Shabbat Gaming

At Nadine's in the afternoon, I played PitchCar x 2, It's Alive, and Puerto Rico (other games played, in which I didn't participate, included Casino and Scrabble).

PitchCar

We played two games, using two different track layouts. I came in second in the first game; I was ahead nearly a lap at one point, but I crashed a few more times than one of my opps did, and he was just able to overcome me in the final stretch. I came in first in the second game.

My success is rather odd, as I don't typically win this game, but I played rather slow and steady, and that seemed to work.

It's Alive

We played a five player game (not my favorite) and Nadine taught it to two of the players. As usual in a five player game, there was a lot of auctioning and pieces went for face value. I pulled at least three of the Villagers and a few too many low cost cards, which hurt my income and progress. Nevertheless, I played with my new "keep my coins at exactly half of my board value" strategy, and I came in second with 45. The winner finished was the one who finished, and he had a score of 57. So it's not a perfect strategy.

Puerto Rico

Rachel, Nadine, and I played this. Even though we played on Nadine's set, and she only has the base set and official expansion, we proxied most of my usual custom buildings. I was third player.

Rachel on my left took the first trade good, coffee, so I took coffee, too. Nadine took tobacco soon after. I had a fairly early Factory, and access to a tobacco plantation, so I simply took tobacco soon after, giving me a full Factory. Nadine had the other early Factory. Rachel was the only one who had Harbor.

I ended with an equitable amount of shipping points, three of the big buildings, and an embarrassingly high score of 69 to their 49 and 52.