Mark's #10: Lowenherz

Klaus Teuber, the designer of Settlers, created one of the edgiest "German" games I know when he designed my #10 game, Lowenherz. The players are princes in a mythical kingdom, waiting for the king to die. The one who is able to amass the most prestige (victory points) when the King keels over wins the game.

Interestingly, it's almost easier in this game to lose points than it is to gain them. It is very easy to bite off more territory than you can protect.

The only bad thing about Lowenherz? It really only works with 4 players.

#44: Lowenherz

Originally part of the prototype which spawned Settlers & Entdecker as well... those two games are low on direct conflict. Not so with Lowenherz, which is set up to create hostile negotiations, treachery, and territory gobbling. This is a work of genius from Klaus Teuber - sadly, it only really shines with exactly four players.

Larry Levy: "Very nasty, but very good territorial game. Trying to keep your coffers full while not giving too much to your opponents is a tough challenge. The newer, redesigned version, Domaine, is good, but it doesn't hold a candle to the original. Easily my favorite Teuber design. Our game group is a pretty friendly one and open disputes are very rare. The only time I've seen someone yell in anger at another player was during Lowenherz. Afterwards, the guy was pretty embarrassed and apologized profusely, but it was pretty funny at the time."

Mark Jackson: "I love that you can actually lose more points than you gain, due to eccentric scoring rules that force you to expand carefully."

picture from Board Game Geek

Mark's One Hundred: #10-#1

#10: Lowenherz

• designer: Klaus Teuber
• date of publication: 1997

#9: Fast Food Franchise

• designer: Tom Lehmann
• date of publication: 1992

#8: Expedition

• designer: Wolfgang Kramer
• date of publication: 1996

#7: Um Reifenbreite

• designer: Rob Bontenbal
• date of publication: 1982

#6: Showmanager/Atlantic Star

• designer: Dirk Henn
• date of publication: 1997

#5: Puerto Rico

• designer: Andreas Seyfarth
• date of publication: 2002

#4: El Grande

• designer: Wolfgang Kramer & Richard Ulrich
• date of publication: 1995

#3: Memoir '44

• designer: Richard Borg
• date of publication: 2004

#2: The Princes of Florence

• designer: Wolfgang Kramer & Richard Ulrich
• date of publication: 2000

#1: The Settlers of Catan

• designer: Klaus Teuber
• date of publication: 1995

How Big A Geek R U?

In other words, what's your The One Hundred "score"? Check out The Whole Enchilada and then do a itty bitty bit of math.

The One Hundred Score = # of these games you've played + # of these games you own

Fluff Daddy's "score" is:

• 151 (87 played, 64 owned)

The games I haven't played are:

• Age of Steam (probably should try this, but as I've said other places, having trouble washing the bad taste of Volldampf out of my mouth)
• Breaking Away (sounds math-y)
• Bridge (unwilling to invest the time to learn)
• Die Macher (I've played one round... but not a whole game)
• Domaine (I'm such a big fan of Lowenherz that I cringe at revising it - and I hated what Teuber did to Entdecker in the second go-around)
• Gipf (as much as I like Dvonn & Zertz, I need to try this one)
• Go (Pente hurts my head...)
• Goa (interested in trying this one, actually)
• Mu & Mehr (I've played one of the memory games, but not Mu)
• Roads & Boats (it's mostly a time thing - that, and a "nobody nearby owns a copy" thing)
• Titan (I still remember looking at it longingly in the store way back when - "monster slugathon? cool!", but I never broke down & bought it... and now, 20+ years later, I haven't played it, either)
• War of the Ring (the guy who owned this in my group traded it away before we could try it... as he has done with numerous games!... hi, John!)
• Was Sticht? (watched it played at a Gulf Games, and I could smell the brain-buring action from across the room - ouch.)

