From the rulebook: “Scholars of the South Tigris is set during the height of the Abbasid Caliphate, circa 830 AD. The Caliph has called upon the keenest minds to acquire scientific manuscripts from all over the known world. Players will need to increase their influence in the House of Wisdom, and hire skilled linguists to translate the foreign scrolls into Arabic. In this Golden Age of wisdom and knowledge, be mindful not to neglect one in pursuit of the other”

In Scholars of the South Tigris (Scholars), players will be vying to score the most victory points by the game’s end. Players begin the game with a collection of Action cards and dice. Through the placement of these cards and the assigning of these dice, players will be traveling the world to collect scrolls, hiring translators to translate these scrolls into Arabic, and using the knowledge contained therein to increase their power and improve their standings in the game’s various guilds.

Of course, this is a high-level overview of the game. If you’d like to learn more about how the game is played, read on. Otherwise, feel free to skip to the end to find out what we think of Scholars.

Setup

Scholars is played around a central main board that is broken up into several distinct zones. Along…

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Hello! Welcome to A Study in Board Games, a commentary on the board gaming hobby.

It is clear that we meet player(s) from all backgrounds and experiences with the hobby, yet, we all gather on a single table to play a game. The motivation to both come together and play can easily vary between players. Through this interaction, we forge new relationships with players, and perhaps even strengthen those bonds to a level of social commitment whereby a gaming group can play regularly!

So, let’s discuss what motivates players to gather around a table.

In 2016, I was blessed to help form a small gaming group, and for it to now stay consistent with weekly game sessions 8 years later has been incredibly rewarding. I have met a variety of players, each with their own specific motivations to play.

From my experiences, I have been able to determine two main “categories” of motivations.

1. Social motivations
2. Gaming motivations

From these two categories, players often assume different archetypes that serve as their chief mottos for gaming.  These archetypes are not mutually exclusive, and we may see ourselves assume multiple archetypes on any given day.

Let’s dig in.

Social Motivations

The Jester

• Motto: “I am here to laugh”
• Behaviors: Loud,…

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