Introduction

ICON 23 will present gamers with more boardgaming options than ever before. From old classics (like Avalon Hill’s Diplomacy) to new classics (like Rio Grande’s Puerto Rico and Mayfair’s Settlers of Catan, the game that arguably started the whole “Euro Game” rage), there should be an offering to satisfy any gamer’s appetite. Many different games from many different genres will be scheduled and on hand.

In fact, the boardgaming genre as a whole has seen a renaissance as of late – with Eurogames leading the way. These games combine the strategic decision-making of Chess, with easy-to-learn mechanics and an aesthetically pleasing theme, which results in a full immersion for players.

Although these games reward skill and strategy over randomness and luck, there is no true handicap to being new to the game. Newcomers and curious gamers should not shy away; rules will be taught and all are welcome to join in the fun.

Prizes (gift certificates and memberships to Connecticon) will be awarded to the winner of each game, and, additionally, there will be a weekend-long “Iron Man” tournament, with one player ultimately earning the title and prestige of champion (as well as a sizeable prize).

To qualify for the Iron Man tournament, participants must play in at least four games during the weekend. Each game will have scores submitted, and players will be ranked based on how much their score was above or below the average score in the game. At the conclusion of the weekend, the player with the highest above-average score, for all games combined, will be crowned the champion, and will receive a $30 gift certificate (among other prizes) to Monkey Head Games, in Selden, NY. A second- and third-place finisher will also be selected. Further details regarding the tournament will be available onsite during ICON 23.

FRIDAY

Diplomacy
7-8 demo; 8-12, Fri

This classic game of pure negotiation has taken many forms over the years. In the game, players represent one of several European countries (France, Germany, Hungary, etc.) around the time of World War I. There are only two kinds of units: sea and land. On a turn, each of your pieces has very few options: move into an adjoining territory or help another unit more into or defend an adjoining territory. With its incredibly simplistic movement mechanics fused to a significant negotiation element, this system is highly respected by many gamers.

Settlers of Catan
7-9/9-11, Fri

In this game, players try to be the dominant force on the island of Catan by building settlements, cities, and roads. On each turn dice are rolled to determine the current production on the island. Players collect raw materials to build up their civilizations (in the form of roads, buildings and development cards) to gain enough victory points to win the game. This game is a Spiel des Jahres (German game of the year) winner, primarily because of its amazing ability to appeal to non-gamers and gamers alike.

Web of Power
7-9, Fri

Players struggle for influence over regions of Europe by placing two different types of control markers: Monasteries and Advisors. Monasteries are the basic placement, with the goal of securing a majority in a region or chain of monasteries or even decent points from second place. The placement of the Advisors is more restricted as the total number of Advisors in a region is limited by the majority player's number of monasteries. The game is played in two rounds and is very fast paced.

Axis and Allies
8-12, Fri

Axis and Allies depicts WWII on a grand scale, full global level. Up to five players can play on two different teams: The Axis, including Germany and Japan, and the Allies, with the USA, the United Kingdom and the USSR. A full map of the world is provided, broken up in various chunks similar to Risk. The game includes gobs of plastic miniatures that represent various military units during WWII. Players have at their disposal: infantry, armor, fighters, bombers, battleships, aircraft carriers, submarines, troop transports, anti-air guns and factories.

All of the units perform differently and many have special functions. Players have to work together with their teammates in order to coordinate offenses and decide how best to utilize their production points. Players also have the option of risking production resources on the possibility of developing a super technology that might turn the tide of war.

Reiner Knizia’s Samurai
9-11/11-1, Fri

This game is ostensibly set in medieval Japan. Players use hexagonal tiles to surround cities, which have one to three different figures: rice paddies, buddhas, or high hats. The tiles represent influence on particular facets of the cities, and the highest influence on a figure when the city is surrounded takes that figure. The object of the game is to have more of any one else in one category, and then have the most remaining figures.

Citadels
11-1, Fri

Players seek to build a collection of buildings worth from one to eight points. Once someone has built eight buildings, the game ends and the player with the highest total value wins. However to facilitate the process (and make the game interesting), players sequentially chose a character from a rapidly dwindling pool of eight each turn. The characters give players special abilities for the turn.

