17th Feb 2009 Session Report: The One With An Old Friend Joining In

We had an ex-colleague, Kok Leong over for dinner tonight and after the meal, I took the opportunity to introduce to him some of our newly acquired games. He was one of our most regular gaming partners in the past but it had been awhile since we gamed together.

Unsurprisingly, first up was Glory to Rome - the game which has quickly established itself as one of our favourite games. Kok Leong picked up the rules relatively quickly though he commented at the end he wasn't really sure what he was doing. Admittedly, it does take a game or two to familiarize oneself with the various building powers and establish a strategy based on certain combinations. Nonetheless, he acquitted himself well with a score of 24. Van and I had 20 and 31 respectively.

For most part of the game, I was aiming for the Forum strategy, with the card in tow and the Merchant and Patron roles in my clientele early. However, Van had the clear lead in terms of building progress and racked up impressive influence points. I had to diversify my approach by stashing VPs gained from selling valuable materials (stone & marble) in the vault. This coupled with a completed Statue (+3VP) proved to be adequate in earning me the victory. Ironically, the Forum strategy was progressing well with the Gate completed (activates powers of incomplete marble buildings) but finally stalled at my inability to acquire the Legionary and Labourer roles in my clientele.

Van next suggested Stone Age. I was keen to introduce that game to Kok Leong too but recognizing a shorter game may be more appropriate in light of the time, I counter-proposed with Galaxy Trucker. I figured since Kok Leong had been exposed to a variety of games, he might be keen to try something with a little more unique mechanics. He validated that decision when he gave a favourable verdict at the end.

We only played two boards, including the customary introductory round. Interestingly, I neglected to open a bag of tiles which accounted for about a third of the ship parts. As a result, even Van and I had difficulty in building the usual flawless ships due to the shortage of pieces. Naturally our ships took more of a beating than expected during the space journeys but I enjoyed the increased tension. Van surprisingly struggled with her second journey and had a portion of her ship blasted off by cannon fire. I snatched the win by fending off most of the threats in space, while Kok Leong and Van took up the rear in terms of cosmic credits.