Agricola
I wasn’t sure where to start with the review section of this blog, so I decided to start with a game that I am very familiar with. A game that even though we have owned it for less than 2 years we have played well over 300 times. A game that I can safely say that I have played more than any other game in my life. A game that I seriously doubt I will ever tire of playing. A game called Agricola
Agricola
PLEASE NOTE: There is actually a “Family Version” of Agricola that is described in the instruction booklet. This version, if memory serves me correctly, does not make use of the 300+ cards that are included. I have never played this version. I have only played the “full” game and therefore all reactions in this review are based upon the full game.
The Components
NOTE: The fancy Grain, Vegetables, Sheep, Boar, and Cattle were handmade by my sister and do not come with the original game. The pictures of the family member were downloaded from BoardGameGeek and attached separately. Also, I apologize for the worn, dirty pieces, but that’s what happens when you play this game as much as we do.
The bits in and of themselves are fairly simple and self-explanatory. You have Wood, Clay, Stone, and Reed which are used to build your house and other Improvements.
You have Grain and Vegetables which can be planted, harvested, and/or used as food.
You have Fields that can be plowed so you have a place to plant your Grain and Vegetables.
You have the Food markers.
You have your family members.
You have Wood Rooms, Clay Rooms, and Stone Rooms to expand your house (depending on how fancy you’ve decided to make it).
You have Fences and Stables which can be used to build Pastures which house our final bit, the animals.
You have Sheep, Boar, and Cattle which can breed and produce offspring or be slaughtered for food.
Also in the box, you will find some multiplier cards, Guest markers, summary cards, and a Starting Player token.
In addition to the bits, there are the game boards. Each player receives his own personal game board (or farmyard) and then there are 4 community game boards. One of these houses the Major Improvements until they are purchased. The other three boards provide different actions a player may take on his turn.
Finally, then we have what I believe to be the most integral component of the game, the cards. You have 169 Occupation cards, 139 Minor Improvement cards, 10 Major Improvement cards, 14 Round cards, 16 Stage cards, and 5 Begging cards. Add that all up and you have VARIETY and a GOOD TIME!
The Game Play
Each player starts the game with their own personal, 15-space farmyard. Two (2) spaces are immediately covered with two (2) Wood Rooms. Each player begins with two Family Members (husband and wife) that are placed in the house and three (3) Food markers, with the exception of the Starting Player (chosen at random) who only receives two (2) Food markers. Each player is also dealt seven (7) Occupation cards and seven (7) Minor Improvement cards.
The game consists of 14 Rounds split into 6 Stages. In Round 1, you have the choice of 17 (15 in a 3-player game, 11 in a 1-2 player game) different actions to take. When you choose to take an action you place one of your Family Members from your house on the appropriate action space. For the remainder of Round 1, no one else may take that action. Play continues around the table in a clockwise fashion, each player placing one of their Family Members on an action space, until all players’ houses are empty. This is the end of Round 1. All Family Members return to their homes and the board is reset.
In Round 2 a new action card is added to the board so there are now 18 choices for the Starting Player. Play continues in the same manner as Round 1 and a new action card is revealed at the beginning of each Round. Some actions simply allow you to collect goods for use at a later time. Some actions allow you to play one of the cards you have been dealt or buy a card from the table. There is often a cost and/or prerequisite associated with playing these cards. And some actions allow you to improve your farmyard by expanding your home (and family), plowing Fields, and building Pastures and Stables.
At the end of each Stage there is a Harvest. During each Harvest you need to do three things: Harvest, Feed, and Breed. First, you Harvest the Grain and Vegetables from any Fields that you planted them in. Second, you have to Feed your Family. This will cost you two (2) Food per Family Member. If you are unable to feed our Family at this point, you must take Begging Cards to make up for the difference. These cards are worth negative points. While they are not the kiss of death, they should be taken with great caution. And finally, if you have at least two (2) of the same type of Animal, they will Breed and you will receive one more of that type.