SATURDAY

Lord of the Rings (and expansions)
10-12, Sat

Lord of the Rings is a co-operative game where the object is to destroy the Ring while surviving the corrupting influence of Sauron. With the two expansions, one player takes the part of Sauron, the Dark Lord, and the remaining players each play one of the Hobbits in the fellowship, each of which has a unique power.

The game is played on a number of boards: the Master board indicates both the physical progress of the fellowship across Middle Earth and the corrupting influence of Sauron on the hobbits, and a number of scenario boards which detail the events and adventures of particular locations. Sauron watches over the players' every move and uses the Black Rider figure and special Sauron and Nazgul cards to strike. New resources come to the Hobbits' support.

Progression across the boards is determined by playing cards (many of which represent the characters and items of Middle Earth), and the effects of corruption are represented by a special die. The game is lost if the ring-bearer is overcome by Sauron, or won if the ring is destroyed by throwing it into the volcanic fires of Mount Doom.

The Friends and Foes expansion adds two new scenario boards (Bree and Isengard), 13 new feature cards and 3 new Gandalf cards. It also adds two completely new features to the game: Foe cards which add a major new aspect to the game; and Character Ability cards which give each character a unique one-shot ability.

Shark
10-12, Sat

Shark is a stock-trading game reminiscent of Acquire, in that abstract plays on the game board determine the share values of the various companies. Each player may buy and sell shares both before and after his turn, and during his turn, rolls dice to determine which company he can affect and in what region he can place that company's marker.

Placing next to another of that company's markers increases the company's share price, which pays out in two ways: first, for placing the marker, the player gets money equal to the new price, and secondly, all players get paid the amount of the increase, multiplied by the number of shares each of them owns.

This wealth is not without risks, though, as placing in a way that brings two companies' marker-groups adjacent to each other causes the smaller group to be removed from the board, decreasing that company's share price accordingly -- and all players must pay the amount of the decrease, again multiplied by the number of shares they hold in that company!

The game ends when all of one company's markers have been used, or one company's share price reaches 15, at which time the players cash out their stock and determine who, with the most money, has won.

Fortress America
10-2, Sat

Fortress America depicts an alternate near future in which all of the world attacks and invades the continental United States. From the west arrives hordes of Asian foes; from the south arrives a union of South American countries through Mexico, and from the east lands legions of Soviets who have taken over all of Europe. America besieged has to rely on the remaining ground and air forces left in the country along with partisan uprisings to defend mom's apple pie.

One player is the US and up to three others control the invading units from a particular direction. The units in the game include conventional infantry, APCs, hovertanks, helicopters, bombers, US partisan units, and special "Star Wars" laser relays systems that fire from space.

The game emphasizes combined arms, in that players get a bonus if infantry, mechanized and air power is all used in a conflict. For the invading countries all the units they receive for the game are given at the start so they must manage them wisely. The US however starts with a skeleton defense and builds up throughout the game through a random deck of cards. Further, the US slowly builds up its Star Wars system, and so the longer the invaders are delayed the more powerful the US becomes both conventionally and through their defense system.

This game is part of the Gamemaster series of games that came out by Milton Bradley in the 1980's. The whole series is famous for their high production value and their low complexity, thus they offered a great series of beginner level wargames that were both eye catching with their plastic pieces and the ability to play an entire game in one evening.

Traders of Genoa
12-3, Sat

Players take the part of Renaissance traders, moving about the city acquiring goods and filling orders for goods. Messages need to be delivered and privileges need to be obtained. Of course none of this can be accomplished on one's own. Much negotiation and deal-making is the order of the day in an effort to become the richest deal-maker in Genoa.

Puerto Rico
12-3, Sat

The players are plantation owners in Puerto Rico in the days when the ships had sails. Growing up to five different kind of crops: Corn, Indigo, Coffee, Sugar and Tobacco, they must try to run their business more efficiently than their close competitors.

A unique game system lets the players choose the order of the phases in each turn, and the player who understands how to employ these most effectively, will win the game. The game has been called an “Instant Classic” due to its innovative mechanics.

Amun-Re
12-3, Sat

This strategy game is set in ancient Egypt. Players try to outdo each other in building pyramids and growing crops, but must watch out for floods and droughts along the Nile.

