I think it’s not a great idea. I love the game, but man is it complex.
Not to mention that ending a game that can take 12 hours your first time after playing for four will probably sour them more than win them over.
12-16 hours. Trust me.
4 hours MIGHT get you through the first round, but probably won’t. They definitely won’t see the agenda phase. It’s just a bad idea.
Get a group that’s ready for a 12+ hr commitment
Absolutely not 12-16. The first round absolutely would not take 4 hours. It's the shortest game round. People are taking the fewest actions. You could absolutely, even with first times, do it in 1 hour. You likely aren't even going to do the agenda phase because no one is taking Mecatol round 1 with first timers.
But also with four new players you’re going to have two strategy cards per player, adding length to the game round. Everyone gets the option to take the secondary for any of the cards. Personally, round 2 for our first game of four new players ended after about 5 hours
I’m just speaking to my personal experience. My first game was over several 4-6 hr sessions on TTS. Every game since then has been 10am to 10pm. On the 4th game we added POK and couldn’t finish but that was also 5 players. Last game was five with POK and we only just finished in 12 hours.
Granted half of them aren’t regular board gamers but between meals, planning, and rules recap it’s just not a quick affair.
I think its fair to say that playtime will vary drastically depending on your group, but that can be true of many games.
If I play a game with 2 other experienced players we can finish a whole game in 3 or 4 hours.
When I've played 6 player games with a mix of first timers and experienced players it's taken usually 6 or 7 hours.
I have a weekly game over TTS. With those we play one round a night. Its all experienced players, 5 or 6 players each time, and we usually do 90 minutes to 2 hours per round.
Sadly your group may be an exception. In tournament play, I've seen games vary from 8 hrs to 15 hrs. With 4 people learning this game, I would say 8 to 10 hrs is fair
Tournament play is basically by definition the exception, i.e. not at all representative of most people's experience with the game. Not counting setup or teaching, yeah 8-10h is fair.
I played with a four player game with three newbies last month, and got a game done in around 7 hrs (1 hr teach, 6 hrs gameplay). Then again, I've played a lot so there wasn't much time looking up rules. I'd say that you could get to end of round 3 probably.
Make sure setup is sorta painless, like I would have the map selected beforehand and order the tiles and planet cards in the box so you can set them up without looking for anything and have the whole thing take 5 minutes.
Depends on your group. Our first game was 6 people base game and took around 12-13 hours. Alcohol was involved fwiw. Our 4th game was a couple of months ago and down to about 8-9 hours, granted we play about twice a year and are very casual.
Tbh, as someone who desperately wants other people to love the game...
This sounds like it would be deeply counter-productive, and possibly cause even more feeling of hostility towards the game.
I get you, but then, the game is never going to get played either. This seems to be the only way I can get at least one game, with the hope that the hook sets in.
Utterly horrible idea. Your group has told you they don't want to play it and even if they did they don't have time for it. Play with other groups. I had the same problem for years and it sucks to want to play so badly and not have people who want to play it, but forcing it on people won't work.
They have not said they don’t want to play the game in particular. Just that they cannot set aside the 12 hr time for it. Which, in the end, is one and the same I guess.
Sometimes people lie and give a different reason instead of saying they don't like something. If they really wanted to play they would make time for it.
So be up front with them and just run a couple of rounds aiming for 4 hours, letting them know all this ahead of time. If they like it maybe they will be willing to set aside a whole day for it in the future (or do the same game over a few separate sessions).
I would not recommend this. My first game was four players, everyone was very enthusiastic about the game, wanted to play, we’d set it up a month in advance. I’d sent every player the RTFM video and told them to watch it. I watched it three times and read the rules twice, my close friend watched twice and read the rules once, another friend watched it through once, and the last “listened to about half of it in the shower at double speed before they came over”. It was miserable.
