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Two Player Abstracts Suitable for Tournament Play
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Each November at U-Con Gaming Convention in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA, I run a tournament in which contestants play a wide variety of two-player abstract board games. I'm always open to suggestions for games to include in the tournament. I'd like to stay away from the most popular classics (e.g., Checkers, Chess, Go, Oware, Othello, etc.) and focus on lesser-played abstracts (e.g., Chase, Emergo, Lines of Action, Strata 5, etc.) with the idea that winning should depend more upon creative tactics than prior study.

Please feel free to comment or make suggestions for games I should consider for the tournament. Suggested games must be playable with two players, abstract (either no theme, or a superficial theme that doesn't affect game play), have perfect information, turn-based (not real-time, but simultaneous turn-based games might be OK), depend entirely on strategic skill (no random or dexterity elements), and must be able to be learned and played to completion within an hour.

Since its 7th year, my annual tournament has been part of the IAGO World Tour.
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1. Board Game: Malawi [Average Rating:6.15 Overall Rank:5296]
Josh Adelson
United States
State College
Pennsylvania
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No idea if enough copies of this are floating around, but it's a great game.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
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Malawi looks like a very interesting game! Since copies are apparently scarce, I might try making a copy to try it out before looking for a real one to use in the tournament.
 
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  • Posted Fri Jul 4, 2003 4:39 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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I now have a copy of this game, and could include it in the tournment if there is both interest and a fix for the problem Ralf mentions.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:27 pm
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Mark Thompson
United States
Valparaiso
Indiana
I don't think I agree with Ralf's complaint about Malawi. If his point is that, since you're not required to move out of your opponent's goal area and pieces can't be captured, a player who obstinately refuses to move cannot be beaten, then I think he's overlooking the alternative way of winning by capturing all of your opponent's balls, which could be done even without his moving any pieces. If that's not the defense Ralf has in mind, perhaps he or someone else could clarify?
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  • Posted Mon Oct 1, 2007 5:08 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Well, like I said, I do have a copy of the game, but I have not yet played it. If someone with experience with the game would like to talk about it, I'd very much like to hear opinions from both sides.
 
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  • Posted Fri Oct 26, 2007 4:32 pm
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Gerhard E. Kodys
Austria
Wien
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markthomps wrote:
I don't think I agree with Ralf's complaint about Malawi. If his point is that, since you're not required to move out of your opponent's goal area and pieces can't be captured, a player who obstinately refuses to move cannot be beaten, then I think he's overlooking the alternative way of winning by capturing all of your opponent's balls, which could be done even without his moving any pieces. If that's not the defense Ralf has in mind, perhaps he or someone else could clarify?


I've just sent him a PM about that. But I've had some people already telling me this "perfect draw strategy" and I've won every game against them... cool

(There is no way to defend yourself against 2 or 3 attacks at the same time...)
 
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  • Posted Thu Jan 20, 2011 10:07 am
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2. Board Game: Mole Hill [Average Rating:5.98 Overall Rank:3789]
Josh Adelson
United States
State College
Pennsylvania
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Another one that may not be readily available--but hey, I can try.
 
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Mole Hill sounds like a unique unequal forces game. I've never heard of it before, but would be willing to trade for a copy to try it out. Thanks for suggesting it!
 
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  • Posted Fri Jul 4, 2003 4:49 pm
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nestor romeral andres
Spain

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Published!

Hurry up if you want a signed copy!

Néstor
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 17, 2009 1:49 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Thanks, Néstor. I'm still looking for a job, so I'll have to wait.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 17, 2009 2:55 pm
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nestor romeral andres
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Good luck!

 
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  • Posted Sat Sep 19, 2009 9:01 am
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Néstor sent me a copy after Steve Jones requested he send it. Thanks to both of you!
 
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  • Posted Mon Nov 9, 2009 2:05 pm
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3. Board Game: Octi [Average Rating:6.84 Overall Rank:1613]
Josh Adelson
United States
State College
Pennsylvania
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Now this one you can pick up almost anywhere, which is a good thing.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
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Thanks for suggesting Octi! I have heard of it, and I've even played Octi for Kids a few times using Zillions of Games. It's one of the games already on my wish list, and if I can get a copy by November, it will likely be included in the tournament.
 
