by ZephonSoul
Interesting read, even more interesting considering I brought the game up for a first-time spin with four other guys and gals just a couple of days ago. I'm not new to the game, as I've had my share of learning games with my friends, but I was introduced to this group of players who asked me to try the game. I've also written a detailed report of that game here.I think 5p in REX with people new to the game should be avoided or house-ruled to avoid the problem you too had. With experienced players is less of an issue, but still an issue. Someone in my thread suggested me to avoid alliances altogether (with 2p alliances there's the usual problem of 2x2p plus one left out), or another approach could be to avoid exchanging the ally advantage cards in alliances (thus making the bigger alliance much less powerful)... I don't know, it's just more problematic with 5 players.
Btw, did you play with betrayal cards? I'm still on the fence about these, I see both pros and cons using them.
I think you did pretty well for the first game, we got a ton of rules wrong back in my first one (also the Lazax advantage you mentioned).
Unlike your experience, half the people I played with in the last game hated it. This has been pretty common with REX in my experience, but playing more games has amplified the interest for the game and the enjoyment quite high.
Among non-euro boardgames is probably at the top of my list right now, I'm even considering working on some custom add-ons to make it playable like the old Dune (I'd want to try the original so much, but it's just too expensive even to make on your own!).
