All Questions
11
votes
16answers
3k views
What are some good 8 player games? [closed]
What's a good strategy game for 8 players? Many games can be played by 8 players, but suffer from a loss of pace, and long waits between turns. What games have parallel planning phases, or lots of ...
12
votes
1answer
302 views
Solitaire rules for Catan Card Game?
I want to play the Catan Card Game more often than I can find someone with the patience to play it with me. I know there are some good solitaire rules for Settlers of Catan, but are there any for the ...
12
votes
7answers
716 views
What kingdom set would lead to the highest scoring games of Dominion?
Obviously anything that puts curses into circulation would be anathema. I'm not necessarily looking for one player to have the highest score possible, so much as to have games where everyone's scores ...
10
votes
2answers
505 views
What changes to the game will the “On The Brink” Pandemic expansion offer me?
I'm trying to decide if I should get the pandemic expansion on the brink. Here's the obvious advantages I can see:
lets you play with 5 people
adds some variety with new cards
options to make the ...
13
votes
5answers
3k views
Minimum bid rule for Monopoly auctions
Other questions have asserted that many people don't actually auction properties as instructed in the rules. Monopoly doesn't specify any rules to control the auction. I have seen auctions stretch ...
6
votes
1answer
312 views
9-player Advanced Civilization rules
We're playing our yearly Advanced Civilization game this Saturday, and we may have 9 people. Does anyone have any 9-player rules?
We have all the extension maps.
11
votes
1answer
927 views
Does Forbidden Island usually need any rule variants for playing with 5+ people?
I don't see any reason why Forbidden Island wouldn't be able to handle 5 or maybe even 6 players with some simple variants. Does anyone have any experience with different player numbers with some ...
9
votes
5answers
1k views
How long does it take to play Diplomacy?
I guess this varies a lot from game to game, but I've seen everything from 120 to 360 minutes, and wondered where the average lies.
If it's closer to 360, I don't think I will bother to buy it. I ...
8
votes
3answers
247 views
Does my Carbonite Cousin need feeding?
For Christmas, I received Agricola - The Goodies. It's a fun expansion that provides new themed farm boards, shaped resources and animals, stickers for your people, and four interesting decks of ...
28
votes
8answers
10k views
Is there much strategy and planning in 7-Wonders or is mostly luck?
I have played about 15 games of Seven Wonders now.
When I ask the winning player why they won, they tend to tell me what they did rather than why they did it, and rarely does it involve anything ...
12
votes
2answers
731 views
Are there any differences between the Ticket to Ride games I should take into account when choosing one?
There are many different variants and expansions for the Ticket to Ride series, and I'm curious about the differences. I know the standard version and the Europe version differ only by map, but I'm ...
8
votes
7answers
575 views
How difficult is Puerto Rico to learn for first time players?
I've heard a lot of good things about Puerto Rico, but from the 12-page manual it seems a little complex. I revel in the challenge of learning new and difficult games, but sadly the friends I play ...
12
votes
4answers
1k views
How does the Amazons “+4 When Attacking” power work?
So I got a copy of Small World, and in our first game, the "Amazons" came up early. According to the rules, they get "+4 when attacking". What exactly does that mean? We argued it out and what we ...
15
votes
4answers
9k views
How can I play Dominion with 5+ players without expansions?
I am going to get a Dominion expansion (probably intrigue based on its popularity) but in the meantime I'm curious about what I can do with just the basic set. I know it was designed for 2-4, but I ...
13
votes
4answers
1k views
When do trading deals become too unbalancing?
I've played a few games of Settlers of Catan with friends and seen some deals emerge in the trading that don't seem quite right to me. When do deals that extend beyond the current trade become ...
12
votes
2answers
348 views
What is the best way to clean dirty cards
I have a few frequently played card games where the cards no longer feel "clean". They aren't stained or anything, just a bit grimy. Is there an effective way to clean the cards without damaging the ...
7
votes
2answers
292 views
Flexibility of number of players in Fluxx
I've played Fluxx in groups from 2
through 10; Zombie Fluxx seems to work
even better at the ends of that range.
from here
The boxes of all the Fluxx games say 2-6 players, but how well do ...
