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Welcome to Polyhedral Underground!


For those of you new to our little group of geeks, we are a hobby board game group located in Winnebago county in east central Wisconsin, with many interests. If you're here that means that some of them are your interests too. Board games, computer games, rpg, miniatures, sci-fi, fantasy, and probably other such things. Even with all our interests board gaming remains primary for us.

We always like having new players around so introduce yourself on the forums and get comfortable. And if you find that we're your type of gamers, well, invite yourself to a game night or day that we frequently have.

So take a look around and let us know what you think.

And welcome again to: Polyhedral Underground!
 

 Recent Event Postings

  

View first unread post 09/09 Six Straight Hours of Staring Into Space Game Night
Poster:  Seripmav Germany (de)
Forum: Game Nights / Meet Ups
PostTue Sep 07, 2010 10:22 am
I'm afraid I won't be able to make it tonight.
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 Comments: 13  •  Post a reply  •  Views: 64

View first unread post Sat. Sept 11th Someone Turned Summer Off Game Evening
Poster:  D Erasmus Russia (ru)
Forum: Game Nights / Meet Ups
PostWed Sep 08, 2010 8:56 am
Sorry, I'm out. Its going to be a rainy day, so it should be perfect for gaming.
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 Comments: 5  •  Post a reply  •  Views: 33

View first unread post Thurs. Sept. 2nd Welcome Home Game Night
Poster:  D Erasmus Russia (ru)
Forum: Game Nights / Meet Ups
PostMon Aug 30, 2010 4:21 pm
Skittlebrau wrote:
D_E, I will try a shard as I can to be there at 6:30 for a game of DungeonQuest, since I know you were interested...


I'd try this... Another time...
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 Comments: 33  •  Post a reply  •  Views: 179

View first unread post Second Annual Familypalooza! Start Planning Now!
Poster:  Captain Yid Zimbabwe (zw)
Forum: Gameapaloozas / All Day Events
PostTue Mar 16, 2010 9:13 pm
A great time, as usual:)
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 Comments: 76  •  Post a reply  •  Views: 611
 

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]]> The game box is of normal size, somewhat thicker, and the cover depicts a contemporary French painting on the subject of the battle. At the sides of the box one can find a short illustrated story of the events that took place in the battle, perfect to introduce the relatively uninformed, like myself, in the era. <br> <br> Inside the box we can find; <br> <br>]]>• The huge game board that consists of two pieces. The game demands a pretty large table to be played. The map is worked with pastel colors, it is of particularly high design quality and what hits the eye directly is the unusual way that it is divided in areas of various sizes and shapes. It is not a usual case of an area-divided board(Hammer of the Scots style) but I’ll come to that later. It covers an area about 10 km long containing villages, roads, hills, forests, rivers, marshes, the whole geographical relief. There is an index area explaining the various features of the map, an area where the players mark the passage of time, the morale track-common for both armies and finally the command areas where each player marks his opponent’s moves after they are declared. <br> <br>• A few wooden discs to mark the time, morale and player moves in the respective areas of the board as mentioned above. <br> <br>]]>• The wooden long-shaped blocks in red color for the allied army and blue for the French. On them one can find marked only the unit kind and strength(from 1 to 3). There are three basic kinds of units(infantry, cavalry and artillery), there are also guard units that are 3 strength infantry units with a slightly different mark to distinguish them from the rest of the infantry and the game rules define 3 strength cavalry units as heavy cavalry. The last two kinds of units are referred to as the “elite” units of each army. <br> <br> <br>]]>• The very unusual and spectacular metallic pieces of the commanders, designed to sit on top of the wooden blocks. <br> <br>• 2 sets of stickers for the commander pieces, with their names and banners. Let me make clear here that by “2 sets” I mean 2 full sets and not one for each army. <br> <br>• 2 8-paged rulebooks, one for each player. <br> <br>So, after opening the box and facing all of the above, I personally suffered the first shock, one of the many that would follow. I was shocked because I highly appreciate good aesthetics when it comes to board games(and generally, it’s my profession after all)and here we have a masterpiece of design and the highest production quality I have ever seen in a board game. <br> <br> The map is mounted on thick and hard material, looks particularly durable and as I said before is very functional and beautiful. When the game pieces are put on it, we have a wonderful sight as we can appreciate the palette choice which, while giving a kind of weak impression initially in comparison to the intense colors we are used to see from other games, finally works perfectly in combination with and contrast to the strongly colored blocks and doesn’t put the players vision in trouble during play. <br> <br>]]> <br> <br> The game pieces, as we said, are all wooden and metallic. There isn’t a slightest clue of a cardboard piece. As a person who always looked down on cardboard and paper-made board games as being cheaply made I highly appreciated Napoleon’s Triumph from this aspect. I am not suggesting that most wargames are bad games, not at all-I am just stating that I find them insanely overpriced according to their production value. I am simply getting furious when I see that apparently deeply and widely educated Mr. Simmons sells me a game that is made of wood and metal, huge mounted map, 2 rulebooks(!!) and spare wooden and metallic pieces and stickers in case something is lost(a very rare case as well) at the same price that others are selling me a bunch of soft paper maps and pieces, components that can be made(maybe even better) at home with an x-acto and a bit of patience(look <a href="http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/28452/valor-victory" >here</a> to get my point- the components of this free game are exactly the same with the huge majority of commercial wargames and it can be put together in a couple of days with minimum effort and expense). And if someone tells me that I pay for the design and not the paper that it is made of, then Napoleon’s Triumph should be more expensive; Not only it is not of a lower design quality, but here one can find the proof that it is of a much higher design level than many other games in the market. Enough nagging, let’s get back to the game. <br> <br>]]> <br> <br>After the game is set, one cannot avoid