Game: Incan Gold

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EndersGame — 2008-11-21T18:52:32+00:00

A Leaky Tent (held together with tape): inevitable wear and tear

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EndersGame — 2008-11-21T18:36:51+00:00

Game in play: a tunnel comes to an end!

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EndersGame — 2008-11-21T18:34:14+00:00

Treasure bonanza!

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EndersGame — 2008-11-18T18:55:15+00:00

Artifacts: my four year old's favourite cards!

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EndersGame — 2008-11-18T18:49:58+00:00

Fire devours two unfortunate explorers

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EndersGame — 2008-11-18T18:45:00+00:00

The Temple

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EndersGame — 2008-11-18T18:35:53+00:00

The maximum: 17 sparkling treasure

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EndersGame — 2008-11-18T18:35:13+00:00

Two Spiders immediately: what are the odds?

Thread: Be Indiana Jones, But Easily Scared

VixenTorGames — 2008-11-03T02:17:22+00:00

Pretend you're Indiana Jones. Pretend you're exploring some lost pyramid in the middle of the Amazon. Pretend you're intrepid, ballsy and ready for anything.

And now pretend you're scared a lot, and you could be playing Incan Gold.

The concept in Incan Gold is pretty much what I just described - everybody is exploring a pyramid, trying to retrieve artifacts and treasure and get out alive. There are five different tombs, and you run them down one at a time, picking up treasure and then chickening out before you get mauled by mummies or bitten by poisonous snakes or have to spend an afternoon with Willie.

The temples is 'built' one chamber at a time with a deck of cards. Cards show either treasure or danger, and while you can take some of the good stuff to fill your pockets, you can only keep it if you leave. You can keep going and get more treasure, or you can keep going and wind up with a poisonous spider living in your lower intestine, in which case the treasure doesn't do you much good.

Basically, the game is a balancing act between pushing one more chamber and having the sense to run back to safety. The longer you're in a tomb, the more goodies you can grab, but you also run a higher chance of getting stuck and losing all that hard-earned swag. It's fun and fast, but not terribly deep. It reminds me a little of dating in college - do you invite yourself in for a nightcap, hoping she doesn't smack you for your insolence, or do you settle for a kiss goodnight and then find out that the frat boy up the street got to see her naked after you drove away? Tough call, and for the record, I think there were lots of happy frat boys where I went to college.

The components in Incan Gold are kind of a wacky mixed bag. On one side, these are really nice cards with great color art. And on the other side, they're black-and-white and really dull. I don't pretend to entirely understand that decision, but the game only costs twenty bucks, so I won't complain much. And you get some really cool little plastic chunks of treasure, so that's probably where the production budget went.

A few interesting factoids, for you game trivia fans out there. Incan Gold used to be called Diamant, and if you take the artifact cards out of Incan Gold, then it IS Diamant. Also, you used to be able to add Incan Gold to your order at Funagain if you bought a bunch of stuff, but now it's sold through Fred Distribution (the least original company name ever) and so you just have to pay for it. Oh, and it's designed by Alan Moon and Bruno Faidutti, which makes me wonder which of this star-studded cast was responsible for the half-page of rules. Seems like a collaboration would result in more than two rules, but then, I don't make games, I just talk about them.

Incan Gold is a quick, fun game. It's especially good if you've managed to invite a non-gamer person (we call them 'squares' or 'norms') to dinner, and then after dinner they want to play a game. It's not one you schedule a whole evening around, because it will only take twenty minutes and then you either play again or everyone goes home and gets pissed that they bothered to make the drive. And while good times can be had, you will unfortunately not be able to sleep with a hot Nazi spy. At least not while you're playing the game.

Summary

Pros:
Quick and easy to learn
Fun
Nice art... on one side
Really cool little plastic treasure chunks in the shape of childrens' breakfast cereal

Cons:
Not very involved
Black and white... on the other side

Thread: Re: Love it, but my bits are wrong

huckw — 2008-10-29T03:18:27+00:00

Can you post a pic of what jewels you got at Michaels...I didn't find anything that seemed very jewel-like.

Thread: Re: 10 Turns Instead Of 5

colmustard21 — 2008-10-25T02:32:12+00:00

Hey! This is a great variant! Now my family and I only ever play with this variant. Wish I thought of it!

Thread: Re: Time Lapse Video / Family Experience Report

danielmasters — 2008-10-23T10:11:23+00:00

This video has got me interested in this game. Fine work!

Thread: Whiskey variant

colmustard21 — 2008-10-23T06:05:55+00:00

Here's a variant my brother and I made up, it's very simple:

Give each player a token of some sort. It could be a button, a poker chip, a toothpick, or if you're playing four or fewer players, you could even use a second tent. It doesn't really matter at all. This is your "whiskey" token.

This token allows players to bypass ONE hazard. The way this works is, say a second snake has come up, threatening to chase you all out of the temple. But before anyone gets chased out, All players secretly pick either their 'Continue' or 'Leave' card. They reveal their choice simultaneously. All players that chose 'Continue' discard their "whiskey" token and bypass the snake (or whatever hazard it was) and continue playing as if it never happened. That hazard does not get discarded at the end of the round. It stays in the deck because.

All players that chose 'Leave' keep their "whiskey" token and wait until all players that did decide to continue either voluntarily leave or are scared out. If players that used their "whiskey" token are scared out, there is not second chance for them. They are scared out and don't get their "whiskey" token back. This hazard that officially did scare them out gets discarded, just like the rules normally state.

So essentially players are given an extra life. We just like to phrase it as drinking "whiskey" to overcome your fear temporarily.

