Notes from Sixty-ninth Playtest

Two player game with Cybil.

What we tried

1. Simplified combat math - roll the number on the weapon,
2. Animals don't move when wounded by weapon or torch,
3. Don't collect new your new goal until re-spawning that character.

Conclusion

I like this new combat system. Not having to do any math speeds play along. Weapons are still variable power relative to each other, each weapon is just more similar to itself when hunting different animals.

Next Steps

I'm going to update the graphic design on the animal tiles so that there are hearts for life, removing 2 numbers (3 digits) from each.

I'll also update the equipment cards to a smaller size which will fit better on the table.

Lastly, I'll update the rules. I'll get to trim out a bunch (with these changes I've even removed the knife). Once it's been proofread again I'll update the game on Game Crafter.

Notes from Sixty-eighth Playtest

Eddy rolls 3 ones,
the next turn I did the same!

Simplified Combat, Take 2

What we tried:

1. "to hit" number on the weapon (less math!)
2. wounded animals don't move
3. if multiple weapons are used, weapons are selected before rolling. If either misses against a deadly animal, the character dies.

The game plays even smoother with so much of the math removed from combat, but the weapons retain their distinction, and characters still die. Man do they die. I died twice, Eddy three times, and Lester 4. Lester almost won with the Speaker for the Dead goal!

Notes:

I'll also remove the animal movement when wounded with a torch. That will remove the animal movement rules entirely, and also clear up an odd exception where you could drive an animal away and explore the same spot again.

Next Steps:

Get in another playtest or two, update the equipment (smaller cards), and rules.

Streamlined Combat

Today's experiment:

Remove half the math from the combat system, while retaining as much game balance as possible.

Instead of having the number that you need to roll on the disk, and the bonus to your die roll on the weapon, I averaged out the odds of hitting in the old system, and put the number you need to roll on the card. The life/damage numbers are changed to more visually oriented to hearts.

Initial Thoughts:

The weapons seem more normalized. The club got a lot more use even without its special power. The deadly animals felt less scary. I guess even though with the old system the highest you'd ever need to roll is a 12 (with the +1 from a club), it's still scary to see a Wolf with its 13 to hit.

The game plays very fast, closer to 30 minutes with 5 players. Definitely time to try it out with 36 tiles instead of 24.

Left to right: Eddy, Dan, Kris, Lester

In the Wild

A couple seedy looking fellows playing Hunt or Gather in a bar.

GenCon 2012

Hunt or Gather Demo at the Game Crafter booth

Rules Rewrite

Published an update to the rules today. After getting feedback from 4 "blind playtest" groups I re-worked the rules so the game would be easier to learn for the first time without anybody there to teach it. I got the rules reviewed edited by a third editor, and also proofread by another person. Here they are:

• Hunt or Gather Rules.pdf

Tomorrow I'll order a few copies to put together and send out for another round of playtesting and review.

Initial Reviews

There are a couple great reviews of Hunt or Gather up on The Game Crafter. One is from a playtester, but one who did not work with me on the game and learned it directly from the rules, and the other is from the print-on-demand publisher where it is featured as a staff pick!


"...There's enough strategy to keep you engaged, but not so much you need to obsess over every decision. In other words, it's the kind of game that's actually fun to play.

The game's competitive, but not mean spirited. You can't hurt your opponent directly, though the rules encourage you to tell white lies here and there. Hunt or Gather favors trickery, strategy, and out-of-the-box thinking, which makes victory all the sweeter..."

-Erin Snyder


"This is a great game that works well whether you're a group of two or a group of five. Most games that are designed for two player don't scale as well when you go up to larger groups, but this one does a great job.
...
You know you've picked a good game when your friends ask to play it again. And H||G got played three times in one day with my particular group. For that reason I give the game 5 stars."

-JT

For the full text of these reviews visit the Hunt or Gather page on Game Crafter.