Game: Venedig

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

sampavone — 2008-01-09T09:50:07+00:00

Count me in!

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

dr.mrow — 2008-01-09T09:23:46+00:00

Absosmurfly. My wife has weak spot for games about Venice.

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chezzilla — 2008-01-02T22:23:29+00:00

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sffh — 2007-11-26T02:51:43+00:00

Venedig as seen on Spielefest, Wien, 25.11.2007

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

pmboos — 2007-10-04T12:51:49+00:00

I'm in for this one - this is rising to the top of my interest in acquiring. I like Wrede's games and the theme of this 9one appeals to me a lot. Add in some nice bits... I agree the board is a little boring, but then wouldn't a flashy board perhaps detract from the bits? It would have to be really well coordinated.

Paul

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

rdsmith — 2007-09-15T12:35:00+00:00

I'd scoop this up in a minute. But I do agree that it needs a bit of a graphic upgrade.

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

GreenEclipse — 2007-08-31T22:21:49+00:00

Looks interesting to me.

Thread: Venedig - 2nd action variant

talitrus — 2007-08-24T06:45:25+00:00

This is a variant of the 2nd action:

You MUST take the exact number of swamp tiles that were occupied by the buildings built during your building action
In the case any building had been built during your building action you MAY take 1 or 2 swamps tiles of your choice in front of you and put them on any empty space on the board, then you MUST take the same number of swamp tiles of your choice from the board.

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starpino — 2007-08-04T09:21:03+00:00

What a city Venezia....

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

boomerang1 — 2007-07-24T15:15:34+00:00

I would also be interested in an English version. It would be nice to know if an English version is coming or not - then I wouldn't be tempted to get the German version now.

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

zaph42 — 2007-07-20T14:33:56+00:00

I'm interested as well. Seems like it plays well with 3, so that would fill a niche in my collection.

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

spearjr — 2007-07-03T13:15:41+00:00

I'd be interested. Come on RGG, give this one a go.

Thread: Re: How many people are interested in an English Version?

steveoliverc — 2007-06-30T17:48:38+00:00

I would. I regret not having put this on my last order from Germany a few months ago, and as it turns out most of the ones I did order will end up being printed in English.

And there are a few comments about the lackluster board -- wouldn't it be nice if it got a new board if & when it got reprinted (a la Magna Grecia)?

Thread: How many people are interested in an English Version?

cokeman4 — 2007-06-30T15:15:07+00:00

I understand that there are no companies looking at publishing this game in English, and that Amigo is not planning on doing another German run either. I am a fan of this game and I am disappointed. I am wondering how many people on here would be interested in an English version. I just want to figure out if it would be worth printing.

Thread: Re: Building Material Spaces

MaOldie — 2007-06-20T17:54:11+00:00

They are there simply as building spaces at the start of the game. So if you wanted to build straight away you can. I think this is a great game, though the Palace looks a bit space-age on BSW.
Handy hint - when the treasure bag is empty you can trade one of yours in, before you build, then win it back again when you build next to your gondola. Don't do this if you are not master builder as they will get it. :-))

Thread: Re: Building Material Spaces

Fledermaushaus — 2007-06-06T15:52:32+00:00

I don't know whether there is any point as such but they are different to other spaces in that they can be built on but do not have swamp tiles placed on them at the start. I guess they just provide easy building places for the start. (I've not played the game so don't know how they affect gameplay).

Thread: Building Material Spaces

Moviebuffs — 2007-06-05T16:28:01+00:00

Is there actually any point to the spaces that have some bricks painted on them at the start of the game ?

The rules seem to insist that they are treated as though they are empty.

Or is it that we are not allowed to build on them ?

N.

Thread: Strategy Advice?

waterdeepflapjack — 2007-05-30T03:28:44+00:00

Do any experienced players (BSW or otherwise) have any strategy advice to give ? I've been trying to get into playing Venedig more on BSW, but am not convinced that there is a whole lot of strategy present. I would appreciate some enlightening...

Thread: Re: English version coming?

Great Dane — 2007-05-01T15:56:27+00:00

I would imagine that the online game uses the same graphics for each space no matter what appears to be on the other side when it is 'flipped'.

