Game: Renaissance

Thread: Too Much Money?

Mingler1 — 2008-07-03T02:44:28+00:00

OK, so we've played two full games so far, one with four players and one with five. In both games, money played only a minor role after Turn 2. In fact, we had so much money, we ran out of enough coins to fill everyone's coffers during the Treasury Phase. The buildings (Palace, Rampart, Castle) cost too little, and produce too much income. At the end of the Purchasing Phase of Turn 2, basically all of the Ramparts and Castles have been bought and only a few Palaces are left. That left only cards to purchase for the rest of the game (a maximum of 16 Ducats per player during a Peace turn). There was no longer a need to actually pay for Condittiere or Marriages or to collect income from Banker or Pillage since everyone could easily afford to do these actions.

We've decided to institute a house rule or two (with purchases and income similar to Joan of Arc) to make money more important.

Anybody else see this as a problem? Anybody else suggest a different solution?

Thread: Re: English Rules Enroute

Gamethyme — 2008-06-29T15:05:42+00:00

There are cards a well - you should be able to puzzle through them pretty easily, though. And they're explained in the rules.

Thread: Re: English Rules Enroute

dumpty — 2008-06-29T13:53:21+00:00

As far as the components go, I can only see the pictures uploaded to BGG and it looks like the only thing where language would matter is the small reference card. Is there anything else where not speaking French would be a hindrence (aside from the rules, of course)?

Thread: Re: Engineers vs Traitor

Crockerdile — 2008-06-27T23:40:25+00:00

(psssst!) Thanks, Eric , for the backup.

Thread: Re: Engineers vs Traitor

Gamethyme — 2008-06-27T21:54:35+00:00

Crockerdile wrote:
In this case, the Felon card reduces the fortifications to zero, then the Ingenieur card reduces the attacking force by 2, and in that order.

Fight a battle in this sequence...
1. Attacker and Defender simultaneously reveal their cards.
2. Defender then has the opportunity to counter either the Felon or Ingenieur, with the same card. If the Defender can (and does)counter either of these cards, then they are removed from the battle by both sides.
3. Both sides roll a die, then add the "positive" totals.(Battle cards and die roll).
4. The attacker (if he played any of them) then subtracts the value of the Felon card (-2, -4, or -6) or the Ingenieur (-2) from the Defender's total.
5. The Defender (if he played any of them) subtracts (-2) from the Attacker's total (Ingenieur), or subtracts the value of the Attacker's highest card (Felon).
6. Compare the totals again. This is the result....unless...
7. The Attacker plays a Sign of God card (doubling his highest card). This is his only chance to do so.
8. Then the Defender has a chance to play a Sign of God card (doubling the value of his highest card). The Attacker has no chance now to counter this.
9. Compare the totals again. Highest total wins.
10. The loser, (or both players if it is a tie), may then play one retreat card only.

This sequence looks complicated, but it plays out much faster than it reads. Follow this sequence and there will be no arguements.

I don't have my rules handy, but this looks correct to me.

Thanks, Mark.

Eric

Thread: Re: Terrain Identification

Gamethyme — 2008-06-27T15:24:08+00:00

Crockerdile wrote:
(My opinion) I would say that each and every town you've mentioned is a "plains" location, offering no defensive bonus. I'm going by what the predominant color of the spot where the town is sitting, is.

Also, finding a marshland in the middle of the mountains would be unusual to say the least. When we play, we just consider whether the space is light or dark. If it's dark, you get a +1 defensive bonus.

I'm pretty sure that the most you can get as a defensive bonus is +2. A +1 if it is a dark space, and +1 if you are defending a sea attack at the same place.

Again, my opinion.

After looking over my map for the last few days, I'd have to agree with this assessment. I'm just waiting for a confirming e-mail from one of my contacts.

Eric

Thread: Re: Terrain Identification

Crockerdile — 2008-06-27T15:05:56+00:00

(My opinion) I would say that each and every town you've mentioned is a "plains" location, offering no defensive bonus. I'm going by what the predominant color of the spot where the town is sitting, is.

Also, finding a marshland in the middle of the mountains would be unusual to say the least. When we play, we just consider whether the space is light or dark. If it's dark, you get a +1 defensive bonus.

I'm pretty sure that the most you can get as a defensive bonus is +2. A +1 if it is a dark space, and +1 if you are defending a sea attack at the same place.

Again, my opinion.

Thread: Re: Engineers vs Traitor

Crockerdile — 2008-06-27T14:38:25+00:00

In this case, the Felon card reduces the fortifications to zero, then the Ingenieur card reduces the attacking force by 2, and in that order.

