Don't know how I missed this before... Thanks for posting! The game was originally just about the Knights Templar, but since we're competing against each other, it made more sense to have different factions. Since there are different knight orders, naming the game after the Knights Templar didn't make sense anymore, so I used a more generic term for the crusading orders of knights, Crusaders. Side note, in your video I see you have the Saracen tokens face down, so you can't see the reward. That could be an interesting variant, but the standard rule is that they're face up, so you can see which one you want to go travel to and defeat!
I really want to get my hands on the deluxe edition.... can anyone tell me where the outro music is from? Seems like some good music to drive to at night.
This mancala feels more like a Mac Gerdts rondel to me than the Trajan mechanism, especially since mancala emphasizes the location of where you land. Trajan you have that dimension of the Trajan tiles and wanting matching cylinder colors when you land (never mind executing the action you land on.) Gerdts rondel, you only have 3 actions available unless you want to spend the cost to push tempo or access something out of reach. In Crusaders, you ideally want to let cylinders acrue before executing your action (analogous to waiting for normal movement around rondel), but can sacrifice action efficiency for time savings via activating a spot with a low number of cylinders. Trajan and Imperial are some of my all time favorites, so being able to draw comparisons to those are nice for me, but I might just rather play those instead of something similar to them. Still on the fence. Thanks for the review, Joel!
That's an interesting point about the rondel. Be interesting to see a game with a shared mancala/rondel/wheel thing with different colored pieces and stuff. And maybe you take actions and others can do them if they have one of their pieces on the space. Would nee to be big with big chunky pieces though so it's not crazy fiddly.
Hey Joel! Two things... 1. I don’t know if it’s my internet connection or my iPad, but audio seems to be a bit out of sync. And 2, another great game with the mancala mechanic, from Portal, is Theseus: The Dark Orbit. Great review, as usual. Cheers!
Hmm.. it seems OK to me. I wonder if it's a RUclips thing. I actually uploaded another review today and it was WAY messed up. I took it down and I'm going to double check the file at home today. It was fine when I looked at it yesterday though =/
Mike Foster OK. I watched in my phone just now and then on my PC. Looks like the “review” part is ever so slightly out of whack and it’s more obvious on my phone.... hmm. My PC was doing weird stuff yesterday. Not sure exactly what happened. Sorry folks. I’ll try to figure this out.
Well... I also did not like Five Tribes... at all. This is much much better... imo. I think we're some of the few who didn't like Five Tribes. My group all did not like it either though. :)
~ even after I found I didn't like it, I played another half-dozen games or so to see if there was something wrong with me. Nope, even the first expansion (The Artisans of Naqala) didn't preserve it in my collection. Seemed like Five Tribes "hated" me, and so I returned the sentiment and purged it...
Five Tribes is a good example of a game with a mancala mechanic. I am going to have to pass on Crusaders based on your comments about the gameplay with 2 players.
Don't know how I missed this before... Thanks for posting!
The game was originally just about the Knights Templar, but since we're competing against each other, it made more sense to have different factions. Since there are different knight orders, naming the game after the Knights Templar didn't make sense anymore, so I used a more generic term for the crusading orders of knights, Crusaders.
Side note, in your video I see you have the Saracen tokens face down, so you can't see the reward. That could be an interesting variant, but the standard rule is that they're face up, so you can see which one you want to go travel to and defeat!
Yep! Of course I saw the thread on BGG after posting the video :) It didn't seem to negatively affect gameplay, as it's always something "cool".
I really want to get my hands on the deluxe edition.... can anyone tell me where the outro music is from? Seems like some good music to drive to at night.
Yep :) Here it is: ruclips.net/video/Pentde5LhDU/видео.html
This mancala feels more like a Mac Gerdts rondel to me than the Trajan mechanism, especially since mancala emphasizes the location of where you land. Trajan you have that dimension of the Trajan tiles and wanting matching cylinder colors when you land (never mind executing the action you land on.) Gerdts rondel, you only have 3 actions available unless you want to spend the cost to push tempo or access something out of reach.
In Crusaders, you ideally want to let cylinders acrue before executing your action (analogous to waiting for normal movement around rondel), but can sacrifice action efficiency for time savings via activating a spot with a low number of cylinders.
Trajan and Imperial are some of my all time favorites, so being able to draw comparisons to those are nice for me, but I might just rather play those instead of something similar to them. Still on the fence.
Thanks for the review, Joel!
That's an interesting point about the rondel. Be interesting to see a game with a shared mancala/rondel/wheel thing with different colored pieces and stuff. And maybe you take actions and others can do them if they have one of their pieces on the space. Would nee to be big with big chunky pieces though so it's not crazy fiddly.
I love this game. It is simple play with great choices.
Thank you Joel, for the detailed review. I am still not decided about this one (like you seem also).
Hey Joel! Two things... 1. I don’t know if it’s my internet connection or my iPad, but audio seems to be a bit out of sync. And 2, another great game with the mancala mechanic, from Portal, is Theseus: The Dark Orbit. Great review, as usual. Cheers!
Hmm.. it seems OK to me. I wonder if it's a RUclips thing. I actually uploaded another review today and it was WAY messed up. I took it down and I'm going to double check the file at home today. It was fine when I looked at it yesterday though =/
@@DriveThruReview A little of of sync here too. Cool review though.
Mike Foster OK. I watched in my phone just now and then on my PC. Looks like the “review” part is ever so slightly out of whack and it’s more obvious on my phone.... hmm. My PC was doing weird stuff yesterday. Not sure exactly what happened. Sorry folks. I’ll try to figure this out.
Drive Thru Games No worries! Just pointing out, I thought maybe it had to do with the new equipment...
@@PeIon316 Hah no. That's arriving over the next couple of days actually. It's maybe a sign it needs to come faster!
A hugely underrated game, with a mancala and inspired by Trajan, is Gold West. It probably my favorite game of my whole collection.
Interesting how Fed led to the idea via an altered moncala.
It's "Crusaders: THY Will Be Done", as in Your Will Be Done.
OMG.. Autocorrect! Thanks lol
~ I bought "Five Tribes" and sold it. If I disliked 5-TBs will I like this Joel ??
Well... I also did not like Five Tribes... at all. This is much much better... imo. I think we're some of the few who didn't like Five Tribes. My group all did not like it either though. :)
~ even after I found I didn't like it, I played another half-dozen games or so to see if there was something wrong with me. Nope, even the first expansion (The Artisans of Naqala) didn't preserve it in my collection. Seemed like Five Tribes "hated" me, and so I returned the sentiment and purged it...
Five Tribes is a good example of a game with a mancala mechanic. I am going to have to pass on Crusaders based on your comments about the gameplay with 2 players.