Thread: Time Lapse Video / Family Experience Report

chaosjenkins — 2008-10-22T22:10:58+00:00

Vimeo Video

In this time-lapse session video, my son Harrison (back to camera), my wife Becky (to the right) and I (facing camera) play a quick game of Incan Gold by Sunriver Games / Funagain Games.

While I suppose Incan Gold could technically be classified as a card game because its only components are cards and treasure tokens, it plays more like a board game in many ways. There is a temple location on the tabletop, broken into sections that the adventurers (players) explore in phases of “quests” accumulating treasures and avoiding dangers.

It’s a simple risk management game in which players are asked to choose with every upturned quest card whether to safely return to camp with the treasure they have accumulated or press on, risking all for the riches and glory to be obtained in the face of certain danger.

In this game, Becky and Harrison each had early turns (the second and third, respecitively, I believe) during which they pressed too far, encountering a hazard and losing all they had accumulated. I was the one who played it the most safe, never losing treasure to a danger card.

Harrison calculated his returns to camp in such a way as to gather two of the special artifact cards, whereas I claimed one in the fifth and final round that helped seal the game for me. I finished with 61 points, Harrison 48 and Becky 38. We had thought I’d only won by the margin of the last artifact I claimed, but it turned out there was a piece of obsidian hidden in my tent … so the margin was wider than I thought. This is why “hiding” the treasures under the tent cards is important. Players have to keep careful track of what they need to emerge as the wealthiest and most decorated archaeologist.

A couple of items of note - Yes, there is a bit of lost footage (about 2 minutes of real time) between the first and second round where the camera I was using went wonky. And, I’d draw any observer’s attention to the fourth round where all five cards that came up as we entered the temple were hazard cards, eventually chasing us all out before we’d found a single shiny rock. I’ve never seen that happen before.

Incan Gold is easy to learn, plays fast, and it seems to play different almost every single game. My seven year old son had no trouble grasping it, and it is great for a family game. It also makes for a good “filler” game between the heavier games a group might play. Because of the “who will risk and who will play it safe” element, the game gets even more interesting with additional people.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold - Review

skipster13 — 2008-10-20T23:44:59+00:00

Thanks for the info. I am always looking for quick filler games that can handle 6+ players where I dont need a dolley to carry the game in.

Thread: Re: Artifacts -- multiple people leaving

Haze01 — 2008-10-20T05:56:45+00:00

I was originally taught that, with multiple people leaving, the retreating players split the treasure from each room as they pass through each room on the way out. It was as though the rival explorers continued their bickering on the way out. This rule was questioned last gaming session and I discovered that the rules say the players "equally divide all the treasures that have been left on any Quest cards in the path", leaving "the extra treasures... on any Quest card".

On encountering the situation of having two artifacts on the board, the two players who had stayed in the temple asked what would happen if both left at once. I told them that the rules say no one gets them, but they argued that since the Quest-card leftovers are not divvied up room-by-room, the retreating explorers are obviously using their intellects and being courteous with each-other on the way out. In that case, it would be nonsensical for them to not each take an artifact, they said.

It was hard to argue with that, especially since they were really set on it, so we added our third house-rule for the night (sigh).

Thread: Re: Sanity check on Quest card shuffling between expeditions

Haze01 — 2008-10-20T05:09:00+00:00

Something that the others didn't mention: If an Artifact card came up, but no player took it, it is taken out of the game and set aside like when you remove a Hazard card.

"If there were any Artifacts on the path when the round ends, these treasures are lost forever and removed from the game. Bad luck for the expedition!"

Whether the next ones to leave the temple will be worth 5 or 10 seems up to your interpretation.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold - Review

Haze01 — 2008-10-20T02:13:31+00:00

skipster13 wrote:
Just curious. Is there a difference between Incan gold and Diamant beyond cosmetics?
As I understand it, the Artifacts are the only thing that seperates Incan Gold's gameplay from that of Diamant. Artifacts go only to one person and are worth a fair bit of points. They add a neat element to the game, shaking up the decisions for the rounds while they're on the table. Do you risk leaving at the same time as someone else and having neither of you get the artifact? With three players, do you risk exploring an extra room in the hopes that your two opponents leave at the same time and leave the artifact for you? I like what it adds.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold - Review

skipster13 — 2008-10-16T02:58:17+00:00

Just curious. Is there a difference between Incan gold and Diamant beyond cosmetics?

Thread: Re: Love it, but my bits are wrong

gameguythinks — 2008-10-04T17:42:43+00:00

That's a great idea! Thanks!

Thread: Seven people enter, none leave!

MerricB — 2008-09-09T01:58:45+00:00

Incan Gold is an amusing game, and one that is best played with lots of people. That way, you can laugh at more of them when they stay in too long and get crushed. Will and Laurie had indicated that they had to leave before dinner, and with only a limited time left before that time arrived, our selection of games was small, especially as Josh had, by now, also arrived.

So, Incan Gold. I have a basic strategy in this game: survive, and take as much gold as I can. Unfortunately, that's the same strategy as everyone else (except Randy). We were joined for this game by Randy's very young daughter, Saffron, who sat on Randy's lap and just exclaimed her choices when we'd all chosen our cards.

The first expedition was fun: I escaped first with 7 gold (a 4 and a 3 had come up) and then almost everyone else met the rocks and dropped their gold. The second was similar, although I gained a lesser haul this time, and was joined by a couple of other fearful explorers (Rich and Laurie) who'd grabbed something more.

The third expedition was a total bust, with the first two cards being the same hazard! The fourth didn't last much longer, and suddenly it was the final round. All five artefacts were in the deck, and no-one had seen any yet!