Fight a battle in this sequence...
1. Attacker and Defender simultaneously reveal their cards.
2. Defender then has the opportunity to counter either the Felon or Ingenieur, with the same card. If the Defender can (and does)counter either of these cards, then they are removed from the battle by both sides.
3. Both sides roll a die, then add the "positive" totals.(Battle cards and die roll).
4. The attacker (if he played any of them) then subtracts the value of the Felon card (-2, -4, or -6) or the Ingenieur (-2) from the Defender's total.
5. The Defender (if he played any of them) subtracts (-2) from the Attacker's total (Ingenieur), or subtracts the value of the Attacker's highest card (Felon).
6. Compare the totals again. This is the result....unless...
7. The Attacker plays a Sign of God card (doubling his highest card). This is his only chance to do so.
8. Then the Defender has a chance to play a Sign of God card (doubling the value of his highest card). The Attacker has no chance now to counter this.
9. Compare the totals again. Highest total wins.
10. The loser, (or both players if it is a tie), may then play one retreat card only.

This sequence looks complicated, but it plays out much faster than it reads. Follow this sequence and there will be no arguements.

Thread: Engineers vs Traitor

Mingler1 — 2008-06-26T03:12:01+00:00

Just finished our first game of Renaissance, and it was great. I envision many more to come. A situation came up, though, that wasn't covered in the rules.

Player A used a Traitor (Felon) as his red card attacking Player B, who had an Engineer as his red card. So, how is the combat value of B's city figured? Does the Traitor trump the Engineer, leaving no defense of the city, or does the Traitor bring it down to zero, then the Engineer brings it back to +2 (the way we played it)?

Thanks for any insight you all may have.

Thread: Re: Terrain Identification

Mingler1 — 2008-06-23T01:14:08+00:00

I'm pretty sure about the mountain areas, but the marsh areas are really throwing me. It looks like most of the non-mountain towns have a marshy background, so here is my (extensive) list:

Bari, Capua, Roma, Pisa, Siena, Rimini, Ferrara, Treviso, Padona, Mantova, Bologna, Parma, Piacenza, Milano, Pavia, Casale and Nizza.

Pretty much the only town where there is no doubt is Brescia.

Just out of curiosity, are there any areas that are both mountainous and marshy, and therefore are +2 automatically on defense?

Many thanks in advance if you can clarify these for me.

Thread: Re: Terrain Identification

Gamethyme — 2008-06-22T23:40:41+00:00

Which cities did you have questions on?

Thread: Terrain Identification

Mingler1 — 2008-06-21T20:45:54+00:00

I recently went on a business trip to Paris. ("Hey, did you see the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre?" No, but I did find a really cool game store!") Anyway, long story short, I'm now one of a handful of guys in North America with a copy of Rennaissance.

First of all, the game is beautiful and I can't imagine why Asmodee would not want to share it with our part of the world. Bad business decision to me, but that's not why I'm writing this.

I'm having a tough time figuring out which towns are sitting in open terrain and which are sitting in mountains or marsh. Some towns are obvious, but too many others are not. I was wondering if anyone had a list of the towns matching them with the terrain they are sitting on?

Oh, also wanted to acknowledge Eric Franklin (Gamethyme) and thank him for providing the English rules, without which, I wouldn't have had a clue.

Thread: Re: Renaissance-Newbie Reviews

Crockerdile — 2008-05-12T14:59:35+00:00

Joan lists as 120 minutes and is 8 to 10 turns in length (but most of us know that Joan is closer to 3 hours). Renaissance is listed as 90 minutes and is a flat 6 turns period, but 120 minutes is more realistic.
In both games you win by controling provinces to gain points. In Renaissance you also gain points by being an art patron. Joan has an 8 phase turn sequence, while Renaissance has a 6 phase turn sequence.

Renaissance has 3 types of cards (Blue, Red, Yellow), while Joan has 2 types (Red, Yellow).

Renaissance has NO hero cards, and has NO influence points to be used in battles.

Renaissance does have "Condottiere" (mercenary) cards, that may change loyalty, or just run away in the middle of a battle, just on the roll of a special die.

Renaissance has NO "chance events", like in Joan, but some of Joan's chance events are available in Renaissance's Yellow cards.

Joan has 3 structures(Garrison, Castle, Fortress), for both defense and income. Renaissance has the same equivalent + an extra structure (Palais) which is built to house an artist, and has no defensive OR income value.

Despite these changes, anyone who enjoys "Joan of Arc/Montjoie", will immediately recognize the geneology of "Renaissance". It plays about 85% the same as Joan, and its shorter length pretty much guarantees that it can get to the table more often. (I've always found Joan a tough sell, mainly because of it's length).

