This & That

Went to game night Thursday. Can't remember what I said but, one of the guys responded with much surprise and pleasure, "YOU play long games!" I had always suspected that a couple of the guys in the club were ATers, but the environment of the game night precludes playing anything long or complex. Therefore, we always end up playing shortish Euros, card games and fillers. My suspicions were confirmed. A few of the guys get together unofficially about once a month at someones house to play games like TI3. It turns out that they are often short a player or two. We happily exchanged e-mail addresses.

I confessed to Al about ordering Mordred, and he just laughed and said, "So does this mean I don't have go shopping for your birthday gift?" Win - win.

Cartagena is better than Cartagena II.

I think I am sun burnt again.

Gladware mini rounds (4 oz) are better than ziplock bags for any bits that get piled up next to a board, such as money. Just pull off the lid and put the bowl next to the board. Makes set up and clean up of Arkham Horror much easier.

Mordred

I just ordered a copy of Martin Wallace's Mordred . It was rather expensive, information about the game is scant, it has a mediocre rating on BGG. It seems like a crazy thing to do. This game could be really awful. For the same amount of money we could get something really cool that we know we like. So why did I do it?

1. Mr. Wallace says that once the boat sails with the pre-orders there will be no more copies sent to the U.S. This could be BS, but it would suck if a month or two from now, or even a year or two from now to decide I really liked the game and wanted it and be kicking myself for not getting it when I had the chance.
2. I can always sell it or trade it if I hate it. Right? This is of course the all purpose rationalization for plunking money down on an unknown.
3. My birthday is in two weeks. I'm sure to get some cash as gifts - more rationalization.
4. The profits go to charity.

So, other than the whole "buy it now or else" plus rationalize the expense, why am I even interested in this game to begin with?

I play with a lot of different people with extremely different tastes in games. Finding something that everyone likes and wants to play is difficult. Just this past week we had something of a debacle at my house for exactly this reason. Martin Wallace, however, seems to have been able to produce a number of games that please everyone - the wargamer, the eurogamer, and the ATers. The problem with the ones that everyone likes is that they are often too long to play frequently. Struggle of Empires isn't the kind of game you play on a school night, after dinner, with your friends who have to leave by 9 to get their kids to bed. Railroad Tycoon isn't the type of game you haul to game night, and try to play on the tiny table in the corner which is the only table available because all the people playing miniatures have hogged up all the space in the shop (plus those mini guys are so loud that it is impossible to explain rules to anyone anyway).

The scant information that I have been able to scrape together about Mordred seems to indicate that it could be the 45 minute game that could keep a mixed group happy. It seems like it would be easy to teach at a noisy game night. It has dice and action points. It has combat and building. It is semi-cooperative. It has city and castle bits (I am really, really, really hoping these aren't just different size cubes). On the other hand, it could be another, dry, abstract disappointment like Tempus. I guess I will just have to wait and see.

On our way to WBC

We actually got on the road before 11:30 am this morning. We are not morning people, and when on vacation I usually sleep until 10 am. We had two minor set backs that nearly threw us off schedule.

1. Huge pool of water in middle of kitchen floor. Moment of panic that it was a plumbing leak. Relief that it was just spillage from Z trying to set up the cat's water bowl contraption.
2. Z couldn't get her boots on. Told her to just carry them into the car and keep trying while we drove. That somehow did the trick and suddenly she was able to get them on by herself.
   

So we got Z to my mom's in time for her to be taken to her lesson so we didn't have to drive 20 minutes in the opposite direction before starting our trip. No time for tearful goodbyes since I was a bad mother and had forgotten to do Z's hair, so Mama hustled her into the bathroom to do up her braids. And any parent who hasn't once hustled their child into the car with no shoes on and uncombed hair is just plain lying.

I only forgot two things. I remembered them when we hit the PA border, but now I have forgotten what they were. I'm not stupid, just wicked disorganized and tad forgetful.

I used the 7 hour drive to re-read some game rules. I had just finished reviewing all the rules for "Fury of Dracula" from the point of view of playing Dracula, when Al announced that he wanted to try being Dracula. So I gave him a Dracula lesson while he drove. Then I had to start over reviewing the Hunter rules for myself. I also got through "History of the World" and "Warrior Knights." I'm just going to flail through "Warrior Knights" when we play. I know people who can read rules and understand their strategic implications. I'm not one of them.

Tomorrow - peaches and "Fury of Dracula"

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