Rich was the first to see an artefact in the final round. He then out-bluffed us and ran to the exit, clutching it to his chest. Laurie followed him shortly thereafter. We didn't get the hint, and walked into the snakes. The game was over, but how had we done? I was feeling pretty good, but Rich had gained that artefact...

In fact, it was Laurie, the first-timer, who capped off an excellent game day with a win in Incan Gold, recovering 23 gold in total, just pipping Rich on 22. I had 16, and from there on it was Saffron and Will on 9 each, Josh on 6, and Randy, the fearless (if stupid) explorer, with only 5 gold.

So ended the first part of our boardgame day. Now came tea... and after tea, Shogun!

Thread: Re: Incan Gold and Werewolves - non-playing roles for newbies?

sightreader — 2008-09-03T16:08:13+00:00

Balfa wrote:
In werewolf, you talk about the losing players continuing to play. Where can I find info about this variant? In the rules I know for werewolf, the losing players take no further part in the game...It's actually in one of the rules posted on a PDF. It's really quite simple: dead players are just like everyone else, except that they can't vote. Participating in debate requires, though, that they have to close their eyes during the night like the living players.

Generally, I find that most dead folks prefer not to play, but rather enjoy the God's eye view of watching everyone get confused. However, I do give folks the choice as some have a strong opinion and want to see their ideas through (especially Cobblers).

Thread: Re: Incan Gold and Werewolves - non-playing roles for newbies?

Balfa — 2008-09-03T15:32:34+00:00

In werewolf, you talk about the losing players continuing to play. Where can I find info about this variant? In the rules I know for werewolf, the losing players take no further part in the game...

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niraD — 2008-09-02T16:19:43+00:00

Custom Tokens for Incan Gold: Bedrolls (return to camp) and Torches (continue exploring)

Thread: Re: Love it, but my bits are wrong

mjacobsca — 2008-08-10T17:07:49+00:00

Yollege wrote:
Try contacting FRED distribution about it. My copy had a small "fix" baggie taped to it at my FLGS when I bought it.

Or do what I did, go to Michael's art supply store, and buy replacement jewels to spice up the game. I think it makes it far more fun!

Thread: Re: Incan Gold - Review

mjacobsca — 2008-08-10T06:52:02+00:00

Glad to see you liked Diamant and wanted to pick up Incan Gold for the family.
I'm curious to see what gems and artifacts you got - maybe add pics to your User Gallery and display here along with your review?
It would be interesting to see what customizing people do...

Thanks for introducing me to it. My 7 year old loved it, and wanted me to find it. I'm glad I did.

I will take some pictures of my purchases and upload them. The game is totally geeked out now. The stones that come with Incan Gold are not impressive, and I wanted some big stones and some cool artifacts. The only problem now is that our chests aren't big enough, and the box won't fit it all! Oh well, more geeking to do. I think I'll go find some treasure sacks or treasure chests to store the loot. Might as well go all the way!

Thread: 10 Turns Instead Of 5

mjacobsca — 2008-08-10T05:29:24+00:00

My daughter and I played 10 turns today instead of 5. We played that artifacts were all worth 5 the first time through, then worth 10 the second time through. After the first 5 rounds, we reset EVERYTHING like it was a new game, only we keep the gems we already earned, and the artifacts bump up to 10 no matter how many artifacts have been recovered already. I think I'm going to play with this variant from now on for the following reasons:

1. One complaint about the game is that when a leader emerges after the first turn or two, the rest of the players become more desperate to catch up, and are almost forced to stay in the cave longer. With 10 rounds, however, far more scoring opportunities exist, and each player will have ups and downs. This minizes the random fluctuations that benefit a player in shorter games.

2. With 10 rounds, players can try a mix of strategies to win. You can exit more caves with small piles of gems. In a short game, you can't do this unless you are ahead early. And if you want to go for it and stay in a risky cave, you can do this once or twice and still have plenty of chances later on.

3. In my games, we have never recovered more than 3 artifacts. This means they are never worth more than 5. With the 10 turn variant, ALL artifacts become worth 10 points the second go around. This makes the game more intense for the latter caves, which is always good for any game (to become more intense as the game goes on).

4. 10 turns makes it VERY hard to figure out who is ahead. All players end up with a lot of gems, and you can never be sure you are up by 10, down by 20, or more. With a 5 round game, you can ALMOST know who is up. Not so much after round 7, 8, or 9. This keeps some of the guesswork intact, and encourages more risky behavior.

5. While I like this game as a short filler, I think the variant lengthens the game nicely and turns it into more of a full-fledged game. I'm sure there are more things we can do to make the game even better.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold - Review

reapersaurus — 2008-08-10T04:52:47+00:00

Thread: Re: Incan Gold - Review

caltexn — 2008-08-10T04:22:06+00:00

I got zero treasure on my last game too. Had fun though with the eight player game. Good fun.

Thread: Incan Gold - Review

mjacobsca — 2008-08-10T02:37:34+00:00

I saw Incan Gold for $19.99 at the local FLGS, and decided to pick it up. I've played Diamant once before, and I liked Diamant when I played it, so I decided to spring for the game. I'm glad I did!

There's something about a game that works on your most basic instincts - greed, fear, courage, and intuition. There is no "advanced" strategy here. This game requires only your brain stem and some guts. I consider this a plus, although I know others will want for more. But when you want a quick game that will force you to make some tough decisions, this game fits the bill, and provides a few laughs as well.

