Game: Santy Anno

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jsper — 2008-11-08T16:39:01+00:00

Promotional sheet in french

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chezzilla — 2008-06-17T02:51:40+00:00

Thread: Re: Open the Box

Rancemeister — 2008-05-13T11:37:23+00:00

Best video review EVER....

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Trollkin — 2008-02-08T00:39:02+00:00

Artwork on the certificate of the limited edition

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Trollkin — 2008-02-08T00:37:52+00:00

Back of a ship card

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Trollkin — 2008-02-08T00:37:00+00:00

The Rulebook

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Trollkin — 2008-02-08T00:36:10+00:00

Sample Expert Cards

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Trollkin — 2008-02-08T00:35:06+00:00

Sample standard Deck Cards

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Trollkin — 2008-02-08T00:33:47+00:00

The Action cards

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chezzilla — 2008-01-02T22:05:14+00:00

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chezzilla — 2008-01-02T22:04:54+00:00

Thread: Re: [Review] Santy Anno

Walsfeo — 2007-04-25T20:04:26+00:00

I like the game, but realize it is not for everyone. On our first on board games episode we talked about how to make the game work when playing with people of wildly disparate skill levels.

http://onboardgames.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=192600

Santy Anno is right before the segment where Scott and I were talking about Tide of Iron.

Thread: Re: [Review] Santy Anno

tgbruiser — 2007-04-25T17:33:56+00:00

Tom,

I agree with your point that the blend of brain burning and running around the table does not go together for many people.

The one time I played it (just got it last week), one of the players had had hernia surgery the day before. So, we played the variant using the pirate "frames" and avoided running. This completely eliminated the poor mix of mechanics and made for a fun game for all.

There are not too many games in my collection that support 6 or more players. This one seems like it will do the trick since simultaneous action games are the best way to avoid down time between turns. I love Cash 'n Guns as well, but there is a little more skill in Santy Anno than Cash 'n Guns. Both games are lots of fun.

I hope you give it more plays without all the running.

Great review, by the way! You nailed all the concerns I have (what were they thinking putting curse words on the pirate?) and finely captured the essence of the game.

Cheers,

Bruce

Thread: Re: [Review] Santy Anno

AnakinOU — 2007-04-25T16:53:07+00:00

Note that the "running around the table" portion is entirely optional. Components are included in the box to facilitate everyone playing while sitting in one seat the entire game.

Thread: [Review] Santy Anno

TomVasel — 2007-04-25T12:51:19+00:00

Ca$h ‘n Gun$ was one of the surprise hits of 2006 for me; I simply couldn’t believe how much fun it was – pointing fake guns at each other and wondering if the other player was bluffing or not. Everywhere I’ve taken the game it has become a hugely popular hit; so when I saw the next game from the same company – Santy Anno (Repos Production, 2006 – Gerard Mathieu), I was immediately interested, especially as the theme had something to do with pirates. When I got the small box, I was even more impressed with all the neat components inside (although nothing like the foam guns of the former game). Would this be just as good?

Well, I think I may have to sadly say “no” here. Don’t get me wrong – I enjoy the game – but I think that the audience is fairly limited here. For one thing, the game is a mix between a brain burner and a party game. Players are attempting to actually run around a table as fast as they can, while attempting to follow a complicated movement in their heads. When I taught the game, reactions were mixed, with some liking the somber thoughtfulness doused in silliness, and others being turned off by one or the other. Older teenagers were the only ones that seemed to really like the game, although it’s the type of game that one person who is quicker than the rest can dominate.

Up to eight players can play – each taking a different pirate token and the matching color “scuttle” token. Eight ships are placed around a table (regardless of players), and a “harbor” board is placed in the middle of the table. A pile of ducats is placed near the boards, and a deck of boarding cards is shuffled. Players randomly place their pirate next to one of the eight ships and stand behind the chair at that position. The first of five rounds is ready to begin.

