thanks to having 6 (just 6!) more electro left in the bank.
And finally, Aaron threw off the teacher’s curse by achieving a handsome victory in 7 Wonders.
Game results
Arcadia Quest
Neil 13
Peter M 8
Aaron 7
Power Grid
Peter H 18 (winner courtesy of 37 electro in the bank to Sam’s 31)
Sam 18
Simon 17
7 wonders
Aaron 72
Peter M 58
Neil 42
My gamer of the week goes to Neil for his convincing victory in Arcadia Quest.
As per normal, the key to success in Power grid is timing; that is, lagging behind in last place until right before the finish so as to ensure access to the cheapest resources and building cities before the other players. 3 diverse strategies were in evidence; Simon strived for the best value and efficiency in purchasing plants powered by the most available resources (and hoarding cash like Scrooge); Sam dominated the uranium and free energy markets while I eventually gained a monopoly on garbage-powered plants and attempted to grab the cheapest cities. Like many of my most highly-rated games, the joy of being able to create my own strategy and make my own choices, whilst remaining competitive, is not to be underestimated in Power Grid. Sure, the winner is the player who powers the most cities and so a lot of the tactics are set from the beginning, but every journey to the finishing line is different from the last. Throw in the variety of different maps and here is a game that will provide entertainment for an awful long time. Just ask Simon, the biggest Power Grid fan I’ve met yet. This game was particularly exciting as Simon finished in 3rd place having powered the 17 cities necessary to finish the game, Sam came stunningly from behind to power 18 cities and equal my haul but I gained victory thanks to having 6 (just 6!) more electro left in the bank.
And finally, Aaron threw off the teacher’s curse by achieving a handsome victory in 7 Wonders.
Game results
Arcadia Quest
Neil 13
Peter M 8
Aaron 7
Power Grid
Peter H 18 (winner courtesy of 37 electro in the bank to Sam’s 31)
Sam 18
Simon 17
7 wonders
Aaron 72
Peter M 58
Neil 42
My gamer of the week goes to Neil for his convincing victory in Arcadia Quest.