Game: Caveman

Thread: Re: Caveman - A Dice Review

Keng Ho — 2008-11-20T15:46:28+00:00

In someone else's review, I believe the comparison was to Kenny Rogers ...

Neat avatar, Chris!

Thread: Re: Caveman - A Dice Review

Simon at MAG — 2008-11-20T10:24:11+00:00

Ronnie Macdonald amused me .... the rough model we gaev the artist for the caveman was Kurt Russell :-))

Si

Thread: Re: Caveman - A Dice Review

Liumas — 2008-11-16T06:51:30+00:00

Very nice review. It's a fun game, too, and these dice work well.

Thread: Caveman - A Dice Review

Keng Ho — 2008-11-16T04:20:29+00:00

I have recently received some nice dice from Simon Hall at MAG (Make A Game) Ltd. He saw my comment at the BGG entry for Caveman that I wanted the special dice for the game and was generous enough to send me a set. I am a collector of dice and this review is intended for other dice lovers and should be read in that context.

There are seven unusual six-sided dice in a set of Caveman: three red dice used by dinosaurs, three green dice used by cavemen (or cavewomen) and one larger yellow die to see if your cavekids survive to adulthood. The red and green dice have 16 mm sides and the yellow die has 17.5 mm sides. The dice are in cheerful bright colours and made of sturdy plastic. The dice symbols are hot-stamped (I think) into the dice and the debossed areas are inked - white outlines on the red and green dice and black outlines on the yellow dice; this provides good contrast and makes the symbols easy to see. The red dice are blank on 3 sides and show a dinosaur face on 3 sides. The green dice are blank on 3 sides, have a caveman face on 2 sides and a spear on 1 side. The yellow die has 2 caveman faces, 2 skulls, a fire and a fur skin on its six sides.
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I have not read the official rules of the game, but here's a rough description of how the dice are used based on the reviews I have read at BGG and MAG's website. The red dice are used whan a dinosaur attacks and the number of dice depends on the kind of dinosaur. Each die showing a dinosaur face represents a hit. The green dice are used by cavemen (or cavewomen) and one die is rolled per person. Each die showing a caveman face represents a hit. If the player rolling the dice has developed Spear technology, then a spear on the die counts as a hit too. The side with more hits showing wins the battle. There are also cavekids in the game and players can roll the yellow die to see if the cavekid grows to adulthood. If the die shows a caveman face, the kid grows up. If a it shows a skull, the kid dies. If a player has developed Fire or Fur, then the corresponding symbols on the die also indicate survival.

The dice have rounded corners have some weight and roll nicely. The only thing that might be improved are the symbols on them. I looked at the dice before reading the reviews and couldn't figure out what the fur symbol was meant to represent. I though the dinosaur face was some sort of dramatic mask at first and though I could guess what the caveman face was meant to represent (given the name of the game), I couldn't quite shake the feeling that it looked like Ronald MacDonald. Nevertheless, these are minor quibbles for a welcome addition to my collection.

Nice dice!

Dice rating

How much are you giving me to add these dice to my collection?
You're giving me these dice? Thanks!
Great buy from a thrift shop!
Willing to buy or trade for these dice
If the dice came in a game, I'd buy the game!!
I want these now!!!

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Keng Ho — 2008-11-15T15:23:07+00:00

All the dice that come with the game

Thread: Re: BookShelf Games Video

Jethrone — 2008-11-14T01:25:07+00:00

Well done - thanks for going to the trouble of showing doing such a thourough review. My semi-gamer group might like it (as long as they're not put off by the box saying 'ages 6 and up').

Thread: Re: Caveman: Fun game. But.....

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-30T16:52:55+00:00

We designed the game to be very different with different levels of players.

With 2 it is a largely a race. With 6 its and intense tussle between the tribes. Its at its most even at 4 perhaps.

On the rules we tried many things and in the end decided to try to put everything you need on the cards.

The rulebook is really only how to set up and win.

With hindsight we should have been clearer that the rules were on the cards really.

When we repritn we are going to remove the book entirely and have just another card with set-up and how to win.

We are learning....

Si

Thread: Re: Deluxe counters - how to get it?

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-30T16:48:45+00:00

Peopl picked up copies of the deluxe counters at Spiel 08.

Anyone who wants a set can buy them from our website at www.makeagame.eu

Have fun

Si

Thread: Re: [Review] Caveman

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-30T16:22:06+00:00

there are multiple ways to win, offering a lot more strategy than you might expect - making this basically a gateway game for teenagers. It is certainly popular with the youth I've played with, and I expect to keep it on my shelf for them. But mind you, I have no problem jumping in alongside with them - Caveman just seems to exude fun.

