My July PnP

During July, we drove across the country to our new home, waited for our stuff to catch up with us and have been unpacking ever since. 

So, not a month where Print and Play was a high priority, let alone a possibility. I didn’t even see the printer or the laminator or the paper cutter for most of the month.

However, I did include laminated card sheets for Palm Island in my travel stuff.  I wanted to make sure I could make something in July.

More than that, I wanted to make sure that I made something that meant something to me. I wanted to make something that I knew was a game I enjoy playing, which means making a game I’ve already played.

Actually, I’ve made at least three copies of Palm Island since I’ve worn copies out. Palm Island wasn’t my introduction to In Hand games (That was actually the nine-card version of I Am Lynx. Which made me track down Palm Island) but I do think it’s one of the best In Hand games and helped create a whole new template of them.

Truth to tell, I have other laminated card sheets packed away so I will be able to make more games for the next few months if I pace myself. By then, I’ll have a sense of what my new Print and Play habits will be.

Firsts after a move

 It feels quite ritualistic but I felt like making sure that I made some ‘firsts’ in Florida were good ones. Starting off a new home with good choices.

The first virtual game I played was Onirim, which, thanks to the app, is my most frequently played game. Onirim is just laying down runs of cards but between the expansions, the special powers of the keys, and the negative cards, it offers more replay value than I would have thought.

My first physical play was Palm Island. Although I think its sequel Palm Laboratory will prove to be stronger, Palm Island is still one of the best In Hand games I have played. It has the feel of a Euro with its resource management and infrastructure development in seventeen cards that never leave your hand.

I have laminated sheets of the cards in my travel folder that just need to be trimmed so that Palm Island can be my first print and play project in Florida. I’ve worn out copies and made copies as gifts so it’s far from my first time remaking it.

And the first book I’m reading is The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan. He’s both a comfort food author for me and a good author as well. I read the Heroes of Olympus seven years ago and, at the time, it was my favorite work by him. That said, the character development in both Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard and the Trials of Apollo were very strong. I wonder how the Heroes of Olympus will hold up. 

I think it will hold up as the most sweepingly eoic of his series.

And I hadn’t planned on it but my first game purchase ended up being an impulse purchase of Azul.

On the limits and influence of Palm Island

As I’ve mentioned before, I have been playing a lot of In Hand games lately. And that means I’ve been revisiting Palm Island, which is the poster child of In Hand games.

Palm Island definitely didn’t invent In Hand games. But it did give the idea a kick in the pants. I honestly would say that a third of the In Hand games I’ve seen post Palm Island were clearly Influenced by it.

Something I want to do this summer is get the color files printed so I have the ‘full’ games and get the ‘full’ Palm Island experience. I’ve spent years with the low ink demo and I’ve wanted to see how much deeper the game gets.

However, when I actually looked at the files, I realized that most of the cards are for the two-player version of the game. As a solitaire player, the only new element are feats. Which turn the game essentially into a campaign but doesn’t seem like a major mechanical shift.

And I know that the basic framework can be tweaked just a little to get significant changes. In Battle for the Carolinas (which I have started replaying and really enjoying), you need different cards at different points in the game. You need maps and compasses to find the battlefields but then they need to become men and weapons. It creates a different tempo than Palm Island.

While Palm Island has a very solid structure of resource management and infrastructure development, it is ultimately very simple. The individual actions are very simple. This is not a bad thing.

Between the random shuffle of the cards and the limit of only being able to store four cards, Palm Island does has variabily and tough choices. But it’s presented in such an accessible way so that the initial learning curve is just about keeping the deck in your hand the whole time. It’s great for casual gaming.

But now I’ve been seeing that the si one structure is one that can be built on. And, while games like Battle for the Carolinas shows that other folks are doing this, the fact that Portal Dragon will be publishing Palm Laboratory and have mentioned Palm Galaxy shows that this was intended.

And even as I become more and more aware of the limitations of Palm Island, I am playing it more often. I keep on going back to it and having fun. There is a good game there.

Palm Island is not the definitive In Hand game. It didn’t create the genre. But I think it is an important milestone and has helped there he better games ahead.

Pros and Cons in Hand games

 Lately, I’ve been playing a lot of In Hand games. And by that, I mean even more than usual. For one reason or another, I just haven’t  had a table handy.

(And yes, I can play a vast number of games, solitaire and otherwise, on devices. But it is a different experiences and I am convinced that manually playing an analog game brings other parts of the brain on deck)

This has led me to the twin revelations of 1) There’s a lot you can do with the In Hand format and 2) Wow, is it limited.

The Zed Deck is a zombie horror survival game that even has a rudimentary combat system. Flipword is a honestly solid word/party game. Palm Island is a good  resource management game. Elevenses for One, um, is sorting cards but it’s good.

