Spotlight on Games > War Games
Lords of the Sierra Madre
By e-mail using the Decision Games Edition with variant by Phil Eklund
Sat Nov 27 15:09:38 PST 1999 (This game was played in late 1998.)
Cards list
Action summary
Smelter summary
Analysis
Errata
PLAYERS:
Indicated cash treasuries are after investors capital, profits and capitalization.

C1 Colonel Bill Greene [0] - Phil Eklund

C2 Sheriff John Slaughter [0] - Jack Barnette

C3 Judge Albert Fall [0] - Olivier C.

C4 Don Rafael Ysábel [2] - Rick Heli

C5 Hauptmann Franz von Rintelen [0] - Marco Fibbi

C6 Lord Cowdray (Sir Weetman Pearson) [1] - Alan Moorhouse

C7 Governor Don Luis Terrazas [4] - Phil Vogt

C8 William Randolph Hearst [1] - Garry Haggerty

C9 Alexander Shepherd [0] - Robert Green

Unpurchased:

Discarded Cards:
None.

Activities (in chronological order):

Signing up players.
Choosing hacendadoes.
Dice roll server used to determine choice order as follows: Rick Heli, Olivier C., Phil Eklund, Jack Barnette, Alan Moorhouse, Phil Vogt, Garry Haggerty.
Rick Heli chooses C4 Don Rafael Ysábel.
Olivier C. chooses C3 Judge Albert Fall.
Phil Eklund chooses C1 Colonel Bill Greene.
Jack Barnette chooses C2 Sheriff John Slaughter.
Alan Moorhouse chooses C6 Lord Cowdray (Sir Weetman Pearson).
Phil Vogt chooses C7 Don Luis Terrazas.
Garry Haggerty chooses C8 William Randolph Hearst.
1898 Winter.
Card is M43 Riverbank Laboratories - 1 gold.
Card Auction.
Passing: Terrazas, Don Rafael, Fall, Hearst, Greene.
Bidding 1: Cowdray. Cowdray takes it.
Common Card Auction.
Passing: Terrazas, Greene, Hearst, Cowdray, Slaughter.
Fall bids 1 on RR7.
Don Rafael bids 1 on RR12.
1898 Spring.
Card is E15 Garbanzo bean demand explodes! Slave Plantation profits up two - 1 gold.
Common Card Auction.
Slaughter bids 1 on B3 Arizona Rangers.
Terrazas bids 1 on M3 Tombstone Epitaph/Tucson Citizen.
Terrazas stature +1.
1898 Summer.
Card is E19 Yaqui Deportations! Slave Plantation profits down 1 - 1 gold.
Mexican hacendadoes may withdraw from bidding for a year, raising leadership two ranks.
Terrazas, Don Rafael withdraw.
All re-invest profits.
RR12 Colorado River Steam Navigation Co. matures.
Slaughter bids 1 on RR 10 Arizona and Colorado.
1898 Autumn.
Card is C32 Santa Rita del Cobre Mine of Grant County, New Mexico - 1 gold.
Bidding 1: Cowdray. Cowdray takes it.
No bidding on common cards.
1899 Winter.
Card is C44 the Las Catilanas Mine of Tonichi, Sonora (8 quarters) - 1 gold.
Terrazas pays capitalization cost for Cowdray's Santa Rita del Cobre Mine.
Hearst bids 1 on C44, but Greene bids 3 and takes it, spending 2.
1899 Spring.
Card is E2 HALLEY'S COMET - 2 gold. +1 to end the game. Arizona Rangers relinquished.
Rafael transfers 2 AU to Hearst.
Hearst takes Sonora Rurales, spending 1. Hearst transfers Sonora Rurales to Don Rafael; Don Slaughter takes Arizona Rangers, spending 1.
1899 Summer.
Card is R19 Western Federation of Mine Strikers [1]. 0 quarters.
All players re-invest.
Cowdray pays 1 Au for R19.
Fall pays 1 gold for Sonora Police, 1 for Chihuahua police.
Terrazas pays 1 to capitalize Cowdray's mine.