Thread: Re: What's in the box.

Gamethyme — 2008-05-10T22:02:11+00:00

Crockerdile wrote:
If you have the English rules here in the files, you shouldn't have any problem.

Ths line is very good to see. Thank you.

Eric

Thread: Re: What's in the box.

Crockerdile — 2008-05-10T20:31:05+00:00

All of the tokens and counters are iconographic, so no problem.
The only text on the cards is the titles, and frankly most of us know more French than we think. some examples:
Ingenieur = Engineer
Ambassadeur = Ambassador
Suisses = Swiss
Piquiers = Pikers
Retraite = Retreat
Artiste = Artist
Banquier = Banker
Signe de Dieu = Sign of God
If you have the English rules here in the files, you shouldn't have any problem.

Thread: Re: What's in the box.

Aging One — 2008-05-10T13:28:07+00:00

Other than the French rules, how language independent are the components, e.g., the cards?

Thread: What's in the box.

Crockerdile — 2008-05-10T12:03:52+00:00

On the news that there will be no English language version of "Renaissance", I loosened my purse strings and obtained the French version. I think that most people interested in "Renaissance" came to that intrest via "Joan of Arc", so I'll be comparing some of the bits in "Renaissance" to the bits that come with "Joan".

The map is huge. A whopping 39 inches by 30 inches. It's a 6 folder and is mounted "American style" (The playing surface is not visible when folded). All of the information tracks are incorporated on the playing surface, as opposed to "Joan" which has separate tile and tracks for informational bookkeeping.

The counters (garrisons, artists, pillage) are all 3/4 inches in diameter, and printed on both sides. (Joan's counters are 1 inch diameter and printed on only 1 side). I wish they had gone the 1" route.

The money tokens are 3 sizes and double printed (diameters of 1/2 ", 3/4" and 1" in copper, silver, and gold.

The deck of 80 cards are standard size, as opposed to the elongated "tarot" sized cards in "Joan". They look just as good, maybe better.

The structures in "Renaissance" are made of plastic, rather than the resin structures in "Joan". This makes them quite lighter, but probably sturdier too. They won't be prone to chip.

Each faction has an approximately 2" x 3" tile depicting a leader for identification purposes. There is also an extra set of counters for the French faction, which is used in the 3 extra scenarios that have been added to the basic game.

"Fit & finish" wise, my only disappointment is the 3/4" token size (prefer 1"), but it is an attractive package nonetheless.

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

gamerbut — 2008-05-10T01:55:33+00:00

Thanks, Eric. I found it.

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Gamethyme — 2008-05-09T14:47:08+00:00

They DO have it (I verified before posting) - go through the FRENCH catalog (it's not hard to figure out), use Publishers alphabetically and choose Asmodee. Renaissance is on the list.

Eric

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Lawrence Hung — 2008-05-09T05:49:21+00:00

Ooopss...I can't find the game from their catalogues (which have so many titles in them), even using the search engine. Are you sure they have it? Or should I order direct from the French (which have a less than reliable delivery record from my experience)?

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Gamethyme — 2008-05-09T02:08:02+00:00

gamerbut wrote:
Disappointed in the decision to scrap the English version of Renaissance! Anybody know where a French (or German) edition of the game can be purchased in North America?

Le Valet d'Coeur has it - http://www.levalet.com

Not sure who else might. I've neve had any problems with ordering from them in the past.

Eric

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

gamerbut — 2008-05-09T02:04:17+00:00

Disappointed in the decision to scrap the English version of Renaissance! Anybody know where a French (or German) edition of the game can be purchased in North America?

Thread: Re: Condottiere cards?

Crockerdile — 2008-05-07T20:31:24+00:00

Ah ha!!

Thread: Re: Condottiere cards?

Gamethyme — 2008-05-07T19:45:19+00:00

The die is 1x Treason, 1x Retreat, 4, 4, 5, and 6.

Eric

Thread: Re: Condottiere cards?

Gamethyme — 2008-05-07T17:27:05+00:00

I uploaded a photo - IIRC, it's 1 Treason, 1 Retreat, and then the remainder are numbers. I have it in the car, so I'll check on lunch.

There is a photo of the dice in the photos of the game that I uploaded as soon as my copy of the game arrived.

Eric

Thread: Re: Condottiere cards?

Crockerdile — 2008-05-07T17:19:59+00:00

So I guess I was right for only half of the options...but it makes sense (in the context of the game and sense in the context of what mercenaries really are). I haven't even seen the special die yet, but I'm betting that 2 of the 6 possible results are "treason".

Thread: Re: Condottiere cards?

