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Emira
Authors: Liesbeth Vanzeir & Paul Van Hove
Publisher: Phalanx Games
Year: 2006


review by

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Some men will have to get accustomed to it: looking with somewhat more attention in the mirror, and act accordingly: are the split ends of the mustache removed, the richly grown eyebrow hairs trimmed, and the shining skin powdered at places? Are the fresh and ironed clothes neatly tucked? Did we put the flowers in the back of the camel, and regarding good manners: did we make sure our middle finger is where it belongs - in rest position, next to the four other fingers? Then we are ready to go on audience with the women. In 'Emira' three to five players try to get the favor of the women, and invite them in their harem. The game is won by the player who manages to get a by the amount of participating players preset amount of women with special capabilities in his harem.
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At the start of play players are dealt a conditons card. On this card are the special capabilities of the women he needs to look for in order to get a discount in the amount of collected women. If he fails to fulfill this condition, he must collect the full amount, which is equal for all players. The women are represented by cards which enter the game one by one, with the occasional exception triggered by an event card. On the card is the preference of the woman depicted, because she chooses the player which matches her personal taste the most. She looks for beauty, good manners and clothes, but housing and status also can be decisive.
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On a central board is a stack of cards that depict the princesses from which one is turned open every round, as well as one of the status cards, and there is room for a blindly drawn charisma chit, a camel chit, and two cilinders to be used when acquiring a large or a small herb field.
Of course all these matters cost money, not in the least because players have to bid to get the right to buy an item from the window - they do not just get it!
In contrary to regular auctions players must more or less bid blindly: each player performs a bid, but the subject of his choice may well be an other than the participating other players in the bid.
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Because only after a player has won the bidding, he decides which action he will perform and marks it with his player disc - this action may not be chosen anymore this round. Bidding continues until every player has chosen an item; the last pl,ayer may choose one for free. But as said before, being the highest bidder in a round is only part of the cost, as each of the items has a fixed price when  a player wants to acquire it. Boosting one’s charisma for instance - picking the one chit that is open in a current round - costs 350 gold, and expanding the palace 500 gold.
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For increasing the status at game start 300 gold must be paid, and this could go as high as 1500 gold during the course of the game. The status number on a higher cost card increases somewhat with the height of the cost. Finally the amount of camels in the caravan can be increased, and this is profitable in a bidding as each camel gives a permanent discount in gold, as gold is already slipping through our fingers like desert sand!
Each round players get a base income, but it is the same old story in the land of One Thousand And One Nights as it is here in the modern world: the welfare state has deteriorated, and we will have to replenish our income with private herb fields  that will have to be bought in an auction too.
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They can choose between different fields: two large ones and two small ones, each with a different value of revenue. But the player investing in a slow return of money per round profits from longer lasting revenues that will earn him a higher total sum of money. Going for the ‘fast’ money herb track is possible too; it is somewhat like getting more revenue because of the aide of food technology, but hey this is the desert so I don’t know quite how to fill this routine in here.
After getting the income for the herb fields the cilinders are adjusted one position to the left until they are exhausted, and a player has to buy another one to earn additional income. More than one cilinder may be put on one herb field track, and a player who manages to get this done can concentrate on other things than vulgar money problems.
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Apart from the cilinders for the herb fields, the player boards also provide space for the acquired camel and charisma chits, and the palace expansions. Well, great, everything is set up for action, but erh, where are the chicks?

Stop right there! Ofcourse we are talking about a high-quality human matter of one gender where the opposite gender, not less qualitative, cannot live without, would it only be as not to become extinct as a species, vice versa, all very neat, clean, and with great regard and respect. But enough mesmerizing about the differences of the crotch, one can also talk too much about it, and in doing so emphasize the whole biological matter!
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