9
votes
1answer
540 views
What happens if you steal an Elixir of Immortality and then use it?
In an EDH (Commander) game recently, Alice used Thada Adel, Acquisitor to steal an artifact out of Bob's deck, the Elixir of Immortality, and cast it.
That artifact's ability says:
{2}, {T}: You ...
5
votes
2answers
1k views
Arkham Horror - Tips for making the game more dynamic and fun when you play with more than 5 players?
I'm new to this game, but I recently hosted a play with friends. With 8 people the game was very slow and difficult to play. What would you recommend to make the game a little more dynamic and fun ...
11
votes
2answers
520 views
Arkham Horror: dominant personality issue?
I recently experienced the problem mentioned here, with myself being one of the enthusiasts pushing other party members around. It wasn't intentional, it's just that the structure of the game lends ...
5
votes
2answers
805 views
Ferries and Tunnels in Ticket to Ride Expansions
My wife and I play a lot of Ticket to Ride: Nordic Countries but recently we discovered we'd been playing Ferries incorrectly. Oops!
A ferry is depicted on the board as, e.g., 4 red spaces and 2 ...
14
votes
1answer
640 views
What are the difference between Chinese and Japanese rules in Go?
What are the differences? And do these differences influence strategy?
13
votes
4answers
719 views
How do you pronounce Agricola?
I played my first game of Agricola yesterday. Naturally, I'm left with a bunch of questions, but chief among them is: How do you pronounce the name of this game? Our group was split pretty evenly ...
17
votes
14answers
567 views
Any good way to add a handicap in Dominion?
I play Dominion pretty regularly with one group of friends, but only occasionally with another group. This creates a pretty big experience gap between me and the second group, and I'm afraid they ...
2
votes
1answer
115 views
Tales of Arabian Nights — Story versus Destiny and variants?
In the ZMan version of Tales of Arabian Nights, you choose 20 points between Story and Destiny. I tend to do 10 of each or something similar. Is this the best strategy?
Also, the game is very ...
8
votes
5answers
1k views
Is there a 10 player expansion for Settlers of Catan? Where can I get it?
Somebody told me that he has an extension for Settlers of Catan that allows play with up to ten players. Who made it?
Is it still sold?
2
votes
1answer
309 views
Scrabble computer version that uses the new dictionary? (OSPD4/OTCWL2)
Is there a version of the computer Scrabble game that uses the new dictionary (not really new anymore, came out in 2006)? I know about ISC, but we're looking for something that my technophobic ...
4
votes
2answers
306 views
Best opening in Hansa Teutonica?
What opening move do you prefer in Hansa Teutonica with 3, 4, or 5 players?
3
votes
1answer
533 views
Paper thickness (weight) to use for card tabs/dividers?
I'm planning on building a custom storage solution for my Dominion cards (to fit the expansions in the main box with the base set). For part of this, I will need to cut some tabs similar to the ones ...
13
votes
1answer
3k views
What Are The Official Rules for Carcassonne: The River?
I played a game of Carcassonne last night with some friends, using amongst other expansions, the river.
Their "house rule" was that both the river Source and Lake tiles do NOT wrap around: on each ...
7
votes
8answers
966 views
Getting started with trick-taking games (whist, euchre, bridge, pinochle, etc.) [closed]
I've heard there are a lot of different trick-taking games out there, such as whist, bridge, euchre, pinochle, oh hell, hearts etc. I've heard a lot of good things about these games, but have very ...
12
votes
4answers
597 views
Dominion - Defeating the Alchemist
I have a friend who loves this card. I know that every time it's on the table, he will load up on them, and chain long turns that take ages. It's even more powerful when Scout and/or Apothecary ...
13
votes
14answers
3k views
Games that can be played with just normal playing cards that are engrossing enough for a hardcore gamer [closed]
Most of my family likes playing crazy eights, 31, and occasional even go fish. I'm more into games with a bit more strategy and intrigue that require a decent amount of brain-work to play masterfully. ...
