Bohnanza and Splendor: Why Stink Beans Go Great with Rubies

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We have reached the halfway point. If you’ve been following along, you’ve amassed a great start for a new board game collection. If you are new, please check out the start of this discussion above. Splendor and Bohnanza are 2 great games you should own. I have discussed them on occasion elsewhere. I’ve compared Bohnanza as an alternative to Monopoly. Splendor remains one of the best gateway games of all time. It is no wonder that they’ve made this list.

As the collection of game starts to grow, I want to expand the types of games you have. – I changed the scope of what I was looking for as opposed to the last two games I picked. Those qualities are:

• Trading/Negotiation
• Engine Builder
• Set Collection
• Adapting to the “Game State”

Bohnanza

What is It?

In an era of Cult of the New Bohnanza may seem like a bit of an odd pick. This 1997 game complete with its campy art is designed by famed game designer Uwe Rosenberg. Uwe (pronounced “Eww-Vay”) is a bit of a heavy hitter in the world of board game design. I think it was actually Bohnanza that was his coming out party.

Bohnanza is an unique card game that has players taking on the role of a bean farmer – yes you read that correctly. In this strategic game, players act as bean farmers, cultivating and trading different types of beans. You’ll have two “fields” to start with and you’ll be using the cards in your hand to “seed” those fields. Only one bean type per field. Once you get enough of the same types of beans in one field – you get to “harvest” them for points. Seems easy enough – the rub is that you can’t ever rearrange the cards in your hand. So while you may have a robust crop of coffee beans and green beans in front of you – if your new beans are stink beans or wax beans – we’ll you’ve got yourself a problem.

What a Turn is like

Each turn starts the same – you must plant at least one bean from your hand. Keeping in mind you don’t get to pick which bean to plant because you can’t change your card order – you may end up needing to make the tough choice of which bean field to sell. Once you’ve planted your beans, you reveal two cards from the draw deck. Here is where things get interesting – As the current bean farmer – you need to do “something” with those beans. You can elect to simply plant them into your existing bean field, sell one of your current fields and start a new one with one of them – or see if you can trade them away.

This trading aspect is where a lot of the game play lies. You can wheel and deal to get the bean cards you want. Essentially you can offer just about anything, except your already planted beans. You can offer the newly drawn cards and cards within your hand you don’t want or don’t think you can efficiently plant. Often you’ll be looking to trade for beans you already have planted – or looking for higher yielding beans. Once the trading has concluded – you’ll plant your newly collected beans (potentially harvesting some along the way) and then drawing two new cards to add to the back of your hand.

Why I Picked It

Bohnanza has stood up to the test of time. It is one of the best trading and negotiation games you can get. It has a simple rule set and scales pretty well. It can be played at two with some slight rules modifications, but really shines at 4 to 6.

• Trading/Negotiation – The game really takes off when all the players start interacting and looking for the best deals possible. Generally everyone will get “something” that they want out of a deal.
• Set Collection – I think this is a concept most new players understand. It boils down to: I need a certain amount of X before I get points.
• Adapting to the “Game State” – Because the cards in your hand keep changing and you never know what beans will be coming out, players need to stay nimble and not get stuck in one line of thinking. If a player see other players suddenly collecting a particular bean type, it may not be a good idea to collect the same. Also, if you have a particular bean that more than one player may want, well now you might be able to get some better trades.

Overall one of the best trading and negotiation games you can find. It’s garnered some spinoffs and expansions, but really the classic base game is all you really need.

“…The most special thing about Bohnanza is that there’s nothing else like it…”

-Jon Purkis – Actualol

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Splendor

What is it

Few few games have has as wide of appeal as Splendor has. As of January, 2024 – there are over 13 thousand reviews on Amazon with an overall rating of 4.9 out of 5. It is widely available in mainstream shopping stores such as Walmart, Target, or your other national outlet. It is widely considered “The Gateway Game”, perhaps this should have been my first selection as a game to get.

In Splendor you take on the role of a gem merchant looking to collect a diverse gem collection. Ultimately those gems will turn into points that you need to win the game. Collect the right gems and you can earn special bonus cards that contribute to your overall score. Every card that you end up buying and having in front of you, produces a specific gem color that makes it easier to buy future gems later on. The cards with the highest point totals generally will “cost” a variety of specific gem colors. What is happening is that players will try and build an engine that will allow them to purchase specific cards. For example, if a high point value card requires 6 green gems – your earlier turns may be spent collect cheaper cards that produce green gems.

What a turn is like

Here is part of the reason Splendor is so great – it doesn’t bombard you with a lot of choices – but the choices you make are important. In an engine builder (such as Splendor) your early choices can help make later choices easier.

In Splendor, each turn involves 2 main actions: acquiring gems or purchasing gem cards. You can collect three different-colored gems or two of the same color. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how gorgeous and tactile these gem chips are. They feel great, very similar to poker chips. With these gems, you buy gem cards (see image above) from the central display, each card having a cost in specific gem colors. Another option is to reserve a card for future purchase, taking it off the display and obtaining a gold token. That gold token can be any other gem color – very handy.

You’ll be considering the best way to build that engine. Including efficient gem management by scanning what is available point wise later one, the best card purchases, and achieving bonus noble’s card by having the right gems in your playing area for bonus points. The first player to reach 15 points triggers the endgame, and the player with the most points at the end wins.

Why I Picked It

As mentioned – It is one of the perennial gateway games. But I also feel like it covers in a digestible way important gaming concepts you’ll want to have as you expand your collection.

• Engine Builder – Many other games use this mechanic. It is a game style where players progressively build a system or “engine” that becomes more efficient and powerful as the game progresses. Work early on pays larger dividends later.
• Set Collection – Similar to Bohnanza, your looking for a specific set of cards or gems that will help you achieve points later on. The poker style chips are a short term means to that, while the gem cards you buy will always be there for multiple uses.
• Adapting to the Game State – While you might be eyeing a particular gem point card or noble bonus point card, you’ll need to be studying the other boards and see if you need to pivot if you aren’t getting the gems you need.

“…Games like this are ‘perfect’ gateway game to get people into the hobby, and it appeals to a large audience because there is virtually no complexity barrier.”

-Dave – BoardGameDave