There certainly isn't any relation between the value of the Swamp markers in the board game and the pattern on the backs - which I believe are all unigue. There are certain similarities as they all feature the same 3 or 4 features, but I would imagine that the artist has painted a large board from which the counters are punched. You certainly cannot say that all counters with a large boulder or one with a lot of water or grass will be of a particular value.

Not sure why no-one has announced an English version of the game yet - but so many games are appearing these days that it may be impossible to do them all.

Thread: Re: English version coming?

boomerang1 — 2007-05-01T15:10:27+00:00

Ah now I see what you mean about the swamp pictures having slightly different images on each one. In fact BSW has implemented this the same way, and I never really noticed. You can see in this picture here:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/image/195480?size=original

For me this is not a big issue. Originally I had thought the marking was more severe (ie. certain values were darker or obviously marked) but I was mistaken.

Has anyone verified if the different swamp images correspond exactly to the different gold values? From the BSW image I can see 3 different swamp images, and there are 3 values from 0-2. It seems unlikely this would be done on purpose, but I could imagine it would add another element to this interesting game. Looking at the 3 different swamp images, it looks like one has no rocks, one has 1 rock, and one has 2 rocks - could this correspond to 0, 1, or 2 gold, or is it just coincidence? That could really increase the strategy - do I take this 0 gold tile just to clear a building location I need, or go for the 2pt gold tile.

In any case I would still like to get an English version (if it is coming), but the original graphics would be fine. If no english version in the works, I may have to break down and get my first "german edition" board game

Kevin

Thread: Re: English version coming?

Great Dane — 2007-05-01T14:41:27+00:00

Well, if you want a version with completely new graphics then you will certainly have to wait a long time as no-one has announced one yet.

I am among those who have voiced loudly that due to the unique image on each individual Swamp counter should it be possible to memorize at least some of them, thus giving you an (unintended) advantage.

But as I don't actually own a copy myself have I not been able to verify whether this is actually possible.

In each of the 4 games I have played so far have I looked closely at the counters I have collected myself to see if I could point out just a single of the best Swamp counters during my next game, but I keep forgetting what I memorized!

This may be due to the little time I have had at my disposal for the experiment, or it may simply be because I have no desire to actually cheat in order to win a game.

All in all, I don't think the pattern is a problem with gamers you know and trust. The counters are varied enough to make it impossible to learning their values 'by accident' - so I would only consider it a problem in tournament play.

Thread: English version coming?

boomerang1 — 2007-05-01T14:14:50+00:00

Anyone know if an English version is going to be printed?

I have been playing this on BSW and I would like to get the real thing, but I would prefer to wait for an English reprint, if there is one coming. I also heard that the German version had issues with the swamp tiles being marked.

Any info is appreciated.

Kevin

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crazyyog — 2007-04-11T03:39:40+00:00

Thread: Re: Portuguese Review

zezzo — 2007-04-06T16:02:06+00:00

mas rapaiz, voce aqui tambem?? valeu pela revisao, eu tava querendo aprender p/ testar no bsw

Thread: Portuguese Review

xandolino — 2007-04-05T15:39:20+00:00

Segue aqui a descrição do VENEDIG, jogo que não é lá muito bonito, mas que tem mecânicas legais e que funcionam bem em conjunto.

O cenário é VENEZA em seus primórdios, quando foi sendo fundada por refugiados da parte norte da itália que se escondiam nos pântanos lá existentes.

DESCRIÇÃO DAS PEÇAS E TABULEIRO

Basicamente temos um tabuleiro com muitos hexagonos representando veneza, que está dividida em 5 distritos separados pelo score tracking do jogo, que na verdade também influencia nas jogadas. Dentro desses 5 distritos, existem alguns hexagonos já marcados com os 5 tipos de construção que existem no jogo e alguns outros com desenhos de pedras indicando que devem ficar vazios. Todos os outros hexagonos devem ficar ocupados com tiles redondos que de um lado são pantanos e do outro são moedas de ouro (com valor de 0 a 2), que ficam viradas para baixo, escondidas dos jogadores. Vejam esta figura para enteder melhor:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/image/195480

Cada jogador é representado por uma gondola de cor especifica, que vai andando pelo score tracking nunca contando o espaço onde algum adversário já esteja, fator importante! Além desses elementos, existem as cartas, que são usadas para construir os prédios, as peças dos mestres construtores, e as peças dos prédios em si, que são finalmente CASA, PRAÇA, PONTE, PALAZZO e BASÍLICA, além de alguns outros tiles redondos de moedas variando de 1 a 6.