That’s just the first four In Hand games that came to my mind and each one is a pretty distinct experience. And I will argue each is a genuine game experience, not just an exercising in fidgeting. (I enjoy Down and Labyrinth Runner but I also think they are fidgeting activities)

But, while the Zed Deck does have a combat system, most zombie horror games have more developed, frankly better combat systems. And much more developed and immersive exploration systems. If I had the time and space and other players and a copy, I’d rather play Last Night On Earth, just as one example.

Palm Island is actually an impressively full Euro Game experience. You need to manage resources and improve your infrastructure to do even marginally well. But it pales in comparison to larger games that require a table.

One more example, just because it’s so crazy. The 2022 In Hand Contest has a tile-laying game called Little Dingy. But, apart from novelty, you can’t compare it to Carcassonne or Isle of Skye. Even if I am more fair and compare it to other micro tile laying games, Orchard or Sprawlopolis blow Little Dingy out of the water.

On the one hand, In Hand games have been developing a surprising range of gaming experiences. On the other hand, In Hand games are definitively not a replacement or substitute for games that use surfaces.

Post Script: While this doesn’t change the ultimate conclusion, if I used a clip board, pencil and some way of rolling dice, I could greatly increase the range of my table-free gaming. However, playing an In Hand game of Elevenses for One is a lot more discrete than playing a game of Yahtzee :D

The Revolutionary War in the palm of your hand

 Battle for the Carolinas is a solitaire war-themed game that is designed to be played with a deck of cards that you hold in your hands the entire game.

Okay, it’s not even an elephant in the room because the designers openly admit that Palm Island was a huge influence on the game but Battle for the Carolinas is so much like Palm Island that if you’ve played Palm Island, you can pretty much pick up Battle for the Carolinas cold. Which is not saying it’s the same game with different pictures.

As someone who has played some Apocalypse World hacks, I would instead say that Battle for Carolinas is a Palm Island hack. It uses the same basic framework to do its own thing. It’s like comparing Dominion to Thunderstone.

Here’s the basic gist. You are going through the deck. You can turn up to four cards into resources by turning them on their side. You spend resources to upgrades cards, which either flips or turns over cards and makes them better. In Battle for Carolinas, your goal is win three skirmishes and two battles which means completely upgrading those cards.

Now, I have a very generous definition of war game. I do consider Memoir 44 a war game and some days I even consider the Battle for Hill 218 a war game. Battle for the Carolinas doesn’t pass even my loose definition though, simply because it has no conflict. You can’t actually lose a battle. You just haven’t won it yet. 

That doesn’t mean I dislike the game at all. Quite the contrary, I’ve enjoyed my intitial plays. However, it is entirely a resource management game.

Here’s the real question: do I like it better than Palm Island? Which one would I rather play and which one would I recommend? The answer is: I don’t know. I have not yet tried playing Battle for the Carolinas with either the variant rule sets or the expansion cards. I also have only played the black and white demo version of Palm Island. I haven’t made a copy of the full game (yet).

I will make this observation: there are more paths to victory in Palm Island, different avenues to gain points and the initial shuffle will help you figure out what is your best option. In Battle for Carolinas, whether you are playing for points or achievements, your end goal is the two battle cards and that is what you are working towards.

Another significant difference is that Battle for Carolinas has spoils. When you completely upgrade a skirmish or battle, it becomes a potent set of resources. In Palm Island, that doesn’t happen. In fact, some cards stop being potential resources.

I suspect that the full version of Palm Island will be the better experience but I also think I will have fun exploring the variations and expansions in Battle for the Carolinas.

Carrying In Hand games everywhere

Okay. I said I was going to do it and I’ve done it. I made a second fidget box, my pet term for a small, extremely portable box of solitaire card games. 

They live either in my bag or on my nightstand and the games are really more for fidgeting or taking mental coffee breaks than being the focus of my gaming life. You know, except when they are :D

One of the things had has haunted me when it comes to make these little to-go libraries is size. The first set of cheap plastic boxes I picked up are too small for larger cards and are slightly convex so the cards at the bottom have to be even smaller :P This second cover box is actually a plastic case that gum came in. It is longer and wider so larger cards can fit into it but it’s more shallower so fewer cards can fit :D

But it fits my big goal. I can fit the Palm Island PnP demo into it. 

While playing more Palm Island, which I am doing, is awesome, it was two of the prototypes from the current Nine-Card PnP contest that made me decide to make an In Hand box. Which means I’ll probably be making new copies of those games in a few months when they are further developed.

9-Card Circus has to using several different actions to sort the cards, creating runs and balancing symbols. I am still trying to grok it but I feel like it’s ambitious in its design and I like that. I want In Hand games to be more than just fidgeting. Even if I decide in the end that  it doesn’t work, I’m glad that it was tried.

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2144072/wip-9-card-circus-2019-9-card-print-and-play-conte

On the other hand, Labyrinth Runner, which creates a maze of forking paths out of nine cards in your hand, is amazing for fidgeting. It’s been a great anywhere game. I haven’t bothered trying the advanced game, just playing the light one over and over.