The premise of the game is that you and the other players are exploring a treasure filled cavern, filled with dangers and lurking monsters. The deeper you go into the dungeon, the more treasure you will amass as you go. But beware, run into the same hazard more than one time and you will lose EVERYTHING. After each step into the dungeon is completed, players grab more treasure, and then decide whether to stay or go. Leave now, and you get to keep what you've salvaged, plus pick up stray gems and jewels that were left along the way. Keep going, and you may be in line for more riches. And since treasure is divided by players as it is found, the longer you stay in, the less the treasure becomes divided, and the more loot you pile up. In a 5 player game, 15 treasures get divided to 3 each. But if you are the last player in the dungeon, that 3 becomes 15.

Overall, the press your luck aspect is superb, and the theme is workable. I actually purchased some replacement gems and jewels from a local art supply store, and these spiced up the game for me tremendously. The gems that come with the game are fairly poor in my opinion (Diamant's are better). I also purchased some toy artifacts for $1.99 at the toy store to substitute for the artifact cards. This adds to the theme as well. Regarding the cards, I actually liked the Incan Gold cards better than the Diamant cards.

Most of the time, the other players start cajoling any player left in the game. This makes the game a fun party game, especially as the treasures mount and the tension builds. And yes, there is tension. I ended my last game with 0 (yes, ZERO) treasure because I pressed my luck too long each game. Becoming desperate for more, I kept going, not knowing when to get out. Ah well, there's nothing like being beat by a 7 year old.

And that's another plus for me. My 3 1/2 year old can play this game. As can my 7 year old. My 7 year old gets it perfectly, and she loves it. My 3 1/2 year old plays basically the same way he lives, on the edge. Don't count on him to exit the dungeon before he's good and ready. He's no expert, but it's fun to have something that the WHOLE family can enjoy.

So when I want to test my bravery, and not concoct a 3-stage economic plan to win a game after phase 3 of some no-named Euro, I'll play Incan Gold any day.

Mike

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peapicker — 2008-08-07T19:33:52+00:00

Incan Gold Cover

Thread: Re: Incan Gold: my view.

Robrob — 2008-08-07T17:57:22+00:00

I agree with your review. The only gripes I have with the game are the thin cards are hard to shuffle and the "tents" are a lesser work-around option for treasure storage than the origional carts. I realize there is a cost savings but frankly I'm just going to fold some Origami "rice boxes" out of brown paper instead. Another personal upgrade I made is to replace the awkward "Search/Retreat" card mechanic with glass beads (white for go, black for back).

Thread: Incan Gold: my view.

RobM — 2008-08-07T07:23:28+00:00

Preamble
I like my games collection to cover every eventuality from 2 player wargames (aka ‘boys games’ in our group) to introductory games for kids. One of the most difficult niches to fill is the ‘one size fits all’ game which is suitable for groups of variable size and age range. I used to put Bang! in this category but I find it is too complex for children under 10 (and some people mind find the content inappropriate for young children, and it occasionally lasts far too long. Lord of the Fries and Coloretto are a couple of titles that work okay, but the former gets boring quickly and the latter only accommodates 5. I read decent reviews of Incan Gold, so I decided I’d grab a copy to see if it would fit the bill.

Components.
Incan Gold comes in an appropriately small box. It is really nice to see a manufacturer package a game properly, and not create a big box full of air just because all their games are that size. Inside, there are five temple cards, which act as a sort of board or turn marker. There are eight tent cards that can be folded in half to make tents (and there is a wonderful tongue-in-cheek guidance sheet concerning the folding of tents: another piece of good production). There are eight pairs of player decision cards, one with a torch bearer (‘stay and explore’) and one with a tent (‘run away’). The remaining cards represent treasures, artefacts and hazards. There is a short and reasonably well written rulebook. Finally there are plastic gem tokens in three denominations (turquoise worth 1, black worth 5, yellow worth 10). Overall, this is an excellent little package.

Gameplay.
The game supports up to eight players. Each player takes a pair of decision cards and a tent. The five temple cards are placed in the middle of the table, face down. One player takes and shuffles the treasure and hazard cards plus one artefact card, and play is then ready to begin.

The game plays in five rounds. The premise is that players are Indiana Jones style raiders seeking to find treasure and artefacts in an ancient temple without being killed by traps or nasty creatures. “Push your luck” is the name of the game here. To begin, the first temple card is turned over and then player with the deck deals the top card out and places it next to the upturned temple card. If this is a treasure card, the players divide the treasure equally between them, with any remainder left on the card (values range from 1 to 17). Players place this treasure next to their tents. If it is a hazard card, nothing happens in the first round. Play then proceeds in a similar way: firstly, all players use their decision cards to either stay in the temple or run back to their tent. Players returning to their tents get to divide any remaining treasure in the temple between them, and then they place all treasure that they have accumulated under their tent, where it is safe. The dealer deals another card and if it is a treasure, the players still in the temple share the spoils as before. If it is a hazard, nothing happens unless it is the same type of hazard as one already revealed, in which case the players still in the temple are killed/trapped and lose all treasures next to their tent, and the hazard card is removed from the game. Artifact cards are left on the table and act as a special kind of treasure. Artifacts are only collected if there is a LONE explorer who leaves the temple. The first three artifacts are worth 5 points, the last two 10 points.

Play proceeds until everyone has either escaped that section of the temple or has been killed/trapped by a hazard. The deck is then shuffled as before, with a second artefact added, and passed to a new dealer for play to begin with the second section of the temple. Once all five sections of the temple have been explored, players total up the value of the treasure under their tents plus their artefacts to determine the winner.