TURNOS

Os jogadores começam com 3 cartas recebidas aleatoriamente, e durante o seu turno podem fazer as seguintes ações: 1- jogar quantas cartas quiser para começar ou completar construções de prédios específicos, 2- drenar de 0 a 2 hexagonos de pantano que significa tirar os tiles de cima deixando livre o espaço para se construir prédios e acumulando o valor mostrado embaixo dos tiles e 3- pegar novas cartas.

CARTAS E CONSTRUÇÃO

As cartas são em 5 tipos, que representam basicamente os prédios. As informações lá contidas são:

1- Quantidade de cartas do mesmo tipo para se completar uma construção daquela,

2- quantidade de espaço vazio necessário para se colocar aquela construção e

3- pontuação específica daquele tipo de prédio.

Para começar uma construção de uma ponte, por exemplo, é necessário colocar uma carta (de ponte) da sua mão na mesa em sua frente sendo que nenhum outro jogador tenha colocado ainda uma carta do mesmo tipo. Deste modo, o jogador que baixou a carta de ponte, pega a peça do mestre construtor azul (que corresponde às pontes) e coloca sobre sua carta indicando que ele iniciou a construção daquele prédio. Para que essa ponte fique pronta, será necessário baixar mais 2 cartas de ponte, pois o numero de cartas necessário para se construir uma ponte é 3. No caso de se baixar uma carta de um tipo que já exista na mesa, o jogador que o fizer estará apenas ajudando uma construção já iniciada podendo "roubar" ou não o mestre construtor do jogador que iniciou a construção, dependendo da quantidade de cartas que estará contribuindo para uma construção iniciada. Por exemplo: O jogador 1 iniciou a ponte baixando 1 carta de ponte e pegando o mestre construtor para si, porém o jogador 2 na sua vez, baixou as outras 2 cartas de ponte necessárias para se concluir a construção da ponte. Como o jogador 2 contribuiu mais que o jogador 1 na construção, ele toma o mestre construtor do jogador 1 para si.

A vantagem de se ter o mestre construtor é que você escolhe onde o prédio será construido e ganha os pontos totais. Os jogadores que contribuiram numa construção ganham metade dos pontos (arredondado para baixo) que o jogador que tem o mestre construtor ganha.

Caso não haja espaço para a construção de um prédio concluido, todas as cartas de construção desse prédio são descartadas.

Existe porém a possibilidade de se poder construir um prédio sozinho, e de uma vez só, caso no seu turno o jogador tenha todas as cartas necessárias para a construção do prédio. Assim, basta o jogador baixar todas essas cartas e concluir a construção. A diferença nesse caso é que não se rouba o mestre construtor de alguém, caso alguém o tenha, e se pontua sozinho, uma vez que ninguém contribuiu nessa construção.

PONTUAÇÃO POR CONSTRUÇÃO

Uma vez concluida uma construção, parte-se para a pontuação dos jogadores envolvidos na construção do prédio específico, sempre começando com o jogador que tem está com o mestre construtor daquela construção seguindo em sentido horário. Cada prédio pontua de uma maneira diferente:

- CASAS - dão sempre 1 único ponto, porém é o único prédio que se constrói com somente 1 carta (não podendo assim haver a divisão de pontos).

- PRAÇAS - dão 1 ponto para cada espaço em volta dela que já esteja ocupado por alguma outra construção (pondendo no máximo dar 6 pontos já que só se pode haver 6 espaços em volta de um hexagono).

- PALAZZOS - dão 1 ponto para cada espaço em volta dele que esteja sem construção (dando no máximo 8 pontos, pois precisa-se de 2 hexagonos para essa construção).

- PONTES - dão 1 ponto para cada casa construida em um dos dois distritos que a ponte esteja ligando.

- BASILICAS - dão sempre 7 pontos.
Todos os jogadores que estiveram envolvidos na construção de um prédio, E que tenham suas gondolas adjacentes ao distrito onde o prédio foi construido, tem o direito de pegar um tile de tesouro.
Importante ressaltar que, ao final de seu turno, nenhum jogador pode estar participando de mais de 3 construções diferentes. Caso isso ocorra, o jogador escolhe uma das construções que está participando e discarta suas cartas na mesa correspondentes a essa construção.

