Hive XIX

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The 19th game of Hive, this one played against a human opponent on BGA.

As I write this, I think I'm going to win. If not, it will be a loss by no more than 2 moves. What's interesting about this game is I'm scored at 1432, and opponent is scored 1673. So if I win this one, it's a bit of coup.

My play in this game was pretty fast, borderline sloppy, but always very aggressive. It may yet lose me the game, as most of my pieces are pinned. However, the pieces he needs to move very badly are largely the pieces which are pinning me. I don't see any way for this opponent, but I've been surprised in the past at Hive, and there may very well be something I'm just not seeing.

This write up is on September 1st, the game went into September 2.

And I won it.

End of game 19

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What to play next?

Deciding what to play next is always a tough call when faced with a closet full of games, all of which were purchased with intent to play. Here's one I'm dealing with the decision.

  • Something New: this means both something new to me and a game which has been published recently, within the last two or three years.
  • Something Classic: I've acquired a number of games properly considered "classic" which haven't yet been played. The current example would be PanzerGruppe Guderian.
  • Something Again: mastery requires constant practice, which means playing games many, many times to allow nuance to appear.
  • Something Vietnam: as I'm on a Vietnam binge. I don't have all the Vietnam games ever published, but I can say that I have a lot of them, and probably more than most people.
  • Something Obscure: as it's fun to poke around in the dustier corners of game design.
  • Something Different: break away from the same old publishers and try a game from one of the new kids on the block. Or, conversely, dip into legacy with a classic tried and true.
  • Something Light: once in a while it's nice to actually finish a game all the way through in one sitting, in an hour or two.
  • Something Heavy: if possible, it's nice to set up something big and complicated which can be left out for days or weeks or even months, for a leisurely stroll through a very large or long game.

There are surely many more ways to choose, but the above method keeps me busy enough, helps me get both breadth and depth into my play, and provides me with a sense of progress.

The odd man out

When there is an odd man out:

  • Have a solo game ready to play.
  • Keep score or advise on a game in progress.
  • Referee a game in progress.