So What do I think?
Incan Gold fills the niche that I bought it for. It is an absolute gem (no pun intended). It is light, fast (15 minutes or so), and great fun. It works well both as a filler or as a main game where several games are played in succession. The rules are simple and there is luck involved, but that just means that it is highly accessible. We’ve played games with eight players ranging in age from 6 to 40+ and most of the time is spent laughing or cheering as people either push their luck just a little too far, or get away with it. Bold 6 year olds are just as likely to win or lose as wily adult gamers.

If you want a light, fun game that is great for children, mixed groups and families, then you should add Incan Gold to your collection. It is not a gamers’ game that requires deep thought (though there are times when you get some very interesting choices based on what you know and can predict). Instead, it is best played with a ‘devil may care’ attitude. This means that as well as being good for families, it is also excellent as a filler. When you’ve got brain-ache from playing a taxing heavyweight game or a huge build up of tension from an angst-ridden game, a quick game of Incan Gold is the perfect antidote. Conversely, if you are in the mood for meatier fare, Incan Gold should stay on the shelf that evening.

My only gripes about the game are below. All are very minor:
- with 6 or more players, we find that there aren’t enough turquoise gems and there is a lot of ‘cashing in’ of 5 turquoise gems for 1 black going on. That is fine, but it can just take the edge of what is otherwise a fast, action-packed affair.
- it is the kind of game that you need a rest from occasionally. If you played it a real lot, it would start to get boring and repetitive (like most games this light). If you get the balance right and use it as an occasional filler and occasional rip-roaring family game, it’s appeal will last.
- sometimes, placing of the decision cards seems too repetitive because decisions are actually obvious, but that is just the nature of the game. Most groups will evolve a style where occasionally everyone just shouts 'in' for those obvious draws.
- I do wonder if the decision cards will wear out. They are used a lot, and with a mixed group they are often man-handled. I may resort to laminating them.

Overall, I have to give Incan Gold a very commendable 7.5 out of 10. Rating it is quite difficult. However, since the definition of 7 is 'good game that I'm usually willing to play' and 8 is 'very good game I like to play, probably I'll suggest it and I never turn down a game', for me Incan Gold is a 7.5 because I'd describe it as 'a very good game that I occasionally like to play, but will occasionally not be in the mood for'.

Thread: More than just a bag of rocks.

Kronman — 2008-07-27T01:24:38+00:00

Jim busted out "Incan Gold" for the next game of the night. Even though the box looked to weigh less than one pound, good things do come in small packages... (At least that's what Sam keeps saying). After Brian put on his Ra clinic and schooled us bigtime, we were hungry for blood.

Incan Gold is a "Push your luck" style cardgame where we are exploring underground dungeons looking for treasure while trying to avoid getting splattered by nasty beasties. After each card is revealed (Treasure, Artifact, or Danger) we can either keep going hoping to add more treasure to our sack, or grab our sack of jewels and head to camp to "lock in" the goodies.

Brian started out taking a few gems and getting out early. Luckily for him we pulled double dangers and the round ended. I pulled some decent rounds and thought I was sitting on a big stack of treasure after bringing in an artifact in round 3. The suspense of trying to outguess your gaming friends on when to cut bait and run is fantastic! Trash talk gets thrown about like crazy.

Round 5 ends up with Sam as the last man standing hoping to make a huge haul. Danger cards are drawn and Sam is left holding an empty sack. The final round starts and I take some early gems and exit with Brian. Teong and Jim last a bit longer and make it out with some cash. Sam is again the last one in the dungeon looking for treasure. He gets some great cards pulled and a 10 point artifact. He finally heads out and we count up.

Let me just say my gem counting skills are poorer than I thought! Everyone keeps their loot under a "tent" so that nobody can see exactly what has been removed from the dungeon. While I was not last, I was close. Sam was very pleased to take first place.

Thread: Incan Gold and Werewolves - non-playing roles for newbies?

sightreader — 2008-07-24T17:45:59+00:00

Teaming players up for Diamant is part of a bigger effort of using non-playing roles to help non-gamers become social gamers. This is a followup to the theories espoused in this post:

http://boardgamegeek.com/article/2475057#2475057

I'll also be speaking in very general terms so it doesn't sound like I'm singling anyone out.
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The first case involves those who have trouble understanding the game for various reasons: age, inexperience, short attention span or language barriers. The second case involves those who are being dragged into a game party unwillingly and thus have an incentive to limit their engagement as a matter of pride.
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We were playing Diamant when more non-gamers arrived. Since I didn't want to interrupt the game flow with another rules explanation, we had each person "team up" with existing players. How successful this strategy is depends largely on who they team up with: a good partner will - as much as possible - let the new player make as many of the decisions as possible (i.e. don't partner newbies up with control freaks who put winning above everything).
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Previously, for games like Pacific Typhoon and Loot, this strategy has been outstandingly successful, as it let people get to know each other better (social experience being the primary draw of these parties) and I've seen very reluctant and confused players become game winners on their next session. I didn't really get to see this session through, though, since I had to get busy ordering pizza.
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The highlight of the night, though, is always Werewolf. Here, non-playing roles were decisive in helping some tough non-gamer cases.

Unlike Diamant, it is not possible to team players up in Werewolf. Furthermore, the rules state that dead players are supposed to keep playing despite being eliminated. Forcing frustrated non-gamers to participate after they "lose" can result in mutiny, so I instead give players the option of either continuing to play or simply reveal their role and observe the rest of the game.
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Werewolf deals with many unknowns and and a lot of misinformation, adding up to enough chaos to cause newbies to give up and lose interest. They find they are completely unable to defend themselves against lynching accusations, and as a result die quick, confused deaths, feeling that they never had a fair chance at the game.