Each round occurs with one player (the Bosun) revealing five cards face up in a line next to the harbor. Players must then use the cards to figure out which ship their pirate is supposed to go to. They then find the ship and sit in the chair in front of it, placing their scuttle on the harbor or on top of any scuttles already there. Two or more players may sit in the same chair, although only one really belongs there. Once everyone is sitting, the Bosun uses the cards on the table to carefully move the pirates to the ships they are supposed to be on. The first player (the pile of scuttles is used to determine order) who correctly picked their ship gets five coins; the next gets four, until the fifth (if there is one) gets one.

Of course, the game is all about knowing how to move from ship to ship. The eight ships are all different but share common traits with the other ships. Ships are divided into four main parts: crow’s nest, sails, hull, and nameplate. Each is one of four colors (green, red, blue, and yellow) and matches only one other ship. Ships are also numbered from “1” to “8”, share a starting letter with one other ship (the “Vivacia” and “Viper” for example), and has a parrot in one of the four corners. When moving from ship to ship, players must follow the cards laid on the table, in order. Each card moves the pirate to a new ship, and they then look for the next ship. When they get to the final ship, THAT is where they sit. The cards that are revealed determine how to move:
- Color: A card that shows one of the four colors means that the pirate must move to the ship that has the same color element. For example, if a green card is turned over, and I’m at a ship with green sails; I must move the other ship with green sails.
- Element: A card that shows one of the four elements means that a player must move to the ship with the matching colored element. For example, if a hull card is turned over, and I’m at a ship with a blue hull; I must move to the ship with the other blue hull.
- Partial Element: These cards are the exact same as an element card, except that they show a color crossed out. If the player is on a ship with the element of that color, they do NOT move.
- Name: The player moves to the ship that starts with the same initial as the ship they are on. Some name cards have one letter crossed out; those pirates do NOT move.
- Numbers: There are two numbers on the card (such as “+5”/”-3”). The player adds the number to the number of the ship that they are on, using the number that will give them a positive result. That ship is the number that they move to.

Some cards are only used in the expert game. These are:
- Helm: These cards show a direction, and all pirates move that many ships in that direction.
- Coco: These cards show Coco, the parrot. Players move to the ship that has the parrot in the same corner as their ship.
- Double element: These cards show two elements. The player switches the colors and moves to the corresponding ship.

There are also six event cards with four different events. A player can use these to add even more chaos to the game. They can make players walk backwards, skip ships, switch boarding cards, etc.

In the second round, players use six cards, seven in the third round, eight in the fourth round, and nine in the fifth round. In the last two rounds, players must also run around the table completely before sitting down. After all five rounds, the player with the most money is the winner!

Some comments on the game…

1.) Components: The small box comes jammed full of components – mostly tiles and cards. The artwork on all of them is very cartoony and certainly fits the theme. Color-blind people aren’t going to have much luck – mostly because they won’t be able to differentiate between the cards, but the ships and pirates all look different. The game has a very “light” feel, although you could replace the pirate theme with just about anything and never notice. As light as the theme is and as funny as the artwork is, I will issue a caution to parents that one of the pirate’s bodies is covered with curses, and there is a bit of cartoon nudity on the ships. Other than that, the components are high quality, which is fairly useful, since many of them are being slammed on the table at different points.

2.) Rules: The rulebook, which has five fully-colored pages dedicated to English, is clearly laid out and explains the cards (the main feature of the game) quite clearly. I will say that I was a bit befuddled at first as to how exactly the game played, because the theme (drunk pirates attempting to find their ship) seemed a bit odd when actually applied. Teaching the game is fairly simple, although I’ve found that players need demonstrations of how each of the cards work, and it often takes a good part of the game for some of them to “get it.”

