Hi all, just a few questions about twilight imperium. Does anyone have any suggestions on storage? Additionally, I would like to try a two player game, so if you know of the best fan made variant for that, that would be great! Also, I saw that alot of people have said that the Yssaril race is broken. Is that true or can I still use them? Thanks!

Welcome to the grand struggle for control of the galaxy.

For storage, here is a thread on my solution

https://community.fantasyflightgames.com/topic/133976-my-storage-and-play-aids/?hl=storage

As for 2 player variants, I've read a few but none of them really inspired me. I think most of them were essentially each player plays 2 races, which isn't a two player game IMO.

The Yssaril tribes are very powerful once you know how to play the. For a group that is just starting it shouldn't really be a problem.

Also, the FFG product page for the game has several useful resources, particularly suggested map set ups, so that the game can get going as quickly as possible. There is also an alternate Imperial Strategy Card that I strongly recomend.

Do you just have the core bis, or some of the expansions too? If you do, the artifacts optional rule is not at all complex and can greatly speed up play time.

The single most important piece of advice anyone can give you, is use small wire cutters to punch out the ships. Otherwise your fingers will cramp and be sore for days.

Thanks for the advice! Which option for the imperial strategy card do you recommend? Also, while leafing through the rulebook, I noticed the Age of Empire variant. Does it make the gameplay better/more enjoyable? I just got the core game, no expansions. Yet........

If you don't have the expansions, you definitely want do DL the "Imperial 2" strategy card. The regular Imperial 1 card isn't "broken" per se, but it does has a significant effect on how the game unfolds.

Age of Empires variant.... Is that the one where all the objective cards are revealed at the start of the game? Definitely play with that one. Makes it much easier to plan an overall strategy. Just remember to move the token that is counting the turns every time.

Thanks for the advice! Which option for the imperial strategy card do you recommend? Also, while leafing through the rulebook, I noticed the Age of Empire variant. Does it make the gameplay better/more enjoyable? I just got the core game, no expansions. Yet........

Just a bit of trivia, but in previous editions of Twilight Imperium the Age of Empire variant was the standard way to play, so it exists as a sort of homage to the original.

As for which one is better... opinions will vary, but generally I think they are both very good they just create a bit of a different atmosphere in the game.

With Age of Empire you are going to be able to build long term strategies, which other players will foresee you going after which in turn will likely result in a more aggressive game as people try to stunt/stop leaders. Its a very good format, it works really well in particular with inexperienced players who don't know the objective decks.

With hidden objectives your never entirely sure what will become important.. controlling more planets, more tech, more resources? It can end up being anything so you have to think a bit grander and create a strategy ready for whatever comes up, adapting it as you go. In general with experienced players this doesn't result in a less aggressive game, experienced TI3 players know that you need to chip away at your opponents early and often until your certain they are not a threat but with novice players this can result in a game with a lot of turtle-ing.

Typically I recommend playing Age of Empire until everyone in the group is more comfortable, once you get some experience you'll find that playing without makes for a more dynamic and varied game.

Your hopefully reading some advice on how to get a good start with the game but some things I think are kind of standard advice.

* Don't use Distant Suns until your very comfortable with the game and ready to for a longer session.

* Get the expansions as soon as your credit card can take it, Shattered Empire in particular improves the game my huge milestones. Vanilla TI3 is ... well.. lets just say if TI3 with expansions is a 9 or 10 out of 10, Vanilla TI3 is about a 6 or 7 out of 10.

* Your first game will be really long no matter how many players you have so make sure your ready for a 6+ hour event.

* Use as few variants as possible but as already suggested avoid the Imperial Strategy I card, its ... as mentioned not broken per say but it makes for a very predictable game.

As for a 2 player game, there are some great variants but in the end this is not a two player game, its really not even a 3 player game. 4 is about the minimum. Anything less than that and it becomes considerably less interesting. Its a good way to learn though.

Good luck be sure to tell us about your first game!

One good resource to point yourself and any potential opponents towards is http://www.preeminent.org/steve/games/ti3/ti3demo/ where the basics are covered quite well. It's not the most recent site but still...

Rubber bands and ziplock bags. I have been able to fit all my twilight imperium stuff in the box and the 2 expansions it comes with and put in in a shelf. The boxes are big enough keeping it there should not be too much of a problem. Having a separate container I find does not shorten the set-up clean-up time.

My original box is overstuffed due to also having both expansions in there plus some mini boxes to keep a number of things organized... I am probably going to ditch that in favor of a tool or tackle box with lots of individual compartments to keep things nice and organized, similar to boxes I already keep for my Xwing and Armada collections.

Also, I saw that a lot of people have said that the Yssaril race is broken. Is that true or can I still use them?

That is true, but you can still use them if you want to. In fact, I would be inclined to say keep using them until someone figures out WHY they're broken, as that will be most illustrative on certain core strategies in the game. After someone mops the floor with the whole galaxy using Yssaril, you can decide whether or not to continue using them.

In general, I think it's better to use "broken" game components yourself and understand why people think they're broken, rather than to leave said components in the box from the day you buy it because you read online that it was broken. The term "broken" is used in a very subjective manner, and you may find that the thing everyone else complains about isn't a big deal for your group.

Of course, this doesn't apply to Yssaril. Yssaril is objectively and proveably overpowered. But maybe your group will think up a nifty house rule to reign them in.

I'd like to reiterate what Steve said. The Yssaril tribes are broken once you understand them. New players could easily play several games with them and be perfectly balanced until they finally "click" for someone.

Its wroth pointing out as well that Group dynamics vary greatly. The aforementioned Yassril Tribes for example has the worst record of any race in my group, they basically never have and never will win a game. This however has nothing to do with the mechanics and everything to do with the fact that anyone foolish enough to pick the Yassril Tribe can expect to play 5 vs. 1 My group is not nice, we don't play fair and we give ZERO f's about it. You will be crushed, always and definitively. Balanced Achieved!

Wouldn't it simply be possible to nerf the Yssaril by limiting the Skip to a usable-once-per-round power instead of every other turn though? Makes them less OP-broken and makes the Yssaril player think twice and maybe even thrice about when to do it.

That would certainly be the direction I would start with, though it might nerf them TOO much and they would then need a slight buff elsewhere.

Yeah I'm not sure how I would re-balance them, I don't disagree that they would need some work if you really wanted to get tighten things up, but I think given how many races we have in the game that are pretty well balanced most people just figure one out of 16 or whatever it is, isn't so bad.

I might consider rather than tackling their special ability I would re-visit their starting conditions. For one, I would drop them down to 1 carrier and perhaps 3 ground forces instead of 5. I would also swap out XRD's for Enviro Compensators. I think in large part their starting conditions combined with the XRD's and really good special ability is what catapults them. I think the ability is still very strong but with a weaker start they would have considerably less momentum.

That said I personally think people's assessment of their strength is quite overstated. In Twilight Imperium its hard to win without partners and alliances, so when there is a clearly powerful race in the game, you gang up on it. That is how you keep strong races in check and It works fine as a balancing element of the game.