admitting that it looks beautiful. Consisting of just a few components, it is a wonderful sample of minimal design. No token piles, no cards thrown around occupying the place, nothing. Simplicity, the minimum amount of elements necessary and the eye goes directly to what’s essential: the two armies facing one another in battle formation and ready to start maneuvering, with their banners leading the way. Instantly one recognizes the designer’s reference to the style of contemporary battle maps; he has made exactly the same style of map, only this one is movable! <br> <br><b>Rules-learning to play</b> <br> <br> So, now it is time to open the rulebook and see exactly how are we going to give life and motion to this mass of wood. <br> <br> I have to admit that the first reading of the rules kind of scared me. Not that there was something difficult about them, everything is explained in a simple and formal yet accurate manner and are, after the first read, perfectly understandable. But, something is missing… making a short research in the game’s rules forum I found out that there is an issue; the rules are kind of hard-to-digest and especially the ones governing the way attacks are resolved. There is some kind of complain going on. <br> <br> And that’s because Mr. Simmons, being a true artist in nature as it was already apparent, has managed to create a set of rules that is full of hidden meanings. Beginning after the first reading, the player can easily move his pieces around in all ways-but up to that. He quickly realizes that his first impression(which derives from the visual data on the board) that it is good to directly throw a huge force on a smaller one is not necessarily the right thing to do. And there he starts discovering, and discovering, and discovering more and more tactical possibilities. I have no intention to hide that I personally felt so lost in the process that I had to print a number of very useful player aids easily found in the files section of the game entry, translate one in my own words so I could digest it better and suddenly the skies opened, I heard music from lutes, lyres, harps and war drums, everything was bathed in light and I saw the bombardments, infantry assaulting, deploying, covering positions, the cavalry maneuvering, harassing and delivering devastating blows against forces much larger in numbers, I saw direct and side attacks, double envelopments, encirclements, feints, tactical to disordered and panicked retreats, I smell the gunpowder, I heard the gunshots and the screams of the wounded. In other words, I could now easily resolve a battle, estimate what is advantageous for me to do, and at last play the game with dignity! <br> <br> And, suddenly, trouble occurs; “what is happening in this or that situation?” <br> <br> No trouble; the otherwise hard to digest rules do not let anything drop down. One just has to open the book, his personal book I insist, carefully read the appropriate passage and it is all there, phrased with absolute clarity. There are almost no issues of interpretation in the rules of Napoleon’s Triumph. The designer hasn’t allowed it. Whatever is forbidden is forbidden, everything else is allowed and vice versa. I expect of course that occasionally one may run into some kind of a “hole” that should naturally exist within the rules during play, but it is my personal opinion that those rules, while difficult in the beginning, are as complete and precise as possible. Most questions asked on them here in the forums, mine included, would maybe be avoided with a slightly more careful reading. I can understand that there could possibly be an alternative and perhaps conceptually more “familiar” way to organize the rules in sections, but there are endless ways to do it, and this one finally succeeds in the job perfectly once one gets used to it. <br> <br> As a result, the game demands players that are patient and dedicated. It is not a game in which the player gets loose from the first few sessions, relaxes and plays intuitively. It twists and squeezes the players mind and forces him to discover new possibilities, new tactics, new traps within the border of the rules. It seems now in the beginning that one can endlessly become better as he grows in the game and this, for me at least, is an indication that we are dealing here with the case of a design with great depth. <br> <br><b> Playing the game</b> <br> <br> So what kind of events are taking place on the board of Napoleon’s Triumph? <br> <br> First of all, we set up the game. There are two scenarios, the basic one in which the two armies begin fully deployed opposite to one another and a longer scenario that begins the previous of the historical day of the battle and in which the allies have only two corps in the field- the rest are just arriving, giving the opportunity for a completely different deployment in comparison to the basic. The initial arrangement of the pieces is done quickly and easily and most of our time is again occupied with what is essential; the mind search concerning our battle plan(there are almost countless possibilities) and the corps synthesis that will better serve it. Each corps’ initial position is designated on the board. First the allied player sets up, the French follows. Finally, the French has the opportunity to detach a few units from his corps and deploy them elsewhere and is also forced to name an artillery unit that will be revealed and in fixed position for the whole duration of the battle. <br> <br> This is the time to start describing and explaining some basic elements of the design that are not so similar to other wargames. Those would be the map areas(called “locales” in game terms), the game units and the movement orders. <br> <br> An area in Napoleon’s Triumph does not represent a unique position as in other games. In an area with 5 borders(“approaches” in game terms) we can position a unit in 6 different places: one position for every approach plus one in the middle of the locale, in the “reserve” area as it is called. Forces blocking a locale are generally more effective in defense, but with very restricted moving potential. The units in reserve are somewhat more vulnerable, especially if they are small in numbers, yet much more mobile. At the sides of the approaches the penalty modifiers for each kind of unit are dictated according to the kind of the terrain. No terrain charts, no nothing. A look at the board, and the player can quickly judge how is better for him to act in a given area. There is more than enough space for maneuvers(the map is divided in no less than 170 locales with an average of 5-6 potential positions each=literately hundreds of possible positions!) and not by chance as there lies the essence of the game. <br> <br> The units, in terms of movement orders, are of two basic kinds: corps and detached, independent units. A corps consists of a commander