BGC Retreat

BGC Boardgame Retreat 2011 – Day One

BGC BOARDGAME RETREAT 2011
by jack208

EXCERPT
Our annual BGC Boardgame Retreat was back on again! This time we held it at a beach resort and extended to 2 days. Over 40 different games were played among 20+ gamers. If you were not there, find out what you missed! If you were one of the participants, relive the joy of that wonderful weekend! Read on to find out what games were on the table for GAME ZERO and GAME ONE.
 
How fast time flies! Has it been a year since we did our last Retreat in Genting? Almost.
 
BGC Retreat 2010 @ Genting GICC
Click here to read last year’s BGC Retreat 2010 report
To be exact, 11-months since last July when a group of 15+ gamers were brought to Genting GICC 6,000 feet above sea level and locked themselves up in a room to do nothing but play boardgames all-day long! We did 3-4 games in a full 8-hrs stretch, took a quick dinner break and then resumed gaming till 3 am in the morning!
 
BGC Retreat 2011 @ PD
 
This year we decided to have a change of landscape – instead of the cool weather of a highland resort, we now have the calm serenity of a beach resort – and extended the gaming to two full days. That’s 16-hrs of intense gaming packed into two solid days.
 
(alamak! Didn’t take any pictures of Tiara Beach Resort!)
 
We made the Retreat package announcement only in May (however we did pre-empt the group earlier through our Facebook updates to reserve this date) after the conclusion of our Power Grid Malaysia 2011 competition. That gives less than a month’s time for us to organize things so let’s hope everything turns out fine. πŸ˜›
 
 
The Retreat package is cheaper this time around – for about the same price as last year, we are now able to throw in accommodation (obviously accommmodation at PD would be more modest than those at Genting’s casino hotel but then again, you are not going there to spend all your waking time sleeping right?) and meals (except dinner).
 
In keeping with BGC’s style of rewarding our loyal fans, we gave a 10% discount to returning participants from last year’s retreat. πŸ™‚
 
And what do you get for this package?
– one night’s accommodation
– all meals onboard – two buffer lunches, breakfast, tea-time (dinner’s the only exclusion)
– function room for two full days’ of uninterrupted gaming
– fully organized and coordinated gaming sessions
– special BGC Retreat 2011 t-shirt
– prizes for winners and not-so-winners (hehe)
– a generous 40% discount on any one game (if you buy a game that costs around Rm300, this 40% discount is worth rm120 alone).
– and above all, a PRICELESS gaming experience!
 
BGC Retreat 2011
 
PS: The event generated so much post-event buzz for the participants that Boardgamecafe.net decided to extend to the Retreat participants a one-time special promo of 30% discount on all the games played in the Retreat!
 
BGC Retreat 2011 @ PD
 
And I’ve to add the participants in such Retreats are the BEST bunch of gaming crowd you can possibly game with! Don’t believe me? Look at our photo albums… the FUN is all etched in their faces for an awesome gaming weekend where they get to play not just the latest new arrivals like Troyes, Alien Frontiers, Luna, Navegador, Survive, Automobile but also lesser-seen-games like K2, Havana, Acquire, Cafe International, China, Innovation, Glory to Rome – all in 2 days!
 
Without further ado, let’s dive into the session reports!!
   
THE DETAILS
Location: Tiara Beach Resort, Port Dickson
Date: 4-5 June 2011 (Sat/Sun)
 
Gamers: Teddy, Lee Ching, Wong LC, Wolfx, Lester, Emil, Kareem, Lee Peng, Janette Pang, Junyet Wong, Jacelyn, Swee Wan, Jun Keat, BK Woo, Nurul, Azmir, Daren Tan, SK Wong, Ainul, Waiyan, and CK Au.
  
Games: Hue Knew, Halli Galli, Jungle Speed, Spot It!, Slamwich, Glen More, Mykerinos, Speicherstadt, China, O Zoo Le Mio, Alien Frontiers, Lords of Vegas, Tobago, Cargo Noir, Mission Red Planet, Automobile, Navegador, Hansa Teutonica, Luna, Power Struggle, K2, Jamaica, Havana, Cafe International, Survive Escape from Atlantis, El Capitan, Fresco, Acquire, Thebes, Carson City, Troyes, Tikal, Mexica, Giants.
  
Games on Special After8 Menu: Serendipity, Take 6, Innovation, Glory of Rome, Race for the Galaxy.
  
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
 
(You can buy these games from our Web Store)
 
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
 
While waiting for the rest to arrive, the gamers were quick to organize some impromptu sessions… Serendipity was seen in play at one of the games (I understand this game was brought here courtesy of Afifter).
 
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
  
More pictures of Serendipity (above & below).
  
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
 
Race for the Galaxy was also seen. You can’t avoid this game whenever ainul is around. πŸ˜›
 
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
  

  
GAME ZERO
As is the norms in BGC Retreats, we always kick-off the event with a “Seating” game ie. one that’s light and fast to play yet provides a method to organize the gamers into the starting tables. For this year’s GAME ZERO, waiyan focused on “reflex action” as a theme and picked game such as Spot It!, Slamwich, Hue Knew, Halli Galli and Jungle Speed.
 
