Two of my three favorite games are Scythe and Paladins of the West Kingdom. As you were saying, in Scythe you might want to Enlist and bet on what your neighbors are doing, or you might rather upgrade since that's more focused on your own plans. This immediately reminded me of something I like about Paladins. You could lean into actions like Commission and Garrison, which are powerful but where you compete with other players for bonus spaces, or you could lean into Absolve and Fortify, where you aren't competing. There are many other examples built into Paladins where you have different pros/cons going after different actions (costs, end game points, etc.). I think this makes both games fun.
Scythe was my favorite game for a really long time. Unfortunately, a lot of my love for the game comes from the modular nature of the expansions, along with one of if not the best campaign expansions of all time. I appreciated the comment that many games are only played a few times, and so they have to be fun and accessible right from the start. I've had some people who are not big gamers really get overwhelmed at Scythe despite the fact that I perceive it as accessible and logical. I tried to run a game at a convention with a bunch of the modules, and everyone who signed up ignored the "for experience players" tag. It really underscored for me the reality that unless you have a group solely dedicated to one game, there's going to be a point where some games just aren't fun because certainly players just know it better than others (and for me, Scythe is that game). Likewise, while there is some randomness to the encounter cards, I've found that the top tier players essentially have each game mapped out to about 12-13 turns based just on their player board/faction board combination. I think I'm pretty good at adjusting to modular strategy but I've never been a "memorize all the Chess openings" type player, and for really good players Scythe (Base game only) becomes that predictable. I still love this game a lot, I just wish I had people who loved it like I do with the modular elements (Infrastructure mods, Airships, and modular triumph tiles are my favorite).
Two of my three favorite games are Scythe and Paladins of the West Kingdom. As you were saying, in Scythe you might want to Enlist and bet on what your neighbors are doing, or you might rather upgrade since that's more focused on your own plans. This immediately reminded me of something I like about Paladins. You could lean into actions like Commission and Garrison, which are powerful but where you compete with other players for bonus spaces, or you could lean into Absolve and Fortify, where you aren't competing. There are many other examples built into Paladins where you have different pros/cons going after different actions (costs, end game points, etc.). I think this makes both games fun.
Thanks Steven! So pleased you enjoy Paladins, and I agree completely with your thoughts on Scythe!
Scythe was my favorite game for a really long time. Unfortunately, a lot of my love for the game comes from the modular nature of the expansions, along with one of if not the best campaign expansions of all time. I appreciated the comment that many games are only played a few times, and so they have to be fun and accessible right from the start. I've had some people who are not big gamers really get overwhelmed at Scythe despite the fact that I perceive it as accessible and logical. I tried to run a game at a convention with a bunch of the modules, and everyone who signed up ignored the "for experience players" tag. It really underscored for me the reality that unless you have a group solely dedicated to one game, there's going to be a point where some games just aren't fun because certainly players just know it better than others (and for me, Scythe is that game). Likewise, while there is some randomness to the encounter cards, I've found that the top tier players essentially have each game mapped out to about 12-13 turns based just on their player board/faction board combination. I think I'm pretty good at adjusting to modular strategy but I've never been a "memorize all the Chess openings" type player, and for really good players Scythe (Base game only) becomes that predictable. I still love this game a lot, I just wish I had people who loved it like I do with the modular elements (Infrastructure mods, Airships, and modular triumph tiles are my favorite).