3.) Brain burning: Santy Anno makes you think and requires deep thought in a short period of time. The game itself reminds me of Ricochet Robots in that a player is spinning their mental wheels, moving pirates in their head until they reach their final destination. It sounds like it’s not too difficult, but it’s a lot harder than you would think – especially when the expert cards are in the mix, and you are moving the pirate nine times. Couple this with the fact that you must do it as fast as possible, and the game can really wreak havoc with your mind. I don’t mind games that make me think hard and fast; but this is most certainly not everyone’s cup of tea, and Santy Anno has the possibility of frustrating many players.

4.) Party time: Santy Anno certainly breaks ground (I think) in that it’s the first party game that requires intense concentration and heavy thinking often found in slower deduction games such as Sleuth. However, the design is coupled with running around the table and sitting in seats as fast as you can – often in another person’s lap! The game provides some extra pirate components that allow players to partially ignore this, but simply placing a pirate chip at the ship where they are going. I certainly understand the attraction of running around the table, although I have to say it doesn’t appeal to me and is hard on the furniture. Because of this element alone, I would say that the game is geared towards the younger crowd, who would find such physical hijinks hilarious. I personally don’t mind the speed of the game mixed with the thinking, but running around the table and falling down, etc. doesn’t excite me that much.

5.) Fun Factor: The game will provide a lot of fun to those who like to do mental maneuvering in their heads. It will also provide fun for those who like to physical maneuvering around the table. The problem lies in the fact that I think these two factors will barely meet, causing the game to have a much lesser audience. And really, I can see how you CAN have fun thinking hard, then dashing around the table. Unfortunately, I can’t see how that happens very often.

6.) Expert: I personally prefer the game adding in the extra ship cards, simply because there are more options for players to think about. I usually don’t introduce these right away (it tends to cause players’ minds to implode), but they’re a simple stepping-stone. I’m much less enthused about the event cards, which simply add a large chaos factor to a game that is already rather chaotic.

I really wanted to like Santy Anno, and despite my irritation at one specific pirate card’s design, did think it was fun. But I easily concede that the fun this game provides is for a few select folk who think that thinking hard and running fast combine to make a great game. Santy Anno is one of those games that sounds better on paper than it does in practice and has a high dropout rate every time I teach it. I’ll stick with Ca$h and Gun$, I think. It’s the same amount of fun but a lot less work.

Tom Vasel
“Real men play board games”
www.thedicetower.com

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

steveoliverc — 2007-04-18T13:02:11+00:00

I agree with John that the artwork is inappropriate for kids. The idea of taking a Sharpie to the cards might be worth the effort if the game were more fun. For a speed game, try Jungle Speed instead. For a puzzle game, try Ubongo or Set. If you must have both in the same game, I suppose you can try this but I wouldn't let my child see the game without fixing the artwork first.

Thread: Re: Rules for the expansion?

Alain13 — 2006-12-24T11:45:05+00:00

See on www.rprod.com, all the rules are there, even for the expansion.
Have fun !
Alain,

Thread: Rules for the expansion?

Walsfeo — 2006-12-23T21:20:59+00:00

I have the game and an expansion. Does anyone have rules (in english)for the expansion?

Thread: One play... hankering for more.

Grimwold — 2006-12-13T14:32:22+00:00

Introduction

Santy Anno is a puzzle/race game, in which players simultaneously work through a set of rules to calculate which ship their pirate should end up on. It is a light and fun party-style game with a pirate theme, which can be played by up to 8 players (7 if any of you are sensitve to vulgarity, since one of the pirate illustrations has rude-words tattooed on his person).

Components

The game comes with 8 ship tiles on thick card stock, which have differing combinations of crows-nest,sails,hull,nameplate, name and number.

Also included are 8 pirate cards, 8 portraits and 8 port-holes. These are also on the thick card-stock.

Also on the heavy card stock are the victory point counters in denominations of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.

There is then a deck of rules cards, on a thinner card stock.

Finally there is a thick card tile representing the town.

All the components are lavishly illustrated in a colourful comic style that is very fitting for the game. There is only one unnecesary problem with the illustration, which is the tattooed pirate as mentioned above.

