From: alw9038@sigma.tamu.edu (Miss Kitty)
Subject: Re: Xanth board game
Summary: Hey, kids!  It's time to hose your buddy!!!!!! 
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41    
Keywords:  hose, die, and call it fun!
Organization: Texas A&M University, Academic Computing Services
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 1992 01:04:00 GMT

In article <1992Sep13.231208.14698@newsroom.utas.edu.au>, u920065@postoffice.utas.edu.au (Dean Bailey) writes...
>While looking through a comic shop the other day, I came across a 
>large box.The thing about this box that caught my eye was the 
>word XANTH printed up the side.  It turned out to be a board game of
>PA's Xanth series.

>Well I looked at the box and all I could gain was that it cost a
>wopping great $54.95(Aust) and that it used lots of dice and cards.

First of all, you are getting ripped off with the price of this game.  It 
sells here in beautiful downtown College Station, home of the inflated price,
for a wopping $28.95.  Buy it somewhere else.

>So what exactly is the game about. And has anybody played it.  I would love
>to hear from you.

>Dean.
>:-)

There are two ways to play _Xanth_: you can play to win, or you can play to 
hose your buddy.  Often, by chosing to play to win, you force your opponents
to hose you, so you hose in return, which causes the game to degenerate to a
game of hose your buddy.

Basics:  You are a character of the Xanth mythos.  You are given two quests.
To win the game, you must complete BOTH quests.  Your character does not have
to do this.  In fact, it probably won't.  You see, the game is set up to screw
your characters up as much as possible.  In a good 5-7 player game, you will
probably be killed off at least three times.  However, each time you are killed
off, you are given a new character and a new quest.  Thus the two quests need
not be completed by the same character, merely the same PLAYER.  To assist you
in the quest, you are given additional characters.  You can collect spells,
defenses, offenses and equipement with the cards you draw each turn.  

_Xanth_ is *filled* with dice.  You have small red dice (blood die) to keep 
track of the damage each character (including your "just for help" characters)
takes.  Several d6 are needed for the various problems you encounter, as are d4
and I think either a few d8 or d10 (can't recall), but these are included in 
the game. My personal favorite of the attacks requiring multiple dice is the
"carnivorous rabbits", wherein your party is attacked by 2-14 vorpal bunnies
(ala M.P. and the Holy Grail).

The game is really a lot of fun.  The action takes place in Xanth, allowing 
you to go to C, get transported to Mundania, or to just sit back and allow
yourself to die in the Gorge.  My suggestion: buy the game, read the basic
rules, call up 5 or 6 friends, and don't plan on doing anything the next day
because you will still be playing the game.  _Xanth_ takes a while because
it ALWAYS becomes a game of hose your buddy.  

For those of you who want to play something similar, that is cheaper, easier
to learn, takes less time to play, and still allows you to hose your buddy
quite effectively, I highlly recommend Wiz War.  Excellent game, and it only
costs $15.


					The ever helpful Miss Kitty
					All hail.
alw9038@sigma.tamu.edu