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Haru Ichiban box art

Haru Ichiban

Game ID: GID0153090
Game Info
Year
2014
Collection
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Description

In Haru Ichiban, or "The Wind of Spring", two apprentice gardeners compete to use this wind to their advantage to create harmonious patterns of their blossoms upon the lilypads.

Each gardener has eight flower buds numbered 1-8, with three of those buds being in hand at the start of a round. Sixteen lilypads are placed in the 5x5 pond, with one of them turned to its dark side.

Each gardener simultaneously chooses a reveals a bud, with the player with the lower number becoming the Little Gardener and the other becoming the Grand Gardener. In order:

The Little Gardener places one of his colored blossoms on the dark lilypad.
The Grand Gardener places one of his colored blossoms on the lilypad of his choice.
The Little Gardener moves one lilypad to an adjacent space, possibly moving other lilypads at the same time.
The Grand Gardener flips one unoccupied lilypad to its dark side.
Each gardener takes a new bud.

As soon as a gardener creates a specific pattern with blossoms of his color, he scores points: 1 point for a 2x2 square, 2 points for a horizontal or vertical row of four blossoms, 3 points for a diagonal row of four blossoms, and 5 points for a row of five blossoms. If the gardener has fewer than five points, the gardeners reset the board and start a new round with three buds of their eight; if the gardener has five or more points, the game ends and he wins!

Description

In Haru Ichiban, or "The Wind of Spring", two apprentice gardeners compete to use this wind to their advantage to create harmonious patterns of their blossoms upon the lilypads.

Each gardener has eight flower buds numbered 1-8, with three of those buds being in hand at the start of a round. Sixteen lilypads are placed in the 5x5 pond, with one of them turned to its dark side.

Each gardener simultaneously chooses a reveals a bud, with the player with the lower number becoming the Little Gardener and the other becoming the Grand Gardener. In order:

The Little Gardener places one of his colored blossoms on the dark lilypad.
The Grand Gardener places one of his colored blossoms on the lilypad of his choice.
The Little Gardener moves one lilypad to an adjacent space, possibly moving other lilypads at the same time.
The Grand Gardener flips one unoccupied lilypad to its dark side.
Each gardener takes a new bud.

As soon as a gardener creates a specific pattern with blossoms of his color, he scores points: 1 point for a 2x2 square, 2 points for a horizontal or vertical row of four blossoms, 3 points for a diagonal row of four blossoms, and 5 points for a row of five blossoms. If the gardener has fewer than five points, the gardeners reset the board and start a new round with three buds of their eight; if the gardener has five or more points, the game ends and he wins!

