Of all the Game Clubs, in all the towns, in all the world...

...she had to walk into mine.

As time goes by, the game club is graced with new members- random passerbys who become interested in the goings-on like Val, people drawn in by our amazing (and presently non-existent, oddly enough) advertising like Kaylin, and of course, old friends stopping by for a good time, like the Magnificent Angie.

On September 5th, the only word I can use to describe the number of people is "a buttload". Well...that's not true. I'm sure there's a word for the number. For example, if seventeen people had come, "seventeen" would be the appropriate word to describe such the number. However, all of that is rather pointless semantics and kind of gets in the way of the whole telling the story of what happened on tuesday thing.

Let's just say there were a lot of people, more than I personally have ever seen before, especially on the first day, especially without any advertising! ...yet.

Truthfully, the vast majority of this blog was written by Chris. I'm just doing a bit of editing and adding what was left out, as well as adding a bunch of pictures! A big thanks to Chris for his help with this absolutely GARGANTUAN game day!

Now let's get on to the action!
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Easter Island

Players: Sean & Chris

New game!

This is a nifty little 2 player game. It has a few elements of Defelexion, but without actual lasers. You just have to sort of imagine that they're there. You place Easter Island-style big head guys on the board, as well as little light-beam starting points around the perimeter. You set it up so that you can launch a light beam to destroy your opponents' pieces. You get to make 2 moves per turn, which means you have to imagine what your opponent is plotting and plan for AT LEAST 2 moves ahead. Ouch.

Chris won the first game, Sean won the second. OF COURSE, we discovered at the end that we were playing it wrong... the game is supposed to end when someone has been knocked down to one character left on the board. We were playing until total elimination, when in fact you are supposed to play until a person has been brought down to a single fellow left on the board. We found out why, too -- when you each have a single character, you can hit a stalemate.

I'm pretty sure 65% of the games we've played were played wrong the first time...

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Pepper

Players: Pat, Molly, Sean, Mike2, Fenwick, Chris K.

Another new game! This is a card game which comes in a rather nondescript tin, and there's not a lot of info on the box. I simply bought it because it was by Out of the Box publishing, makers of Apples to Apples, Wallamoppi, and many other games I enjoy. AND it was cheap!

This actually has some elements of Pig Pile. Each person is dealt five cards. There are five colored suits. Player one picks a card and throws it at another player. That player must then choose a card of the same color or a higher number and throw THAT at any other player, who must do the same thing. So play jumps around the table -- each player gets to choose who will go next. If a player is unable to play a card which is the same color, or a higher number, as the card played, that player must pick up ALL the cards played in front of him/her. That player then gets to play any card to another player, and play continues as above.

The object: Be the first person who is out of cards.

It's fun, simple, and fast paced.

Here's how many wins each person had:

Pat	Molly	Sean	Mike2	Chris
1	0	1	0	2

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Things... Humour in a Box

Players: Justin (replaced by Mike1), Josh, Val, Ashlei, Sean, Chris K., Dave, Mike2, Fenwick, Kaylin

Whenever we have fourteen thousand people, Things... is one that is sure to come out. We've played it before, and it's always good for a laugh or 2. We generally like the imaginitive games (like Balderdash), and this one is just pure fun. We played quite a few rounds with a large group...

Some examples of the categories:

And here's how the scoring went...

Justin (replaced by Mike1)	Josh	Val	Ashlei	Sean	Chris K.	Dave	Mike2	Fenwick	Kaylin
1 (3)	6	4	6	11	9	0	6	1	1

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The Great Dalmuti

Players: Fenwick, Sean, Chris K., Josh, Ashlei, Dave, Kaylin, Mike2, Nolan (who came in soon after we began), TJ (who joined even later)

The basic concept and game mechanic goes by many, many other names and is played with a 'standard' card deck. Depending on what high school/college you went to you may know it as President or A***ole. Versions of it have been played for a VERY long time around the world. Richard Garfield, the designer (ever heard of Magic: The Gathering? That's his.) of THIS version nods to the grand history of the game in the liner notes of the instructions. [I wish every game had designer commentary about the history, inspiration, and design of games.]

Anyhoo -- this version has a clever twist to the deck. The 1 is the most powerful card, and the 12 is the least. The number not only tells the value of a card, but also tells HOW MANY of that card is in the deck. SO, there's a heap of cheap cards, but the hot ones are rare.

A turn begins with someone playing a set of cards, which then determines how many cards every other player must play of a stronger denomination. If someone starts with THREE 11's, for example, the next person must follow with a three-of-a-kind that is stronger (a lower number) than 11's. THREE 7's would do it, but THREE 12's would NOT. If you are unable/unwilling to play, you pass. Once everyone passes, the last person to put down cards leads with another set of cards.