Through The Years

And, since I've got a spreadsheet "and I know how to use it" [Mark: "I'm a donkey on the edge!"], here's the The One Hundred broken down by year of publication. [Mark: Yes, I realize that some of these games, particularly the public domain games, don't have a definitive date of publication. In those cases, I did some research, considered my options, then picked a date that sounded good to me. Scientific, eh?] All other dates of publication are from Board Game Geek... note: the dates used are for the FIRST publishing of the game, even if it was less well-known (as in Crude/McMulit or Homas Tour/Um Reifenbreite).

3000 BC

• Backgammon

1500 BC

• Go

1810

• Poker

1860

• Bridge

1865

• Crokinole

1937

• Spades

1948

• Scrabble

1959

• Diplomacy

1962

• Acquire

1974

• Hare & Tortoise
• Liar's Dice
• McMulti

1977

• Cosmic Encounter

1979

• Dune

1980

• Can't Stop
• Titan

1981

• Civilization

1982

• Um Reifenbriete

1984

• Wizard

1985

• Expedition/Wildlife Adventure

1986

• 1830
• Code 777
• Die Macher

1989

• Ave Caesar
• Taboo

1990

• Adel Verpflichtet/Hoity Toity
• Daytona 500

1991

• Breaking Away
• History of the World
• Res Publica
• Tichu

1992

• Modern Art

1994

• 6 Nimmt!
• I'm The Boss/Kohle Kies & Knete
• Quandary
• RoboRally
• Was Sticht?

1995

• Carabande
• El Grande
• Flaschenteufel
• Medici
• Mu & Mehr
• Settlers of Catan

1996

• Age of Renaissance
• Hannibal: Rome v. Carthage

1997

• Bohnanza
• Dr Jekyl & Mr Hyde
• Euphrat & Tigris
• For Sale
• Fresh Fish
• Lowenherz
• Showmanager/Atlantic Star

1998

• Basari
• Elfenland
• Gipf
• MR1: Jack the Ripper
• Samurai
• Schnappchen Jagd
• Through the Desert

1999

• Battleline/Schotten Totten
• Chinatown
• Lost Cities
• Mamma Mia
• Ra
• Ricochet Robot
• Roads & Boats
• Stephensons' Rocket
• Tikal
• Torres
• Union Pacific
• Vinci

2000

• Battle Cry
• Blokus
• Carcassonne
• Citadels
• La Citta
• Lord of the Rings
• Princes of Florence
• Taj Mahal
• Time's Up
• Traumfabrik
• Web of Power

2001

• Africa
• Capitol
• Dvonn
• Power Grid/Funkenschlag
• Royal Turf
• San Marco

2002

• Age of Steam
• LOTR: The Confrontation
• Puerto Rico
• Wallenstein

2003

• Attika
• Domaine
• Smarty Party

2004

• Goa
• Memoir '44
• St Petersburg
• Ticket To Ride
• War of the Ring

I think what's really interesting grouping these games by years is that it allows me to see what was "in the works" at the time. Some highlights from the synapses firing in my brain:

• 1999 was an amazing year - and I got in on the front end of it, thanks to Gulf Games 3 being timed perfectly so that Jay Tummelson flew in from Nuremberg with the first copies of 5 of the 12 games listed.
• 2000 had ten games listed - when we talk about a "golden time" in gaming, was it 1999-2000?
• Acquire is all the more amazing when you realize it was published in 1962.
• What was going on in Germany in 1996? The only two listed games are Avalon Hill wargames. (Was everyone so busy playing Settlers that they took the year off?)

