What are Order Counters?
Order counters are physical components used in board games, particularly strategy and war games, to represent the actions that players intend to take with their units or characters. These actions are typically hidden from other players until a specific reveal moment.
Function in Games
Players place the order counters face down on the board, often next to the unit or group they want to activate. The counters are usually revealed simultaneously or in a sequence, adding a layer of strategy and anticipation to the game.
Benefits to Gameplay
- Hidden Plans: Creates an element of surprise and tension as players second-guess their opponents' intentions.
- Simultaneous Decision Making: Reduces downtime by allowing players to make choices at the same time.
- Strategic Depth: Encourages deeper strategic planning as players try to predict and counter opponents' moves.
Examples of Games
- Diplomacy: A classic game where order counters are central to the mechanics, representing the plans of players' armies and fleets.
- A Game of Thrones: The Board Game: Melds order counters with resource management and alliances, shaping the game's intricate strategy.
In summary, order counters are a versatile and engaging board game mechanic that enriches gameplay by incorporating hidden information, strategy, and player interaction.
Order Counters and Hand Management games
Economic themed games with Order Counters
In the 1980s, a merciless battle raged in Sicily that would later go down in history as "The Great Mafia War". Different mob families fought with and against each other for supremacy in southern Italy.In La Famiglia: The Great Mafia War, you play against...
La Famiglia: The Great Mafia War
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In Calimala, the players act as members of the guild, produce and trade cloth, and gain prestige by delivering their goods to foreign markets, while contributing to the construction of buildings, and sponsoring artworks in Florence.The players assign...
Calimala
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Strategy Game with Order Counters
War Game with Order Counters
With the shattered Zerg hive torn apart by fierce infighting, the Protoss seek to reunite with their Dark Templar brethren and begin rebuilding their devastated homeworld, Aiur. Terran Emperor Mengsk I, having achieved his goal of total domination over...
Starcraft - The Boardgame: Brood War Expansion
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1812: Most of Europe is under Napoleon´s control, and Napoleon is poised to invade Russia and force them to comply with his Continental System and block British trade. In the face of overwhelming force, the Tsar reluctantly decides to fall back and ...
1812 - Napoleon's Fateful March
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