Explaining how to play TTR over the phone to non-gamers

ubarose wrote: I think that part of the problem is that the adults in the group each had their own preconceived notions about how the game played, based upon other board games that they had played. The were having trouble reconciling those notions with the actual rules they had read.

Yeah, this is so true. If you play a lot of games of different types, you learn to just sort of take the rules at face value. If you've only played a few games, you probably try to fit it into one of those archetypes.

Never tell someone Ticket to Ride is like Rummy. It's nothing like Rummy. Sure as hell that will confuse them.

S.

Sagrilarus wrote: Never tell someone Ticket to Ride is like Rummy. It's nothing like Rummy. Sure as hell that will confuse them.

S.

Sorry. Jeb's right. It's Rummy with an overblown cribbage scoreboard. Basic TTR is "make make melds, score with trains." If that confuses them, they don't play cards. If they don't play cards, you shouldn't be playing anything but trivial pursuit, apples to apples, or scrabble.

Dogmatix wrote:

Sagrilarus wrote: Never tell someone Ticket to Ride is like Rummy. It's nothing like Rummy. Sure as hell that will confuse them.

S.

Sorry. Jeb's right. It's Rummy with an overblown cribbage scoreboard. Basic TTR is "make make melds, score with trains." If that confuses them, they don't play cards. If they don't play cards, you shouldn't be playing anything but trivial pursuit, apples to apples, or scrabble.

With all due respects, this is one of those bullshit things that people say to hit a game with an ugly stick. Sorry guys, there ain't jack in common between the games besides the use of suits, and they don't even implement suits in the same way. Oh -- you score points in both too, which I suppose means Ticket to Ride is the same as ice hockey. Matching cards together does not make two games "the same thing."

The biggest obstacle to Ticket to Ride's rules is that they give the appearance that you're sending trains from one place to another, when you're actually laying track. The pieces don't display that (I guess pieces that look like track weren't pretty enough), but that's what you're doing. The minute you get players to understand that they're creating a "line" (literally) that trains run on, not sending a single train across the country like in a race, everything becomes easy. That's the fundamental disconnect between Ticket to Ride's rules and Ticket to Ride's gameplay. Once you get players to understand that they're building a business it all gets much easier.

S.

Now if I can just get Andy to call me up and explain the rules to ASL I'll have it made.

No ugly stick here! I like TICKET TO RIDE well enough, and am a strong advocate for the SWITZERLAND board. The thing I like least about TTR are the folks that like to play it. My experiences playing this game outside my circle have always been weird passive-aggressive games where blocking was verboten and TTRashtalking not allowed.

And, it is like rummy. Collect melds, play them to score points. I am not trying to confuse anyone, that's how you score most of your points! I explain that part, and then I explain the routes thing for the end. You think I'd have more luck telling them it's like CAREERS? We need a common language, and rummy is it, no?

repoman wrote: Now if I can just get Andy to call me up and explain the rules to ASL I'll have it made.

I'm learning the rules from him the hard way right now. He's rolled nothing higher than a 3 so far.

S.

Sagrilarus wrote:

repoman wrote: Now if I can just get Andy to call me up and explain the rules to ASL I'll have it made.

I'm learning the rules from him the hard way right now. He's rolled nothing higher than a 3 so far.

S.

Gnashing of teeth and lamentation of the womenfolk are the order of the day, at the moment.

Don't exaggerate, Sag, it's the only die roll I've actually made. Suitable punishment for wandering into open ground in range of one of my guys.