The other type are those who were forced into coming, and here opposition takes form even quicker. A quick glance at the demographic apparently confirmed their dreary perception, and you could almost see them roll their eyes and think, "This is so lame" before I even started explaining the rules. Once the game began, they had enough good grace to abide by the rules, but nevertheless made it a point to adopt subversive strategies (such as always voting to lynch themselves) in addition to defiantly miserable body language.
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When such non-gamers are the first to die, you can guess they eagerly jump at the chance to take a vow of silence and step out of the game (we provide pizza, which helps them stay in the party). Here, though, is where the game starts to work its magic, because - no matter how unengaging the game may have been - it is truly impossible to not be curious about who the werewolves really are, then to not be amused at how the wolves are lying their teeth off. With the bird's eye view, the light goes on, and they find themselves nodding in appreciation, thinking, "Ah, that was clever" or, "Ouch, that was vicious!". Finally, as they watch longer, they see others make poor decisions, and they can't resist thinking, "Geez, that was stupid - if I were him I would have done this". By the time they are thinking that way, they are completely hooked and are itching to get back into the game.
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This theory is born out by the drastic change in behavior by the 3rd game. Previously unwilling players became very engaged and passionate, espousing increasingly complex theories and scenarios. One good sign was that they happily distanced themselves from previous actions ("Wait a sec, didn't you say you ALWAYS vote to lynch yourself?"), but the strongest proof is in the fact that they consistently elected to keep playing after being eliminated!
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The previously lost players, on the other hand, became subtle and deadly quite suddenly after numerous games of blank stares. I don't know what happens - I guess something just clicks - but as the moderator I go from thinking, "Don't do that... that person is on your team!" to, "Ouch, that's cold". In particular, they won a very difficult victory with a Werewolf "Lover", where they tricked both villagers and wolves and wiped out the entire town!
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Thread: Re: Can't Stop/Deal Or No Deal/DungeonQuest hybrid

pHr0sT — 2008-07-21T20:05:52+00:00

reapersaurus wrote:
I ended up being patient, avoiding the (IMO overpriced) FunAgain version and recently picked up Diamant from TimeWellSpent for only ~$7 more in a free shipping order.

I'm glad I waited for some more American etailers to carry the original version.Exactly what I did. The components and rubies/diamonds are definitely high-quality. Great filler game that everyone I have introduced it to has enjoyed immensly. Demands instant replays.

Thread: Re: Can't Stop/Deal Or No Deal/DungeonQuest hybrid

reapersaurus — 2008-07-21T19:56:21+00:00

I ended up being patient, avoiding the (IMO overpriced) FunAgain version and recently picked up Diamant from TimeWellSpent for only ~$7 more in a free shipping order.

I'm glad I waited for some more American etailers to carry the original version.

Thread: Re: Love it, but my bits are wrong

Yollege — 2008-06-08T16:06:03+00:00

Try contacting FRED distribution about it. My copy had a small "fix" baggie taped to it at my FLGS when I bought it.

Thread: Love it, but my bits are wrong

gameguythinks — 2008-06-07T00:02:23+00:00

Incan Gold is a fast little card based push-your-luck game for 3 to 8 players, designed by Alan Moon and Bruno Faidutti. Incan Gold is actually the English language version of Diamant, published in 2005. The rules have a suggested age of 8 and up, but I think you can go a bit younger than that. The rules are very simple and easy to teach, even to non-gamers. When it comes down to it, the only decision you have to make is whether to explore further into the temple or to return to your camp.

In the game you play the role of an adventurer, exploring an Incan Temple that contains riches of gold, turquoise, and obsidian. There are also five artifact cards that are added, one per round, to the deck of of quest cards that can contain rooms of treasure or a deadly hazard. Each player receives a tent card that is folded to cover their collected treasure, and a pair of player cards, one that is used to indicate the decision to continue into the dungeon or to return to camp.

Each of the five rounds begins with the start player revealing the artifact that will be added to the quest deck for that round. There are five numbered cards that are placed together to form the entrance to the temple and to indicate the current round. The artifact cards are placed under these cards until they are added to the quest deck.

The quest deck consists of 15 treasure cards and 15 hazard cards. Each round, start player reveals a new card. If it's a treasure card, then the explorers split up the treasure equally, using the very cool little plastic treasure bits provided with the game. Any treasure that cannot be split up equally is left on the treasure card, while the rest is placed next to, but not under, your camp tent.

If a hazard card is revealed, then the players are in danger of losing what they have collected if another matching hazard card is revealed before the explorers return to their camp. Before the next card is revealed, the players must choose to play either their torch character card to indicate they wish to stay in the temple to accumulate more treasure, or play their camp card to indicate they wish to return to camp and store their loot under their camp tent, where it is safe.

Players that choose to continue may earn more treasure as explorers drop out and return to camp; however, they run the risk of finding a matching hazard card and losing everything they have collected that round. Players that choose to return to camp will divide any treasure that remains in the tomb, and if a player is the only player choosing to return to camp at that moment, that player gets to take any artifacts that were revealed this round, so there is a wonderful bluffing element to the game as well.

After round five is complete, the explorers reveal the contents of their tent, and add up their points. The explorer with the most treasure wins.

The card art on Incan Gold is very nice and overall I think the game has a terrific cost to fun ratio. The game looks gorgeous as you lay out the temple. You can lay out the temple in a linear fashion, but that's pretty dull. I like to lay it out with branching rooms to make it more dungeon-like. I started a new branch whenever an artifact was revealed, so that when the artifacts were removed, either by an explorer or at the end of a round, I didn't have a hole in the pathway. Since there really is no current location in Incan Gold, it didn't affect game play at all.