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  • Posted Fri Jul 4, 2003 4:51 pm
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Trevor Gunter
United States
Madison
Wisconsin
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You probably should note that what is now called Octi is what used to be Octi for Kids. The original Octi is now called Octi Extreme.
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  • Posted Thu Sep 11, 2003 9:14 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Frog, thanks for the heads up on Octi vs. Octi Extreme.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 15, 2003 6:09 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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I recently got a copy of the new Octi (which is the same as the old Octi for Kids), and even the kids version should be suitable for tournament play. It's probably faster in play, and just as easy to learn.
 
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  • Posted Mon Apr 26, 2004 1:27 am
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4. Board Game: ZÈRTZ [Average Rating:7.37 Overall Rank:183]
Josh Adelson
United States
State College
Pennsylvania
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I'll let this one entry proxy for all three non-dexterity GIPF games out right now: Zertz, Dvonn, and Gipf. Zertz is my personal favorite, but Gipf is probably better suited to your tournament. Dvonn is a harder game to learn, in my opinion, when you have to perform the setup phase--maybe use pre-assigned boards.
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Joe Gola
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Redding
Connecticut
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Definitely! You would have to include Gipf if you can get your hands on it. Very simple and accessible but has great depth to it. Zertz and Dvonn are also supposed to be outstanding.
 
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  • Posted Thu Jul 3, 2003 4:49 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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I do have Gipf, and will definitely consider it for this year's tournament. However, I do not yet have copies of Tamsk, Zertz or Dvonn.
 
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  • Posted Thu Jul 3, 2003 5:24 pm
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Jason Spears
United States
Saint Joseph
Michigan
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I would do all the things I have ever dreamed of doing. I would love to become a professional whistler.I'm pretty amazing at it now, but I wanna get, like, even better. Make my living out of it.
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If the players haven't played this before, they will get a real kick out of the mechanics. The shrinking board is unlike any game I have ever played before. Zertz also has the advantage of being quite attractive.
 
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  • Posted Fri Feb 6, 2004 5:53 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Jason, I agree. I recently got a copy of Zertz, and the shrinking board mechanic is very cool! I've heard good things about Dvonn and Yinish as well.
 
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  • Posted Sat Feb 7, 2004 12:33 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Zertz has been included several times so far, as have Dvonn and Yinsh. But Gipf itself was not as well received. I didn't monitor the game, so I'm not exactly sure why.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:30 pm
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5. Board Game: Arimaa [Average Rating:7.50 Overall Rank:974]
Josh Adelson
United States
State College
Pennsylvania
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Josh Adelson
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State College
Pennsylvania
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Somehow I lost the comment when I added this to the list--it's a great Chess variant and I bet it would make for a lot of fun in a tournament. More info to be had at www.arimaa.com. The Sayeds have a lot to be proud of with this game.
 
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  • Posted Sat Jul 5, 2003 4:51 am
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Josh Adelson
United States
State College
Pennsylvania
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Before anybody yells at me, I meant to say 'the Syeds', but I was typing too fast and not paying attention.
 
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  • Posted Sat Jul 5, 2003 4:52 am
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
Michigan
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I finally got around to reading the rules to Arimaa and playing a few moves (not a complete game, though) with a chess set. It seems solid, but does a typical game finish in less than an hour? If necessary, I suppose I could offer the use of a game timer.
 
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  • Posted Thu Jul 10, 2003 1:05 pm
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Fritz Juhnke
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A game timer is as essential for Arimaa as it is for chess. The longer you think, the better you will play, so you have to enforce some limit. Since Arimaa plays well at fast speeds as well as slow, you can choose how long you want the games to last and work backwards. Count on the games to average about 40 moves, or fewer moves if the players are inexperienced.

I recommend against giving each player a block of time to spend as they wish in sudden death, e.g. 30 minutes for the entire game. In chess the complexity reduces in the endgame after lots of trading, and less time is necessary, so it is reasonable for folks to budget more of their time in the middlegame. Arimaa, in contrast, often gets sharper and sharper as pieces are traded, so folks need to have thinking time left at the end.

Because of the game structure, one should give a small starting bank of time, and a large per-move increment, unless you are stuck with mechanical clocks that can't increment each move. If you want your games to finish in an hour, I suggest a 5-minute starting reserve, and an increment of 45 seconds per move.

