Here I Stand, when I finally managed to get a real game going, proved to be one of the most unique, rich game I have played. I had rated it high and expected it to stay high. Unfortunately, I had to lower its ratings slightly. Why? Because Virgin Queen is even better than its epic predecessor. Game-play, strategy, accessibility, and components are all steps up from Here I Stand.
COMPONENTS: The Components are mostly top notch. The game board is probably the best I've seen in terms of uniqueness and balance of looks and playability. The rich colors and distorted map hooks everyone in, and little additions such as the signatures of the leaders help even more. The one draw back with the map is it has less space on it for side tables compared to Here I Stand. This puts more emphasis on side cards. I don't mind that, but I would've liked at least the Victory Track on the main board.
The many little chits in the game seem slightly higher quality this time around. My Here I Stand chits sometimes frayed and split slightly, I haven't had any cases like that yet with about as much play time between the two. The cards are high quality, with the exception of the marriage cards. For some reason, they tend to bend easier than the regular deck.
The rulebook cannot be commented on fully, since a lot of it is taken from Here I Stand. Its clear, and mostly easy to follow, though the New World stuff is a bit harder to grasp than other stuff in it.
Gameplay: If you've played Here I Stand, gameplay is similar, but smooooother. In particular, the religious aspect is so much better integrated, and really improves gameplay. Almost everyone is in some way involved this time around, and the conversion process is fast and easy to understand. This makes religious struggles easier to understand and to follow for even people with little direct interaction with it. The game also gets into the swing of things far faster, without late events such as the Barbary Pirates or the Schekamakshgdebksjdh League holding players back.
The one potential area of clumsiness is the end turn resolutions. In Here I Stand, exploration and colonization was a definite sideshow. In VQ, science, arts, marriage, and colonies all must be resolved, and so much dice rolling on tables at the same time can get numbing and slows the game. I like all of those systems and they work well, but its the one area of the game that doesn't feel smooth, especially the marriages, which are arranged first but not resolved until the end of a turn.
Strategy: If HIS said "Here's your narrative in this epic story," VQ says "Heres the epic story, write your own narrative." Almost everyone can do almost anything, and everyone is much more connected and interactive than HIS. In most cases, you can feel like you can do anything you want, and you usually can. The generally bigger hands of cards mean you are less likely to get a hand of only stinkers, and the events are all good, with the return of fan favorites such as Treachery!. You can therefore plan out long term strategies fairly confidently, while your card draw can alter tactical decisions you may make during each turn.
From my experience so far, each power seems to be fairly balanced. Players do need to self balance the game as well, as France especially is a VP powerhouse if it has no pressure. The Protestants are much more fun this time around for my group, as they are able to hit the ground running if they wish. The Ottomans as well seem much more fun, with more flexibility in action, and more reasons to negotiate and interact with every other player. Spain will have his or her hands full, but is sure to have fun even if attacked by nearly everyone due to its power and fun events such as the Armada. The one almost stinker seems to be the Holy Roman Empire. They work well, but it feels like they were put into the game out of necessity, and I sense almost a lack of inspiration with them compared to the other powers. That isn't to say they aren't fun or balanced, far from it (Their home cards create huge negotiation fun), but they don't feel as powerful in any aspect of the game as other powers--they don't have a specialty in any area (not a bad thing!).
I've read a lot of talk about military strategy in VQ and the supposed lack of return it brings. I have not found VQ to be an especially peaceful game in my own group. In fact, the more options available to each power means that more powers are threatening and interacting with each other. Warfare is not usually going to win a game by itself, but its a very reasonable strategy for any player depending on the circumstances. We've had a military auto-win by England as a result of smart decisive play, and most of our other victors have done their share of smart maneuvers. This aspect of the game is almost certainly dependent on the group however. With another set of less vicious players, the military was much less relevant. England played through 3 turns without fighting a single battle, while France played as not militaristic as possible, chugging out VPs instead.
It seems to me that when push comes to shove, a military player can ruin another power's position regardless of VP gains. A good example would be a game where the HRE, content to churn out VPs, found his army outmaneuvered and destroyed. The results were devastating, and a stack of VPs won't win the game if you have no way to get any more. One game saw the Ottoman player balance war, patronage, and clever diplomacy for a win. A balanced game is perhaps the best idea, although non-military strategy and military strategy can be effective as well, especially if it is a mixed group and the military oriented players are pitted off against each other.
Overall: Virgin Queen is a far superior game to HIS. It expands on the great theme of HIS and then makes the gameplay less scripted and more open. The negotiations of HIS become much better and more intense in a game system where all powers can effectively strike at each other. It has a lot of moving pieces, but they all work together in a great way. An excellent game that is really a civilization game considering the sum of its parts.
ERRATA:
VIRGIN QUEEN: Seriously, a terrible name. Here I Stand evokes a strong image of strength, righteousness, and perseverance. Virgin Queen evokes nothing but a curled lip or raised eyebrow. Its difficult to draw young guys (or girls for that matter) into a game with such an awkward name. I mean, yes, the Queen of the Virgins joke during the game is pretty funny. But is it worth such a bad name choice? We told a guy it was called Age of the Armada to get him to show up to play in a session.
SULEIMAN: Don't leave! We'll miss you!
DEFAULT: We've taken to calling default leaders "Bob." I suspect other groups have done the same.
REBELLIONS: Its strangely worse to lose to a rebellion than to get a city sacked by an opposing army. Theres something psychological in that I'm sure.
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