Alubari: A Nice Cup of Tea

Alubari gives me a very strong sense of Snowdonia in a lighter package: less preparation, less explanation, and far less stuff to sort out before the game begins. That has value in itself, especially for anyone who wants the atmosphere without the relative fuss of its bigger sibling.

At its core, though, it remains very close to Snowdonia. The mechanical differences are minimal, with the main new element being that I can burn tea for enhanced actions. It is a small but fitting idea: tea is not merely a decorative resource, since it also carries real weight in final scoring.

The flow of the game, then, revolves around action choices and deciding when it is worth spending that valuable tea for something stronger. That is also where the main management against the other players lies: not in some spectacular overhaul of the rules, but in how the choices and limited possibilities of this version leave less room than Snowdonia for different directions.

I would not call it bad. If I did not own Snowdonia Deluxe, I could absolutely be happy with Alubari, precisely because it sets up and explains more cleanly. Personally, though, I prefer the original: it has clearly more scenarios and options, so every session can turn out differently — even if I am never going to play all the scenarios.