If you do run Arimaa in a tournament, I (and the rest of the on-line Arimaa community) will be very eager to hear how it goes. How can we get a report?
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  • Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 3:26 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Karl, thanks for the comment and the suggestion to use an electronic game clock. I have both a traditional mechanical clock and a G8, but not having messed with it for a while, I'm not sure if it can be programmed as you suggest (sounds similar to byo-komi time in Go). If it can't be, I know someone who has an electronic clock that could be used that way, and he would likely let me borrow it.

In the context of this tournament, we don't usually record the players' moves, just the win/loss/draw record, at least not unless the individual players are so inclined to record their game. If Arimaa is played, and if a game is recorded, I'll be sure to send it to you.
 
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  • Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 9:46 pm
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Fritz Juhnke
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If you don't have a clock that does per-move time increments, then giving 25 or 30 minutes for the whole game should be fine if you warn the contestants that games often go 40 moves, so one had better think less than a minute per move on average.

Don't worry about recording game moves: there are thousands of recorded games for replaying at arimaa.com. I would be more curious about how it is recieved: Do people find the rules easy to learn? Do the rules cause confusion and disputes? Does it bug people to play with a chess set? (I wish they made custom Arimaa sets; pulling a queen with a king looks weird, but pulling a camel with an elephant looks reasonable.) Are the games exiciting? Do people feel they need more time to play properly? Is the touch-move rule (as in chess) a good idea, or does it play fine without it?

IMHO, Arimaa is the second best two-player abstract strategy game ever (behind Go), and I expect the popularity of Arimaa to continue its steady rise. I feel it has more initial excitement than really pure abstracts like Hex, but also a great deal of depth that we're nowhere close to plumbing yet. I'm always eager to know how other people experience it, particularly their first impressions.
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  • Posted Sat Aug 27, 2005 4:29 pm
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6. Board Game: Twixt [Average Rating:6.60 Overall Rank:838]
Stefanie Summerer
United States
Hamden
Connecticut
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Jeffrey McBeth
United States
Rochester
New York
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I will have to second Twixt. It truly deserves to be a classic
 
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  • Posted Thu Jul 3, 2003 9:42 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Yes, for any game where there is a known advantage for one player (including Twixt, if anyone plays it this year), we will use a pie rule.
 
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  • Posted Mon Jul 7, 2003 1:31 pm
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Greg Payne
United Kingdom
Bristol
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Excuse my ignorance, but what is the pie rule?
 
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  • Posted Fri Mar 12, 2004 1:13 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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The "pie rule" is a way to counteract the inherent first (or sometimes second) player advantage in certain games of perfect information. Twixt is one such game in that the first player has an advantage if his or her first move lies on or inside the area defined by knight-move diagonals emminating from the corners of the board. To make the game as fair as possible, the player who goes second may choose to respond to the first player's move OR take the first player's move as his or her own, forcing him or her to respond to it with the other color. The "pie rule" name comes from an analogous old method of deciding how to fairly divide a piece of pie between two people: one person cuts and the other chooses.
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  • Posted Fri Mar 12, 2004 1:29 pm
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David Bush
United States
Lexington
Virginia
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Just an update: There is now a free realtime Twixt server at http://www.k2z.org/ which supports the pie rule, link removal, and even has row handicapping as an option. There is a rating system, and time settings are implemented. Players tend to meet around 3 pm East Coast US time, or they can agree when to meet on the K2z forum.

BTW "swap the first peg for your own" is a little ambiguous; actually the official rules have players swapping sides, so the player who moved first as one color is now the other color, and makes the next move. Some servers such as Little Golem do swap the first peg, but in so doing the peg is moved to a corresponding location for the other player, reflected along the diagonal. This is effectively the same as swapping sides. For example if the first move is 1.E3 then Little Golem would swap that peg to C5 and change its color.

EDIT: It is now 2011 and the places to go to play Twixt are:

http://www.iggamecenter.com/ for real time play and

http://www.littlegolem.net for turn based play.
 
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  • Edited Sat Jan 1, 2011 5:44 pm
  • Posted Tue Jul 6, 2004 3:59 pm
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7. Board Game: Camelot [Average Rating:6.78 Overall Rank:2082]
Jeremy Shatka
United States
Sioux City
Iowa
Camelot is the most well-known name for 2-player abstract. It requires a lot of tactical awareness and creativity, and is very deep for the relatively simple rules. I think this would be the perfect game for your tournament, as it is probably my second favorite abstract next to chess itself.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
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I agree, Camelot is a great game that deserves a revival. It has been featured in previous years, and may be included again this year. However, since two of the world's top Camelot players (Michael Nolan and Dan Troyka) are probably going to be in the tournament again, I am hesitant to stack the tournament in their favors by including a game so well-studied. But thanks for the suggestion, and I will consider it.
 
