In the eyes of others

 

Three years of blogging In Black and White.

Three years of immersion in the world of games. 

Collaborating with game designers, publishers, and so many more inhabitants of this world.

Translating, proofreading, writing, narrating, photographing, playtesting, analysing, reflecting, suggesting. 

As mirrors distort my gaze, I decided to resort to the sight of others. 

Here are some perspectives on what I have been doing. 

Over the last couple of years, Miguel has offered his help with the final editing and proofing stages of a number of rulebooks I have worked on. He has a great attention to detail and his comments and feedback have been extremely useful in helping give the final touches to a rulebook. I always look forward to Miguel being involved in any project I am working on and have recommended him to other publishers. Paul Grogan, Gaming Rules!, United Kingdom.

Hemos trabajado con Miguel en la traducción de varios de nuestros proyectos y no puedo más agradecer su labor como traductor. En cada uno de los juegos que ha traducido se ha implicado totalmente consiguiendo un resultado excelente. En ocasiones, incluso a pesar de contar con tiempos muy ajustados para finalizarlo, siempre ha cumplido con los plazos que manejábamos. No puedo más que recomendar sus servicios a cualquier editor que esté interesado en ver sus juegos publicados en portugués. José Antonio Gómez Garrido, Director Editorial del Grupo MasQueOca, Spain.

Há dois anos que colaboro com o Miguel no desenvolvimento de jogos. Tenho a honra de ter o Miguel como um dos meus playtesters, tendo a nossa colaboração começado com o Rossio e estendeu-se até ao Pessoa (que será editado este ano). Enquanto playtester o Miguel é criterioso e organizado (o que facilita muito a vida do designer) e acima de tudo curioso e perspicaz, fazendo comentários, apontando problemas e sugerindo soluções que enriquecem os seus playtests. É um prazer trabalhar com o Miguel no desenvolvimento de jogos. Orlando Sá, Game designer, between Belgium and Portugal.

Miguel’s unique approach to writing has always made his articles an interesting read. When it comes to covering board games he creates a narrative that continues to flow throughout the article, making me feel like I’m not just reading about a game, but on a journey. It’s incredibly engaging and keeps me coming back for more. Frank West, The City of Games, United Kingdom.

 

Miguel is a very diligent and structured person who has helped us on different projects in varying stages of development. He has a strong analytical sense, asks the right questions, makes wonderful suggestions for possible improvements, and knows how to prepare documents in such a way, that other parties in the project can work with them at ease. He is also simply a wonderful person to work together with and he is always open to doing a video call. I am looking forward to finally meeting in person some day! We have had the pleasure to work together with Miguel on multiple boardgame projects so far – and I am sure many will follow. Patrick Gebhardt, VUCA Simulations, Germany.

Miguel takes care of all the Portuguese translations for The Geeky Pen. He's very professional, punctual and attentive to detail. His vast experience as a board gamer is a big advantage when it comes to localizing games for us. Jo Lefebure, The Geeky Pen, Belgium.

I’m very honored and humbled that Miguel Conceição translated Pavlov’s House into Portuguese. Through his translation, he allowed a whole new audience to enjoy the game. Miguel Conceição is a fantastic playtester. During the development process for Lanzerath Ridge, Miguel provided exemplary feedback and was extremely communicative. It was a pleasure to collaborate with him, and I look forward to partnering with him again in the future. David Thompson, Game designer, United Stated of America.

Working with Miguel really helped to push the quality of our rulebook to a next level. We even had comments from our Polish fanbase (the game was originally published only in Poland), that the English rulebook is a lot better than the Polish one! Mateusz Kupilas, designer and publisher of IT Startup, Poland.

It is a pleasure working with Miguel. He´s an experienced gamer with a keen eye for detail. You´d wish there are more people like Miguel in our wonderful hobby. Uli Blennemann, Spielworxx, Germany.

I’ve been working with Miguel this year for my first board game project. He wrote the entire narrative of the game with his special twist, which mixes pure narrative aspects with real game experience and components. I found his job excellent and perfect to trigger curiosity and immersion to engage the audience. Moreover, his professional ethics is very solid, he always respects deadlines and delivers excellent quality pieces of work. Finally, Miguel is a very easy person, passionate in his work and always willing to clearly communicate any detail about his work, making the whole process very enjoyable. Ugo Tomasello, designer of Ynaros Fallin’ (to be released in 2022), PeekWik Dreams, Italy.