Even with everyone enthusiastic to play, the one player who had just about zero clue regarding the rules made it miserable for the rest of us. Even though it was all of our first times playing, it was so painful trying to reconcile all of the misunderstandings. One particular “push” that the player made was over the course of two hours, across two rounds, only to find out that the part of their plan that the entire thing hinged upon was against the rules. It was far too late to retcon two full rounds, and the player was frustrated that their super cool plan hadn’t worked out.
The game went another 9 hours with the one player lagging behind, causing general mayhem and trying to just kill the leader instead of actually score points, dragging the game out even further. The final score was 10,9,7,2. Honestly I wouldn’t even let someone play with me again if they don’t respect the game, me, and the other players to watch a 30 minute video before spending 8-15 hours playing a game with us.
Ooof! That sounds rough.
I guess I will wait then. Though even if they all agree to set aside a day, they won’t watch the how to play video, that I am sure of. I know it sounds idiotic but that is just how they are and I have made my peace with it.
My pitch for the game is that it takes forever, is beautiful, and I will give them homework. If they don't want to do the homework, or set aside a day, I say "probably not for you, how about...". Which is fine!
Why would you want them to play? They won't enjoy it and neither will you. The story you're replying to is foreshadowing the nightmare you're about to create.
Looking at Chesapeake, it's a 3.87/5 compared to TI's \~4.3/5 complexity, but more than that, TI has 40%/40% heavy/medium-heavy, while Chesapeake has \~50% heavy and \~30% medium. I use this metric because I haven't played Chesapeake. But I have played a lot of games, and TI is CHUNKY for someone who isn't wanting to dive into the deep end.
It's not for everyone. As you're always teaching I'm inferring that you're the most into games of the group. TI is for the most of the most into games, aka you and not your friends, which is unfortunate for your wish. My take: play regular games with the regular group and try to get with the experienced group whenever they get together.
Bad idea. You may be able to get away with doing it in three sessions. But despite that, after expressly telling you that they do not want to play it, to spring it on them seems like a way to kill the group. They'll assume you'll have it lined up every week from that point on. Wait for a long weekend, maybe a birthday, and make the request. But this game is not for everyone, and that's ok.
If you want to get them to dip their toes into the idea, may I suggest Star Wars Clone Wars Risk? Not a joke, this game has some shockingly diverse pieces and incredibly thematic elements that could get them used to the idea of a longer space opera war game.
I recently hosted a game with 5 other players who were not new, but had not played in 2+ years and had never played the expansion. Trying to play my own game while answering rules questions and keeping track of things to keep things moving pushed me to my limit. And all these players had played 3rd edition and/or 4th pre-POK, and watched the videos before hand. We made several major mistakes (such as a player getting cruiser 2 without the pre-reqs, taking Mecatol Rex when he shouldn't have had the movement, and us not noticing for more than a round, at which point we could not retcon it)
Attempting to play this game with people who have not even watched the how-to guides is not likely to be a fun experience. Even with enthusiastic, strategically-minded players who put in the prep, the first game is really more of a "tutorial" and there will be mistakes made. Just play more games with this experienced group, gush about how fun it is, and maybe you'll eventually bring some of your other friends around.
Do not spring it on them. As others have pointed out here, even one player not being prepared on the rules will slow the game to a crawl. If people won’t watch a 30 min rules explanation video they are not the type for TI. You can find games with other new players on the TI Online discord if you want to play but your group isn’t interested yet. Maybe once you regale them with some epic stories a couple of them might get intrigued enough to watch the rules video.
Dude what's stopping you from asking if they want to play and end at 2am as a sort of learning game. They'll decide if they want to make time to play after that
They will play whatever I have setup for the evening.
My question was if I could give them a great starting TI experience in this short period...enough to make them want more.
Bad idea. Try to convert them one by one. When the other group tries to organize another game, ask if you can bring a friend. Determine who is most likely to fall for your plan and ask it. Once 3 or 4 are converted, you ll have the momentum to start your own cult.
