Everything you could ever want to know about:
“Thurn and Taxis: For Power and Glory”
In this review you will find the answers to the following burning questions about this upcoming game. Feel free to skip ahead to the questions that interest you.
1. What the heck does Thurn and Taxis mean?
2. What are the Thurn and Taxis Games like?
3. How does this game differ from the original?
4. Is this a stand-alone game or is it an expansion?
5. What are the bits like?
6. If I have the original is this worth buying?
7. Can I play this online?
8. Sum it all up for me.
Please note: My experience with this game is through several plays on BSW and through general press releases and other information available on the ‘geek. Since the American edition has yet to be released, what components will be included in the game is not yet able to be confirmed.
1. What the heck does <PERSON> and Taxis mean?
This was my first question when I heard about these games. It is the weirdest title I have ever heard. Is this German for some reasonable English title? No, sorry. <PERSON> and Taxis is the name for the German postal service in the 15th century, it was named after the German family that started the service. In this game you are establishing a postal service in 15th century Germany. I promise, this game is more fun then the theme implies. It would be hard for it not to be.
2. What are the <PERSON> and Taxis Games like?
(I will not go into detail of the rules of the game but rather give you a general idea of the kind of game it is. Complete rules for the Thurn and Taxis game can be found here:
http://www.brettspielwelt.de/Hilfe/Anleitungen/ThurnUndTaxis... 118
)
Thurn and Taxis has often been compared to the Ticket to Ride games. It is a relevant comparison for many reasons, Thurn and Taxis is a light, quick game that is easy to learn and is about making connections. The game play of the two games is quite a bit different. The most noticeable difference being that there is less player interaction in Thurn and Taxis then in Ticket to Ride. For example, it is not possible to block other players out of cities in Thurn and Taxis, which is an important part of the Ticket to Ride games. This lack of interaction can be a positive for those who like their games more friendly, or a negative for those who like their games with a little more tension. Not to say that there is no interaction, but it is more subtle. For this reason, I find Thurn and Taxis to be an excellent couples game, it is competitive without being confrontational. But that preference of course depends on different couples. Not that I don’t enjoy playing Ticket to Ride with my wife but occasionally it can get ugly.
3. How does this game differ from the original?
“Thurn and Taxis: For Power and Glory” differs from the original game, “Thurn and Taxis” by adding a few elements to the game and a new board. The same game system is used for both games. The two most major changes with the expansion are the board itself and the “horses” variant. This board may be played using the original rules or with the “horses” variant, making it almost like two games in one.
(Note: This rest of this section assumes the reader knows the rules of the original game)
The “horses” variant replaces the use of the carriages and the <PERSON> special ability in the original game. In this variant there is no longer the element of climbing the carriage ladder to get bigger and bigger carriages worth more points. Instead you are forced to pay for your routes using your city cards which now have a number of horseshoes on them. There are three of each city card in the deck, each one has 1,2 or 3 horseshoes pictured on the side. In this variant instead of playing a city to your route you may play the city cards as horses to your horseshoes pile. You start each route with a coach with 2 horseshoes and need as many horseshoes in your pile to complete the route. For example, if you are going to lay a route with five cities, you will need to have at least 5 horseshoes to claim the route. You will either need to play one city card with three horseshoes onto your coach (added to your always starting two) or play two city cards so that the total of your horseshoes is five or more. 366