Trabajar con Miguel ha sido muy satisfactorio. Es un profesional, que es lo que se consigue cuando se aúna el rigor y la pasión. Jordi Samaniego, 2 Tomatoes, Spain.

I met Miguel on Twitter a few years ago when I was working on the rulebook proofreading for my first board game back in 2019. He was extremely kind to a total internet stranger and graciously gave me a lot of feedback on the rulebook which helped shape it to become the completed product it is today. Fast forward two years and my game has officially been funded via Kickstarter and I sent him a review copy to check out. He messages me a month or so later to tell me that the review is live. I was blown away by the sheer effort he put into the writing on his blog post. It felt as if I was living inside the world of my board game and could picture myself both simultaneously playing my game and living inside the game world at the same time. If any of you reading this is a game designer, I highly recommend you let Miguel take a look at your prototype or even finished product. You won't regret it. Wonmin Lee, designer and publisher of Welcome to Sysiphus Corp, United States of America.

I’ve worked with Miguel on the translation of our very first game Whales Destroying the World. He was very professional and delivered well-done work in a short time, which helped our Kickstarter campaign a lot. He also went the extra mile and helped us promote the game on social media, which is something I am very grateful for. The campaign was a success and Miguel’s help cannot be overlooked. Petr Vojtêch, Time Slug Studio, Czech Republic.

Para mí ha sido un placer colaborar con Miguel Conceição en el desarrollo de mi juego de mesa Moon. Miguel tradujo al portugués del manual de Moon teniendo en cuenta tanto la versión en inglés como la versión en castellano del manual para no perder ningún detalle y mejorar la legibilidad en portugués. Además, la comunicación durante el proceso fue muy fluida y las sugerencias de cambios por ambas partes fueron muy bien recibidas. Recomiendo totalmente trabajar con Miguel, ¡un trabajo excelente! :) Pablo Garaizar, Game designer, Spain.

Miguel invited me and I'm happy to present me in his wonderful blog as designer of a coming game "Limits to growth", where Miguel works with me as game developer. It is a honour for me, in my first game design, to have found a publisher and developer really interested in this game theme. I think Miguel by his side is also involved and very interested in environmental themes. With his very structured help, I'm very hopeful this project will reach soon it's end, although a lot of work has still to be done! David Strobl, Designer of Limits to Growth (coming in 2022), Germany.

Thanks for your time!

Tanks for the incentive!

Thanks for the opportunities! 

Welcome to the Office!

Game copy kindly provided by Wonmin Lee, designer and publisher of Welcome to Sysifus Corp, for the writing of the story you will find below. It arrived with some coupons! Therefore, if you live in the USA, check below on how to enter the raffle to get one of four 20% discount coupons on the game! 

My first contact with Wonmin Lee dates back from two years ago, almost to the day. It was October 2019, and I had the chance to make some comments to the rulebook then available. Fast (or not so fast) forward one year, and the game was getting ready to hit Kickstarter, being subsequently funded. 

This September, Sysifus Corp was released. And soon after, the hunt for new dedicated and ambitious collaborators started! Now, let me tell you of my time as an employee at Sysifus Corp...

 

Those days, filled with hopes, delusions, and disappointments, are still fresh in my memory. And I keep finding traces of those moments scattered all around the house, just like this crumpled paper, lurking behind the desk. I must have missed the paper bin shot that day…

I vividly remember receiving “the” letter, signed by The Bosses! It read “Dear Employee”, and that was me! “It is with great pleasure and pride that we welcome you to the great Sysifus Corp Family (…)”. I had made it! 

A couple of weeks before, I was searching for a job. Then, I came across an advert from Sysifus, with its clean and minimalist look, the plain-white background, and the geometric shapes in purple, green, and red. I have heard of them before, nothing very specific, as far as I recall, but with a striking aura of being a fast-growing company, involved in some big stuff. Only much later I came to realise the precise positioning of those shapes, the cube pushing the cylinder over the pyramid, and how all of that was telling.

But let me not shortcut the account. The job seemed to be a pretty good fit for my skills, and the prospects of a rocketing career made the rest. In no time I was carefully polishing a motivation letter and upgrading my résumé. One must maximize their chances, and every tiny little detail may make the difference, in the end! Not long after, I received the confirmation letter.