Our obective at MAG is to encourage people back to playing face-to-face games and this one was targetted at the high st for families at Xmas, tennagers/young couples, or adults wanting a fun lively game after a few drinks and dinner.

As you say there is a lot more strategy than you might think and usually the best decision maker come out well. But we didn't want a heavy thinking game for this theme. Somehow heavy thinking and a rampaging dinosaur don't go together!!

Check out COLORS for a very simple game (1/2 page rules) that can get the brain whirring.

Thanks for the on-line review

Simon

Thread: Re: [Review] Caveman

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-30T16:18:42+00:00

The rules for Caveman are straightforward and fairly simple to explain. Unfortunately, the rulebook is a sluggish mess, as the rules are all over the place; and some of them aren't even there, being printed on the reference cards instead. Fortunately, the reference cards are useful enough that you won't need to refer to the rulebook once players know what they are doing

We aimed to put everything needed except set up and objectives onto the ref cards - and managed to do so. However, what we didn't make clear enough was that we had done so.

At reprint we are scrapping the book and adding one more card with set up and objectives - then its just what is one the card is the rules.

Si at MAG

Thread: Re: [Review] Caveman

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-30T16:16:35+00:00

The box is one of the most exciting I've seen on a game, which drew me to it in the first place, as a rampaging T-rex is bearing down on a lone caveman bravely holding a spear.

The lid was composed by Magdalene who is a display designer and then artisticially brought to life by the artist who did the art of the ALIENS movie. Glad you liked it.

A little challenge ... can you find the scene from the box lid on the board. It's there in miniature. The record is 8 seconds to find it! Some haven't yet.

Si at MAG

Thread: Re: Replacement deck?

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-29T18:23:22+00:00

No me neither, but it explains why we didn't her back from you after the offer.

Not to worry we will sort you out and get you "clubbing" again soemhow soon.

Si

Thread: Re: Replacement deck?

Ruskicowboy — 2008-10-29T14:37:46+00:00

Thanks, Simon. I appreciate it. Not sure why I didn't get the response...

Thread: Re: Replacement deck?

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-29T12:15:46+00:00

Hi Justin

We sent you an e-mail after your first enquiry to say that we do not stock spare deck I'm afraid, but if you gave us an address we will send you one of them from the post Essen play sets for the cost of the postage only.

That will give you a fresh new deck without needing to buy a new game

Hope that helps and sorry you didn't get the earlier response for some reason. We have been rather busy over in Essen the last week or so launching COLORS.

Regarsd

Simon Hall

MAG

Thread: Re: camps

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-29T12:02:49+00:00

Glad you like it.

Havevyou an other players put soem scores up for us? We are finding our light gamers often forget and it helps us along a great deal.

In Invasion Earth is still in gradual development and one of the game we mauy do next year or the year after.

First we need to establish CAVEMAN and our new game COLORS that came out last week.

PS we are hoping to have an Italian version of CAVEMAN later in 2009 as well.

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pasquy — 2008-10-22T12:27:56+00:00

homemade fimo hut (red tribe developed camp)

Thread: Re: camps

pasquy — 2008-10-22T12:05:35+00:00

thanks Simon i played several games and as you said the cave strategy is not so easy to carry on.
I made 4 hut miniatures with fimo to put over a cave token occupied by a tribe with developed camp, so it's easy to remember who can't be attacked.
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I love this game and i'd like to see some info of the forthcoming Invasion earth (any news?)

Thread: Re: camps

Simon at MAG — 2008-10-22T09:02:50+00:00

Yes this is intentional and we tested it to check it remained nicely balanced. If you can race and get camps early you can secure a breeding ground for a while until someone gets rid of your favourite camp and turns it into a flint bed instead.

The other challenge you will find that balances it is that if you put a couple into a cave early and stay there it is hard to get fire and fur as you have committed 2 adults often from only 4 or 5. So while you may breed a lot, your kids may not find survival in the caves that easy. And remember you can only have 1 child on a stack so this forces you to roll for survival for the strategy to work well.

Overall therefore we found lots of counter balances so that its a good strategy but not singularly better than several others. It take careful use and timing of the remaining adults to make it work and to avoid gathering too much attention as you do so.

We found the game interesting in testing in that while there is a lot of volatility rto deal with it is a combination of good strategic decisions and not encouraging too much ganging up against you that will win through.

