Front Page

Content

Authors

Game Index

Forums

Site Tools

Submissions

About

KK
Kevin Klemme
March 09, 2020
35142 2
Hot
KK
Kevin Klemme
January 27, 2020
20819 0
Hot
KK
Kevin Klemme
August 12, 2019
7405 0
Hot
O
oliverkinne
December 19, 2023
3967 0
Hot
O
oliverkinne
December 14, 2023
3495 0
Hot

Mycelia Board Game Review

Board Game Reviews
O
oliverkinne
December 12, 2023
2075 0
O
oliverkinne
December 07, 2023
2583 0

River Wild Board Game Review

Board Game Reviews
O
oliverkinne
December 05, 2023
2253 0
O
oliverkinne
November 30, 2023
2496 0
J
Jackwraith
November 29, 2023
3014 0
Hot
O
oliverkinne
November 28, 2023
1973 0
S
Spitfireixa
October 24, 2023
3692 0
Hot
O
oliverkinne
October 17, 2023
2620 0
O
oliverkinne
October 10, 2023
2461 0
O
oliverkinne
October 09, 2023
2289 0
O
oliverkinne
October 06, 2023
2505 0

Outback Crossing Review

Board Game Reviews
×
Bugs: Recent Topics Paging, Uploading Images & Preview (11 Dec 2020)

Recent Topics paging, uploading images and preview bugs require a patch which has not yet been released.

× Talk about the latest and greatest AT, and the Classics.

Weekly Trash - Pirate's Cove

More
23 Jun 2008 10:05 #7855 by ChristopherMD
Its got plastic bits AND wooden cubes. Arrr!

I wasn't sure about including this one as its probably borderline Ameritrash due to some obvious Euro influences. But its got too much of the good stuff to ignore. Lots of dice combat, unbalanced cards, legendary pirates, and great components. Plus a lot of the Eurofans don't seem to want it in their houses. Their loss is our gain.

This game is all about combat and treasure hunting. When you're not upgrading your ship to win more fights or hold more treasure, your getting into or carefully avoiding ship battles. Some people criticize the fact you want to avoid battle sometimes, but that just seems realistic to me. You should be afraid to die! Stick with treasure hunting and you'll retire a rich man.

The combat is always fun in this game. The cards can be brutal at times, but the cannon shots with the dice are nerve-wracking wondering if they're going to hit your ship. The board and bits are all gorgeous and really bring out the style of pirates the game is going for. These aren't cutthroat reality or Hollywood blockbuster, but the literary Treasure Island kind of pirates. They don't want to bring terror to the high seas. They just want to find some loot and hit the tavern.

What are your thoughts on this game? Ameritrashy enough? Any strategy or is it all just dumb luck? Do you play with any house rules?

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
23 Jun 2008 22:56 #7866 by Malloc
I am not a big fan of this one. It might be more fun with the kids but I played it with a bunch of adults... didn't do it for me in that it was all luck.

It is probably due for a retry but I think i will wait until my son can play with me.

-M

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 07:39 #7877 by bob_the_goon
I got this early on in my revitalized gaming carreer and was disappointed. Not to sound like the other board game site, but it felt too random. Then I played some more because my brother liked it. The elements Mad Dog points out started to make sense to me. I decided it was ok for what it was. Then it went on the shelf for about a year and a half until recently being played again. I like it a bit more now, but it'll never be a classic, or a game that I can't bear to part with.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 08:43 #7878 by Ken B.
The phrase "TOO RANDOM~!" is hereby *banned* from these hallowed halls.



Uh...unless we're talking about Blackbeard.



Carry on.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 10:11 - 24 Jun 2008 10:16 #7879 by ChristopherMD
How is the game too random? The dice aren't more random than other dice-combat games. The cards aren't more random than other games either. I can see getting a few good treasure cards one turn and no outstanding ones on another, but that's not too often that I recall. You choose where your ship goes. You know where the legendary pirate(s) will be. You can often deduce where the other players will most likely go.
Or is it because the other players don't have to follow any kind of script on where they will show up? That it seems they randomly choose their destinations instead of proceeding logically. I suspect this is it because I've heard similar complaints about other games where players secretly choose from a selection of things. But is random the right word for it?