Gameplay

There are essentially two styles of play with Santy Anno... the energetic and the slothful. The Energetic version requires players to quickly move around the table to reach their destination, whilst the Slothful version allows players to remain seated and place their pirate-portrait on their target ship instead of moving.

To play Santy Anno, place the town card in the centre of the table, then place the 8 ships around the table, spreading them out as much as possible, and ensuring there is plenty space around the table. chairs are optional!

Each player uniquely chooses a random starting ship (that is each player starts on a different ship, but there is no relevance as to which) and places his pirate card on the left hand side of the ship, keeping hold of his/her porrtrait and port-hole tokens.

Once everyone is settled and ready to play, 5 rules cards are dealt face down into the centre of the table and then turned face up, one at a time, starting with the last and working back to the first.
When the first rule card is turned up play begins and each player has to mentally calculate which ship their pirate moves to based on each rule in turn. Having worked through all of the rules in order, a player will have calculated a target ship and must move round the table to be behind that ship. (or in the sloth version simply place your portrait on the target ship). Once at their target ship (or what they think is their target ship), a player quickly places his porthole onto the town, on top of any other portholes that have been placed there. A player should not place his porthole until he is at his target ship (or has placed his portrait on it). Note that while players should usually end up at different ships, it may happen that several people end up at the same one.

When all players have finished their calculations and placed their portholes, it is necessary to work through the rules, checking that each person ended up at the right place. Do this one rule at a time, working through the rules together and moving the pirate cards from the left side of their current ship to the right side of the new ship. When a rule is done, move all pirates from right side to left side of the ship they're at, and work on the next rule. Continue working through the rules and moving the pirates until all rules have been checked and the pirate cards hopefully arrive at the ship where their player is sat. If all players are correct, proceed to scoring. Else remove from the stack any portholes for players who landed at the wrong ship, then proceed to scoring... these players score nothing.

After scoring a round, clear away the old rule cards and begin a new round, with players starting where they should've ended up at the end of the last round. If two players are at the same ship, One person should simply move themselves and their pirate to an empty ship ready for the next round.

Deal out fresh rules, this time with 1 additional rule card. Play through the round as before, remembering that there is an extra rule this time! Then score. For each successive round add 1 additional rule card. The game usually consists of 5 rounds, so by the 5th round there will be 9 rule cards to work through. For a shorter and less intense game, you can simply play fewer rounds.

Scoring

In each round, the first correct player.. that is the one whose porthole is at the bottom of the stack earns 5 points. Next earns 4 and so on down to 1. Players higher in the stack than 5th earn no points.

Summary of Rule Cards

All the rule cards use pictures to describe what operation is to take place... The following is a list of some of the possibilities:
[c]
plain crows nest --> pirates move to the ship with the SAME COLOUR crows nest
plain sails -------> move to the ship with the SAME COLOUR sails
plain hull --------> move to the ship with the SAME COLOUR hull
plain nameplate ---> move to the ship with the SAME COLOUR nameplate
plain letters -----> move to the ship whose name begins with the same letter
+- numbers --------> move to ship with number = current plus or minus that of rule
paint pot ---------> Find part of indicated colour. move to ship of same colour part
exclude crow nest -> As with plain nest, but indicated colour does not move
exclude sails -----> As with plain sails, but indicated colour does not move
exclude hull ------> As with plain hull, but indicated colour does not move
exclude nameplate -> As with plain nameplate, but indicated colour does not move
exclude letters ---> As with plain letters, but indicated letter does not move[/c]

There are perhaps a few other event types in the basic game, and there is also a set of advanced rule cards that can be added for experienced players.

Conclusion

Santy Anno is an unusal and clever game which is excellent at a party game or as something light for a bit of fun at the end of your game session, or as an icebreaker. Beware though as some of the mental calculations required could blow your mind, and some players will naturally be good/bad at the game.