10
votes
5answers
656 views
Do you know any rules that make Pandemic's difficulty more even?
Pandemic varies vastly in difficulty depending on the number of players. Does anyone know of any custom rules that make it more even?
10
votes
3answers
484 views
What factors should I consider when choosing card sleeves?
There seem to be a lot of options when it comes to card sleeves. What factors do I need to consider about different sizes, materials, and quality of sleeves when deciding which to purchase?
How ...
8
votes
2answers
140 views
Mystery of the Abbey - How to track clues over time?
If I have Novice Gerard in my hand early in the game, and quickly learn that player A has one Templar Novice crossed off and player B has one Templor Novice crossed off, I know I can eliminate all ...
14
votes
5answers
1k views
What is a good way to make Water Effects in Terrain?
I am working on some Terrain for Warmachine, and I am interested in making some water effects. What is a good way to go about doing that?
I am planning on using Foam Core as the base of a lake, ...
2
votes
2answers
158 views
In Alien Frontiers, how does Raider's Outpost work after a ship has been teleported to another Orbital Facility?
Scenario setup:
A player uses the Raider's Outpost by docking a 3-4-5 set of ships.
Same player uses an Orbital Teleporter to move the 5 ship to another Orbital Facility.
Do the 3 and 4 ships ...
9
votes
1answer
419 views
Catan and Seafarers 5-6 player expansion
I have both standard Catan and Catan Seafarer, thinking about buying the player extension to expand both games to 5-6 players. If I only buy the Seafarer's player extension, can I also use it onto my ...
3
votes
4answers
775 views
Where can I play Hearts online? [closed]
I would like to play against other people.
Can't seem to find any sites.
9
votes
6answers
3k views
Examples of board games with good/interesting rules for trading?
Trading is in my opinion often an overlooked aspect of rules for board games. The lack of such rules often results in players modifying or making up these rules themselves. While making up the rules ...
13
votes
4answers
7k views
What's an effective Small World strategy for new players?
I've played one game of Small World. I thoroughly enjoyed it, despite losing badly. For one, I had no game plan, and was sort of just trying things randomly. Is there an effective, yet basic, ...
12
votes
1answer
845 views
In Dominion, how do Duration cards interact with King's Court / Throne Room?
For example, suppose I play a King's Court on a Lighthouse. Do I get +$3 now and +$3 next turn? +$3 now and +$1 next turn?
19
votes
4answers
825 views
What are common contracts in Catan?
Players in my Catan groups never reneg on deals, so we have a number of common contracts. For example, we often sell each other a "Not-Hit," the right to be avoided the next time the seller gets to ...
16
votes
4answers
569 views
Calculating luck as a factor in board games?
I´m hooked on Carcassonne but feel that after you learned the basic tactics it is mostly a game of luck. This has me wondering, when designing board games how would one go about calculating the luck ...
21
votes
1answer
757 views
Why is Pandemic's Bio-terrorist Challenge not recommended with five players?
The rules say the bio-terrorist challenge is for three and four player games and is explicitly not recommended for five players. Why is that? If it's a difficulty issue, couldn't the number of ...
13
votes
1answer
406 views
Khet opening set-ups
What are the different merits of the Khet opening set-ups - Classic, Imhotep & Dynasty?
14
votes
4answers
349 views
Is it unsportsmanlike to concede when you believe you cannot win?
I've had a long running debate with some folks I play with regarding concession. Some argue that is it is unsportsmanlike to concede a game if you are not doing very well. I contend however, that if ...
14
votes
4answers
2k views
How can I play Pandemic with 6 players?
I've recently bought Pandemic, and really liked the game. But since the basic game is only 2-4 players, I ordered the expansion "On the Brink", which brings it up to 5 players.
Is there a rules ...
14
votes
28answers
2k views
What are good games to play during a one-hour lunch break? [closed]
On any given day we can have any number of players, up to ten, so that's not a limitation. Keep in mind that setup, play and packing up needs to be done in the hour. My coworkers are all experienced ...