I'm not saying anyone's wrong about the game being very random. I just think its worth discussing why it might be that way.
Last edit: 24 Jun 2008 10:16 by ChristopherMD.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 11:44 #7880 by Ken B.
I think I was the only person on F:AT's Editiorial staff that would claim this one.

It's been a MONSTER hit with every group we've introduced it to. We've played it with ATers, with casual gamers, and even with non-boardgamers.


This gets tagged with "Euro" sometimes, and I don't even begin to see it. For one, it's hard to get passed the purely dice-based combat system with a bunch of cards in the mix adding chaos. Some people say "the only way to win is to avoid fights" but that's just not how we roll. Unless our ships are in tatters already, when it's time for fighting both sides are itching for a brawl.

Conventional wisdom is that the first player to get sunk cannot win...my youngest brother had this happen to him in our last game where he was sunk first turn. He ended up craftily re-building, choosing some lower-hanging fruit, and ended up winning the game by 3 points, the sneaky bastard.


It's an "8" for me, man. Nice bits, a good theme (before the Pirate them got completely whored out), dice-rolling, card playing, trash talking. Not deeply strategic but who gives a shit? It plays in 60-90 minutes, there's blowing stuff up, it's all good.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 12:10 #7884 by mikelawson
Ken B. wrote:

The phrase "TOO RANDOM~!" is hereby *banned* from these hallowed halls.



Uh...unless we're talking about Blackbeard.



Carry on.



Arrr!

String him up, me boys!!

--Mike "Teach" L.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 12:11 #7885 by mikelawson
I look at it this way: any game that Steve Weeks helped contribute an alternate rule to has to pretty much be Ameritrash.

--Mike L.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
24 Jun 2008 12:29 #7888 by Shellhead
How does Pirate's Cove compare with Pirate King? I've only played a couple of games of Pirate King, but I think that it's great.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
25 Jun 2008 21:27 #7940 by metalface13
Pirate's cove is OK. I almost bought it when I first got back into gaming because of the awesome looking bits, but I held off. Then my brother got it and I played it a couple of times with him and our wives.

And it's OK. It's got great bits. The pirate ships are cool, all the illustrations on the cards are great and the map looks really good too. It's short and simple so I can it being a hit with nongamers and casual gamers. I'm not rushing out to buy it but I'd accept it in a trade.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
26 Jun 2008 08:13 - 26 Jun 2008 08:15 #7947 by Druen Kree
Pirates Cove is a good game to bust out when playing with a mixed crowd of gamers and non gamers ie girlfriends and wives.Its also not bad as a filler game while your waiting for that last guy to show up for gaming night.



Cool I just "Hit Puberty"...Yay!
Last edit: 26 Jun 2008 08:15 by Druen Kree.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
26 Jun 2008 20:44 #7960 by ozjesting
I think this game is to easily dismissed around here. Mostly the biggest complaint seems to be the battle. Even more so than already pointed out, I like the fact that the player who is itching to fight has it in his choices to SEEK IT OUT! To me that is the essence of the pirate. They weren't rolling war machines who were engaged in some sort of non-stop fight-o-rama...they had to FIND a ship worth plundering and than go to war! That idea adds a lovely tension on the board for players who for whatever reason (play style, weak ship no cards, etc) seek to AVOID the fight. Every choice of port may just be where fight guy is anchored just waiting to blast away at the ship!
For the same reason I like the mechanic of the Black Pirate's location being known. Like a double dare for those willing to take him on...and sometimes a race if it happens to be the gold ship!

I also like the various builds you can bring to the ship to score points. Are you a treasure hoarder, gold guy, sleek and fast, cannoned up? Trying to decide what you need and what you may have to encounter to get it is one of the delicious decisions each "month" ;)

Card balance rarely seems to be trouble as people have to GET those cards...and fair enough if they do.

I think this game, when played with spirit and verve, is worthy of much more than a "meh, Bill isn't here yet, let's play Pirates Cove" idea. Timing is short, AP is almost impossible due to the "1,2,3 drop'em" style we force with the wheel...and when the cannons do get to blazing it is a rousing affair for all involved!

Great game indeed and very worthy not only of the AT list of fun, but as a solid all round game that fun lovers everywhere should enjoy.

By the way...have you seen the pics of the guy who pimped out his Cove with resin cast treasure chests? Amazing work!

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

Moderators: Gary Sax
Time to create page: 0.144 seconds