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  • Posted Sat Jul 5, 2003 2:01 pm
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8. Board Game: Quoridor [Average Rating:6.82 Overall Rank:532]
Jeremy Shatka
United States
Sioux City
Iowa
Maybe a bit too mainstream for your tourney, but Quoridor does have some of the simplest rules for an abstract, while at the same time requiring very prophylactic thinking in order to succeed. Also, it's one of the most enjoyable competetive board games 2 people can play.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Michigan
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Thanks for suggesting Quoridor. I don't own a copy, but I have asked one of the tournament participators to bring his copy along in case others would like to play. Indeed, it sounds interesting.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 9, 2003 6:07 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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I now own a copy of this game, but it may or may not be included. At least one of the regular competitors has studied the game quite a bit.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:41 pm
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Thomas Haver
United States
Columbus
Ohio
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I believe the real fun of Quoridor is playing with four. Then placement of the fences really becomes an issue and you can "force" other players to place their fences or risk someone winning. Very good choice.
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  • Posted Fri Feb 15, 2008 3:14 am
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9. Board Game: Hnefatafl [Average Rating:6.54 Overall Rank:1411]
Jeremy Shatka
United States
Sioux City
Iowa
Commonly known as Hnefatafl, this 2-player abstract is probably the most interesting and unique I've ever seen. There are many variations to spice up the game, very simple rules, and a great bit of unique strategy invloved in play. Perfect if you want something uncommon and interesting.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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King's Table, aka "The Viking Game" got several plays and a cursory analysis at a recent meeting of a few local abstract gamers. Unlike most games in the Tafl family, I believe this particular variant does a better job at equalizing the unequal forces by requiring the king to reach one of the four corner squares (instead of just the side), and allowing the defenders to win by trapping the king against a wall with three men.
 
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  • Posted Mon Jul 7, 2003 1:40 pm
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10. Board Game: Hex [Average Rating:6.78 Overall Rank:1427]
David Bush
United States
Lexington
Virginia
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Similar to Twixt, but with even simpler rules. There is less variety in tactics, but the strategy can get very dense. Larger boards (13x13 or more) are recommended. No one sells sets these days, but you can make one piecemeal like the one in the photo. Or just print out grids and use small tokens. Add the swap rule and voila! instant tournament.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Hex (14 x 14) has been featured in previous years, and will be included again. Cameron Browne's book has done a lot to further the knowledge base regarding Hex. I have a hand-made vinyl board and use Go stones to play.
 
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  • Posted Mon Jul 7, 2003 1:36 pm
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Harald Korneliussen
Norway

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I'd just like to point out that these days (five years later) you can order Hex boards from Sweden, Mattesmedjan.se ... They are frightfully expensive, but nice.
 
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  • Posted Tue May 13, 2008 5:37 pm
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nestor romeral andres
Spain

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Or here:

www.nestorgames.com

Portable and cheap.

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  • Edited Sat Sep 12, 2009 10:31 pm
  • Posted Sat Sep 12, 2009 10:30 pm
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11. Board Game: Icehouse [Average Rating:6.75 Overall Rank:1116]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Some of the games played with Icehouse pyramids, especially Martian Chess, Pikemen and Volcano, would be very suitable for abstract tournament play. All three of these are also easy to learn and play fairly quickly. Comments?
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Trevor Gunter
United States
Madison
Wisconsin
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Volcano is excellant. I'd highly recommend it. The others not so much, but that's just because I find them a little dry. If you dig chess they're decent, but you can probably find better chess-likes.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 11, 2003 9:26 pm
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Tim Seiger
United States
Unspecified
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I've run a Pikemen tournament for the past couple of years at Origins, and it works very well for two player tournaments.
I've played in several two-player Volcano tournaments, and I would suggest sticking with the 5x5 Volcano. MegaVolcano can be a bit too much.
Binary Homeworlds also works well, but the games do have a tendancy to run a bit long. We've started running this as a floating tournament, with much less structure than the others.
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  • Posted Tue Aug 23, 2005 3:54 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
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Tim, thanks for your comments! I'll certainly take them into account. I have never played in your Pikemen tournament, and I had to miss Origins 2005 entirely due to my work schedule. But I ran the RAMbots tournament at Origins 2004.

