Review of Archaeology the Card Game
I'm certainly a fan of large, "meaty" games in which one can spend hours formulating strategies on their way to victory. However, there is a time and a place for short, simple games; and I'm always on the lookout for an easy "filler" that has strategy but can be played in a short amount of time. I had not heard of the board game Archaeology but recently received a copy of Archaeology the Card Game (Adventureland Games, 2007 - Phil Harding), an updated and refined version of the board game. The box wasn't too spectacular; but when I saw the cards inside, I was struck by their clean look - with the numbers on them intriguing me.
It's been a while since I've played a short card game that has captivated me the way Archaeology has. I've seen some complain about the luck of the sandstorm cards, but Archaeology allows players to prepare for the disasters by easily counting cards. The game offers quick choices; and players have the opportunity to "push their luck," as they collect different sets of cards. It's amazingly fun, and I highly recommend this card game - especially for two players.
A deck of a treasure cards is shuffled, with four dealt to each player, and five placed face up in the middle of the table. A pyramid card is placed on the table, with three sets of cards (three, five, and seven) randomly drawn and placed face down in the three "rooms" of the pyramid. The rest of the treasure cards are shuffled into a deck, along with sandstorm, thief, and map cards. Players announce the total value of the cards in their hand, and the player with the lowest total goes first with play proceeding clockwise around the table.
On a player's turn, they first draw a card from the top of the deck.If it's a treasure or a map card, they simply add it to their hand.
If it is a sandstorm, then all players lose half of the cards in their hand, rounded down. There are six sandstorms in the deck.
If it's a thief, the player may randomly steal a card from another player. There are eight thieves in the deck.
The player then is allowed to change cards from their hand with those in the middle of the table, as long as the values are the same. For example, I can trade a Coin (value 2) for two parchment scraps (value 1) or vice versa. Players can also discard map cards to take the contents of a room in the pyramid (one map card for the three card room, two map cards for the five card room, and three map cards for the seven card room).
Finally, players may play a set of cards in front of them, selling them to the museums for points. Once a set has been played, it is "safe" from sandstorms and thieves but also cannot be added to. Most treasures are worth more when sold in multiple sets. The treasures include: Fourteen Coins, each worth "2". However, two coins are worth "5", three coins are worth "10", four coins are worth "18", and five coins are worth "30".
Eighteen Pot Shards, each worth "1". Two of them are worth "2", three are worth "3", four are worth "4", and five are suddenly worth "15".
Sixteen Parchment Scraps, which are worth "1", can be sold for "1", "2", "3", and "10".
Eight Talismans, worth "3", which can be sold for "3", "7", "14", "24", and "40".
Four Pharaoh's Masks, worth "4", which can be sold for "4", "12", "26", and "50".
Six Broken Cups, worth "2", which can be sold for "2"; and a pair for "15".
Maps can also be sold as treasures, with a value of "3", but only as singles.
The game continues until all cards from the deck have been drawn. Players then continue to play until they've gotten rid of all the cards in their hand. Points for sold treasures are then totaled, and the player with the most points is the winner!
Some comments on the game…
1.) Components: As usual, I don't like the longer flat box, which requires the deck of cards to be split into two before being slid in; but the artwork on the box and cards is very sharp and thematic. Each type of card not only has different artwork but is also of a different color as to help when matching the sets. There are several numbers on each card, but they are very clear - the design is very well done. The cards themselves are of good quality, although there are some minor size differences noticeable when shuffling the deck.
2.) Rules: The rules are quite simple, and I was ready to play the game after one reading. My only quibble was that they should have been clearer as to whether a player can sell more than one set of cards per turn (they can't). Still, the game is easy to teach, especially with the cards being so clearly defined.
3.) Maps: Maps are a curious card, because a player has to determine whether the cards received from the treasure room are worth the value of the map. Now, for the single map treasure room, it's obvious and worth taking. And sometimes paying three maps, which could have been traded into the middle for more valuable cards, for a treasure room full of small cards feels annoying. In fact, in the majority of the games I've played, the three-map treasure room is never found - mostly because one player can accumulate three map cards, and only six are included in the game. Sometimes a player will sell a map card simply to stop (spite) the other player who has the remaining two.
