Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra

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Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra

Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra

RRP: £99
Price: £9.9
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Description

Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra maintains some of the core tile drafting mechanisms of Azul, but introduces new tile laying techniques and a new theme. In Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra players are challenged to select colourful glass panes to adorn the windows of the chapel of the Palace of Sintra in Portugal. Mechanics: In Azul classic, you have a set square grid of your own that you need fill while in Sinatra you still have your own grid, but it is made of different strips and they flip over throughout the game with different formations. There is also a wild system and a meeple character that changes the value of things round by round.

The translucent cough sweet appearance of the tiles aside, this drafting is where Sintra hews mostly closely to its predecessor. The rest of the game is a remix of sorts of Azul’s wall-tiling puzzle, spinning out its combo-building scoring and pattern-completion into a different yet familiar form. Queen’s Garden plays out in four rounds. However players can choose to pass and end their participation in the round when either they can’t or do not wish to continue. Rounds continue until all players have passed. Why You May Not Like Azul Queen’s Garden: Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra is the sequel to the incredibly popular Azul, from the same designer, Michael Kiesling, and the same publisher, Next Move Games.The end game scoring isn’t overly complicated but it isn’t obvious either. While it is intuitive that the number of fully window finished is beneficial, it is the multiplication that new players seemingly forget or confuse. Some kind of symbology or mentioning of the scoring on the player boards may have eased this problem, serving somewhat as a reminder throughout. Despite this the end game scoring works well at giving players something to work towards. It might take a game to understand but it is worthwhile learning. Brandon (6 plays): Gameplay wise, Sintra does feel to have a bit more depth than Azul, but sometimes I do wonder if that depth is an illusion? Maybe I’m just conflating depth with just having a couple more choices. There is something to say about a game that makes you forget just how simple the game really is, and it’s another thing for a game to constantly remind you of things you have to think about. Sintra is less subtle than its predecessor in this way. The changes are in the forefront and they are noticeable and they make you think about them as you play. I do really enjoy Sintra though, and will save a space for it on my shelves right next to its predecessor. I think those who like the more variable side of the board in Azul will like the variable setup here in Sintra, and I think that folks who like to have a bit more control or choice will like Sintra as well.

The starting player pulls Pane Pieces from the bag and places four of them on each Factory, and then places the starting player tile in the centre of the circle of Factories. On their turn a Player must do one of two actions: Here, for instance, there’s a glazier who limits which strips of the variable player board can be filled as they travel from left to right, forcing players to plan ahead to slot in as many panes as they can before the glazier is eventually reset to the left like a typewriter. The progressive movement of the glazier neatly counterbalances a combo system that makes filling in right-hand columns first more valuable, as any completed strips to the right of a newly-finished window add bonus points to that score, presenting the chance to set up game-winning combos with the right strategy. It's a notably different but no less interesting flow to Azul’s rewarding of adjacent tiles on a grid, and gives a nice structure and flow to each round. Queen’s Garden is also quite a bit heavier than the previous four games due to all of the drafting and placement restrictions. This leads to a much longer play time and Queen’s Garden outstaying its welcome. (All our games lasted 70+ minutes.) The game plays out in six rounds. Unlike the original, no one can end the game suddenly. You’ll always know how much time is left in the game. Why You may Not Like Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra: Summer Pavilion is also, in our opinion, the most beautiful of the three games. Why you may not like Azul: Summer Pavilion:Move the Glazier by moving the Glazier to above the leftmost Pattern Strip. If the Glazier is already above the leftmost Pattern Strip this action cannot be taken. Larry (1 play): I don’t really care for abstract designs, so I was never a big fan of the original Azul. Sintra is more interesting for me, because of the intricacies of the scoring rules and the tension between working on the left-most columns (because it’s more efficient) or completing the right-most columns early (because that lets you score them multiple times). However, at the end of the day, it’s still an abstract and that’s just not the kind of game I’ll ever love. So for me, Sintra > Azul, and I’ll play either if asked, but I’m just as happy staying away from both. Player Count: Every game in the Azul universe is 2 – 4 players. They all use the same, trademark tile drafting system that scales incredibly well at that count and Azul vs Stained Glass of Sintra is no different. The first time a window is completed four of the tiles on it are added to the glass tower and it is flipped over, being removed the second time around. The fifth tile, which is chosen by the player, slides down onto their player board for end game scoring. The window then scores based upon the number below it on the player board plus the points earnt by any previously completed windows to the right. Note when calculating these points to the right each is only awarded once for each column whether a window is completed once or twice. Bonus points are then awarded per tile of the rounds special colour.

In the Azul game series, players will take turns drafting colored tiles from the center circles to their player board. When certain sets of tiles are collected and satisfy placement requirements on their board players are able to score points. If players draft more tiles than they need they must discard the leftovers — this causes them to lose points. In this way, Stained Glass of Sintra joins Queendomino as a follow-up to a Spiel des Jahres-winning game that builds on a simple gameplay hook with a slightly more complicated expansion of those ideas. The difference here is that where Queendomino and Kingdomino could be combined, the Azul games remain completely standalone, so there's not quite as much value in owning both. There has been a bit of a mixed response to the inclusion of the ability to rest – effectively passing. Some have seen this as an unwanted addition, which can add a little analysis paralysis via more options on a turn. Whilst this is somewhat true it gives choices more meaning, as on future turns you can only build to the right, before resetting. This makes it extremely beneficial to reset just before the next round. Though what if there are tiles you want to take too? It gives a balancing act to manage and something to time – perfect for some but not everyone.Gluing the pieces together is Azul’s clever take on tile-drafting, with players claiming one colour of the lozenge-like panes of glass from one of the circular factories on the table and leaving the remainder for their opponents (or them) to potentially sweep up off the floor later on and add to their arrangement. If you are looking for an abstract game with a bit more depth and don’t mind a lot of moving parts, Azul Stained Glass of Sintra could be a great choice for you. For anyone familiar with Azul, winner of the 2017 Spiel des Jahres award, the tile-drafting mechanic of Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra is instantly recognisable. What you do with your tiles, however, is a different story. Stained Glass of Sintra - The Game Here are our thoughts on the positive and negative elements of each game in the Azul series. Azul What Azul does best:

If a section of the design is completed, it is scored and then turned over to reveal a different combination of colours. If completed a second time, it is scored again and then discarded into the box.

Like the broken shards of glass that inevitably pile up in its 3D tower, Stained Glass of Sintra breaks the original Azul into fragments before rearranging it into a new pattern. Like a lot of art, how attractive that pattern appears to you will likely depend on your perspective. Due to the heavier nature and the considerable playtime for an abstract game, this can push Queen’s Garden outside the realm of “welcoming” for those looking for an easy to teach game for new players. Is that part of the game? Sure. But it can also feel quite mean and we suggest not playing that way if you want to keep things friendly. So how does it compare to the original Azul game? Overall there are some similarities: the factories and taking pieces mechanic, the negative impact of taking more pieces than you can place on your player board and the quality of the artwork and components. That said there are some significant differences with the way in which you are able to place pieces on your player board along with the Glazier function which when taken with the scoring method changes the gameplay. I prefer the single scoreboard used in Sintra as I found with the Azul scoreboards being part of the original player boards, accidents did happen and the scoring marker could easily be jogged out of position. I am happy for both games to reside in my collection and I would choose to play Sintra as it breathes new life into the Azul game which was one of my most played games from 2017. For two player games though I would prefer to play the original. So if you fancy a bit of Moorish glazing then give Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra a try.



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