Another run at Runebound…
Tristan, Logan and I squeezed in a play of Runebound today. The game only lasted about 3 hours this time but was set up most of the day because they took a couple of breaks to play laser tag and other outdoor activities with friends. The duration of the game was much improved since we were more familiar with the game and because we attempted harder challenges earlier in the game. One of the keys to this game is the number 11. You roll two 10-sided dice for all combat and skill checks. Since 11 is the most common combination that will be rolled, you’re chance of success is 55% when you need an 11 or better (you are trying to equal or beat the value being checked) versus 45% when a 12 or better is required. This generally means that easy challenges (green) can be won more than half the time without any skill advances. Moderates (yellow) are slightly more difficult and can be won without any advance but are easier with an advance or the aid of an item or ally.
The strong get stronger and the rich get richer in this game. The faster you can get to the harder challenges, the faster you will level up and be able to buy better equipment with the increased coin earned from those challenges. Getting to this realization lowers the playing time and increases the tension in the game. How much are you willing to push your luck to stay with or ahead of the other players? At 2 to 3 hours, I like this game a lot. It’s even better since the boys are actually requesting the game.
We’re also in the middle of Fury of Dracula right now. We set it up after dinner and are through about a third of the game. The explanation and set up took longer than I expected so we had about an hour of actual playing time. We stopped around 9pm because everyone was tired and learning a new game after dinner wasn’t the wisest choice. We did leave it set up and plan to finish it tomorrow. Dracula (me) was found early in the 2nd day (about 6-7 turns into the game) and is currently on the run.
No real misstep on the rules but I am looking stuff up a lot more than I thought I would. Still, I believe this game has a lot of potential with the family once we are comfortable with the rules. The theme and cooperative nature are pluses. Time could be an issue if it consistently goes more than 2 hours but turns are quick so there isn’t much down time.