Thank These Guys

Thought y'all might be interested in some overall information about the designers & The One Hundred:

six of the games have no known designer:

• Backgammon
• Bridge
• Crokinole
• Go
• Poker
• Spades

Reiner Knizia designed seventeen of the games (wow!):

• Africa
• Battleline/Schotten Totten
• Euphrat & Tigris
• Lord of the Rings
• Lost Cities
• LOTR: The Confrontation
• Medici
• Modern Art
• Quandary
• Ra
• Res Publica
• Royal Turf
• Samurai
• Stephensons' Rocket
• Taj Mahal
• Through the Desert
• Traumfabrik

Wolfgang Kramer designed seven of the games (by himself or with a partner):

• 6 Nimmt!
• Daytona 500 (w/Mike Gray)
• El Grande (w/Richard Ulrich)
• Expedition/Wildlife Adventure (w/Ursula Kramer)
• Princes of Florence (w/Richard Ulrich)
• Tikal
• Torres (w/Michael Kiesling)

Alan Moon designed five of the games (by himself or with a partner):

• Capitol (w/Aaron Weissblum)
• Elfenland
• San Marco (w/Aaron Weissblum)
• Ticket To Ride
• Union Pacific

Klaus Teuber designed four of the games:

• Adel Verpflichtet/Hoity Toity
• Domaine
• Lowenherz
• Settlers of Catan

Richard Borg designed three of the games:

• Battle Cry
• Liar's Dice/Call My Bluff
• Memoir '44

Uwe Rosenberg designed three of the games:

• Bohnanza
• Mamma Mia
• Schnappchen Jagd

Sid Sackson designed three of the games:

• Acquire
• Can't Stop
• I'm The Boss/Kohle Kies & Knete

Aaron Weissblum designed three of the games (with partners):

• Capitol (w/Alan Moon)
• San Marco (w/Alan Moon)
• Smarty Party (w/Pitt Crandlemire)

Kris Burm designed two of the games:

• Dvonn
• Gipf

The team of Eberle, Kittredge & Olotka designed two of the games:

• Cosmic Encounter
• Dune

Friedemann Friese designed two of the games:

• Fresh Fish
• Power Grid/Funkenschlag

Dirk Henn designed two of the games:

• Showmanager/Atlantic Star
• Wallenstein

Alex Randolph designed two of the games (by himself or with a partner):

• Ricochet Robot
• Code 777 (w/ Robert Abbott)

Karl-Heinz Schmiel designed two of the games:

• Die Macher
• Was Sticht?

Francis Tresham designed two of the games:

• 1830
• Civilization

Richard Ulrich designed two of the games (with a partner):

• El Grande (w/Wolfgang Kramer)
• Princes of Florence (w/Wolfgang Kramer)

And the rest of the games on The One Hundred - their designers only appeared once. Still, it's a nice crowd to be in when it includes such notables as Robert Abbott, Stefan Dorra, Rudiger Dorn, Jean du Poel, Bruno Faidutti, Mike Fitzgerald, Doris & Frank, Richard Garfield, Mike Gray, Philippe Keyaerts, Dave Parlett, Wolfgang Riedesser, Peter Sarrett, Michael Schacht, Andreas Seyfarth, Reinhard Staupe, Martin Wallce & Klaus-Jurgen Wrede.

The Whole Enchilada

Here they all are - from #1 - #100!

