The Hungry Backpack; Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Embrace Resource Denial

While playing Munchkin the other night I had the rare pleasure of using the Hungry Backpack against another player. The Backpack is what I consider to be one of the real power cards in the game. For those not in the know, the Backpack essentially devours the hand of the soul unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of the curse. At the end of each turn the player rolls a d6; on a 6 the Backpack greedily eats itself and is removed, on any other roll the player must randomly discard that number of cards from their hand. Devastating, especially since a hand can’t be larger than five cards. Within a round or two the player is stripped of just about all resources in their hand.

Denial or loss of resources is a basic strategy in most games, the Backpack is merely this principal manifested in Munchkin. In Settlers of Catan it can be seen as the Robber, casting a blight on one’s land. Losing the ability to move your first ship in Starfarers of Catan. In the above example with Munchkin the player in question was at Level 9 (one level from winning) and the Backpack essentially spelled a death sentence for her, leaving her unable to help herself win that final battle. Why is the loss of something so devastating? For starters, the game continues to move forward, other players gain resources, move their pieces, etc…But the affected player is left in a sort of stasis, unable to generate anything new. Even if they are in a good place when the freeze arrives, they may quickly find that the advantage was not as sizeable as they imagined. A turn or two without anything new may not seem like much, but often the best crafted strategies are contingent on each move, and well charted out several turns in advance based on the cards at hand. This ruins all that, so not only is a player not moving forward, they may actually be moving backward as they scramble to readjust or chart a new course.

Also, games may seem like they go on for a long time but rarely does a game go for more than 15 turns or so. Losing out on one or two of them can hurt a lot. And generally each turn counts as much as any other., though that may not always be the perception. Like in baseball, games played in April count as much as those played in the pressure of a pennant race in September, though many would say the opposite. The point is, losing out on some of them can really set a player back and the ability to enact this on another is usually the greatest resource in a player’s arsenal. Even more than helping yourself, is hurting another? Maybe, but I think that the number of players in a game ultimately decides that question.

One of the games that we’ve been playing a lot lately is Pirate’s Cove, a game that I consider to be extremely balanced. Perhaps too balanced, but that’s a post for another day. But the interesting thing about Pirate’s Cove is that there is no resource denial mechanism. Even when you lose a fight you get some tavern cards or some gold. You are always moving forward, even if only in smaller increments than your fellow scalawags. Without a mechanism to really hinder other opponents the game sometimes becomes a crap shoot, with luck playing a large role in the outcome.

It sometimes seems devious and rotten, but hindering opponents is often the most sound strategy to victory. Of course, it also garners ill will and animosity from your fellow gamers, but it’s just a game. Right?

Games for beginners

Navigating the seas of the board game world can be a tricky one. There are literally thousands of game out there with different themes, rules, from all sorts of companies. To an outsider it can either seem like a bizarre and overwhelming world better left to the experts and serious hobbyists, or it can be a tempting invitation into a fascinating realm of social enjoyment. Clearly, I prefer the latter definition but the first one is not without merit, especially the overwhelming aspect. So, I offer up a couple of games for the novice board gamer to get their feet wet.

Settlers of Catan has received numerous accolades as a spectacular game and is often credited as the flagship product for the burgeoning introduction of board games into the mainstream (especially in the U.S.). It’s all true. The game is not just very fun, but also an excellent gateway to the world of strategy games. It’s the pot of board games. The theme of the game is simple; players are settlers on a recently discovered island competing with one another to develop the land and generate resources. Like all the good games it is easy to learn but also continues to hold the interest of more experienced players, which makes it great as a learning game since everyone can get into it. It also introduces some of the basics of board gaming; resource harvesting and managing, planning for the short and long term, recognizing trends and fluctuating values, and developing an endgame strategy. Even with newer players the game shouldn’t take more than an hour, so it is frequently easy to convince people to sit down and play it, which is often a hurdle for some. Additionally, the game has numerous expansions so it is also great to grow into should you find that it’s the right game for you and your group.

Another game that I would recommend for inexperienced players is the cutthroat game of backstabbing and treasure hording, Munchkin. Unlike Settlers, Munchkin is a card game which sets it into a different genre. Though it’s really just like a board game without the board. Thematically Munchkin is in the world of fantasy adventure, that is to say it shares a theme with Dungeons and Dragons. Unfortunately, that appears to be a turnoff for some, but if they can get past that a great game awaits. Players fight monsters, gain powers and treasures, and try to fend off their fellow players and win the game. It’s the last aspect that makes it so much fun and engaging. A big aspect of the game is the ability to hinder other players as much as you can aid yourself. This is great for keeping players involved since you can act even on the turn of another player. I will caution that if the people you game with take things very personally than this may not be the game for them. Munchkin is also quick paced, though it tends to drag when more than four players are involved. And like Settlers, it has a bunch of expansions that add tons of new cards to the mix.

There are also many great resources available on line to get suggestions for games and to read reviews.

Enthralled

Interesting end to last night's game of Munchkin. I have long considered the bard the weakest of the classes in the game, which is a shame because I think that they are very cool and in Dnd one of my favorites. But the fact is that it's powers don't hold up compared to the others. However last night Enthralled won me the game.

Normally I would think that sacrificing three cards just for a chance to have someone help you out for free isn't that good, and it's not. It is an expensive, less reliable version of the Kneepads of Allure. I was at level 9 and about to be beaten by the Tongue Demon (who was with Bagpipes for an extra +10!) when I used enthralled on another player who was bringing a huge bonus (+25 or something) to the table. It worked and I won.