HF4A 21 - My First Claim (8)

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Just how fast can one get a claim? Pretty fast if the cards all fall right. In this example, FINAO at cost 3 really helps speed everything up. If it were cost 4, it would take probably another two turns as a patent would need to be researched and sold on free market to get the FINAO payment. On the other hand, taking the risk, it could be done on Turn 3 as well, just hope you don't roll a 1. I'm going to check for this situation in future plays, and see where it makes sense.

Turn 1

  • Operation: Research: Solar Moth thruster
  • Event: Inspiration
  • Notes: Crew: Anonymous P2P (E), pay 3 for FINAO.
  • Starting Aqua: 6
  • Net Δ Aqua: -1
  • Ending Aqua: 5

Turn 2

  • Operation: Boost
  • Free Actions: * Cargo Transfar: build rocket.
  • Tankage: -2 Aqua fuel
  • Movement: Move to red route Hohmann, belt roll passes.
  • Notes: Mass 0 boosts for free.

Rocket:

  • Thruster: Solar Moth
  • Robonaut: Crew
  • Mass: 1
  • Net Thrust: 4
  • Starting Aqua: 5
  • Net Δ Aqua: -2
  • Ending Aqua: 3

Turn 3

  • Operation: Prospect: The Martian claims North Pole and Hellas Basin.
  • Movement: Move to LMO, pay 3 for FINAO, aerobrake to Arisa Mons Caves.
  • Event: Glitch
  • Notes: Note that the crew is pretty well stuck on Mars. It would take an Anarchy event to allow felony suicide. Getting the crew back would be an interesting exercise as they cannot in-situ refuel at Arisa Mons Cave. The thruster could be decommissioned, and bring some tanks from LEO, All they would need is a single tank to make a 1/2 burn to North Pole where they could site refuel, slowly.
  • Starting Aqua: 3
  • Net Δ Aqua: -3
  • Ending Aqua: 0
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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.