Together with the letter, a welcome pack! You can tell of the work of the Marketing and the Human Resources departments: a New Employee Welcome Manual, covering all the basics of the daily routines; an Office Politics Cards Reference Index, detailing those more obscure policy aspects; and an Employee Datasheet, to keep track of daily actions and filled with small helpful notes.

The company motto, “Pushing our way to the top”, was ever-present, and I was already dreaming of reaching the top, even before having started!

I cannot deny there were also some intriguing aspects. For once, there are three bosses, not one. Then, there was that small reference to me as an “integral cog of the company", something I was not expecting within this grand and ambitious vision. I assumed it meant one starts small, before being able to change gears. Lastly, but not least, I was addressed as a mere number, Employee #318996, in the Reference Index. A bit too impersonal, but, who knows, more efficient.

Nothing too worrisome, I thought. 

Nothing that would quench my enthusiasm! 

Day 1 has arrived, and there I was, at 8 am sharp, in the Sysifus Corp lobby. Small surprise, there were other three new employees, ready to take the new hire orientation. Let’s call them Jane, Joe, and John, as I don’t want to disclose their true identity, for reasons that later will become clear.  

Soon after we were handed colourful bright new outfits, easily identifying us as newcomers, for the entire company, while telling each one of us apart from each other. I got the red one.

Then came some good news and bad news. Starting with the good ones. We would be working on several projects, starting to build our career paths. That should lead us to meet each and every one of the Bosses, and to get recognition for our achievements. Sounds great! Then, the shock: The four of us will be competing for a single promotion opportunity. The rising tension and the nervous glances were palpable! On the back of my mind, I still hear the words, “We do not need underachievers.”

This will be no walk in the park, pardon, office!

The daily tasks were briefly presented to us by our supervisor, although this may be too much of a label, as we were, essentially, on our own from the start. 

So, we will be fulfilling projects, moving around the office from project to project, placing memos, doing research, aiming to visit the bosses, each one of them. The daily working hours were to be distributed among three tasks, no more. Nothing too fancy, nor overcomplicated. And that is good, because we would be racing each other.

Besides, we were given some leeway, regarding the way to go. I felt comfortable with that, not having to adhere to a very strict routine, to obey orders and instructions all the time, to deeply rely on the other newcomers, ex-colleagues-to-be, now fierce competitors. 

The first projects to choose from. 

That’s a good feeling!

Ready, set, go.

And here we go. Here I go! Place. The first project I started. Move. My first steps around the office. Place again, move again, or do some research. First choices. The very beginning of my career path, both metaphorically and literally, as we roam across different sections of the office, one step closer to one of the Bosses and to the final Performance Review.

Things are getting busy, as we are four ambitious employees, and there is no time to lose. Jane and Joe went left, and they are sharing the same project for the moment. John is still behind, but no doubt he too will soon be running.

There are things I should tell you about projects, and which have not been disclosed to us in advance. Well, not entirely true, had you carefully read the Welcome Manual… But, well, let’s move on.

Once you embark in a project, you become part of the team and get some influence within the company. You are doing useful work and you are starting to get noticed. But beware, not all the projects are the same. Some will get you more influence than others, some will get you no influence at all. Inversely, some projects will open doors towards more directions than others, offering increased opportunities. You must choose wisely, balancing influence and progression.

Another note: all projects are Corp projects and not your own ones. Therefore, all employees have open access to all running projects, and thus obtain the corresponding company influence, regardless of who started the project. Project access is only physically restricted, that is, you must be able to enter the project section.

Having done some research, during this workday, it really opened up the world of Office Politics to me. You should know this is something that I am not very good at... But I realise it is a skill I must develop really fast, should I want to stand a chance of getting the promotion.

Then, there is also the lingo of politics, and causes, consequences, and collateral damage. Each action entails a cost, be it in company influence, as actions are not necessarily popular, in politics, compromising future actions, or even in both. There are different uses for Office Politics, affecting projects, employees, other actions, or even as a reaction to other employees. There are effects and upgraded effects. 

All this will take some time to master, but time is scarce…

Follow the sticky notes, they said. From project to project. No fancy management software to keep track of projects and to mark the routes; just a bunch of sticky notes to guide you around!