4.) Sets: Obviously it's good to wait until you get a complete set before selling; but as the cards get more valuable, that's fairly hard to do. The easiest sets to procure are the Pot Shards and Parchment Scraps, but they also have the lowest payoffs. After about a dozen games, I think that the best-valued cards are the Broken Cups and the Coins, as they are fairly easy to get a hold of and give a good amount for complete sets. I've only once seen a Pharaoh's Mask set completed, and the player who did so spent so much time hunting it down that they lost the game, so that was pretty much all the points they had. Now, waiting for a complete set seems like a good idea, but players must constantly be on the lookout for Thieves and Sandstorms.
5.) Sandstorms: These cards rarely make anyone happy - especially the player who draws them, as they cause everyone to lose half their cards, rounded down. However, I found that a player should simply prepare for these, either by playing incomplete sets to save their cards, or by keeping several less valuable cards in hand to discard when they show up. Occasionally this changes the feel of the game, such as when several are drawn in a row, but a player can keep track of how many have been drawn, and how safe they currently are. In one interesting game, all six sandstorms were drawn before the deck was half gone, and a hoarding war began.
6.) Thieves: These cause a bit of player interaction and cause me to keep several less worthy cards in my hand to prevent my good cards from being stolen. (However, as an aside, all cards seem pretty worthwhile, and thus nothing is as ever bad as it seems). Like sandstorms, players can track how many thieves remain in the deck and adjust their hands accordingly.
7.) Fun Factor: I won't lie and say that Archaeology is full of deep strategy decisions, rather it's a light game that offers some fun choices each turn. There is a possibility that luck will not be kind to a player, but usually the player who manages to snag the best sets through buying and selling will win. Games are fast and fun; and if you don't do so well in one game - fifteen minutes later, you can try again. I personally like the "push your luck" aspect, as players try to complete their sets without getting hit by a sandstorm or thief.
8.) Players: The game is absolutely great with two players and almost as much with three. With four players, luck plays a much greater role, as you have to wait several turns before playing, and are thus more susceptible to sandstorms and thieves. The designer mentioned that perhaps the number of sandstorms/thieves could be lowered with four, but I'd just rather play the game with two or three.
I've played Archaeology almost a dozen times already, and I see it becoming a favorite of mine in the vein of "No Thanks!", a card game that can be played in a short period of time yet offer some fun choices and allow me to be competitive. The theme works well, and I'm sorry to see that the game only has been released in a small quantity. But if you can find one, I highly recommend picking it up; it's a short card game that delights between the bigger, longer games.
Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games"
www.thedicetower.com
It's been a while since I've played a short card game that has captivated me the way Archaeology has. I've seen some complain about the luck of the sandstorm cards, but Archaeology allows players to prepare for the disasters by easily counting cards. The game offers quick choices; and players have the opportunity to "push their luck," as they collect different sets of cards. It's amazingly fun, and I highly recommend this card game - especially for two players.
A deck of a treasure cards is shuffled, with four dealt to each player, and five placed face up in the middle of the table. A pyramid card is placed on the table, with three sets of cards (three, five, and seven) randomly drawn and placed face down in the three "rooms" of the pyramid. The rest of the treasure cards are shuffled into a deck, along with sandstorm, thief, and map cards. Players announce the total value of the cards in their hand, and the player with the lowest total goes first with play proceeding clockwise around the table.
On a player's turn, they first draw a card from the top of the deck.
The player then is allowed to change cards from their hand with those in the middle of the table, as long as the values are the same. For example, I can trade a Coin (value 2) for two parchment scraps (value 1) or vice versa. Players can also discard map cards to take the contents of a room in the pyramid (one map card for the three card room, two map cards for the five card room, and three map cards for the seven card room).
