A Double Victory

Over the past few weeks I have literally done no wargaming. Most of my free time has been spent making things for Amtgard, a live-action role-playing game.

My wife and I have been playing a lot of board games - often on Fridays and Saturdays. Last night we pulled out two short games, and I managed to win both.

Game 1 - Takenoko

My wife raced out to a big lead while I languished in last place, but I managed to pull ahead. She completed 7 tasks first, which allowed her to tie the game. I then completed 2 tasks in the final turn to pull out the victory.

Game 2 - Cthulhu Gloom

I managed to get a number of good cards allowing me to knock off my family one by one. At one point I was able to steal an Untimely Death from my brother-in-law. Later, he tried to steal it back but I was able to block him. I managed to wrack up 235 Pathos Points - in other words, my family was miserable.

The most difficult, but most enjoyable, part of Gloom, is making up the stories about how the characters meet their unfortunate fates. For example, my brother-in-law's character died when he fell through the ice and drowned. When I stole his death card, I made up a story how my character actually saved him but fell through the ice and drowned instead. Unfortunately, the authorities erred when identifying the body; as a result they thought that my brother-in-law's character has died. While creating these stories is not a requirement to play, they sure add to the fun.