January 10, 2006 |
| For Sale |
| Results | |||
| Player | Score | Place | First Time? |
| Dan | $55,000 | 1 | |
| Annie | $43,000 | 2 | |
| Brian | $42,000 | 3 | * |
| Karla | $41,000 | 4 (Tie) | |
| Scott | $41,000 | 4 (Tie) | |
| Mike | $36,000 | 6 | |
Notes: Annie showed up right before we started playing Boomtown (and mercifully before I went over the rules), so I went with another filler in For Sale, though if I had read my emails I wouldn't have made us wait, as everyone else told me they couldn't make it.
Anyway, I explained the rules and then could not get off the bottom floor. It seemed like I was stuck bidding either prohibitively too high or ducking out too early, and Annie and Dan were the beneficiaries. For instance, Annie would bid 2, then Dan 4, Brian 5, Scott 6, Karla 7. With selections of 8, 12, 16, 22, 23, 25 out there. No one wants to pay 8 for a 25 card, so I'd duck out. It seemed like every time I ducked out I'd get a mediocre to poor card, and then Annie would get a much better one, and Dan would get an even better one. They, as you may notice, were getting them for about 2 or 3, while I'd get crap or near-crap for 0 or 1 or 2.
I did manage to get the 30 card (for $7000), but no other card of mine was higher than 16, and I didn't manipulate the check display very well. In the first draw, there were five card $5000 or lower and one $15000 card. I used my 30, but no one else bid more than 12 or 13, so I could have gotten it for my 16 card. But as 16 isn't really very high, I didn't want to risk it. The rest of my checks were mediocre (I got one of the voids, too).
It was odd to be on the short end of the stick in this one, as I usually do quite well. The auctions went for a lot early, though, and I always ended up with the last unwanted card in the display, much to Annie and Dan's benefit.
| Rette Sich Wer Kann |
| Results | |||
| Player | Score | Place | First Time? |
| Annie | 30 | 1 | |
| Brian | 24 | 2 | * |
| Karla | 22 | 3 | |
| Dan | 19 | 4 | |
| Mike | 18 | 5 | |
| Scott | 14 | 6 | |
Notes: Given the choice, Dan waffled between about 5 things (Annie cried for Bohnanza) so I went with Rette Sich Wer Kann as Karla was anti-Betrayal at House on the Hill and anti-Shadows Over Camelot.
We started off nicely, but then Scott forced everyone (via a captain chip) to throw someone overboard. I got Dan chucked out when I mentioned how he had bragged about his winning streak after For Sale. Heh heh heh.
The chuckles soon turned against me, though. Soon, four boats were sent forward, and I only had guys on two of them. As the swimming mechanic only benefits the last person to go, and the turn order was such that I couldn't reap the benefits, my other 4 guys were swimming among three boats that were bound to be sunk. Thus, my guys were all stuck at the back. When I tried to use a captain to move the white boat forward, I couldn't get it done, as someone else used a captain to move one of the boats that were deprived of green pieces.
It got mega-frustrating for a while, and I felt like I was just a spectator, as I had two guys saved (others had three saved and potentially more) and I was out of captains, with four guys stuck in the rear boats. When my other big green guy was sunk (with one of Dan's little guys) in the bio-hazard boat (orange), I got really upset with my lack of progress and Karla had to calm me down.
I did, and finally, the swimming order began to work in my favor, as the red boat and Deathboat (black) had to give up people for swimming despite being only one spot from the end. I managed to get two pawns into Deathboat and, despite Brian using the last Captain of the game to move the red boat ashore, I managed to get them both safely on land. Unfortunately, just about everyone had more points than I did anyway.
Scott was doing pretty well early on, hosing and using his Captain chips to maximum effect. Then everyone noticed he had everyone alive, and he was targeted big time. Karla was the first big target, as she had gotten 2 people ashore with the first safe boat.
Another funny thing that happened was when a boat with just Brian, Dan, and Karla's folks were in there, and Karla was outnumbered four votes to one, she kept putting her vote down too early with a captain chip showing. We said, "You've got to wait for everyone to vote, Karla." She then revealed her captain chip again. Then she did it again, and Brian and Dan refused to counter her captain chip. She chucked Brian out.
| Pirate's Cove |
| Results | |||
| Player | Score | Place | First Time? |
| Annie | 41 | 1 | |
| Brian | 39 | 2 | * |
| Mike | 34 | 3 | |
| Scott | 25 | 4 | |
| Dan | 23 | 5 | |
Notes: And on to the most frustrating game in the world. I still get incredibly pissed off in this game, though I have ceased to get angry when I see people choosing the same island as me. It's impossible to pick with accuracy where one person is going, much less four, so I can usually live with that sort of conflict...though I still doubt I'd handle it as well as Scott did in this game.
