November 2018 Game Night

Gentlemen,

Joe graciously hosted game night at Casa Joe's last night.

Joe started us out early (Pete and I headed to South Lyon at halftime) and hosted us at a local tavern (thanks Joe!) to watch the rest of the Michigan game (peace be upon Harbaugh). Paul arrived too late for that but broke into Joe's home to greet us there in a French maid's costume when we returned. Okay that didn't happen.

But perhaps I share too much.

Word of Dave's pending arrival led to him being assisted his last 100 yards by remotely flashing the lights of Paul's truck like a shining Bethlehem star, which got Dave to the destination as I rebuilt the map for the expanded board.

Joe provide Labatt Blue and Bailey's Irish Cream and non-beer alternatives plus pizza, bread sticks, potato chips and dip, corn chips with salsa and cheese, peanuts, and pretzels. Plus cookies including one with chocolate and some type of spicy pepper designed to make us woozy with gut-wrenching stomach pain. All that sounds great and not intended at all to show up my Ito Nights. But Joe forgot to set out a platter of meats wrapped around cheeses, ruining the ride. Sad.

We played four games with the harbormaster variant, which means we had to turn the Catan victory point count to 11. (Ah, that reference never gets old for me!)

For the first time, the issue was raised of screwing someone just to make the newsletter even if it wasn't truly in your best interest. And now I can't remember what was done. Perhaps I'll recall as I write.

The first game was an odd one with sheep and wheat in vast plains, two mountain ranges, clustered forests, and scattered bricks. Joe surged to victory with the harbor master card in a coast hugging strategy that had him with but one inland city. Pete had a contiguous chunk of territory from the coast to inland, with the longest road. Dave had a coastal and an inland enclaves and a victory point in what I think was the only development card bought in that game. Paul had two inland enclaves with water access, oddly at both desert hexes. I had my usual inland realms that only touched the coast where I planned to build a port. But Joe grabbed the victory before I could do that. I was in the odd position of having no sheep this game. Pete had the longest road card. Amazingly, Dave got the harbor master before he even rolled the dice for the first time by building a city port (having started with two settlement ports! But as we know now, Joe ended up with it. The robber was amazingly absent.

Game two had sheep plains and major mountain and hill  ranges with the rest scattered and one big coastal desert. I had a pure inland empire with an open gap between my major portions. Joe again had his coastal hugging empire in two pieces. Paul was inland with coastal access. Dave had coastal enclaves on opposite sides of Catan, relying on an eight wheat at one end and a wheat port at the other end. Those of your unfamiliar with Catan "probability" will no doubt think Dave sailed to victory on a sea of wheat trade.  And Pete has a line extending from the coast. I went big with development cards and with 5 I got three knights (that I played) for the largest army and two victory point cards for the added boost to 11. Getting four points at once catapulted me into victory with the element of surprise. Joe again had harbor master and with 4 cities was but one point from victory. Luckily the pepper cookies were wearing off.

Game three's board was more mixed up but still sported a major mountain range. Dave had an almost contiguous  coast-based empire with a small gap. Paul constructed the Trans-Catanian railway to bisect the island separating the empires of all but Dave. He of course got the longest road. Joe again had harbor master plus four cities. Pete had one major coastal empire and a small landlocked city. I focused on 3 yards and a cloud of dust, eventually plowing my way to victory with 4 cities and 3 settlements. That's old school, gentlemen. And was this the game that Joe strangely started warfare early in the game to--and I quote--"spice things up"?

Game four was pretty varied this time terrain-wise, and had me with an inland and a coastal enclaves, yet my coastal settlement was not a port. Meaning I never had a port all night. Joe had two coastal ports anchoring lines inland. Dave has a similar approach, as did Pete. Paul was all inland in one major and one minor enclave. Pete stunned us all by building out to the coast to get the longest road--with 5 road segments!--and by building a settlement, getting the harbor master card. So that was 5 points in one turn. Which was easily the most efficient accumulation of points we have ever seen. Indeed, Pete bounced the rubble by ending the game with 12 points. Show off. It looked like Dave was on the path to getting the largest army. But none of us was even thinking about reaching victory when Pete finished his sprint--during the interstellar build phase no less. Indeed, I was waiting for the game to go on and wasn't sure why Pete was grinning so broadly. It was stunning.

I only remember one monopoly card played--by Dave--which didn't hurt me as I had no rocks at the time. And except for my one binge there weren't a ton of cards bought.

Warfare was never waged with much duration or intense hate-filled vigor in the games, even when robber wars broke out.

And Dave has offered to host a game at Casa Dave. He will let me know when he can do that and we will set up a date. Thanks Dave!

Although I like hosting because I don't have to power drink early and then coast to the end of the night to drive-capable sobriety. Although Joe generously offered to let anyone sleep over if unable to drive. But it was offputting when he said he had "an inflatable" and we noticed the large jug of hand lotion in his bathroom. Just sayin' it might not have been an inflatable mattress.

We wrapped up before 1:00 a.m. but the spirit for watching Game of Thrones was not quite there so we scattered, leaving Joe for clean up. Although by bending space and time he likely finished  clean up before he started it. I must say that it was nice to come down this morning and not see the carnage of the last evening spread out before me. It was just the usual carnage of my life, so all was normal!

Tragically, I noticed I was missing two of my road segments last night. I don't think I lost them at Joe's. It's just that without building many roads in any of the games it took me a while as I sobered up to notice my pile seemed less than sufficient. As I write I've already cut two segments of balsa wood and I have a jar of white paint upside down to try to mix it a bit. So that faction will be back in business if I don't find them lying about here someplace as I am sure they must be! And then I'll be back in the longest road pursuit that people think I'm addicted to despite my aversion to the whole contest of road-building will.

Thanks again to Joe for his able hosting duties and for those who made the trek to Oakland County. It was great fun as usual and always the social event of the month. As always if I have missed something or totally misrepresented your game play, feel free to add your comments in reply.

December game night will aim for early in the month and will be back at Casa Beej.

And I never did remember the major newletter-worthy hose job we all laughed heartily about. Anyone?

Beej