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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 5
This page: 5
Sentiment: pos 4 · mix 1 · neu 0 · neg 0
Mentions per page
Showing 1–5 of 5
Video sb0A4TFo59o Board Game Sanctuary Discussion at 8:55 sentiment: positive
video_pk 151953 · mention_pk 426732
Board Game Sanctuary - Haru Ichiban video thumbnail
Click to watch at 8:55 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Beautiful because there's an ebb and flow to the lilies that appear on the pond
  • Flows really well
  • Perfect at a two player level
  • Very zen like
Cons
none
Thematic elements
  • Moving lily pads and frogs, creating flower formations
  • Pond
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Pattern Building — Putting flowers onto lily pads to create formations.
  • Turn Order Adjustment — Flipping flowers to decide turn order.
  • Worker Placement — A unique two-player worker placement game.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • i would prefer to play codenames duet which is actually a cooperative version of the game for two teams and two players especially if there's people who are playing code names for the first time but definitely competitive code names is far more fun
  • tile placement game where you've got little different combinations of lanterns you are trying to create either collect four collect three pairs or collect one of each type of lantern in order to score victory points
  • burger where you're building cards each card has two ingredients on it and you're laying the cards out to build the best burgers possible and try to satisfy the requirements that are set out on the table and the burgers that uh they want you to cook
  • trap words is a game where it's two teams pitted against each other one player is the clue giver the other players on the team are guessing the word but the other opposing team are choosing words that the clue giver can't actually say and the clue giver doesn't know what those words are so they've got to try and tiptoe around the topic as best they can without stepping into the trap words that the other team have written down as well as trying to get their own team to guess the key word
  • real-time drawing and guessing game where each player is allocated a secret word that appears on a list of three cards as they try to draw their picture as quickly as possible and also at the same time they're trying to guess what everyone else is drawing they are going to be racing against each other
  • letter jam is one of my favorite word games think of hannah b and scrabble blended together you can see everyone else's letters that they're trying to guess but you can't see your own
  • otis a game about building flowers and you can see one on the back here there are different types of flowers and you're playing pedal cards to try and complete flowers game points and then also there are three special types of abilities that you can get and use you're playing these little insect markers on there to try and claim the flower that you are building
  • muse is a really cool fun game that's kind of inspired by the game dixit players are working in two teams competing against each other where one player is giving a clue and the other players on the team are trying to guess which masterpiece card they're alluding to
  • what is really cool about muse other than the beautiful artwork is the fact that the other team gets to choose the way the clue giver gives the clue it could be humming a song it could be naming a published book it could be drawing a shape with your finger in the air and you're not allowed to say a thing
  • this game can be really quite tough if you've got some really great creative thinkers in your game group
  • i hope you guys really enjoyed that small little insight into my board game collection i can't wait to bring you the other board game collection videos
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video XpT89rGbDAQ Board Game Sanctuary Top List at 6:40 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 110908 · mention_pk 319289
Board Game Sanctuary - Haru Ichiban video thumbnail
Click to watch at 6:40 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
  • Simple gameplay and streamlined rule set.
  • Tests mental and spatial awareness.
  • Requires planning several moves ahead.
  • Balance between senior and junior gardener roles creates an interesting pace.
  • Aesthetically beautiful.
Cons
  • Dislikes the tie-breaker rule where the first person to 'croak' wins.
Thematic elements
  • Two gardeners competing to line up water lilies
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • action selection — The junior Gardener flowers the darkest water lily then the senior Gardner flowers a lily of their choice the junior Garner then moves a line of Lies horizontally or vertically and the senior Garner selects a new Dark Lily.
  • Drafting — Players draw three water lies of their own color face down and choose one secretly before revealing their chosen number to the other player.
  • Pattern Building — Players compete to try and line up the water lies in different orientations to score points.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • I love sorini because of the god cards and how each God provides a new modification to the existing rule set that the game has to offer I love how some of the gods have thematic movement actions that match the flavor of the god uh some of them have new abilities and effects and some of them even have alternative different wind conditions the combo of the god cards together is explosive and they provide for immense variation and Limitless playability adding the Golden Fleece expansion to the actual game adds more gu cards more components and a multitude of different ways to play I love how this game can be taught in under one minute has very streamlined um actions and don't underestimate that because there is a lot of immense strategic depth and that's what really draws me to this game again and again a point to consider is this game does come at a high price point the Mr cuttington art is beautiful and the 3 components really lift the level of the game
  • Onnar is a two-player chess star abstract strategy game where players taking the role of the Masters of the martial arts as they take their disciples to the shrine of on Tamar where they will channel the animal spirits in order to improve their strength and dexterity each player begins with one master porn and four disciples laid out on a 5x5 grid each players randomly dealt two animal movement cards face up and a fif Central movement card placed in the center players move their porns based on the movement positions as prescribed by their animal cards once used players swap their cards with the central card players continue until one players capture their opponent's Master Pawn or move their Master porn onto the opponent's Temple Arch Space the game is easy to learn quick to teach and very easy to graft it's a very lighter and much simpler version of chess the fact that they use only five out of the 16 uh animal movement cards means that each time you play it feels fresh feels different it feels new and the movement strategies that you use each round will differ from game to game
