Our First WBC - Part I
G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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This was the first time since getting hooked on this hobby that my wife and I attended an actual "event". We chose the WBC because our friends have gone many times, and it's right here in lovely PA. This list is a report about the games we played and our impressions of them, and the people we met at our first convention. The second part about our second day will be posted tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who made these two days so much fun for us!
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1.
Board Game: Acquire
[Average Rating:7.43 Overall Rank:99]
G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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We started off at 8AM on Friday morning in the open gaming room. Our friend and guide Justin pulled out this old classic. We played a three player game. My wife and Justin quickly surged ahead and left me gasping in the dust! The game was abstract, but enjoyable despite the fact that I was buried early. The game still seems to have some legs after all these years. Justin won, but my wife finished right behind. It was great to start the day with a game we had never played before.
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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A nice gentleman by the name of Ken showed up and said hello. We had never met, but we quickly sat down to play a four player game of Container. I had always wanted to try it, so when Ken told me he knew how to play and would teach it, we jumped at the chance. My wife and I were very taken with this game, so much so I ended up buying it. It seems wholly unique to me in that everything is indirect. It was great fun, if a bit of a brain burner. Our friend Justin won, with Ken right behind while my wife and I landed a respectable third and fourth.
We were very grateful to Ken for showing us this game, and it set the tone for the whole two days we stayed. People were very friendly and eager to play a game with you, or answer a question or two about games they were playing, or show you how to play a game. The friendliness was very nice and made us feel welcome. What a great game, and what a great group of people!
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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After Container, while we were waiting for some other friends of ours to arrive, Ken showed us this great little game. It reminded us a lot of Tutankhamen, but shorter, easier to set up, and better by a mile. The fact that you score for shapes (all squares, or all ovals) and colors (one shape of each color) added a layer to the game that we really liked quite a bit. We really enjoyed this one as well, and are ordering it for our kids. Thanks to Ken for teaching us!
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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After this, we played a game of Founding Fathers. Thanks to Justin for teaching us! We played with him and a gentleman named Max and his father whose name escapes me (sorry!). Once again, everyone was very nice, helpful and friendly. It was great for us to meet new people. There's something neat about being in a room full of hundreds of people who all share your interests. It's nice to meet people who you have read about here on the geek, and have the chance to put a face to a name.Everyone had a good time playing this one. The theme is a bit abstracted, but it's there. If you care nothing about the history or the subject, it's a card driven set collection game that is quite fun. If you like the period, and actually read the cards and the articles you are voting on, the theme begins to come through more strongly. I was surprised my wife liked it as much as she did, and was grateful to get the chance to play.
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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Our friends Steve and Bianca arrived, and we decided to go to dinner. Steve suggested the Lancaster Brewing Company. The food was great, and the atmosphere was fun too. The beer was awesome as well!
On the way back to the open gaming room, we met Thor from Gamesurplus.com What a nice, friendly guy! I was glad to meet the man who has so much of my money! He was kind and gracious and even gave me one of his awesome mugs! Thanks Thor! It was great to meet you!
When we arrived back, a gentleman I have met and played with a few times before, Dave, was kind enough to show us this game. We pretty much universally HATED IT! It was dry, dry, dry, without any fun, fun, fun. It's a spreadsheet optimization game that was just deadly boring for us. It fell really flat for us, and we quit about a third of the way through. Thanks so much to Dave, however, for showing it to us. We appreciated his time and effort, and how gracious he was when we decided to quit after all that work!
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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My wife and the rest of the group went to find us another table, while I stayed behind with Justin and played this. He had never played before, so I taught this little gem to him. We both like the way you can play on each other's cards, and how quick and bloody the game is as nobles get picked off (sometimes a whole herd of 'em!) until the game is over, and only a few are left standing. This game is deeper than it looks, and is short, interesting and very portable.
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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My wife next played this with Steve, Bianca, Dave and a gentleman whose name escapes me at the moment (sorry!). I have played this before, and really enjoyed it. It offers interesting choices and a push your luck element as you decide whether or not to jump far ahead to get something you want and then wait for the other players to catch back up to you so you can get another turn, or just take something that is useful, but perhaps not optimal, but that will allow you to take another turn sooner.
Steve and Joanna felt it was a little too hard to plan with five players, and suggested the sweet spot may be 2-3. Thanks to Steve for bringing this and teaching us!
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G. Gambill
United States
Shawnee on Delaware
Pennsylvania
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The night ended with this one. We were fried at this point, and discovered we were playing it wrong, so we couldn't really form an opinion other than we agreed we liked it enough to have another go the next day perhaps. Thanks to Dave for teaching us!
We ended around midnight, ready for some sleep and more fun the next day! The rest of our trip will be in the next geeklist. Thanks to everyone who made this such a great day for my wife and I!
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) so you, sir, get the moniker! Thanks for posting your father's name. I just couldn't remember it. Bob is a tricky one isn't it 
