Does anyone have Empire of the Sun?

[judgedredd]

What's it like?

It looks like a big-un - but it's teasing me

[bayonetbrant]

it's a big, long, involved board game, but it's one of the best strat-level Pac Theater games out there

[judgedredd]

it's a big, long, involved board game

That's the impression I got

but it's one of the best strat-level Pac Theater games out there

I'm thinking about the future as I've got no-where to put it at the moment anyway - so when a spare room shows up and I want to play a big bugger.

I was just looking at games...saw this for £60. The other game I saw I was interested in was Bar Lev by Compass Games. However, as much as I absolutely love Combat! I can't help but think Compass Games are overpriced for the quality of their products. The Bar Lex game is a deluxe game at around £120 and comes with paper maps.

Also, their proof reading seems to be done by a cat.

[Barthheart]

EotS is also a card driven game. Cards play a very large roll in the game and that, to me, severely limits solo play.

It's a beautiful game to look at but not my cup of tea to play.

[BanzaiCat]

I owned it a while ago. Had it for a couple of years and never punched it, and ended up selling it on eBay to someone in Germany. The game is very attractive to me, but there's just no way, time- and space-wise.

[Silent Disapproval Robot]

I’ve got it.  It’s cool but I find some of the rules somewhat too abstracted for my tastes.  Also, it’s one of those games where people who’ve memorized the cards have a huge advantage. They remind me of the guys who are way too into Twilight Struggle. 

It’s also bloody difficult.  Lots of niggling little rules to keep track of.  Planning the opening turn as the Japanese is a brain burner and trying to keep track of the moving ZOCs that carriers project and how they affect lines of supply both for you and the enemy is decidedly not fun.

[judgedredd]

I’ve got it.  It’s cool but I find some of the rules somewhat too abstracted for my tastes.  Also, it’s one of those games where people who’ve memorized the cards have a huge advantage. They remind me of the guys who are way too into Twilight Struggle. 

It’s also bloody difficult.  Lots of niggling little rules to keep track of.  Planning the opening turn as the Japanese is a brain burner and trying to keep track of the moving ZOCs that carriers project and how they affect lines of supply both for you and the enemy is decidedly not fun.

Thank you...bowing out 

I was watching a video yesterday on it and the guy was mentioning Zones of Control. It absolutely looked like one of those rules that not only would I struggle with, but definitely one that I would struggle to remember to implement. Also, I saw him putting Japanese counters down as he moved through South East Asia...looked like it could get very, very busy.

It did look like a heavy duty, hard work game.

[Silent Disapproval Robot]

It’s better on VASSAL because that plots the ZOCs for you as you move.

[bbmike]

There is also a detailed tutorial on how to play EotS in Vassal.

[Boyerwulf]

 Empire of the Sun while abstract, is the most realistic strategic simulation of the Pacific War that I have ever played. It does take a while to learn, and some of the rules can be fickle (especially in regards to the Burma/India/China  theater).  But if you are looking to get a real feel for the problems both sides faced, this is the game to do it. Their are many excellent tutorials on Youtube as pointed out.  The best way to start out is with a smaller scenario, and I cant recommend  C3I Magazine #30 with the South Pacific game included.  It takes Empire of the Sun, and  miniaturizes it to just the South Pacific between 42-43. Small unit density, small map, less cards, etc. It's an excellent learning scenario. 
 Like most Mark Herman games, a bit of time is required to learn them, but they usually reward you with insights into the conflicts he is portraying much more accurately then most other offerings. Mark Hermans Empire of the Sun, and For the People both make it into my top 10 Wargames of all time.
 
 

[Rekim]

I just finished 14 days of self isolation today after returning home from Cuba. A fringe benefit of being locked in with the missus over my birthday was not receiving a b-day present...which translated into a carte blanche opportunity for me to order up some gaming gear.

I was torn between my desire for a Oregon 2.5mm corner clipper and Empire of the Sun. I have a large backload of ASL counters that need punching and am also at the point where I'd like to pare my game collection down a bit rather than growing it...yet somehow I convinced myself that EotS was the way to go. Plenty of wargamers have this title in their collections (according to BGG) so hold some hope for 2-player action at some point. I'm also intrigued to see what the solitaire system (Erasmus v2) is all about, as I find the more procedural solo systems used in games like B17, RAF,  and Carrier are losing some of their luster.

[bayonetbrant]

I know a LOT of people that love EotS.

The review of it back at WGer about 15 years ago was the template that I used for my subsequent reviews.

[Rekim]

EotS has been on my radar forever, so almost certain I read your review on WG. This more recent review gets lots of credit for pushing me over the edge;

https://www.quartertothree.com/fp/2019/03/14/the-truly-eternal-empire-of-the-sun-is-a-wargame/

[bayonetbrant]

EotS has been on my radar forever, so almost certain I read your review on WG.

TO be clear: it wasn't *my* review.  Someone else's review (Al Berke, I think) was the one I used as a model for the ones I wrote after that.

[Ardwulf]

I'm seeing statements about how "big" and "long" this game is, so I felt obliged to clarify: it is a one-map game with no additional footprint with 1.5 countersheets that can be played in a single (lengthy) sitting. It's not super easy to learn, but it's nothing like a monster game.