Risk DeathMatch
3-7, Sat

Widely accepted as the first mainstream wargame, players are given tons of little army units to place onto the map of the world. When it's your turn, you use your units to attack other players' positions, hopefully with superior numbers. Combat is a simple dice rolling affair that stresses attrition, and reinforcements are given to players who collect sets of cards. This game will use a GM variant, where all players receive all units at the start of the game.

2038
3-8, Sat

2038 is a space mining adaptation of the 18xx series of games. First, you have the ever-important stock trading rounds followed by operating rounds where you try to deliver commodities mined from the asteroid belt.

Colonial Diplomacy
3-8, Sat

This is a different version of the original Avalon Hill classic, Diplomacy. Players represent one of the colonial countries (France, Spain, etc.) sparring over the lands and riches of the Far East. There are only two kinds of units: sea and land. On a turn, each of your pieces has very few options: move into an adjoining territory or help another unit more into or defend an adjoining territory. With its incredibly simplistic movement mechanics fused to a significant negotiation element, this system is highly respected by many a gamer.

Samurai Swords
3-9, Sat

Samurai Swords is the last game in the original Milton Bradley Gamemaster series (see “Fortress America,” Sat, 10am). It focuses on the chaotic feudal society of Japan during the Middle Ages. Players play one of several factions that erupt into a civil war, trying to consolidate their strongholds and then defeat other armies for the right to be called Shogun, the supreme ruler.

Carcassonne
7-9, Sat

Players pull a tile from the pool and then place it against one of the previously played tiles. If you create a new object (like a city or a road or a farm), then you can place one of your control markers on the tile to denote your control. As subsequent tiles are placed on the board, objects get bigger or even merge. Once certain objects are completed (like roads and cities) then you score the points and the control marker is returned to you.

However, it's possible to have all of your control markers locked on the board on incomplete objects. The goal is to have the most points at the end, which can be tricky to control considering your choice for each turn isn't the tile itself, but rather the placement of the tile that you drew.

Atlantic Storm
7-9, Sat

In this unique take on the trick-taking genre, cards represent the units attacked or defended Allied convoys in the North Atlantic throughout World War II.

For each trick, the lead player selects a convoy that traversed either the Arctic or the Atlantic in a given year (1940-1943), then declares whether the battle will be fought in the air, on the surface of the ocean, or under the sea. He follows that up by playing a unit, either German or Allied, that was available in the chosen year and could fight in the chosen environment, and the other players subsequently either pass or play a unit that meets the same conditions.

When all players have made their selections, dice (sometimes) are rolled and totals are compared to determine whether the Germans or the Allies won. The player who contributed the most to the winning team acquires the convoy as well as all opposing enemy ships, giving him both victory points and possibly an increased hand size. After twenty convoys have been fought over in this manner, the player with the most victory points' worth of convoys and captured ships wins the game!

Tigris & Euphrates
7-10, Sat

The game is set in the ancient fertile crescent, with players building civilizations through tile placement. Basically, players are given leaders in four different categories (farming, trading, religion, and government) and must use them to collect victory points in these categories. However, your score at the end of the game is the number of points in your weakest category, which encourages players not to get overly specialized.

Settlers of the Stone Age
9-11, Sat

This game uses the same mechanics as The Settlers of Catan, but is a standalone game by itself. Players are in control of Homo Sapiens and their development across the continents. Victory Points are given for establishing new Tribes, settling on all continents, and evolutionary progress.

The game map shows Africa, Europe, Asia, America and Australia/Oceania. Players familiar with Settlers will recognize the four hexagonal tile types that indicate different geographical regions. At the start of the game, each player possesses three tree trunks in Africa (these trunks function similarly to towns in the original Settlers game). Players use these bases to provide the vital tools of survival: meat, bone, skins, and flint.

Obviously, it won’t be possible to reach America or Australia until a player has developed the necessary equipment to build ocean-worthy boats. The development of hunting and weapons is necessary to fend off the attacks of barbarous nomads! As the players represent dynamic Humanity, it stands to reason that they will barter amongst themselves, trading skins, flints, bones and meat. The axiom “one hand washes the other” will prove to be the basis for any player’s success.