Finally, players may play a set of cards in front of them, selling them to the museums for points. Once a set has been played, it is "safe" from sandstorms and thieves but also cannot be added to. Most treasures are worth more when sold in multiple sets. The treasures include:
The game continues until all cards from the deck have been drawn. Players then continue to play until they've gotten rid of all the cards in their hand. Points for sold treasures are then totaled, and the player with the most points is the winner!
Some comments on the game…
1.) Components: As usual, I don't like the longer flat box, which requires the deck of cards to be split into two before being slid in; but the artwork on the box and cards is very sharp and thematic. Each type of card not only has different artwork but is also of a different color as to help when matching the sets. There are several numbers on each card, but they are very clear - the design is very well done. The cards themselves are of good quality, although there are some minor size differences noticeable when shuffling the deck.
2.) Rules: The rules are quite simple, and I was ready to play the game after one reading. My only quibble was that they should have been clearer as to whether a player can sell more than one set of cards per turn (they can't). Still, the game is easy to teach, especially with the cards being so clearly defined.
3.) Maps: Maps are a curious card, because a player has to determine whether the cards received from the treasure room are worth the value of the map. Now, for the single map treasure room, it's obvious and worth taking. And sometimes paying three maps, which could have been traded into the middle for more valuable cards, for a treasure room full of small cards feels annoying. In fact, in the majority of the games I've played, the three-map treasure room is never found - mostly because one player can accumulate three map cards, and only six are included in the game. Sometimes a player will sell a map card simply to stop (spite) the other player who has the remaining two.
4.) Sets: Obviously it's good to wait until you get a complete set before selling; but as the cards get more valuable, that's fairly hard to do. The easiest sets to procure are the Pot Shards and Parchment Scraps, but they also have the lowest payoffs. After about a dozen games, I think that the best-valued cards are the Broken Cups and the Coins, as they are fairly easy to get a hold of and give a good amount for complete sets. I've only once seen a Pharaoh's Mask set completed, and the player who did so spent so much time hunting it down that they lost the game, so that was pretty much all the points they had. Now, waiting for a complete set seems like a good idea, but players must constantly be on the lookout for Thieves and Sandstorms.
5.) Sandstorms: These cards rarely make anyone happy - especially the player who draws them, as they cause everyone to lose half their cards, rounded down. However, I found that a player should simply prepare for these, either by playing incomplete sets to save their cards, or by keeping several less valuable cards in hand to discard when they show up. Occasionally this changes the feel of the game, such as when several are drawn in a row, but a player can keep track of how many have been drawn, and how safe they currently are. In one interesting game, all six sandstorms were drawn before the deck was half gone, and a hoarding war began.
6.) Thieves: These cause a bit of player interaction and cause me to keep several less worthy cards in my hand to prevent my good cards from being stolen. (However, as an aside, all cards seem pretty worthwhile, and thus nothing is as ever bad as it seems). Like sandstorms, players can track how many thieves remain in the deck and adjust their hands accordingly.
7.) Fun Factor: I won't lie and say that Archaeology is full of deep strategy decisions, rather it's a light game that offers some fun choices each turn. There is a possibility that luck will not be kind to a player, but usually the player who manages to snag the best sets through buying and selling will win. Games are fast and fun; and if you don't do so well in one game - fifteen minutes later, you can try again. I personally like the "push your luck" aspect, as players try to complete their sets without getting hit by a sandstorm or thief.
8.) Players: The game is absolutely great with two players and almost as much with three. With four players, luck plays a much greater role, as you have to wait several turns before playing, and are thus more susceptible to sandstorms and thieves. The designer mentioned that perhaps the number of sandstorms/thieves could be lowered with four, but I'd just rather play the game with two or three.
I've played Archaeology almost a dozen times already, and I see it becoming a favorite of mine in the vein of "No Thanks!", a card game that can be played in a short period of time yet offer some fun choices and allow me to be competitive. The theme works well, and I'm sorry to see that the game only has been released in a small quantity. But if you can find one, I highly recommend picking it up; it's a short card game that delights between the bigger, longer games.
Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games"
www.thedicetower.com
