>>98142818
* but considering all the stuff you get with it, it's quite deep from what I can tell
sorry, too enamored with the game to proofread

I've played it two or three times and never come remotely close to finishing a game. I feel as though you basically have to spend an entire day playing with people or else do a play by post sort of setup

It's the kind of game that, to me, screams to have players RP the interests of their factions, but if you do that the game takes even longer. The friends who introduced it to us apparently don't RP at all and play it straight, but they seem to take forever to play it too

I played it once with an absolute faggot group who randomly distributed tiles, upside down, and ended up with 3 asteroid fields around my home system. I was basically out of the game turn one.

I have a copy, but haven’t played it. Could see this being awesome if you played monthly with 5 other guys… almost impossible I know. Maybe digital version will deliver.

It’s honestly not a bad game. Even in the scenario I described I ended up second.

Its biggest problem is that it’s a kingmaker game. I legit prefer game of thrones as it is simpler plays faster and conflicts are far more regional less kingmaker shit.

Game of thrones 1st Ed predated the show by several years. It got me into the books

>>98143150
>Its biggest problem is that it’s a kingmaker game.
It's funny because when I first started learning the game from a guy who'd played it a bunch, there was a point halfway through where it was clear I had no chance of coming back and I asked what the point of me even continuing was. His answer was "lol just do your best" and when I joked about teaming up with the third player to take him down he nearly had a full temper tantrum and threatened to remove me from the group.

Like, kingmaker shit is probably the kind of chaos that the developers unironically love to imagine players getting into, but in reality the types of people who even care about this game are the types who act like manchildren if they think you're desecrating the "spirit" of the game for them.

It's actually fantastic. One of my best board game experiences ever was playing it with a few friends who enjoy 4x style strategy games.

It takes about 14 hours, you need to set aside a whole weekend and make sure you have only invited people who are very serious and committed about playing it.

>>98143206
>>98143150
The kingmaker problem is why I've started warming up to the idea of "hail mary" win conditions in game design, something I used to generally oppose. If you make sure the player in dead last still has some sort of far-out triple yahtzee royal flush snowball's chance in hell of winning, then they're incentivized to maximize their chances of meeting that win condition rather than doing kingmaker shenanigans.

>>98142818
I played it several times, mostly during 2024. I can't be unpartial, I love it.
Always play it in groups of six. Give up trying to win the firs 3 games. Teach it, make sure there's always a newbie, help him, explain it, never hide the rules.
Watch the tutorial, take your notes, play with honest frinds. It's a really cozy experience if you manage to get a group going.
It's true, it's a workday with lore. As a complete anon, I tell you, it's worth it (I never played the expas, the game does not run out of intresting juice in the first 20+ runs).
I always offer 2 random factions to each player a week in advance, ask them to keepo them secret and generate the board randomly using the answers so neither I nor anyone know how the map is going to be.

>>98143150
Digital version (BGA) does NOT deliver. There are a lot of interrupts, due to usual gameplay, to faction abilities, to Action cards. GAme has to stop and ask everyone to retain a semblance of giving the opportunity, and it drags. PLaying it manually makes it run waaaaay smoother (even if you miss some windows).

>>98142818
I've played it a few times (without expansions) and the 3rd editions with expansions a bunch of time.

It honestly isn't that complicated, and doesn't take 'days' to play as long as you all actually know how to play ahead of time.

The people who say so are fucking morons who have played maybe once or twice and 'learn as they play', just to also bog down the game to look up stuff and spend every turn suffering from AP.

I've read the rules and I don't really vibe with games that revolve around getting hidden/random objectives. I like games where you can win by having the biggest army or the best economy or things like that.

>>98142818
Played it once, my friends got tired of it by turn 6 or so and refused to play again. It now collects dust on my shelf.

>>98143206
>>98143150
If you don't plan for the Kingmaker you don't deserve to be the King. Deciding who wins often is as much fun as being the winner yourself.

>>98143150
It's a game that lives and dies by the quality of the group you have. I'd recommend you play it with seasoned mafia players or players that know how to backstab and barter with each other, otherwise you end up with clear winners several turns before the end.
I can't see it working with random club man-children.