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
 
The gamers were quickly organized into five tables, rules were taught (the plus point with Game Zero games are the relatively quick teaching of rules usually in 5 min), and off they started!
 
Table
Game Title
P1
P2
P3
P4
1st
Hue Knew
ainul
emil
nurul
azmir
2nd
Halli Galli
lester
ken yen
lc wong
sk wong
3rd
Spot It!
teddy
lee ching
lee peng
janette
4th
Slamwich
jacelyn
junyet
jun keat
swee wan
5th
Jungle Speed
kareem
bkwoo
jonathan
daren
 
Game 0 / Table 1: HUE KNEW
 

BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO

 
Ainul and Emil (above) trying to create their own rules for Hue Knew while waiting for waiyan.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
 
The HUE KNEW gamers.
 
Game 0 / Table 2: HALLI GALLI
 

BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO

 
SK Wong teaching Halli Galli in Table 2. Ken (right) listening attentively in the beginning….
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
  
… but soon he was starting his own gambling Galli variant. LOL
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
 
And after Gambling Galli was done, Ken scouted around the other tables and on seeing Hue Knew, “Wah… Wong, I think this one can make an even better gambling game than Halli Galli!
  
Game 0 / Table 3: SPOT IT!
  

BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO

Waiyan at Table 3 with Spot It.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
 
Janette, first-time Retreat participant enjoying herself with Game Zero’s Spot It!
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
  
Lee Ching was pretty serious with this game. I saw her standing up through out the game…. paying full attention to the cards drawn. Well, she did win this session. πŸ˜›
  
Table 4: SLAMWICH
 

BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO

 
Swee Wan & bro, Jun Keat who hail from Seremban.. Also first-timer to our Retreat and already slamming each other in Slamwich.
  
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
 
Sweet couple, Junyet and Jacelyn in Slamwich.
 
Did this group self-taught themselves Slamwich? Hehe… Not surprising since it’s a very easy game to learn/teach.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
 
Jacelyn (probably after getting her hands slammed in hard by others): “Wait, wait.. let’s lay down some ground rules. No. 1 – don’t SLAM so hard la!”
 
Game 0 / Table 5: JUNGLE SPEED
 

BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO

 Kareem’s teaching Jungle Speed at Table 5.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ZERO
 
Getting Jungle Speed started….
 
You can hear the laughter ricocheting through out the room as everyone was enjoying themselves immensely on Game Zero.  The gamers were then re-grouped according to their finishing position within the tables. No score is yet allocated at this stage. We use Game Zero as a seeding round.
 
More photos for GAME ZERO
 

 
GAME ONE
Game One represents the proper start of the Retreat where scores were now tracked for each game round, culminating with the top scoring gamer winning the top prize for this event, which is a copy of LUNA, one of our recent new arrival from designer Stefan Feld.
 
BGC Retreat 2011 - Game Three
 
Part of the appeal of our Retreat is the mix of new-vs-old games. While two of the games in this round are recent arrivals – Glen More and Speicherstadt – we’ve added three older games (one of them no longer in print/stock) such as Mykerinos, China and O Zoo Le Mio.
 
Table
Game Title
P1
P2
P3
P4
1st
Glen More
lee ching
jun yet
nurul
sk wong
2nd
Mykerinos
teddy
ken yen
ainul (bgc)
bk woo
3rd
Speicherstadt
emil
jacelyn
lc wong
jonathan
4th
China
azmir
kareem
lee peng
swee wan
5th
O Zoo Le Mio
lester
jun keat
janette
daren
 
Game 1 / Table 1 – GLEN MORE
 
 
Arguably the most complex of the five games in this round, GLEN MORE was introduced in Table 1 to the “winners” of Game Zero. Do not be misled by the size of the game box.. this game while playable in under 60 min packs quite a lot of whoop in its gameplay.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Table 1 gamers trying to get their head around the “activation” mechanic of this game of Men in Kilts & Sheeps. πŸ˜›
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
The placing of your newly acquired tile and the activation of your “chief” are key concepts you need to get right very quickly to do well in this game.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Looking at the board above, you would think the game is simple. A small circle of tiles, one meeple per player, how complicated can it get? Aha… that’s what you think. πŸ˜‰
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Everyone appeared so intense in this table! Phew….
 
This game is part of the new trend where the games play relatively fast but pack a lot of oomph in that short playing time.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
It is also a fave of one of our retailer partner FND Mindspot in TTDI having received a very warm welcome there after it was intro-ed by Emil & his gang.
 