The first person to lose all his/her cards becomes the "Great Dalmuti", and sits at a place of honer. The next person 'out' becomes the "Lesser Dalmuti", and chills out next to the Great one. The penultimate person 'out' becomes the "Lesser Peon", and the last sap left with cards is the "Greater Peon", and is mocked by all.

In between rounds, everyone must actually GET UP and arrange themselves around the table in the order that they went out. So this game is sort of like Poker meets Musical Chairs.

After everyone is rearranged, and all the cards are dealt (by the Greater Peon, of course), the Greater Peon must give the Great Dalmuti his/her best 2 cards, and the Great Dalmuti returns 2 cards which are of least use to him/her. The Lesser Peon/Dalmuti exchange ONE card in a similar manner. Then the G.D. leads of for the next hand.

It's an easy game to learn. It's fun and frustrating and quick.

Here's how the royalty was during the 7 rounds we played.
Round 1 ended with:
GREAT DALMUTI: Fenwick
LESSER DALMUTI: Sean
LESSER PEON: Josh
GREATER PEON: Chris K.

Round 2 ended with:
GREAT DALMUTI: Fenwick
LESSER DALMUTI: Sean
LESSER PEON: Chris K.
GREATER PEON: Josh

Round 3 ended with:
GREAT DALMUTI: Fenwick
LESSER DALMUTI: Sean
LESSER PEON: Chris K.
GREATER PEON: TJ (who assumed this role as he jumped into the game)

Round 4 ended with:
GREAT DALMUTI: Fenwick
LESSER DALMUTI: Nolan
LESSER PEON: TJ
GREATER PEON: Chris K.

Round 5 ended with:
GREAT DALMUTI: Mike2
LESSER DALMUTI: Fenwick
LESSER PEON: Sean
GREATER PEON: Chris K.

Round 6 ended with:
GREAT DALMUTI: Fenwick
LESSER DALMUTI: Angie
LESSER PEON: Chris K.
GREATER PEON: Dave

AND the final standings after Round 7:
GREAT DALMUTI: Angie
LESSER DALMUTI: Nolan
3rd place: Fenwick
4th place: TJ
5th place: Dave
6th place: Ashlei
7th place: Chris K.
LESSER PEON: Mike2
GREATER PEON: Sean

The only reason this picture is here is beause Ashlei did not want it here.

I am shocked to find it here. It's not like I put it here or anything. Anyway, she will soon work as a pastry chef in our kitchen. Such is the consuming effect of the Game Club.

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Zeus on the Loose

Players: Angie, Nolan, Ashlei, Cathy W., Mike2, Sean, TJ, Chris K., Steven, Sarah, Dave, Fenwick

This is a silly game, but we pull it out every once in a while. The little Zeus character makes the game.

We totally exceeded the design specifications for this game -- it was not meant to be played with TWELVE people! It has taken me longer to type this than it took us to play and realize there were too many people.

We played one hand. Cathy W. won.

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TransAmerica

Players: Sean, Angie, Fenwick, Mike2, Chris K., Steven

I really, really enjoy this game. The rules are super simple, the play is quick. It's really a kind of a race game, with everyone using the same tracks, trying to not be too obvious about their destinations. It's as fun with 2 players as it is with 6. It's a great one if you need a brain break... it's not too heavy of a game.

Angie won soundly with 9 pts. Most of us just fell right off the scoreboard.

Steven watches the starting blips to make sure they don't go anywhere. Angie stares down a green card with pure angst. Sean laughs as the Marseillaise* plays on in the background, commenting that the French should stick to their day jobs- surrendering and white-flag manufacturing.

*You can't hear that because it's a picture...if you don't know it, it's that very stereotypical French song...not the can-can...the other one.

For some reason, Chris F. loves this picture.

I do not know why. Had to be there, maybe?

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Pepper (again!)

Players: Molly, Chris K., Pat, Fenwick, Angie

Molly, Chris and Pat each won one.

Fenwick ducked out, and Nolan filled in... and THEN...

Molly won 2. Pat won 1.

TJ supervises the game, after remarking to conveniently-placed piano player Sam "I thought I told you never to play that song again?", and promptly busting a cap.

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Gang of Four

Players: Angie, Chris K., Nolan, Sean (came in a little late, and claims to really suck at this game)

This game has some similar aspects to The Great Dalmutti, but with many more options, and a bunch more strategy. It is a near-perfect four player game, in my opinion.