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2128436/wip-labyrinth-runner-2019-9-card-game-print-and-pl

In Hand and no table needed

While I have used the term surface-free for games that can be played while holding all the parts in your hand, I’m getting the impression that the term In Hand might be the preferred one. Although In Hand might just refer specifically to cards games where you hold all the cards.

To be fair, it’s not like there’s some governing body demanding a strict etymology for board game terms. It’s really more of a organic process. 

I have to admit that I have come to like In Hand solitaire games a lot over the last year or so. I’ve come to like solitaire games and I mainly play them as parent breaks (quick little mental breaks) So a game that I don’t even need a table to play and can play waiting on the car or lying in bed is awfully handy.

Now, from what I can tell, In Hand games have been around for a long time. Apparently sailers played them back in the day of tall mast ships. Even if that isn’t true, that’s too romantic an idea for me not go ahead and believe.

Palm Island is my current gold standard for In Hand games. It feels like a ‘full’ game with resource management and developing an infrastructure. Mind you, that depth comes at enough of a time price that it doesn’t work for a quick mental coffee break. But I think it pushes the boundaries of what you can do with a deck of cards that stays in your hands, as well as being a very good game. 

And I wonder if it is inspiring other In Hand games. I feel like I’m seeing more of them over the last year. There isn’t a flood but I swear there’s more of them.

I have a tiny box of solitaire games that I keep in my bag, my fidget box. And now I’m thinking of developing another fidget box that is nothing but In Hand games. I’ve seen more and more variety. And they work well for games on the go. 

For me, they are often a form of fidgeting.

My 2018 Mini PnP Secret Santa experience

Now that I know that my Mini PnP Secret Santa target has gotten my package, I feel like I can write a little about the experience.

2018 was the second time I participated in the Mini PnP Santa and I felt a lot more confident doing it this year. In fact, I’d been doing some definite planning for it earlier in the year. Last year, I was still a little shaky and just thew whatever in the envelope. Luckily, whatever included Pocket Landship so my target got something they liked.

This year, I was more prepared and confident and I feel I sent my target some solid little PnP games. Pocket Landship and its expansion went into the envelope. Even though I thought there was a good chance a fellow PnPer would already own it, Elevenses for One. The Palm Island demo which is a great game by itself. And Murderer’s Row since I am on a mission to get it more attention :D

One thing I realized is that I don’t make tuck boxes in general. Part of my goal in PnP is to expand my collection while taking up minimal shelf space so I bag everything. And if I’m shipping stuff overseas, tuck boxes make things more difficult and expensive, even if I included them flat.

In fact, I’m not sure I’ll ever feel up for the big boy PnP Secret Santa. I feel like that calls for tuck boxes and color printing and better quality  components than just laminating.

However, the mini one is pretty awesome for me. That’s something I feel up to and it’s a great way to be part of the PnP community.

My thoughts the day after I PnPed Palm Island

I’ve been interested in Palm Island pretty much since I ever heard of it. I finally crafted a copy of the PnP version and played pretty much as soon as I was done cutting the cards.

And it’s pretty much just what I hoped it would be.

Palm Island is a game about developing an island village. What it really is is a game about upgrading cards. The whole game is a small deck of cards and you play it with the deck in your hand, hence the whole _Palm_ Island bit.

One paragraph explanation: Every card has four spaces, one on each end and they are double sided. The active side is whatever is up and facing you. You have access to the top two cards of the deck. Some cards have materials you can store (turning sideways) so you can use the materials. You can upgrade cards, paying stored materials to either flip or turn the card. You can also discard the top card to the back of the deck. Go through the deck eight times and the. Count the points on your upgraded cards.

Huh. That was a longer explanation than I expected.

I first heard of Palm Island when I looked into a PnP prototype called I Am Lynx and learned that it was helped inspire that game. And, for whatever reason, I couldn’t find the PnP on Boardgame Geek or anywhere else so I was waiting for it to come out. Literally two days before writing this, I saw the files. I immediately downloaded, printed, crafted and played it.

The two no-surface games I’ve been playing lately have been the nine-card version of I Am Lynx (really need to try the 18 card version) and Down. Both have been good but very light. Itty bitty plays that take a few minutes. Palm Island actually feels like a ‘real’ game with its longer, deeper play.

There’s definitely some real decisions and development as you go through the deck, managing resources and trying to both improve those resources and end the game with points. It’s not heavy but it’s not fluff either. That’s not bad for seventeen cards that never leave your hands.

The PnP version is one deck and only for solitaire play. The full, published version will have another, different deck for two-player and achievement cards. More than twice as much stuff. I’m really looking forward to seeing that.

This is truly a first impression. I just finished crafting the game yesterday. But, man, what promise it has!