So a mix of strategy and phsyciology when surrounded by mayhem - it almost sounds like life (especially in todays climate!!

Have fun

Simon

MAG

Thread: Replacement deck?

Ruskicowboy — 2008-10-09T18:42:34+00:00

I had the misfortune of taking several of my games, including Caveman, to a get-together with a lot of people. Several of us play board games, so we had a good time. Unfortunately, someone's kid pulled out Caveman when I wasn't looking, and by the time I found out and put everything back in the box, some of the cards were missing.

I've tried contacting Make-A-Game twice already over the past 2 weeks, asking about purchasing a replacement deck, but have yet to receive a response. So, if anyone from MAG is paying attention, is this a possibility? Do you provide replacement parts for your games in general?

Thread: Re: camps

Great Dane — 2008-10-06T19:42:25+00:00

pasquy wrote:
Ok you're right i missed that part so dinosaurs and cavemen can't enter occupied camps. Yet i think this is a bit strange because it's easy for a player to put a couple of cavemen safe in a camp for the rest of the game, trying to make children every turn and (most important)not allowing other tribes to use that cave resource. this is a huge advantage, expecially if there is only a cave tile in play.

That's why 5 of the cards lets you REMOVE Resource tiles!

Thread: Re: camps

pasquy — 2008-10-05T09:32:30+00:00

Ok you're right i missed that part so dinosaurs and cavemen can't enter occupied camps. Yet i think this is a bit strange because it's easy for a player to put a couple of cavemen safe in a camp for the rest of the game, trying to make children every turn and (most important)not allowing other tribes to use that cave resource. this is a huge advantage, expecially if there is only a cave tile in play.

Thread: Re: camps

Great Dane — 2008-10-05T07:20:11+00:00

pasquy wrote:
Red tribe has developed the camp tile and a red caveman is on a cave tile. Rules only says you can't be attacked on a cave.
Not true. The rules are more specific on that. See below.

This means nobody else can enter that cave? Or you can enter but not start a fight?
Only one tribe can stay in a camp.

Can a dinosaur enter the cave without attacking the red caveman?
"Dinosaurs cannot enter beach circles or camps."
See the last arrow in the red section of the Reference card.

Can a blue caveman enter the same cave to use the resource if he doesn't attack the red caveman?
Only your own pieces can enter your beach circle or camps
See the second last arrow in the green section of the Reference card.

Can a blue caveman and a red caveman stay together on a cave tile if both have developed camp tile?
No. See above

Please note that the Reference card is part of rules:
"The rest of the rules give you details of exactly how each step works. All of this is shown on the TWO REFENCE CARDS that come with the game. The card looks like tis...."
(See the entry: "Reference Cards")

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pasquy — 2008-10-04T23:06:04+00:00

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pasquy — 2008-10-04T23:05:01+00:00

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pasquy — 2008-10-04T23:04:21+00:00

Thread: camps

pasquy — 2008-10-04T21:15:22+00:00

Red tribe has developed the camp tile and a red caveman is on a cave tile. Rules only says you can't be attacked on a cave.

This means nobody else can enter that cave? Or you can enter but not start a fight?
Can a dinosaur enter the cave without attacking the red caveman?
Can a blue caveman enter the same cave to use the resource if he doesn't attack the red caveman?
Can a blue caveman and a red caveman stay together on a cave tile if both have developed camp tile?

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pasquy — 2008-10-01T13:30:36+00:00

life is hard for cavechildren

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pasquy — 2008-10-01T13:28:31+00:00

Caveman+Heroscape=Cavemanscape

Thread: Re: 10 year old son manipulates his way to win

Simon at MAG — 2008-09-23T17:00:31+00:00

Great to see it working for you as a family game. We aimed it that way. Part of our obejctive is to get kids playing more face-to-face stuff with families and off computers.

Dad's are usually going to get ganged up on but that's part of the fun -in the design team you have me and my 13 year old, MNatthew, who did a lot on the ideas.

He had great fun with his mates picking on me. Nevertheless prudent strategy in a world of chaos often allowed canny dad to sneak home - so persevere against those fiendish youngsters.

Simon Hall
MAG

Thread: Re: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

Simon at MAG — 2008-09-18T09:06:57+00:00

Yes thats it. There is a good enough mix of movement on the other cards.

Let us know what you think we did 3 goes that way and it was fun between pors, although we prefer the "strategy within chaos" of the core game.

