Gameblog

Tag: Hammer of the Scots

  • Anagrams of Boardgame Titles

    Being a some kind of word person myself, I found the geeklist Anagrams of Boardgame Titles rather interesting. My favourite of the crop is probably one twisted from Hammer of the Scots: "Shame, frost cometh" — that’s certainly what English player might think when his attack to crush the Scottish resistance would need just one…

  • Hammer of the Scots

    I met Juho on the Scottish fields of battle yesterday. Hammer of the Scots is one of my more successful games this year: I’ve played it four times now and I’ve won every single game. This time it was a marginal victory, I think the nobles split 8-6. I got a good start, mostly because…

  • Hammer of the Scots, rules v.2.0

    As I promised earlier, I hereby announce the version 2.0 rules for Hammer of the Scots have finally been published. You can go get them from Columbia Games Hammer web site. I don’t have Acrobat Reader installed on this computer, so I haven’t taken a look at them, but if they incorporate the changes mentioned…

  • Hammer of the Scots

    I wrote a review of Hammer of the Scots in Finnish. I think Hammer of the Scots is a first-class game. It’s pretty straightforward to learn, easy to play, doesn’t take too long and the theme is interesting. If you don’t like cardboard chits (I generally don’t), worry not, because the Columbia blocks are very…

  • Mikko, the King of Scotland

    I played a game of Hammer of the Scots. We drew lots for scenario and sides; I got the Scots with the Braveheart (next time I’ll try the Bruce, I suppose). Last two games I’ve played, I’ve played English. I’ve won both games as marginal victories. Back in January, I said "I believe that Scots…

  • Lahti games weekend, Saturday and Sunday

    After a badly slept night a new morning dawned. While waiting for the breakfast, I played a game of 6 Nimmt!. We played it differently, using (almost) the Terminal City Gamers variant. Instead of several rounds, we played just two, without shuffling the deck or the cards on the table between them. It was a…

  • Bloody rebels

    Today we played a game of Liberty, which is a block strategy game about the American revolution from Columbia Games. The block system was already familiar to me from Hammer of the Scots, so most of it was smooth sailing for me rules-wise. The navies (something HOTS doesn’t have) caused some confusion. The game was…

  • Hammer of the Scots

    Our Hammer of the Scots match was very interesting. It took us about 30 minutes to go through the rules and set up the game. The game itself took three hours and ended as the victory of the English, played by yours truly. It was an exciting game. Last time I played (in Lahti) I…

  • Hammer of the Scots and the Columbia Games independence

    I’ve been offered 100 euros for my copy of Hammer of the Scots. Reason is, of course, the decision made by Columbia Games: “To improve product output and customer service, all Columbia Games products will henceforth be sold ONLY by mail order, telephone, or via www.columbiagames.com.” Which is of course nice, except when you live…

  • Lahti Board Game Weekend, Saturday

    After less-than-well slept night (maybe the real-size Space Marine helmets I slept next to haunted my sleep?) it was a new day and new games. The breakfast — eggs, bacon, french fries — was sturdy and sure to clog arteries. That’s just nice. The first game of the morning was a classic — Dragon’s Gold.…