It is a very good game. Especially if you play Mentak, which has a whole added angle of abusing people just enough to where you can profit but not so much that they send their entire fleet to purge you

>>98142818
It's my favorite board game and, genuinely, every other game that tries to do what this is a pale imitation of TI4, to be frank.
I've taught several groups how to play and, so long as people actively try to score each turn, most games last 8-12 hours. Victor signs+dates the inside of my box top, who they were playing, and a quote from the game.
I've played this at least a dozen times this past year. It's incredibly worth it and nothing really compares/exceeds it.

>>98142818
The most important thing is that you need a full set of players that are involved and not retarded. This is not a game for family get togethers. You need a full set of six players that are going to pay attention to get the most out of the game. Your mother that just wants to spend time with her children after Thanksgiving dinner is not going to be able to handle it.

>>98143206
Kingmaker bullshit is absolutely intended. There are multiple races that have zero chance of winning if there is a single other competent player but are perfectly suited to their player just having fun by ruining everyone else's plans.

>>98142818

Yes. Indeed, it's not really THAT long, more like a whole afternoon.

I like playing the aggressive factions and winning the game in 3-4 hours

>>98143217
>It takes about 14 hours
How?
Even when playing the worst way (5 or 7 players) worst case scenario it takes 1 hour per player.

>>98150881
Gollum faction (Yssarill) tends to slow the game for everyone.
Also, Arborek, XXcha and Naalu tend to be slow burn factions, they benefit from long games cuz they get time to finish their buildup.
If you play a table with Letnev, Muuat, Hacan, sol, Creuss and Sardakk, at round 3 everyone is rounding their points and about to explode the Galaxy

>>98142818
Ask yourself those, in sequence
1) Do you have an entire free Saturday, the whole day?
2) Do your friends, at least 4 of them, have a free Saturday, the whole day?
3) Do you have a place where you can set up the game for the whole day and keep comfortably playing?
4) Do you have at least basic experience with strategic board games?
If you get Yes on first three, you are peachy. If you get it on all four, you're in perfect position to go play it.

As for price
Borrow the game first or better yet, play online, you dingus, to see if it's even for you.

>>98142933
>t. friendless and retarded
Sorry for your loss

Also
>TI
>RP
Pick one, you daft cunt

>>98144366
If only those objectives were about that or achievable by having that...

>>98150881
Depends on things like:
- which factions are in play
- how much play is actual play, and how much chit-chat
- was the table set prior, or you have to set it up?
- is everyone familiar with the rules/played prior?

Last game, where I had 3 complete newfags and we played a game of 7, lasted since 9 AM (and technically started 8:30, breakfast served and already getting the newfags into the rules) till 1 AM the next day..
The game before that, despite having Naalu and really expansive Titans, also with 7 players, took us from 10 AM till 9 PM, and we had an actual, functional dinner break (rather than eating by the game table) and a group stroll to a store by 7 PM, since we figured out we are one turn away from sorting the game, so everyone took five and we decided to buy stuff for afer-game party.

>>98147279
It works with randos just fine.
The problems with this game are twofold when you have new people: either they can't commit (since this game is at the very fucking least 8 hours straight) or they play binary "winner-loser" and loose interest by turn 3 or 4 when they aren't leading
Everything else is manageable.
Why would you be playing with manchildren is, however, something that I don't get, but you do you

>>98142818
>Has anyone played this?
Yes. Thread over.

>>98153077
I wanna choose which strategy I'm gonna pursue from early on. Like in Catan I always go for longest road first because connecting all my cities pleases my autism.

>>98148765
I have a semi-regular for TI that is like that. He could probably be a 3rd, sometimes 2nd player. But he actively chooses to be the guy who disrupts plans of others, because this puts entire table into a frenzy. He clearly doesn't mind coming last or 2nd last, still having his fun, so it's a win-win. Doing too well and too visibly for yourself? Tom's just waiting

>>98153189
You have the same goal as everyone else: collect 10 points. How you do it is entirely up to you (and the developing situation).
I honestly don't get your problem.

>>98153207
Well I don't know exactly how the game goes because I've never played it but that's the impression I got from what I read.

>>98153218
>I never played this game, but I already dislike it
Then what are you even bitching about?
This fucking desperate for (You)s?

>>98153227
I'm not dropping 150 bucks on a game that I don't think I'll love

>>98153237
I never told you to buy it.
In fact, you would have to be retarded t buy ANY game without trying it out first. Which is why there are lending places for those things, not to mention 3e being a mainstay in libraries ever since 4e gained momentum

>>98153130
l2read