If any of you are at Essen we will be there on stand 5-5 with our new game COLORS

Si

Thread: 10 year old son manipulates his way to win

malletman — 2008-09-15T10:58:03+00:00

Broke out Caveman and after a couple of plays to get familiar with rules and tactics we (me, 10yo Son and 7yo Daughter)decided the next game was "For real".

Started well for me getting 4 technologies quickly, just missing the camp. then Son finds the strategy, cajoling his sister to join in by blockading the caves (three of them in play). They both claimed the camp so I couldn't attack them. Damn, better start breeding then. Not easy with no caves as refuges and dinosaurs being sent after me all the time by assorted offspring.

but Son's strategy quickly becoming apparent. He has pursuaded Daughter of the overwhelming importance of guarding the caves to 'Stop Dad winning' and she is now guarding two caves, severely limiting her freedom to do other things. Meanwhile, Son only guarding one cave is merrily collecting technologies and sending dinosaurs over to Dad's area and encouraging Daughter to do the same.

Eventually he gets a resource exchange card swapping in some wood right next to his caveman allwoing him to claim the wheel and victory.

Thoroughly enjoyable for all concerned. The kids particularly loved killing Dad's men with dinosaurs.

What it does show is that it is really tough to win if the other players gang up on you but I suppose that's true of most games.

Thread: Re: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

sos1 — 2008-09-08T16:17:48+00:00

Simon at MAG wrote:
6. You can play a special card or inflict it on any opponent at any time (so you can store them in hand if you want to)
Thanks for the variant, Si - we'll try it next time we pull the game out.

One question on the above: I take it by this that you don't substitute the special card for your normal card play on your turn, but that you can use it in addition to your normal play, or even out of turn. In these cases, is the card used *just* for the special text, or do you also get to use the green movement box? If so, and it's inflicted on an opponent, do *they* get to use the green movement box?

Thanks!

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sos1 — 2008-08-30T20:25:06+00:00

Raquel Welch figure from One Million Years B.C. - see comment for rules

Thread: Re: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

Simon at MAG — 2008-08-30T17:03:25+00:00

For an alternative that we have played that has less luck and is more of a gamers variant perhaps try this:

1. Split the pack into 2 sets of 30 - the ones with movement only and those with special effects

2. Put both packs face down and play twice through the movement pack or until a normal victory condition is achieved. When the pack is done mix it up shuffle and play through a second time. So still a max of 60 cards.

3. Dinosaur movement can be any dinosaur of lower level - so T-Rex movement can move T-Rex or any other.

4. You can bring the spare 5 dinosaurs on at any time in the game onto a spare red circle and they act as another stegosaurus.

5. You win a special card by knocking out a dinosaur - claim 1 card for a basic, 2 for Triceratops and 3 for knocking out T Rex.

6. You can play a special card or inflict it on any opponent at any time (so you can store them in hand if you want to)

This brings a dino hunt idea into play and takes a fair bit of the chance out of the event cards as you have to earn them. There is a lot less luck of the draw in the movement cards.

We would be very happy for a few caveman lovers to give this variant a try for fun.

Cheers

Si

Thread: Re: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

sos1 — 2008-08-27T13:27:26+00:00

Thanks for the replies, Mark and Simon. Yes, I'm aware Caveman was developed as a family game, and I'm not complaining about that. I'll happily play the family rules when playing with the appropriate audience.

I still haven't tried my experimental variant above, but now I'm actually leaning towards changing it. Rather than using Tikal as a model, I'm thinking El Grande.

That is, give each player a suit of cards, Ace (low) through King (high): 13 cards total. After the game cards are revealed for the turn, one for each player, the start player plays a suit card. The other players do the same in clockwise order, until everyone has played one suit card. You may not play the same card as another player this round.

Players then, from HIGHEST suit card to lowest, choose a game card and execute their turn. The person who played the lowest suit card in one round is the first to play a suit card in the next round, and just go clockwise round the table from there.

After nine rounds, if needed, everyone gets their suit cards back and starts over with a full suit deck. (Necessary if you wish to avoid duplication of suit cards in a given round - that's why El Grande has 13 cards for only nine rounds of play. Hmm - come to think of it, I think you'd have to pick up the suit cards after eight rounds in a six-player game.)

At any rate, this has the advantage of being quicker than my original proposal (guaranteed no second round of bidding), and also less fiddly, not requiring any coins.

Also, for the red action events that affect all players, I think they should take effect after the choosing player takes his green actions, just like the regular game.