 

That came as a surprise, in such a front runner company, but it is perhaps by doing things differently that they have been successful. I quickly adapted to the sticky method. Place new projects carefully, check notes, manipulate projects, re-check notes, if necessary, move, monitor the competition, keep moving, don’t stop.

Sometimes you seem to be blocked. It is then the time to use your memo sticker, as a substitute for sticky notes. Beware, though, they are as precious as they are scarce. Resources are tightly managed and getting new ones will cost you some workday time.

All was going kind of fine, until I was suddenly pushed back. Someone stole the credit of my work! John did it! 

As a result, I was allocated to another project, the career path I was pursuing got disrupted, and I am now one step further behind the competition, and farther from the Boss. I felt the sting of Office Politics being used to hinder my progression. 

Now you may start to realise why I did not disclose the true identity of my former colleagues: things were about to get nasty, and this was just the beginning! Ok, if that is the way to go, let's play ball! Let’s see who can stand the heat!

It took me some hard workdays, going back and forth and fighting the competition, to finally meet one of the Bosses. That was a first!

As a recognition for my dedication to the company, I was handed a Certificate of Achievement, and I was able to choose an extra permission to use to my advantage. Still feeling the pain of the earlier backstabbing by John, I decide to go for the Office Politics, hence selecting the possibility to do extra research.

Feeling empowered by the Boss was a sweet feeling, but I was well aware we are all chasing the same goal, walking similar paths, and with no free dinners on the menu. 

One Boss checked, two more to go, before running towards the final Performance Review. 

Some days have passed, and a lot of work was accomplished, while moving between different projects. 

You literally run over projects to gain company influence and to reach the Bosses. You use all the company influence you get to manipulate the situation in your favour, to hinder progression of the three J’s, to get in the fast lane for progression. 

Things are getting chaotic. There are no allies, at most tactical arrangements to avoid a running away leader. 

Office Politics are ever-present. More times than I can count, I was pushed back, not to square one, but having to retrace in my footsteps, and to change my career track, again and again. That is when days started to look all alike. Project, move, research, memo, politics. Research. Politics. Move. Politics. Project. Politics. Politics. Politics.

 

“The key to a successful career in the corporate world is knowing how to utilize office politics”, The 1%.

I started to think in engaging in subversive manoeuvres, using some extreme office politics. Things such as inserting my own opinion, who would have imagined that! Or fanning the flames and watch things burn. Wild things as to form a clique, to achieve critical disruptive mass and shake the establishment. I even considered reporting to HR, or even just slacking off.

I will not lie. I resorted to some of those tactics, in an attempt to feel some kind of normality, or fairness. To no avail.

Suddenly, I was able to understand why the company bears the name of Sysifus Corporation! You know I am not that versed in ancient history, but I remember there was that guy…, Greek, I think…, with a similar name. He had a kind of an office in a mountain, and projects in the form of a boulder. Pushing his way to the top, only to come back down. Going up, and down again, without ending. Fact or fiction, it doesn’t matter. It feels pretty real to me, now.

I started to have a recurrent dream with the company logo! Yes, that’s right, the company logo! You see, there is a cube, in red, the colour of my suit, pushing a purple cylinder, all the way up a green pyramid.

I did it to the end. 

I survived, but not unscathed.

I didn’t get the coveted promotion.

I do not want to be a “cog of your great company”. 

Sisyphus no more.

I quit!

________________________________________________________________________________

If you live in the USA, comment on this post to get a chance of winning one of the four 20% discount coupons available. Enter until November 19. Winners announced on November 20.

For more information on the game check Sysifuscorp or BGG.

To read more stories in the blog check the tag Storytelling.

Canvas Mod: Let them dry!

 

It is fun experimenting with games, trying out different approaches, creating new rules, multiplying the possibilities, unfolding new challenges. Moving beyond playing the game as it is, to gaming the game! Perhaps some of those paths have crossed the mind of the designers, maybe only to be dismissed, tweaked, or replaced, who knows? 

On this occasion we will further explore Canvas, by proposing a slightly modified version. If you are not familiar with the game, you may want to take a look at Painting on Canvas, to learn the basics and get a glimpse of its gorgeous art.

In Canvas you start by gathering motifs, to then select three of them, and fully complete a painting in just one go. 

