Border Board Games June 11th

Border Board Games met on a new night in June, June 11th, so as not to conflict with the Green Mountain gamers Game'n Grill event on the following weekend. BBG welcomed a new face to the group as Jeff popped by to enjoy some games with us.

We started the night with a light and easy game of Ave Caesar. Homer remained almost completely baffled throughout the two races as he was always caught in corners and trapped in bottle necks. Following a couple of circuits of the chariot racing game we then moved on to a few rounds of 7 Wonders.

Though it has become a favorite among the group for its easy to grasp mechanics, quick game play and minimal downtime, it was actuality Shannon and Jeff's first time playing. While guild points boosted me (Richard) into a solid first place finish, Jeff finished strong in his own right taking second place on the strength of a balanced Military, Wonders and VP card system.

Shannon brought along a new game for the group to try. The theme and name of the game was Werewolf (forgive me if I muffed the name S.) The game involves minimal equipment as it simply involves passing out role cards and assigning a mayor or moderator. It is basically a variation of Russian Sledge whereby during the day the villagers (and the hidden werewolves) vote to eliminate the person they believe to be plaguing their town. The game then proceeds to a night phase whereby players close their eyes and the Seer awakens to peek at any other players card. That completed, the Werewolves then awaken and choose their victim. In order for the victim to die the vote must be unanimous.

The game progresses until only villagers (including special villagers like the Hunter or the Witch) or werewolves are left standing. What we learned was that while leery of claims the game could accommodate 8 to 18 people, it probably does play better with a larger group. This would create more tension on part of the werewolves and the villagers as each tries to seek the others out.

Following Werewolf we then tried a co-op game Pandemic. It's one of those games that we haven't busted out in a while so it was a chance to refresh ourselves with the game and introduce Jeff to Euro co-op games. It was a hit or miss affair with the team managing to cure the diseases before the world dissolved into chaos and death. Things certainly started out poorly with the Swine Flu sweeping through Asia until Homer the gallant Medic charged in to clean up the mess. Meanwhile Beth the research station builder guy (can't recall the actual name) and Shannon the dispatcher helped move Jeff the scientist and Homer to the latest hot spots to execute cures and construct critical new research facilities outside of Atlanta.

It was one of those peculiar games where some areas continued to be hammered mercilessly but others occurred with such infrequency as to present little challenge at all. Certainly the Swine Flu hit most areas in Asia prior to its control but the dengue fever in Africa and South America did little more than trouble Lagos, Miami and Mexico City. The Black Plague made an appearance in the Middle East and SARS swept through the northern latitudes to create more tension later on. With the deck perilously close to expiring, the team executed the final cure for the win.