Thread: Re: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

Simon at MAG — 2008-08-27T13:14:04+00:00

we will be interested at MAG to see how this comes out.

We pitched Caveman at the fun gamer market rather than the more serious gamer but always with a view that it can be adapted to take some luck out of the game. We have a view variants ourselves.

Glad you are having fun with it and let us know how you get on - maybe you could cross post at www.makeagame,eu for us too.

Simon Hall
MAG

Thread: Re: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

gamemark — 2008-08-25T22:09:03+00:00

I need to play this through... but my first thought is "Yes!"

Thanks, Steffan!

Thread: Auction variant - to make it more a "gamers' game"

sos1 — 2008-08-25T16:04:01+00:00

Caveman is certainly fun - it's only missing a Raquel Welch piece to make it near perfect in that regard. But it's not a "gamers' game" - there's simply too much luck in the cards. One card, for example, might be "8 movement points for Humans, 2 movement points for dinosaurs" while the very next card might be "4 movement points for humans, 2 movement points for dinosaurs." Some events are beneficial to the player drawing them, some are harmful to the player drawing them. Distribute those unequally, and it's a luck-driven game.

So, how to make this very fun theme into a game gamers would enjoy? I am thinking of using an auction system to do just that, based loosely on Tikal, except there aren't VPs to auction, so I'm substituting something else.

Give each player 15 items to be used only in auctions. Pennies work well for those of us who are cheap, but chipped flint spearheads would do, in a pinch, for those who like more authenticity. (If you can use the word authenticity about a game involving human combat with dinosaurs ...) You will also need cards or chits or whatever numbered from 1-X, where X is the number of players. In a four-player game, for example, an Ace, Two, Three and Four of clubs would do nicely, so I'll call them "suit cards" in these rules, to distinguish them from the game cards used to determine actions/events.

Each turn, reveal face up a number of game cards equal to the number of players in the game. The start player bids (pennies, or whatever - I'll call them coins) for the right to choose which game card he'll take that round. Clockwise, each player either bids a higher amount or passes. When you pass, take the highest numbered suit card still available - that determines the order in which you take your move that turn. Bidding keeps going around the table, with players either raising bids or passing. Once you pass, you may not rebid that turn. If you had a non-zero bid, you *must* have that many coins remaining.

When you pass, place your bid on the suit card you collected - you will lose whatever you bid. Once everyone except one player has passed, the final remaining player places his bid on the #1 suit card. At this point, everyone knows the turn order.

Before actually taking a turn, bidding coins are exchanged. This will be slightly different in games with an odd number of players as opposed to an even number of players:

* Odd number of players: the #1 card gives his/her bid to the player with the highest (last to move) suit card, and takes that player's bid (which may be zero). The #2 card does the same for the second highest, if possible. Finally, the middle number simply keeps their bid.

* Even number of players: same thing, except there will be no middle number, so no one will keep their own bid.

It's possible for all players to bid zero, in which case the first player to bid will move last and the last shall be first, and no coins will change hands.

Players now take their turn in suit card order (1 through X), by taking one of the face-up game cards and following the normal turn sequence. The second player chooses one of the remaining game cards, etc.

Once all players have played, return the suit cards to the center of the table, and the player who had the #1 suit card bids first on the next set of game cards to be revealed.

Note that you do not announce which game card you are bidding on when place a bid. You are simply bidding to have the first choice of game cards, and it's best to keep it secret until you actually take your turn.

I haven't yet tried this, though I've played plenty of Tikal and love that auction process. Any comments?

Edit: it occurs to me there are two ways to handle those events that affect all players. Either simply as they would happen by the system above, when the person choosing the specific game card takes their turn, or have them happen in the order they are revealed, at the beginning of the turn before anyone bids on order of play. Thus the person who took the game card with such an event would only get a green action phase, not a red action phase, that turn, as the red action would have already occurred. Thoughts on this?

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rsolow — 2008-08-03T20:28:57+00:00

Caveman...fun for all ages!

Thread: Re: Deluxe counters - how to get it?

Simon at MAG — 2008-07-16T07:10:18+00:00

Well its proved a bit tricky to find a bearable economic way to do it but I am pleased to say that we are there now.

Deluxe counters are now available on the www.makagame.eu website and will have stock of them with us at Spiel 08 as well.

Regards

Simon Hall
MAG

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rsolow — 2008-07-07T06:45:41+00:00

Small hands love the dinos in Caveman!

