Carn Dum - 7:369

Previous:
Next:
Tags

We played 5 games of Carn Dum today, and did not even get close to legitemately questing through the first stage. This quest has a well-deserved reputation for being extremely difficult, one of the hardest quests in the game. It also doesn't scale well, with higher player counter compounding the difficulty.

As usual, the numbering scheme refers to the of plays of quest:lotr respectively. In this session we played games 364 through 369, with the 3-7 plays of Carn Dum.

It's hard to recall exactly how each of these games played out, but I did jot down a note for each one. We're considering taking much better notes going forward.

Game 3:364

Mirlonde and Boromir decks. Enemy lock, with neither deck started firing.

Game 4:365

Mirlonde and Boromir decks. Location lock, with neither deck started firing.

Game 5: 367

We changed from Mirlonde to Dain deck. Then forgot to manage sorceries correctly and scooped.

Game 6:368

Sorceries played correctly this time. Many of 3 card discard treacheries all at once. First round scoop.

Game 7:369

Correct sorceries, but this time all the side quests came out and our threat on the second round was something like 12 over, and we were already questing everyone. Second round scoop.

Previous:
Next:
Tags

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.