Terracotta Army ~ An Instant (Euro) Classic. A Contender for Game of 2022? | Board Game Review

Do you too like rows and columns? Then you might have what it takes to be the next craftsperson responsible for the construction of the Terracotta Army. Don't let your clay dry out and make sure you always have money on hand to ensure you can leverage every opportunity (and impress every supervisor).
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction
00:35 Theme overview (Themer)
01:16 Mechanics overview (Thinker)
12:50 The beauty of the wheel & the worker placement
15:36 Don't forget about turn order
16:40 Player count scaling & how it changes the experience
18:53 The scoring is the most complex part
21:16 OK so maybe Amy likes it more than Maggie - here's why
23:44 Why Amy loves it so much
27:04 More Maggie thoughts
29:16 The specialist bases YAY, the lack of scoring summary BOO
31:30 The miniature storage YAY, their bendiness BOO
32:33 Wrap up
More Information: boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/3...
Thanks for stopping by for our mechanics & theme board game review of Terracotta Army. We're Amy & Maggie aka ThinkerThemer. We're an Australian couple with two very different perspectives of what makes a great board game - Amy (Thinker) is all about the mechanics and enjoys tight, competitive games, and Maggie (Themer) is all about the storytelling and the theme of the game, and the 'world' that the designer is trying to create. Subscribe to our channel to hear us talk about these two elements of a game, and how well integrated we feel these are in delivering a cohesive and wonderful game experience. #boardgames #thinkerthemer

[@jgregveneklasen2657]

Really good coverage of the ENTIRE gameplay while maintaining clarity, thank you so much!

[@johns6177]

Awesome camera work / editing

[@MidwestJedi]

Great review. Fixing the bent minis will work better with hot water. Dip the mini in hot water, fix the stance and then hold in cold water to set it.

[@Luke_L]

Looks intriguing, but I think I may lean more towards Maggie's opinion on this one as I'm not a fan of people messing with my plans! I laughed at Amy's attempt to resort to theme when justifying her upright meeples: "I mean, they're standing" :D

[@TheBrothersMurph]

Though we are generally more multi-player solitaire lovers, we loved loved LOVED this game! It's just so dang good. And, for a big Board & Dice "T" game, relatively simple rules wise. But that action wheel, the way you can influence the mausoleum, the administrators, uhg it's just so good. Our only knock is that the game is rather beige. We usually don't care too too much about that, but this one could seriously use a little color. Otherwise it's a masterpiece, and is in the running for game of the year!

[@DonGilstrap]

Comments like "I like rows and columns. I'm an Excel user" are why you're awesome, Amy. Great review! Now I'm bummed I didn't make an effort to grab this at Gen Con.

[@griffinsroost]

I'm so glad I preordered this! Thank you for this thorough review!

[@BoardGameCoffee]

Hey guys! Decided to chill with you two today while I work ;)

[@gottimighty]

I had someone pick this up for me at GenCon. I had only watched a play through from Jon Gets Games and was immediately hooked! Worker placement? ✔ Different objectives each round? ✔ Area control/majority?✔ Resource management?✔ Great puzzle aspect with the mausoleum?✔ AWESOME GAME!!

[@craiggruesome6400]

Great review! I don't think this one is for me, but it's awesome to see you found one of your top games of the year.

[@monicamurphy6552]

Now I'm sorry I skipped this one. Another great video Ladies.

[@BoardGameSanctuary]

Once again what a great review! I love puzzly Euros. I wasn't too keen on this game at first but as soon as you explained the puzzle in the video, it totally changed my mind. Love it :)

[@MisterG2323]

Very helpful review, ladies, thank you! TA now on my bucket list to play, and very possibly purchase.

[@Sebastian-rt9qf]

That was definitely the 'Smile of the Week'... Amy is so happy with this game. Thanks for Maggie to downplay it a bit. But I really enjoyed the review. Maybe I'll get to try this game at Essen. We'll see.

[@dianadavenport8539]

I’d been interested in this one and after (during) your review, I preordered it. Thank you for the great review.