Thread: Re: BookShelf Games Video

Simon at MAG — 2008-06-12T11:41:59+00:00

This is a great visual overview of the game contents and the rules.

Thanks Bookshelf Games

Simon
MAG

Thread: BookShelf Games Video

Subhuman — 2008-06-03T15:03:53+00:00

Video Review for Caveman.

This video cover the basic gameplay and options available on a player's turn.

Vimeo Video

http://www.archive.org/download/BookShelfGamesBSGEp30Caveman...
(link opens straight to media or right click and hit Save Target as...to download.)

Thread: Re: [Review] Caveman

pusboyau — 2008-04-26T22:49:02+00:00

Hi Tom,
You might want to edit the first sentence by putting a closing bracket after Simon Hall...
Nick

Thread: [Review] Caveman

TomVasel — 2008-04-22T10:40:13+00:00

Caveman (FRED Distribution, 2007 - Magdalene Vrijland, Terry Shaw, Matthew Hall, and Simon Hall) is going to be attractive to teenage boys for two reasons. First, the cover shows a rampaging T-Rex, exploding volcano, and fighting villagers, it really crackles with excitement. Secondly, the game comes with plastic dinosaurs that will be used to attack and destroy other player's villagers during the course of a game. Caveman is a game in which players are attempting to become the dominant tribe on Volcano Island, by attacking and fending off other tribes, learning new technologies, and reproducing to grow the tribe. Sounds fairly exciting, right?

Well, the short answer is that it is - Caveman is a fun, rollicking game in which players rush around with their tribesmen and fight each other and dinosaurs, while having a great time! Caveman is no masterpiece, including a horribly formatted rulebook, copious amounts of luck, and a good deal of chaos. But none of that seems to matter when playing, as the game is extremely thematic and just plain fun! It will appeal to younger folks because of its simplicity and quick combat, but there are enough strategic decisions to keep it interesting. When looked at clinically, there is no reason that I should enjoy Caveman; but despite that, I just find the game to be a lot of fun!

A board depicting the island is placed on the table, made up of a grid of circle spaces (arranged in a hexagonal pattern). A deck of cards is shuffled and placed in the middle, and three dinosaurs (T-Rex, Stegosaurus, and Triceratops) are placed on starting spaces next to it. A pile of resource tiles are shuffled, and fifteen of them are placed face up on gray resource circles. Each player takes four cavemen, four cavewomen, and four cave kid pieces; as well as a marker for the five developments (fire, fur, camp, spear, and wheel) in their color. One player goes first, and then play passes clockwise around the table.

On a player's turn, they draw the top card of the deck and utilize it for their actions. The top number on the card is the movement allowance the player has for their people. They may move their cave people around from space to space, spending one movement per space. Cave kids can move for free but must stay with an adult at all times, and there is a maximum of three adults and one kid in each space. New cavemen and cavewomen can enter the board from each player's beach, their starting spot (which costs one movement), but a player must have less than four pieces on the island to do this.

Each card has a red half. If this half shows a dinosaur picture and a number, the player may move that particular dinosaur that many spaces in any direction they choose; although dinosaurs cannot enter beach spaces or spaces containing other dinosaurs. Otherwise, the player must follow the special instructions listed on the card, which can range from changing a resource tile on the board, stealing a cave man from another player, etc. If a dinosaur or two cave people occupy the same space, they must fight. Dinosaurs roll red dice (number determined by the type of dinosaur), which have hits on three of their sides. Each tribesperson rolls one green die, which has a hit on two sides, and a spear on a third. The player who rolls more hits wins. A defeated dinosaur is placed back on one of the dinosaur start circles, while tribesmen are removed to make up the difference of hits.

After this, a player can claim one of the five developments, if they have two adults on two different resource locations:
Spear: Flint + flint: This gives the player an extra hit when rolling a spear in combat.
Wheel: Wood + wood: This gives the player one extra movement point each turn.
Cave: Caves + wood: This keeps a player's characters safe when on a cave space.
Furs: Animals + animals: This gives cave kids a better chance of survival.
Fire: Flint + wood: This gives cave kids a better chance of survival.
Players can only claim one development per turn and place their development token on the board to show that they now have this technology.

Finally, a player can attempt to grow any cave kids they have into adults. For each cave kid, a yellow die is rolled. If the player rolls an adult (two faces), the cave kid is removed and replaced with an adult. If the player rolls a skull (two faces), the cave kid is killed. The other two faces show fire and furs, which are either death or growth, depending on whether or not the player has the associated development. Then, players can add new cave kids to the board. For each kid added, the player must have a couple (caveman + cavewoman) on one space, and a caveman on an animal space or a cavewoman on a fruit space. None of these people can have been used for developments on the same turn.

