London: The biggest, most important and richest city in England in the late medieval and early modern periods.
The Guilds played a major role in the lives of London's citizens, controlling the way in which trade, manufacturing and business was conducted in the city. The members of the guilds were rich men, who were appointed to the most influential positions in the community and wielded immense civic power. The chief representative of the Guilds became the Lord Mayor of London, and the leading delegates of the Guilds became his Aldermen. Other members of the Guilds were the burghers of London. The Guilds ran the city and controlled its commerce; each had its own Hall and its own Coat of Arms. Representatives of the Guilds met at the Guildhall to discuss the great issues of the day.
In Guilds of London, you place your liverymen in strategic Guilds, building your power base, so that you can achieve the status of Master in many of them. You also have the opportunity to spread your power into the commercially valuable Ulster or Virginia plantations. Control of each Guild provides victory points and additional actions that you can exploit, so that you can control the future development of the city.
- deep strategic depth and heavy decision making
- thematic feel of London politics and guild commerce
- interesting blend of area majority, set collection, and tile influence that creates tension
- rules can be heavy to learn for new players
- high interaction can lead to lengthy, drawn-out turns
- urban governance, influence, and commerce among city guilds
- medieval London, guild politics
- strategic negotiation and competition among guilds for status and control
- Risk
- Axis & Allies
- Access and Allies
- Twilight Struggle
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- area_majority — Players strive to hold the most influence in a given area to gain benefits and points.
- expeditions — Over-sea expeditions provide ongoing scoring opportunities and strategic decisions.
- influence_and_majority_scoring — Gaining majority influence in areas translates into points and influence at the Lord Mayor level.
- set_collection — Players collect specific combinations or rows to unlock bonuses.
- tile_drafting_and_placement — New tiles appear over time and players place influence to claim them (via liverymen).
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's a very thinky game
- it's a fantastic Euro game it's it's just an amazing Euro game
- the combat is like cards that you both play
- withdrawal ... strategic to withdraw sometimes it's good to leave you get in you score your points you bring your troops back