[@MattzuFF]

Great review! Got me excited for this one! I LOVE the theme! Looks like the theme is incorporated well with the mechanics, mark of a good game. It also is reminiscent of Red Cathedral which became a huge hit with my group and gets better every time. I do hope an expansion adds a 5th player option.

[@GuppyJ]

Really like the look and enjoyed the playthroughs I have watched of this one. I think when Pampero comes out, you might have a challenger for game of the year arise there. Love your channel. Keep up the great content :)

[@paulnewsham]

Oh, you two!! I just moved this to a 'must have' after watching. Grrr... Amy - you didn't mention painting the miniatures - a simple wash, or more?

[@crosscutgames]

Really exellent review!

[@lisahasegawa2674]

Great review! I didn't know anything about this game until seeing GenCon mentions and it looks and sounds amazing. This will be added to my ever-growing collection!

[@chiproush7480]

Wow. I had totally ignored this--didn't even look past the title & box art. Now I have another game on my to-buy list. Nested rondels, worker placement, area control with move-able inspectors, variable turn order--this looks great. I'm interested to see what the solo version is like--I think Amy is not a huge fan of solo play, but maybe she'd do a video of this one solo, since she likes it so much?

[@iandonnell]

Thank you for the video! I think the first part of the description text currently shows information from Twilight Inscription.

[@ThinkerThemer]

Oops thank you! Fixed 😅

[@Oaklestat]

So much fantastic strategy in this game!!

[@darlene7165]

What a great review! I am just wondering if Amy likes this game ! This was my top game for GenCon had I gone! Glad to hear you love it. I just pre-ordered it! 😁 Thanks for another awesome detailed review! This one sounds more in my lane than Ahoy!

[@benjamindebetencourt1526]

Great review ! Sounds super crunchy but I am like Maggie, I would worry that all you have been working on could be snapped out of you in this area control part so I am not sure this is for me and my partner. Glad you are having a good time with it !

[@Razorwindsg]

I love your coverage for all the games and how you both cover both the theme and the thinky bits of games. I agree the mechanics are very nice, and it also ties quite well to the theme of making clay sculptures. There are quite a few aspects that interact with the craftsmen theme. As a ethnic Chinese, I am just not very comfortable with the overall theme. Emperor Qin isn't known for being a "good guy" in history given how many people died in the process of satisfying his demands and how much of ancient culture and knowledge he has ordered to be burnt. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Shi_Huang Thankfully no mention of forced labor in this game here, but I think most of the craftsmen were not competing vs each other back then. The area control part falls a bit soft for me.(like the minis heh heh) If it was about other ancient clay crafts I think I would be more comfortable with it. And hopefully not building a tomb "ahead of time" either :) Then again there are other games about building the pyramids which is also another tricky area. Just wanted to give a heads-up on the history of terracotta, think most non-Chinese are amazed at the scale and size and science rather than the history of the man who ordered it. Still love your review though, don't change any of it!

[@ylein6508]

FYI, i tried it and dipping them in water that has just been boiled (not boiled over fire), you can see them bend back into their original state, literally from doing a Michael Jackson 45degree to standing up right. It was quite funny. And you just need to lightly bend the spears back after the boiled water treatment. Was a easy fix and I was then able to fit everything nicely back into storage.

[@whataboutki]

Great review. Looks very cool. With your bendy minitures, if they are similar to plastic minitures in Unmatched, you can just put them in a bowl of hot water for a couple of seconds and they'll return to their normal shape.

[@juleswatson7646]

I'll have to give this a go with you two!

[@DutchYoda]

Totally agree with your review! Have you tried the solo mode by Turczi that is on BGG?

[@jamesmorgan1967]

Love the art direction and the care taken in the miniatures, iconography, etc. Questions: After multiple plays of the game, did you have a preferred player count? Does it play well at 2? I just found the solo rules on Board & Dice's website. Maggie, have you played this solo yet? Thanks for your thorough review. Amy, your enthusiasm is contagious!

