Ludocracy Now

LudocracyNow! Shutters Its Blogging Doors

Hello there, loyal reader.  It is with a half-empty half-full heart that I report that this blog will be taking a sabbatical until TO BE DETERMINED.  Yes, it is true, the self-proclaimed omni-gendered parent of board game tumblrs is closing its french doors.

Not that I’ve stopped gaming!  Just yesterday I lost a game of Summoner Wars as Erik hammerquaked all three of my Benders’ walls (which was so rude it made me want to quit blogging).  But.  I started this blog to make gaming look cool among my friends and among the public general, and noting that there are now many other quality session-report-cum-review board gaming websites out there that make gaming look way more cool, it is time to cast this yoke aside.

I know you guys are like “First google reader, now THIS?!”  But don’t despair, there are still good times to be had!  And why are you reading a board game blog instead of playing, you know, board games anyway?  If I ever do win a game of Battlestar Galactica, however, I may re-open these beblogged doors.  Until next time.  Which will probably be never!

# MetaConsiderations

Posted 3 months ago 7 notes View comments
Well hello there ludosistern and ludobrethren to another installment of Ludocracy Now! plays Tzolk’in: The Mayan Calendar.  This time with competence! My three opponents were new to the gears of ancient hell so my advice to them was “focus on building one monument and making the most of it.”  Hannah, who took my advice to heart, received 33 points from her monument for… last place. Perhaps my advice should have been to please the gods as I won handily through savvy placement of skulls and frequent trips to the altar.  If you recall, the previous game was won by a devout Mark.  Are gods the way to go?  Only in board games! View Larger

Well hello there ludosistern and ludobrethren to another installment of Ludocracy Now! plays Tzolk’in: The Mayan Calendar.  This time with competence!

My three opponents were new to the gears of ancient hell so my advice to them was “focus on building one monument and making the most of it.”  Hannah, who took my advice to heart, received 33 points from her monument for… last place.

Perhaps my advice should have been to please the gods as I won handily through savvy placement of skulls and frequent trips to the altar.  If you recall, the previous game was won by a devout Mark.  Are gods the way to go?  Only in board games!

# Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar

Posted 3 months ago 3 notes View comments
My Bentley Brothers Buffet continues as Jeff and I paired a pair of games of Catchup with a drinkable Pinot Noir (Francis Ford Coppola Director’s 2011 for those keeping track at home).  First game was a warm-up, second game required thoughtful play and reminded me of how special this game is.  Go play it on igGameCenter—in fact, let me know when you’ll be there and I’ll even play it with you. Also two bits of info about this game: 1) Yes the name has changed from Ketchup to Catchup.  2) There is an iOS version of Catchup/Ketchup coming out soon.  When it does you should play it and report back.  I, sadly (or joyfully) am without a smart phone. Edit: Oh oh oh oh yeah, I wanted to mention that I played probably 20 games of Love Letter over the weekend, most using the six-player variant posted here.  Cannibalize a deck of cards and make this game pronto. View Larger

My Bentley Brothers Buffet continues as Jeff and I paired a pair of games of Catchup with a drinkable Pinot Noir (Francis Ford Coppola Director’s 2011 for those keeping track at home).  First game was a warm-up, second game required thoughtful play and reminded me of how special this game is.  Go play it on igGameCenter—in fact, let me know when you’ll be there and I’ll even play it with you.

Also two bits of info about this game: 1) Yes the name has changed from Ketchup to Catchup.  2) There is an iOS version of Catchup/Ketchup coming out soon.  When it does you should play it and report back.  I, sadly (or joyfully) am without a smart phone.

Edit: Oh oh oh oh yeah, I wanted to mention that I played probably 20 games of Love Letter over the weekend, most using the six-player variant posted here.  Cannibalize a deck of cards and make this game pronto.

# Ketchup Catchup

Posted 3 months ago 3 notes View comments

Ludocracy Now is experiencing a bit of a renaissance as last night saw eight (mostly) new Ludocrats meet at the table.  A step stool had to be provided as a place for rest—that’s how you can measure the height of our popularity.

We played Cosmic (although a Crokinole tournament was offered up) and this game took 2.25 full turns (as opposed to 1.5 in a game of five) to determine a winner as fatigue set in and patience wore out.  Unfortunately I was one of those stuck at four colonies, one turn away from assured victory.

This time around people were a little bit more judicious about alliance forming (hence the longer playing time) and I realized hand management is much tougher in a game where you are an infrequent main player.  Still I had a great time and I think I’m learning a little bit more about what it takes to win this game.  Much depends on the meta, however.  Until next time!

# Cosmic Encounter

Posted 3 months ago 3 notes View comments

Last night saw a fantastic game of Cosmic Encounter played as I finally made my way to a shared victory with the turkey vulture type alien woman to the right.

I decided against my patented “promise Negotiate then backstab” and found that the game is easier when everyone at the table isn’t just trying to make you lose.  That and some clever hand management maneuverings put me in position to win on my second turn as I revealed a hand with no encounter cards and drew the 20, 30 and 40 point attack cards from the deck.  I invited Katie and her hand of artifacts to share in victory and we sealed the deal against the Filch.

Love this game.

# Cosmic Encounter

Posted 3 months ago 5 notes View comments

Hi there, blog.  I’ve missed you.  And it is so good to be back reporting on a night of board gaming and wine swilling.

Erik (most valuable guest) and I warmed up with a Hey, That’s My Fish! decided by one point and a Carcassonne that saw big cities beat small farms.

Then!  We got to some new stuff.  Two more ludocrats showed up and we played my home brew Love Letter as we waited for our fifth.  I got Christina out with a lucky Baron only to be Guarded by Tom.  Erik stole Tom’s Princess with the last play (impressive that Tom had the Princess for the entire game without being forced to discard).  It was over in 5 minutes but I can see the possibilities of it as a modern board game qua drinking game.

Nelson, our fifth and nascent ludocrat (and greatest swimmer I’ve ever known), texted ahead to let us know to start without him and he’d fill in.  Ghost Stories seemed like the perfect fit for someone new to gaming and needing to jump in in medias res.  Also Erik hasn’t stopped saying the words “Ghost Stories?” every time I mention “board gaming.”

Predictably, one of us said “Oh this game isn’t so hard” a few turns in, but before we knew it we were stumped and dead with 19 ghosts to go before Wu Feng showed up.  Even with five minds staring at the board we were overrun all over the place and without our precious Qi.

Lots of head scratching after the loss and we would love some advice from the blogaudience.  Nothing too obvious though—strategy advice in the form of a zen koan would be preferred.  We did have a few ideas after our loss and thankfully no one was (audibly) discouraged.

Nothing else to say except: Go Oles.  And, no, if you don’t know where Northfield is, you won’t know what that means.

# Hey That's My Fish! Carcassonne Ghost Stories

Posted 4 months ago 5 notes View comments