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Cartagena (board game)
Encyclopedia
Cartagena is a critically acclaimed German-style board game
released in 2000, that takes as its theme the legendary 1672 pirate
-led jailbreak from the dreaded fortress of Cartagena
. The game supposedly became popular in the pirate coves of the Caribbean.
With its very simple concept, this game of strategy gives each player a group of six pirates and the objective is to have all six escape through the tortuous underground passage that connects the fortress to the port, where a sloop
is waiting for them.
and drawn by artists Christoph Clasen, Claus Stephan, Didier Guiserix, Martin Hoffmann, and Studio Tapiro. The board itself is made up of six double-sided sections, each of which has a different permutation of the same six pictures: daggers, pirate hats, pistols, bottles of rum, skulls, and skeleton keys. These six sections can be combined in any order, to make thousands of different games (although nowhere near as many as the 7206 combinations theoretically possible).
Each player is dealt six cards out of a set of 102: 17 cards for each of the six pictures. Each also begins the game with six pirates, represented by solid-coloured, wooden figures. Colour choices include brown, red, yellow, and blue.
The player who looks most like a pirate goes first, with gameplay proceeding in a clockwise direction.
To move forward, the player selects a pirate. plays a card, and moves that pirate forward to the next unoccupied square with the same picture as the card. If there are no unoccupied spaces ahead, the pirate moves to the sloop.
To move backward, the player selects a pirate and moves it back to the closest square with one or two pirates. If that square has one pirate, the player draws one card; if it has two pirates, the player draws two. Pirates cannot be moved all the way back to Cartagena.
Jamaica games tend to be fast-paced (30–45 minutes), and involve both skill and luck. Tortuga games involve much less luck; the game is simple enough that the winner is usually the player who can perform the deepest analysis.
Cartagena: Die Goldinsel was released in 2008 by a different designer, Rüdiger Dorn
and published only by Winning Moves
. This game sees the pirates searching for Treasure Island, after having escaped the fortress of Cartagena and returned to the Pirates' Nest in the previous two games. Players take on the role of pirate captains and try to get together a new crew of pirates, gather Island cards and acquire digging rights before setting sail to Treasure Island.
Cartagena: Die Meuterei, the latest in the series, was released in 2009. This game too was published by Winning Moves but was designed by Michael Rieneck. The saga of Cartagena continues with the first signs of a mutiny
emerging after a long calm. Players try to equip with gold and weapons and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of other players in order to obtain the most gold and thus win the game.
Cartagena can also be played online in real-time at BrettspielWelt. There are two turn-based online versions available at Youplay.it and Cartagena Online.
. It is much shorter and simpler than Hare and Tortoise
, which is often considered the exemplar of race games. It is usually played as a light time-killer rather than a deadly serious competition. However, it is much more complicated and requires much more skill (even in the Jamaica variant) than children's race games like Snakes and Ladders
.
It is also has been categorized as a family game and a pirates game. For its mechanics, it has been grouped with modular board games as well as hand management games. Also, its lack of necessary in-game text makes it accessible to non-English speakers.
The fact that each player has six pieces and three moves per turn makes the strategy somewhat different from most other games. Therefore, it has been very well received by casual gamers
.
惡魔島.
German-style board game
German-style board games, frequently referred to in gaming circles as Euro Games or Euro-style, are a broad class of tabletop games that generally have simple rules, short to medium playing times, indirect player interaction and abstract physical components...
released in 2000, that takes as its theme the legendary 1672 pirate
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
-led jailbreak from the dreaded fortress of Cartagena
Cartagena, Colombia
Cartagena de Indias , is a large Caribbean beach resort city on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region and capital of Bolívar Department...
. The game supposedly became popular in the pirate coves of the Caribbean.
With its very simple concept, this game of strategy gives each player a group of six pirates and the objective is to have all six escape through the tortuous underground passage that connects the fortress to the port, where a sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
is waiting for them.
Gameplay
The first player to move all of his or her pirates from the Cartagena prison to the sloop is the winner.Set-Up
The game board and its pieces were designed by Leo ColoviniLeo Colovini
Leo Colovini is a designer of German-style board games born in Venice 1964. His most popular game is Cartagena. He is one of the few top board game designers who has owned a game store....
and drawn by artists Christoph Clasen, Claus Stephan, Didier Guiserix, Martin Hoffmann, and Studio Tapiro. The board itself is made up of six double-sided sections, each of which has a different permutation of the same six pictures: daggers, pirate hats, pistols, bottles of rum, skulls, and skeleton keys. These six sections can be combined in any order, to make thousands of different games (although nowhere near as many as the 7206 combinations theoretically possible).
Each player is dealt six cards out of a set of 102: 17 cards for each of the six pictures. Each also begins the game with six pirates, represented by solid-coloured, wooden figures. Colour choices include brown, red, yellow, and blue.
