Discussion: Identical Boards isn’t Interesting

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cowboy_dan
Posts: 63
Joined: 10 May 2015, 22:56

Discussion: Identical Boards isn’t Interesting

Post by cowboy_dan »

I understand that for those who like to play competitively that first edition, identical random board is the preferred format because it is the most competitive. I don’t dispute that at all. I’m also just concerned with 2p for this post.

What I’d like to get opinions on is what created the most interesting games. My preference is random board without 8. With different boards, players will follow different strategies. When identical boards are used, both players want the same tiles, which makes ships and turn order even more important than they already are. If you go first and roll a 1,4 then your opponent is going second all game.

I welcome your insights.
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sorryimlikethis
Posts: 220
Joined: 16 September 2021, 13:04

Re: Discussion: Identical Boards isn’t Interesting

Post by sorryimlikethis »

Competitive and fun go hand-in-hand for me. As you said, not all the boards are evenly balanced. If I'm playing on a board where it's hard to break 200 points while my opponent has a board that can score 200 easily, I'm not going to have much fun. Even with board 8 out of the equation there can still be a significant point difference between boards.

I don't think having different boards solves any of the problems you have either. Players will still fight over boats, mines and castles in most games. They're just universally good on all boards. Better on some, still good on all. Some boards favour more buildings, or animals, or yellow tiles, so there will be some small differences in some games. I still think turn order will be important no matter what.

The interesting part about the game, for me, is having those contested tiles and having to balance what you take each turn. You can grab both boats with a 1 and 4, but then you leave your opponent the mine and castle. Maybe the next round you grab the mine and castle, but then you leave your opponent with 2 boats and potentially the boat lead back. There aren't enough moves to grab all the tiles you want and knowing that if you don't grab something now it will get taken away keeps the game exciting IMO.
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