DRENAGEM DE PANTANOS

Após a fase de jogar cartas para iniciar, ajudar ou concluir construções, vem a fase de drenar espaços com tiles de pantanos. Cada jogador pode drenar de 0 a 2 espaços, pegando para si os tiles que lá estavam, e deixando assim o espaço livre para próximos construções. Percebam que essa fase de abrir novos espaços para construções se dá após a fase de construção do seu turno, ou seja, escolha bem os lugares que você deixará livre, pois podem ser ótimos lugares para os próximos jogadores construirem.

COMPRA DE NOVAS CARTAS

Depois de ter drenado (ou não) tiles de pantanos, segue-se a fase de compra de novas cartas. Existe um sistema interessante nesta fase. As duas opções de compra são:

1- pega-se uma única carta ou da pilha de compra (facedown) ou do display,

2- contribui-se com uma carta para o display (de um tipo que ainda não haja no display) e pega-se 3 cartas, podendo ser parte do display e parte da pilha de compra (porém não se pode pegar a carta que acabou de colocar no display)

ou seja, existirá um display que os próprios jogadores construirão. O limite máximo de cartas na mão é 5, apesar de todos terem começado com 3. Portanto, não se pode usar a opção 2 de compra de cartas quando se está com 4 cartas na mão, pois se estaria contribuindo com 1 para o display e pegando obrigatoriamente +3 cartas, ficando assim com 6, que é impossível.

Após essas 3 fases (construção, drenagem e compra de cartas) a vez a passada para o jogador da esquerda e o jogo segue dessa maneira.

Um fator importante é que, a qualquer momento do seu turno, você pode usar o dinheiro que você tem (conseguido nos pantanos e no tesouro) para comprar pontos de vitória ao preço de 1 PV / 5 MOEDAS, podendo assim andar mais um pouco no score tracking.

FIM DO JOGO

O jogo acaba quando todas as peças de um dos 5 tipos de construção se esgotarem ou quando um dos jogadores chegar a 60 pontos no scoring track.

Todos os jogadores envolvidos na construção do último prédio ainda podem receber seus respectivos pontos.

Também todos os jogadores, em sentido horário, ainda podem trocar todo o dinheiro que tem por pontos de vitória.

Dessa forma, ganha o jogador que tiver mais pontos no final.

CONCLUSÃO

Existe uma certa dosagem de sorte nas cartas, porém podendo se equilibrar um pouco com a concorrência pelos espaços no tabuleiro e o sistema de compra de cartas X display.

Olhando de fora, por causa do design fraco, o jogo pode até não impressionar, mas uma vez jogado, percebe- e nem jogo leve e divertido, fácil de ensinar e jogar e que provavelmente verá mesa mais vezes.

Também é um ótimo jogo para se jogar com iniciantes!

Não digo que ele seja um TOP 5, talvez nem mesmo TOP 10, mas com certeza está nos 20.

Alexandre Freitas “Xandolino”

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Great Dane — 2007-03-21T17:34:53+00:00

Fledermaushaus wrote:
Mik (Great Dane) now seems to have removed all his posts except the last one.

It makes no sense to force future readers to wade through a long discussion where one part (in this case me) is clearly wrong.

Although I think the rules are written in such a way that I could be right, the example play on the last page (which I originally didn't bother to read) makes it clear that the intention of the rules is to PLAY ALL CARDS before scoring.

So your conclusion is correct.

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Fledermaushaus — 2007-03-21T17:05:21+00:00

Mik (Great Dane) now seems to have removed all his posts except the last one. This makes some of my posts look a bit strange as they were responses to his posts.
~~I'll let them stand as they are though.~~

The conclusion would seem to be that you cannot finish one semi-constructed building and then start, but not finish, another of the same type in the same turn.

Note:In light of Mik's post below this one , I have now edited down my previous posts!

Thread: Re: Spaces 1 - 5 and districts

Great Dane — 2007-03-21T15:35:21+00:00

That is also how I read the rules.

Thread: Re: Spaces 1 - 5 and districts

Langy — 2007-03-21T14:48:39+00:00

After re-reading my rules translation I think Ive found the answers - yes 1-5 are next to a district and buildings are placed on the board at start.