Players are rewarded with Victory Points, for the establishment of new trunks in the ever-expanding inhabited World, but also for adapting to difficult climactic conditions, exploring particularly hostile environments, and spreading to all five of the World’s continents.

Puerto Rico
9-12, Sat

See 12pm Saturday for description

Age of Mythology
10-1, Sat

The ultimate real-time strategy game jumps off the screen and onto your tabletop! A game of epic proportions...

Players control armies made up of warriors, priests, heroes, and mythical creatures from ancient Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythology. They gather resources, which allow them to create buildings and armies. Special buildings are required to allow players to build new army types and improve the abilities of their units. Battles are resolved with a unique dice and card system that keeps the action moving. You get all the fast-paced action of a real-time game, with real 3-D pieces, and face-to-face gameplay!

Munchkin
11-1, Sat

"Kill the monsters - Steal the treasure - Stab your buddy" Munchkin is a stand-alone card game designed by Steve Jackson that simulates a fantasy-themed RPG (oh, ok, D&D) in a simple, card-based game that's chock full o' silliness. Everyone begins the game as a 1st level Human with NO Class (heh-heh) and via cards, they acquire Races (Elf, Dwarf, etc.), Classes (Thief, Wizard, Cleric, etc.), Items, Armor, Potions and more that they use to combat hideous monsters like the 4th level Undead Horse, the 10th level Net Troll and the 14th Level Unspeakably Awful, Indescribable Horror (very nasty, indeed). The object of the game is to reach Level 10 and levels are acquired via the slaying of monsters and the selling of acquired treasure (1,000 Gold Pieces equals 1 Level). Very silly and a lot of fun!

SUNDAY

Acquire
10-12, Sun

Each player strategically invests in businesses, trying to retain a majority of stock. When the various businesses grow with tile placements, they also start merging, giving the majority stockholders collect sizeable bonuses, which can then be used to reinvest into other chains. Plus all of the investors can then cash in their stocks for current value or trade them 2-for-1 for shares of the newer, larger business. The game is a race to acquire the greatest wealth.

Cosmic Encounter
10-12, Sun

Player represent alien races that are seeking to spread themselves onto five foreign worlds. To accomplish this, they make challenges against other players and enlist the aid of interested parties. But all that would be boring without alien powers, which are unique to each race. The alien powers give players ways to bend or outright break some rule in the game...

Medici
10-12, Sun

The object is to accrue the most points during three rounds, which you do by spending your points to bid on sets of cards. Each turn the current player turns up one to three cards for all the players to bid on, with the highest bid taking all cards. The cards denote a commodity type and a size. After each round, points are awarded to whoever has the largest total size and the most of a given commodity.

Age of Rennaissance
10-3, Sun

A semi-sequel to Avalon Hill’s epic Civilization, on a less time-intensive scale. Players attempt to build up their cultures during the Middle Ages through economics and conflict.

Corsairs
12-2, Sun

Rival corsairs search the seas for galleys loaded with booty, which they will board and loot. To overtake and loot a galley, the pirates need sufficient provisions. But a player needs a strong crew to keep others from taking one's catch away.

Union Pacific
12-3, Sun

Players are seeking to control various train companies by taking cards, which are shares in the company. When a player has more shares than the others, he scores points based on how big the company is. Over the course of the game however, players must chose to either expand the companies or play stock from their hand. But the real hook is that when the randomly determined scoring rounds occur, only played stock counts, which makes for some uncertain moments.

Merchant of Venus
12-4, Sun

Described by many as a railroading game in space, this classic title from Avalon Hill uses many elements, which come together to form a very interesting game. Players take on the roles of space traders who move their ships through interconnected systems discovering new alien worlds to exploit. As players start to make money by delivering commodities in a very unique supply and demand system, their earnings can be used to purchase better ships and equipment, or to buy factories, which create better commodities. In the end, the player with the most cash takes the day.

Rail Baron
12-4, Sun

Players move trains along historical USA railroad lines and collect delivery payoffs. They compete to purchase the railroads in order to assemble a network that gives access to important map destinations while simultaneously trying to prevent their opponents from doing so.

Axis and Allies
2-6, Sun

See 8pm Friday for description.

The boardgaming track and associated prizes is sponsored by Monkey Head Games, Selden, NY.