Help Decide The Fate of the Galaxy!
Greetings dear readers – and prepare for something completely different! This weekend at Dice Hate Me HQ, six of us will gather in the wee hours of the morning to face off in an epic, full-day battle for galactic supremacy playing Twilight Imperium: Third Edition. Some of us are veteran TI:3 players, while others have only stared longingly at the limousine-sized box on the local game store shelf. This event promises to be so epic that we’ll be live-Tweeting the super showdown this Saturday, talking about our experiences on a future State of Games, and I’ll even have a session report on how the whole thing went down next week on Dice Hate Me.
But before we can get started, we need your help! We all want this to be an interactive event, so we’d like some input into what Twilight Imperium race is best suited for each player. Below you’ll find a brief breakdown of each opponent and their playstyles. Beneath that, you’ll see the poll; fill that out and you’ll help decide who gets to play what – and possibly decide the fate of the galaxy! If any of you are unfamiliar with Twilight Imperium and need a good summary of the races, you’re in luck – I happen to have one right here on Dice Hate Me!
Meet the Players
Chris “Dice Hate Me” Kirkman
Bio: Before the bastions of cardboard Euros came into Chris’s life, he was all pewter minis and plastic Ameritrash – and loving every minute of it with classics like Axis & Allies and Fortress America. When he discovered Twilight Imperium, it was love at first play – TI:3 combines tons of plastic, galaxy-spanning strategy, and lively social politics into one gigantic – and beautiful – box. Chris won the last TI:3 showdown (involving current players Michael Harrison and Shawn Purtell) playing the Big Blue Swarm (Federation of Sol), so the odds are stacked slightly in his favor in this six-player slugfest.
Playstyle: All social, all the time. Can turn the driest Euro into an opportunity for table talk – and use player psychology to rattle some cages.
Dan “Geek Jock” Patriss
Bio: Founder of the Geek All-Stars podcast, Dan is the resident deck-builder rock star. His Ascension skills are nearly unmatched, and he uses that prowess to formulate combo strategies in board games. Twilight Imperium may not have a deck-building element, but Dan may well be able to assess the optimum use for the coveted Action cards – knowing when to hold ’em, when to fold ’em and when to chain them together for a battle fleet beatdown.
Playstyle: Gregarious and diplomatic. Dan is always laughing and cutting up during a game, which typically lulls his opponents into an inevitable trap.
Paul “Redheaded Pharmacist” Hetrick
Bio: Paul is a staple member of the Geek All-Stars, and founder of one of the most widely-read pharmacy blogs on the internet. He’s also one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. But behind that inviting, baby-faced grin lies a brain filled with mischief and mayhem. Paul’s the kind of gamer that flies under the radar for a good long while, just hanging back and watching the leaders scrap it out, and then, when you least expect it, he’s totally ruining something you’ve been planning for half the game – or stealing your turtles.
Playstyle: Quiet and unassuming. A solid strategist that often uses an “oh, am I in your way?” method to bring mayhem to the table.
Michael “Oldbie” Harrison
Bio: Michael is cohost of The Dice Section podcast and a core contributor to the parenting and projects site GeekDad. Michael is a veteran Twilight Imperium player (and, yes, one play does make you a vet with this humongous game), taking on the role of the insectoid Sardakk N’orr in the last showdown. Although his bugs met a nasty fate when Chris convinced the Barony of Letnev player to crush them under his galactic boot heels, he was actually doing quite well keeping the peace with his space neighbor, Shawn, and plotting a buggy victory through superior firepower and technology.
Playstyle: Tactical and testing. Likely to make small jabs searching for opponents’ weak spots, much like a velociraptor checking on the electric fence.
Shawn “Hobo Pain” Purtell
Bio: Shawn is one of the developers of the lifestyle app, Lovebit. He is also the Dice Hate Me Games Ultimate Carnie – he gets every game and prototype for free, for life. He also happens to be one of the toughest Euro strategists ever to throw a meeple down on the table. Shawn often uses his Brainiac-like processing power to recognize the optimal strategy for any gaming situation, usually from the very first turn. In the last Twilight Imperium showdown, Shawn expertly commanded the Xxcha Kingdom, recognizing that the turtles are at their best when they’re, well… turtling. By the end of the game, his fleet and technology were unmatched and it’s likely he would have won if Chris hadn’t achieved his secret agenda.
Playstyle: Cool and calculating. Definitely not one to take a direct approach, preferring the scalpel over the sledgehammer.
Daniel “The Rookie” Solis
Bio: Daniel is creator of the future Dice Hate Me Games release, Belle of the Ball, and is a self-described “art director by day, game designer by night.” But, judging from his prolific game list (seriously, check out all of his ideas) he appears to be designing a little bit during the day, as well. Much like how he comes up with game ideas – about ten a minute – Daniel often tends to try out as many tactical avenues as possible. Since Twilight Imperium‘s epic game length and scope affords a lot of chances for technological tinkering, it’s probably safe to assume that Daniel will be eyeballing that tech tree with delightful glee.
Playstyle: The ultimate wildcard. Will he play it safe and tinker in the background, or will he come out swinging?
Take the Poll!
Related posts:
- Dice Hate Me Game of the Year Awards 2010
- Kickstarter Quick-look: Super Showdown
- Races of Twilight Imperium
- Origins 2012 Photo Recap – A Publisher’s Perspective
- The 2011 Dice Hate Me Holiday Gift Guide
