August 4th, 2005 |
Jim and Scott showed up on time, and Lee appeared just as I had tugged Louis XIV from the shelf. As Louis only manages four, we went with Santiago, an excellent game for five.
| Santiago |
| Results | |||
| Player | Score | Place | First Time? |
| Jim | 106 | 1 | * |
| Scott | 95 | 2 | * |
| Lee | 87 | 3 | * |
| Karla | 86 | 4 | |
| Mike | 85 | 5 | |
Notes: The game started nicely enough, as I managed to be the first canal overseer and managed to reap a nice 6 escudo profit as people tried to rival one another. Jim and Karla contested Lee, who had wanted to go a different direction. I put a useless potato plant off to one side.
In the second round, I paid the most to get in on what was looking to be a big sugar cane field, and managed to get the lone watered spot. Everyone else started going for potatos in the south end of the land.
The next turn everyone had a pretty profitable go, as we either nabbed potato or sugar fields, but soon Jim was amassing a sneaky good banana plantation. He had 5 workers on a plantation that was already 5 big. I was spread pretty well, but when Karla took the overseer a couple turns in a row, I was running out of cash both in making costly early bids (usually 6 or 7 when something worthwhile came up) or paying 3 or more in bribes. I was getting good stuff (and watering it) during the midgame, but I was pretty much broke over the last few rounds and was forced to make bids of 1 or 0.
Scott was also the last one to place his private canal, which is a huge advantage late, and he managed to get in some extra potato cash. Jim manipulated his banana plantation nicely, as he got a double banana worker on it, and Lee only managed to get his banana field watered after Jim let it dry out for a turn, costing Lee 8 points at the end of the game.
Near the end, everyone saw that Scott was amassing big bean, sugar, and especially potato points, so they kind of ganged up on him. Jim was also hosed by the end, but his banana plantation was already finished (and was worth a bundle). I managed to form and grab some decent points out of a late pepper plantation, but Karla and Lee made better last turn moves, getting in on a decent sized bean field at the end.
Jim's banana plantation netted him 56 escudos, and though Scott had more balance, he never amassed more than 32 escudos - in his potatoes - and when Karla (beans), Lee (potatoes), or I (sugar) amassed high escudos in something, Jim frequently managed a decent score of 16 or 20. In the end, the big banana field, which only Lee and Karla managed to get anything out of (and not more than 24), secured victory for him.
Everyone really enjoyed it, and we managed to keep Karla focused even when Dan and Sam showed up.
| I'm the Boss! |
| Results | |||
| Player | Score | Place | First Time? |
| Dan | $42 Million | 1 | |
| Jim | $36 Million | 2 | * |
| Scott | $27 Million | 3 | * |
| Mike | $22 Million | 4 | |
| Lee | $9 Million | 5 | |
| Sam | $8 Million | 6 | |
Notes: Sam wanted to play Elfenland or Royal Turf, but we hadn't played I'm the Boss! in close to a year, and I was really up for it (to Sam's eventual dismay). The game can get frustrating, and I warned everybody about how crazy it could be. Nevertheless, we played it.
Man, it was nuts. The first turn, everyone scooped up cards, and then deals were made in madness. Frequently between 7 or 8 cards would be played per deal (if not more). What was fairly distressing, though, was that everyone's offers were so freakin' low! For instance, on a $9 million deal, people would say, "I'll give you Liebgeld for $1 million." This is a pittance, and it made the dealmakers of the game really wreak the benefits. This made "I'm the Boss!" cards unbelievably powerful.
I started off well, making fair deals and netting about $13 million before most people had any money. Then Scott made a run, and once, when I was attempting to make a deal to include the last place Sam and Lee, my deal was usurped at the last second and most of the money went to Dan and Jim.
Dan had two family members throughout a good chunk of the game and was frequently "cutting deals" with 3 person combos. People were really going for big deals early, and Sam frequently was lured into making deals when he had few cards. Lee and Sam both lost command of deals twice and that really cost them. Sam also had no family members for most of the game when I stole Sacks from him.
The cardplay was furious and the Stop cards were all-important, but it seemed that only Scott and Dan had them. Then, over the last stretch of the game, a very valuable deal went from Mike's control to Scott's to Mike's to Jim's to Dan's. Dan managed to make the deal, using only a very cheap card from Jim (the two of them had collaborated on about 3 of the last 4 deals), and, as that final deal (netting Dan something like $16 million and Jim $9 million) was the 10th, Dan rolled for the game's end. He got the 1 that was required, and the game ended with Lee saying, "Thank God."
At one point, Lee was so frustrated that he said, "That's it, from now on I'm only going to ruin deals." I was shut out over the last 4 or 5 deals of the game, and the action was fast and furious. Still, despite the chaos, we managed to do things pretty well. The game lends itself to bad feelings, I'm afraid.
| Saboteur |
| Results | |||
| Player | Score | Place | First Time? |
| Sam | 11 | 1 | * |
| Mike | 6 | 2 | |
| Lee | 4 | 3 | * |
| Jim | 3 | 4 (Tie) | * |
| Scott | 3 | 4 (Tie) | |
| Dan | 2 | 6 | |
Notes: I managed to persuade Sam to stick around for some Saboteur, and we played it pretty well. Lee and Dan showed themselves to be Saboteurs pretty early in the first round, but I had discovered the correct nugget right away and we made our way for it with a minimum of problems. I was stuck with a broken lantern at one point, but Sam fixed it, and added, "See, Mike, I don't always try to hose you." Sam finished the digging, and netted the most gold.
In the second round, Lee and Jim were the saboteurs, and it was a lot tougher to get the final pieces in place. We almost didn't make it, but then I had a great hand and Sam (again) saved me from some broken equipment (a pickaxe this time) and I stopped Lee from giving us dead ends by ruining his cart. I placed the final piece after the deck had run out (again) and Sam and I each got two cards.
The third round started with controversy, as a semi-drunk Mike saw Lee throw his identity card down in disgust and buy Lee's bluff. I felt bad that he'd be a saboteur three straight times, so I flipped it over (he WASN'T a saboteur) and everyone complained as I messed up the round. Jim protested especially as he ended up being a Saboteur in the last round when he didn't want to (along with Scott, who didn't play under protest, so he must have been the saboteur both times).
The saboteurs almost did it this time, as dead ends or LOOOONG detours arose from the hands of Jim and Scott. Finally, with about 3 cards left each, Mike made a detour through a coal piece, which had a turn leading TOWARDS the gold nugget, and Lee happened to have the perfect mine card to get us the final nugget. With Lee and Sam (again!) getting two gold cards, Sam was far and away the winner (weiner?), and Lee managed third despite being skunked the first two rounds.