Let us take a step back and imagine ourselves inside the atelier, looking at the canvas, picking up a motif, and painting a first layer. Then, we pause for a moment, looking at the work in progress. As the first layer is completed, it is now time to let it dry properly, before continuing. Ah, but there is time to make use of, the imagination keeps flowing, and the brushes still want to move on. So, why not to start another painting in the meantime? And another one? And then, go back to the first one, and start another round, painting layer after layer in the various works.

This painting on the go, in succession, simultaneously creating several works, is the underlying principle of Let them dry. The mod will only require minor changes to the original rules. 

Increased number of backgrounds

You start with 5 background cards, since you will be completing five paintings, instead of three. 

This will increase your chances of making sound motifs' combinations, as you will be painting on the go, without reserving them for later.  

Pick and paint

Select the motif you wish to paint from the display, spending inspiration tokens as appropriate, just as in the original game. 

Immediately painting it onto one of the backgrounds of your choice.

You will no longer be able to gather motifs to later use them, or to avoid others from using them!

Let them dry

Repeat the process in your next turn, with one restriction: you may not apply the brand-new layer onto the same painting, as you must let the first one dry! So, choose another of your backgrounds and start a new painting. You may never choose the same painting twice in a row.

If you want to take this a step forward, only start adding a second layer upon completing the first one in all the five works in progress!

Select your works for the exhibition

You will only score three of your paintings, just the same as in the original game. 

Therefore, you must choose which ones you will put up to the competition.

Then, use the standard scoring rules and find out who best met the competition criteria.

This is Let them dry! Give it a try! 

And feel free to comment on your experience.

There are many other paths to explore, just follow your imagination. You may want to play with the scoring system, for instance by ranking the paintings under each assessment criteria and scoring positions instead of absolute values. Or you may even dare into game mixing, combining Canvas and Dixit, or Canvas and Modern Art (one I have yet to try). A world of choices!

For other Mod proposals, check here.

Projects in April

 

Day 30. End of April. Another month has gone by. An intense one, concerning projects in the land of games. Dealing with letters. Among the wit of letters and word engineering. Among different languages, revising, perfecting, polishing, or writing from scratch. From the big picture to the tiny detail, to patterns, misalignment, errors that stand out. Once an OTR, always an OTR (as in Official Text Reviewer, for those who have not shared previous lives). From the tiny detail to the big picture, giving sense, telling stories, photographing stories. 

Translating. From English to Portuguese. This time a familiar game, one that I like, and that will now get a revised and expanded version, in Spanish and Portuguese. Another collaboration with the Spanish publisher MasQueOca. Adding to previous ones, for well-known and interesting games: the expansions Venus, Balearica & Cyprus, for the excellent Concordia; the Kegs & More expansion, for Heaven & Ale; and, more recently, Pavlov’s House, in final production phase. Not to mention a number of games for the younger ones!

Proofreading. In Portuguese and small format, for the German publisher Board Game Circus, as in one of the first collaborations, a couple of years ago. In Portuguese as well, for the Portuguese publisher Pythagoras Games, continuing a collaboration started almost two years ago with 6 Castles and Garum. A brand-new partnership with the German Vuca Simulations, in English, in the form of a wargame scenario booklet, one of those games with hexes and many counters.

Writing. About The Isle of Cats. Based on a copy provided by Frank West, The City of Games, who was in search for different approaches to game-related content and enjoyed some of the stories shared in this blog! And this is how Cat Stories and Cat Moves came to life.

The beginning of the month was also a time for other writings for this blog: about the feelings of players on their gaming experience, and around photographs in packs of six, on the occasion having rulebooks, words yet again, as object. 

And yet, some games hit the table: Canvas, Railroad Ink - Deep Blue, Isle of Cats, Solenia and Codenames. Now the gaming table has been taken by Mini Express, firstly for a solo multiplayer, with my alter egos as opponents, to relearn the rules before facing the true solo version, against the bot.

Let May come!

The Isle of Cats: Part II - Cat moves

 

Game copy provided by Frank West, The City of Games.

Glad you decided to come along! Seems those cat stories of mine sparked your interest, huh? Well, here we are, on the Isle of Cats. As you may see from the ships at anchor, we are not alone, there are other adventurers around, in search for cats, riches, and fame. Better stay close to me, observing and learning from my actions. I will guide you step-by-step. This will be a full hands-on-the-job training day!

