I've been watching your videos since your very first, Helvetia, and can tell you I believe this is your best by far. You added everything in the game plus the expansion and played as smoothly as possible. I don't know how you did it. I've played this game only one time and was overwhelmed with just the basic decisions. Your video and Scott Nicholson's tutorial are perfect bookends. I now want to play this game again. Thanks a bunch, Richard. God Bless.
Thank you for this. I went out today and bought Agricola, and am now spending the evening learning how to play it. Opening the box is very intimidating, but your run through certainly takes the "terror" out of everything. Looking forward to playing this with my family over the next few weeks.
Thank you so much for making these videos!! I really appreciate all the work you put into it. I can really tell how much you love playing and it is infectious.
I love Agricola but am glad you did the Farmers of the Moor as I was a little confused about when you could use the special actions. Also have you tried the All Creatures Big and Small 2 player version? I feel its great for a quick gaming session rather than bringing the full version out.
In the extended play, you forgot about Jen's improvements. During the second and third harvest phases, her spindle and spinning mill should have fired. (During the first harvest, she didn't have three sheep until the breed phase, which is after the harvest phase, so nothing would happen then.)
I was just thinking about a possible DIY Fix for the 'issue' about Agricola you mentioned, that building extra Clay or Stone rooms being underpowered (because I strongly agree it's an issue), What if I reduced the cost to 4 Clay + 2 Reed and 3 Stone + 2 Reed? Seems reasonable, for instance, the 5 Stone needed to Upgrade and then build a third room wil still take AGES to be available. But, ... I'm worried about the interaction with Occupations and Minor Improvements... Will I end up with some ruined games because this new cost will be broken with certain cards or with a certain combination of cards?
Hi Rahdo, I have only recently discovered your run-throughs (Through the Carson City KS acutally! :) ) and firstly, can I just say I really love your style so thank you for all the work you put into this. The Question: I want to get into Agricola - but all the expansion decks kind of put me off as I hate feeling like I am missing content... Is the base game + Expansion all I will ever need to enjoy this? Some of the decks are so unobtainable now due to being out of print. Also have you heard of the Agricola 2016 reprint that rebalances a lot of the decks? Should I wait or start playing now? Any guidance is greatly appreciated; but if you don't have the time; Thank you either way!
lepruk86 unless you're dying to start playing now, i would probably wait till the new 2016 reprint comes out. apparently it has cards you can't get any other way :)
***** Okay Thank you for responding (and quickly :D) I just bought Caverna anyway so I guess that will last me a little while (especially as I am new to these lines of games)... I will try to hold out until 2016 as that box does sound great.
***** I was confused from the video. I think at the time it was recorded, the animals were cubes. Now they are included in the box. The link to Amazon is just the mega-meeples (Which I am going to procure). Really appreciate your quick reply. Also, your channel is incredible and has brought myself and my girlfriend closer to boardgames. Thanks for all you do!
Ryan D My understanding is that the animal meeples are in, but the 2nd and 3rd decks are out of the reprinted version. Which is fine for the beginning players, and those of us who prefer the family game. Ryan, you're not from Nova Scotia, are you?
Just discovered "modern" board games a month ago and Agricola was the first to capture my attention. Will play like you mostly with my wife. Got Agricola and we r fascinating. I think I match with your taste for games. Also got Dixit to play with the kids. Which other games would you recommend as our next steps in this board game world?.
Thanks for the reply, your channel has hugely influenced my foray into the hobby :) Would you consider doing a "(Top) 10 games I'll still be playing in 10 years" video? I know your video on the must have games sort of aligns with this. But as I get deeper and deeper into the hobby I find myself wondering what games will stand the test of time for me personally and in general. Agricola would top my list, but I'm not sure what else. Cheers!
Haha ah I suppose that's true! The paradox of choice hits me so hard with boardgames. There are so many great games out there, it was so hard to pick out the 6 that we own. But watching your playthroughs and trying out games at our FLGS in Seattle is helping me start to carve out my own taste and preferences. Thanks again, Richard.
We currently have Fields of Arles but I have been looking at getting either Argicola or Caverna and I was leaning toward Argicola based on your reviews of the 3. However, when I went to get it all I could find was the 2016 Edition which not only combined the expansion and the base game but removed the Minor Improvement and Occupation cards entirely. Doesn't this basically make it a completely different game? I know in your review you stated that the instructions suggested that the Occupation cards not be used but I think we would play it exactly as you did in the video... but now there is not even an option to do that. It would seem that without the cards Argicola is just a crippled version of Caverna now.
You are correct I read it wrong... ``The Agricola base game will no longer include the "Family Variant" that removes the Minor Improvement and Occupation cards from gameplay and instead has players using only the actions on the game boards``, I read that is removed the Family Variant and the cards not `that` removes the cards. Sorry.
Thanks for this run through!!! I ended up getting the Agricola Mayfair 2016 Edition which unfortunately doesn't allow me to add the expansion. But the base game blew my mind.
easily agricola... no contest. it provides so much more replayability than any other game he's done, plus we really love the "homey" theme of the small farming family scraping by.
