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Piepmatz- Little Songbirds
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Description
There is something wonderfully British about Piepmatz. Designed by Ben Pinchback and Matt Riddle, this is a charming set collection card game about garden songbirds and queuing. The artwork by Klemens Franz and Mike Langman is classically beautiful, with the illustrations looking like they’ve flown straight out of a ‘Know Your Garden Birds’ book from the 1970's. In Piepmatz - Little Songbirds, two to four players aim to acquire songbirds – and seeds – that have congregated around a garden bird feeder. Points are calculated at the end of the game once the deck has run out. Only players with the majority of a bird species will score that family of bird – each card has eggs on it, which are worth points. Managing to collect a male and female pair of the same bird type scores you points though, as do any seed cards (all of which also have eggs on them). Each bird has a numerical value from 1-6 – there’s definitely a pecking order in Piepmatz! Set-up sees randomly drawn birds sitting either side of the bird feeder, and above it four seed cards in a vertical row. On their turn, players place a card from their hand into a queue behind a bird of their choice. If the number of the bird’s (or birds’) value(s) in the queue totals more than the single bird’s value at the feeder, that player will collect the bird at the feeder to sit face-up in front of them. Also, the difference in value between those two (or more) birds is the seed card that they acquire. So if you play a six-value bird behind a four-value bird, you’ll claim the four-value bird at the feeder; the difference is +2, so you’ll claim the second seed card in that vertical column. Now the remaining bird with the highest value flies to the front of the queue. If the total value(s) of the remaining birds behind it is larger than its own, you repeat the process above, possibly gaining that bird for your collection too, as well as another seed card. Chain-reaction moves can and will occur and they can be so satisfying, especially when you’ve got your eye on collecting, say, a male and female Yellowhammer within the same queue! However, like in every garden, there are some risks… In the seed deck, there are also some mean crows and pesky squirrels! When drawn, these sit ‘attached’ to seed cards and are obligatory when player players earn that seed card. These are both negative cards that result in the player losing either seed cards (which are guaranteed points) or losing a bird from their largest set of birds (potential points). With its wonderful thinky options and delightful artwork for you to muse over, Piepmatz is a clever card game that will leave you wanting to reach for a pair of binoculars to observe the avian activity in your own garden… Player Count: 2-4 Time: 20-40 Minutes Age: 12+
Oh! what a wonderful morning, Oh! what a wonderful day! It’s a busy morning at the bird feeder in the Garden! Blackbirds, finches, sparrows, and many more spices who are compete for that perfect spot on the perch to gather the choice seeds, but beware of the crows and squirrels; the mischiefous animals can spoil your plans!
Piepmatz Little Songbirds is a game for two to four players, and is suitable for ages 10 upwards. The game is also suitable for younger individuals, who can be given assistance with some of the more complex elements. If you have ever played Parade by Z-man games, this card game has some very similar elements using a lot of the same mechanics. The came comes with 110 cards which breakdown into:
- One feeder base.
- 72 bird cards (Male and Females made up of six species).
- 36 feeder cards (30 seed / points, 3 grows, 3 squirrels).
- One first player card.
Set-Up
To set-up the game of Piepmatz Little Songbiards, follow these four simple steps:
- Place the feeder card in the centre of the table. This card will be used as the central card for the entire game.
- Separate the Seed card and the bird card into two piles and give both piles a good shuffle.
- Draw three cards and place one on each side of the feeder. Place four seed cards at the top of the feeder.
- Deal four cards to each player. Select a first player, I would recommend using a random player generator or start with the youngest player.
Playing Piepmatz Little Songbirds
On your turn you will play a card from your hand and draw a new card to replace it, ensuring your hand is always at four cards. The idea of Piepmatz Little Songbirds is to skilfully play bird cards from your hand to collect seeds and birds at the bird feeder. Seeds and mated pairs of birds in your collection are worth points at the end of the game.
To get a mated pair you will need to collect birds of the same spices and value, and of the opposite sex (male and female) – which are worth five points for each mated pair. If at the end the game you have the most cards in your collection, which are the cards you have scored from placing card from your hand and feeder, you will score the number of seeds on each card in the set plus the mated pair points.
The aim of Piepmatz Little Songbirds is to try and get the most eggs, from bird cards, seeds and get as many mated pairs as you can, with this game you can use a range of strategies to have the same or better result depending on your luck and playing style.
Actions
To play a card from your hand the card you place must not exceed the card already at the feeder, this is refereed to as the perch and your card is the birds on the ground. As soon as the birds on the ground exceed the value of the card, regardless of spices at the perch, that bird is knocked off and placed in your collection.
Depending on the number points you have, exceed the bird at the perch and you will move that many spaces on the seeds cards and collect that seed.
When taking seeds you need to plan you move and judge the amount you wish to exceed by as you will have squirrels and Crows, which are negative cards. If you collect a crow, the crow scares off one bird from the most highly collected set of your choice, the squirrel however eats your seeds and you must shuffle your card and remove two at random, meaning you will use points.
End Game
The game end is triggered when you are supposed to draw a card from an empty feeder deck. Play continues until all players have had an equal number of turns.
Final Moves…
Each player now chooses two bird cards from their hand of four and discards the others, placing the two selected cards face down. Once all players have done this, add your remaining two bird cards to your collection and commence the scoring. You score points for seeds, mated pairs of birds, and species majorities. Whoever has the most points is the winner of Piepmatz Little Songbirds.
How to Score
- Count up the eggs on your seed cards.
- Count number of mated pairs, (Remember the spices and number, plus male and female all have to match to be a mated pair).
- Check who has the most of each spices/colour, the player with the most counts up the number of eggs on each bird card. If there is a draw all players add up there eggs and score the points.
- Player with the most points wins!
Final Thoughts on Piepmatz Little Songbirds
Piepmatz Little Songbirds is a fantastic card-based game, which is quick, family-friendly and has element of strategy along with a key element of trying to stop other players and being aware of what they are doing.
I would highly recommend this game! Personally, I find that this game is better than Parade, although similar with it mechanics, as it allows for more fun and engagement.
Zatu Score
You might like
- Strategy and methodical thinking.
- Nature-themed game.
- Family-friendly.
- Strong replay value.
- Easy to teach and learn.
Might not like
- Mathematical elements of adding card together.
- Low quality components and artwork.