October 2021 Game Night

We had game night on Saturday. Dave, Joe, Paul, and Pete joined me for games on the expansion map.

We dined on two kinds of pizza, a couple kinds of chips plus dip, chocolate chip cookies, Nutty Buddies, Peanut M & Ms provided by Joe. And cider mill donuts provided by Paul.

We had the usual house swill of Labatt Blue Light plus Labatt Blue left over from last game night. And assorted non-alcoholic beverages, of course.

We managed three games using the harbor master variant. And we always use the new Interstellar rules of a bank trade and build phase for the third person after the poop holder's turn.

I was green, Paul was brown, Pete was red, Joe was  orange, and Dave was blue.

The word of the night was "muddler." Muddler. 

GAME ONE

I think Paul went first. Which means Pete was second, Joe was third, Dave was fourth, and I had the coveted DP spot.

This is the game start:

Wood and sheep were problems. I used my double placement to at least have all resources, although wood was unlikely to be productive. 

I had hoped to at least build on another 3 wood space and get a port, but Paul reached the coast first. And at my other placement, I was unfortunately stuck as the dead meat in an orange sandwich. I made it to the coast there, but I was desperate for building sites. With little wood I'd have trouble staking out even a couple of the five theoretical spots open to me in reach of other players, too.

Pete, at least, didn't immediately block in my right-side enclave as he moved inland and threatened to link his enclaves.

Joe reached the sea in two places, one holding off Paul's threat to the coast and the other threatening my ability to have some real estate.

Dave was rather trapped on the right side but at least had a couple ports. In the upper left he too pushed inland with the apparent hope of getting the crappy wheat left for settlement.

Paul rode the ample 5 rolls and healthy rocks and wheat to blitzkrieg his way to harbor master and longest road, reaching 11 points in 48 minutes! Nobody had a chance to even try to break his longest road. Which was a lesson he should have learned ...

This is the end game map:

Anyway, after Paul we had Pete, Joe, and myself with 5 points each. And Dave had 4. Congratulations Paul!

I never picked up much with my 3 wood resource and didn't have a chance to use my sheep port.

Nobody bought any development cards.

GAME TWO

Pete went first. Followed by Joe, Dave, me, and Paul in the coveted DP position.

This is the game start:

None of the resources were awful this game, with the partial exception of wheat. But nobody considered it a high enough priority to place on the one good wheat resource.

Paul placed his second settlement at the 5, 10, 11 spot second with the intent of building a road past my 4, 6, 11 settlement using his initial wood and brick. He moved before me. So it was going to be that sort of game.

But I placed on wood for my second placement, hoping for an initial 6 roll to get brick. Because after Pete moved, I'd get my Interstellar phase. No six was rolled. But in a three way trade, Dave traded a brick to Pete, who traded his extra brick to me. And so on my Interstellar phase I built first past Paul.

That was judged the largest dick move of the night ... at that point. Although I had a big assist from Pete and Dave. But that hurt Paul.

Paul, blocked in his upper settlement, went the other way. But then went on an epic march to the sea at the bottom of the map, reversing course after he was blocked by Pete and Dave. Which somehow wasn't a dick move. Paul built all five of his settlements and had the longest road, but he needed cities.

Of special note during Paul's long march was Paul's Anaconda Plan to surround and strangle Pete. With all his settlements on the map and no ability to build cities, Paul went all-in to defend his longest road:

It was, Dave noted, "the bloody trail in the brown hole." Whatever that means. Pete was seemingly hemmed in.

None of us noticed Paul's vulnerability. But we had been drinking and some had broken into the bourbon.

But then Pete responded. 

And when we said he was going to do something to really churn the board, my eyes immediately went to Paul's coastal road and I saw what he was about to do:

And so Pete wished Paul a very happy International Women's Day.

Sadly it was more than an "ow, my nipples" moment.

Much more. Pete broke Paul's longest road and threw the title to Joe.

But I digress.

Pete's left enclave had room to expand and he split my parts in two.

Joe was expanding well and contested Paul for the longest road title, ultimately holding it with Pete's help. Although Joe's effort to reach the sea with his lower prong was thwarted by Dave who built past Joe. Which in my mind reduced my dick move to second worst in the game at that point. 

Pete's road-breaking build put me to third, in my opinion. And really, when you remember that Paul's initial placement was based on a foundation of a dick move to cut me off, I think I fall to fourth place that game easily.

But again, I digress.

Dave pushed for harbor master with much gusto. Seemingly glancing at my side of the map as I chased him for three harbor points. He made it to 3 and then I got three. Then he got four. Blast! And he had a new port beckoning at the bottom. Until Paul built his roads to claim that territory.

But that's when I did what is rare. I took the harbormaster with five harbor points, and won the game with 12 points.

Dave and Joe (with the longest road) had 8 points each. Pete had 7. And Paul had 5.

This is the end game map:

And I think just one development card was drawn this game.

GAME THREE

I went first. Followed by Paul, Pete, Joe, and Dave in the coveted DP spot.

This is the game start:

Ignore all the cards played around the board! I should note that for whatever reason my attempt to take the picture of the game start failed. All of us stepped to point out our start positions:

But I at least had the presence of mind to say, "Well why don't we just take the excess off and just take a picture of the map. We had been drinking. Although everyone but me--the non-driver--had slowed down by then. 

Wheat was legitimately crappy. I was strong in brick and every 6 would be a road-building opportunity. And I hoped to build toward slightly less crappy wheat.

Pete quickly blocked Dave on the right, hemming Dave in. And Paul built around that sheep pasture with sheep port to bolster his wide expanse of sheep on the other coast. The cities were going up quickly. My innocent yet encouraging comment about how last month "my sheep strategy almost brought be glory" was taken way out of intent.

And then, the Dave that will live in infamy. Dave went to war, seemingly intent on just seeing Catan burn. Wave after wave of knights flying the "Black Cooler" banner attacked me and Paul. Paul and I suffered losses as did Dave in return, when first I and then Paul decided that the war should end. 

What fools we were.

Anyway, Paul and Joe again vied for longest road. But Paul cut off Joe and linked up his enclaves to seal the deal. But again, Paul maxed out his settlements and--without rocks--needed to promote cities.

Joe built all his cities but with two well developed enclaves had little hope of longest road.

I staked out an enclave and had hopes of both harbormaster and longest road if Paul was lulled by his need to build cities.

But Dave, despite his feelings of doom, managed on a wave of 5 rolls to build up his cities and strike for the coast. And with his Davetroopers raping the sheep and killing the women, grabbed the largest army. As we've all done, Dave bought card after card hoping for that victory point to put him over the top. But no. Yet he finally built on the coast to get 11 points.

Far from being dead. Dave was undead. It was truly Shocktober.

Congratulations Dave!

Joe and Pete (with the harbor master) followed with 9 points each. Paul had the longest road and 7 points while I had 7 points the hard way.

This is the end game map:

We wrapped up before midnight. There was little interest in Game of Thrones. Alas, I think that tradition has lapsed. Maybe we can start Get Smart! They are shorter, at least. Or Xena?

Of note, there were no victory point cards drawn during the game.

Also, remind me to turn off the overhead lights when I snap the pictures of the board. I forget that my phone camera is much better in low light than past cameras.

And a meme, of course.

It was a fun game night. Thanks for coming by and playing! As always, feel free to offer your perspective or correct my hazy memory.