Gamethyme — 2008-05-07T16:51:05+00:00

Here's my understanding:

The "Treason" card is the Condottieri heading over to the opponent's front line and saying, "Psst! Give us money, and we'll come work for you instead!"

Now here is where it gets tricky.

I roll a "Treason" result, which means that the Condottiere sells itself to my opponent IF... my opponent can (or wants to) pay the bank 1 ducat.

Let's say that the opponent pays the Ducat. He rolls the die, and also gets a "Treason" result. Do I have to pay again to get the card back?

Yes. The Condottiere are just looking for more money. Basically, the night before the battle, you get a visitor from the leader of the mercenary band, looking for you to pay them more money to come back.

Let's say that my opponent cannot (or refuses) to pay the Ducat to the bank. The rules say that I merely re-roll the die. Do I pay another Ducat, or do I re-roll until I get another result?

If your opponent turns them down, then they'll still do the job you've already paid them for. They'll just not be as happy about it as if they'd been paid twice (or three times or four times ... )

Eric

Thread: Condottiere cards?

Crockerdile — 2008-05-07T14:28:12+00:00

Along with a couple of other minor changes to "Joan of Arc/Montjoie", these Condotteire Cards seem to be the most significant change to "Renaissance", when compared to the afformentioned game. So let me see if I've got this right.
I pay the bank 1 Ducat for each Condottiere I intend to use in battle. (understood).
I roll a special die for each Condottiere that I play. (understood).
If the results of the die say "Rout", the card is discarded immediately.
(understood).
If I roll a number, the Condottiere is worth that number in the current battle.(understood).

Now here is where it gets tricky.

I roll a "Treason" result, which means that the Condottiere sells itself to my opponent IF... my opponent can (or wants to) pay the bank 1 ducat.

Let's say that the opponent pays the Ducat. He rolls the die, and also gets a "Treason" result. Do I have to pay again to get the card back?
Or do I just get him back because I've already paid?

Let's say that my opponent cannot (or refuses) to pay the Ducat to the bank. The rules say that I merely re-roll the die. Do I pay another Ducat, or do I re-roll until I get another result?

I am assuming that it is the card itself that costs 1 Ducat, and that no matter what the die results are (mine or the opponent's), I will not have to pay any more Ducats.
But I could be wrong. Perhaps I (or my opponent) must pay 1 Ducat each time he rolls for that particular Condottiere card...turning a minor annoyance into a major descision.

Any opinions?

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Gamethyme — 2008-05-07T02:21:18+00:00

Lawrence Hung wrote:
Many thanks, Eric! Now I should get the game from someone at a discount.....

Don't thank me - thank Asmodee, both for the translation and for the permission to upload it here.

Eric

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Lawrence Hung — 2008-05-07T00:54:55+00:00

Many thanks, Eric! Now I should get the game from someone at a discount.....

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Gamethyme — 2008-05-06T20:58:32+00:00

The rules cleared File Approval in record time!

Let me know if you have any questions.

Eric

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Gamethyme — 2008-05-02T21:21:26+00:00

Lawrence Hung wrote:
Gee...any online translation of the rulebook or they can get one out so that I can still buy the French version to play?

I asked for and received permission to upload the English rules.

They've been uploaded. Just be patient, as it has to clear Admin approval (a slow process at best).

PLEASE don't nag the admins about it, either.

Thanks,

Eric

Thread: English Rules Enroute

Gamethyme — 2008-05-02T21:18:15+00:00

I got permission from Asmodee to upload the draft English rules - I've already gone through upload process, so now we just need the file admins to approve the upload.

According to the file upload page, this can take several weeks, so don't get TOO excited.

Please do NOT take this as an excuse to bug the file admins about it, either. There are other games for which people are as anxious.

Thanks,

Eric

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Hieken — 2008-05-02T12:49:42+00:00

German-speaking players may find the german rules here: http://blog.proludo.de/wp-content/Renaissance_de.pdf

Since Pro Ludo was in charge until the project was dumped, I think it is just fair to the game to release the finished german rulebook as a download, so players may play it with the french version.

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Lawrence Hung — 2008-05-01T17:05:49+00:00

Gee...any online translation of the rulebook or they can get one out so that I can still buy the French version to play?

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

Crockerdile — 2008-04-30T22:37:22+00:00

Got a reply from Asmodee-us (April, 30, 2008). They've dropped the project. No English language version.

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arthmac — 2008-04-22T20:58:00+00:00

Thread: Re: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

gamerbut — 2008-03-22T02:12:56+00:00

So, what's the hold up on the release of Renaissance in the USA?

