Retro Mare Nostrum Game Review
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We will talk not only about the novelties of the world of board games. Veterans of this hobby also deserve to be told and shown about them). So today we have the strategy game Mare Nostrum in its first edition).
Mare Nostrum is a strategy game in which ancient civilizations (Rome, Babylon, Carthage, Greece, Egypt) fight for power over the Mediterranean. To do this, they produce soldiers and ships (and eventually monsters), build markets and found cities to produce more resources.
The victory of the nation is brought by the purchase of heroes and/or wonders of the world. They are represented by cards that give the owner some special bonus. According to the standard rules, the first to buy a total of 4 heroes and/or wonders of the world wins. An alternative way to victory is to build pyramids: this is also a wonder of the world, the most expensive in the game.
Each round begins with a trading phase. Nations collect all available resources (by taking goods and money cards, depending on the number of relevant buildings), then begin trading. The holder of the Master Trader title chooses how many cards will be put up for trade, and all nations must put up the appropriate amount of resources. The process of trading is like a tableau: one player chooses a resource from another player, then that player also chooses a resource, etc. Trading continues until the commodity cards run out.
There is no such freedom of negotiation as in "Colonizers". Only negotiations like: "If you take this product from me, I will take it from you in return." It turns out a very interesting hand management: you need to try to plan in advance what resources to mine, while paying attention to what resources other players are trying to collect.
After everyone has collected piles of newly acquired wealth, it's time to part with them in the construction phase. In this phase, nations build armies, buildings, and buy heroes and wonders of the world.
During the construction phase, you have to make difficult decisions that can result in victory or defeat. On the one hand, new houses are needed for economic growth. On the other hand, troops are needed for their defense. Thirdly, for victory, one cannot do without heroes and wonders of the world. Maintaining a balance between these is difficult.
When playing with the add-on, you can also make sacrifices to the gods for a one-turn bonus.
Then the most interesting part begins - the combat phase: land and sea battles. Combat is simple: each combatant rolls as many dice as he has units. The total result is divided by 5 (rounding down). The final figure = how many soldiers the enemy lost. For example, if your three soldiers rolled a 3, 4, and 5—a total of 12—then your opponent has lost two soldiers.
I find battles to be a very exciting part of the game. Battles are simple, but not boring thanks to the existence of special units and passive abilities. If you ignore the troops, you will grow the economy quickly, but are very vulnerable to looting and invasions. If you focus on conquests, there may be problems with income, although you can potentially benefit greatly from capturing buildings built by others.
After a simple calculation of the result of the battle, you are given an interesting choice (if the opponent has no one left):
- Annex the territory, which is more useful in the long run, but requires payment for the annexation + the opponent will still have time to receive one income from the houses.
- Or occupy buildings: the territory still belongs to the enemy, but your economy immediately rises.
- Or demolish one of his buildings: the benefit is relatively small, but the enemy suffers significantly.
All in all, an interesting choice between short-term and long-term benefits.
I especially like how Mare Nostrum allows turn order. It is determined by one of the players, namely the holder of the corresponding title in each of the phases. To get the title, you need to achieve certain achievements: having the most troops, the most cities and temples or markets and caravans.
And receiving these titles has far-reaching strategic consequences. For example, determining the order of construction, you get the opportunity to build yourself the last houses of the corresponding type (all players have a common limit of buildings). Or, on the contrary, give the opponents the first move, see what they will build, and react accordingly. An experienced player will pay attention even to the conflicts of nations at the other end of the map and try to establish such a turn order that they engage in an expensive arms race.
For the same reasons, it is very important and fun to correctly manage the determination of the sequence of moves in the phase of military operations. Arrange everything so that your enemies cripple each other, and then attack last and take all their wealth.
I like resource management games combined with direct conflict, and at the heart of Mare Nostrum is resource management. They are necessary for obtaining heroes and wonders of the world, i.e. victory. Troops are needed only to strengthen and defend one's economy or harm the enemy. Attacking for the sake of attacking is, of course, fun, but it will not lead to success.
Replayability is facilitated by the unique capabilities of nations. First, each nation has its own special hero that encourages a certain playstyle. Secondly, with the addition, each nation has its own mythical monster: these are the strongest units in the game, and with special abilities. In addition, nations become increasingly differentiated as they purchase heroes and wonders of the world that provide special abilities. In this way, you can create interesting and effective combinations; there is room for strategic decisions. Each nation plays in its own way, with its own strengths and weaknesses.
Are these opportunities balanced? Mostly yes. Partly the balance drives the add-on, partly the players balance the game themselves. In addition, the constant victories of one nation are difficult due to the tendency of "all to beat the leader".
In general, the game leaves a very pleasant feeling. The tension is high, the decisions are difficult and interesting, and the emotional payoff is very gratifying. You don't have to be bored at the table.
Despite all that praise, I can't give Mare Nostrum a 10 out of 10. While we've had great, near-perfect games, the weakness of the game is that those games don't happen every time. Many factors need to come together to create an epic experience.
First of all, consider supplements as a must. It fixes a lot of problems and polishes the base, complementing it perfectly. Although, of course, it is more difficult for newcomers to learn due to the new rules, the price tag is also higher, especially considering that the game is no longer in production.
With the addition, you can play with up to 6 participants. Base officially supports 3-5, but I've never seriously considered a 3 player game. I will not sit down to play with 4 again, most likely. 5 participants is an excellent option, but ideally 6 is better; this is how Mare Nostrum's potential is fully revealed. The fewer the participants, the less conflict, jostling, and drama, and the interplay of many nations' abilities.
Secondly, the more experienced the players are - and it is desirable that all are equally experienced - the more interesting the games are. If players aren't familiar with each nation's unique abilities, their mythic monsters, and their hero and wonder maps, many interesting opportunities and strategies evaporate.
Third, the ideal party in Mare Nostrum must play by the epic rules, which again require augmentation. According to the epic rules, pyramids are worth 13 resources instead of 12, and heroes need 5 to win instead of 4. In my opinion, it should be played this way and only this way. Otherwise, the game will end at the most interesting and tense place. During the game in Mare Nostrum, as in a good book, the tension should build gradually. At first, nations grow and develop, begin to collide at the borders. Their economies are growing, there is an opportunity to produce large armies. Heroes/wonders of the world are being bought = the stakes are getting higher and higher. If you play by the standard rules, it will all be over early. In one of our parties, all the nations were preparing for war and an epic massacre was about to break out... when suddenly someone bought the pyramids and it was over. Even the winner was disappointed by the wasted potential. Since then, we have only played by the epic rules. Their obvious disadvantage is the increased duration of the games.
So the hardest thing about Mare Nostrum is getting the conditions right for a great party. The pendulum swings between "mediocre dreary party" and "posh pastime". But if the stars do align, then your efforts will more than pay off, and you will not regret the time spent.
USEFUL LINKS
Mare Nostrum on the BGG portal
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/3931/mare-nostrum
Mare Nostrum on the Game Theory portal
https://tg.in.ua/boardgames/1377/mare-nostrum
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