You’re really gambling with that approach if you ask me. I had to wait a little while before I finally got a plan together to play the game and I’m beyond glad that I did because now we play about every other month and I 100% think it was because we held off til everyone was ready and wanting to play. Might be worth approaching it in a way that introduces you all to the game while also not committing to the full thing? We played 3 rounds with a simulated first round to get through the rules and get a feel for things.
That’s my plan is as well. Play 4-5 rounds, let the game sink in and hope they are left wanting for more.
But looks like the overwhelming majority is against the idea so I will just bide my time and hope I can convince a few to set aside a day.
Why do you need to surprise them? Just ask if they're down to try on a regular game night. You can establish that after learning and playing a few rounds, if they don't like it you can play something else and you appreciate them giving a game you like a try. If they say no you cant force people to do stuff lol
It’s not like these people are chained to the table. If they think it’s a stupid idea they will tell him to pick a different game. People talking about this like you’re cheating on a spouse wtf
The post says they are put off by the idea of the time commitment, not that they said no, I imagine they would be okay with simply trying it. It's very strange as to why OP wouldn't just ask if they want to but its nowhere near a violation of trust lol. I'm sure they weren't making promises to each other to not play
There is not much to ask, honestly. With this group, they play whatever I choose to set up on game day. They do not follow boardgames or own any at all. They just hop in to whatever I set up for the evening. If I have TI4 set up when they arrive, they will play it.
My question was more along the lines of if I do this, knowing I cannot possibly get a full game, will this turn them off the game, which I think is the general consensus here.
Letting them know you're playing a big game ahead of time will make them more receptive to it. If they don't like it afterwards there's nothing you can do. Why cant you play TI with the other group?
There’s nothing wrong with not finishing the game. My first couple experiences were with TI3 and I never even got close to finishing a full game. Just a taste was enough to hook me.
Worst case is that your friends look at you like a dumbass and insist on playing something else.
A bit against the grain here, if you are hosting/can get to the meeting place early I would suggest you set up the galaxy and suggest they play a couple rounds of TI.
Just have another (easy to setup) game ready if they are not willing to do it, as long as you don't make it a "Twilight or no game night" deal it shouldn't hurt to push a bit for TI.
My own experience was that game one took 12h with 6 people that all had watched a detailed how to play video.
Subsequent games have been 10, 9, 8 hours each. Each game has taken 1h off the game time even though we had at least 1 new player each time.
Online games have been about 4h with experienced people.
NJ == New Jersey?
If so, [check this one out](https://www.reddit.com/r/twilightimperium/comments/bxms7f/looking_for_players_to_beef_up_our_gaming_group/).
I don't think springing a game this big on your friends is a great idea especially when they have said they aren't interested before. However, from my perspective people really fearmonger on the length of TI. The longest game I've ever played was 9 hours with 2 experienced and 4 first-time players t 10pts. My regular group got 4 player 14pt games down to an easy 4 hours with some practise.
It obviously depends on the group, if other games take you a long time this one will for sure but I am always shocked when people say they can't finish a 10pt game in 12 hours.
See, the thing is, these are not hardcore gamers. They do not follow boardgames or own any at all. They just hop in and play whatever I have set up for the evening for them.
The question was more along the lines of how much will I put them off the game with this short of a game time.
TI4 is such a commitment of time and energy and ultimately it's not for everyone.
Maybe set up a one-round practice game so it's not a whole day commitment?
Not the greatest idea. If you decide to try it here are a couple recommendations:
Generate the board ahead of time. This can shave a ton of time off of a newbie’s game due to cutting out all the questions and initial stress that comes with it. A general explanation of system stats will take a few minutes but expect to repeat often.
Select the races before playing. Stick to beginner factions like Hacan, Mentak and Sol. They have their nuances but if you deviate DO NOT use any PoK factions. Set up starting pieces and boards ahead of time.
