Game: Straw

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whoami — 2008-11-03T13:08:21+00:00

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whoami — 2008-11-03T13:07:25+00:00

Thread: Re: Straw -- Overview & Impressions

Maucoin — 2008-09-24T17:55:23+00:00

Thanks for the review Greg. Straw reminds me of the game Zeus on the Loose.

Thread: Re: Straw -- Overview & Impressions

Larry Levy — 2008-09-03T16:43:33+00:00

Thanks for the overview, Greg. This sounds like just the kind of family game I'd be willing to play with the right group. The tension between keeping high cards and low ones is pretty simple, but it's there and that makes all the difference in the world.

Thread: Straw -- Overview & Impressions

gschloesser — 2008-09-03T15:21:06+00:00

We concluded our evening with a six-player game of Straw. Straw was originally released in 2006, but has been re-released by Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG), which I understand is primarily a publisher catering to role-players. This is a strange offering, as it is pretty far from the traditional role-playing fare.

The game is actually quite simple, and reminiscent of several other games, including Limits. Players play cards atop a camel card located on the table, hoping not to exceed the breaking point of fifty points. Cards range in value from -7 to +10, and there are several “reverse” cards in the deck. When a player is forced to play a card that causes the total to exceed fifty points, the camel’s back breaks, and the offending player receives zero points. All other players receive points for the cards remaining in their hands.
One exception, however, is the “straw” card. If the value of the cards on the camel’s back is exactly fifty and the next player plays the “straw” card, he wins the round and is the only player to score points!

Subsequent rounds are played until each player has begun a round once. The game is easily adaptable to time and players’ tastes, and they can agree to simply play a few rounds.

The idea is to keep a nice mix of cards in your hand of four cards. Having all high cards will score big if you survive the round, but it also increases the possibility of being forced to play a card that will break the camel’s back. Hoarding all low-valued cards will likely allow you to avoid breaking the camel’s back, but they will score you few points when the round ends.

The game is very light, and easy-to-learn and play, making it ideal for family and casual gaming. It plays quickly, and is suitable for just about all ages. No, there isn’t much strategy or deep decisions to be made, but that’s not the point. It is simply fun, and that IS the point.

Thread: Straw - Session Report

gschloesser — 2008-09-03T15:20:01+00:00

We concluded our evening with a six-player game of Straw. Straw was originally released in 2006, but has been re-released by Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG), which I understand is primarily a publisher catering to role-players. This is a strange offering, as it is pretty far from the traditional role-playing fare.

The game is actually quite simple, and reminiscent of several other games, including Limits. Players play cards atop a camel card located on the table, hoping not to exceed the breaking point of fifty points. Cards range in value from -7 to +10, and there are several “reverse” cards in the deck. When a player is forced to play a card that causes the total to exceed fifty points, the camel’s back breaks, and the offending player receives zero points. All other players receive points for the cards remaining in their hands.
One exception, however, is the “straw” card. If the value of the cards on the camel’s back is exactly fifty and the next player plays the “straw” card, he wins the round and is the only player to score points!

Subsequent rounds are played until each player has begun a round once. The game is easily adaptable to time and players’ tastes, and they can agree to simply play a few rounds.

The idea is to keep a nice mix of cards in your hand of four cards. Having all high cards will score big if you survive the round, but it also increases the possibility of being forced to play a card that will break the camel’s back. Hoarding all low-valued cards will likely allow you to avoid breaking the camel’s back, but they will score you few points when the round ends.

The game is very light, and easy-to-learn and play, making it ideal for family and casual gaming. It plays quickly, and is suitable for just about all ages. No, there isn’t much strategy or deep decisions to be made, but that’s not the point. It is simply fun, and that IS the point.

We played six rounds, with Kevin proving to be the cruel foreman who overloaded the poor camel in three of those rounds. Sheila had a game-high 38 points in one round, which was enough for her to withstand a late charge by several of her opponents.

Finals: Sheila 84, Jim Ferguson 79, Greg 71, Rhonda 69, Ryan 60, Kevin 39

Ratings: Sheila 8, Ryan 7, Kevin 7, Jim 6.5, Greg 6.5, Rhonda 6.5

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Surya — 2008-08-29T12:43:39+00:00

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rcjames14 — 2006-04-07T04:50:03+00:00

Camel Card

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rcjames14 — 2006-04-07T04:32:30+00:00

Card Backs

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rcjames14 — 2006-04-07T00:10:56+00:00

Cover Image - Laden Camel

Thread: Straw: A review by John Brader

johnbeapirate — 2006-04-01T05:52:21+00:00

Straw, designed by Richard James and produced by Evertide Games, is an excellent card game with a difficult to achieve blend of cheerfulness and strategic play. Considering the simplicity of the rules, this game has depth and plenty of playability for even a serious Euro-gamer. Originally when I saw the box showing the cartoon camel over-burdened with packages, I thought, “Okay, this is a cute game, worthy of a filler-slot in my collection, but not much more.” Well, Straw proves one should not judge a book by its cover, or in this case a game by its box. This is a light-hearted game that still gets the strategy juices flowing.

The “straw that broke the camel’s back” is the underlying theme. Basically, players play cards representing different objects: jewelry, baskets of fruit, monkeys, bags of bricks… Each of the different objects weighs a designated amount, and the camel can only carry so much. Eventually, someone will overload the camel and “break the camel’s back.” In addition to objects weighing the camel down, players can play magic-carpet cards which effectively reduce the weight on the camel. Other cards reverse the direction of play, copy the previously played card, or can have a weight chosen by the player. Finally, there is one “straw” card which weighs nearly nothing, but if a player uses the straw card to overload the camel, that player wins the round. Conversely, if a player breaks the camel’s back with any other object, that player loses the round and the others score.

Play is simple. The camel is placed in the center of the table, and each player is dealt four cards. The first player lays a card on top of the camel, announces the weight, and draws a new card. Then, the next player plays a card, announces the new weight, and draws a card. (Now you now how to play – I told you the rules were simple!) Each time a player adds either an object or a magic-carpet onto the camel, the weight changes. For example if Joe plays a monkey weighing 3, he says 3. Next, Mary plays a jug of water weighing 7, she says 10. And then, Jack plays a magic-carpet with -4, he says 6. This goes on until a weight over 50 is reached. Simple rules and simple math.

Once someone breaks the camel’s back, the round is over, and the winner(s) of the round add up the card weights in their hands. The game continues until someone reaches 100 points.

Enough of the simplicity of the rules, let’s focus on the strategy inherent to the game. Since each player can only hold four cards, you must pay close attention to card management. You don’t want to have all heavy cards, because as the camel gets close to the breaking point, you won’t be able to make a play except to break the camel’s back. You don’t want to have all zero point cards like “reverse” or “copy” because you won’t score any points even if one of your opponents breaks the camel’s back. Finally, you definitely don’t want too many magic-carpet cards because they are worth negative points. Instead, the strategic player needs to manage their hand to maintain a healthy balance of cards that keep you in the game without being so conservative that you can’t score points. Of course this is a card game, so even the best strategy can be overcome by lucky (or not so lucky) card draws. I personally have found that although an individual round can be lost due to luck, over the course of the entire game, which usually requires several rounds, sound strategy and hand-management will ultimately win.

The cards are of good quality, and the artwork throughout the deck is top-notch. The rules are printed on a card, so the entire game fits in a box about the same size as a standard deck of cards. Combine the portable size with the quick play and easy to explain rules, Straw becomes one of those games that you can keep with you at school, work, on business trips… and you can get in a quick, light-hearted, but strategic game. I recommend you get a copy of Straw – fun, great replayability, and well-designed!