The game continues until one of three things happens:
- A player has all eight of their adult pieces on the board. THEY WIN!
- A player has all five development tiles on the board. THEY WIN!
- The card pile runs out. The person with the most adults + development tiles wins!

Some comments on the game...

1.) Components: The box is one of the most exciting I've seen on a game, which drew me to it in the first place, as a rampaging T-rex is bearing down on a lone caveman bravely holding a spear. The board itself looks fantastic, showing a three dimensional view of an island. While it looks a little "busy", I did enjoy that it used circles instead of the sometimes-too-obvious hexagons in the grid. The tokens are of decent quality (although they should be double sided), but the dice are top notch (even if the dinosaur dice look like tribal shields instead). Everything fits easily inside the box - especially the plastic dinosaurs, which are the showpieces of the game. Only three are needed to play; but five more are included, which I gave to my kids as pencil toppers (since that's what they are).

2.) Rules: The rules for Caveman are straightforward and fairly simple to explain. Unfortunately, the rulebook is a sluggish mess, as the rules are all over the place; and some of them aren't even there, being printed on the reference cards instead. Fortunately, the reference cards are useful enough that you won't need to refer to the rulebook once players know what they are doing; but bright colors and large font does not equal good formatting, and there is a dizzying array of confusion that comes from the rulebook. That being said, even young children can understand the game; and while they may not catch the subtleties of game play, they'll understand the attacking dinosaurs and humans just as well as adults. In fact, a very young player could simply be put in charge of the dinosaurs, and go munch on opponents.

3.) Cards: The game revolves around the cards that players draw. These are completely random, as I might draw one that allows me eight movement on my turn; while my opponent might be stuck with a four movement card, when they play. This randomness should even out during the game, but it's certainly evident and affects the game enough that players seeking a high strategy session are going to be annoyed. I do enjoy how the single card affects the player's complete turn; and there's still plenty of choices to be made , even if a player gets a worse card than others.

4.) Resources: The game plays differently each time, because of the allocation of the resource tiles around the board. Their resource tiles are important to gain developments and/or more cavemen kids - both of which are ways to win the game, so players will eventually be locked into heated battle over them. Dinosaurs will chase cavemen off; and while most cavemen with half a brain will run from a dinosaur, the allure of the needed resources will cause them to throw away their fears and stand their ground. Several of the cards allow players to switch out resource tokens, so the dynamics also change in the course of a game.

5.) Choices: Depending on what starting resources a player can control will determine which victory condition they go for. Getting the technologies is not as hair-raising as bringing new kids into the world, but it likely will require traveling to a dangerous spot on the map, braving a dinosaur or fighting angry cave people of the opposing player. Kids are easier to produce, but they tend to die on a whim; and if your population starts nearing eight, expect all the other players to attack you, especially with the powerful dinosaurs.

6.) Multi-player and Time: While Caveman can be played with only two players, I think it's at its best with four; because the competition for resources is much fiercer. If you have more than four, and the game devolves into too much chaos between turns, players will only win after the game continues for what seems entirely too long. Games have a fixed length - thanks to the deck size, and they usually last for about forty-five minutes, which is perfect for this style of game play.

7.) Fun Factor: Caveman isn't going to win any awards for its game play - there are too many technical problems; the dice and cards add a huge element of luck to the game, a player can have a horrible starting position, or everyone can gang up on the leader. Despite that, I have a blast playing the game. Part of that is from the theme - it works well, and the nice pieces certainly help. Caveman also reminds me of Star Wars: Epic Duels, appealing to those who want some light combat in their game - a guilty pleasure, if you will. It would be hard for me to stand up and declare that I won Caveman because of my awesome strategy or negotiation skills, but at the end of the game, I don't care.

For me, Caveman is going to have its largest audience amongst teenagers. It's the type of game that I would have played time and time again when I was growing up, and even now I am glad to get the chance to just sit back and roll the dice. It's an attractive looking game, which will draw folks in; and there are multiple ways to win, offering a lot more strategy than you might expect - making this basically a gateway game for teenagers. It is certainly popular with the youth I've played with, and I expect to keep it on my shelf for them. But mind you, I have no problem jumping in alongside with them - Caveman just seems to exude fun.

Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games"
www.thedicetower.com

Thread: Re: First Time review

Simon at MAG — 2008-03-17T11:34:18+00:00

Glad you liked it. It is getting some great reviews as a fun game in many places.

We are working on our new game COLOURS for this year and trying to get Caveman formally distributed in several countries now (germany being top priority in fact)

Si

Thread: Re: Caveman - a review by my 11 years old daughter

Simon at MAG — 2008-03-17T11:27:09+00:00

Glad you liked it.

We are currently aiming to get it fully distributed in Germany. More news later this spring I hope.

Si

Thread: Re: Deluxe counters - how to get it?

Simon at MAG — 2008-03-17T11:20:11+00:00

About now...

We have found a way to do the deluxe set sensibly and will be putting some up on our website www.makeagame.eu in the next week or so.

Enjoy

Si

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

Simon at MAG — 2008-03-17T11:12:23+00:00

Mik

Thanks for the welcome - getting the hang of the technology.

I tried to PM you but it wouldn't let me for some reason. Would you mind trying a test at your end to me, or one to simon.hall@makeagame.eu

Tx

Si

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

Simon at MAG — 2008-03-17T11:03:34+00:00

We have been out of the loop for a month or so due to a serious car accident getting in the way but now plesaed to say we are back in action.

As Mick the Dane said we actually found it was roughly the same cost to buy all 8 as to have the 3 sorted out separately, so we may as well give all 8. As someone else said there is no such thing as "extra" Dinosurs

Also we are planning to put up some rules for using the other 5 in the game for those Dinophiles amongst you. So keep them handy.

Cheers

Simon

MAG

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

Great Dane — 2008-03-17T11:02:41+00:00

Simon at MAG wrote:
test
It worked!
- Welcome Simon!

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

Simon at MAG — 2008-03-17T11:01:06+00:00

test

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

kevtor — 2008-02-07T23:52:04+00:00

goldenboat wrote:
There is no such thing as "extra" dinosaurs, just like there is no such thing as "extra" beer.

My thoughts exactly! Who ever heard of an "extra" plastic dinosaur? That is just silly talk. You can't have too many!

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

ArgusCat — 2008-02-07T23:07:49+00:00

Thanks, now we know! You're right, it is funny.

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

goldenboat — 2008-02-07T19:07:56+00:00

There is no such thing as "extra" dinosaurs, just like there is no such thing as "extra" beer.

Thread: Re: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

Great Dane — 2008-02-07T15:06:56+00:00

The story is very simple - and a little funny:

They found the dino's at a Chinese manufactorer who makes them for pencilheads (hence the hole in the bottom). However they only sell them in bags of 8 different pieces.

So MAG had 3 options:
1) Ask the factory to bag them individually and pay MORE for 5 than for 8.
2) Buy 8 per bag and remove the excess dinos themselves.
3) Simply leave all 8 dinos in each box.

Solution 3 was the cheapest solution BY FAR, so enjoy the extra little figures (they are actually very well made!), use them for another game, or make up new rules.

In short - ENJOY A FREE GIFT!

Thread: Caveman - Extra Dinosaurs, why so many unused?

ArgusCat — 2008-02-07T12:08:45+00:00

Okay, at the risk of missing something hopefully obvious...

Caveman comes with eight plastic dinosaur counters. However, only three of them are used in the game and those three are specified due to images on the deck of movement cards.

What are the other dinosaurs used for? We could find no mention of them in the rules at all. One of our group knows German, and she couldn't find any reference in the German rules either.

Materials for future expansions? Or variants?

Anyone know the solution to this mystery?

Edible cavemen need to know!

Thread: Re: Deluxe counters - how to get it?

chuman — 2007-12-10T19:47:24+00:00

Thanks for letting us know Terry! Looking forward to hear from you on this.

I won't hold you to this, but roughly when should I come check for an update on this?

Thread: Re: Deluxe counters - how to get it?

TerryS — 2007-12-10T19:22:28+00:00

We only had a small number produced - until we gauged the level of interest - but we sold all of them during the Essen show.

We're putting together some additional sets at the moment, and I'll re-post here with details of how to order them as soon as they're ready.

Thread: Re: Deluxe counters - how to get it?

chuman — 2007-12-08T11:33:16+00:00

Looks great - thanks for the picture. I'll try to get in touch with the publisher and if I get an answer will post back here.

Since I play with my kids (who just love this game), the sturdier the counters, the better. Plus, there is just that something special about counters with some heft in them. It speaks to the tactile-deficit-geek in me, I suppose... ;-)