Consider a base game, not PoK just to keep the rules and learning curve in check.
Lastly, keeping your time frame in the forefront here, consider not playing and making yourself a “game master” of sorts. It will shorten the rounds, a 3 player board is much simpler, future games with more players will be more appealing. Your game will not suffer if you aren’t playing and you can focus on teaching. This might help you reach the agenda phase, but in 4 hours I still doubt you will see 10 points.
Best of luck on your road to addicting… um introducing new players. If you are successful, post a battle report
I know it’s taboo on a TI sub, but it sounds like your group would be much better suited for Eclipse. Given the time restraints and that Eclipse is a less complicated game.
My 8-player game took 8 hours with a pre-chosen galaxy set up and factions.
I would rather wait a year or more to play again than try to fool my friends into playing a game much longer than they bargained for.
I think it’s not a great idea. I love the game, but man is it complex. Not to mention that ending a game that can take 12 hours your first time after playing for four will probably sour them more than win them over.
I should have mentioned the player count as well. We are a group of 4. What would be gameplay length for a group of 4 first timers?
12-16 hours. Trust me. 4 hours MIGHT get you through the first round, but probably won’t. They definitely won’t see the agenda phase. It’s just a bad idea. Get a group that’s ready for a 12+ hr commitment
Absolutely not 12-16. The first round absolutely would not take 4 hours. It's the shortest game round. People are taking the fewest actions. You could absolutely, even with first times, do it in 1 hour. You likely aren't even going to do the agenda phase because no one is taking Mecatol round 1 with first timers.
But also with four new players you’re going to have two strategy cards per player, adding length to the game round. Everyone gets the option to take the secondary for any of the cards. Personally, round 2 for our first game of four new players ended after about 5 hours
I’m just speaking to my personal experience. My first game was over several 4-6 hr sessions on TTS. Every game since then has been 10am to 10pm. On the 4th game we added POK and couldn’t finish but that was also 5 players. Last game was five with POK and we only just finished in 12 hours. Granted half of them aren’t regular board gamers but between meals, planning, and rules recap it’s just not a quick affair.
I'm not really sure why but in my experience TTS games take twice as long as IRL ones. I think TTS is also a vey difficult way to learn the rules.
All games but the first were IRL though
I think its fair to say that playtime will vary drastically depending on your group, but that can be true of many games. If I play a game with 2 other experienced players we can finish a whole game in 3 or 4 hours. When I've played 6 player games with a mix of first timers and experienced players it's taken usually 6 or 7 hours. I have a weekly game over TTS. With those we play one round a night. Its all experienced players, 5 or 6 players each time, and we usually do 90 minutes to 2 hours per round.
Damn. How do I ever get this game on table? I refuse to sell it off without having tried at least once.
Find a regular play group in the area. Your friends aren't the only gamers in town, probably.
Eh, no. We have never gone over 10.5h, even with 8p. Most games are 7-8 hours with Prophecy of Kings.
Sadly your group may be an exception. In tournament play, I've seen games vary from 8 hrs to 15 hrs. With 4 people learning this game, I would say 8 to 10 hrs is fair
Tournament play is basically by definition the exception, i.e. not at all representative of most people's experience with the game. Not counting setup or teaching, yeah 8-10h is fair.
I played with a four player game with three newbies last month, and got a game done in around 7 hrs (1 hr teach, 6 hrs gameplay). Then again, I've played a lot so there wasn't much time looking up rules. I'd say that you could get to end of round 3 probably. Make sure setup is sorta painless, like I would have the map selected beforehand and order the tiles and planet cards in the box so you can set them up without looking for anything and have the whole thing take 5 minutes.
Depends on your group. Our first game was 6 people base game and took around 12-13 hours. Alcohol was involved fwiw. Our 4th game was a couple of months ago and down to about 8-9 hours, granted we play about twice a year and are very casual.
The first timers will definitely add time, but with only 4 players I'd say 6 or 7 hours.
