Age of Steam: North Eastern USA
April 21st, 2005I introduced my new 2nd edition copy of Age of Steam to the boys yesterday. There were four of us and we used the original map, as I heard it is the most novice-friendly. We used the beginners’ variant of letting people who run out of money get out of jail by issuing shares at $3 each. We also used Bruno Faidutti’s production variant, as it makes for a slightly kinder game:
the production action is clearly weak. I suggest the following changes: Production : draw four cubes and choose two, that you place where you want on the production grid. In addition, chose the result of one of the dice, before rolling, in the next production phase.
It was a learning game and I crushed the novices. The scores were 70, 42, 42, 38. I wish I had thought about handicapping myself, maybe by giving myself four shares, but only $10, at the start, but it is always easier to think of these things with hindsight.
Despite this, the guys still enjoyed themselves, and I am sure we will play again soon. My previous playings made it so easy to teach. I must try to teach myself rules better before introducing them to the group.
I also bought the England and Ireland maps yesterday from Spielenet for way too much money. It is totally sold out in the UK and I had to have them.
April 22nd, 2005 at 04:46
Indeed the English and Irish maps are a must-buy. I even went out and got Scandinavia and Korea, even if I first felt they were unnecessary. But hey, Scandinavia is Scandinavia even if it doesn’t have Finland and the Korea map just seems so brutal. I’m skipping the Western USA and Germany, after playing the US map. Boring.
So far I haven’t felt Producer too weak. It’s not first choice material, but gets frequently chosen in the end game. Giving the choice of the die roll sounds quite soft, too. In a newbie game, maybe, but not otherwise.
I’ve always used the newbie get out of jail rule, but nobody has never gone bankrupt so far.
April 22nd, 2005 at 13:42
Well I’m English, so it would have been rude to not buy it.
Bruno Faidutti’s production did feel too weak, but it was fine in this context.
I am not sure the guys are ready to ride with the stabilisers off, but maybe after the next game. The last placed player in our game would definitely gone bankrupt without it.
May 4th, 2005 at 06:25
I live in Canada and anxiously await my copy of the second edition. Sheesh – I wish Warfrog could be hooked up with a good publishing house/distributor so they needn’t be so stingy with their releases. Elsewhere I see a link that could shed more light on their business model but the consistent high quality of their games deserves a wider audience.
What, if any, are the major differences between the editions?
May 4th, 2005 at 08:52
This thread shows all the differences:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geekforum.php3?action=viewthread&threadid=31589
Basically, the rules have been cleared up and:
You’re right that Warfrog make great games, but the finishing of their rules and components could be better. I’m very happy I have the second edition of Age of Steam.
May 6th, 2005 at 23:29
It turns out that Warfrog have just become purely a design house and have handed over all development to Cafe Games. I hope this does not lead to price rises for British gamers. At least it should mean development quality will improve and higher chances of reprints.