It is dawn. Time to wake up!

I know, from years of experience, what will soon happen: cats will come from their hideouts and will take to the fields on both sides of the island, in equal numbers. It seems as if they are drawn by us, foreigners, venturing into this island, as they always show up in pair numbers, twice as cats on each side as there are explorers on the journey. Which is intriguing, but fortunate, as there will thus be cats enough for everyone to rescue. 

Look! There they are! A Hissnipper and a Mhoxxite looking straight at us, a Garmin on the right, a Teruvian stretching down the hill, and another Teruvian by his side, and there are some more in the background. A wonderful sight, ain’t it? 

Yes, I know the impact of this first encounter with the cats colour … but now stop gazing! We need to pay attention and think quickly, as we will only be able to catch one of them at a time, two at most, before carrying them onto the ship, emptying our baskets, and coming back for a new pick. In the meantime, the fields will be left fully open for others to make their catches. We therefore need to devise a strategy, to start making our own choices. Which one will we be picking first, today? The green Crystal Garmin?

Sure, we will go to the hills, but we still have some prior work to do. I have already told you these are elusive beasts, that we will be needing fish to lure them, and big baskets to carry them away onto the ship. 

First things first! And the first thing for the day, in fact, in every day, will be fishing. Not an expert fisherman, you say? Not to be a problem! Cats are smart, and they must have chosen this island for good reason: there happens to be plenty of fish around, making for easy catches. There will be no rush, no competition, no hardships in finding fresh fish.

We will stick to getting twenty fresh fish every day. No less, no more. Don’t ask me why, it just seems the right amount to carry. It will prove enough, both for cats and for our own meals. Should there be some spare fish, by the end of the day, we will store it overnight, to be of use for tomorrow. Cats won’t turn them down.

So, twenty fresh fish it is!

Yes, yes … we will get to the hills. But before, we must sit here around this circle, with the other adventurers, and share some plans for the day. Well, we will not disclose all of them, as they still are competitors.

The day will go by fast, and will be of no use considering more than seven exploration steps. Why? Time runs. And there seem to be some magic numbers around: cats in pairs, doubling the people, twenty fish, seven steps … This is a strange isle.

Here is how this works: firstly, consider the seven moves you may make today; choose two of them and pass the remaining five to the one sitting on your left; in doing so, receive five possibilities from the one on sitting on your right; choose two more; repeat and, again, choose another two; and a final one. In the end we will still have seven options, but not the same from the start.

There will be baskets, walking boots, lessons, treasures, rare cats, fish, and some tricks at stake. This is tricky, but if we do it well, we will improve our chances for a good day. Of course, all expect to do the same, and in the end we may all be able to rescue some more cats! 

Then, it is time for planning, as each step will take time and effort, and we must also eat! So, we will carefully choose what we will be doing for the day, always counting the fish in our stock, making sure we will have enough to later lure some cats. 

Therefore, it may be wise not to go for too many steps each day, balancing exploration with cat rescuing. Think we will only keep these four for today. What do you think? Ok, and there goes three, plus one, and plus another one, making five fish in total. Not bad. Still fish enough for the kittens.

No, this is not yet the time to head for the fields: it is study time. 

You see, there may be lessons to learn, each day. If you remember well what I have told you, some days ago, there will be lessons to be shared with no one, for our eyes only, and there will be lessons to be shared, by reading them aloud, so that they can be of use for anyone.

Such lessons, written by the old ones, tell us a bit more about our own village, our own people, revealing what they value most. Thus, they will be a precious guide for our journey, if we want to have a warm homecoming welcome. Need to make the right choices along the way!

Ok, we are almost ready to run up that hill! 

Let’s count these baskets and put them to good use. Keep in mind that some baskets are sturdy and may be reused. Unfortunately, we only brought one of those in the ship … it may be worthwhile to try to make some more! 

In the meantime, we will resort to baskets that will be used only once, as these ancient cats have claws, and do not fancy the ride! And we may even assemble makeshift baskets, one from two broken ones.

Remember: one cat, one basket.

Fish, check! Basket, check! Walking boots, check! Now we just have to decide whether we walk, or we try to outrun our journey mates, so to make the first pick. Tighten your boots, for they are the key to positioning! 