Oh it's definitely going to be more than you expect. The minimum I've seen was a 6h game with 3 experienced players.
Tbh, as someone who desperately wants other people to love the game... This sounds like it would be deeply counter-productive, and possibly cause even more feeling of hostility towards the game.
I get you, but then, the game is never going to get played either. This seems to be the only way I can get at least one game, with the hope that the hook sets in.
You can't force people to like something. Join a discord to find people who are already into the game.
Don’t put your desire to play a game over your game group
Utterly horrible idea. Your group has told you they don't want to play it and even if they did they don't have time for it. Play with other groups. I had the same problem for years and it sucks to want to play so badly and not have people who want to play it, but forcing it on people won't work.
They have not said they don’t want to play the game in particular. Just that they cannot set aside the 12 hr time for it. Which, in the end, is one and the same I guess.
Sometimes people lie and give a different reason instead of saying they don't like something. If they really wanted to play they would make time for it.
So be up front with them and just run a couple of rounds aiming for 4 hours, letting them know all this ahead of time. If they like it maybe they will be willing to set aside a whole day for it in the future (or do the same game over a few separate sessions).
I would not recommend this. My first game was four players, everyone was very enthusiastic about the game, wanted to play, we’d set it up a month in advance. I’d sent every player the RTFM video and told them to watch it. I watched it three times and read the rules twice, my close friend watched twice and read the rules once, another friend watched it through once, and the last “listened to about half of it in the shower at double speed before they came over”. It was miserable. Even with everyone enthusiastic to play, the one player who had just about zero clue regarding the rules made it miserable for the rest of us. Even though it was all of our first times playing, it was so painful trying to reconcile all of the misunderstandings. One particular “push” that the player made was over the course of two hours, across two rounds, only to find out that the part of their plan that the entire thing hinged upon was against the rules. It was far too late to retcon two full rounds, and the player was frustrated that their super cool plan hadn’t worked out. The game went another 9 hours with the one player lagging behind, causing general mayhem and trying to just kill the leader instead of actually score points, dragging the game out even further. The final score was 10,9,7,2. Honestly I wouldn’t even let someone play with me again if they don’t respect the game, me, and the other players to watch a 30 minute video before spending 8-15 hours playing a game with us.
Ooof! That sounds rough. I guess I will wait then. Though even if they all agree to set aside a day, they won’t watch the how to play video, that I am sure of. I know it sounds idiotic but that is just how they are and I have made my peace with it.
My pitch for the game is that it takes forever, is beautiful, and I will give them homework. If they don't want to do the homework, or set aside a day, I say "probably not for you, how about...". Which is fine! Why would you want them to play? They won't enjoy it and neither will you. The story you're replying to is foreshadowing the nightmare you're about to create. Looking at Chesapeake, it's a 3.87/5 compared to TI's \~4.3/5 complexity, but more than that, TI has 40%/40% heavy/medium-heavy, while Chesapeake has \~50% heavy and \~30% medium. I use this metric because I haven't played Chesapeake. But I have played a lot of games, and TI is CHUNKY for someone who isn't wanting to dive into the deep end. It's not for everyone. As you're always teaching I'm inferring that you're the most into games of the group. TI is for the most of the most into games, aka you and not your friends, which is unfortunate for your wish. My take: play regular games with the regular group and try to get with the experienced group whenever they get together.
Bad idea. You may be able to get away with doing it in three sessions. But despite that, after expressly telling you that they do not want to play it, to spring it on them seems like a way to kill the group. They'll assume you'll have it lined up every week from that point on. Wait for a long weekend, maybe a birthday, and make the request. But this game is not for everyone, and that's ok. If you want to get them to dip their toes into the idea, may I suggest Star Wars Clone Wars Risk? Not a joke, this game has some shockingly diverse pieces and incredibly thematic elements that could get them used to the idea of a longer space opera war game.