The player who looks most like a pirate goes first, with gameplay proceeding in a clockwise direction.
Turns
During one's turn, a player can make between one and three moves. Each move sees one of the player's pirate going either forward or backward. Pirates are moved forward by playing the cards in their hand. New cards can only be obtained by moving backward.To move forward, the player selects a pirate. plays a card, and moves that pirate forward to the next unoccupied square with the same picture as the card. If there are no unoccupied spaces ahead, the pirate moves to the sloop.
To move backward, the player selects a pirate and moves it back to the closest square with one or two pirates. If that square has one pirate, the player draws one card; if it has two pirates, the player draws two. Pirates cannot be moved all the way back to Cartagena.
Variations
The game can be played in two variants: Jamaica, in which the deck is hidden and players cannot see each others' cards, and Tortuga, in which the cards are visible. The game plays quite differently in the two versions.Jamaica games tend to be fast-paced (30–45 minutes), and involve both skill and luck. Tortuga games involve much less luck; the game is simple enough that the winner is usually the player who can perform the deepest analysis.
Series
A published sequel to the game, Cartagena II, was released in 2006. It follows the storyline of the original game, with the pirates working to figure out what to do now that they have escaped the prison. It is based on the same card-based movement mechanism but introduces additional gameplay elements. In particular, the board is divided into two islands, and pirates are ferried from one to the other on a single boat.Cartagena: Die Goldinsel was released in 2008 by a different designer, Rüdiger Dorn
Rüdiger Dorn
Rüdiger Dorn is a German-style board game designer. He was nominated for the 2005 Spiel des Jahres award for his game Jambo, which also placed 8th for the Deutscher Spiele Preis award...
and published only by Winning Moves
Winning Moves
Winning Moves Games is a maker of classic card games and board games, puzzles, action games and adult party games.-History:Winning Moves Games was founded in 1995 by four game industry professionals: Tom Kremer , Philip Orbanes , Mike...
. This game sees the pirates searching for Treasure Island, after having escaped the fortress of Cartagena and returned to the Pirates' Nest in the previous two games. Players take on the role of pirate captains and try to get together a new crew of pirates, gather Island cards and acquire digging rights before setting sail to Treasure Island.
Cartagena: Die Meuterei, the latest in the series, was released in 2009. This game too was published by Winning Moves but was designed by Michael Rieneck. The saga of Cartagena continues with the first signs of a mutiny
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
emerging after a long calm. Players try to equip with gold and weapons and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of other players in order to obtain the most gold and thus win the game.
Cartagena can also be played online in real-time at BrettspielWelt. There are two turn-based online versions available at Youplay.it and Cartagena Online.
Category
Cartagena is generally categorized as a race gameRace game
Race game is a large category of board games, in which the object is to be the first to move all one's pieces to the end of a track. This is both the earliest type of board game known, with implements and representations dating back to at least the 3rd millennium BC in Egypt, Iraq, and Iran; and...
. It is much shorter and simpler than Hare and Tortoise
Hare and Tortoise
Hare and Tortoise is a German-style board game designed by David Parlett in 1974 and first published by Intellect Games. In 1978 it was released by Ravensburger in Germany, where the game became a huge hit. It has since sold some 2 million units in at least ten languages, including two known...
, which is often considered the exemplar of race games. It is usually played as a light time-killer rather than a deadly serious competition. However, it is much more complicated and requires much more skill (even in the Jamaica variant) than children's race games like Snakes and Ladders
Snakes and ladders
Snakes and Ladders is an ancient Indian board game regarded today as a worldwide classic. It is played between two or more players on a game board having numbered, gridded squares. A number of "ladders" and "snakes" are pictured on the board, each connecting two specific board squares...
.
It is also has been categorized as a family game and a pirates game. For its mechanics, it has been grouped with modular board games as well as hand management games. Also, its lack of necessary in-game text makes it accessible to non-English speakers.
The fact that each player has six pieces and three moves per turn makes the strategy somewhat different from most other games. Therefore, it has been very well received by casual gamers
Casual game
A casual game is a video game targeted at or used by a mass audience of casual gamers. Casual games can have any type of gameplay, and fit in any genre. They are typically distinguished by their simple rules and lack of commitment required in contrast to more complex hardcore games...
.
Awards
- 2007 BoardGamer.ru Recommendation
- 2002 Nederlandse Spellenprijs Winner
- 2001 Spiel des Jahres Recommendation
Alternate names
Cartagena is also available under the following titles: Cartagena 1: Flucht aus der Festung, Cartagena: The Escape, Les évadés de Cartagena, and惡魔島.
External links
- Tilsit Editions Cartagena product page
- Cartagena review at SOS' Gameviews
- Cartagena online at YouPlay.It or at BrettspielWelt.
- Cartagena PC implementation in Python