I'll be the first to admit I have a strange relationship with Targi, it is a very on and off kind of affair. There been times when Targi has just sat on the dining room table, and got played again and again, back to back. And then there are those periods where Targi gets overlooked for something new and shiny. In fact I've sold Targi 3 times now and each time it keeps making its way back to me, its almost like it needs me as much as I need it! But at its Heart Targi is a two player worker placement game, with no real thrills, just down right great gameplay.
Targi is a fairly easy to teach game, but its probably not the easiest to master, but after a few games you've probably seen everything the game has to offer and thats where you begin to develop your gameplay.
Each player has 3 targi figures and tribe markers, and each round you'll be taking it in turns to place a targi figure around the edge of the board, and youll create intersects which will be marked by your tribe markers. Meaning youll essentially end up with a combination of 5 actions, usually do this, collect this, pay this. There are of course restrictions and there's a pesky robber, who will steal from both players every 4 rounds.
I throughly enjoyed my plays of Targi, my partner not so much. And as my taste in games has evolved to more worker placement resource management style games, Targi just ticks more and more boxes for me. As the aim of the game is to fill a 3 x 4 grid with tribe cards, either providing one time effects, ongoing abilities and/or end game points. In addition to the set collection points at the end of the game.
The expansion for Targi though, wow shakes Targi up and spits out a vastly different game, well its the same game fundamentally but there's such more more going on here, that its hard for me to say start here with the expansion. But equally I don't think I want to go back to just the base game.
There's the minor changes e.g. the better iconography on the tribe cards which are great and a few replacements to some of the border cards to interact with the new stuff of which there is lots! But dabble in are some changes to what were cornerstones of the base game, and makes all actions equally appealing, the fata morgana and Caravan spaces were our go to spaces, this shake up means you have to look elsewhere. Oh and the raids got more punishing too, if that wasn't already enough!
The expansion adds a wild resource, which feels like a get of jail card for those tough situations where you might be overwhelmed in the base game with one particular good. And I think this changes the game from an efficiency puzzle to a, well you can now reasonably get any tribe card.
Then there's the Targia figure who moves in the reverse direction to the robber and gives you the opportunity to claim an additional bonus or take a chance. Oh and I didnt even mention the Sand Dune cards, these are what feels like game changing, but there's a big but here, you'll have to place a targi figure on it, meaning you're left with only one intersect on the board that turn.
I feel like Targi has just been changed into what only can be described as next level, with the addition of all these new elements that fundamentally have you reassessing original game plans, and balancing between actions and those sand dune cards, but the added water resource feels like a dabble of easing, which combined is just astouding. If you liked Targi, its hard not to recommend this!
As you know I rate games on a:
- Buy or play
- Wait for sale or play if you like game XYZ
- Avoid
Targi with the expansion is a firm buy or play, its well worth the price of entry and there's so much game combined within these two little boxes. I'd still recommend Targi as a standalone game and still give that a buy or play rating. And if you own Targi and haven't got the expansion yet, what are you doing? Seriously, its so good I don't think I can go back to my past love of Targi, its now Targi the expansion.
Disclaimer: This is my own copy of Targi and was sent a copy of Targi the expansion to review.