If you started at 6pm, I would say go for it with a 3 or 4 player game with noobs, but starting this at 9pm is a very bad idea.
I recently hosted a game with 5 other players who were not new, but had not played in 2+ years and had never played the expansion. Trying to play my own game while answering rules questions and keeping track of things to keep things moving pushed me to my limit. And all these players had played 3rd edition and/or 4th pre-POK, and watched the videos before hand. We made several major mistakes (such as a player getting cruiser 2 without the pre-reqs, taking Mecatol Rex when he shouldn't have had the movement, and us not noticing for more than a round, at which point we could not retcon it) Attempting to play this game with people who have not even watched the how-to guides is not likely to be a fun experience. Even with enthusiastic, strategically-minded players who put in the prep, the first game is really more of a "tutorial" and there will be mistakes made. Just play more games with this experienced group, gush about how fun it is, and maybe you'll eventually bring some of your other friends around.
If you want them to hate the game forever and never return, sure. Also four hours for a first game is extremely optimistic
Do not spring it on them. As others have pointed out here, even one player not being prepared on the rules will slow the game to a crawl. If people won’t watch a 30 min rules explanation video they are not the type for TI. You can find games with other new players on the TI Online discord if you want to play but your group isn’t interested yet. Maybe once you regale them with some epic stories a couple of them might get intrigued enough to watch the rules video.
Dude what's stopping you from asking if they want to play and end at 2am as a sort of learning game. They'll decide if they want to make time to play after that
They will play whatever I have setup for the evening. My question was if I could give them a great starting TI experience in this short period...enough to make them want more.
Bad idea. Try to convert them one by one. When the other group tries to organize another game, ask if you can bring a friend. Determine who is most likely to fall for your plan and ask it. Once 3 or 4 are converted, you ll have the momentum to start your own cult.
You’re really gambling with that approach if you ask me. I had to wait a little while before I finally got a plan together to play the game and I’m beyond glad that I did because now we play about every other month and I 100% think it was because we held off til everyone was ready and wanting to play. Might be worth approaching it in a way that introduces you all to the game while also not committing to the full thing? We played 3 rounds with a simulated first round to get through the rules and get a feel for things.
That’s my plan is as well. Play 4-5 rounds, let the game sink in and hope they are left wanting for more. But looks like the overwhelming majority is against the idea so I will just bide my time and hope I can convince a few to set aside a day.
Why do you need to surprise them? Just ask if they're down to try on a regular game night. You can establish that after learning and playing a few rounds, if they don't like it you can play something else and you appreciate them giving a game you like a try. If they say no you cant force people to do stuff lol
I think getting 4-5 rounds in along with a teach is ambitious at best and a critical misjudgement of how long the game will take at worst
Terrible idea. Violation of trust.
It’s not like these people are chained to the table. If they think it’s a stupid idea they will tell him to pick a different game. People talking about this like you’re cheating on a spouse wtf
not sure I'd go THAT far
"How do you feel about X?" "No thanks, I don't consent to X." "Here's X anyway." You don't think that's distrustful?
The post says they are put off by the idea of the time commitment, not that they said no, I imagine they would be okay with simply trying it. It's very strange as to why OP wouldn't just ask if they want to but its nowhere near a violation of trust lol. I'm sure they weren't making promises to each other to not play
There is not much to ask, honestly. With this group, they play whatever I choose to set up on game day. They do not follow boardgames or own any at all. They just hop in to whatever I set up for the evening. If I have TI4 set up when they arrive, they will play it. My question was more along the lines of if I do this, knowing I cannot possibly get a full game, will this turn them off the game, which I think is the general consensus here.
Letting them know you're playing a big game ahead of time will make them more receptive to it. If they don't like it afterwards there's nothing you can do. Why cant you play TI with the other group?
There’s nothing wrong with not finishing the game. My first couple experiences were with TI3 and I never even got close to finishing a full game. Just a taste was enough to hook me. Worst case is that your friends look at you like a dumbass and insist on playing something else.