Just don’t forget: you will probably not have the stamina to outrun everyone, everyday. Better find out the right pace, to make the best of the five days on the isle.

Those cats on the path to the mountain, you say? They are always watching us! Each one of them kind of adopts a different adventurer, and they are always there, in sync with our running position onto the fields. The purple one adopted us, and you see, we will be making the second pick of the day. Not that you will get an advantage, nor for the matter, any disadvantage, for rescuing Vandermills, the cats of the family of our watcher. It is what it is, a constant reminder.

The long-awaited moment has arrived! 

Focus on the baskets. One basket for each cat. Two baskets, two cats, but usually one at a time. No, forget the Hissnipper on the left, or the Teruvian on the right. A basket can carry a single cat, whichever the family. Leave the cat sketches for your notebook, as a memory to be remembered. 

Observe the fields again, the cats remaining on each side, the fish in our stock, the cats already on board, the time to go and come, and then … make your pick!

Thtat's right, cats on the right field always seem to be hungrier, and they will not come for less than five fish … perhaps because it is steeper, and they usually take longer to get to the bay. A bit more than the three fish required for those on the left side. Something to remember when planning, which cats to rescue first.

Good catch, a Mhoxxite. Not that hard, right? If you have the fish, you will have a cat in the basket in no time. As simple as that!

Upon catching a cat, we must head on to the ship and release him on board. Now, that is not a straightforward thing to do, for there are many things to think about. These are shape-shifting creatures, and they may require different space on the deck, even roaming across different compartments. Above all, don’t forget the lessons learnt.

Consider the Mhoxxite we just caught. Will he better go near the ones already on board, enlarging their family, or stay on his own? Will we choose to completely fill in the moon starboard compartment, keeping the ship tidy? Will he find for us a matching treasure map? Will he rather expel some of the rats? Will we leave him by the ship’s rail, where he may look back, one more time, at the isle.

All this takes time to ponder, and while we make the come-and-go journey, the other adventurers will be giving a go of their own at cat rescuing.

Now that we have rescued some cats, and the growing shadows signal the ending of the day, it is still time for a final move, attempting to find treasures or, maybe even, those fascinating Oshax. 

And, again, we will give some consideration on how to distribute the cargo on board. Maybe we will use treasures to fill in some empty spots, among the laying cats, or to completely fill in some of the ship’s compartments, or even to terminate some of the remaining rats!

Throughout the day we made use of our bag of tricks, to get the upper hand: getting extra fish, a brand-new basket to use all the way throughout the journey, some more treasures. We may as well become more creative when releasing cats on board.

There is a whole range of things that may help us fulfil our mission. But beware, the other adventurers will, for sure, also resort to tricks of their own!

As darkness creeps in, all cats turn into that same greyish tone, becoming indistinct, as they vanish from the fields, not to ever be seen again.  This day has come to an end and the fields on both sides of the island are now empty. You may be sure that tomorrow, as the sun brightens the island once again, a flurry of cats, of different cats, will take once more to the fields.

And this is it, one full day on the Isle of Cats! Quite an experience, right?

After the fifth day, the scouts will spot the black sails of Vesh Darkhand ships. You do not want to meet such a fleet on open sea, neither be surrounded in the island. It will then be time to leave.

There is not anything else you can do: the mission has come to an end. You may well rest and admire the now more colourful fleet sailing home.

Well, no doubt there will still be some rats on board, making the trip back home on their own right, having survived the growing numbers of cats, and the heavy treasures scattered on the deck.

Upon returning, safe and sound, it is then time to settle the scores. 

As you well know by now, this was not just about rescuing cats, or reuniting the largest cat families. That will help in the end, no doubt about it, but the journey was also made of shared and private lessons, treasures, expertise on deck management, and rat termination! 

All this matters, if you are to be hailed as the greatest cat rescuer and treasurer hunter!

I can tell from your eyes that you will be back soon to the island, or to similar islands, so great is the appeal, and so uncertain is the outcome. And you will be returning with the same or with other explorers, in family, or even alone. Well, never entirely alone, since you will find out your sister made it on board, and she makes for a redoubtable opponent.

I will now rest, before a new adventure, already waiting for me down the line. Meanwhile, I can’t stop imagining how all this should look from a cat’s perspective, high up on the hill, scouting the ocean beyond the cove, for sails, ships, and men…