Revolution! Game over. The winner is....

[dethwing]

Revolution! is a new board game from a designer in Cincinnati. The game seems very well suited for online play, so I thought I'd give it a shot here.

Rather than repeat all the rules, I'll just give a link and then some brief comments:

http://www.sjgames.com/revolution/img/revolution_rules.pdf

So the idea is to use Force, Blackmail, and Gold to influence the following 12 advisers. Support = Victory Points. Other rewards are influence one of the seven locations in the town, and additional types of pressure to use in the following round.

General - No Force - 1 Support, 1 Force, Fortress
Captain - No Force - 1 Support, 1 Force, Harbor
Innkeeper - No Blackmail - 3 Support, 1 Blackmail, Tavern
Magistrate - No Blackmail - 1 Support, 1 Blackmail, Town Hall
Priest - Any - 6 Support, Cathedral
Aristrocrat - Any - 5 Support, 3 Gold, Plantation
Merchant - Any - 3 Support, 5 Gold, Market
Printer - Any - 10 Support
Rogue - Gold only - 2 Blackmail
Spy - No Blackmail - Change one influence square to your own
Apothecary - No Force - Swap two influences
Mercenary - Gold only - 3 Support, 1 Force

The seven areas on the board are:
Tavern, 20 Support, 4 Spots
Market, 25 Support, 5 Spots
Plantation, 30 Support, 6 Spots
Cathedral, 35 Support, 7 Spots
Harbor, 40 Support, 6 Spots
Town Hall, 45 Support, 7 Spots
Fortress, 50 Support, 8 Spots

Each round will consist of each player PMing me their bids for that round.
For instance you might say: 1 Blackmail and 1 Gold on General; 1 Might on Innkeeper, 2 Gold on Mercenary.

You may not bid on more than 6 advisers. After I have all 4 bids, I will immediately update the statis of every player and the board, and the next round will start.
Exception: If someone wins the spy or apothecary, I will post the current situation, and then wait for them to choose how they want to affect the board.

Questions? Sign up!

We'll be playing with the discussion allowed optional rule. Deals are allowed and encouraged but must be made in this thread, not in PMs.

In
1. Groza
2. Mith
3. Cordelia
4. Referee

[groza528]

/in. Sounds intriguing.

[mith]

Sure, I'll give it a try. /in

[Cordelia]

I'm /in.

[referee]

aaaand /in.
_________________
Jan 21st, 2008: The pillaging continues.
Mar 4th, 2008: Rest in Peace, Gary Gygax. May your dice always roll a natural 20 wherever you are.

Be the Ultimate Ninja! Play Billy Vs. SNAKEMAN today!

[dethwing]

Bids open for round 1.

All players have 1 Force, 1 Blackmail, and 3 Gold.
All spots empty.

[referee]

Sorry, phone went dead on me all during yesterday. /sent now.
_________________
Jan 21st, 2008: The pillaging continues.
Mar 4th, 2008: Rest in Peace, Gary Gygax. May your dice always roll a natural 20 wherever you are.

Be the Ultimate Ninja! Play Billy Vs. SNAKEMAN today!

[dethwing]

Board

Tavern - 4: Mith

Market - 5: Cord

Planation - 6:

Cathedral - 7: Groza

Harbor - 6: Ref

Town Hall - 7: Ref

Fortress - 8: Cord


Resources / Points
Mith: 1 B, 4 G , 3 Support

Groza: 5 G, 6 Support

Ref: 1 F, 1 B, 3 G, 3 Support

Cordelia: 1 F, 5 G, 14 Support

Mith
Innkeeper: 1 Gold --->Win
Magistrate: 1 Gold -->Lose
Aristocrat: 1 Blackmail -->Lose
Merchant: 1 Force -->Lose
Spy: 1 Gold--> Lose

Tavern, Blackmail, 3 Support

Groza:
Priest - 1 force ---> Win
Aristocrat - 1 blackmail -->Lose
Merchant - 1 gold -->Lose
Spy - 2 gold--> Win

6 Support, Cathedral, SPY

Cordelia
General: 1 Gold --> Win
Captain: 1 Gold --> Lose
Merchent: 1 Force, 1 gold --> Win
Printer: 1 Blackmail --> Win

Fortress, Market, 14 Support, 1 Force, 5 Gold

Referee:
Magistrate : 2 Gold --> Win
Merchant : 1 Force --> Lose
Captain : 1 Blackmail, 1 Gold --> Win

Town Hall, Harbor, 1 Blackmail, 1 Force, 2 Support


Groza, use the spy, and then round 2 will begin

[groza528]

Sorry Cordy, but as the early leader I'm going to have to take a spot from you. But I'll take the market in hopes of staying on reasonable terms.