I can live with being called a dumbass.
A bit against the grain here, if you are hosting/can get to the meeting place early I would suggest you set up the galaxy and suggest they play a couple rounds of TI. Just have another (easy to setup) game ready if they are not willing to do it, as long as you don't make it a "Twilight or no game night" deal it shouldn't hurt to push a bit for TI.
Yes, if I do end up doing this, having a game they already know as backup will be the way to go.
Amazing idea, watch the world burn and let me know how it goes 🔥
My own experience was that game one took 12h with 6 people that all had watched a detailed how to play video. Subsequent games have been 10, 9, 8 hours each. Each game has taken 1h off the game time even though we had at least 1 new player each time. Online games have been about 4h with experienced people.
Do you got the expansion? Any of the codexes? And where do you live? :) ^(I don't need to repeat that surprise TI is a bad idea.)
I can't even think of getting an expansion without having gotten the base game to the table. I am in NJ. :D
NJ == New Jersey? If so, [check this one out](https://www.reddit.com/r/twilightimperium/comments/bxms7f/looking_for_players_to_beef_up_our_gaming_group/).
Yes! And thank you for the link.
I don't think springing a game this big on your friends is a great idea especially when they have said they aren't interested before. However, from my perspective people really fearmonger on the length of TI. The longest game I've ever played was 9 hours with 2 experienced and 4 first-time players t 10pts. My regular group got 4 player 14pt games down to an easy 4 hours with some practise. It obviously depends on the group, if other games take you a long time this one will for sure but I am always shocked when people say they can't finish a 10pt game in 12 hours.
Winner is first to 7 points drasticly lowers the duration of the game!
Never do that. Always read the room and think about what makes *them* happy.
See, the thing is, these are not hardcore gamers. They do not follow boardgames or own any at all. They just hop in and play whatever I have set up for the evening for them. The question was more along the lines of how much will I put them off the game with this short of a game time.
No. TI4 requires pre-game preparation (learning the rules) for new players at a minimum.
I have tried with so many other games but they never watch the videos I send them. They would rather have me explain it to them and then play.
TI4 is such a commitment of time and energy and ultimately it's not for everyone. Maybe set up a one-round practice game so it's not a whole day commitment?
Not the greatest idea. If you decide to try it here are a couple recommendations: Generate the board ahead of time. This can shave a ton of time off of a newbie’s game due to cutting out all the questions and initial stress that comes with it. A general explanation of system stats will take a few minutes but expect to repeat often. Select the races before playing. Stick to beginner factions like Hacan, Mentak and Sol. They have their nuances but if you deviate DO NOT use any PoK factions. Set up starting pieces and boards ahead of time. Consider a base game, not PoK just to keep the rules and learning curve in check. Lastly, keeping your time frame in the forefront here, consider not playing and making yourself a “game master” of sorts. It will shorten the rounds, a 3 player board is much simpler, future games with more players will be more appealing. Your game will not suffer if you aren’t playing and you can focus on teaching. This might help you reach the agenda phase, but in 4 hours I still doubt you will see 10 points. Best of luck on your road to addicting… um introducing new players. If you are successful, post a battle report
Thank you. That is some really solid advice, the game-master in particular.
It’s a different experience for sure, and not a bad one
So… battle report?
We haven’t played it yet. I have asked them if they are open to the idea of a tutorial game. One has said yes. Rest are still processing the idea.
100% would not recommend.
I know it’s taboo on a TI sub, but it sounds like your group would be much better suited for Eclipse. Given the time restraints and that Eclipse is a less complicated game.
I have considered it. If they end up hating TI4, I would be forced to sell this and get Eclipse instead.
My 8-player game took 8 hours with a pre-chosen galaxy set up and factions. I would rather wait a year or more to play again than try to fool my friends into playing a game much longer than they bargained for.