Friday saw the first of the three Fenland Gamers Christmas meetups.

Having set it up in anticipation of playing it, our first game was Scythe.

Sadly the tables we were playing on were not quite big enough to play using the bigger extended board. 

Jonathan was playing the game for the first time. Keen to find out why this was my game of the year.

Once again, one bloody point! One point! 

I really thought I’d got my first win. For the majority of the game I was the only one placing stars on completed goals. Then Jonathan and Jeff managed to add one or two. I was trying to control as much territory as possible,which included me taking the factory. Although just before I ended the game, Jeff took one of the areas I had control of. This it would turn out cost me the game! 

Jonathan wasn’t too impressed and couldn’t see why it was my game of the year. There was a little frustration, but it was a learning game for him. I thought Jonathan did really well. Yes there mistakes. And he got into a situation Jeff and I hadn’t seen in our three previous games of a dead turn (not being able to do anything). 

My opinion of the game hasn’t changed. I love the fact among others, that triggering the end game does not guarantee that you have won. As I have proven. 

But what would our world be if we all had exactly the same tastes? Jonathan’s game of the year is The Voyages of Marco Polo. A really good game that I also really like. Jeffs is Mansion of Madness Second Edition, a game I will never buy because of the app, but I want to play it. 

I think if anyone bought one of our three games of the year they’d have a great gaming experience. They are all different style games, all great examples of their genre.

Oh I managed to get everything into one box. But boy is it heavy.

Almost forgot the history books will record the fact Jeff won. Boo!

“Tedious”, “too much like work” (I think I’ve paraphrased that correctly) are just two of the opinions expressed about Robinson Crusoe. 

Luckily not my opinion. I went in knowing failure was highly likely. For me the interesting bit was just how long would we survive? Just how bad would our beating be? 

Diego had joined us by now. This was a game he had wanted to play with us. It was a game I’d also wanted to play, hence its addition to my collection. We were playing the new English Portal edition.

We played the first scenario where we were tasked with having to build a signal fire to attract the attention of passing ships. 

I felt a sense of achievement that we survived so long before Jeffs character died ending the game. We were five or six turns from failing to signal the passing ship! Yeah we were struggling to build the signal fire.

This was a learning game for Jeff and myself. Jonathan had played before, owned the game in fact, and got rid of the game. It’s fair to say it’s not a favourite of his. Diego had the game back in Italy and enjoys it. 

I liked the game. I think it’s game that is going to take two or three games before I’m fully up and running on the rules. The rule book is very comprehensive! The Watch it Played video is forty minutes long.

This definitely needs an insert. I’ve not decided yet if I’ll make one (relies on me over coming my laziness) or buy one (requires me to redirect money and possibly construct it – see laziness comment).

Our final game of the day was Imhotep. This hasn’t hit the table since late June, early July time. We used the B side of the boards along with the two promo mini expansions  (private ships and Stonemasons wager ) that exist for the game. 

There was a little confusion over the wager element introduced by the promo mini expansion. So not a hit with the majority of the players. Although I didn’t mind it. The one use private ships on the other hand were a bigger hit.

One or two of the B sides weren’t enjoyed as much as their A side equivalents, like the obelisks and the burial chamber. However my preference is for the B sides.

Diego ran away with the win, while Jeff stole second place from me!

So an interesting gaming session with some conflicting opinions and experiences.

Yes I haven’t forgotten you need to feed that addiction to photos of balding middle aged men with beards. So here you go with some official Jonathan photos with me in. That should hold you for a day or two.

Naturally I topped off the afternoon and early evenings gaming with a trip to the local kebab establishment.

There are two more meets planned for the Christmas holidays. They are on the 28th and 30th. Further details can be found on the Fenland Gamers Facebook page.