Junyet came out as winner for this round with Nurul second. They shall remain in this table while Lee Ching and SK Wong moved down to table 2 for the next game. J
 
Game 1 / Table 2 – MYKERINOS
 
 
This game is about Egyptology and archaeologists constant search for  treasures in the sands of Egypt.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Gamers (as archaeologist) carry out excavations in parcel of land (top tiles) while at the same time, preparing their “discoveries” to be exhibited in the Museum of Mykerinos (below).
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
At its heart, it’s a mix of area majority game (excavation parcel), set collection (treasure) and VP multiplier (museum exhibition).
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Four archaeologists – ainul (bgc), bk, teddy and ken – competing in Mykerinos.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Ainul (representing BGC) making the correct calls in where to excavate and as a result, won this game and moved up to Table 1 with Teddy (runners-up) for the next session.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Ken, hard at work excavating the sands but found mostly junk… so didn’t make the cut to move up the ranks in the next game. He – and BK Woo – moved to Table 3 for the next round. πŸ˜›
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Game 1 / Table 3 – THE SPEICHERSTADT (Warehouse)
 
 
The trend of unpronounceable game titles started with this – The Speicherstadt (or roughly translated as the Warehouse in German). Why can’t they just call it “The Warehouse”? I suppose it’s less sexy compared to “The Speicherstadt”. LOL
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
It’s an auction game featuring an unique bidding mechanism. Money is tight and the winning bid depends on how many competitors put their legs into what you want.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
DerChef Emil setting up the game before teaching the rules to this group.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Wong grumbling to himself as he “hates” bidding games. πŸ˜›
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Jonathan kept a serious face as he remained focus on the task at hand.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Everyone seemed uber-serious now…
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Even the jovial Emil was quietly contemplating his next move.
 
But with derChef around, you can’t hold the seriousness too long…. we all soon hear cackling laughter from that table…
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
Emil: LOL LOL LOL
 
Not sure what made them broke into laughter but they were enjoying themselves… yet Jonathan remained dead serious with the task at hand.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
Emil: Okie okie.. Got to stop laughing. Need to focus on the game la. I think I’m losing.
  
And Jonathan continued to remain dead serious.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
  
Emil enjoying himself. Must have snagged a bountiful auction! As Sifu of the game, he won comfortably.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Do not let that sweet smile deceive you… she plays tough. And deservingly ended up as runners-up in this game and moved up to Table 2 together with Emil.
 
Game 1 / Table 4 – CHINA
 
 
Table 4 had the opportunity to play an old fave that’s out-of-print – CHINA.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
China is a simplified area majority game (not unlike El Grande just simplified) where players compete to build houses (links) and appoint emissaries to grow their influence.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Four over China…
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Azmir trying to lord it all over the rest in China.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Colorful board and nice wooden components make an eye-pleasing game.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Kareem in action in China.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
  
Hmm… China while remaining a simplified El Grande and not as confrontational is still usually competed fiercely. Strangely in this session, everyone seeemd to be cooperating and keeping to their own province! Alamak… MYOB ka?
 
According to Azmir, this was the pre-Three Kingdom era.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Well, Azmir (green) did manage to sneak in a side-shot  in the Chin province but he said he did it too late in the game to influence the final results.
 
So there we have it, a pre-3Kingdom China ended with Kareem and  Swee Wan emerging victorious (both of them were tied on points) and will join Ken & BK in table 3 next.
 
MYOB = Mind Your Own Business
 
Game 1 / Table 5 – O ZOO LE MIO
 
 
While the rest of the tables were doing global trips – Scotland (Glen More), Egypt (Mykerinos), Germany (Speicherstadt) and China (China) – this table was relatively down to earth with a visit to the zoo. J
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
But if you ask Ken Yen (wolfx) – ex-Porky Park zoo director – he’ll tell you this zoo is not for the spatially-challenged gamer. Kekeke.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
CK Au explained to new zoo directors how to run their zoo parks.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
As Zoo Directors, your objective is to bid for the various improvements offered by the City Council to build up your zoo to be the most attractive to visitors (well, an empty zoo is not much useful, yes?). In line with today’s eco-theme, you’ll also get a bonus if your zoo is the most green.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
New zoo directors – Jun Keat and Daren – pondering over their zoo’s expansion plan.
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
It’s a blind bid … so LC Wong’s probably thankful he’s not in this table. J
 
BGC RETREAT 2011 - GAME ONE
 
Lester, newly appointed zoo director taking over Porky Park managed to turn it around and made Porky Park the zoo of choice for this year. As a reward, he’ll get a trip to Macao (Cargo Noir) with Daren, while Janette & Jun Keat remained here for the next session.
 
More photos for GAME ONE
 

  
BGC Retreat 2011 @ Port Dickson
 
Scorecard after Game One. Scores in the 2nd number.
 
For Game Two, we’ve Alien Frontiers, Lords of Vegas, Tobago, Cargo Noir and Mission Red Planet. Stay tune for our next report (click here to read).
 
LINKS
BGC Boardgame Retreat Announcement (click here)
BGC Boardgame Retreat Photo Albums – Game Zero, Game One
 

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