Area Control / Area Influence

Designed by Glenn Drover, this boardgame allows you to revisit the age of exploration and discovery. Take on the role of a colonial power seeking fame, glory, and riches in the New World. As you proceed through three ages, you can launch expeditions of discovery, colonize regions, expand your merchant fleet, build capitol buildings that give your nation distinct advantages, develop your economy, and, if necessary, declare war.

Though originally published for 5 players, the game is playable by 6 with the original components and board configuration with addition of a set of figures in another color. This was originally offered as an "expansion" and an incentive to pre-order the game. The 6 player expansion will be included in the New expansion Glenn Drover's Empires: Builder Expansion as well as new buildings, and National Advantage tiles.

Not to be confused with Age of Discovery.

Taken from Boardgame News:

Oregon is a family/strategy game with a colonization-theme and a card-driven placement mechanism. The aim of the game is to position farmers and point-giving buildings in the best possible locations on the board.

The year is 1846. Gunslingers, lawmen, pioneers and whole families left their homes in the east and midwest to try their luck in the West. They loaded their covered wagons with all they could and headed west across steppes, deserts, and mountains. Many chose to settle in Oregon, where the farming and hunting was plentiful and they could stake out a bit of land for themselves.The players have already reached Oregon and gaze upon the rich farmland below and the potential gold and coal reserves of the mountains. They build ports on the lakes and rivers, churches, warehouses, post offices, and train stations on the plains. And, of course, they must farm the rich land to grow the food necessary for the area to grow and thrive. To win, a player must choose the right times to farm and the right times to build, for planning is necessary, even here in the untamed wilderness of Oregon!Oregon - the way the west was won ...

1598. Yspahan the fair becomes the capital of the Persian empire. Thus, being placed at the center of the world, the city enjoys a period of cultural and economic blossoming. The cities and villages of the region intend to take advantage of this expansion. Caravans loaded with goods and jewels set out for the desert, bearing the promises of a radiant future....

The players embody merchants trading with Yspahan. Meaning to take advantage of the coming of the Shah’s supervisor, they score points by placing their merchandise in the right shops, by sending them to the caravan, and by constructing buildings.

In Yspahan, players draft their action for the turn in order, but a roll of the dice determines which actions are available and how powerful they will be. You can earn points in the short-term by claiming shops in the city or by sending your traders to the caravan. You can also improve your infrastructure by constructing buildings that improve your actions or picking up action cards that give you extra options. Every 7 turns (each "week"), points are scored in the city and caravan, and after 3 weeks, the wise traders will see who among them has profited the most....

In Shangri-La, the mysterious and isolated utopia nestled high in the mountains, a strange struggle for dominance has begun. Once peaceful and neighborly, the Masters of the competing mountain-folk train their students and send them out across bridges to control neighboring villages. To take control of a village, the students must come together in uncomfortable alliances, regardless of their tribal origin. Eventually students become Masters themselves, train new students and expand to other villages.

There is one thing each student must keep in mind as they travel from village to village -- the mystical powers of Shangri-La mysteriously cause the bridges to collapse, separating villages forever. One crucial question will decide the winner: who will control the most Masters of Shangri-La?

Players take on the roles of leaders of a specific tribe. There is a battle raging over the empty villages of the land and players must quickly fill those villages with their tribal leaders. As players migrate tribal leaders from one village to the next, they must not become too weak or they risk losing leaders to opposing tribes. The ultimate object of the game is to have the most leaders on the board at the end of the game.
It is an abstract game with many options and tense until the end.

2004 Mensa Select

Thematically, players are adding masters and students, and trying to have the students migrate to nearby villages to become masters. Functionally, this is essentially a military game. Players either spend their turn reinforcing a village (adding more tokens there) or invading a neighboring village (expanding influence if you have more total tokens than the victim). The unique twist is that, after each invasion, the connecting bridge is removed. So over the course of the game, attack options become more and more limited, until the game naturally comes to a conclusion.

Africa, 1855....

The Scottish missionary, Dr Livingston, has been researching African tribes and the flora and fauna of the area. As part of the Livingston Exploration, strategically set up tents in various regions while collecting gems found along the Zambezi River bank. Gain the most victory points and the favor of Queen Victoria to win!

From the publisher: In this game you follow in the footsteps of David Livingstone to the roaring Victoria Falls. On your way you may want to try your luck in the Diamond mining or you may prefer to seek a more calculable risk.

The publisher promises an exciting and tactical family game, with a completely new dice mechanism.