As the rain fell and brought a close to what had been a miserable Easter Monday it seemed like our plan to stay in and have a games evening had been the right move. This feeling was re-enforced when other like minded souls turned up. As we had hoped, with the school holidays in full swing we saw a number of our teenage friends turn up and as the evening progressed the noise levels and laughter rose quiet significantly.
However we started the evening with a relatively quiet and quick game of Straw, so fast in fact that the other player’s barely noticed me winning!
With the full team now sitting at the table we split into two groups Tom, Daniella, Gwen and Crispin playing Alhambra. This was very nearly Carcassonne (except for Daniella’s curled lip and frowning negative comments) and could have been one of the other games on offer (Fresco, 7 Wonders or Dominion Intrigue) except for Crispin’s request for nothing new and something simple.
In what turned out to be a closely fought building contest Gwen tried the unusual tactic of holding off building and just accumulating money until the middle stage of the game, whilst Tom showed his family’s aptitude for games they haven’t played before; establishing an early lead that he only lost in the final scoring by a point to Daniella.
At the other end the normal chaos and mayhem reigned in a game of Discworld: Ankh-Morpork. There were very few apologies (and none were sincere!)and quiet a lot of smiles and laughter as one player after another removed (assassinated) opponents minions or extorted money, sometimes with menaces all very much in the style of Terry Pratchett’s books. A key aspect of the game is identifying the roles of your opponents and thereby the conditions they are trying to meet in order to emerge victorious from the mayhem. By the halfway point Liza had been sussed as The Dragon King of Arms and so every time the tide of ‘trouble’ markers reached the winning number of 8 (only relevant when this occurs at the beginning of her turn), so it rolled back as the rest of us sought to stop her. Her victory was sealed by the winds of fate when the Demons arrived. However, in this closely matched game the rest of us had each nearly won at times; with Leonie as Commander Vimes coming within three cards of victory – I had her sussed as one of the Lords – she had played her role very well confusing all of us about her true identity.
With both games finishing within minutes of each other and Tom asking when were the munchies going to arrive there was only one thing to do – ask Crispin to get the coffee and cakes in!
With both games finishing within minutes of each other and Tom asking when were the munchies going to arrive there was only one thing to do – ask Crispin to get the coffee and cakes in!
On this occasion we had raisin and pecan loaf from Crispin and rice crispy marshmallow things and flapjacks from Daniella and team. Having sampled each of the offerings I can confirm that my cholesterol went up but that they were all delicious.
Our last game of the evening saw another drawing game make it to the table - Identik. A game that is as much about clear descriptions as it is good drawing, although the latter definitely helps. This was thoroughly enjoyed by all those that participated, with lots of laughter. However it was not to everybody’s taste with Crispin’s opting to return home and the loving arms of his wife, or so he claimed.
More photo's from the evening can be seen here.
If you would like to try some of the games talked about on this blog come along to our next event at the Blue Anchor, Crowborough on Sunday 15th April starting at 7pm - £1 per head. More details can be seen on our Facebook Page Social Gamers - Crowborough
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