The simultaneous calculations and race aspect of the game reminded me a bit of Ricochet Robots, though this probably has a bit more variety since RR can get a bit too samey after a while. The mental gymnastics required also reminded me a little of Roborally, and I can imagine players will develop a sort of piratical dance (like the roborally dance) as they try to work out where their pirate should be moving.

I played Santy Anno once at Shire Gamers and had a really fun and mad time with it. It's definitely a game I feel I could get into and I hope to get chance to play it again sometime soon (since it's going to be a Christmas present for some friends .

Thread: Santy Anno

Neendy — 2006-12-13T02:11:01+00:00

Santy Anno is a pirate-themed party game. The box says it can be played with 3-8 players, but I recommend eight players for maximum chaos, confusion, and fun. To start, eight cards with pirate ships on them are placed evenly around the table. (Use a round table for best results.) Each player chooses a ship at random to start with and stands behind that ship. Each player then chooses a pirate and receives a corresponding pirate card and a pirate token. The pirate card is placed to the left of the ship and the token is kept in the player’s hand. In the center of the table is a spot for placing the pirate tokens and a stack of rules cards.

Play starts by dealing out five rules cards, then the cards are turned over starting with the last card dealt. The first card dealt is the first rule that the players must follow, then the second dealt is the second rule, and so on. The rules tell you which ship you should go to. For instance, the first card may tell you to go to the other ship with the same hull color as your current ship. Then from that ship, you must move to the ship with the same colored nametag, and so on. When you have followed all the rules and are at your last ship, you place your token on the token card, making a stack of tokens with the first player on the bottom. When everyone has placed their token, the stack is turned over, and the player’s moves are checked to be sure that they are at the correct ship. The first correct player is awarded 5 points, the second is awarded 4 points, and so on. There are five rounds like this, and each round the number of rules you must follow goes up by one, so on the final round you must follow nine rules. At the end of the five rounds the player with the most points is the winner.

This is a fun party game. There was lots of laughter and jostling for position, and the artwork on the cards and tokens is amusing and colorful. On the downside, players either seem to get it, or they don’t get it. Our winner was in first or second place all five times, while other players got no points at all and found it frustrating. There was some trouble getting to the ships that you needed. Most people would stand in one place and do the movements in their head by pointing and muttering to themselves, then make a mad dash to their final ship and slam down their token. Some had trouble seeing the details, and had to go to each ship in turn, which made it harder for them. There was also some trouble with placing the tokens. People were rushing to put their token down and would knock the stack of tokens over, but that was just a small glitch. This is a physical game, good for getting the blood flowing after a long session of strategy games, and good for working off those Cheetos.

Another downside is that checking the player’s moves to be sure they are correct can be tedious. I recommend stopping the checks after the last point has been awarded, if there are still players that haven’t been checked. Just make sure everyone is assigned to a new starting ship and start the next round.

Overall, Santy Anno is a good game that is fun to play for a filler game or a party game. It takes about 30 min to play all five rounds. This would be a good game for kids.

Thread: Re: From which ship do you start the next round?

tpancoast — 2006-11-16T12:55:21+00:00

Thanks! Nice Sombrero...

Thread: Re: From which ship do you start the next round?

caumont — 2006-11-16T10:34:38+00:00

Hello Pirats !

Yes, you have to start from the good ship (where your pirat is).
Then if you've been wrong in your move, then you have to move to the right ship before starting the next round.

Have fun !

Cedrick c|

Thread: Re: From which ship do you start the next round?

Moviebuffs — 2006-11-15T08:12:36+00:00

tpancoast wrote:
We weren't entirely clear when we played. Were we supposed to start the next round from the ship on which we actually ended, or the ship on which we were supposed to end?

Not sure it's covered in the rules, but we played that you move to the ship you were supposed to finish at, and then start from there.

I'm pretty sure this is the way that was being taught by the Repos guys at Essen.

N.