Thread: Re: Renaissance-Newbie Reviews

Wrevilo — 2008-01-19T16:55:19+00:00

Mingler1 wrote:
Thanks for the review. My group loves Joan and we play it fairly regularly. We are anxious to try this one out. Anyone out there who's played both Joan/Montjoie and Renaissance care to compare?

Woah, Mike. We hear you.

Thread: Re: Renaissance-Newbie Reviews

Mingler1 — 2008-01-18T21:44:44+00:00

Thanks for the review. My group loves Joan and we play it fairly regularly. We are anxious to try this one out. Anyone out there who's played both Joan/Montjoie and Renaissance care to compare?

Thread: Re: Renaissance-Newbie Reviews

Gamethyme — 2007-12-14T00:01:14+00:00

commander wu wrote:
There was the problem the yellow cards on when to play them but this was no big deal and can be worked out in the rules.

I would like to try a couple of the scenarios to see how they play out.

The yellow card timing has been clarified.

I, too, would like to try some scenarios.

Thread: Renaissance-Newbie Reviews

commander wu — 2007-12-13T17:54:46+00:00

12-12-2007

Renaissance

I enjoyed playing Renaissance and would like to do so again. Being new to the Board Gamming Community my take on the game might be a little different than others. In fact I enjoyed it more than my one game of Throne’s but that is probably because I am a newbie.

The Map (Game Board) is very well done. The art work is beautiful and the map is very easy to read and understand for game play.

I think Renaissance would be a good game for beginners. It does not need to much strategic planning and you can flow into the game quite easily for the first few turns. It seems that war does not start in most cases until at least the 4th or 5th turn. I liked the chance or luck factor of drawing the cards because it put the old craft gamers more on par with the less experienced.

I would like to see a few more ramparts in the game or a few more Ambassador Cards so that more ramparts could be returned to the bank. I think that the rampart allotment for the game is not enough maybe a few more could be added.

I also thought that the fortifications could be designed in such away that they fit together better and could display the chits better. Our ownerships chips seem to fall all over the board because they didn’t set on the ramparts very well. If you had more that one chit in a city with fortifications it got a little messy.

I thought the combat with the cards was balanced. At first it didn’t think so as the defender only got to play two cards a blue and a red but as Derrick proved this wasn’t the case. Even if the defended only had a blue card they won at times. So I liked this part.

Also I think that if a marriage card is used neither side involved should be able to attack the other during that turn. Marriages were used to bind factions together not to cause wars. Just a thought.

There was the problem the yellow cards on when to play them but this was no big deal and can be worked out in the rules.

Maybe some little boats could be added to show where the port cities were attacking, just a thought.

I would like to try a couple of the scenarios to see how they play out.

I thought the game look fantastic and with a few minor tweaks it could be a real hit.

Ron

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arthmac — 2007-11-24T09:12:08+00:00

Pascal Bernard, creator of Renaissance

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arthmac — 2007-11-24T09:11:17+00:00

some cards

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arthmac — 2007-11-24T09:10:53+00:00

Borgia

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arthmac — 2007-11-24T09:10:06+00:00

Image

arthmac — 2007-11-24T09:09:46+00:00

some part of the boardgame

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Gamethyme — 2007-11-02T20:44:20+00:00

The board (Wow, but it's big!)

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Gamethyme — 2007-11-02T20:43:48+00:00

A few of the cards

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Gamethyme — 2007-11-02T20:41:40+00:00

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Gamethyme — 2007-11-02T20:40:36+00:00

Thread: Asmodée US to release English version Jan 2008

slith — 2007-07-12T15:46:22+00:00

This was posted on the Asmodée US website (http://www.asmodee-us.com/) on July 10, 2007:

Renaissance, the last game by Pascal Bernard and edited by Asmodée France this fall and will be translated and distributed in English by Asmodée US on the first quarter of 2008. This is a game where the player controls one of the six greatest cities in Italy during the renaissance period (Venice, Naples, Geneva, Rome, Florence and Milan) who fight for cultural and territorial domination.

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Renaissance

For 4 to 6 Players

Two Hours.

Available for January 2008.

I've not played Joan of Arc myself, but I am now quite intrigued by it, and particularly Renaissance with it's, supposed, shorter game time. A game that requires at least 4 players is new for me.

Thread: Re: Any information?

Angra — 2007-07-12T08:24:45+00:00

there is very little on their website. The game should be ou in semptember and should be similar (I don't know to what extent) to jean d'arc. Here is the link:

http://www.asmodee.com/jeux-de-societe/news/news.htm?HK=7442...

Thread: Any information?

Shakar — 2006-04-04T20:11:22+00:00

Does anyone know anything about this game? a link would be appreciated, I found nothing on Asmodee website