Thread: Spaces 1 - 5 and districts

Langy — 2007-03-21T13:23:27+00:00

Are spaces 1 - 5 classed as being adjoined to any districts?

Also the building spaces on the map - are the actual buildings put on these at game start or are they left blank for players to build on in the early rounds - ( think Ive just answered myself there .. )

Cheers

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Great Dane — 2007-03-21T11:30:05+00:00

I admit to have missed that rule.

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Werbaer — 2007-03-21T11:17:55+00:00

Great Dane wrote:
This is correct. But once you have placed that one card the Campo has been built and all 3 cards are immediately discarded. THEN you may play further Campo cards.
Not correct. First you play all cards you want to play, and then you resolve them.

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Fledermaushaus — 2007-03-21T07:30:28+00:00

Confirming that 'a' is not allowed:
The English BSW rules state: 'There may never be more cards for any one type of building than the indicated building cost shows. For example, if there are already two campo cards out, then at most one more may be played.'
And a bit further down:
'If you have all the cards needed to build a building in your hand, you can build this building by yourself, even if there are building cards of this type already in play. However you must put down all the necessary cards in one turn!'

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Werbaer — 2007-03-20T18:40:25+00:00

ahchong wrote:
Note: You cannot play more cards than those needed for constructing the building. This means that a player cannot, for example, play three cards for constructing a basilica with the aim of taking the master builder figure, when there are already two basilica cards in front of another player. He may only play two cards.
This part is in the section "Several players construct a building".
In this case, you can't play more cards than necessary.

But there is another possibility: "One player builds alone".
In this case, you play all card for a building from your hand.

So, you can play all necessary cards from your hand for one building, and, in addition, help building aonther building of the same type.

If the are already two ponte cards in front of another player.
Can I play
a. 2 ponte cards, 1 build imidiately, and 1 left on the table and take the masterbuilder?
No. You would play more cards than necessary for combined building, and don't build on your own.

b. 4 ponte cards, and build 2 ponte, 1 by the other player, and 1 by me?
Yes.

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

Fledermaushaus — 2007-03-20T17:39:43+00:00

'a' in the example above would not be allowed:
'A player starts constructing a building when he plays at least once card, but less than the number needed for completion, and there are no cards of this type in front of any other player.' (Emphasis added). If you are completing and starting there would obviously be cards of the same type in front of other players. And of course you would not be able to 'immediately take the master builder' since it would still be needed for the first building.

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

ahchong — 2007-03-20T16:49:25+00:00

Thanks for the reply.
I'll test play again on BSW.

Thread: Re: draining swamps

Great Dane — 2007-03-20T14:55:58+00:00

zapatista234 wrote:
My understanding, after reading the English translation of the rules, is that on each turn you may drain 1 or 2 swamps. Why would one choose not to do so, since each may have gold pieces?

1st reason: you may not want to drain because you do not want to create building lots which will be used by the other players.

2nd reason. If you were forced to to drain you would not be able to forget to drain - which is an important (and annoying!) part of the game.

Also, why would you choose to either move your gondola during the game or wait until the end (using gold)? Is there an advantage to waiting?

It depends on how many points you make (by building) in relation to the points made by other players.

You don't want to fall back as it can be quite hard to catch up (as anybody who has played Ursuppe would know). So you might want to spend a few gold in order to keep up with the others.

On the other hand do you not want to give the others a free ride, so if you are doing good you might want to spend some gold trying to break away from the rest.

But ultimately you will want to stay close to the islands that will give you treasures - and usually means staying close to the same islands as the other players.

In short - spend the gold when you need it. Don't spend it if you don't need it. Nothing is worse than finding out that the gold you spent last turn didn't really give you anything, but now you are standing to lose a few treasures (and even points!) because you cannot catch up now...

Thread: Re: draining swamps

habermanm — 2007-03-20T14:55:44+00:00

I think the cases where you wouldn't drain 2 swamp tiles would be very rare. The exception might be the 2-player version, though I haven't played yet.

It's nice to move your gondola when you can skip a space or two because they are occupied, or to position yourself next to a land mass that you are going to build on. You may also want to distance yourself from the other players so they can't jump you. Other than that, it really doesn't matter if you wait or not.