My only problem with the game is that in the copy I purchased, I was given 60 obsidian pieces, 30 turquoise pieces, and 20 gold pieces. I should have received 60 turquoise and 30 obsidian. Turquoise is supposed to be worth one point, while obsidian should be worth five points. I decided to just swap the value of the turquoise and obsidian pieces. I didn't make any difference, but will be confusing if I play somewhere else.

I was really happy with this game, and I imagine it will get quite a bit of use.

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

brel — 2008-05-11T15:07:35+00:00

Ok here's a more elaborative comment:

Yes, the audio is kinda muffled and the video is more pixelated. I guess that's because of the higher compression you used for this one. Although the download speed is faster, it seems the video is not high quality as indicated in your link. The color brown for the backdrop and your black shirt does not meld well. Using those colors radiates a more serious tone to otherwise an energetic game review. I already like the fonts and colors in your past video reviews. They have nice contrasts and I didn't seem to notice any pixelations (I always download the high quality video version by the way).

I haven't had the chance to try "Thebes" yet as I keep reading negative reviews on that game. Too much luck... very low replayability... etc. I've also watched your review on that game. So I decided to just wait until something good comes up. One game I am looking into that might be close to an Indiana Jones adventure is "Journey To The Center of the Earth" or "Die Reise zum Mittelpunkt" by Rudiger Dorn.

Anyways, thanks again for all those great video reviews! Hope you do some more. If I can make a request, maybe "Age of Empires III: The Age of Discovery" or "Race for the Galaxy".

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

EclipsedHalo — 2008-05-08T23:28:12+00:00

Quick question, arent you supposed to remove one of the trap cards in each phase. Lets say the zombie guy was the trap that came up twice in phase 1, dont you remove one of those zombie cards before entering into phase 2?

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

PimpMC — 2008-05-08T21:48:52+00:00

You can thank Michelle for that. She does all of our post production work on the podcasts. I believe that games should be visually fun and not just a good game concept so for me you need to REALLY see the game in order to know if it's right for you. I won't buy a game if the back of the box doesn't really sell it and I haven't seen the components anywhere else.

Did not sound negative at all. All feedback is great, not just the positive stuff.

The backdrop is my nemesis. We have yet to find one that I like!

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

UnknownParkerBrother — 2008-05-08T21:06:21+00:00

No problem. Hope it didn't sound too negative, it really is just nitpicking at tiny details, and you've got a great show there.

One thing I really love is the way you provide closeups of the pieces in question, when you say "Here's a strength 2 laser" or "There are cards that depict Local Rumours", boom, there it is, large and easy to see. That obviously takes a lot of work, but it's really worth it.

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

PimpMC — 2008-05-08T19:22:29+00:00

Steven,

Thanks for the feedback. We just moved from Adobe Premiere, which gave us nothing but fits, over to Final Cut Pro on the Mac. So, there is a learning process as well as a need to redo all of the templates. So, your feedback is very helpful.

The echoing audio bothered some people so we put a bit of money into getting wireless lapel mics.

I think some of the problems can be solved by me compressing it a bit less, so I'll give that a shot.

Thanks!
Colin

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

UnknownParkerBrother — 2008-05-08T18:29:47+00:00

Hi Colin, really enjoying these videos of yours.

I watched about five or six in the last few days, so the new one really presented a stark contrast to the older ones like Thebes, Pandemic, etc. Somehow, the new one just seems less professional than the old ones.

For example, on the old ones, the title font looks very sharp, gorgeous green gradient on a plain black background, the music swells, it's perfect. The new one, the font looks horrible, it's rough and pixelated (likely from over-compression), too small, the kerning and letter spacing are too close, and the gradient and colour just don't look as good. Then the tiny thumbnails pop up, and the text jumps from right to left to right, it suddenly gives off an amateurish vibe.

Similarly, when the game author, players and cost overlay is shown, the new one has this large blue bar that seemed intrusive, but perhaps that was just because it was mis-sized (the cost: $20 was below it). The old had the overlay appear in the corner, just black text, nice and readable.

Glad to see the aspect ratio problems got fixed. You were really stretched out in Pandemic.

On the backdrops, I think the lighter colours are better. Makes you stand out better, allows the text overlays easier, etc. I prefer the look of the smooth ones, rather than the curtained look.

The sound, I can hear the difference. When you listen to them back to back, you can hear that the new one doesn't have the faint echo/hollow sound of the old one. But the old sound was already pretty good. I hope the new one isn't more time consuming or much more expensive.

Psst: Even this Canadian knows that $2 bills are legal US currency (your For Sale review).

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

PimpMC — 2008-05-08T17:12:34+00:00

Wilbert,

You found the sound and video lower? Interesting. I'm compressing it differently then before. I'm making a much smaller file, so I could see that causing some video issues, however I did not notice anything. Were you noticing the quality of the recording or did you think the new lighting and back ground were worse?

The audio difference you are noticing must be compression. We are using better microphones and in post production it sounds much better.

As for Indiana Jones style games, I can only think of Thebes, but I suspect that's not really want you are wanting.

Oh and sorry everyone for getting that rule wrong. I guess we were playing the "hard core" version.

-Colin

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

brel — 2008-05-08T16:34:12+00:00

What happened to the cool green colored title? The sound and video quality is much lower with this one. But still, you've managed to do a great job with the game review. Thanks!

Anyways, I went for Diamant after much thinking on which to get between the two (Diamant or Incan Gold). Well, it didn't matter as I totally found the game too simple and light even for non-gamers. I feel Diamant/Incan Gold is on the level of "For Sale" auction game or maybe even lighter than that. Anyways, I'm still on the lookout for that great archeology-themed game to satiate my hunger for an Indiana Jones style of adventure! I still haven't found what I am looking for...

