Coincidentally, as I was reading the reviews and news, pondering the purchase of this game, the History Channel showed a nice feature on the history of the Samurai. That sealed it for me.

At first look, Senji , by Asmodee, is a tough game for me to categorize. I don’t get to play as many games as I’d like, and therefore am not as schooled in all the intricacies and genres. At its heart it’s diplomacy, mixed with a little conquest and a dash of resource production.

Senji is based on Feudal Japan, roughly during the 1400-1600 period. The Emperor was a mere figurehead, and powerful warlords, or daimyo, fought for territory and favor. Each one sought to become Shogun, the supreme military and political ruler of the country. Senji places you in the game as one of the powerful daimyo, and it’s up to you to gain favor with the emperor to be named the next Shogun.

First Impressions:

I think that Senji is one of the most beautiful games I’ve ever purchased. I spent two years in Japan, and developed an appreciation for Japanese art and culture. Asmodee does a fine job capturing this, with a copy of one of the most famous of Japanese ink prints, the Tsunami, prominently displayed in the corner of the board. On the board is a map of most of Japan, divided into 18 provinces. The plastic samurai and fortresses are nice, although I tend to be all thumbs when fiddling with small bits (putting the flag stickers on the samurai figures). The many cardboard bits are well done, and feel more like masonry tiles than cardboard. I must admit I feel a slight thrill in punching out the cardboard markers. The box insert actually holds everything, although it’s worthwhile to invest in some baggies to keep the colors separated. The board is large, and can take up a fairly large space, but my custom gaming table has plenty of room.

Our First Game

Once I had everything punched out and organized, and had spent a sufficient time just staring at the nice bits, I couldn’t wait to actually play the game. So, I gathered up my two favorite gaming buddies: my wife and 9-year-old daughter. As I set up the board I tried to explain the rules as best I could. In Senji you compete for honor points, marked on a scoring track that’s marked on the edge of the board. Honor can be gained (and lost) in different ways: by military conquest, by diplomacy and by production. You can host an opponent’s family member (or execute them if the need arises), draw “hanafuda” cards and use combinations either for honor or to recruit more Samurai, or gloriously attack a neighboring province, raining death and destruction upon your unsuspecting foes.

Senji is a game for up to six players. There were three of us, so three of our ‘opponents’ were considered neutral. Their diplomacy cards were set on the table for bidding on during the diplomacy phase of the turn. We set up by putting a fortress on each of our three starting provinces. We drew for our first Samurai (which can give some nice bonuses during various parts of the game), our Hanafuda (production) cards and set our beginning score (based on your Samurai’s honor points) on the score track around the board. I had read the rules several times, and was certain I’d dominate. After all, my two partners are both peace loving, and I would be known as the Shogun with the iron fist. It didn’t matter that my wife started out hosting the Emperor.

We then began with the diplomacy (the Winter phase), accomplished through trading diplomacy cards and verbal agreements (which may or may not be honored). The diplomacy cards that every player has include family cards, military aid and trade deals. You can trade cards with other players, and these in turn can be traded to even more players, to be used at a later time. In a game with less than six players, the ‘missing’ opponents’ diplomacy cards are put on the table. Two cards from each deck are laid face up, and players may bid by laying cards face down underneath them. I bid for a couple of nice military support cards, and then tried to trade with my human opponents.

After the diplomacy phase comes the orders phase (Spring). Order tokens including military recruitment, movement and production (draw two Hanafuda cards) are place in your provinces face down. Orders are resolved in the next phase (Summer) in the order chosen by the Emperor’s host. In Autumn, players try to gain more honor through various means including displaying your guests (opponent family members), cashing in Hanafuda cards, and diplomacy (returning a diplomacy card of each color to each player).

Apparently, the two women I love most in my life decided it would be a great “lets beat up Daddy” day. My wife allowed me a couple of trade agreements and a family member, but my daughter would have nothing to do with me for the duration of the game. I’ll not go into a turn by turn list, but here’s the way the game generally went:
I got to host the Emperor early on, and gained quite a lead. Then my daughter caught up and got the job, and never looked back. She attacked me and took over my provinces, and gained honor. I lost honor. My wife attacked me and gained honor, and I lost it. I tried to play Hanafuda cards, but that only prolonged the suffering. By the time the bleeding stopped, I was down to no territories with a small mercenary force just off the coast. The winner is the first to score 60 or more honor points (or the highest score if more than one have more than 60) at the end of a turn. At the end of the last autumn phase of the last turn, my daughter had 72 points, my wife 56, and me, the expert, the iron-fisted Shogun who would show no mercy, 0. (yes, that’s zero. It’s possible to go into negative numbers).

My Feelings

Even though I’ve only played it once, I really like this game. We played with three players, but I’m sure it would be better with six. The game encourages a lot of player interaction, and in the day and age when the video games and cartoons rule, it’s nice to socialize and reacquaint with the family.

The hosting of the emperor is a very powerful position. As opponents we didn’t do enough to take that privilege away from the daughter, and she ran away with it. The game also punishes those who don’t manage production and recruitment well. Combat results in massive losses in military. That and limits on how many units you can have add, in my opinion, a nice balance to the game. You have to be aggressive in this game, constantly finding new ways to gain honor, and host the Emperor. If you don’t, you’ll be left with no provinces and maybe a small mercenary force off the coast (I know).

In other words, this game makes you think, and I like that. Overall, I give this game a 9/10. If you like diplomacy, conquest, production and social interaction you won’t be sorry for getting it. Even with three players it was fun, and I can’t wait to round up some more friends to play it.