and 1-8 units marching as one. A detached unit is any unit that does not belong to a corps(and thus is not led by a commander). So even if two or more detached units are in the same position, they remain independent and cannot use the same order to move as one, as would be the case if they belonged to a corps. <br> <br> There are four kinds of movement orders in Napoleon’s Triumph; three of them are orders given by a commander(corps move, detach unit(s) from a corps, attach a unit to a corps) and the last remaining is a detached unit independent move. The amount of available orders differs for each army and reflects the difference of their level of organization and command (the French army, although outnumbered, is significantly more mobile and flexible). The philosophy of the order structure is that the player should be very careful concerning the economy of forces as a corps is easily split but very slowly and painfully put back together. And as our different corps are being gradually decomposed, our pieces are getting more and more stuck on their position- the independent move orders available are never enough! <br> <br> But what are we trying to achieve with all those orders? What are the victory conditions of the game? <br> <br> A decisive victory in the game is won by demoralization of the enemy force. I already mentioned that in an area of the map is the morale track. On it, with tokens of the respective colors, the morale level of each army is marked. The morale of an army can be changed in the following ways; <br> <br>• By winning a battle(and, potentially, retreating the enemy units). The defeated army suffers morale loss equal to the losses in strength points that were suffered during the battle/retreat. It is our basic way to achieve this kind of victory. <br> <br>• Committing the heavy cavalry. The first time that a player reveals a heavy cavalry unit, even if it is for a retreat without losses, suffers 2 morale losses. <br> <br>• Committing the guard. Same as with heavy cavalry, the first time that a guard unit is revealed the player loses 4 morale points. <br> <br>• Defeat of a guard attack. Guard attack is a special kind of attack, which gives a huge advantage against units of average strength but if it is not victorious it costs 3 extra morale losses(on top of those lost during the battle). <br> <br>• The moment that the French player throws his reserves in the game, his morale raises by 4 points. <br> <br>• At the December 1st scenario between the two days, a night round is taking place, during which each one of the players regains half of the morale he lost during the first day, but with a maximum of 4. <br> <br> As soon as the morale of an army drops to 0, his enemy instantly wins the game. <br> <br> The game is played in one-hour rounds, about 10 in total for the basic scenario. In case the day ends without an army losing by demoralization, the winner is decided with a system of area objectives that differ according to if the French player has used any of his reinforcements (2 of his corps begin the game out of the board)-should he use them, this kind of victory is very hard(yet not impossible) for him to achieve. <br> <br> The battle begins with a very large portion of the allied forces deployed in front of the French right wing and instantly one realizes how important is the terrain in the game; strong defensive positions are formed and one needs to be very sure of what he is doing in order to conduct a successful attack. There are places where the approach is wide and easy, there are impassable ones and others having a lot of penalties and restrictions, enough to render an attack against them a time-consuming, painful and doubtfully effective procedure. The game cannot be played carelessly. Without a battle plan, one has to be a very skilled player in order not to get crushed. In the mean time, while it is not obvious in the rules at first glance, and all units seem to be disturbingly one and the same, as soon as the player gets used to the flow he comes to realize that each unit has its character, its special mission and what he has to do is to coordinate the best possible cooperation between them. <br> <br> After that we come to the main dish; maneuver, maneuver, maneuver. The two armies begin to move according to their battle plans at an attempt to bring themselves in advantageous positions so that they can deliver a successful blow and that is something that sounds simple, but needs a lot of attention; if the opponent manages to draw us in a trap the results are disastrous. <br> <br> Now we begin to realize the level of detail that the game design offers, despite its initial abstract aura. In each area of the terrain something else is happening, completely different each time, a game within the game. One edge of the terrain really feels very far from the other! But, at the same time, everything is in close connection and affects everything else. <br> <br>]]> <br> <br> As maneuvering goes on and the armies are now fully deployed and closely facing each other in certain places or even from one edge of the board to the other, the battle breaks out. This is the time to put our knowledge of the attack rules and their innuendo in use. Battle doesn’t mean to take one of our corps and throw it on an enemy corps. Whoever acts like that, will bitterly regret it. Battle is a whole procedure that takes several rounds to execute, passes from different stages and always has a price. It is not possible to attack effectively without properly preparing with correct composition of the attacking corps, deployment maneuvers, protection of the flanks, bringing the artillery in fire position, economy in reserves etc. and in any case, if we are talking about a direct assault, one has to be patient and expect casualties until he comes to any result- casualties not only in army strength but, as was mentioned before, in morale… <br> <br> On the other hand, with proper maneuvering, a player can possibly achieve a relatively bloodless victory, which is the shortest path to win the game. Of course, that’s easier said than done… <br> <br> The game does not forgive mistakes, at least not serious ones. Time gets shorter and shorter making movements very valuable- one needs to calculate and execute wisely. A mistake would give the opponent the opportunity to easily reduce our morale without paying a price, something that can prove fatal. On the other hand though, a game during which our morale is close to the bottom and the opponent’s is high, can still be won- the game design is such that reversals are a common phenomenon, something that brings an element of agony. A corps that made our army retreat in the previous turn, can very well end up being very vulnerable to a counterattack immediately after its advance. <br> <br> Speaking of agony, I have to mention that the game is played on a tight rope. The asymmetry