Best Solitaire Games

[BanzaiCat]

^ There's one called "Apache," but I don't think it's what you're referring to...plus it's something like 30+ years old too.

No worries on ranting...I don't think anyone here has not had some kind of issue with shipping in the past. It's like being a kid on Christmas morning and suddenly being told they have to wait two more days to open their presents!

[Nefaro]

Found it.  It's Navajo Wars from GMT. 

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/102435/navajo-wars

Dunno why I thought it was Apache but we were close.

This one seems to be rather popular with some for it's solitaire gameplay.  Anyone played it?

[PanzersEast]

[Nefaro]

That looks a bit nightmarish to learn.  :o

[Arctic Blast]

Ah, Ghost Stories. It isn't difficult to learn (aside for some of the language independent symbology, which gets a bit thick in this one), but that game will absolutely savage you. You won't lose, you'll be beaten, thrown to the ground and curb stomped. That game actively hates you whenever you open the box.

Great art, though.  :)

[Nefaro]

Ah, Ghost Stories. It isn't difficult to learn (aside for some of the language independent symbology, which gets a bit thick in this one), but that game will absolutely savage you. You won't lose, you'll be beaten, thrown to the ground and curb stomped. That game actively hates you whenever you open the box.

Great art, though.  :)

LOL!

Thanks for the info.  I had heard it was nasty like that.  Co-Op games should definitely be difficult.  Hopefully it's not nigh impossible.  That would probably make me want to play it even more if my chances of winning were slim, but there is still a chance.  I mean.. I love to play Dungeonquest and the win-loss ratio on that can be nasty too (especially since I use a house rule that makes it more so).

[Nefaro]

I'm supposed to be getting Tomb in today.  I sometimes forget that the postal service delivers on Saturdays.  Ya know.. despite a 2-Day "Priority" shipment actually taking 5 days.  ???

I probably should've picked up the later version of it, but didn't want to miss out on the loads of stuff in the first one (cards, characters, etc) which are all different.  The newer standalone just looks to have a bit more competitive "screw you" cards in it to make the group gaming more cutthroat, so if I end up feeling the need for more of such stuff I can track it down later.  With just the first one, it should be easier to solo at least.

[PanzersEast]

Played Ottoman Sunset last night and got crushed.  It is a very interesting scenario and a tough one that continually puts the squeeze on you and forces you to make tough decisions.  Overall I really enjoyed it.


PE

[Arctic Blast]

Ah, Ghost Stories. It isn't difficult to learn (aside for some of the language independent symbology, which gets a bit thick in this one), but that game will absolutely savage you. You won't lose, you'll be beaten, thrown to the ground and curb stomped. That game actively hates you whenever you open the box.

Great art, though.  :)

LOL!

Thanks for the info.  I had heard it was nasty like that.  Co-Op games should definitely be difficult.  Hopefully it's not nigh impossible.  That would probably make me want to play it even more if my chances of winning were slim, but there is still a chance.  I mean.. I love to play Dungeonquest and the win-loss ratio on that can be nasty too (especially since I use a house rule that makes it more so).

Yeah, it is winnable. I think we've won a grand total of twice. So we're something like 2 for...I'll ballpark it at 20? It's possible, but you really need things to break your way for it to work.

DQ is a good comparison, because they're about the same in terms of play length. So even if things go completely pear shaped, it isn't like you've sunk 4 hours into hopelessness.

[besilarius]

The cultural aspect of Navajo seems very different and intriguing.  Is there real interaction between the tribes?  Or is it more conflict centered?
Also, does it take place during the fighting with the cavalry and Kit Carson, or is it of an earlier period? 
The different ness of this design kind of appeals to me as something totally out of the box.  Just trying to get a better grasp of it's background and tribal cultures.

[Nefaro]

The cultural aspect of Navajo seems very different and intriguing.  Is there real interaction between the tribes?  Or is it more conflict centered?
Also, does it take place during the fighting with the cavalry and Kit Carson, or is it of an earlier period? 
The different ness of this design kind of appeals to me as something totally out of the box.  Just trying to get a better grasp of it's background and tribal cultures.

GMT has a tutorial video series on Navajo Wars, on the 'Tube.

Here's the first:

I started checking it out to see if there are some examples of how it plays out.

[weateallthepies]

Played Ottoman Sunset last night and got crushed.  It is a very interesting scenario and a tough one that continually puts the squeeze on you and forces you to make tough decisions.  Overall I really enjoyed it.


PE

I just played A Spoiled Victory: Dunkirk 1940 from White Dog games, which has a lot in common with the States of Siege games from VPG (Same designer as Dawn of the Zeds). You can definitely see the States of Siege ideas, with the Germans advancing along tracks, but it's not a single point in the middle, but a whole beach front where you are trying to evacuate units.

Really enjoying it, it's definitely a tough one to crack with a bit of a balance between holding the line and evacuating units under the threat of Luftwaffe attacks. Lots of choices, I'm going to write up a review of it I think.

Anyway, thought it might interest those reading:

http://www.whitedoggames.com/#!dunkirk/c1qjs

[Staggerwing]

I'd be interested in reading that. The games listed there are relatively cheap ($38 US w/ shipping inc.) and seem to have VASSAL modules available for buyers as well.

[Double Deuce]

I've been playing Soviet Dawn: The Russian Civil War: 1918-1921 from VPG off and on for the last year or so. I lose most of the time but its definitely fun for a quick solitaire gaming fix. Certainly quicker than SASL that's for sure.

[Rekim]

I aspire to SASL one of these days. Looks difficult to learn though.

GMTs Fields of Fire would be an easy favorite for me, if not for the bungled rulebook. The shortcomings of the rulebook made it an absolute beast to learn and painful to play. I managed to piece it together well enough to play through the WWII scenarios. I enjoyed 4 or 5 games but eventually waited a little too long without playing....and it was gone. I just didn't have the stomach to start routing through the rules and numerous gaming forums required to get it going again. A complete rewrite of the rules was promised with the upcoming release of Fields of Fire Vol. II: "With The Old Breed". Oddly, I just checked the games page for Vol II on the GMT website and noticed that statement has been replaced with a reference to some living rules!?

http://www.gmtgames.com/p-432-fields-of-fire-vol-ii-with-the-old-breed.aspx