by raddar2213
chris1nd wrote:
Not only does it increase the value of silver and castles, it decreases the need to leave open space in your depot (which requires more strategic planning, IMHO).
I hadn't considered how the "buying anytime" variant decreases the importance of leaving open space in your depot--good point. So, the variant has the potential to loosen the game a bit. I'm still not sure if there is any appreciable increase in value of silver, castles, and the city hall...
chris1nd wrote:
My sense is that people who like "clever card combo" games would like that variant.
You've hit the nail on the head here for me. I'm a big fan of stringing together combos (e.g. in Dominion), and this is mainly what I had in mind when I mentioned that this variant promotes "creative play".
chris1nd wrote:
This is very explicit and takes a pretty "creative" reading to believe the rules would allow it in the middle of a die action since the rules disallow it with apparent intent.
I'd say "selective" rather than "creative"; I remembered "...may do this at any point during his turn" explicitly, whereas I seem to have either missed or forgotten "before, between, or after the dice actions". That the latter disagrees with the former on a straightforward reading doesn't help matters.
Anyway, I'll have to consider how much this variant loosens the game when deciding if I'll continue to play that way. Thanks for your input!