of the opposing forces functions perfectly- the French are outnumbered but flexible, the allied are of greater numbers but heavy and difficult to manage. The element of hidden units in combination with the absolute balance achieved by the designer brings the player’s adrenaline level to the maximum- and keeps it there all the way through. As in reality, the forces available are never enough. There is a lot of faking, there is a strong element of risk and it is very interesting to reveal the pieces after a game and see what could have gone different if the players had any kind of clue about what kind of forces they were facing. There are points that would have immediately collapsed with the slightest assault attempt and others that seem to be weak but in reality are ready to teach a cocky enemy commander to be more modest and careful. <br> <br> The element of French reinforcements adds to the gameplay at many levels; first of all, the level of uncertainty and surprise. The allied player can never be exactly sure on wether the French will use them, unless the latter is directly threatened with defeat. Second, as soon as the French decides to finally throw them in the battle, the victory conditions of the game change significantly; Now the French must be more aggressive, while for the Allies defense becomes the most obvious way to victory, so both players must be equally skilled in attacking and defending. The potential for strategic decisions is greatly increased, as the French player does not have to decide if he will use his reinforcements, but also when and where, and the allied player needs to keep every possibility in mind. <br> <br> Finally, and despite the fact that it will sound kind of contradicting to things that were written about the game, even in this very review, the game is simple. Really, really simple. After a few battles all the parameters are clear, they have obtained meaning and connection to reality and from that point on the player needs to worry only about strategy. Tough to learn, maybe, but not complicated at all. <br><b> <br>A few Philosophical thoughts (…!!!)-Final impression</b> <br> <br> As I made clear in the intro, the thoughts(and views) that follow are clearly personal. I am not saying how things are, but how I see them. <br> Although I am relatively new in wargames I believe I have made enough research to have the belief and the hope that Mr. Simmons’ innovations especially concerning the organization of the board and pieces in his games can greatly influence future wargame designs, especially on the operational/tactical level. And it is my impression that they are not only a step forward, but a whole jump compared to both hex and area-divided maps. <br> <br> First of all, the areas on the map create an organic, completely asymmetric motif, “hugging” the relief of the battlefield almost perfectly, like a surgical glove rather than adjusting it to a completely symmetric hexagonal or square grid, resulting in significant distortion of the actual map. In other words, it is not nature that has to adapt to the grid, but the grid adapts to nature. The result is very realistic; Nature, especially on a macrocosmic level, never displays normality and symmetry. In Napoleon’s Triumph a unit in a forest will move slowly as a natural result of the area arrangement (forest locales are small), while it will move freely and fast in a plain- most probably having to defend a wider front, though. The irregular and various locales offer a different challenge each for their defense or occupation, only as a result of their form. <br> <br> Up to here it may sound something really different when compared to hexes, but not so much to area maps, that are equally asymmetric in the way they are organized. But the fact that staying in reserve and blocking an approach are two distinct positions is an ingenious, in my opinion, idea of Mr. Simmons that raises the area maps on a much higher level of accuracy, detail and functionality. It feels to me that this should have been done much earlier. As we said, everything that the player needs to know concerning terrain restrictions is written on the map, giving each approach its unique character regardless of the terrain type and ending in a large number of possible combinations. But more important than that is that the battle result is greatly affected by the position of a unit. The player therefore has to arrange his units in the most advantageous way possible in order to achieve his goal, whatever might that be. This results in a great variety of unit formations that can be used within the same locale, which on top are very simple and quick for the opponent to read due to the use of the long-shaped blocks- the game offers a lot of useful visual info in the clearest possible way and the issue of facing is automatically solved. <br> And because position, facing, unit maneuvering and terrain are factors of vast importance for every battle through the centuries, I hope and I suppose that with carefully crafted rule sets in order to grasp the unique atmosphere and character of each battle, one can use those innovations to successfully represent battles from ancient times to Blitzkrieg. <br> <br> Another point that greatly impressed my play group and I would like to mention is the presence of the element of unpredictability in a game, and especially in Napoleon’s Triumph. From what was mentioned during the surely incomplete description of the things that take place on the board it must be by now pretty clear that this game dosn;t contain a mechanism that creates events or results/consequences of actions of the player. That can bring the criticism that the game has a totally deterministic character, that it simulates a situation in which the player is in total control and any element of surprise is missing, something that of course has nothing to do with the reality of the battle. The procedure and result of a battle, from a streetfight to large scale battles between organized armies is never something predictable, even if we know the initial conditions. Battle=chaos. This is known from the time of Shun Tzu, about 2.500 years ago. <br> <br> But ever since then we also know this: that the commander who will make the most calculations (Napoleon himself being a perfect example) and at the same time will be in position to use any opportunity that might appear on the way to his favor, will be the winner. Let’s keep that in mind. <br> <br> Napoleon’s Triumph is a game in which, despite the absence of a mechanism as the one mentioned above and its overall simplicity, the chaos of battle declares its presence in the most definite(and interesting) way possible. Movement, gradual disintegration of the corps, restriction in independent unit orders, terrain complexity, the initial setup mechanic, lack of info concerning the organization of enemy forces, all in combination