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

faidutti — 2008-05-08T09:33:01+00:00

ekted wrote:
I'm pretty sure all players who leave split the gems left in the tunnels.

Yes, they do.

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

ArsLoqui — 2008-05-08T06:33:26+00:00

ekted wrote:
I'm pretty sure all players who leave split the gems left in the tunnels.

My translation of the original rules states that, yes, players who leave at the same time split any jewels previously left behind.

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

ArsLoqui — 2008-05-08T06:30:22+00:00

Your reviews improve with every episode - keep up the good work!

Re: Components. I get your gripe with the cards, and overall, I'm much happier that I opted for Diamant over Incan Gold. Witness:

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...all of this for only six dollars more than Incan Gold will run you. The Indiana Jones-esque meeples, the game board, and the 'jewels' make all the difference to me. As you mentioned, Diamant has no 'artifact' rules, but some poking around on these boards reveals that many players houserule the '1' card as an artifact in the original version of the game. Works for me!

EDIT: GameSurplus is out stock! Must've happened recently, since I grabbed my copy only a couple weeks ago.

Thread: Re: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

ekted — 2008-05-08T06:27:25+00:00

I'm pretty sure all players who leave split the gems left in the tunnels.

Thread: Obsessed Board Gamers Episode 17: Video Introduction and Review of Incan Gold

PimpMC — 2008-05-08T04:19:51+00:00

Here is our video introduction and review of Incan Gold. Enjoy.

High Quality (download): http://m.podshow.com/media/15871/episodes/111550/obsessedboa...
Low Quality (streaming):
http://www.mevio.com/shows/?mode=detail&episode_id=111550

or you can find it on iTunes under Obsessed Board Gamers.

Thanks.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold questions

Madmortigan — 2008-04-07T01:08:41+00:00

Figured it how to search the past questions and got my answer! I guess a little initiative will take you a long way...

Thread: Re: Incan Gold questions

Madmortigan — 2008-04-06T04:29:00+00:00

We just started playing and one thing is unclear to me. When the treasure card is placed, how do you know which colored stones to place? There are a few reasons I ask this but hopefully someone can begin to explain...

Thread: First two games of Incan Gold: Push-your-luck implented perfectly

Martin Ralya — 2008-03-30T17:21:22+00:00

To close out our recent board game night, our group broke out our new copy of Incan Gold for the first time. Of the five of us, Jaben had played it many times before, but it was the first game for Julie, Daniel, my wife Alysia and myself.

It's been a while since we've played it, but our group has always gotten pretty good mileage out of Cloud 9, a simple little push-your-luck game, most of us love Citadels, another Bruno Faidutti design, and we all love Ticket to Ride, Alan R. Moon's classic gateway game -- so it seemed like a combination of those three would be a hit.

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Having played before, Jaben explained the rules. In our first game, we all pushed our luck more often than not, and only paid the price once -- an early rockfall. We didn't see many artifacts, but we did see plenty of treasure, finishing up with what seemed to be fairly high scores: Daniel 32, me 30, Jaben 28, Alysia 26 and Julie with 17.

We decided to play one more game even though most of us were pretty tired, and this time around nearly everyone pushed their luck less often. Less treasure, more artifacts and more returning to camp made for a wider range of scores: Jaben 30, Alysia 18, Daniel 17, Julie 10 and me in a distant fifth with 5.

Incan Gold's combination of simplicity, fun factor, cute components (we all loved the little stones) and perfect implementation of its push-your-luck mechanic is sublime. It hits a great balance of decision making and chaos (much like Citadels) and plays quickly -- an ideal filler game, and one we'll definitely play again.

Thread: Re: Quick question about end of rounds

Sharga — 2008-03-16T06:32:26+00:00

Thanks for clarifying, this was quite helpful. I've always obeyed the rule of removing the 2nd hazard card and unobtained artifacts but I don't remember reading anywhere in the rules about actually returning and reshuffling the rest of the cards back into the deck with everything else rather than just adding on to the path already laid down. The rules were pretty unclear about that part. Without that, it makes the game extremely short and people rarely get more than 20 points worth of treasure.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold questions

coxy_fc — 2008-03-03T03:10:12+00:00

I see - thanks for the explanation. Much appreciated.

Thread: Re: Incan Gold questions

sefton — 2008-03-03T03:02:02+00:00

1 - Everyone is either "IN" the temple exploring, in which case they are as far in as anyone else, or "OUT" in which case they have returned to their camp. Therefore, no player pieces are needed.

2 - You flip over temple card #1 and then just start a line of cards next to the temple and have it meander its way across the table however you see fit, as long as it remains a single line of cards.

When that expedition ends, either because everyone leaves voluntarily, or because you run into the same hazard two times, you collect those cards, combine them with the rest of the cards you never got to (excluding one of the hazards that might have come up twice) and begin round 2 with a fresh line of cards from a freshly shuffled deck that also now includes the artifact card from under temple card #2.

Thread: Incan Gold questions

coxy_fc — 2008-03-03T02:51:37+00:00

It's probably just me but the rules to Incan Gold don't make a lot of sense. I was therefore hoping someone could help with the following:

1. Should there be players pieces? If not, how do you keep track of where everyone is?

2. When you place cards next to, or leading from, the temple, where do they start? ie next to temple #1 for round 1, etc?

Thread: Re: Incan Gold work with 3 players?

Karlsen — 2008-03-02T13:35:25+00:00

Works fine with three players - and as a bonus you can get huge scores that are virtually impossible when playing with more players.