As an aside, several pyramid games are on the wishlist for implementation over at Super Duper Games, a free play-by-web site. You owe it to yourself to check it out if you haven't:

http://games.daltons.ca
 
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  • Posted Tue Aug 23, 2005 5:25 pm
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edu
United Kingdom
Cardiff
Wales
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Have you try Gnostica? Tarot deck and pyramids are a nice mix
 
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  • Posted Sun Oct 1, 2006 3:27 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Yes, I've played Gnostica, and prefer using Matt Arnold's "Tarotories" deck to a regular Tarot deck, if only for ergonomics during the game. But the shuffled deck and hidden hands aspects of Gnostica mean it can't be part of this particular tournament.
 
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  • Posted Mon Oct 2, 2006 5:50 pm
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12. Board Game: Chinese Checkers [Average Rating:5.14 Overall Rank:7636]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Super Chinese Checkers (with long jumps and some rule to prevent impenetrable fortress draws) has been played in my tournament in previous years, and it seems to work well.
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13. Board Game: Hive [Average Rating:7.37 Overall Rank:111]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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I wish I could find a real copy of this one, because I think it would make a great addition to the tournament. Until I can find it in print, I have to play with a homemade paper set that's prone to get shuffled around. Comments on this one?
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John Yianni
United Kingdom
Potters Bar
Hertfordshire
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Hi Clark
Hive will be available again by the end of September.
The new version will fix the problem with the two colours being hard to tell apart in some lighting also the stickers will be laminated.
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  • Posted Thu Sep 11, 2003 8:30 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
Michigan
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John, thanks for updating me on the availability of Hive. I look forward to it!
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 11, 2003 8:38 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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I finally got a copy of Hive, and it will definitely be included this year.
 
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  • Posted Thu Aug 12, 2004 1:44 pm
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14. Board Game: Lines of Action [Average Rating:7.17 Overall Rank:1241]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Lines of Action has been played in previous years, and was well received.
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15. Board Game: Strata 5 [Average Rating:5.84 Overall Rank:5149]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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I've thought about including Strata 5, but I fear the learning curve might be too steep, and the games take too long (more than an hour, total, to both learn and play). What do you think?
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Larry Wheeler
United States
Chicago
Illinois
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I played this at your last tournament, Clark. I don't think the rules are that hard, but it takes a while to get an idea of what the good moves are. I think our game went well over an hour.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 27, 2004 4:54 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Right, that's what I was afraid of. The rules themselves are quite straightforward, but it sometimes takes players a moment to realize that the odd-numbered pieces are MUCH more valuable than even-numbered pieces. This is because the even numbered pieces are constrained to half of the board spaces. But even that much of a hint is enough for one player to dominate the game.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 27, 2004 6:25 pm
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16. Board Game: Chase [Average Rating:6.78 Overall Rank:1759]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Chase is another great abstract game that I've thought about adding to the tournament list, but its steep learning curve and the length of the game (together it could be more than an hour) makes me hesitant to include it. Comments?
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RUSH May 21st 2011
England
York
North Yorkshire
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We played this yesterday and I was very impressed. The rule book is long because of their notation system, which you can ignore. The rules are pretty simple but you could ignore the Chamber/splitting rule for a quicker set-up.

What really impressed me was the wrap-around board. Pieces that go off one side appear straight on the other, going in the same direction. I was able to catch my opponent out a few times with this, even using diagonal moves. And I was fooled by the ricochet. The whole thing felt more like an old computer game, Asteroids or Pong. Very enjoyable and very quick.
 
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  • Posted Mon Apr 26, 2004 5:56 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Jon,

Yes, Chase is one of my all-time favorite abstract games. If you're interested in getting better, I'd recommend my article on the game as a starting point:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/viewfile.php3?fileid=4110

Enjoy! In my experience, Chase games can last quite a bit longer than 30 minutes, and the surprising paths the pieces take tend to encourage analysis paralysis, especially among new players. Nevertheless, I will consider including it in the tournament this year.
 
