Fire in the Lake 18

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Short game of Fire in the Lake today. As has been usual, I played US/ARVN, my usual opponent AS played VC/NVA.

It was looking really good for the NVA and the VC most of the way through the game, but after the second coup, the US was able to train in a couple of high value areas then, when the last coup landed, the US was in very good shape with 55 points. None of the other factions really got very close. It wasn't that good of a game for AVRN really, either.

The NVA finished with a lot of resources, which could have used to do a lot of marching around the place ruining plans. I've lost that way myself, saved too many resources as NVA, then had the game come to an end before being able to get everything on the map.

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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.