In a market that is saturated by smaller indie tabletop games with zombies and Cthulhu themes, it is always nice to play something that avoids the cosmic madness and brain related issues. Something like, let's say, pirates. Though I suppose that pirates could be becoming the new trendy theme... There are a lot of pirate board games coming out next year and now even a major video game studio is trying to break out with their pirate game. After all, the pirate buccaneers and roguish swashbucklers can be found as well in games set in the ever-popular steampunk style. It is only one step from that to fame... or infamy
Malacca is a game by Czech game designers who in 2006 made an interesting tactical fantasy RPG board game, Dorn which later even got an expansion. Since then they have been focusing on making board games that have not seen a retail release as they were designed for kids and students to learn basics of ecology or economy. Malacca is their first real attempt to get back to the market with a game that is pure fun.
In Malacca, the players take on roles of pirates and traders that anchor in the port of Malacca, a large and rich trade post in the seas of south Asia. They wait for ships passing through the straits of Malacca and with various intentions, they rush towards each that appears. There are 12 ships with cargo value from 3 to 13 that all eventually pass through the straits. Each turn, one ship is drawn from a deck and each player decides what action they will take. Players can either Trade with the ship, Attack the ship or Defend it. They choose so by playing the corresponding action card from their hand and lay it face down on the table. They may also choose to place a wager, any number of coins from their supply, on the card. Wagers can be potentially lost but if played right, they may be doubled in a successful trade. However, once all the players are done, they all reveal their actions and figure out what happened.
In practice, there are two outcomes - the ship will either be captured by attackers (if the total value of attacks was higher than the total of defense) or defended (if the total value of defense was equal or higher than the total of attacks). If the ship was captured, the traders and defenders lose their wagers but it is split by the attackers as well as the ship's cargo value. If however, the ship was defended, then the traders earn the amount of their wager from the common supply, the defenders get a special action card and the unsuccessful attackers lose their wagers and a half of their money.
The special action cards that can be only gained through successful defense, that is if someone else attacked and failed, have a great impact on the outcome of the turn and it is usually a good idea to try and get some soon. There are five kinds and you get to draw one randomly from a deck. There is Attack+2, Defence+2 and Trade x2, all of which double the effect of the standard action, and then there are two Wait actions, Attack/Defence and Trade/Defence which you can play and decide whether they count as one or the other after everyone has shown their actions. Once the special action card is played, it is discarded unlike the standard action card which always returns to the player's hand.
As you can see, the rules are quite simple. The real joy though comes from the player interaction, or to put it better, guessing other players' intentions and playing accordingly. Bluffing is allowed and recommended because only that way you get to earn a lot of money and possibly screw other players over. This is done through putting the wager on your card. A card with a wager on it is possibly a trade action as that is the only action that can yield profit through a wager. However, it is easy to lure your opponents into false sense of security and bluff by putting the wager on your attack card with which you may capture the ship, get other players' wagers and the ship's worth of cargo.
One risky attack that other players intercept may cost you half of your treasure which can be fatal in the later parts of the game but by then, nobody is really safe. If the rich pirates play it safe by defending, you can easily score big with well played trades. If someone keeps attacking, gang up the defense. If a player keeps earning a lot of money through trade, there is nothing better than attacking with full force and getting all their wager.
As you get familiar with the rules, you might want to try to play with the advanced cards - pirate characters that give each player a special ability like getting 3 more coins for every successful trade or drawing two special cards and then deciding which one to keep, and various purchasable items that reward you (with money) for a certain play style. For example, an admiral's safe conduct will earn you 4 coins every time you successfully defend as a thanks for the help. This makes playing defense very profitable but very risky as well because other players expect you to play defense a lot and they can adapt to it.
What I really like about Malacca is that it is not a game based on luck. If you don't think about other players' intentions and play your cards without consideration, you will probably lose. More than anything, it is a game of analysis and estimation covered in a colorful coat of beautiful illustrations that keep the game light and fun to play with players of all ages and skill. There is practically no text on the cards, the symbols and icons on the cards are easy to read and the game comes with the rules in Czech, English and German. Its simple gameplay and quick turns keep the total game time around 15-20 minutes and often times call for another round of pirate-y fun.
In Malacca, the players take on roles of pirates and traders that anchor in the port of Malacca, a large and rich trade post in the seas of south Asia. They wait for ships passing through the straits of Malacca and with various intentions, they rush towards each that appears. There are 12 ships with cargo value from 3 to 13 that all eventually pass through the straits. Each turn, one ship is drawn from a deck and each player decides what action they will take. Players can either Trade with the ship, Attack the ship or Defend it. They choose so by playing the corresponding action card from their hand and lay it face down on the table. They may also choose to place a wager, any number of coins from their supply, on the card. Wagers can be potentially lost but if played right, they may be doubled in a successful trade. However, once all the players are done, they all reveal their actions and figure out what happened.
In practice, there are two outcomes - the ship will either be captured by attackers (if the total value of attacks was higher than the total of defense) or defended (if the total value of defense was equal or higher than the total of attacks). If the ship was captured, the traders and defenders lose their wagers but it is split by the attackers as well as the ship's cargo value. If however, the ship was defended, then the traders earn the amount of their wager from the common supply, the defenders get a special action card and the unsuccessful attackers lose their wagers and a half of their money.The special action cards that can be only gained through successful defense, that is if someone else attacked and failed, have a great impact on the outcome of the turn and it is usually a good idea to try and get some soon. There are five kinds and you get to draw one randomly from a deck. There is Attack+2, Defence+2 and Trade x2, all of which double the effect of the standard action, and then there are two Wait actions, Attack/Defence and Trade/Defence which you can play and decide whether they count as one or the other after everyone has shown their actions. Once the special action card is played, it is discarded unlike the standard action card which always returns to the player's hand.
As you can see, the rules are quite simple. The real joy though comes from the player interaction, or to put it better, guessing other players' intentions and playing accordingly. Bluffing is allowed and recommended because only that way you get to earn a lot of money and possibly screw other players over. This is done through putting the wager on your card. A card with a wager on it is possibly a trade action as that is the only action that can yield profit through a wager. However, it is easy to lure your opponents into false sense of security and bluff by putting the wager on your attack card with which you may capture the ship, get other players' wagers and the ship's worth of cargo.
One risky attack that other players intercept may cost you half of your treasure which can be fatal in the later parts of the game but by then, nobody is really safe. If the rich pirates play it safe by defending, you can easily score big with well played trades. If someone keeps attacking, gang up the defense. If a player keeps earning a lot of money through trade, there is nothing better than attacking with full force and getting all their wager.As you get familiar with the rules, you might want to try to play with the advanced cards - pirate characters that give each player a special ability like getting 3 more coins for every successful trade or drawing two special cards and then deciding which one to keep, and various purchasable items that reward you (with money) for a certain play style. For example, an admiral's safe conduct will earn you 4 coins every time you successfully defend as a thanks for the help. This makes playing defense very profitable but very risky as well because other players expect you to play defense a lot and they can adapt to it.
What I really like about Malacca is that it is not a game based on luck. If you don't think about other players' intentions and play your cards without consideration, you will probably lose. More than anything, it is a game of analysis and estimation covered in a colorful coat of beautiful illustrations that keep the game light and fun to play with players of all ages and skill. There is practically no text on the cards, the symbols and icons on the cards are easy to read and the game comes with the rules in Czech, English and German. Its simple gameplay and quick turns keep the total game time around 15-20 minutes and often times call for another round of pirate-y fun.
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