During the First World War, the British and French made a secret agreement to carve up the Ottoman Empire – literally drawing on a map in red and blue ink – without respect to the peoples, culture, or history of the region. This would have devastating effects over the next century.

In Sykes-Picot, two players take on the roles of infamous diplomats Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot, using red and blue markers to carve out territories to control and to influence on a dry-erase map. Trick-taking card play and table-talk negotiations drive the proceedings, with the winner of each trick choosing one of the two cards to implement, and the loser consoling themselves with the remaining card. Each player has a set of hidden objectives they’re trying to achieve. Players may be as co-operative or as competitive as they wish in pursuit of these goals.

Tonally, the game is light, reflecting the distance and cavalier attitude of these imperialist powers. We feel there’s something horrifying in that, and this approach captures some of that horror.

-Grant

In Episode 8 springen wir vor die Zeit des Amerikanischen Bürgerkriegs und blicken auf den Hauptauslöser eben dieses Krieges: Die Sklaverei in den USA und die beiden unterschiedlichen politischen Bewegungen, die eben dafür oder dagegen waren. Alleine das Thema macht dieses Spiel schon sehr besonders. Doch auch die Mechaniken wissen zu überzeugen, obwohl sie so oder so ähnlich aus anderen Spielen bekannt sind, machen sie hier ganz eigene Dinge.

Shownotes

• This Guilty Land | Board Game | BoardGameGeek
• This Guilty Land – Module Library – Vassal
• Print & Play Dateien | This Guilty Land
• Sklaverei in den Vereinigten Staaten – Wikipedia
• Missouri-Kompromiss – Wikipedia
• Amerikanischer Sezessionskrieg – Wikipedia
• Endurance | Board Game | BoardGameGeek
• Print & Play Dateien | Endurance
• Verlagsseite Hollandspiele