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This isn't quite a formal review in the set review style (this product
doesn't have a set number) but hopefully it is of some help to folks.
We received the Bionicle card game (First edition, Deck 1 of 3: "Gali /
Pohatu" 14.99 from US S@H) on Friday from S@H.
It's actually pretty decent. A good blend of strategy and luck.
This opinion is from someone that doesn't play much MTG or Pokemon (or *any*
collectible games, actually) so a big MTG fan may think it rather simplistic
(I couldn't say). However I DO have a large collection of games (except by
ultragamer standards), at over 50 board games and 20 card/dice games and a
fair bit of experience playing new games.
The basic idea is that you have to move your toa (represented by a mask) one
space per move around the board and win 6 challenge matches (similar to
Pokemon, there) to win 6 masks. The board has action card spaces where you
must draw cards that usually help you or hinder your opponent, and mission
card spaces where you must draw cards that impose quests on you and hinder
your progress.
Like many of these games, most of the cards are kept separate, you have your
piles and your opponent has his. Only a few piles (missions, great mask
challenge) are shared.
You do a challenge match by moving to a square for it. The match itself is a
straight matchup of your toa's attribute in one of 6 areas against your
opponents, as modified by any penalties or helps.
If the challenger wins, he gets a mask card from his specific pile. If he
loses, the defender gets nothing. The mask card may be an actual mask (6 of
9, these boost one particular skill) or a turaga attribute that aids you
(move two spaces instead of one, draw two action cards instead of one,
general skill bonus)
The skills have no effect on your general play except that they are the
thing that is challenged with. That is, the skill of flying doesn't get you
moving around the board faster when it is higher, for example, it just is
used to determine a challenge if "flying" comes up as the skill to test on.
I found the key to winning is careful board positioning and planning, so
that you can accomplish much in few turns, and in switching which turaga
aspect you have helping you at which point, once you have them.
Nik was able to pick up the basics in one play through, but he usually whups
me at Pokemon when we play. The tutorial mode confused me because it seemed
to need such complex setup just to demonstrate a few (not all) of the things
that can happen.
There are some ambiguities in the rules, we had questions around when one
could do things like attatch/detatch, what to do with quests for action
cards if you got more cards than you needed (I got Nik to where he had 5
penalty quests to perform before he could resume normal play, poor guy,
there was a "get one card, go to a portal, get three cards" sequence and he
got 2 cards.. did he get to USE a card while on the way to the portal?) and
so on.
Rules said to go online to http://www.upperdeck.com/bionicle/ if the
FAQ didn't answer questions. Too lazy to do that while playing. Checked just
now and it's not up yet.
It's from Upperdeck. I didn't recognise any of the designer/playtester
names. I may actually go ahead and get one of the other card sets, so that
we have more characters to choose from (they have different attribute mixes
for the contest "great mask challenge") but more importantly so I can see if
a 4 player variant works.
I will try to remember to bring my copy to Brickfest... if I can pry it away
from Nik, who has been teaching his friends. (He *loves* being the kid who
gets LEGO before anyone else does in his circle)
++Lar
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