As you take actions to improve your farmyard you are accumulating points. However, these points are not totaled until the final Harvest. The player with the most points at the end of the game is the winner.
My Thoughts
You don’t have to be a farmer to enjoy this game. If you meet someone who doesn’t like this game, I’d say they must be playing it wrong. I have taught roughly two dozen people how to play this game, and they have all come back for seconds.
My first game of Agricola
The basics of the game are a simple balancing act that tend to click with players their second or third time through. They quickly learn the importance of filling up their farmyard and feeding their people. I believe the real fun, though, comes in with the cards. While there are over 300 cards, each player only gets to see 14 per game. This allows for thousands of different combinations, along with great variety, and endless fun.
While the winning score for an experienced player often ranges between 40 and 60, a first time player should be proud of any score over 20. I have only seen one person win their first game against experienced players.
I have never played this game solo, so I will not comment on it. The game is well balanced for anywhere from 2-5 players. The farming theme is strong throughout the game. Even with 300+ cards, they all play into the theme very well. I would recommend this game to anyone who is willing to learn how to play. I even volunteer to teach you should the opportunity arise.
Thanks for reading. Was this review too much? Was there something else you wanted to know?
Please let me know in the Comments below and Game On!
8 Responses to “Agricola”
Leave a Reply
Subscription Options
Services I Use (Affiliate Links)
I think your cows are dead.
Tragically, a plague struck the farmyard shortly after Round 14. Many were lost.
Great review. I found that new players were a bit overwhelmed by the number of choices and the lack of time to implement things. I have played the Family Game twice, and it’s cool. I’d put the Family Game a little bit higher in difficulty than Carcassonne but it’s a lot lighter than the full Agricola experience. I would recommend playing it if you haven’t yet. Agricola, without the cards and then with the three levels of cards tries to be something for everyone and it succeeds at that pretty well… as long as the new players don’t freak out about the options.
Thanks Erik.
I may have to try out the Family Game sometime just so I can comment on it properly.
I will note though, that when we first started we only used cards from the E Deck. Eventually we progressed to the I Deck and the K Deck and finally mixed them all together. Ever since we’ve mixed the decks we haven’t gone back and I think it would be rather difficult to do (mentally).
Whenever I teach new people how to play now I kind of throw them to the wolves. No one’s complained yet so I think I’ll continue to teach it at the high level.
Thanks for the comments.
Nice review! I really like the custom pieces that you’ve made. We bought the wooden “animeeples” to replace the little animal cubes, but that’s about as far as we got.
One quick note about the family version. There are some experienced players that actually like the family version better, because it removes the element of randomness that comes from the cards. It’s easier to learn, but against experienced players you need to be sure to get your early moves exactly right, because there aren’t going to be any cards to help. My wife and I still prefer the cards, but the family version, while simpler, isn’t necessarily less difficult.
Thanks Ben. I actually did consider buying the animeeples early on, but then found out that my sister had begun work on the clay pieces so I let her do that. I absolutely love the way they turned out. They’re so much fun to play with!
As for the family version. Thanks for the heads up. Although the cards are random that is another part of the challenge the game presents every time. You’re challenged to find the best combination of cards to play for that game (which may be playing no cards at all) and the best time to play them. Sometimes I look at my cards in the beginning and I think I’ll never play some of them, but then something happens in the game and I then I need to play my cards to get out of the hole.
Either way I think we can agree that this is a wonderful game to play. Thanks for reading and Game On!
I just reviewed this game on my blog and feel the same way. I have played many games and I love it, but feel a little bad teaching it to others knowing they will probably not grasp the game until halfway through it and they will lose. That being said everyone I have taught has enjoyed it.
Great photos and awesome custom meeples!
Thanks Jason! Every game has it’s learning curve and I would say that Agricola is on the higher end.
I always make sure to “warn” people during their first game that they probably won’t win and if they score in the high 20′s their first game they’re doing well. I don’t hesitate to teach people anymore because I am now certain that regardless of their first game experience they will be back for more.