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  • Posted Mon Apr 26, 2004 6:50 pm
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17. Board Game: Castle Danger [Average Rating:6.60 Overall Rank:4608]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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The game designer suggested I take a look at Castle Danger for possible inclusion. Has anyone played it? Comments on its suitability for tournament play?
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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I have since played Castle Danger, and with some first player's first move tweaking, it would likely be appropriate to include as a tournament event.
 
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  • Posted Tue Oct 7, 2003 8:32 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Castle Danger was included in the 2003 tournament, and was very well received. Great game, Matt!
 
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  • Posted Mon Apr 26, 2004 12:53 am
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18. Board Game: Cathedral [Average Rating:6.57 Overall Rank:819]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Cathedral is one that I used to include, but due to lack of interest, did not last year. I would have to acquire another copy in order to include it again. Should I?
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Lyman Hurd
United States
Atlanta
Georgia
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Yes certainly. It is an easy to explain abstract which still manages to have substance. It also has the property that what constitutes good position is self-evident.
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  • Posted Sat Jan 31, 2004 2:40 am
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Jason Spears
United States
Saint Joseph
Michigan
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I would do all the things I have ever dreamed of doing. I would love to become a professional whistler.I'm pretty amazing at it now, but I wanna get, like, even better. Make my living out of it.
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I'll second that. I think Cathedral is a very interesting game. I am suprised that there was little interest. Figuring out how to get the most territory, while not allowing your opponents an opening is good fun.

Buying a wood copy was too expensive for me and I couldn't find a plastic one around, so I built mine out of LEGO! Came out quite nice.
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  • Posted Fri Feb 6, 2004 5:59 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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A LEGO Cathedral set is an outstanding idea! Thanks!
 
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  • Posted Sat Feb 7, 2004 12:34 pm
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Jae
United States
Bryan
TX
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Jason, any chance you could post a pic of your Lego Cathedral set? I'm very interested in seeing it.
 
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  • Posted Sat Feb 7, 2004 1:54 pm
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Jason Spears
United States
Saint Joseph
Michigan
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I would do all the things I have ever dreamed of doing. I would love to become a professional whistler.I'm pretty amazing at it now, but I wanna get, like, even better. Make my living out of it.
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Here is a page about my LEGO Cathedral board. http://www.mocpages.com/moc.php/437 If you follow the links through, there are even instructions to make your own. (No guarantee you have all the pieces.)
 
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  • Posted Sun Feb 8, 2004 5:21 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
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I have recently acquired a small magnetic wooden set, so I hope to include it again.
 
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  • Posted Tue Oct 30, 2007 10:05 pm
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19. Board Game: Fanorona [Average Rating:6.59 Overall Rank:2747]
 
Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
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I have included Fanarona in the past, and plan to do so again. The rules are easy to learn, and the play is fast and interesting.
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20. Board Game: Realm [Average Rating:6.98 Unranked]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Realm is a wonderful game, but I'm hesitant to include it for the tournament due to the steep learning curve and the time it could take to complete a game. I'd like to hear from anyone about their experiences with any of the games in the Realm set, or the related game system, Sly, both of which I have available.
 
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21. Board Game: Shogi [Average Rating:7.40 Overall Rank:486]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Shogi itself is way too long a game for a brief tournament like the one I have planned, but smaller variants such as Nana Shogi or Micro Shogi might work. Nana has been included in previous years with some success. Comments?
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Crazy Bob
Philippines
Cebu
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Tori Shogi
 
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  • Posted Tue Oct 4, 2005 3:37 am
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Yes, Tori (Bird) Shogi might work, as would its recent reincarnation as Navia Dratp. Both games usually last around 40 minutes, but are easier to learn than some others, so the total time would likely be less than an hour. Thanks for the suggestion!
 
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  • Posted Tue Oct 4, 2005 2:01 pm
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N Koff
United States
Portage
Michigan
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All you need is a chess clock with Shogi. It runs about the same amount of time
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  • Posted Thu Nov 13, 2008 12:45 pm
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22. Board Game: Chinese Chess [Average Rating:6.26 Overall Rank:5013]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Gabriel's Chinese Chess has been on the list in previous years, but so far no one has played it in the tournament. Still, I think it's unique and can be learned and played to completion in less than an hour.
 
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Gabriel's Chinese Chess was included in the 2003 tournament, but was not very well received.
 
