The Game ranking system on Boardgamegeek.com favors games with a lot of votes by adding 100 “average” dummy votes. This is called Beysian averaging. According the FAQ on BGG this is to prevent a new game from appearing at the top by virtue of a few good reviews (or vice versa). This system severely affects the rankings of small publishers with less than 1000 ratings.

The majority of the Columbia Games block games have average user ratings above 7. But only Hammer of the Scots, EastFront, and Rommel in the Desert are ranked above 7 once the 100 dummy votes are added.

I’d like to see the ranking system changed and I’ve contacted the guys at BGG and expressed my concerns. There is a separate rank listing of wargames which averages the user ratings without dummy votes. This list is helpful (its nice that EastFront is #1) but would still rather a system where no tweaking is necessary. A minimum of 100 rankings before inclusion on the master list ought to be enough to prevent most problems.

In the meantime, I would like to appeal to players of Columbia Games block games to submit your ratings as soon as possible to offset to effect of the dummy votes. To rate a game simply go to its page on boardgamegeek.com. Make sure you’re logged in and scroll down to the bottom to enter your rating. Click submit and you’re all set.

There are several Columbia Games eligible for inclusion in the WBC 2008, all needing votes to make the cut.

http://www.boardgamers.org/wbc/orphans.htm

Last year’s voting left Rommel in the Desert and Napoleon all just a few votes shy of the tally required to be included. A few votes may make the difference!

Hammer of the Scots, Crusader Rex, Liberty, Napoleon, War of 1812, and Athens and Sparta all need your votes.

It took 138 votes to be included for 2007. RitD got 115 (sixth from making the cut), Napoleon got 111 (ninth from making the cut). The number of votes needed to be included was up by +31% from 2006, which indicates how important each vote can be. There’s only 3 weeks left to vote.

Rommel in the Desert is a candidate for a 2008 tournament at the World Boardgaming Championships. Boardgame Players’ Association (BPA) members will soon have an opportunity to vote for it for 2008.

BPA members, please vote for Rommel in the Desert when you receive your ballot.

Preliminary plans are to run a multiple round, swiss-elimination tournament using the Crusader scenario.

Boardgamegeek.com user John Owen has compiled a complete list of block games published by Columbia Games and its forerunner, Gamma II. The games are listed in order of publication from Quebec 1759 to Crusader Rex. Athens and Sparta has not yet been added.

To view John’s list click:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/17994/item/343720#item343720

Rommel’s Obsession, a new gameplan title, is available to vote for now. Designer Jim Krohn can be contacted on the Columbia Games forum and the venues such as Boardgamegeek.com and Consimworld.com

Please visit:

http://www.columbiagames.com/cgi-bin/query/cfg/allgameplan-waritems.txt

http://www.columbiagames.com/cgi-bin/query/cfg/zoom.cfg?product_id=3424

1. Does the loss of double defense by the defender on the Betrayal card occur for a single round or both rounds of a Storming Attack?

Both rounds

2. Can a unit move directly from the hex that is the source of the Haliacmon River to the hex that is the source of the Arathus River?

Yes, but you must stop in that hex.

3. Rule 2.14 implies that reinforcements only occur at Major Cities while section 8 allows existing blocks to take reinforcements or new Reserve blocks to be placed at Minor Cities. Which is correct?

This is an inconsistency. 1 BP is allowed in a minor city. Rule 2.14 will be changed.

4. According to Rule 1.5, if a player moves a ground block into a Strait hex with an enemy ship, the ground block loses 1 step and retreats (back to hex it came from according to the Retreat rule). What’s the point of ever making such a move? This also seems to contradict the Straits example in the sidebar on page 3.

This effect applies only if the move requires the strait was crossed to reach the town. If not, the strait rule doesn’t apply at all. Players sometime blunder into a navy but will learn that crossing a strait into unknown forces is risky.

5. Suppose there is an enemy block on the Naupactus hex. It would seem that a player could move two blocks from the Pleuron hex into the Naupactus hex if the enemy block was considered to be on the Naupactus side of the strait but only a single block if the enemy block was on the Peloponnese side of the strait. Which is correct?

The hex that the unit is coming from establishes whether the move involves crossing a strait to reach the town or not. For Naupauctus, a move from Pleuron or Delphi does not cross the strait while a move from Patrae or Sicyon does. The location of the town is the key. The Naupactus defenders are deemed to be where the town is.

This week, we are pleased to announce the official release of Athens and Sparta. Click below for more information.

Athens and Sparta

A&S is a really fun game. There are many ways to make your opponent sweat. The game has many strategic options and also just the right amount of random variability to make it playable for years to come!

The rules draft for the upcoming Athens and Sparta game has been revised. We are grateful for the many insightful comments and edits we received from gamers who are excited about this game. Please continue to send comments about this iteration of the rules.

To download the PDF file please click the link below:

http://www.columbiagames.com/cgi-bin/query/cfg/zoom.cfg?product_id=3061

The Kanday atlas arrived yesterday. What an absolutely wonderful product! Keep producing great stuff like this.
M Burton Hopkins Jr

Feedback about the Electronic Kanday Atlas. To learn more visit:

http://www.columbiagames.com/cgi-bin/query/cfg/zoom.cfg?product_id=5911

2 new Wizard Kings scenarios have been submitted by Rich Fulcher and posted to the Wizard Kings website.

Against the Necrom
The Undead, lead by a powerful Necrom, have poured forth from their tombs beyond the Jabari Desert and overrun the lands as far south as Goranda. A well-equipped force of Feudals sets out across the Bridge of the Gods to cleanse the lands of this unholy host and destroy its commander.

The Relief of Khax
A Dwarven expedition has succeeded in reclaiming several of their mountain holds, the greatest of which is Khax. The nearby orc tribes respond with a massive assault force. Can the dwarves retain their ancient homes until the relief force can arrive?

We will be posting new scenarios separately from the scenario book that is currently online. Later, these scenarios will be incorporated into the longer scenario book.