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Annotated Games: Version 1.0, 4 playersThis game was played during game testing of version 1.0 of Iconoclasm. In this version, the reduction of element strength at external clashes was abandoned in favor of replacing elements with spirits. The moves up to turn 5 are identical with the version 0.9 test. The hexes have a color for the element (red=fire, blue=water, white=air, green=earth, black=spirit) and if a hex has a temple, it's marked with the first letter of the element (F, W, A, E).
For test purpose, the players follow pre-defined strategies. Fire promotes earth temples, hoping to overtake them after iconoclasms. Water aims at building strong early temples with earth support. Air tries to lose earth tiles early while saving air tiles to last. Earth finally attempts to pair earth tiles and split other element tiles.
Fire starts playing for an earth temple with fire presence in the center while water connects her water tiles with earth. Air also adds earth, hoping that an early iconoclasm will damage her main opponent. Earth ignores the center and builds on a weak multi-colored temple in the lower left.
Fire connects fire and earth tiles with a neutral spirit tile while water goes all in to create a strong water temple. Air dumps an earth tile in desolated area and earth keeps building on her weak temple with a fire.
Fire is concerned about the strong water temple and connects it with the other prospective temple on the lower board so that they may weaken each other. Water plays her last water and gets help by air, who wants to see the others in early iconoclasms, to complete a water temple. Earth plays an air tile, hoping to see an air temple built and destroyed.
Fire plays earth and builds an air temple to weaken the water temple. The game's first iconoclasm takes place and water wins easily with 5 water vs 3 air. The temple is removed together with the air tiles at C2 and D2 and the spirit tiles at E2 and D3. 1 water is replaced by a spirit.
Water plays a spirit tile to start blocking connections to the water temple. Air has accomplished the opening objective to drop all earth tiles and now continue to drop fire tiles. Earth builds a fire temple with the long-term objective of building an earth temple with water support once the fire temple has been destroyed.
Fire is too weak to defeat the water temple and plays a protective spirit. Water plays spirit to make a potential new temple in the lower part weak. Air also plays spirit but her reason is to keep the color of the future temple open. Earth connects tiles around the water temple, expecting it to be gone soon.
Fire plays earth with the idea of building an earth temple. An earth temple would defeat the water temple but 1 earth would be replaced by a spirit. Fire could then potentially take over the temple and win the game with 2 temples. Water plays air to connect this future temple with the fire temple, hoping that whoever builds it won't fight the water temple first. With all her competitors close to temples, air can play for devastating external clashes but must play carefully to avoid letting any of them end up with 2 temples. She chooses to build an earth temple and this starts a chain of events.
Air chooses to let the fire temple and the earth temple clash first. Fire wins with 5 fire vs 4 earth BUT also replaces 1 fire with 1 spirit. This means that both fire and earth have 2 elements each and with fire supporting earth, earth takes over the temple. Now the two remaining temples clash.
Earth and water both have 4 elements but earth has support from 2 fire and wins the external clash. However, since 1 earth is replaced by 1 spirit, fire is once again stronger and takes back the temple. Air succeeded in removing elements of all competitors this turn but earth ends with a 4th earth in the group in the lower right and has a strong position for a future temple there.
Fire fears a strong earth temple and plays a spirit to build a weaker temple instead. Water and air are more interested in breaking the strong earth presence first and play one spirit each to build an earth temple. The earth temple loses the external clash with 3 earth +vs 3 fire + 1 earth but is taken over by water.
Earth sees no good opportunities for an earth temple right now and saves her last earth.
Fire plays a water into the earth group to weaken it while water adds a supporting earth in another group in a vain hope that it will help her water temple in the next clash. This gives air an opportunity to build a "free" air temple without spending any air (or, rather, build a fire temple and then take over it). The fire temple defeats the water temple with 3 fire vs 2 water but after the replacement of 1 fire for 1 spirit, air gets stronger and takes over the temple.
Earth concludes the turn with a central spirit to isolate the future earth temple in the lower
right from temples in the other parts of the board.
All players prepare temples; fire (by placing fire close to each other), water in the lower left (an air temple to be taken over), air in the upper part (an air temple with water support) and earth in the lower right (an earth temple with fire support).
Fire plays air, partly to support the air temple against the future earth temple and partly to support a fire temple afterwards. Water links her element with air, hoping to take over an air temple, and air accepts the challenge by playing another air to the group. Earth plays a water to prevent a second air temple and also link two of her earth.
Fire builds a water temple to prevent a 2nd air temple from being completed. The water temple defeats the air temple with 4 water + 2 earth vs 4 air but after 1 water is replaced by a spirit, air takes over the victorious temple.
Water expects to take over the air temple soon and uses a spirit to prepare a 2nd water temple. Air takes the opportunity to remove the threat from earth by completing the earth temple with a "Trojan" air. The air temple wins with 4 air + 3 water vs 4 earth + 1 fire but turns back to a water temple again.
Earth completes an air temple, partly to prevent a 2nd water temple and partly to get rid of the water and/or air in the upper temple so that earth can build a temple there instead.
With water, fire keeps the option to build a fire temple in the upper part. Water protects her temple through a connecting fire so that the new temple can clash with the air temple first. Air adds another air to her group to build a strong air temple. Earth plays a spirit to form a third temple. It's risky but the only chance to remove competing elements from the board.
Fire is unwilling to build a fire temple, since this would be taken over by air after the first external clash, and instead connects the two existing temples. This also lays the foundation to a strong fire temple. With 4 water vs 3 air, the water temple wins the external clash but the replacement of 1 water with 1 spirit leads to air taking over the temple.
Air threatens to build a 2nd air temple and win the game so water builds a fire temple instead. This also has the benefit of weakening air, leading to water taking back the temple. Air wins the external clash with 4 air vs 3 fire only to lose the temple to water.
Air hurries to build an air temple in the lower right while earth enters the fight for a temple in the lower left. The game is wide open as it enters the last round!
Fire attempt to connect her elements in the lower left with an air isn't as hopeless as it may seem - the air may help the air temple in the lower right to win a clash only to be taken over by fire. Water sees that her temple will not survive a clash and plays an element that may be part of a new water temple if things come to worse. Air completes her temple in the lower right and will, if nothing changes, claim the victory thanks to the tie-breaking rule of support from both the water unit and the earth unit. But earth must play the last element of the game first and she connects all three temples. What happens now?
Earth chooses to let the water and the air temple clash first. Water wins with 3 fire+1 earth against 4 air but is taken over by earth. One more clash remains to resolve...
The fire temple defeats the earth temple with 3 fire+1 air against 3 earth but is taken over by... earth! This leaves earth as the only element left to take over and with the last temple in the game, earth is the winner. An extraordinary turn of events where the very last element played eliminated 3 opposing temples! |
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