The first round of the game should have tipped us off. Four of us picked crew island while Brian (aka the "Golden Boy") zipped off to his own little island. After a furious battle, Annie went down first, then Dan (though Scott thought he was stuck attacking my hull and missed with all three cannons - I didn't let him choose a new section and re-roll, this game frustrates me enough), then Scott managed to take me out. I was happy just to get 2 points for surviving. Scott seemed happy, but with a hull at minimum capacity was something he was really going to have trouble with the rest of the game.
After that bleak first round, Annie rocketed into contention, though she didn't acquire many points. She pretty much avoided everyone (as did Brian), though Scott used a Navigation card to go to another island when he and Annie had both chosen cannon. She was short on cards (I don't think she picked up another one after being sunk in that first round) but gathered a ton of cash and upgraded her ship nicely.
Dan and Scott then kept getting blown up, once Dan did when he accidentally chose the pirate's island. I gathered meager amounts of treasure and less money, but my collection of fame points made me look like I was doing better than I was. I avoided battle throughout the mid-game, though. Brian and Annie also avoided combat.
In the last half of the game, Scott was sunk almost every turn. He kept choosing places where somebody else was and kept getting his hull blown to bits. One thing he did was to use the grape shot attack in a battle against Annie (trying to blow up her sails, which was the only weak link on her ship - at 4), and it only hit with two (out of four, with a 3-6 a hit). He eventually was sunk, and that bit of luck (though the odds were certainly with her) kept Annie in solid shape. Annie went to Sail island unopposed the next turn (the only potential rival was Brian) and she fixed up her ship.
Dan kept complaining that he couldn't play a Royal Navy card on Brian (to slow him down) because he had the counter card. So I said, "Play it on me!" as I had a nice collection of battle cards and thought I could handle it. I should have, but, of course, in true spirit of this retarded game, my luck was pitiful.
I used a smokescreen to make hits possible only on a "6". Dan started the battle by rolling one six. This was a bad omen. I then used my Grapeshot attack using four dice. I figured I'd get him if I only managed to hit with three of them. I rolled 6, 2, 1, 1. Unbe-fucking-lievable. Battle over, as my cannons were now down to 3 (I had done more damage to myself than the stupid ass ship). Dan continued to roll sixes on his next two rolls to mercifully finish my hopeless self off.
I was furious. I left the table to calm down, and when I returned, Dan apologized for attacking me with it, but he had to use it on somebody. Of course, I told him to attack me with it and was more upset at my unbelievably horrible luck. Later, we found that Scott had the same card, and he and Dan could have co-ordinated an attack on Brian by usinig first one, then the other card.
In the next round, Annie and I had to fight the Royal Navy (again). I promised her I'd team up and sink it, so she focused her shots on the navy instead of me. I wanted to split the four points with her, so I kept my promise. Of course, it was me that had to sink it, giving her first opportunity to turn her guns on her former ally. Not that it mattered, but she knocked my cannons down to two. I then used the card that damages all sections of a ship and was able to get in one more hit before my ship was crippled. Annie's ship looked a lot worse, though, thanks to our efforts. Not that it mattered, though. She was still going to be bad-ass enough to defeat Captain Hook with Brian next turn.
All that remained was for Brian and Annie to collect treasure and fight Captain Hook on the last turn. Brian upgraded his cannon to five in turn 11, costing him 8 gold. This actually probably cost him the game. At this point, gold is actually worth more than weapon upgrades, and as he had 5 gold to bury on the last turn, he would have had three additional points!
Brian and Annie took out Captain Hook without much worry while Dan, Scott, and I fought over the three points available over on Sail island. Somehow I came out on top, thanks to a weird combination of rolls and effects (and with much thanks due to Scott's crappy rolling). I therefore nabbed third place.
Had I defeated the Royal Navy that turn, things would have been different in the last two turns. I would have gone after Captain Hook with a better ship, and had I won that, I may have had enough juice (and treasure) to go for the win on the last turn. Had I been Scott, I would have been angry as hell all game, and the fact that he notched 4th place is a credit to his patience and effort. As it was, he was probably blown up in at least 5, maybe 6 or 7 turns. Dan wasn't much better.
This game is fun until my expectations get smooshed, and then I get too riled up over it. I gotta stop playing it.