[dethwing]

BOARD

Tavern - 4: Mith (20)

Market - 5: Groza (25)

Planation - 6: (30)

Cathedral - 7: Groza (35)

Harbor - 6: Ref (40)

Town Hall - 7: Ref (45)

Fortress - 8: Cord (50)


RESOURCES
Mith: 1B, 4G
Groza: 5G
Ref: 1F, 1B, 3G
Cordelia: 1F, 5G


SUPPORT
Cord: 14
Groza: 6
Ref: 3
Mith: 3


Hopefully that's a better way of posting the relevant info.

[dethwing]

Tidbits:

9 of 12 were bid on, with 8 won. Apothecary, Rogue, Mercenary went un-bid. Aristocrat was bid upon, but had no winner.

[dethwing]

Ref has 2 Support, not 3. If you notice any other mistake, let me know.

[Cordelia]

Early leader, groza? I think you meant permanent leader! *went there*

[mith]

Ref: I'll be blackmailing the General.

[groza528]

Which obviously means you can make mith's blackmail ineffectual by trumping it with a blackmail/bribe combo.
Just saying.

[mith]

I didn't say what else I'll be doing.

[Cordelia]

I'll be Mocking the Court Jester.

[dethwing]

BOARD

Tavern - 4: Mith, Mith (20)

Market - 5: Groza, Cord (25)

Planation - 6: Ref (30)

Cathedral - 7: Groza (35)

Harbor - 6: Ref, Ref (40)

Town Hall - 7: Ref, Groza (45)

Fortress - 8: Cord, Mith (50)


RESOURCES
Mith: 1F, 1B, 3G
Groza: 1B, 4G
Ref: 1F, 2B, 3G
Cordelia: 1F, 5G


SUPPORT
Cord: 30
Ref: 8
Groza: 7
Mith: 7


Cord:
Merchant: 1 Force --> Win
Printer: 1 Gold --> Win
Rogue: 2 Gold --> Lose
Mercenary: 2 Gold --> Win

Market, 5 Gold, 1 Force, 16 Support

Mith:
General: 2 Gold -->Win
Innkeeper: 1 Gold -->Win
Aristocrat: 1 Gold -->Lose
Merchant: 1 Blackmail -->Win

Fortess, Tavern, 1 Force, 1 Blackmail, 4 Support

Groza:
Merchant: 1 Gold -->Lose
Magistrate: 2 Gold -->Win
Rogue: 2 Gold -->Lose

Town Hall, 1 Blackmail, 1 Support

Ref:
Captain: 1 Blackmail -->Win
Aristocrat: 1 Force -->Win
Rogue: 3 Gold -->Win
Harbor, Plantation, 1 Force, 2 Blackmail, 3 Gold, 6 Support

[Cordelia]

What the heck, let's put everything on double zero!

Hm, okay, maybe I don't know how to play the game right...

[dethwing]

BOARD

Tavern - 4: Mith, Mith, Mith (20)

Market - 5: Groza, Cord, Cord (25)

Plantation - 6: Ref, Ref (30)

Cathedral - 7: Groza, Mith (35)

Harbor - 6: Ref, Ref, Ref (40)

Town Hall - 7: Ref, Groza, Mith (45)

Fortress - 8: Cord, Mith, Ref (50)


RESOURCES
Mith: 2B, 3G
Groza: 2B, 3G
Ref: 3F, 3G
Cordelia: 5G


SUPPORT
Cord: 33
Mith: 27
Ref: 15
Groza: 7


Mith:
Innkeeper: 1 Gold -->Win
Magistrate: 1 Force -->Win
Priest: 1 Blackmail -->Win
Printer: 2 Gold -->Win
Tavern, Town Hall, Cathedral, 2 Blackmail, 20 Support

