After DK’s birthday there had been some rumblings about trying to get together more regularly and play games we actually knew the rules to rather than trying the next new shiner thing someone has read on BBG is the best game ever. Therefore it was suggested that we meet once a month to play a regular game chosen by the host that month. This has been suggested before but failed to get any traction in the group whose butterfly mentalities were always drawn to something new … So we will see how long this lasts.
Month 1 in the new system was at Tiger King’s to play Spirit Island - a cooperative game where the players are the spirits of nature try to get rid of the pesky settlers from afar (Europeans). Only Snake-eyes and myself were able to join in for this game (although I believe that Steedo and DK have played before).
The game is a resource management in reverse as you try and remove the explorers and settlements which are damaging the earth with blight (which if is all in play you lose). The sim is for the player to synergise their powers to wipe out the settlers, cause fear and remove blight.
The picture shows the start, middle and end game … imaginative that.
The turn operates in that the players chose a top line action, which puts down influence, gains power cards or power (or a combination of those). The players then use cards to prevent the settlers ravaging or building or to heal/protect areas. Some of the cards work instantly but others work after the settlers have there actions - which are ravaging, building and exploring. Ravaging is where the settlers attack the earth and locals (forgotten there name) which can cause blight, building is where the explorers build towns or cities and exploring is where more explorers are placed in a terrain type. Each round the terrain type moves to from exploring to building to ravaging - so the players know what they will need to stop.
The game is a puzzle as the players try to work out the optimal way to play there hand and support each other and the explorers breed like rabbits … there is always too much to do.
We did make a couple of errors by playing too many cards (scopula of times) and getting too much fear for destroying a settlement … about half way through we started using the tactic of stopping the settlers build which seemed to help reduce to pressure on us a bit - we did lose much or any influence over the course of the game. Which I think played in about 3 hours.
But we did win - which was nice.
An interesting game which I would happily play again - perhaps with more advanced rules (apparently you can have English settlers with special rules). It was tough enough on basic starter level … but we could try.
A good evenings gaming.
