Well, despite it being a short month (only three weeks of game nights) for the Hypermind BoardGamers, we still had a Game of the Month!, which was The Pillars of the Earth.  I'm not going to do another full review because, for the most part, I still stand behind the review that I did for it back in June.  I did want to give a few additional thoughts that I have about the game now, just in the spirit of completeness.

Updates

First of all, my copy of the game has only been played around 8 times total, and the Master Builder pawns are already in pretty bad shape.  They are painted wood, and a good deal of the paint has already rubbed off from them banging around in the bag.  Now, this doesn't really have any effect on the game itself or anything, but they do bring a bit of a hobo effect to an otherwise still beautiful game.

As far as gameplay goes, I think that I may have shortchanged the strategic depth of Pillars in my original review.  I have been able to pursue different strategies in different games, with relative success in each.  I've even been able to adapt my strategy when others claimed craftsman or other important items that I needed while still remaining competitive.  I've also seen that several of the different Master Builder actions are often as important (or even more so at times) than just getting the new craftsmen.  In particular, many people ignore the Kingsbridge Market, which can really help to maximize use of your craftsmen or make a crapload of money.  The more I play the game, the more opportunities I see for strategy, which makes the decisions around paying for Master Builder placement, as well as deciding where to place them, far more difficult.

On the other hand, I also see some more weaknesses in the game than I did before.  In particular, the Wood Worker! in the first round that can give 8 gold for 2 wood can give a significant advantage to the player that is able to get it.  In our still relatively limited play of the game, an experienced player that picks this up has a really good chance to win the game.  

Another card that seems to be broken to us is the Prior Phillip privilege card.  He gives one extra victory point each time that a player places a Master Builder at the Priory, which can have a huge effect if it comes out on turn 1 (which happened in two of the three games this month).  Being able to get from 2-5 VP just in that area (in addition to whatever your craftsmen are producing) each turn can be game changing.  

But, one thing that I really see as a strength of the game is that, despite the significant amount of luck in the Master Builder pulls, I see experiences players doing way better than newbies.  There is real skill involved in the optimizing of your VP engine, and a real knowledge base that is built in knowing which Craftsmen, events, and privileges are still available to come later in the game.  As I've progressed along the learning curve, I can more easily see the limitations of people further back along it.    

Summary

So, what is the final word?  From the group, nine different Hypermind BoardGamers have played a total of four games and give it an average rating of 7.22 (high is 8 and low is 5).  Personally, my impression of the game is generally more positive than it was before, but I feel that I still need to rate it a solid 7 out of 10.  

I would feel very comfortable recommending this game to people who are looking to take a "next step" from gateway games into something more meaty, because while it is still relatively simple to grasp, the game "feels" heavier than other games of its complexity.  I haven't studied too much about the recently released 5-6 Player Expansion for the game, but I look forward to seeing what it adds to the game (other than two more people).  I'll probably pick it up when it's available in English, and I'll even feel good about doing so!