Steve Jackson Games Forums - View Single Post

Darrin · 10-05-2005, 08:39 AM

You could combine options 1) and 2) into something of a hybrid:

1.5) Any time you draw a Special, draw another card and play it to the uncontrolled area. If it's another Special card, discard it and draw again until a group or resource is played to the uncontrolled area.

Thus, you don't force a player to decide whether he needs the special or another group draw.

However, it does reward a player for drawing a Special with an additional group to attack that wasn't there before... which makes drawing specials slightly more powerful than they were to begin with. It also may not fix the problem... a string of Specials in the deck could create a large number of uncontrolled groups, or a "dry spell" in the deck could easily leave the uncontrolled area empty of any groups to attack.

Hmm. I think I like the simplicity and elegance of 2) better.

As for DirkGently's suggestion (4?), it reminds me a great deal of INWO, which of course had both a Group Deck and Plot Deck. I'd want to play around with the mechanics a bit... not sure if ending your turn is an appropriate cost. I guess I'd want to tie the Special draws to the Illuminati abilities:

Discordia: Draw a Special whenever you successfully attack a Weird group.
Bavaria: Draw a Special whenever you successfully attack to control a group with 4 or more Power.
Bermuda: Draw a Special whenever your power structure gains a new alignment.
Gnomes: Once per turn, at the end of your turn, you may pay 10 MB to draw a Special.
UFOs: At the end of your turn, roll 1d6. On a 5 or 6, draw a Special.
Network: At the start of your turn, play one group card to the uncontrolled area and draw one Special.
Cthulhu: Draw a Special whenever you successfully destroy a group, even one of your own.
etc.

Hmmm... some of those might be a bit too gonzo, definately would need a lot of playtesting. I guess what worries me is most is those reward a player who is doing well, while a player that is having trouble could get hopelessly behind and then get starved of specials. Maybe DirkGently's "end your turn" thing is more balanced, much more of a cost or penalty to a player who is already ahead to risk a turn being inactive.

The polar opposite might be the "Cosmic Encounter" variant, where a player could be rewarded a Special as compensation for losing an attack or losing a group from his power structure. Stronger players would have to decide if picking on a weaker rival is worth him giving a Privilege Attack or some other nasty payback, and weaker players get a little help if they're falling behind. Which in turn could mean horribly longer games, as nobody is able to get sufficiently ahead to win or fall sufficiently behind to get eliminated or ignored. Hmmm... rewarding someone for losing or getting picked on, though? That just doesn't sound like Illuminati.

10-05-2005, 08:39 AM	#10
Darrin Join Date: Oct 2005	Re: Rules Update for Illuminati? You could combine options 1) and 2) into something of a hybrid: 1.5) Any time you draw a Special, draw another card and play it to the uncontrolled area. If it's another Special card, discard it and draw again until a group or resource is played to the uncontrolled area. Thus, you don't force a player to decide whether he needs the special or another group draw. However, it does reward a player for drawing a Special with an additional group to attack that wasn't there before... which makes drawing specials slightly more powerful than they were to begin with. It also may not fix the problem... a string of Specials in the deck could create a large number of uncontrolled groups, or a "dry spell" in the deck could easily leave the uncontrolled area empty of any groups to attack. Hmm. I think I like the simplicity and elegance of 2) better. As for DirkGently's suggestion (4?), it reminds me a great deal of INWO, which of course had both a Group Deck and Plot Deck. I'd want to play around with the mechanics a bit... not sure if ending your turn is an appropriate cost. I guess I'd want to tie the Special draws to the Illuminati abilities: Discordia: Draw a Special whenever you successfully attack a Weird group. Bavaria: Draw a Special whenever you successfully attack to control a group with 4 or more Power. Bermuda: Draw a Special whenever your power structure gains a new alignment. Gnomes: Once per turn, at the end of your turn, you may pay 10 MB to draw a Special. UFOs: At the end of your turn, roll 1d6. On a 5 or 6, draw a Special. Network: At the start of your turn, play one group card to the uncontrolled area and draw one Special. Cthulhu: Draw a Special whenever you successfully destroy a group, even one of your own. etc. Hmmm... some of those might be a bit too gonzo, definately would need a lot of playtesting. I guess what worries me is most is those reward a player who is doing well, while a player that is having trouble could get hopelessly behind and then get starved of specials. Maybe DirkGently's "end your turn" thing is more balanced, much more of a cost or penalty to a player who is already ahead to risk a turn being inactive. The polar opposite might be the "Cosmic Encounter" variant, where a player could be rewarded a Special as compensation for losing an attack or losing a group from his power structure. Stronger players would have to decide if picking on a weaker rival is worth him giving a Privilege Attack or some other nasty payback, and weaker players get a little help if they're falling behind. Which in turn could mean horribly longer games, as nobody is able to get sufficiently ahead to win or fall sufficiently behind to get eliminated or ignored. Hmmm... rewarding someone for losing or getting picked on, though? That just doesn't sound like Illuminati.