Thread: draining swamps

zapatista234 — 2007-03-20T14:28:40+00:00

My understanding, after reading the English translation of the rules, is that on each turn you may drain 1 or 2 swamps. Why would one choose not to do so, since each may have gold pieces?

Also, why would you choose to either move your gondola during the game or wait until the end (using gold)? Is there an advantage to waiting?

Thread: Re: playing cards rule question

TermiGator — 2007-03-20T08:55:29+00:00

I think the second rule you're refering to means the following:
You cannot build a building with more than the required number of cards only for getting the master builder figure.

So b) should be possible. I'm not sure about a).

AND I'm not sure weather it's implented in BSW

Thread: Re: Venedig online in Brettspielwelt

Kubigaruma — 2007-03-20T06:04:17+00:00

Yes, I think an early bug prevented this from happening (bold print above). But I built alone on a few occasions tonight, despite the fact that the building had already been started by someone else.

The buildings were specifically the Palazzo and the Campo. On Sunday, when the game first came online, the implementation would not allow me to build a bridge solo. I haven't been in that exact situation since, though.

Thread: playing cards rule question

ahchong — 2007-03-20T04:19:35+00:00

I've tried it on BSW but i still have some question about playing cards...

From the english rule posted here...
In rare cases, it is possible for a player to build the same type of building twice in one turn: once on his own and once more together with other players.

Note: You cannot play more cards than those needed for constructing the building. This means that a player cannot, for example, play three cards for constructing a basilica with the aim of taking the master builder figure, when there are already two basilica cards in front of another player. He may only play two cards.

according to the rules above...

If the are already two ponte cards in front of another player.
Can I play

a. 2 ponte cards, 1 build imidiately, and 1 left on the table and take the masterbuilder?

b. 4 ponte cards, and build 2 ponte, 1 by the other player, and 1 by me?

Thread: Re: Venedig online in Brettspielwelt

Great Dane — 2007-03-19T21:14:52+00:00

Good catch!

ekted wrote:
"You [MAY] play all the cards needed for constructing a building in a single turn, for example, four basilica cards. You then become the master builder but do not get the figure. The figure remains either with another player or on its space on the board. In this way, you can build alone even when other players already have cards of this type laid out in front of them. These cards and the master builder stay where they are."

I have added a small word [in brackets] to make it match the printed German rules.
The clarification in bold is certainly part of the rules.

Thread: Re: Venedig online in Brettspielwelt

ekted — 2007-03-19T21:01:49+00:00

BSW's implementation does not match the English translation posted here:

"You play all the cards needed for constructing a building in a single turn, for example, four basilica cards. You then become the master builder but do not get the figure. The figure remains either with another player or on its space on the board. In this way, you can build alone even when other players already have cards of this type laid out in front of them. These cards and the master builder stay where they are."

Emphasis mine.

Thread: Re: Venedig online in Brettspielwelt

Great Dane — 2007-03-19T20:24:16+00:00

It's a great game.
I can only recommend it.

Thread: Venedig online in Brettspielwelt

TermiGator — 2007-03-19T19:30:27+00:00

Yesterday (March 18th) Venedig got released in Brettspielwelt.
(http://www.amigo-spiele.de/amigo_spiele.Amigo?ActiveID=1002)

News on BSW(in german):
http://www.brettspielwelt.de/Community/News/Berichte/

Thought some of you might be interested...

Greets
Termi

PS: Big sorry for first posting this one on the wrong game...

Image

Arneji — 2007-03-18T19:53:57+00:00

Venedig Online Game at BrettspielWelt.de

Thread: Re: Venedig - First Play Impression

grandslam — 2007-02-21T21:39:24+00:00

Mark,

You are right. I was also being unfair, as I think Pompeii is one of the most thematic games I have played with solely Euro-mechanisms. I also am looking forward to playing Mesopotamia, which glowers from that owned, but not played, pile.

Thread: Re: Venedig - First Play Impression

habermanm — 2007-02-21T20:41:11+00:00

grandslam wrote:
Thanks for the great report. This was on my watch list until I played Anasazi. Glad to hear he has not jumped the shark.

Well, I think all designers have bad designs sitting in their closets, but they usually stay there. I don't think it's his fault that someone decided to publish a bad game. Blame the publisher!