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  • Posted Mon Apr 26, 2004 12:56 am
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Larry Wheeler
United States
Chicago
Illinois
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I played this one, too, in your last tournament. I think it's interesting. If we could just use a more reasonable color scheme, like green and buff...
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 27, 2004 4:57 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Agreed. It could be played just as easily with homemade equipment. One criticism from last year was that the first player advantage seemed fairly decisive for this one. Was that your experience?
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 27, 2004 6:27 pm
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Larry Wheeler
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Illinois
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I don't remember exactly what happened last year, but I think we used the (one move) pie rule, and I remember that I lost. I would think there would be some combination of pie rules for who gets same/different, and who goes first, that would approximately equalize the game (but it would take some experimenting to find out what works).
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 30, 2004 5:21 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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The default initial layout is fair for both same and different, but the first player does have an advantage. One possible rule could be to require that the first player make a non-capturing first move. A second possibility would be a three-move pie rule (one player takes three non-capturing moves, then the other player chooses same or different). A third possibility is a komi, perhaps one or two points, for the second player.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 30, 2004 7:32 pm
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23. Board Game: Proton [Average Rating:4.95 Overall Rank:6809]
Clark D. Rodeffer
United States
Ann Arbor
Michigan
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Proton has been a tournament mainstay in previous years, both as an event and as a prize. Don't be fooled! It's a hard game in a small, inexpensive package.
 
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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As much as I like Proton, I haven't included it recently due to the "knight move separation" defense causing games to go long. Allowing the connection of both sides of a single goal space for a win (instead of only one side from each goal space) is a necessary addition to thwart the knight move separation defense, but the game can still take longer than desirable for this tournament.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:48 pm
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24. Board Game: Quarto! [Average Rating:6.80 Overall Rank:565]
Chris Porter
United States
Berrien Center
Michigan
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This is a quick little abstract that can really mess with your head due to having to hand your opponent their next piece. A nice little twist.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Chris, Quarto has been on the list in previous years, and I plan to include it again this year. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 22, 2003 2:12 pm
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ronaldinho @boardspace.net
Taiwan

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This game is very lame, boring, and pointless imo.
 
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  • Posted Sun Nov 12, 2006 6:50 am
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25. Board Game: Quads [Average Rating:6.29 Overall Rank:2782]
Chris Porter
United States
Berrien Center
Michigan
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I really like this game. Again, it's quick, but it can be a real challenge, especially if you're playing cutthroat. It looks good too; a great coffee table game.
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Again, thanks for the suggestion. I haven't heard of Quads before, but I like Kris Burm's other games, so I'll definitely look into this one.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 22, 2003 2:16 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Does anyone know if the tiles are drawn randomly, or if they are played from a pre-set hand? If the former, I wouldn't be able to include Quads in this tournament. It does look sound like a good game, though.
 
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  • Posted Tue Oct 7, 2003 8:30 pm
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Jason Spears
United States
Saint Joseph
Michigan
designer
I would do all the things I have ever dreamed of doing. I would love to become a professional whistler.I'm pretty amazing at it now, but I wanna get, like, even better. Make my living out of it.
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Each player had their own set of tiles, which they can pick and choose which piece they want to play. They aren't an exact copy of each other, but rather a mirror. (If my memory serves.) Quads has just what you are looking for, quick to learn and short to play.
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  • Posted Fri Feb 6, 2004 6:12 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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Ann Arbor
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I want to thank everyone for their suggestions so far. They've been great! I'll carefully consider each abstract game suggested, and comment on them only after I've had a chance to analyze or (hopefully) play them myself. Please keep the suggestions coming!
 
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  • Posted Sat Jul 5, 2003 2:04 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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RDReilly wrote:
This is the ultimate list of abstract games on boardgamegeek!
Thanks for the kind words, Richard.
 
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  • Posted Thu Jan 14, 2010 2:49 pm
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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The 2010 Tournament Results have been posted.
 
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  • Posted Tue Nov 16, 2010 11:26 am
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Clark D. Rodeffer
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The 2011 Tournament Results have been posted.
 
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  • Posted Sun Nov 13, 2011 5:30 pm
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John McDonough
United States

New York
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So out of 265 abstracts on this list, I've played maybe...15?

I gotta catch up!
 
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  • Posted Mon Nov 14, 2011 6:07 pm
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