There is a lot of hype around this game but for some reason watching this never made me crave it, and I feel like I'd prefer La Granja and for my girlfriend, she really enjoys viticulture as a farming euro.
We just got the Revised edition. We only play it once, but I did not like it. At all. It really bothers me that it is rated a SO high and I did not enjoy it. We got to the 12th round and my farm barely had anything on it. I'm certain I would get better at the game, but I'm not certain I want to. A very frustrating engine build. You only start with a mere two workers for the first quarter of the game, and getting more is only irritating because now you have to feed them too! Single places to gather wood/clay, frustrated the crap out of me the whole game. Maybe we will just have to stick to Lords of Waterdeep. I really wanted more depth, but this game was over too fast anyways, and it wasn't enjoyable. Maybe I'm missing something.
Justin Rizzo I couldn't agree more! Played it yesterday and it wasn't fun, it was frustrating. I enjoy difficult games (Feast for Odin is my favorite euro-game), but this somehow was difficult in an impossible way. Agricola felt like a game in which you have to hurry from the beginning and it is almost impossible to play it without bothering the other player every single step along the way. The last phases of the game you're just worried about feeding your family. This game was a waste of my time and money.
Did you play with the cards? They add a lot more opportunities to get resources, and a lot more depth. The revised edition also comes with extra action spaces to address the fact that wood is so scarce in a 2-player game. Did you use the extra spaces?
You need to play 2-3 times to get a hang of it. Its a deep game. Once you know everything the games gets really fun. If your engine is not building that means you are not thinking and playing. Its not a getaway game.
I've been watching your videos since your very first, Helvetia, and can tell you I believe this is your best by far. You added everything in the game plus the expansion and played as smoothly as possible. I don't know how you did it. I've played this game only one time and was overwhelmed with just the basic decisions.
Your video and Scott Nicholson's tutorial are perfect bookends. I now want to play this game again. Thanks a bunch, Richard. God Bless.
Thank you for this. I went out today and bought Agricola, and am now spending the evening learning how to play it. Opening the box is very intimidating, but your run through certainly takes the "terror" out of everything. Looking forward to playing this with my family over the next few weeks.
Thank you so much for making these videos!! I really appreciate all the work you put into it. I can really tell how much you love playing and it is infectious.
Can I just flag that the 'cute little fluffy animals' come as standard in the new edition base game.
what about the new (revised ) edition with the fewer cards does it worth it?
Thanks for the Agricola Run Through! I've had this game since Christmas and procrastinated learning it out of sheer intimidation :P
I love Agricola but am glad you did the Farmers of the Moor as I was a little confused about when you could use the special actions. Also have you tried the All Creatures Big and Small 2 player version? I feel its great for a quick gaming session rather than bringing the full version out.
In the extended play, you forgot about Jen's improvements. During the second and third harvest phases, her spindle and spinning mill should have fired. (During the first harvest, she didn't have three sheep until the breed phase, which is after the harvest phase, so nothing would happen then.)
I was just thinking about a possible DIY Fix for the 'issue' about Agricola you mentioned, that building extra Clay or Stone rooms being underpowered (because I strongly agree it's an issue), What if I reduced the cost to 4 Clay + 2 Reed and 3 Stone + 2 Reed? Seems reasonable, for instance, the 5 Stone needed to Upgrade and then build a third room wil still take AGES to be available.
But, ... I'm worried about the interaction with Occupations and Minor Improvements... Will I end up with some ruined games because this new cost will be broken with certain cards or with a certain combination of cards?
Hi Rahdo,
I have only recently discovered your run-throughs (Through the Carson City KS acutally! :) ) and firstly, can I just say I really love your style so thank you for all the work you put into this.
The Question: I want to get into Agricola - but all the expansion decks kind of put me off as I hate feeling like I am missing content...
Is the base game + Expansion all I will ever need to enjoy this? Some of the decks are so unobtainable now due to being out of print. Also have you heard of the Agricola 2016 reprint that rebalances a lot of the decks? Should I wait or start playing now?
Any guidance is greatly appreciated; but if you don't have the time; Thank you either way!
lepruk86 unless you're dying to start playing now, i would probably wait till the new 2016 reprint comes out. apparently it has cards you can't get any other way :)
***** Okay Thank you for responding (and quickly :D) I just bought Caverna anyway so I guess that will last me a little while (especially as I am new to these lines of games)...
I will try to hold out until 2016 as that box does sound great.
Where is a good place to buy all the add on meeples? I am having a hard time finding a package of the sheeples, wood...plese, etc.
Thanks!
you can get the on amazon: www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=agricola+meeples :)
***** I was confused from the video. I think at the time it was recorded, the animals were cubes. Now they are included in the box. The link to Amazon is just the mega-meeples (Which I am going to procure).
Really appreciate your quick reply. Also, your channel is incredible and has brought myself and my girlfriend closer to boardgames. Thanks for all you do!
Ryan D
My understanding is that the animal meeples are in, but the 2nd and 3rd decks are out of the reprinted version. Which is fine for the beginning players, and those of us who prefer the family game.
