Wood Duck

[jellob3p0]

100% agree, nearly unstoppable if played early in the 1st round. I think it should be removed from Arena play.

[JohnnyCyclops]

It's funny coming to BGA in the last couple of months and reading about a game I've played for years physically (not digitally) and never once checked the birds to the level of data analysis that goes on here. I kinda figured some birds might be better in certain situations but was never sure if a 9 feather bird was 'better' than a Forest bird for one food item you can get on the board early.

We each play the games we want to, but I just enjoy this particular game for itself, and not trying to min-max bird combinations or calling out over-powerful birds. Before reading this thread I didn't even know the publishers thought there were over-powered birds. I played a couple of games here, but it's not as fun as playing the physical game, so I switched to other games in BGA and will leave Wingspan for the fun of an in-person game at home. Each to their own, and for those who love compiling stats per-bird - you go for it - I just find it all slightly curious.

[enbycass]

The publisher has never said there are overpowered birds and the designer has never sanctioned any specific house rules as far as I've seen. This is a BGA thing only.

[detlefchef11]

The publisher has never said there are overpowered birds and the designer has never sanctioned any specific house rules as far as I've seen. This is a BGA thing only.

I actually believe the designers suggested removing at least the ravens in a later edition.

[detlefchef11]

It's funny coming to BGA in the last couple of months and reading about a game I've played for years physically (not digitally) and never once checked the birds to the level of data analysis that goes on here. I kinda figured some birds might be better in certain situations but was never sure if a 9 feather bird was 'better' than a Forest bird for one food item you can get on the board early.

We each play the games we want to, but I just enjoy this particular game for itself, and not trying to min-max bird combinations or calling out over-powerful birds. Before reading this thread I didn't even know the publishers thought there were over-powered birds. I played a couple of games here, but it's not as fun as playing the physical game, so I switched to other games in BGA and will leave Wingspan for the fun of an in-person game at home. Each to their own, and for those who love compiling stats per-bird - you go for it - I just find it all slightly curious.

This reads a little smug.

[Madlaine]

Slightly.

On table Wingspan feels different. We chat, have fun, spill coffee on the board and try altogether To make the best out of every turns, and we rarely played more than 2 games on a row...while BGA offers the possibility of playing four to five games pretty fast and experimenting a lot of things, keeping an eye on the score a all time.

But even on a merry table play, we've been grumping about ravens and killdeer being stupidly strong since the very first game (and I kicked them out the box myself because the Oceania expansion).

I know some people play only for fun and it's good, but trying to win IS part of a fun game, I don't think randomly playing stuff count as "fun"

[Fletcheese]

The publisher has never said there are overpowered birds and the designer has never sanctioned any specific house rules as far as I've seen. This is a BGA thing only.

Special rule sets on BGA always require publisher approval. The fact that the game mode exists to remove the power 4 is evidence that the publisher has sanctioned it but here's a post directly confirming it as well:

wingspan4.png (33.91 KiB) Viewed 948 times

[JohnnyCyclops]

This reads a little smug.

Oh gosh. Not intentionally. I think the subsequent post better explained the difference I was trying to capture between in-person and online games. And both have their merits.

[JohnnyCyclops]

Slightly.

On table Wingspan feels different. We chat, have fun, spill coffee on the board and try altogether To make the best out of every turns, and we rarely played more than 2 games on a row...while BGA offers the possibility of playing four to five games pretty fast and experimenting a lot of things, keeping an eye on the score a all time.

But even on a merry table play, we've been grumping about ravens and killdeer being stupidly strong since the very first game (and I kicked them out the box myself because the Oceania expansion).

I know some people play only for fun and it's good, but trying to win IS part of a fun game, I don't think randomly playing stuff count as "fun"

Thank you! You expressed it better than I could. Another game I've played on BGA is Obsession where the developer posted on the forum and made some changes because the way the game is played online on BGA removes some of the social interactions that an in-person game has and which provide a natural throttle on in-person players using that particular move in a way that in online play is a lot more prevalent. Hence, it's a game option. As is removing the four birds here in Wingspan.

[detlefchef11]

Slightly.

On table Wingspan feels different. We chat, have fun, spill coffee on the board and try altogether To make the best out of every turns, and we rarely played more than 2 games on a row...while BGA offers the possibility of playing four to five games pretty fast and experimenting a lot of things, keeping an eye on the score a all time.

But even on a merry table play, we've been grumping about ravens and killdeer being stupidly strong since the very first game (and I kicked them out the box myself because the Oceania expansion).

I know some people play only for fun and it's good, but trying to win IS part of a fun game, I don't think randomly playing stuff count as "fun"

Thank you! You expressed it better than I could. Another game I've played on BGA is Obsession where the developer posted on the forum and made some changes because the way the game is played online on BGA removes some of the social interactions that an in-person game has and which provide a natural throttle on in-person players using that particular move in a way that in online play is a lot more prevalent. Hence, it's a game option. As is removing the four birds here in Wingspan.

Thanks for clearing that up. TBH, my comment focused on what seemed to be making light of people digging deep with analysis of specific birds. I truly enjoy playing it in person and do so with my wife all the time. And, actually, removing the big 4 is discussed on places like reddit where many of the people in the discussion are playing in person. Additionally, it was offered as a suggestion by the creator of the game when they released Oceania. So, it is very much NOT specifically a BGA thing.

Frankly, I think it translates well to on-line because you're not trading with other players or doing THAT many things that are interactive. Sure, a five-player, turn-based game can really bog down when someone activates a hummingbird, but I just remedy that by having plenty of games going so it's often my turn in one of them.