Pieces of Eight: The Cursed Blade and The Maiden’s Vengeance Review
By Ian Strelec, Staff Reviewer
Initiative Round
The term ‘pieces of eight’ probably carries with it the connotation of pirates, sea travel, and buried treasure, and it should. Pieces of Eight is an amusing game based entirely on the use of 13 coins (that come with the box) per player to create a ship, and then going to battle with a handful of coins.
This probably seems odd. Allow me to explain further. Each game box comes with 16 coins, (meaning every player pretty much needs a box) with which you build your ‘shipyard’. Why it’s a shipyard and not a ship, I’m not quite sure, as you seem to be playing with a single ship the whole time. Regardless, you then arrange these coins around your Captain, a gold coin (where the rest are silver) in a particular order of your choosing, resulting in a stack of coins in your hand spread across it, with only one coin visible.
Play then proceeds as you use the top coin, your bottom coin (fore and aft, respectively), as well as your crow’s nest (a coin in your off hand) to try and blast your way to your opponent’s captain and kill him. Each coin has its own particular abilities, listed in the rulebook. These range from pulling cards out of your ‘hold’ (the destroyed coins), destroying coins, and blocking other coins, among others. The ultimate goal is to be the last player standing with a captain.
Pieces of Eight can be played by any number of people exceeding 1, ranging in time used up from 10 minutes to half an hour or more, depending on the number of players.
Critical Hit
This game is highly creative, using a system I’ve never seen before. The coins are actual metal with neat images on them, that I would consider relatively high quality. The game is simple, easy to learn and fast to play. All these things offer support.
Critical Fumble
There is only one kind of problem I can find with this game, that being the cost. It’s a good $20 for one box set, meaning every player needs to drop that money to play. Now granted, the game is fun and probably worth it for most people, but the price still seems a little high.
Coup de Grace
Ultimately, this is an entertaining and easy game that is quick to learn and quick to play. The game is creative and uses an inventive system; with coins I will likely finding multiple uses for. It’s a little pricey, but I’d say it’s worth it.
Final Grade: B+
