Yardmaster Kickstarter Preview
Posted by Satria Aji Putra
Yardmaster is a simple card game of hand management and set collection. Players will be competing to assemble a train of loaded rail cards that equal a predetermined point total (16 in a 4 player game) before the other players can. There are two basic types of cards in the game, cargo cards and rail cards. Players' hands will be made up of cargo cards - these are the currency of the game. Railcar cards are the points in the game, and will be laid out in front of players.
On a turn, players get to perform 2 actions from among 3 choices:
- Draw a cargo card from the top of the discard pile, or from the top of the deck
- Buy a railcar by discarding 1-4 cargo cards that are the same color as the card
- Swap your exchange token with another player's or with one in the middle
This player could purchase and add either the green 4 card or the blue 1 card, but not the yellow 2.
The cost of each railcar card is indicated on the card - and that number is also the number of points the railcar is worth if connected to a player's train. In order to join a railcar to a train, the card must match either the color or the number of the card preceding it.
Each player starts with an exchange rate token, she can discard two matching cargo cards that correspond to her token to represent any of the other three types of cargo.
Yardmaster is one of those games that can fill many spots in a game collection. If you find yourself with a bunch of people who aren't as into board games as you are, you can pull out Yardmaster to show them something easy to set up, teach, and play. This group might have some trouble with the idea of "actions" and "exchange rates" but those are probably the two biggest hurdles for these players to get over.
You could also pull out Yardmaster with a more seasoned group of players as a pretty interesting 15-20 minute "filler" game to play when a longer game just won't work. Instruction with this group will likely take about 60 seconds, and while the it's simple, gameplay is still quite interesting.
If you think Yardmaster would fit nicely into your collection, hurry up and pledge your support now!! Today is the FINAL day to pledge for this Kickstarter campaign!!
This player can purchase the red 2 card, by using her blue exchange rate token to use her two blue cards as a second red card.
Each player starts with an exchange rate token, she can discard two matching cargo cards that correspond to her token to represent any of the other three types of cargo.
Yardmaster is one of those games that can fill many spots in a game collection. If you find yourself with a bunch of people who aren't as into board games as you are, you can pull out Yardmaster to show them something easy to set up, teach, and play. This group might have some trouble with the idea of "actions" and "exchange rates" but those are probably the two biggest hurdles for these players to get over.
You could also pull out Yardmaster with a more seasoned group of players as a pretty interesting 15-20 minute "filler" game to play when a longer game just won't work. Instruction with this group will likely take about 60 seconds, and while the it's simple, gameplay is still quite interesting.
If you think Yardmaster would fit nicely into your collection, hurry up and pledge your support now!! Today is the FINAL day to pledge for this Kickstarter campaign!!
Jim would like to thank Rhiannon of Spooning Meeples for being generous enough to forward her review copy of the game to him. Go check out her excellent YouTube channel!!