Azul: Summer Pavilion
Board Game Alphabet Challenge
Instagram community challenge popped up in my feed yesterday for the Board Game Alphabet! This felt like something I could do, every Monday we are going to post a game for that letter for just 26 days! Totally feasible and I caught it at the start! And, hey, I JUST happened to be playing this game when I saw the post, so let’s start out with:
A is for Azul: Summer Pavilion
Original Azul was one of the first games I ever bought and played in my new modern board gaming life. It’s such a great entry level game of drafting tiles, strategically placing them on the board to maximize your points at the end of the round. There are now several Azul sequels and I have to say that Summer Pavilion is my favorite of the bunch.
So, what is the deal? It might just be that I’ve played a lot of regular Azul and I needed a change, but I also think the puzzle for this game still feels linked to the original game, but tweaked enough that it feels new.
In Summer Pavilion, you are still drafting tiles from factories on the board, still taking all of one color and setting them aside to place at the end of that round. At the end of each round, players take turn placing tiles on the board, similar to regular Azul, you need a certain amount of the same color to fill in the corresponding spot - so 4 red tiles for the red spot on the star. Place it adjacent to a tile already placed, you get points - just like regular Azul. Complete an entire star, get bonus points at the end of the game, just like in regular Azul.
See, easy to pick up those basics! But now the twists!
One of the big changes is that instead of ending randomly when a player creates a horizontal line, like in regular Azul - which means someone can rush the end on purpose or by accident - Summer Pavilion has a timer of six rounds. For each of the six rounds, one of the colors is a wild.
Another bonus is if you surround the shapes on the board with tiles, you get to pick BONUS tiles! A very strategic way to get that last orange you need to complete the set when the other players snatched it up during the round. This is the reason everyone takes turns placing their tiles rather than all at once as it can change what is available from that bonus board.
And you can also carry over 4 tiles each round, making it easier to save up for your goal but ONLY 4.
Now, we all know about the central market in regular Azul, where that first player token lives. In Azul, the first person to take from that center has to take the first player tile (yay!) but they also lose a point (boo!) so you have to play that strategically to decide if it is worth it. But one point? Meh.
Well, Summer Pavilion takes that up a notch - the middle market is there and that first player token is calling to you…but you will lose a point for every tile you take from the center that turn. So now that your friends pushed 5 blue tiles into the center, knowing you want them…do you risk taking them and losing the points? Or hope that someone else will take that first player token? Oh delicious strategy!
If you’re curious about Summer Pavilion, it is available to play on Board Game Arena. Or you can buy a copy from your Friendly Local Game Store! Bonus, there is also now a MINI edition of this Azul, making it great for travel!
Do you have a favorite game where you prefer the sequel to the original? What “A” game would you have picked instead of Azul? Let me know in the comments or link me to your post!
A great explanation. I've been wondering about the other versions. Azul OG is the game most played by my wife and I. She might like the new twists. I especially like the -1 pt/tile you take if you take from the central first.
This game looks very intriguing. I think I’ll stick to og Azul because it’s not played as often as I wish and storage space is definitely running out. I’ll try it on BGA though. Thank you for the recommendation!