Ryan, you're not from Nova Scotia, are you?
Have you gotten Le Havre: Inland Port to the table yet? Love to watch that one played by you!
Wonderful play thru. I love Agricola and have played it so much this week. May I ask why you haven't turn coated on Agricola for Caverna?
Joel Dalangin i've talked about caverna at length in my 'top 10 games of 2013' and 'update' videos.
Just discovered "modern" board games a month ago and Agricola was the first to capture my attention. Will play like you mostly with my wife. Got Agricola and we r fascinating. I think I match with your taste for games. Also got Dixit to play with the kids. Which other games would you recommend as our next steps in this board game world?.
+cinesos77 well i've done a lot of different top10 videos: th-cam.com/play/PLmQverenaaqIR4TovRQCIvedgdWbjzfa7.html :)
Hey Richard,
what do you think of the accessory decks you can purchase for Agricola?
+Lars Homestead love them. we almost always use the gamer's deck or world championship decks
Thanks for the reply, your channel has hugely influenced my foray into the hobby :)
Would you consider doing a "(Top) 10 games I'll still be playing in 10 years" video? I know your video on the must have games sort of aligns with this. But as I get deeper and deeper into the hobby I find myself wondering what games will stand the test of time for me personally and in general. Agricola would top my list, but I'm not sure what else. Cheers!
+Lars Homestead that would kind of be the same thing as my 'top 10 must have games' i recently did, since my main criteria there was replayability :)
Haha ah I suppose that's true! The paradox of choice hits me so hard with boardgames. There are so many great games out there, it was so hard to pick out the 6 that we own. But watching your playthroughs and trying out games at our FLGS in Seattle is helping me start to carve out my own taste and preferences. Thanks again, Richard.
We currently have Fields of Arles but I have been looking at getting either Argicola or Caverna and I was leaning toward Argicola based on your reviews of the 3. However, when I went to get it all I could find was the 2016 Edition which not only combined the expansion and the base game but removed the Minor Improvement and Occupation cards entirely. Doesn't this basically make it a completely different game? I know in your review you stated that the instructions suggested that the Occupation cards not be used but I think we would play it exactly as you did in the video... but now there is not even an option to do that. It would seem that without the cards Argicola is just a crippled version of Caverna now.
are you sure you aren't talking about the agricola family edition?
You are correct I read it wrong... ``The Agricola base game will no longer include the "Family Variant" that removes the Minor Improvement and Occupation cards from gameplay and instead has players using only the actions on the game boards``, I read that is removed the Family Variant and the cards not `that` removes the cards. Sorry.
Thanks for this run through!!! I ended up getting the Agricola Mayfair 2016 Edition which unfortunately doesn't allow me to add the expansion. But the base game blew my mind.
Thanks so much for this review! It was very enlightening and fun to watch!
if there is only one Uwe Rosenberg you can own , what would it be and why ?? Agricola ? Le Harve , glass road etc... ?
easily agricola... no contest. it provides so much more replayability than any other game he's done, plus we really love the "homey" theme of the small farming family scraping by.
Wow that game seems very good! Thank you for this review! :)
Nice house
great job
Great videos, thank you.
That looks like a beautifuly home!!! love the archways, must be a DnD fan :)
There is a lot of hype around this game but for some reason watching this never made me crave it, and I feel like I'd prefer La Granja and for my girlfriend, she really enjoys viticulture as a farming euro.
We just got the Revised edition. We only play it once, but I did not like it. At all. It really bothers me that it is rated a SO high and I did not enjoy it. We got to the 12th round and my farm barely had anything on it. I'm certain I would get better at the game, but I'm not certain I want to. A very frustrating engine build. You only start with a mere two workers for the first quarter of the game, and getting more is only irritating because now you have to feed them too! Single places to gather wood/clay, frustrated the crap out of me the whole game. Maybe we will just have to stick to Lords of Waterdeep. I really wanted more depth, but this game was over too fast anyways, and it wasn't enjoyable. Maybe I'm missing something.
Justin Rizzo I couldn't agree more! Played it yesterday and it wasn't fun, it was frustrating. I enjoy difficult games (Feast for Odin is my favorite euro-game), but this somehow was difficult in an impossible way. Agricola felt like a game in which you have to hurry from the beginning and it is almost impossible to play it without bothering the other player every single step along the way. The last phases of the game you're just worried about feeding your family.
This game was a waste of my time and money.
Did you play with the cards? They add a lot more opportunities to get resources, and a lot more depth.
The revised edition also comes with extra action spaces to address the fact that wood is so scarce in a 2-player game. Did you use the extra spaces?
You need to play 2-3 times to get a hang of it. Its a deep game. Once you know everything the games gets really fun. If your engine is not building that means you are not thinking and playing. Its not a getaway game.
@@prashantgupta84 Eh. I just don't like how tight it is. Same thing with Caverna. I like Odin, Glass and Labora.
@@justinrrizzo I love Caverna because it is NOT so tight und you can specialize more. Caverna is the opposite of frustration.