It was a rainy Saturday afternoon and the rain continued into the evening. We started playing around 6pm and the game wrapped up around 2am. We had three experienced players which is really the only way to play 3 player. If you have a newbie in the game chances are that in a 3 player game the newbie will manipulated into attacking one of the other players or they will be beaten out of the game by those experienced.

Three Player Twilight Imperium Board

The game was set and the universe was ready to be built out onto our game table. Rather than a full hex with Twilight Imperium being setup for 3 players you end up with a triangle shape. After drawing our races building the board and seeding the worlds we had what you see here.

The race I was lucky enough to choose was The Universities of Jol-Nar which is a very advanced race with lots of technology. Their disadvantage is that they incur combat deductions.

Q chose the Yssaril Tribes which we like to call the frogs because yes, they look like frogs. Their biggest advantage is the ability to skip their turn. If done correctly they can continue to skip their turns here and there allowing them to see what everyone else does before they react.

F chose The Winnu which are also a high tech race but not as advanced as the Jol-Nar. Their advantage is high tech and no combat deductions. Their planets are also imune to the Local Unrest card if they have only one troop on the planet.

Each race is set up differently with different amounts and types of troops as you can see from the board above. Below I have images of each race card as it was set up at the beginning of play. Note the designated beverage locations. These will keep your cards from getting wet… When a standard coaster isn’t enough.

Needless to say the night continued and we got more and more into the game rather than pictures. Next weekend we are going to shoot for a five player game and give our full review on that as well.

My review of a 3 player game is that you must have experienced players if you want to have fun. You should start the night by stating no alliances. Everyone should just attack whoever is the largest threat to themselves or the board as a whole. Three player games are much easier to finish than when using more players so if you want a quick game of twilight this is your best bet.

The bummer is that there aren’t many players that you can throw to the wolves so that they stay off of your scent. Politics are also dull with a three player game and some of the objectives make it too easy or too hard to win. But, as usually any game of Twilight is a great game. Especially if you have lots and lots of dice.

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Twilight Imperium

This has got to be one of the best most detailed board games on the market today (we are always working on something better). It uses D10 10 sided dice and is based with a hex built board. Every time this game is played the board is different so experienced players may know of strategic places but they will be placed in different locations always creating a new feel to the game. You can play with 3-8 players or more with the expansion pack Shattered Empires.

Shattered Empire

There are over a dozen races to select from and each race has it’s own special abilities creating a different game every time different races are used. You never know what you might be (unless you have a house rule that says otherwise).

You build ships and take troops out to invade other planets which give you more resources and political influence. You build technology which gives you advantages over those who have less. There are political cards, strategic cards, action cards, tech cards, objective cards and more.

The goal is to accomplish your objectives or the board objectives and reach 10 points before anyone else. The intrigue, espionage, fore thought and character placement really bring the game to life.

3 player games are ok but you really need 4 or more people with experience to get the full effects of the game. It does take about 3 full plays before you start to catch on. I think the shortest game I have ever played was 4 hours and I have had some last as long as 2 full days so this is only for the advanced and committed gamer.

Check Out That Board

From the dice aspect if you are an experienced gamer you should really consider adding a set of 10 sided dice for each color or you can even get one for each race. Again this game is only for the committed serious game player.

High Rolls,

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