Cord:
General: 1 Gold -->Lose
Aristocrat: 1 Gold -->Lose
Merchant: 1 Force -->Win
Printer: 1 Gold -->Lose
Rogue: 1 Gold -->Lose
Mercenary: 1 Gold -->Lose
Market, 5 Gold, 3 Support

Groza:
Rogue: 2 Gold --> Win
Spy: 1 Gold --> Win
Apothecary: 1 Blackmail --> Win
Mercenary: 1 Gold -->Lose
2 Blackmail, SPY, APOTHECARY

Ref:
General: 1 Blackmail, 1 Gold --> Win
Captain: 1 Blackmail --> Win
Aristocrat: 1 Force --> Win
Mercenary: 2 Gold --> Win
Fortress, Harvor, Plantation, 3 Force, 3 Gold, 7 Support


Groza, use your Spy and Apothecary [in that order, though it probably doesnt matter since you have both ]

[Cordelia]

Ouch...that was a harsh round.

[groza528]

Steal mith's Town Hall
Swap ref's Town Hall with my Market

[dethwing]

BOARD

Tavern - 4: Mith, Mith, Mith (20)

Market - 5: Ref, Cord, Cord (25)

Plantation - 6: Ref, Ref (30)

Cathedral - 7: Groza, Mith (35)

Harbor - 6: Ref, Ref, Ref (40)

Town Hall - 7: Groza, Groza, Groza (45)

Fortress - 8: Cord, Mith, Ref (50)



RESOURCES
Mith: 2B, 3G
Groza: 2B, 3G
Ref: 3F, 3G
Cordelia: 5G


SUPPORT
Cord: 33
Mith: 27
Ref: 15
Groza: 7

Just to be sure you know, you don't have to swap one of yours. You can swap any two on the board.

Round 4 bids!

[mith]

Huh.

I thought ref's position was pretty obviously better than mine. But anyway.

[dethwing]

BOARD

Tavern - 4: Mith, Mith, Mith, Ref (20)

Market - 5: Ref, Cord, Cord (25)

Plantation - 6: Ref, Ref, Ref (30)

Cathedral - 7: Groza, Mith (35)

Harbor - 6: Ref, Ref, Ref, Mith (40)

Town Hall - 7: Groza, Groza, Groza, Ref (45)

Fortress - 8: Cord, Mith, Ref, Mith (50)



RESOURCES
Mith: 2F, 3G
Groza: 5G
Ref: 4B, 3G
Cordelia: 1F, 4G


SUPPORT
Cord: 36
Mith: 29
Ref: 24
Groza: 17

Cordelia:
Rogue: 1 Gold --> Lose
Merenary: 4 Gold --> Win
1 Force, 3 Support

Ref:
Innkeeper: 1 Force -->Win
Magistrate: 1 Force -->Win
Aristocrat: 1 Force-->Win
Rogue: 3 Gold -->Win
Tavern, Townhall, Plantation, 4 Blackmail, 3 Gold, 9 Support


Mith:
General: 1 Blackmail, 1 Gold --> Win
Captain: 1 Blackmail, 1 Gold --> Win
Priest: 1 Gold --> Lose
Fortress, Harbor, 2 Force, 2 Suppot

Groza:
Priest: 1 Gold --> Lose
Printer: 1 Blackmail --> Win
Rogue: 2 Gold --> Lose
Spy: 1 Gold --> Win
10 Support, SPY

[Cordelia]

*plants a sign on the Acme stage"
"ref season"

[groza528]

deth, I believe I should have 1 blackmail on the priest... check again?

[dethwing]

Yes indeed. Typo. You have +6 Support, and +1 Cathedral.

[mith]

Cordy, if you want the Spy, I'll leave it for you. There's no sense in both of us spending force there. If you don't want it, let me know - ref's position is too strong and one of us should hit him.