Thread: Re: From which ship do you start the next round?

locusshifter — 2006-11-15T05:36:41+00:00

The rules say the you move your pirate "mentally", and once you figure out his destination, you run to that chair (you can use the portraits if you do not wish to move), then you slap your scuttle down on the pile. You begin the next round where your pirate ended his last journey.

Thread: From which ship do you start the next round?

tpancoast — 2006-11-15T05:01:29+00:00

We weren't entirely clear when we played. Were we supposed to start the next round from the ship on which we actually ended, or the ship on which we were supposed to end?

Thread: Re: TV Show about the Boargame SANTY ANNO

Mr.Baggins — 2006-11-07T23:50:56+00:00

They're probably "maracas"; Caracas is a city in Venezuela.

Absolutely agree about the weirdness, tough

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

barneshome — 2006-11-03T00:16:15+00:00

I'll probably end up getting it despite my problems with the art. If nothing else, I can simply trade it away.

Thanks for the additional suggestions!

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

Blackberry — 2006-10-30T23:57:50+00:00

There are also labels that you can buy and stick over the offensive parts. There are even labels that you can put through an inkjet or laser printer and have it show and say whatever you like, even matching the original artwork if you scan it.

It looks like you could easily make those look like "FLICK" anyway.

Thread: Re: TV Show about the Boargame SANTY ANNO

gamegrl2 — 2006-10-30T21:59:57+00:00

Are those Caracas I see at the bottom of your Avatar?!? Consider recropping this image as it is a little weird down there. Otherwise, top 95% is pretty cool.

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

ixnay66 — 2006-10-30T21:30:37+00:00

I'm an adult and I think I can handle it. I understand you not wanting your kids to see it though. I like the idea of you using a sharpie rather then the company changing everything.

Thread: TV Show about the Boargame SANTY ANNO

Limpide — 2006-10-30T21:04:25+00:00

Hello everybody,

Here you will find a TV show about Santy Anno. It came from the belgium TV.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mELc4h8h36g

Enjoy

Thomas Provoost

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

Ogma — 2006-10-30T20:59:09+00:00

The kids are gonna' read and hear that word eventually... Probably better that YOU'RE there to play the game with them and say "that's an adult word" than to have them just start spewing it wantonly after watching "Reservoir Dogs" on their own while you're out at a dinner party.

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

barneshome — 2006-10-26T10:04:49+00:00

The bikinis would be fairly easy, but I'm not so sure changing fuck to gosh would be. We did employ Mr. Sharpie on some of the cards in Ca$h N Guns. It makes me feel a little guilty, though. Like a big, bad censor.

I know I am coming across like a prude, but it is only for the sake of the kiddos. Darn kids! They spoil everything! :-)

Thread: Re: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

sbszine — 2006-10-26T03:43:49+00:00

Could you perhaps draw bikinis on the women with a sharpie, and change 'fuck' to 'gosh'? Or, even better, put the cards in sleeves, and draw on the sleeves! Then if grown-ups want to ogle the cartoon boobs and giggle at the swear words they can take the cards out of their sleeves when the kids are asleep.

What say?

Thread: Looks like a ton of fun - too bad about the artwork

barneshome — 2006-10-26T02:59:18+00:00

This looks like a very fun game - same company that produced one of my favorite games from last year (Cas$h N Guns), pirate theme, running around the table, what's not to like? My wife and kids would love it.

Too bad the artwork makes it totally inappropriate for kids. Was it really necessary to have the F-bomb tattooed on one of the pirates and very topless women on the front of the pirate ships?

I woulda bought it in a heartbeat. What a shame.

Thread: Re: Open the Box

aceraxon — 2006-10-26T01:42:48+00:00

Those just aren't amusing to me. Eh.

Thread: Open the Box

jstahl — 2006-10-11T12:38:04+00:00

Another Open the Box preview from Tric Trac.

Check it out at:
http://www.trictrac.net/index.php3?id=tv&inf=tv_flash&ref=54