And here's how it went down...

Angie	Chris K.	Nolan	Sean
1	1	3	0

What game did we play next?A game of many-more-than-fifty-two pick-up...

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Beat the Buzzard

Players: Mike1, Dave, Cathy, Steven, Nolan

This is one we play often -- always leads to laughing and screaming... especially when 3 people play a '15' and some wins a hot card with a '3'. It happens.

Mike1	Dave	Cathy	Steven	Nolan
33	5	27	14	4

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Sunken City

Players: Chris, Steven, Cathy

AND yet still ANOTHER NEW GAME.

This is a interesting strategy game, with much oppotunity for screwage.

Each player represents someone searching the magical sunken unnamed Atlantic-like city. The board is constantly changing as walkways and buildings rise up, and are cast back down into the depths.

On each turn a player plays a card which tells the actions that player may do. You will get a certain number of moving actions, a number of building actions, and the ability to move Neptune around the board (which is a DESTROYING action). You can build walkways, which allow to move around the board. You may optionally build one building per turn in certain areas of the board. There are 10 buildings, each containing a valuable artifact. You must manuever your pawn around the board -- fetching treasures from the buildings. You get the treasure, and then must get your pawn back to home base to fully claim it.

There is treachery afoot, however! Once a turn, a player may roll a die to see how many spaces that player may move Neptune. Neptune moves along the walkways and buildings just like the players, but whenever he LEAVES a tile/building, that building is cast back into the depths. If your pawn is on one of those spaces, it returns to its home base, and ANY ARTIFACTS BEING TOTED ARE LOST! The building goes back into the pool of buildable things, to be rebuilt in a different place later in the game. This lost, sunken city changes all the time -- it gives the game a nice magical, organic feel.

The game has some really cool mechanics, and some of the finest bits I've ever seen. The gameboard is quite large, the walkways are of thick, dense cardboard, and the buildings are very nice detailed blocks. At first glance it looks like a cumbersome game, and ther lengthy quick reference cards can scare away non-seasoned gamers. It's not difficult to pick it up, though.

The timing of the game is interesting -- there are 6 spaces on the edge of the board from which you draw walkways. They all start out over slot 1. They are drawn from that slot and placed on the board. When Neptune destroys them, they are put in slot 2. When slot 1 is exhausted, they are drawn from slot 2 and discarded to slot 3.... etc. When slot FIVE is exhausted, you finish the round of turns, so that everyone has had an equal number of plays. Most artifacts retrieved wins! In case of tie, add their values.

Cathy was not happy with the ease of destruction in the game. She kept being frustrated by spending hard-to-find building points, only to have them demolished almost instantly. She thought she was doing horribly, but I reminded her she only lost by 2 artifacts!

Chris won with 7 treasures collected. Steven had 6, and Cathy had 5.

I liked this game quite a bit. Can't wait to play it with some really vicious people...


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Ingenious

Players: Molly, David, Nolan, Patrick

This game is rather...well...ingenious. It's simple enough. The tiles you use have two different colours on them, and they must be laid next to those colour tiles to score points. Winning is slightly different from what you might expect, as you take your score based on each colour group made. For example, if you connect five yellow sections of til

e and four blue, you might get five yellow points, and four blue. However, you win based on your lowest scoring colour. Your lowest-scoring colour must be higher than the rest of the player's, so the strategy is to keep evenly scoring in all the colours.

It's quite an interesting game, and definitely one worth checking out!

Molly, David and Patrick, three new gamers played along with Nolan. Molly and David tied for first with 10 points, while Nolan took second with 8, and Patrick fell in last with 7.

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Continuuo

Players: Cathy, Sarah, Mike1, TJ

This game was described in a recent post, so I won't bore you with the details. Simple tile-laying for points!

Cathy overwhelmed us all with a 28-point tile in the second round! Two rounds later, she hit another jackpot with 29! A modest 25 later seemed to pale in comparison, but is still a great score! Needless to say, she slaughtered Mike 1, Sarah and TJ with great ease. Mike 1's 173, Sarah's 188, and TJ's 190 fell too short of Cathy's incredible 207 points.

This also marked a sad day for TJ, as this was the first game of Continuuo he played where he scored less than 20 points with a tile.

He wept openly over that, and the fact that there were no more cookies in the vending machine. That, is the work of the devil.

Notice that in this picture, TJ's hand appears to move through the little piece of paper he's keeping score with.

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So ends another great game day with many many people! We look forward to more game days just like this. A fantastic start to the semester.

Until next time, here's lookin' at you, gamers.

~ TJ