Three Sisters | A Review by Tabletop Meeple

 Three Sisters

a review by Tabletop Meeple


Info:

  • For 1-4 players
  • For ages 14 and up
  • 30-60 minutes to play
  • BGG Weight: 2.75

Game Overview

    Three Sisters is the second game in a trilogy of heavier roll-and-writes, designed by Ben Pinchback and Matt Riddle, and published by Motor City Gameworks and 25th Century Games. In Three Sisters, you play backyard farmers managing gardens of beans, corn, and pumpkins. On top of that, you are also tasked with managing the growth of fruit trees and perennials, as well as managing an apiary and pursuing upgrades to your equipment in your shed. This sounds like a lot, and it is. This game is actually the first roll-and-write I've played that has two sheets (yes, I haven't played Fleet yet). Enough with my incoherent ramblings about how much this game is, let's get into the review.

I didn't understand the title, so I looked into it; it refers to the "Three Sisters" planting method used by Native Americans, planting corn, beans, and squash/pumpkins at the same time. You learn something new every day!


Theme

   Three Sisters has a unique theme and the game does not shy away from it. In the game, you play backyard farmers managing a garden of many different crops, trees, and flowers, also while managing a few bees and buying new things for your shed. And the game manages, quite successfully, to lure you into that theme. I don't get immersed in themes, like some others in the game world, but I truly appreciate this game's theme and it was a surprise that I actually fell into it.

TM Score: 14/20

Components

    This game's component quality is pretty darn good. Wooden pieces to determine where the dice are placed, as well as first player, nice plastic dice, decent sheet quality, and pencils that are 'eh' overall. Nothing too special but a few things. The dice are really nice.

TM Score: 14/20

It doesn't look like much, but most everything that comes in the box is high-quality. The pencils are dodgy but that is basically a given for most roll-and-writes.

Gameplay

    Gameplay in Three Sisters is essentially this; Roll dice and take the actions on it. But this game does something different from a few other roll-and-writes that I have played, in that this game is so combo-tastic that turns take upwards of 5 minutes. The entire game, from the first round to the eighth, is full of combos that really show this game in its element. I really think that this game is one of the best, if not the best roll-and-write on the market.

TM Score: 19/20

PROS:
  • amazing combo capabilities that I have not seen anywhere else,
  • so many crunchy options,
  • solid component quality,
  • solid theme
CONS:
  • The game is really in its element at lower player counts, as the game can get dragged out at higher (3-4) counts
FINAL TM SCORE: 16.6/20




    And that's it!

    I really enjoy this game, and I really enjoy writing these reviews, and I hope you enjoy reading them as well. Playing games is a great way to spend time, and I hope my reviews make an impact on whether or not you decide to purchase the games covered in them. If you are a publisher or a designer and want to send a game my way for review, contact me! My contact info will be at the bottom of the page. See you next time!

Contact Info:

Email: tabletopmeeple@gmail.com

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