Thread: Re: Venedig - First Play Impression

Kevin_Whitmore — 2007-02-21T18:53:11+00:00

Axelfudge wrote:
Were you playing the European version or NA version?

At this time I believe there is just the Amigo Spiele German language version. I'm unsure if the game is oficially released yet. I was playing a copy from the Nuremburg fair. While it looked quite good, I guess it might have been a pre-production copy.

Sorry for all the typos in my report. I wrote that up late last night, and didn't proof read it as well as I should have.

Thread: Re: Venedig - First Play Impression

grandslam — 2007-02-21T17:16:09+00:00

Thanks for the great report. This was on my watch list until I played Anasazi. Glad to hear he has not jumped the shark.

Thread: Re: Venedig - First Play Impression

Axelfudge — 2007-02-21T15:13:57+00:00

Thanks for the great session report. I have to say that when I first saw this it was almost an immediate pass but you've certainly peaked my interest. Some of the mechanics seem familiar but it seems they all come together quite well.

I'll keep my eye out for this one.

Were you playing the European version or NA version?

Thread: Venedig - First Play Impression

Kevin_Whitmore — 2007-02-21T06:34:50+00:00

I just finished my first play of Venedig; and unlike many other games, it has inspired me to write up a little session report/preview.

This comes in the standard Amigo flat box. The materials are a mixed bag. The wooden bits are very nice. The map is ho hum graphically, but has a very clever feature involving the score track.

The concept of the game is that you are establishing Venice. At the start of the game there are maybe five distinct islands, all of which are mostly marsh. Various buildings must be built:

1. Purple Cathedrals - Occupy 3 hexes in a triangular formation - Score 7 pts. Take 4 cards to build.
2. Red Palaces - Occupy two hexes - Score 1 pt per empty adjacent hex. Take 3 cards to build.
3. Green Pagodas (? - sorry forgot the real name) - Occupy 1 hex - Score 1 pt per occupied adjacent hex. Take 3 cards to build.
4. Gray Homes - Occupy 1 hex - Score 1 pt.
5. Blue Bridges - Occupy 2 specified hexes that span a river - Score 1 pt per gray house of each island joined by the bridge.

The game starts with most of the spaces covered with Swamp tiles. But there are a few cleared spaces, and also a few buildings set out too. Each player is given a hand of three cards from the deck. The deck is comprised of the needed cards to construct te various colored buildings.

A players turn consists of three parts.

First, play cards to construct buildings, if desired. Partial builds are allowed. So to build the cathedral it takes four cathedral cards. If a player begins to build, but does not complete the structure, he takes the same colored architect piece. Other player may help complete the structure for some portion of the score. Whoever plays the majority of the cards gets the architect marker, which allows them to actually place the building on the board, and potetially collect a treasure bonus. Buildings must have a cleared site to be erected upon.

Second, players may drain 1 or 2 swamps. Simply flip the tile over. Swamps are worth 0, 1, or 2 gold. The tile is kept for the gold value, and the board is cleared at that hex.

Finally the player draws a card - or three. There are four cards face-up at the start of each turn. A player may simply draw one of the face-up cards, or the top card from the deck. But the player may also discard a card from his hand if it does not match a face-up card. Should a player do this, he may draw three cards from the face-up cards or the deck.

Scoring has a very novel feature. Winding through the canals between the islands is the score track. If you score a feature of an island that your gondola (score track marker) is adjacent to, you get to draw from a set of treasure markers. This adds an interesting pacing to where you wish to develop structures on the map. Further, the score track takes you past each island twice due to a clever route. Only one gondola per scoretrack space, so you get to skip over opponent's gondolas as you count your progress. Leapfrogging over opponents is a great way to maximize your score. Finally anytime during your turn you may turn in 5 gold to move one space on the score track.

Game Play

We were four, and after a quick summary of the rules from Jay we began. I was selected to go first and had drawn 3 Palace cards. For some reason I mistakenly thought I needed three hexes in a row to fit the palace on the board. I decided to omit building, as I thought I didn't have a big enough site available to me. I drained a couple swamps from the island closest to my gondola. But I was concerned to not set up another player by clearing land just to have them use it. So I failed to clear the 3-long plot I mistakenly thought I needed to build the Palace. I drew another Palace card to end my turn.

