JIGG Tokai

This is late but I was busy...ok really it was due to laziness. But better late than never.

The last of games day for the good folks in JIGG Tokai was on December 15th. I jumped on the early local out of Yamashina at 5:54am and began my journey. Made it to Nagoya sans delays full of coffee and rules. Eric picked me up and away we went to the international school. Let me just mention that the school is a great venue to have a games day at. Plenty of space, tables, chairs and windows. I'm glad Eric has access to such a site and grateful to the school for letting us game there.

Eric and I started a game of The Agents but as is usual he had to go out to pick up some folks. Luckily we had 2 people show up just then, Chris and Amy, and they subbed in. After explaining the rules we settled into the game. I took advantage of their newbness and racked up 50 points for the win and it would be my only win for the day. By then more people had arrived and Eric was finished shuttling people to the school so a group of us decided to play Coup.

Coup is a new game funded through Kickstarter. Set in the Resistance universe Coup is a bluffing/role assignment game where players try to eliminate 2 factions, characters, of their opponents and the last person standing wins. It has similarities to Love Letter in that the cards/characters can affect each other. It plays fast too. Quite a bit of fun to be had out of such a small game. After the stress of Coup Eric, Cat, Paul and myself relaxed with a game of Hawaii.

I find Hawaii to be a nice medium weight victory point game that is gorgeous and well themed. In Hawaii you take on the role of an island chief tasked with improving the lifestyle of the people on their island. The game takes place over 5 rounds and the player with the most points at the end wins. Cat leapt out to a large lead early and never looked back. This was the first of many victories for the feisty lady.

Next came a game of Forum Romanum.

Forum Romanum is a bit like Tic-Tac-Toe mashed-up with victory points. Players place their pieces in rows, columns and buildings. The player who gains the majority of pieces in an area scores points and the player with the least, including 0, loses points. It gets very chippy and requires a bit of planning. I think Cat won with 40+ points. That lady was on a streak!

Next came Cheaty Mages.

In Cheaty Mages the players take on the role of Mages betting on the outcome of a gladiator match. Of course being mages with money on the line they feel the need to "influence" the outcome. It's a fast and light card game with some poke-in-the-eye moments. It was a nice breezey game and I liked the theme. Again, the game went to Cat. Hmm....maybe the wins are coming from more than just skill....

Gluck Auf or Coal Barons was one of the last games I played.

In Coal Barons, the players compete to mine coal and fill orders. It was a good worker placement game. The player board has a recessed slot fitted for an elevator tile which adds a neat functionality to the game. Unfortunately, I don't remember much about the game or the mechanics. I do remember Cat winning though. Sheesh, she was on a streak.

Finished out with a couple of games of Coup. One of which Cat won...C'mon!!

 By the time we packed up it was to late to catch my train so I ended up crashing at Eric and Monique's. Thanks again for letting me stay you two! I had blast on Sunday and hope to get up to Nagoya again for a games day. Always a pleasure gaming with everyone up there.

Happy New Year!!