with the decisions made by the opponent, bring us from the early impression of absolute organization and order to an unbelievable situation in which the player, especially the allied one, loses total control of his forces and is obliged, in parallel to his initial plan, to adapt to the conditions that quickly change from round to round. The army is in need of its commander everywhere and is begging for orders, but he can move only a certain number of units each time. The fact that the army is a reliable force that will not miss the target from and advantageous position when it is ordered to attack is one of the absolute pros of the game. Chaos does not equal luck; chaos means non predictable complexity, and the designer has managed to fully include this element without dice, complex battle charts with numerical data, card decks or whatever. However, the player can truly feel the agony of his army which struggles to survive under a very difficult condition that is far beyond his direct control. <br> <br> <br>]]> beginning of the game <br> <br>]]> towards the end, the chaos is absolute! <br> <br> Let us not forget what we are talking about; we are talking about a battle-themed game and not an actual battle. By definition we are talking about things that are completely different, so different that there can be no kind of comparison between them. Both are antagonistic procedures, true, but one is a matter of life and death, salvation or misery for thousands, even millions of human beings that takes place in the real world, while the other is an artificial way for us to spend a nice afternoon in our comfortable living rooms, exercising our minds in a pleasant way, trying to overcome our opponent’s mind within a certain border set by a number of rules and which can never even come close to the complexity and level of detail that affects the battle in reality. The differences are so huge in both terms of quantity and quality that I do not dare even to make a short list of them-my already long and tiring text would become huge! My point is; a game should first of all be good in itself and not as a chimeric attempt of a “simulation”. <br> <br> In a battle-themed game, or any other game, what I personally like to do is to beat my opponent’s thought with mine. Make calculations, estimations, set traps, avoid his, deceive him, avoid being deceived, use my creative imagination to invent tactics, come with a winning plan and execute it despite his resistance. And all that, without external interferences. I will compare it with two drunk bums fighting. If you try to interfere to the fight to calm them down, you might very well get in trouble; “What the f*** do you want? Mind your own business and let us fight!”. The games that I look for are the games that set the scenery of the fight, the wet, dark and dirty alley and let the bums free to solve their differences , not the ones that become the passer-by who sees the fight and likes to jump in. Of course, this is a matter of taste, mine and my gaming partners’ and as I explained here I am expressing personal views, as my small contribution to the ever-lasting argument concerning the luck factor in wargame design and boardgame design in general. <br> <br> So, I am not interested if the opponent commander is struck by lightning because it was raining during battle, turn his head into charcoal and then the place is free for me to easily hunt down his panicked army, even if that is what happened historically in the fight. I am not interested to be aided or fought by the design, thus turning my game to be a chase of the events caused by its mechanisms, however much fun that might possibly be. And this is because I will feel that I do not play the game, but the game plays me. What I am interested in is to find a design that will set a number of initial conditions that will lead me and my opponent to a conflict that will have the character of the actual one(chaos included), but will be fought by him and me within an environment that provides a wide potential for strategic and tactical decisions, with the basic element of adaptation being present but without decisive interference to the fight and its final result. This, as opposed to most games I am personally familiar with, is Napoleon’s Triumph. It is abstract, but it is not Chess. It is the battle of Austerlitz, with a multitude of its historical characteristics present as possible, but a battle that will be won by the best strategist and despite the chaos and uncertainty will not be resolved with the slightest interference of luck- when you win a game, you really do so. It is surely the best wargame of my small collection and if you ask me, it brings wargame design to another level. <br>" /> Review: Napoleon's Triumph:: <b>English(clumsy)translation of the Greek review for Napoleon’s Triumph</b>
Review: Dominion:: Dominion review in one page
Review: Ascension: Chronicle of the Godslayer:: Ascension: Chronicles of the Godslayer- a lightweight take on deck building.
]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>jollyrogergames</b> <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>Overview and Theme</font></u></b> <br> <br>Well the title probably doesn’t leave too much to the imagination really. This game is all about catching waves and more importantly, riding them all the way to shore. There are some nice thematic inclusions like the collection of trophies and ‘Beach Babes’. But the reality is that (title aside) Surf’s Up Dude! could just as easily be about ants taking the best route to the picnic basket. In other words the theme is more or less ‘pasted on’. That’s not necessarily a bad thing…just an observation. <br> <br>On another note, the design team behind this title includes a name or two that you might not expect. Alan R. Moon (of Ticket to Ride fame) has hooked up with Aaron Weissblum and it isn’t the first time that these two have joined to form a design team. <br> <br>Previous collaborations include the '10 Days in...' series, Clocktowers, San Marco, Mammoth Hunters, New England and Oasis - just to name a few. <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>The Components</font></u></b> <br> <br>Most components in Surf’s Up Dude! are super sized. All except the trophies that is. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-1.gif" alt="1" border="0"> <b>The Board - </b> The board is a simple affair but rather enticing thanks to the vibrant blue of the ocean. The board is divided into 4 main sections that include wave slots, 2 additional ocean sections and the beach. <br> <br>The rear of the board is given a lavish art design that really gives you that Hawaii vibe. Too bad it is not seen during play. <br> <br>]]>]]> <br><i>Images Courtesy of</i> <b>jollyrogergames & Mr Penguin</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-2.gif" alt="2" border="0"> <b>Surfer Meeple -</b> Each player gets 6 Surfer Meeple and these large wooden pieces strike a pose as if they are going goofy foot on a board. It's a nice touch to add to the theme. <br> <br>Please note that the blue guys in the following image have been altered from the original. The original are a dark blue that can be hard to discern from the black in poor light. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>Runehardt</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-3.gif" alt="3" border="0"> <b>Cards -</b> The cards are simple enough but the artwork does a good job of creating a Surfin' feel. The following cards are the 'in-game' cards. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>dsmeyer</b> <br> <br>In addition there are a set of Beach Babe Cards, which can be acquired by the surfers that shine on each wave. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>dsmeyer</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-4.gif" alt="4" border="0"> <b>Wave Tiles -</b> The wave tiles are large cardboard components that are the same size as each of the wave slots on the board. There are 3 wave types in all and they are differentiated by the artwork used, their title and value. <br> <br>Whilst these are nice chunky tiles, the copy we played with did suffer from some warping in these tiles. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>dsmeyer</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-5.gif" alt="5" border="0"> <b>Trophies -</b> A really nice addition are the little trophies that can be won by riding waves into the beach. These come in gold, silver and bronze. The only gripe here is that the gold and bronze colouring can be really hard to tell apart in limited light. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>Mr Penguin</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-6.gif" alt="6" border="0"> <b>VP Tokens -</b> In the event that one of the trophy types may become exhausted, additional VP tokens are provided. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>dsmeyer</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-7.gif" alt="7" border="0"> <b>Dice -</b> A dice is provided which includes a series of letters and an image that is supposed to represent a shark. For the life of me I cannot visualise the image as a shark. <br> <br>]]> <br><i>Image Courtesy of</i> <b>Mr Penguin</b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-8.gif" alt="8" border="0"> <b>Rules -</b> The rules come in a small booklet form. I must confess that I found these rules rather annoying. They feature far too much small text and there is not a diagram to be seen to break up the block of rules. <br> <br>Add to that the fact that several rules are ambiguous and the rules really do let the game down somewhat. <br> <br>Overall the components of the game are good. They are let down by some poor colour clash choices, wave tiles that are prone to warping and a rulebook that is not as clear as it should be. <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>Set-up</font></u></b> <br> <br>Each player receives 6 Surfers. Of these, 3 are placed in the Ready section of the ocean, 2 are placed in the Paddling Out section of ocean and 1 is placed on the Beach. <br> <br>Each player also receives 6 cards and a Bail Out card to make up their starting hand. <br> <br>The final requirement is to create the Wave Deck. Waves come with red and black backs. The black-backed waves form the end-game part of the Wave Deck. Once the red-backed waves are shuffled they are placed on top of the black-backed waves. With the wave deck created the game is ready to begin. <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>The Game Play</font></u></b> <br> <br>The aim of Surf’s Up Dude! is to be the best surfer on the beach. The players must try to catch waves and if they can keep their surfer meeple on the waves as they roll into shore, they will earn points by collecting trophies. The bigger the wave the more points that a trophy will offer, although larger waves can accommodate more surfers and that means greater competition. Making the perfect ride will attract Beach Babes, worth extra points. <br> <br>The play revolves around several key phases. The good news is that most of these phases include all the players, which means that downtime is pretty minimal and the flow is smooth. The game offers up both a Basic and Advanced form of play. I will cover the Basic first before touching on the Advanced play. <br> <br>The key phases play out as follows :- <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-1.gif" alt="1" border="0"> <b>Wave Advancement -</b> The active player for the round draws the top wave tile and adds it to the top of the board. If there are other waves already in play, each wave is moved down one slot, meaning that each wave moves closer to the beach. <br> <br>If a wave features an * symbol then another wave tile should be immediately drawn and also added to the board. In this way the player’s are kept on their toes in regards to how quickly their surfer’s will reach the beach. <br> <br>No more than 2 waves can be drawn in a single turn, even if the 2nd tile features an * symbol. <br> <br><b>Reaching the Beach -</b> If a wave is pushed into the Beach, the surfers on it have done well and earn a trophy. A Baby Wave offers each player a Bronze Trophy, worth 3 points. A Pipeline Wave offers a Silver Trophy, worth 5 points and a Monster Wave awards a Gold Trophy, worth 8 points. <br> <br>In addition, the player that occupied the Prime location on the wave also attracts a Beach Babe card, each of which is worth 3 points. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-2.gif" alt="2" border="0"> <b>Catching Waves -</b> Starting with the active player, each person can try to catch waves by placing one of their surfers onto eligible waves. <br> <br>Only surfer meeple in the ‘Ready’ section of the ocean can catch waves. In addition, only waves in the 1st and 2nd wave slots (furthest locations) from the beach can be caught by surfers. <br> <br>In order to catch a wave, a player must play a card that features the name of an eligible wave. For example, a player must be holding a Monster Wave Card in order to catch a Monster Wave. <br> <br>If a suitable card is played, the player can take one of their ‘Ready’ surfers and place it on one of the available spaces on a wave that matches the card played. It is always best to place a surfer as far to the left of a wave as possible (why will become clear later). The only restriction regarding catching a wave is that a player cannot have 2 of their surfers positioned adjacent to each other on a single wave. <br> <br>Should a wave have no available spaces, then it cannot be caught. <br> <br>The process of catching waves is done player by player, one surfer at a time. A player has the option to play a card and catch a wave, or pass. A player can pass and still catch a wave later in the round, provided that not all players passed. This is the same process used in St. Petersburg, for those familiar with that game. <br> <br><b>Exceptions –</b> There is one special card called the ‘Cut In’, which allows a player to place one of their surfers on a wave in the 3rd wave slot. There are also wild cards that allow a surfer to catch any wave type. <br> <br>A ‘Ready’ Card allows a player to move one Surfer from the Beach to the Paddling Out Space or from that location to the Ready Space. <br> <br>A ‘Prime’ Card allows a player to move one Surfer on any wave to the Prime location on that wave, moving all other Surfers one space to the right. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-3.gif" alt="3" border="0"> <b>Competitions –</b> Once all players have passed in succession, the ‘Catching Waves’ phase is over. The active player must then roll the dice. Four of the six dice faces feature letters, which correlate to the 3 different types of waves in the game (there are 2 'M' faces). If a letter is rolled it will activate a Competition for each wave of that type in play. <br> <br>Starting with the matching wave that is closest to the beach, the players must fight to stay on the wave, thus resembling something akin to a real Surfing Competition. Each player with a surfer on the wave must play a card from their hand face-down. Once all players are ready they must reveal their cards. The player with the lowest valued card ‘wipes-out’ and is removed from the wave and returned to the beach. <br> <br>If 2 or more players tie with the lowest valued card, the player that is placed furthest to the right on the wave is eliminated (hence highlighting the importance of position). <br> <br>There is also a reward on offer. The player who plays the highest card in the competition can claim the ‘Prime Position’ space on the wave (furthest left position). If 2 or more players are tied for the highest valued card, then the player located in the leftmost position wins the tie. <br> <br>The final option in a Competition, is for a player to play their ‘Bail Out’ card. This card results in an instant Wipe-Out and the removal of a player’s surfer. The reason for doing so is to save high valued cards for other Competitions and as such the Bail Out option introduces a bluff/strategic element to the card play. If 2 or more players play a Bail Out card, then the player occupying the rightmost position on the wave is done for (sent to the beach for no reward). Players always take their ‘Bail Out’ cards back to their hand. <br> <br>The other reason why a player may play their 'Bail Out' card is that it results in their surfer meeple being removed to the 'Paddling Out' location instead of the Beach. This allows a player to get their surfers back onto waves more quickly. <br> <br>It is possible for the roll of the dice to result in multiple Competitions if there are multiple waves of that type in play. Each such wave must have a Competition resolved before the phase can be completed. <br> <br>If the active player rolls the wave dice and the symbol features an * symbol, then once all Competitions are completed for the wave type rolled, the active player must roll the dice for a 2nd time, which could result in yet more Competitions. This may sound time consuming but in truth the process is fairly quick. There will also be rounds in which the wave dice does not match any waves in play and therefore no Competitions are carried out. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-4.gif" alt="4" border="0"> <b>Shark Attack –</b> But only 4 of the 6 faces on the dice offer letters to force a Competition. The remaining two faces feature Shark symbols (I must be honest, I really don’t see how the symbols resemble a Shark…but anyway). When a Shark is rolled, trouble is afoot. <br> <br>The active player has the power to select any wave of their choice for the Shark to attack. The players are then in a collective fight to stay on their wave. Each player must play a single card face down and when ready all players reveal the cards they played. <br> <br>If the total of all cards played is 9 or more, the Shark is seen off and all players manage to stay on their wave. If the total is 8 or less however, all Surfers fall from the wave and are placed on the Beach. <br> <br>A player does have the option to play their 'Bail Out' card in this situation, which effectively adds 0 to the total. This can be a clever (although dangerous) tactic to preserve your cards. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-5.gif" alt="5" border="0"> <b>Paddling Out –</b> A round is completed with the 'Paddling Out' phase. Starting with the active player, each person gets a total of 3 actions to either draw cards or move their Surfers from the Beach to the 'Paddling Out' location or the 'Paddling Out' location to the 'Ready' location. Each person’s 3 actions can be used as they see fit (such as drawing multiple cards). <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-6.gif" alt="6" border="0"> <b>Flow of the Game and End Game –</b> At the end of a round the dice are passed to the next player, who then becomes the active player. A new round begins and new waves come into play. <br> <br>Eventually the black-backed waves will be reached. Two of the 5 black-backed waves feature a whistle icon. The first wave revealed with this icon will serve as a warning. When the 2nd is revealed the end-game is triggered. At this point each player receives 3 cards and all surfers not already on waves are removed from play. The Wave Advancement phase continues to play out, including the roll of the dice and any subsequent Competitions or Shark actions. This continues until all waves have reached the beach or no Surfers remain on waves. <br> <br>At this point each player adds up their points earned in Trophies and Beach Babes with the highest score winning the Surfing Contest. <br> <br><u><b><font color='#0000FF'>Advanced Game</font></b></u> <br> <br>The advanced game plays almost identically except for a small change to the 'Competition Phase' to stay on waves. <br> <br>During competitions all players still play a card. These are revealed and if someone played a 'Bail Out' it will finish like normal. However, if no player played their 'Bail Out' card, all players must play a 2nd card. Once all 2nd cards are revealed the players add up both of their cards and the lowest total is the unlucky surfer. Any 'Bail Out' cards played as the 2nd card do not count as such...instead they have a score of '0'. This effectively allows for greater mind games and bluffing to occur. <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>So Where's the Games Appeal?</font></u></b> <br> <br>Surf’s Up Dude! is not a colossus of game design by any stretch of the imagination but it does have some interesting elements worthy of exploration. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-1.gif" alt="1" border="0"> <b>Surfer Management –</b> This is a major element of the play. Each player only has 6 Surfers at their disposal. Surfers will regularly find themselves on the Beach, so it is important to get them past the Paddling Out location to the Ready location so they have the option to catch further waves. <br> <br>Once on waves of course it is crucial to keep them on those waves in order to win Trophies and possibly beach Babes. <br> <br>Identifying how many surfers you can manage to keep on waves is also crucial. there is no point trying to ride 4 waves into shore if you only have the cards to see 1 of them all the way in! <img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/devil.gif" alt=":devil:" border="0"> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-2.gif" alt="2" border="0"> <b>Card Management -</b> This is where the importance of card management comes into play. This is in fact the key element of the game. Cards do everything from allowing Surfers to catch waves through to helping them stay on waves during competitions or fighting off shark attacks. <br> <br>The design of the cards is similar to many games that have come before. The low valued cards (which are less useful in Competitions and Shark conflicts) usually offer the names of the higher valued waves. <br> <br>Conversely the high valued cards generally feature names that allow access to the smaller Baby Waves. Knowing when to use a card to catch a wave and when to keep it for survival in a Competition/Shark Attack can be tough. These decisions are made even more difficult as you also have to time when you keep certain cards for those moments when you actually have Surfers ‘Ready’ to catch a wave! The Advanced Game with it's potential for 2-card Competitions only makes things harder. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-3.gif" alt="3" border="0"> <b>Limited Resources/Bluffing -</b> It is quite likely that a quick succession of Competitions will leave you card poor, thus your card resources will become limited. This requires a difficult analysis of which waves you think you can stay on and those that you are prepared to forfeit. Each decision will be determined by the card values you hold and the positions your Surfers have on each wave. Bluffing is highly possible and at times it will be best to ‘Bail Out’ in order to keep that last high valued card you hold in reserve for a Monster Wave worth big points. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-4.gif" alt="4" border="0"> <b>Strategic Elements –</b> This brings us to the more subtle strategic elements of the game. Because a player will earn multiple trophies for having more than 1 surfer on a single wave, it is highly desireable to double team a wave. This is enhanced further as a Competition only requires the 1 (or 2) cards to participate, regardless of how many surfers are present. <br> <br>Those ‘Prime’ cards are very handy too as they can be played to take the Prime position on a wave just before it hits the beach, potentially securing 3 points for a Beach Babe. <br> <br>Perhaps the most subtle of plays is to deliberately try and fail against a Shark Attack by playing a low card. This may be advantageous if you currently have more Surfers on other waves than your nearest (by score) rivals. Seeing a wave get Wiped Out in this way can offer you a handy strategic advantage. <br> <br>Then there is the ‘big picture’. Is it best to get as many Surfers onto waves and focus on getting 2/3rds of them home (and ignoring your management of Surfers that are out of action), or is it best to have a small number of Surfers on waves, making them easier to protect, as well as keeping your flow of Surfers cycling through to the 'Ready' position in order to catch more waves. Both strategies have their merits and often it may depend on the cards you hold. <br> <br>When all of these above points are considered, Surf’s Up Dude is a reasonably engaging experience. The fact that it plays in 40-60 minutes and each phase/round plays smoothly with little need to reference the rulebook after a few plays, adds to the game’s appeal. <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>The Weaknesses</font></u></b> <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-1.gif" alt="1" border="0"> <b>Luck of the Cards -</b> Whilst the law of averages should balance things out on the whole, it is highly possible to get a string of low valued cards that make it all but impossible to survive a Competition or string of Competitions. This can then leave such players at the mercy of the dice and the faint hope that your Wave(s) won’t come up. This can be really frustrating. <br> <br>The Advanced Game tries to rectify this somewhat but I have been a player (and seen others) that hold nothing but cards valued 5 or less and they are still screwed most of the time. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-2.gif" alt="2" border="0"> <b>Variable Wave and End Game –</b> Whilst I tend to like these mechanics as they keep the players guessing, it may well be a turn off for some people. The end game is not such a big deal but the nature of how the waves come out can see some players get real lucky in reaching the beach before disaster can befoul them, whilst other players keep hitting Competition after Competition. It is also possible to draw a lack of variety in relation to wave types, which can see a player totally miss a wave type for large parts of the game. <br> <br>These things won’t happen all the time but when they do it can be annoying. <br> <br><img src="http://geekdo-images.com/images/d10-3.gif" alt="3" border="0"> <b>Optimal Players –</b> Surf’s Up Dude! is not at its best with the full compliment of 6 players. For starters the card deck will pretty much become exhausted almost every round, resulting in numerous re-shuffles. <br> <br>Some of the mechanics also don’t work that well with 6 players. Shark Attacks are almost a non-event on larger waves as they will generally be full. With 5 players playing cards, the Shark barely stands a chance. <br> <br>Likewise, I don’t see the game having enough of an edge with 2 players. For me the optimal number of players is 3-4 and most likely 4. <br> <br><b><u><font color='#0000FF'>The Final Word</font></u></b> <br> <br>So in the end Surfs Up Dude! is a solid design. It doesn’t leave you with a buzz but it is enjoyable enough and has some interesting elements. <br> <br>The problem is that it doesn't really have much that really makes it shine. It is sound rather than stunning. If I had this on my shelf I would be hard pressed to pick it up over something else. <br> <br>So all I can really say is that I'm glad I got to play it but this is best left to the surfing fans." /> Review: Surf's Up, Dude!:: Re: Surf's Up, Dude! - A Detailed Review

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