korexus wrote:
Refusing to be drawn on "Q" and "S".
korexus.
OK, since you
insist on dragging it out of me .....
We'll surely leave them till next year, but Quintet and Sextet are aimed to be at the opposite end of the spectrum from Duel and Duel-Lite. Duels have zero diplomacy, nice and clean, sheer strategy and tactics. Quintet and Sextet have max diplomacy, they are diplomatic nightmares, especially Sextet.
QUINTET
* For five human players (you guessed).
* One slot/colour each.
* The other five slots/colours start as humans who have quit, ie a human start-prov, but inactive. Rather than as Robos. The game will be complex enough without Robos. They sit as blockages or targets, making the terrain more interesting ...
* Each player has one of the other four human players as his
secret target. A player wins as soon as his target-human is ripped.
* ie, as soon as one player loses, another player has won...
* So, you have to look out for, and figure out, who is trying to rip YOU, but don't weaken him TOO much, or you've made him easy for the player who has HIM as his target ... After all, as soon as one player loses, YOU have also lost ...
* Diplomatic nightmare. You don't know who's after you. You are trying to hide who(m) you are after. You don't want anyone to get ripped; not before your own target; you may even have to PROTECT a player who looks like being ripped; or else persuade others to, if you can persuade players C and D that player B is about to rip Player E and win ...so they'd better get in the way ... Of course, C and D might think you are misleading them ... and one of them is probably after YOUR skin ...
This is different from A targets B targets C targets A for Trinity, if we go with that. BECAUSE: with five players, you don't know who is after whom! When you do your diplomacy, each of you has a secret agenda ...
SEXTET
* The harder version of Quintet. The ultimate in complex diplomacy.
* For six human players (you guessed).
* One slot/colour each.
* The other four slots/colours start as humans who have quit, ie a human start-prov, but inactive. Rather than as Robos. The game will be complex enough without Robos. They sit as blockages or targets, making the terrain more interesting ...
* Each player has TWO of the other five human players as his
secret targets. A player wins as soon as his TWO target-humans are ripped, by anybody. [Yes, two players could theoretically have the same human as their second target and thus share the win].
* Diplomatic double-nightmare. Somebody as well as you ALSO wants player B dead. But who? And the
other 3 human players definitely DON'T want player B dead, as it will help two players and not them... But two players [probably] are also after YOU. Leaving three players who DON'T want you dead ... but who?
* Once one player is eliminated, it becomes even more knife-edge: two of the remaining 5 have [probably] scored a first rip, and each now needs a particular next human to get eliminated; but each a different one. And you may have spotted ONE rival, Player B, who benefitted from player C being ripped [Player B just ripped him!], but you're guessing as to which OTHER player ALSO had the ripped player C as their target ... So, band together to stop Player B getting a second rip, his other target ... BUT, one of the 3 of you talking about how to stop Player B
also has one target under his belt; and is gunning for one of you ... or maybe for Player B as his next target ... so stop Player B but try not to kill him off for someone else ... Got the picture?!
Try diplomatically negotiating through that minefield!! Lots of bluffing and misdirection required.
Therein lies my design problem with them:
Are naps supposed to be unbreakable? Or are they just bluffs if you need to bluff? Otherwise, in Quintet, you offer naps with all 4 others, and the one who demurs is the one who is after you. So all have to say yes to avoid being the only one to say no. Possible stalemate. Less so in Sextet, but still an issue. I'd LIKE to keep the same spirit of naps being always honoured rather than bluffs. Looking for a solution ... feel free to suggest.
Hannibal