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Review of Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem – Calaveras Club Expansion
Blurb from the publisher: 'Shoot first... Shoot often...
An upstart club with something to prove, the Calaveras are looking to send a message.... and guns speak louder than words. With no respect for the law, or rheir rivals, they'll do what it takes to be the last club standing.
The Calaveras Club Expansion includes everything you need to add an additional player and this dangerous new club to your games of Sons Of Anarchy: Men Of Mayhem.
Violence solves everything.'
What you get: Your EUR 17,50 or GBP 15 or USD 20 will buy you a copy of Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem - Calaveras Club Expansion, an expansion in the Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem game line that started with Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem, a 90-minute boardgame for three to four players. The box contains the rulebook in English which is also free on the company's website, as well as the following items: one Clubhouse Card, 10 Plastic Dudes, 87 tokens, one Player Blind and one six-sided Die.
For those never having heard of the franchise, Sons of Anarchy is a wildly popular and acclaimed TV crime drama series which was completed after a run of seven years. It follows the lives of Sons of Anarchy, a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club operating in Charming, a fictional town in California's Central Valley. Even though the show centers on Jackson 'Jax' Teller, vice-president and son of one of the founders of the club who begins questioning both the club and himself, the boardgame does nothing of the kind. This is about being the most successful gang around. No questioning, no remorse, no nothing.
Gameplay: The Calaveras Club Expansion allows a fifth faction to enter the fray (or even a sixth, if you own Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem - Grim Bastards Club Expansion. SoA can now be played either with this club substituting another one in a four (or less) player game, or adding the actual fifth (or sixth) player on the table. Each additional player makes the game last an additional half an hour.
The Calaveras start with a lot of dudes and assets, minimal guns and average heat. When they take the fall they can sacrifice a Prospect. In Throwdowns they can spend an extra Order to prohibit the other gangs involved from calling for aid. Apart from the material for the fifth (or sixth) club, two new hardcore options are introduced. Crime Pays allows you to take an extra 2 Cash every time you take Heat, while with Gangageddon the Gang War card will be in effect for the whole game without the need for it to get played.
The strong points: More clubs means more mayhem. I enjoy having a choice for my four player games, as well as having the option of a fifth player. The Calaveras continue where the basic game left things off: modular game (in case you are still learning it), high player interaction, a screw-your-partners mentality, and components of the same quality standard as in the original release.
I enjoy asymmetrical factions in my games, and when it comes to balance the Calaveras perform solidly. Getting rid of prospects when taking the fall definitely lessens the burden. More interestingly however, the Calaveras Club Order increases uncertainty and the conspiracy factor around the table. One does not know whether he will have access to his resources in the Showdown, or whether he will have to fend off with what is already available. On the hands of a clever player this can turn into a very serious bargaining chip. Were you to buy one Club Expansion only, this might be the one for you if you prefer more abrupt outcomes without reinforcements, no nonsense negotiations and poker deals where you never, ever flinch.
There is nothing to explain rules-wise, if you intend to play by the basic game's rules only. If you intend to use the hardcore options I just described, these were the actual rules, not a synopsis. Learning time: 10 seconds. I always use the Crime Pays rule nowadays, but not necessarily the Gangageddon open card. It's just a matter of taste; the card can still come up.
The weak points: If you felt that the four player game drags (I didn't), adding a fifth or a sixth player is not going to improve the situation. In a slow group that might mean plus fourty five minutes. Those familiar with the game however will not face issues.
I really wish the price was lower, probably around the EUR 10 to 12 mark. A fifth (and a sixth) player is a must for the game, yet it comes out as more expensive than it ought to be. Variants, alternative rules, something, anything more crunchy would have made the expansion a must-have. It is rather bare bones as it stands.
Conclusion: The Calaveras Club Expansion, just like his Grim Bastards brother, can either add choice to your game or accommodate a larger number of players. It does what it sets out to in a no-frills way. I can't complain about that, but I do wish it offered more rules-wise.
To find out more about Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem - Calaveras Club Expansion and Gale Force 9, take a look at its dedicated Sons of Anarchy web page at http://soa.gf9games.com as well as its generic one at www.gf9.com.
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