[groza528]

[dethwing]

BOARD

Tavern - 4: Mith, Mith, Mith, Ref (20)

Market - 5: Ref, Cord, Cord (25)

Plantation - 6: Ref, Ref, Groza (30)

Cathedral - 7: Groza, Mith, Groza (35)

Harbor - 6: Ref, Ref, Ref, Mith (40)

Town Hall - 7: Groza, Groza, Groza, Ref (45)

Fortress - 8: Cord, Mith, Ref, Mith (50)


RESOURCES
Mith: 2F, 3G
Groza: 5G
Ref: 4B, 3G
Cordelia: 1F, 4G


SUPPORT
Cord: 36
Mith: 29
Ref: 24
Groza: 23

[mith]

Cordy and I have Force, you don't. What I am saying is that it is important for one of us to use that Force on the Spy, to make sure ref doesn't win it with just Gold, and it would be silly for both of us to spend Force on it when it could be used elsewhere to hamper ref/help us (me and Cordy; I'll be happy to make deals with you when there are advantageous deals to be made with you, but at the moment I'm still grumpy about last turn ).

[dethwing]

This is starting to get exciting. I hope everyone's enjoying this and that the pace is ok.

[groza528]

[mith]

I'm not *actually* upset (thus the smilie). And the available resources were the main factor in my statement. (I was actually wondering if you might be silently buddying-up to ref, since he could have taken the Spy this last turn if he had wanted it.)

Even so, I'm not sure your calculation is a particularly accurate reflection of the game-state. No doubt, my hold on the Tavern was more solid than anything else at that point, but not to the degree that I had/have a 75% chance of winning those points. (That said, I'm not sure how I'd calculate EVs... I haven't put that amount of thought into this game.)

[referee]

*Plants a sign over Cordy's sign*
"Cordy season"

Had to do that, you know.

My situation is strong? I'm third in points so far, and yes, I got all the Force last turn, but this turn, as you see, I don't have any. Such is the thing with the resources in this game, they fluctuate.

Areas of influence:

Mith has a good hold of the Tavern (needs to be stolen twice [unless by me, granted] to lose those points, and although I agree that it is very shaky, he's the current Fortress leader.

Cordelia (point leader, lest we forget) has a strong position on Market, but not much else. Cordelia seems to have neglected the influence so far, in benefit of the direct benefits of the Printer and the like.

Groz (so he's not left out), leads the Cathedral and has a very strong position on the Town Hall so far, thanks to his more or less constant influences on Spy and Apothecary lately.

And just so you don't say I lay low, I lead the Plantation and have a strong position on the Harbor.

As I see it there's no need for "Ref season" since there's no clear leader yet. I was lucky enough to gather three Force last turn, and that was going to give me three characters I wanted. The Rogue was a plus, if I had gone for the Mercenary, I would have lost it to Cordelia. In this game you have to take gambles, and when you do that, you win some and lose some.

Who is the target to beat? No one yet. In this turn, mith has most of the Force, and is trying to negotiate with Cordelia for efficient use of it. On the other hand, Groza seems to be holding his own with just Gold.

This game is better than I thought.
_________________
Jan 21st, 2008: The pillaging continues.
Mar 4th, 2008: Rest in Peace, Gary Gygax. May your dice always roll a natural 20 wherever you are.

Be the Ultimate Ninja! Play Billy Vs. SNAKEMAN today!

[Cordelia]

the problem is, ref, that as it stands, if you keep leading on force/blackmail alternately you'll get quite a bit ahead on influence at the same time. You're in a very nice position right now, and that can't really be disputed. You might not be winning, but you certainly have the advantage and have had it for the past two rounds.

As far as the use of my force, I'm going to sleep right now, but I'll think on it. Not sure what the best route is for the moment, but ref has "all that blackmail" which pretty much guarantees him the captain/general and 2 force next round...

[mith]

Cordy, if you haven't let me know whether you are going for the Spy or not by tonight, I'll go ahead and decide (and post here to let you know what I've done). I feel like we're just holding up the game at this point.

[dethwing]

Actually, no one has sent yet.

[mith]

I'm inclined to believe no one has sent yet because they're waiting to see what they can learn from whatever Cordy and I agree to/say in the thread.