Both Terrazas and Don Rafael return from Yaqui deportations with +2 stature.
1899 Autumn.
Capitalization of all immature railroads increased 2 quarters (this affects RR10).
Card is E21 Panama Canal announced - 2 gold.
Terrazas takes a Chihuahua Federales for 1 Au.
1900 Winter.
Card is W6 Transport Ford or Mercedes Benz Trucks. Henry Ford [2] - 1 gold.
Terrazas pays 1 to capitalize Cowdray's mine.
Hearst bids 2 on O4 Chihuahua Rurales, 2 on M4 Subornation, spending 1 each.
Fall bids 2 on C12 Tonichi Moctezuma Copper Company smelter, spending 1.
Cowdray bids 1 on RR6 Silver City, Deming and Pacific Railroad.
Terrazas, Don Rafael and Slaughter each bid 1 for the trucks, won by Terrazas.
1900 Spring.
Card is R1 Bandidos Villistas [2] in Barranca Aros, Chihuahua - no gold.
Greene, Cowdray and Don Rafael combine to bid 3 on the Villistas.
Hearst bids 3 on the Villistas, Terrazas adds 1 – Hearst takes the card.
Fall bids 1 on B2 Blackjack Pershing.
RR10 Arizona and Colorado Railroad matures.
San Bernardino Ranch goes up 2 profit levels.
1900 Summer.
Card is R3 Maderista Junta [1] in Borega, Chihuahua - no gold.
Terrazas, Slaughter, Fall takes profits.
Greene, Hearst, Cowdray, Don Rafael re-invest.
Terrazas pays 1 to capitalize Cowdray's mine.
RR6 Silver City, Deming and Pacific Railroad matures.
1900 Autumn.
Card is C60 Mesilla 1853 Land Grant Hacienda in Dona Ana, NM - 2 gold.
Slaughter bids up to 2 on the Hacienda, Don Rafael up to 5, Terrazas up to 3, Fall up to 2.
Don Rafael takes it, paying 4.
B>1901 Winter.
Card is C31 San Germán Tannery-Hacienda (Guayamas, Sonora) – 1 gold.
(2 quarters to mature, will enter a profit of 3 since ferry is complete.)
Bidding for the Hacienda: Greene up to 2, Slaughter 3, Terrazas 4 and takes it.
C44 Las Catilanas Mine (Tonichi, Sonora) matures: 0 Copper.
Judge Fall bids 2, pays 1, on RR20 El Tigre Suerte Road.
Terrazas bids 1 on a federales in Sonora.
Terrazas bids 1 on RR18.
1901 Spring.
Card is M36 Conspiracy General Bernardo Reyes[1] Reyista Plot to invade Mexico – no gold.
C32 Santa Rita del Cobre Mine (Grant County, NM) completed for Cowdray.
M4 Subornation capitalization completed for Hearst.
Terrazas pays 1 to capitalize Cowdray's mine.
Bidding on Reyes: Don Rafael: 1, Cowdray: 2, Slaughter: 3, taking it.
1901 Summer.
Card is E9 War in Europe. Copper up 2. Cowdray sends his butler to the Army – 2 gold.
Mine C32 pays 1 to Cowdray, 2 to Terrazas; RR6 pays 1 to Cowdray; Mine C44 pays 2 to Greene.
Fall, Slaughter, Cowdray take profits.
Greene, Don Rafael, Terrazas, Hearst re-invest.
Greene bids 1 on RR22.
Cowdray bids 3 on B1 10th Cavalry (pays 1), 2 on Chihuaha Federales (pays 1)
Don Rafael bids up to 4 on C11. Cowdray pays 5 (bids up to 5) and takes it.
C60, C31 mature.
Cowdray rebases at C32 Santa Rita Mine.
1901 Autumn.
Card is R14 Midnight Marauders. No gold.
Mine C32 pays 2 to Cowdray, 1 to Terrazas; RR6 pays 1 to Cowdray; Mine C44 pays 2 to Greene.
RR20 matures.
Robert Green joins the game and chooses C9 Alexander Shepherd.
Marco Fibbi joins the game and chooses C5 Captain von Rintelen.