[@MjrLeegInfidel]

I also wanna know how the 2 player game is

[@DualistGamer]

I’ve not been around in the comments or Discord for so long (hugely sorry for that, long story) but watching every video - thank you for all the content, which has really kept me going, and for another excellent review. I am so torn with this one. It looks fantastic, but I’m with Maggie… I’m unsure whether the potential meanness and area majority battles might detract from my enjoyment of it. What to do?!

[@aliplaysalotro]

The quality of your shots is superb. What camera, lens and setup are you using to achieve the blurry background?

[@theunamiable]

Sounds fabulous. Hovers over pre-order button... Did Maggie have a go at the solo version?

[@Listan1]

Great review. Did you enjoy it at 2 and think it’s worthwhile to buy at that player count? Thx!

[@jeffmackey2740]

Great overview - thanks so much for this review. The gameplay looks great. Our main concern was with the physical production. That wheel looks pretty fiddly - even in your quick shot, moving one section, caused the other to also move. Have you found this to be a problem during games? Secondly the box holding the miniatures looks a tad flimsy - do you think it will hold up over time through multiple plays?

[@ylein6508]

The box holding the minis are very simple but very effective and quite sturdy in fact. I think more companies can do this if they want to save costs

[@stevenamamoto1358]

I'm eagerly awaiting my copy and I hope it's a hit for me. Teotihuacan is my favorite game, but Origins and Tekhenu are good games that didn't grab me

[@LeighHathaway]

Thanks for the teach at the last game day both! So with those bendy mini's the first thing i'd try is putting them into boiling water for 3-5 seconds. That should reset them to their original form without you having to shape them.

[@jamesmorgan1967]

Nice tip!

[@michelv1816]

I can also recommend the boiling water method of fixing minis. However, to go into more details, it's closer to highly simmering water than a roiling boil (I don't want to melt the minis). I use an asian strainer (spider strainer) to dunk it in the water, once it resets to its original mold in just a few seconds, I place it in a bucket of ice water. I do it for just about every miniature game I have as there is always an amount of bendiness that's unavoidable.

[@ylein6508]

Yes I have tested and verified it works perfectly, just use water that was just boiled, not boiled over the fire.

[@Oaklestat]

I'm with Amy. You need to stand the meeples up. And she also has awesome finger nails :)

[@JohnClem56]

OK, I'm with Amy on the mechanics/thinker side of the equation and have to agree that the finger nails look good. But, the meeples have to lie down to align with/cover the indicated space! Otherwise, OCD will be offended by the off center placement and random facing direction...

[@jamaicaigot9335]

hey, I enjoyed watching your videos! Are you in audea btw?

[@balbright]

your video description at the top is still from Twilight Inscription.

[@ThinkerThemer]

Thank you!! Missed that. All fixed now. 👌

[@bryanwinston8820]

I was right now years old when the lightbulb went on and I figured out WHY this channel is named Thinker Themer lol.

[@tourguidechuck]

Are you sure it doesn't turn "anti-clockwise?" ;)

[@TimChuon]

this game would be SO fun to play with both of you! loved all your thoughts on this and I can easily see why it's up there to be one of amy's favorite of 2022! that euro worker placement multi-pathway to victory is just 🤌🏽 hahaha thanks for another wonderful review friends 🤗

[@zogthedoomed]

hot water .. not hair dryer!

[@shortydancer]

Can new games really be instant classics?

[@TheBrokenMeeple]

No rules references for each player, no theme (so why does Amy like it?), poor quality components and art, an action wheel that generates constant AP especially in a 4 player game, unbalanced master powers, stop-start scoring...............now I enjoyed the game OK, we're talking average/above average, but I'm sorry, GotY? You're forgiving way too much.

[@ThinkerThemer]

Amy is the thinker 🙃 isnt the best part about the hobby that there's something for everyone, and for our preferences it's an excellent game. Respect your thoughts thanks for watching Luke!

[@waferjuice]

This game isn’t that good. It’s too AP intensive. Makes ur brain hurt not in a good way