Binh Dinh 2 and the usual

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Game 2. I played Govt this time, and managed to stay in control of lots of provinces, racking up the VP points for the win. I intend on playing Insurgents next game, and will attempt to occupy everywhere rather than try and fight.

A few notes:

  • Having a hard time with population control, had to read it very carefully a couple of times.
  • The insurgents need to get static forces everywhere. There is no way the Insurgents will be able to exterminate the Government forces. Likewise, the Government forces could not exterminate the Insurgents provided they were played to good effect on the areas.
  • Mechanics are a bit odd. The game was (apparently) designed as a teaching aid for a staff officer course, so some of the oddity of how victory points are handled turn by turn seem odd.
  • Remember to bring dice for this game. The combat system uses "Buckets of Dice" for resolution, 6 induces a step loss. We got through this game with my normal dice, but just barely.

All in all, a good game and one I want to play again, next time as the Insurgent faction.

And the rest…

As usual, we closed out the afternoon with some smaller games:

  • Star Realms 11: I won this one handily, managed to get some defensive protection into play before opponent was able to wale on me with the big damage points. Result: 27 to 0 my favor.

  • Star Realms 12: Lost this one, again due to the big damage early game. Opponent has a single strategy, which is to acquire two or three really big damage cards early on, and not worry over much about trade, outposts, scrapping cards, etc. By the time I get my engine built, he's got me run down. He plays much differently than the Steam AI. Result: 17 to 0 opponent's favor.

  • Zombie Dice: Game 24. School bus expansion. I lose again! Dammit! Result: 18 to 16, opponent's favor.

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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.