I purchased this game at a Kay-Bee Toys closeout sale back in '98 or '99 for under $2.00 as a matter of principle (Old Avalon Hill games for under $15 are an auto-sale for me). I also got London Burning and Advanced Third Reich for the same price at the same time. It went unpunched and unplayed and moved with me to several different homes in several states before the other night when we finally unpacked, punched the tiles and set it up.
What a great game! Everyone who played was hooked from the first minute. You play one of six spacefaring trading races and start with a transport and between 60-120 spacebucks ($20 for each player in the game) and must build your empire to $2000 by moving around the galaxy, discovering new cultures, buying cheap and selling dear. On the surface the mechanics and rules are deceptively simple. You move by rolling dice, buy goods and build space stations and factories and occasionally encounter hazards and penalties (which you can buy equipment to deal with) but the charm of the game rests in its subtleties. If you can establish a quick route between cultures and demand gets spiked in one of them for a product the other has, you can quickly amass the needed money, upgrade your ship and/or purchase items you need.
There is a roleplaying component because of the ship upgrades, cultural differences and the general flavor of the game, but it is essentially a very intriguing and early take on the "Tycoon" genre. It is so addictive that we wound up playing until 5AM the first night (two games, 3 hrs for the first, 1 1/2 for the second) and 4AM on the second night. We got together a little while ago for a night of pure MoV and got in three games with average time including setup at between 1 1/2 and 2 hrs. the game is whimsical, non-combative and nicely paced. All in all a good entry-level game for AH. While not as complex and compelling as Kingmaker or ATR, this game will be replayed many times, I believe.
If you can find a copy of the game and enjoy Sci-Fi settings and trading games, I highly recommend this game. We have become utterly geeked out on it, and as a bonus, my fiancee actually likes this game as well- she usually only plays Munchkin and Carcassone with us. This is her first foray into "serious" gaming. Maybe next I will be able to get her to play Advanced Third Reich... Heh heh heh.
On a side note if anyone knows where i can get a copy of Kingmaker by AH, please let me know. It used to be my favorite game growing up and I would love to play again. I would be willing to trade other AH games or buy it.
I completely agree, this is a fabulous game. I got into it back in the early 90's when a good friend who was into Avalon Hill games introduced me to it. I since bought a copy for myself and another friend. A great blend of trading, discovery, and if you're really mean, combat.
Have you tried playing with the xenophobic alien race? - the name of them escapes me at the moment - because it becomes an entirely different game then. There has to be a certain level of cooperation to keep the advancing alien race in check, but at the same time you can screw fellow players over by placing the really powerful aliens on spaceports that they own. Fantastic!
I can't wait to try out the optional rules with the Rastur (I believe) and combat. Unfortunately I play with a bunch of peacenik hippies (just kiddin', you know I don't mean it *wink*) who really love the non-hostile nature of it. I am sure once we have played a few more times, I can talk them into it, but without combat, the frontrunner breaks away very quickly in the $2000 dollar game, and no one can catch him or her. Now I am really looking forward to trying some of the optional rules. Thanks!
I have had this game for years; my friends and i get together and play it some times along with some of our other favorites like buck rogers and illuminatii and of course acquire. Is a nice break between roleplaying games when one gm wants to take a break and the next guy isnt quite ready to start. I wont say I am a master at Merchants of Venus, but I win a whole lot.
Yep, I don't even win that often, but I really love the game, its going on my shortlist desert island top 5 card & board games, I think...
Did any of you other guys have problems with the Mulligan Drive relic? It seemed that in our early games whoever got the Mulligan Drive won. We took it out and since then there have been no runaway games.
I think we will play pur first game with combat this week. Wish me luck!
-S
Hmm, I dont know that that drive has ever been a problem; doesnt stand out as one anyhow; seems more a matter of choosing your cargo and planning your routes.
Hmm, I dont know that that drive has ever been a problem; doesnt stand out as one anyhow; seems more a matter of choosing your cargo and planning your routes.
Most assuredly, but it seemed so very overpowered, especially if the player got red and yellow drives and was working the navigation circles. And there's only one, and without combat, there's no way to inhibit the player with the drive or take it from him- not sure if that is possible w/ combat rules as I only glanced at them.
I suspect we may have misinterpreted the rules. I will have to check it out more closely. Perhaps it was also that it came up in all 4 of our first games. With the randomness, I figured it would be rarer. There are still relics that haven't come up in play in our ten total.
personally, I haven't found the combat to affect the game much or as that useful; we always play with it, but is more of an act of desparation or comedy.
We played last night with three players, combat and the Rastur. One player happily took on the role of Rastur-blaster, while I zipped around in a combo drive clipper avoiding all confrontation, establishing a network of starbases.
I nearly won, but in the end my woman smacked both of us boys down with her quiet determination and tireless trading. It was fun and we never really fought eachother beyond placing Rastur in eachother's way. This was one of our best sessions to date, and we all felt very satisfied with the results. In a game with combat and/or the rastur, the mulligan drive doesn't unbalance the game as much and there is no "runaway" factor. We all stayed very close the whole way through.