As the game progressed Amy built a couple cathedrals for some big points. Michael built a lot of gray houses, but curiously didn't follow that up with much bridge building. More than once Mark contributed to another player's building to get 1/2 points as a minor contributor. I finally built my Palace, getting six points for all the clear hexes adjacent to it. I also contributed on a couple bridges, enjoying the nice amount of points due to all the gray houses Michael had built.

Amy looked ready to build her third cathedral, which would have ended the game. I completed a final bridge all my own to just about catch up to her, but with no card left I had to take the sole cathedral card showing. Amy was unable to finish the big cathedral, but played the last house instead. She built it to ensure she got the treasure bonus, turned in a bunch of coins and sailed out of sight with a unsurmountable lead. I finished about 8 points back. Mark not far behind me, and Michael brought up the rear, but closer than he had been for a while.

Lessons Learned

Don't fall too far behind in score. Since you get to leapfrog over the other gondolas, this is a great way to score extra points.

Play Palaces early. They get 1 pt for each adjacent hex that is empty of other structures.

Develop buildings on the islands that will give you a treasure chit. Most treasure chits are worth about 5 points, enough to advance 1 space on the gondola track.

Don't forget to help other players finish their buildings. Even though they get more points, you still get half points, which is more than the players not involved.

Play the green pagodas late in the game. You get one point for each adjacent building.

Think twice about playing gray houses. They only score 1 point for you. But they also score 1 point for any bridge that connects to the island you built them upon. On the other hand, houses just take 1 card to buld, so they can be used to foil another player's carefully prepared site.

Brudges can only be built in certain specially marked spots, and can be difficult to complete late in the game. They are probably a good mid-game build, so you can benefit from some houses having been placed during the early portion of the game.

My Impression

KJ Wrede is famous due to Carcassonne. But since, none of his games have been all that wonderful. Pompei is some fun, but clearly not that great of a strategy game. Mesopotamia left me cold, and Krone & Schwert just isn't that good. In contrast, Venedig strikes me as very good.

I like the angst of needing space to build, yet worrying about the other player's using the space you prepare. I like the need to worry about controlling the architect if you cannot complete a building in one turn. I like the scoring interaction of the different types of buildings. I especially like the treasure bonus for developing structures on islands adjacent to where your scoring piece/gondola currently is.

I am slightly underwhelmed at the graphic quality of the game. There is nothing horrible here, but it is quite bland. The wooden bits are quite wonderful though.

I think KJ Wrede and Amigo Spiele have a winner here; and I hope an English edition is in the works.

Thread: Re: It's so pretty!

Kai@ADAMspielt — 2007-01-29T20:02:08+00:00

I played it only once...
Its about building different uhm... buildings in venice. Most of the land is occupied by swamp and has to be "lay dry". On the dry land you (and your fellow players) can build the buildings (casa's occupie one space, kathedrals occupie three spaces...there are five kinds of buildings, i think). You can dry up up to two swamps each round. The swamps give you treasures (money). You start with three cards, each one is part of a building, a "casa" only needs one card, a kathedral needs three (you see the correlation). You'll recieve a new card each round, or you can trade one card for up to three new ones, if the kind of card that you want to trade is not allready in the "tradeline". When you are allowed to draw new cards you can do so from the drawpile or from the tradeline. The buildings that needs more then one cards will be build by all players together, the one which holds the most "parts" of it gets the "master builder" and the points for the building. The score-board follows the canale grande and as in the progress of the game you'll move from one "island" to another and back. If anyone finishes a building where you take part in and on the island your gondola stays, you'll recieve a treasure (money). You can use the money you've got to progress on the score-board.

This should be enough for a short overview, I hope. It's a nice, easy, strategic, little game with a decent outfit.

Thread: It's so pretty!

NateStraight — 2007-01-29T03:57:16+00:00

What a ridiculously pretty game!

Those are some really neat pieces!

How does it play? What is it like?

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LucyJo — 2007-01-28T08:21:33+00:00

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LucyJo — 2007-01-28T08:21:08+00:00

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LucyJo — 2007-01-28T08:20:34+00:00

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LucyJo — 2007-01-28T08:20:12+00:00

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LucyJo — 2007-01-28T08:19:52+00:00