shorten these stratagies
Generally speaking, unless you have wildly good dice luck, I’d just as soon not go for double dice. Bores you with a brief mathy statement, but essentially, for a given value on a die from 1 to 6, you have a 1 / 6 chance of rolling it. That probability doesn’t hold for values rolled with two dice, since the sum determines the outcome (rather than just getting both individual dice). For instance, 1 is no longer possible (since the lowest value on each die is a 1), so you only have 2 – 12 as an option. Tough if you’ve been investing in Wheat Fields. While the rewards for dice at the upper end of the range are higher than the lower end, you have more consistent returns if you’ve covered 1 – 6 already and not tried to also cover 7 – 12, in my experience. I believe this is Generally Known, as well, but just worth considering for the base game. If you see that someone is really going for double dice, well, they’re likely not going to do well if nobody else is, but also, maybe buy the Mine or Orchard Farm so that you can at least potentially make some money on their turns (though rolling a 5 is still possible on two dice).
If you see that other players aren’t going for double dice, then definitely don’t go for double dice. If you’re the only person driving double dice, it’s fairly unlikely to happen in your favor that often, so, again, would just as soon stick with singles for the dice.
I don’t think the Cafe is that useful at lower player counts, at least not until you have the Shopping Mall. Best case, you annoy your only opponent and consistently ruin the 3 for them. Which, I mean, that’s funny, but also mean? Your money can likely be better spent elsewhere. Once you unlock the Shopping Mall, though, it doubles in effectiveness, so you can really use a 3 on their turn to hurt them, especially if you’ve been monopolizing Cafes.
The Radio Tower is very useful but very expensive; even then, I’d recommend not making that the last thing you buy. Having that reroll can often make the difference between winning and losing (especially if you’re trying to avoid activating another player’s collection of Forests or something). It’s pricey, but, a lot of things are pricey and valuable, so weigh your options. Again, it’s easier to get once you unlock the Shopping Mall unless everyone is going for double dice.
Buy cards that give you a passive income on other players’ turns. This is kind of the crux of the game, isn’t it? Getting that passive income can be pretty much critical; you can’t always expect to make all of your cash on your turn (unless you’re really making things work with the Shopping Mall). You kind of want a broad spectrum of coverage, anyways, so several of these cards will end up in your tableau if you want to make sure that you always get paid when a die is rolled on your turn.
If you can sneakily buy all of one card (especially cards that give you money when it’s not your turn), you can turn certain dice rolls into huge paydays. This is just my favorite thing to do, especially because it makes your opponent dread certain rolls, and then when they happen you can very politely thank them for the money. I’ve found from extensive study that they hate that. Up to you if that’s how you want to operate, I suppose.
That said, don’t let your opponent monopolize certain numbers. Keep an eye out for 4 and 5; those are numbers opponents tend to go after pretty hard. One gives a lot of money if they roll it on their turn, the other gives money whenever it’s rolled. You need to make sure you get some of those cards, too.
This is the classic engine-building problem: at what point do you trust your engine to make enough money to get you through the game and focus on buying your way to victory rather than building your engine? Thankfully, buying Landmarks isn’t always abandoning your engine; they can offer helpful results, too (except for the Amusement Park, for me, at least). But you need to figure out when you should start saving for Landmarks instead of blowing your cash on more cards, otherwise your opponents will buy theirs and win before you can react.
- Avoid going for double dice unless you have exceptionally good luck with rolling dice.
- Focus on covering numbers 1-6 for consistent returns rather than trying to cover numbers 7-12.
- If other players aren't going for double dice, avoid it as well since it's unlikely to work in your favor.
- The Cafe card is not very useful at lower player counts until you have the Shopping Mall, so consider spending your money elsewhere.
- The Radio Tower is expensive but useful for rerolls, although it's recommended to buy it before other expensive items.
- Purchase cards that provide passive income on other players' turns for a consistent cash flow.
- Strategically buy all of one card to turn certain dice rolls into big paydays and make opponents dread certain rolls.
- Be vigilant about not letting opponents monopolize numbers 4 and 5, which are highly sought after.
- Determine when to focus on buying Landmarks instead of building your card engine, as Landmarks can offer helpful results towards victory.
1. Don't go for double dice unless you're really lucky with rolling dice.
2. It's better to focus on numbers 1-6 rather than trying to cover all numbers when rolling two dice.
3. If no one else is going for double dice, avoid it too because it probably won't work out in your favor.
4. The Cafe card is not very useful until you have the Shopping Mall, so spend your money on other things first.
5. The Radio Tower is expensive but useful for rerolls, try to buy it before other expensive items.
6. Buy cards that give you money when it's not your turn, this is important for getting a steady income.
7. If you can, buy all of one card to make certain dice rolls give you a lot of money and annoy your opponent.
8. Watch out for numbers 4 and 5, as opponents often target them. Make sure you have cards that benefit from those numbers too.
9. Decide when to start saving money for Landmarks instead of buying more cards. Landmarks can help you win the game, so plan accordingly.