1. Puerto Rico
2. Euphrat & Tigris
3. El Grande
4. Settlers of Catan
5. Princes of Florence
6. Power Grid/Funkenschlag
7. Age of Steam
8. Ticket To Ride
9. Ra
10. Tichu
11. Acquire
12. Lord of the Rings
13. Bohnanza
14. Cosmic Encounter
15. St Petersburg
16. Union Pacific
17. Time's Up
18. Crokinole
19. Medici
20. Mu & Mehr
21. Memoir '44
22. Die Macher
23. Taj Mahal
24. La Citta
25. Lost Cities
26. Civilization
27. Liar's Dice/Call My Bluff
28. Showmanager/Atlantic Star
29. Battleline/Schotten Totten
30. Modern Art
31. Carcassonne
32. RoboRally
33. Torres
34. Expedition/Wildlife Adventure
35. Web of Power
36. Fresh Fish
37. Roads & Boats
38. Through the Desert
39. Tikal
40. I'm The Boss/Kohle Kies & Knete
41. For Sale
42. Bridge
43. Traumfabrik
44. Lowenherz
45. 1830
46. Attika
47. Titan
48. Adel Verpflichtet/Hoity Toity
49. Poker
50. Goa
51. Go
52. Ricochet Robot
53. Daytona 500
54. Can't Stop
55. Wallenstein
56. Diplomacy
57. Schnappchen Jagd
58. Wizard
59. Hannibal: Rome v. Carthage
60. Blokus
61. Stephensons' Rocket
62. Smarty Party
63. San Marco
64. LOTR: The Confrontation
65. History of the World
66. Elfenland
67. Citadels
68. Ave Caesar
69. Flaschenteufel
70. Scrabble
71. Breaking Away
72. Basari
73. Dr Jekyl & Mr Hyde
74. Taboo
75. Quandary
76. Hare & Tortoise
77. War of the Ring
78. Was Sticht?
79. MR1: Jack the Ripper
80. 6 Nimmt!
81. Spades
82. Backgammon
83. Age of Renaissance
84. Um Reifenbreite
85. Battle Cry
86. Res Publica
87. Vinci
88. Gipf
89. Code 777
90. Dune
91. Chinatown
92. Royal Turf
93. Domaine
94. Carabande
95. Capitol
96. Mamma Mia
97. McMulti
98. Africa
99. Dvonn
100. Samurai

For more detail (designer, date of publication) and direct links to each entry, check out the Recaps listed on the right hand side.

Recap: #50-#41

#50: Goa

• designer: Rudiger Dorn
• date of publication: 2004

#49: Poker

• designer: ?
• date of publication: c. 1810

#48: Adel Verpflichtet/Hoity Toity

• designer: Klaus Teuber
• date of publication: 1990

#47: Titan

• designer: Jason B McAllister & David A Trampier
• date of publication: 1980

#46: Attika

• designer: Marcel-Andre Casasola Merkle
• date of publication: 2003

#45: 1830

• designer: Frances Tresham
• date of publication: 1986

#44: Lowenherz

• designer: Klaus Teuber
• date of publication: 1997

#43: Traumfabrik

• designer: Reiner Knizia
• date of publication: 2000

#42: Bridge

• designer: ?
• date of publication: c. 1860

#41: For Sale

• designer: Stefan Dorra
• date of publication: 1997

The Ones That Got Away: Mark Jackson

This post (and a number that follow it) are entries by those who helped vote for The One Hundred, lamenting "the ones that got away" - in other words, those games they voted for that didn't make the cut. Their statements from the period of voting (late 2004) are in italics; more recents thoughts are in regular print.

Entdecker (older version)
Supposedly a part of the original monster prototype that birthed Settlers & Lowenherz, Entdecker has always received less admiration than it's brothers. Which, frankly, is a crying shame, as it's a fast-moving game of exploration with gorgeous production and simple game play. I play using the Manu variants (for slightly more gamer friendliness)... but I've recently found that the published rules work great with my 4 & a half year old son.

And don't get me started about the hack job Teuber did to his own game with the second release of Entdecker... he took a clean, simple yet not simplistic 30-60 minute exploration game and turned it into an unnecessarily messy 75-120 minute game with less exploration (what's with the goal mountains?) and a twinky hut/scout system that actually adds MORE luck to the game. I still can't understand why people think this is the more gamer-y of the two versions, except that it's more complicated!

Fast Food Franchise
Tom Lehmann took the basic mechanisms of Monopoly (roll'n'move, own properties that people land on and pay rent, chance cards that affect the game, and so on) and grafted on others (the "map" of the USA in the middle of the board, advertising, the asymetrical nature of the different companies) to create a minor masterpiece. Loved by gamers & non-gamers alike, Fast Food Franchise is worth tracking down.

#93: Domaine

No one's going to be surprised when Klaus Teuber comes in pretty high (you guess how high) with his classic Settlers of Catan. But a number of folks will be stunned to see Domaine in the countdown. This re-thinking of Lowenherz enters the list at #93.

Brian Leet: "I like that it's elegant, quick playing, and full of angst."