  • Patchwork is a two-play economic Tetris style puzzle game where players compete to see who can sew the most beautiful quilt possible whilst managing their time currency the form of buttons and space on their Quil determined by the shape of the patches that they choose to sew on players who do this the most efficiently and have the most points at the end of the game will win players set up for a game of Patchwork by placing the time board at the center and randomly placing different shaped patches around the board in an oval shape and placing the neutral token in front of the 1X two size patch on a plays turn players can either Advance on the time track and receive buttons equal to one per space moved or take and place a patch by selecting one of the three patches in front of the neutral token by paying its button and time cost players do not alternate in turn order rather the player whose time token is furthest behind takes the next turn resulting possibly multiple turns in order by the same player players gain income in the form of buttons and purchase patches are placed strategically to cover the most space possible on the player's quilt points award at the end of the game for completing the 7x7 grid the number of buttons accumulated and two buttons are subtracted for each empty quilt space left over I really love patch with's puzzly patch tile laying effect it's really critical that players plan ahead in this game because the shape of the patches that play sew onto their CS early on the game have a flow on effect towards the late game there's an interesting timing mechanism to the game where the player who is furthest behind continues to take actions until they equalize or supersede the other player before passing the turn on and timing when to purchase different shaped tiles from the market track is really crucial for maximizing the amount of space that you cover on your quilt I really love the little one by one tile bonuses that can help fill in those little squares and I really love the uh button engine economic system where the more patches you have on your quilt the more buttons you gain which you can save as victory points at the end of the game or you can use them to buy really big tiles or certain shaped tiles that you really want a point to consider is that this theme might not appeal to everyone but the layer strategic thinking and death really brings me back to this game time and time again
  • Hive Hive is a strictly two-player chess dot abstract game where plays take control of bugs which come in the form of these hexagonal shaped tiles each bug has a special ability players will need to use those abilities to try and Surround their opponent's Queen B in order to Wi win the game players take turns placing our insect pieces ensuring that they only touch their own color with the queen bee coming out before the fourth turn players can use the various insect abilities to move around the hive attempting to surround the queen bee without breaking the hive as they go I love hive's unique gameplay as plays put pieces out onto the hive the shape of the hive evolves and changes from game to game really adding to the depth of spatial reasoning skills and strategy and long-term planning mechanism I love the balance between offensive and defensive moves that you can have in this game and the fact that you need to work on your spatial reasoning in order to try and figure out how to best surround your opponent's um Queen
  • Hadu Ichiban hadu Ichiban meaning the first winter spring is a two-play abstract game where players taking the role of either the senior Gardener or Junior Gardener as they compete to try and line up the water lies in different orientations to score points and hopefully try and get the most to win the game the initial starting water range as follows on the board players draw three water lies of their own color face down and choose one secretly before revealing their chosen number to the other player the player with the highest number is the senior Gardener and the one with the lowest is the junior Garder each round sequence follows the following order the junior Gardener flowers the darkest water lily then the senior Gardner flowers a lily of their choice the junior Garner then moves a line of Lies horizontally or vertically and the senior Garner selects a new Dark Lily players score points by making the different water lily Arrangements the play continues until a player reaches Five Points I really love har ich bum because of it simple gameplay and simple streamline rule set it's a game that tests your mental and spatial awareness and your ability to try and line up different configurations of water leaders and plan this several moves ahead there's some advantages to being the senior Garner advantages to being the junior Garner and the balance of the two different effects really sets the game up for an interesting Pace I love the tug-of war effect and the fact that this game looks aesthetically beautiful one point to consider is that I'm not a fan of the tie breaker rule that comes in this game where the first person to croak uh wins the tie so I'm sure players will be able to find an alternative rule for that checkmate
References (from this video)
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Video OLzmQsVkUto Board Game Sanctuary Review at 0:21 sentiment: positive
video_pk 109968 · mention_pk 316384
Board Game Sanctuary - Haru Ichiban video thumbnail
Click to watch at 0:21 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Board game changes as you play, making each game feel unique.
  • Seemingly simple but has a lot of important decisions.
  • Works on spatial awareness and requires thinking in advance.
  • Surprising amount of depth and choices for players.
  • Strong tug of war effect.
  • Beautiful Japanese theme and flavor.
  • Light but with a lot of depth.
  • Theme fits the nature of the game.
Cons
  • Rule book has rules and minor details that are not answered.
  • People who like a rich story might be disappointed as it's abstract.
Thematic elements
  • Japanese theme
Comparison games
  • Connect Four
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • action selection — Players decide who is the junior gardener and who is the senior gardener, and this determines their actions for the turn.
  • Flipping — The senior gardener flips over one of the light-colored lilies to its dark side.
  • Movement — The junior gardener uses the wind of spring to shift a row or column of lilies vertically or horizontally.
  • Set Collection — Players try to line up the lotus blossoms in order to gain victory points by making four arrangements.
  • Tile Placement — The junior gardener places their lotus blossom on the dark lily, and the senior gardener places their lily on any lily pad without a flower.
  • Variable player powers — There are advantages and disadvantages to being the grand gardener or the apprentice gardener, which grant different abilities.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • Haru Ichiban is an abstract game for two players.
  • The board game changes as you play the game so even though you start off with is starting Lily arrangement as you play the board will change and therefore your strategy and your next move that you're planning will need to change and be adjusted accordingly.
  • It feels like Connect Four, but it's a much better version of Connect Four.
  • It has a very strong tug of war like effect.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video lqIhJmvymYI Adam in Wales - Board Game Design Analysis at 15:03 sentiment: positive
video_pk 13712 · mention_pk 40058
Adam in Wales - Board Game Design - Haru Ichiban video thumbnail
Click to watch at 15:03 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • tactile and approachable
Cons
  • obscure title for some
Thematic elements
  • construction with stacking blocks
  • abstract dexterity/stacking
  • modern abstract
Comparison games
  • Goblet
  • Connect Four
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • stacking / balance — build structures with balance constraints
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • I don't know very much about wargames I haven't played many war games
  • these games are for adults
  • these are the vast majority these are available easily
  • abstract strategy games don't really look like that anymore
  • these are not children's items they're for adults to have a serious time together
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video q8N3gfz8I-I Adam in Wales - Board Game Design Discussion at 20:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 13785 · mention_pk 40288
Adam in Wales - Board Game Design - Haru Ichiban video thumbnail
Click to watch at 20:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • beautiful components
  • clear scoring rules across rounds
Cons
  • multi-round scoring can take time to optimize
Thematic elements
  • pattern matching with tokens
  • pond with lily pads
Comparison games
  • Inch
  • Gobl et al.
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Pattern scoring — form patterns of flowers across rounds; higher scores for diagonals
  • Tile reveal and push — select flowers, reveal, then push lily pads to shift layout
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • "these are games that can largely be taught in a minute or two"
  • "they can be learnt practically straight away"
  • "short frame of time"
  • "not going to be for everybody but there's still a lot to explore"
  • "the simplicity of the mechanisms... is fascinating"
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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