Shepherd starts capitalizing C47.
Fall bids 2 on R14, Rintelen bids 2, Shepherd bids 1, Cowdray bids 4 and gets it for 3.
Rintelen bids 1 for R3, Shepherd bids 1. Tie; Rintelen gets it.
Don Rafael bids 3 for RR5 and gets it for 1.
Rintelen bids 1 for RR24.
1902 Winter.
Card is E14 Diaz subsidizes construction of Mexican RR. 1 gold.
Rintelen uses subsidy for RR24, Terrazas for RR18, Greene for RR22.
Mine C32 pays 1 to Cowdray, 2 to Terrazas; RR6 pays 1 to Cowdray; Mine C44 pays 2 to Greene.
RR20 pays 1 to Fall, Slaughter and Cowdray for providing lumber to Mine C32.
Shepherd bids 2 on O3 Federales 11th Battalion (Sonora), gets it for 1.
Heast bids 1 each on RR21 Noroeste de Mexico and RR28 Kansas City, Mexico &Orient.
Cowdray bids 4 for RR17 Sierra Madra Pacific RR, gets it for 1.
Don Rafael bids 2 for RR19 Ferrocaril de Cananea Sierra Tigre, gets it for 1.
Fall bids 4 on RR25 Chihuahua al Pacifico , gets it for 1.
1902 Spring.
Card is M31 Gubernatorial appointment in Sonora. 1 gold.
Mine C32 pays 2 to Cowdray, 1 to Terrazas; RR6 pays 1 to Cowdray; Mine C44 pays 2 to Greene.
RR20 pays 1 to Fall, Slaughter and Cowdray for providing lumber to Mine C32.
Greene bids 1 for Border Patrol.
Votes for Terrazas : Hearst (6), Terrazas (7). Total 13
Votes for Corral : Rintelen (4), Cowdray (3), Don Rafael (3), Fall (5), Greene (2). Total 16
RR20 pays 1 to Fall, Slaughter and Cowdray for providing lumber to Mine C32.
Terrazas elected Governor of Sonora by 28 votes to 24.
All Orange cards in Sonora except Rurales transferred to Terrazas.
1902 Summer
Card is C38, Lucky Tiger Mine in Canyon del Pulpito, Sonora - 1 Gold.
Mine C32 pays 1 to Cowdray, 2 to Terrazas; RR6 pays 1 to Cowdray; Mine C44 pays 2 to Greene.
RR20 pays 1 to Fall, Slaughter and Cowdray for providing lumber to Mine C32.
Fall, Slaughter, Hearst, Don Rafael (C4) Terrazas (C7), Cowdray, Shepherd take profits.
Don Rafael (C60), Terrazas (C31), Greene, Rintelen re-invest.
C12 matures.
Fall bids 1 on RR15.
Terrazas 1 AU on RR23, 1 AU on Smelter C14, Cannaea Con Copper Co.
Fall bids 1 for C38, Terrazas bids 5. Slaughter bids 9 and gets it for 6
The State of Sonora subsidizes the capitalization of RR23.

At this point in the game, we realized that we had not handled the gubernatorial "election" on the previous turn as well as we might have. Instead of the simultaneous blind voting system that we used for pbem purposes, we should have just conducted a regular auction via e-mail as is done in the face-to-face game. We didn't do this because we wanted to save time – a false economy! But because we failed to do so, the Terrazas player became so powerful (a stature 4 governor!), and at so little cost, that there would be just about no way to prevent him from winning the game. So the rest of us all agreed to concede at this point and hope to handle the situation better if we ever played again. Still, I hope this foreshortened game provides a useful introduction and "feel" for the game if you are just starting to play it.

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