The Inside Scoop on Gaming

I'm writing this review in response to a particularly irritating slam of this game in the normally entertaining INQUEST GAMER. Their capsule review of this in their "Games That Suck" feature (in issue 59, or maybe 58) had some blatant inaccuracies and was downright baffling.

Based on the gritty, cynical fantasy anthology series, this game takes place in Sanctuary, a dilapidated coastal town that's plagued by crime as well as cults and the occassional appearance by a god. Up to 5 players play thieves, performing robberies, muggings, and pocket-pickings in order to be the first to collect 300 silver pieces. In the advanced game you also have character cards, giving your individual thief strengths and weaknesses in certain areas of robbery (mugging, burglary, and pickpocketing.)

Movement starts from the Maze, your "home base" where you hide your silver pieces and draw Rumor cards allowing you to perform thefts. You roll 3 dice, a ten-sider and two six-siders. You move about the city using two of the dice for your total, and the third determines how far you move one of the "Hell Hound" soldiers that police the city. If another player moves a Hell Hound into your space, you could lose a turn or be thrown into the Dungeon.

Thefts are performed in two ways. In the basic game, you go to the location stated on the card, play the card, and collect the money. In the advanced game, you go to the general vicinity of the location, roll a die and consult a table using the district and category of robbery to find what specific crime you're performing. This gives the cash value of the theft and any difficulty modifiers. You then roll a die, and if it's lower than or equal to your ability in the theft category (with modifiers), you succeed. Fail, and you can be caught, tossed in the Dungeon, or worse. Event cards drawn at the start of each turn can help or hinder you, and either act immediately or are saved for the right occassion.

The game's greatest success is in rendering the setting of the books. Event cards refer to specific characters, and almost all the locations are significant places in the stories. There's also plenty of player interaction, both in movement of the Hell Hounds and in event cards that allow you to rob other players or steal from their caches.

The basic game is fun enough, but once I went to the advanced I never went back. The rules for possible theft faliure make the game a lot more exciting and unpredictable, and I highly recommend playing that way after a few games. The map's asymmetrical layout and the varied event card effects mean there aren't any obvious winning strategies (at least none I've thought of), both a negative (if you want to play a real brain-twisting game) and a positive (if you want a fast, wild game.)

Now on to INQUEST's big complaints. One was that "the movement dice decide both how far you move and where you move." The first is true (and not unusual), but the second, simply put, isn't. Chalk it up to misreading of the manual. They also claimed that you spend most of the game in the dungeon thanks to the Hell Hounds. I've played the full, advanced, five-player game several times and this was never a problem. There's always a chance of faliure, but the dungeon was never occupied by more than one player at a time, and it was frequently empty. The IQ team must have had incredibly bad luck.

Their slam aside, THIEVES' WORLD: SANCTUARY is unpredictable, fast-moving (though the game can get long- there's just never a dull moment), and a terrific fantasy board game. Some of the references to the environment might be off-putting to those who don't know the books, but for fans, I can't think of a resaon not to give this a try.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Thieves' World: Sanctuary
Author: N/A Category: Fantasy board game Company/Publisher: Chaosium Line: N/A Cost: 30.00 Page count: n/a Capsule Review by Evan Waters on 04/04/00. Genre tags: Fantasy	I'm writing this review in response to a particularly irritating slam of this game in the normally entertaining INQUEST GAMER. Their capsule review of this in their "Games That Suck" feature (in issue 59, or maybe 58) had some blatant inaccuracies and was downright baffling. Based on the gritty, cynical fantasy anthology series, this game takes place in Sanctuary, a dilapidated coastal town that's plagued by crime as well as cults and the occassional appearance by a god. Up to 5 players play thieves, performing robberies, muggings, and pocket-pickings in order to be the first to collect 300 silver pieces. In the advanced game you also have character cards, giving your individual thief strengths and weaknesses in certain areas of robbery (mugging, burglary, and pickpocketing.) Movement starts from the Maze, your "home base" where you hide your silver pieces and draw Rumor cards allowing you to perform thefts. You roll 3 dice, a ten-sider and two six-siders. You move about the city using two of the dice for your total, and the third determines how far you move one of the "Hell Hound" soldiers that police the city. If another player moves a Hell Hound into your space, you could lose a turn or be thrown into the Dungeon. Thefts are performed in two ways. In the basic game, you go to the location stated on the card, play the card, and collect the money. In the advanced game, you go to the general vicinity of the location, roll a die and consult a table using the district and category of robbery to find what specific crime you're performing. This gives the cash value of the theft and any difficulty modifiers. You then roll a die, and if it's lower than or equal to your ability in the theft category (with modifiers), you succeed. Fail, and you can be caught, tossed in the Dungeon, or worse. Event cards drawn at the start of each turn can help or hinder you, and either act immediately or are saved for the right occassion. The game's greatest success is in rendering the setting of the books. Event cards refer to specific characters, and almost all the locations are significant places in the stories. There's also plenty of player interaction, both in movement of the Hell Hounds and in event cards that allow you to rob other players or steal from their caches. The basic game is fun enough, but once I went to the advanced I never went back. The rules for possible theft faliure make the game a lot more exciting and unpredictable, and I highly recommend playing that way after a few games. The map's asymmetrical layout and the varied event card effects mean there aren't any obvious winning strategies (at least none I've thought of), both a negative (if you want to play a real brain-twisting game) and a positive (if you want a fast, wild game.) Now on to INQUEST's big complaints. One was that "the movement dice decide both how far you move and where you move." The first is true (and not unusual), but the second, simply put, isn't. Chalk it up to misreading of the manual. They also claimed that you spend most of the game in the dungeon thanks to the Hell Hounds. I've played the full, advanced, five-player game several times and this was never a problem. There's always a chance of faliure, but the dungeon was never occupied by more than one player at a time, and it was frequently empty. The IQ team must have had incredibly bad luck. Their slam aside, THIEVES' WORLD: SANCTUARY is unpredictable, fast-moving (though the game can get long- there's just never a dull moment), and a terrific fantasy board game. Some of the references to the environment might be off-putting to those who don't know the books, but for fans, I can't think of a resaon not to give this a try. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Thieves' World: Sanctuary