Aviation / Flight

Cloud 9 - The Daring Game of Ups and Downs

Players earn points by daring to stay in the basket of a hot air balloon as it rises. Points increase as the balloon climbs from cloud to cloud, but so does the risk of the balloon falling. Should you jump out to save your points or trust that the pilot will take you safely higher?

Everyone places their passenger token into the balloon's basket to start the trip, and receives a hand of six balloon cards. Then, each turn, a different "pilot" rolls an increasing number of specialized dice to see if the balloon can stay aloft. The dice dictate how many of the balloon cards are needed of each color. (There are also optionally played Wild Cards to keep everyone guessing.) Each player decides whether they think the pilot will have the cards to successfully take the balloon up, or whether they should jump out and keep the points earned so far. If they stay, they run the risk of getting no points if the pilot fails. If the balloon does fall, it is placed back on the lowest cloud. Everyone hops aboard and draws one new card, and the next trip begins. When a player earns 50 points the game is over.

From the back of the box:

You have 10 DAYS in ASIA - touring by train, airplane, ship, or on foot. Chart your course from start to finish using destination and transportation tiles. With a little luck and clever planning, you just might outmaneuver your fellow travelers. The first traveler to make connections for a ten day journey wins the game.

In this fourth installment of the 10 Days in series, the players are touring Asia, arranging their tiles on the ten days (open spots) of their trays to create a string of consecutive steps that, once completed, creates one consecutive journey. Tiles of neighboring countries may be placed side-by-side on the tray, with trains, ships and airplanes connecting distant countries depending on where they are located. Tiles cannot be rearranged in a tray, but must be replaced one at a time from the few face-up tiles available to all players, or from a random draw.

This installment introduces railroads which allow players to connect any countries that have stops along a selected rail line. These work in addition to the now-familiar airlines (connecting countries of the same color), and ocean liners (although now you have two oceans to contend with).

"There is much to be discovered in Europe! Many roads lead to success in this exciting travel game - you just have to find the right one. Exchange your cards cleverly and find your way through Europe quickly to win. Ten cards must show continuous travel either by land, sea or air."

This is the third installment in the 10 Days in series.

Gameplay
All players pick tiles up one at a time, examining them and placing them onto any empty spot on their tile holders. Then, in turn, each player draws one tile and may replace one of their lined-up tiles with it. (Tiles may not be rearranged.) Tiles are drawn from one of three face-up discard piles or a face-down pile. The drawn card or replaced card is then discarded into one of the face-up piles. The first person to have all ten tiles satisfy the travel connection requirements wins.

Connection requirements:
By Foot If a country is next to or connected to another country on the map, their tiles may be placed side-by-side
By Air Any two countries of the same color may be connected by an airplane of that color (its tile in between them)
By Ship If a sea or ocean borders two countries, a ship can connect them

Contents:

67 cardboard tiles - 48 country tiles, 19 transportation (airplane or ship)
4 trip planners (wooden tile holders, 2 per set)
1 game board showing a map of Europe, each country depicted in one of 5 colors

A Rummy style card game where players form sets of cards comprised of the front, side and top views of WWII fighters and bombers.

Aircraft of USA, Britain, Germany, Japan, Russa and Italy are featured. The deck consist of 100 cards including 6 "Keep 'em Flying" wild cards, one Victory wild card and 3 cards each for the 31 types of aircraft represented.

Originally published in 1942 by Whitman Publishing, copyright National Aeronautic Association of the U.S.A., as 2 separate packs labeled "Card Game No. 1" (blue-backed cards) and "Card Game No. 2" (red-backed cards).

Card Game #1 includes a 52-card deck consisting of 16 sets of 3 aircraft cards, 3 "Keep 'em Flying" cards, and one "Victory" card. Featured are 9 U.S. aircraft, 3 Japanese, and 2 each from Britain and Germany. Instructions are printed on two additional cards.

Publisher's note on instruction card: "The illustrations used on these cards are authentic silhouette drawings of military planes and may be used in identifying and learning to recognize our planes and the planes of our enemies."

Game description from the publisher:

Command your own skyship and become a master merchant in Sky Traders, a board game of commerce and intrigue for two to five players. Evade the ruthless Wind Pirates as you collect influence with the powerful Sky Guild. Manipulate the commodity market using your powers of persuasion. Through clever trades and resourceful captaining, you can seize the title of Master of the Sky Guild!

Each round of Sky Traders takes place in two main phases. In the first phase, players sail their ships and perform actions. To start, each player draws an Ill Wind card, which has a variety of effects that can help or hinder players. The Sky Patrol could attack you for carrying contraband, or the Wind Pirates might try to board your vessel in hopes of plundering valuable goods. If you're lucky, you'll stumble upon a treasure map that leads to riches. It's all up to fate when you draw from the Ill Wind deck.

You'll add new members to your crew to gain various improvements. Skymen lend their blades to fight off Wind Pirate attacks. Other shipmates can help you earn more money when selling goods. Some crewmembers even make it possible to disregard the results of an Ill Wind card. You'll want to be judicious when hiring crew since they take up valuable space on the ship that could be used for trade goods.

If your skyship requires repairs or refueling, visit a city. While there, line the ship's cargo hold with valuable textiles, spices, or even jewels, then deliver the goods to another city where entrepreneurs will pay large sums of money for the items. Make sure to stock up on goods when the price is low and sell them off when their value increases.

In the second phase of each turn, the Guild Council takes place. During this round, players deliberate with each other in hopes of persuading their peers to help influence the price of goods. Strike a deal with your peers and you could force a surge in the value of the commodities you own, but if you've angered your rivals, they may choose to team up and devalue the wares you are selling.

At the end of the Guild Council phase, each captain also has the opportunity to purchase Influence, which increases his ability to control prices and moves him a step closer to victory. Influence is expensive, but you cannot become the Master of the Sky Guild without it.

As captain of your own skyship, you'll have to decide each turn how to best service your needs. Buying cargo at one port and delivering it to another city where the goods are highly desired is a great way to turn a profit. However, a captain also must consider hiring new crew, checking the ship’s phlogiston (fuel for skyships) levels, repairing damage sustained in pirate attacks, and undertaking other important tasks to keep the ship running at peak performance. When money is tight, haul toxic sludge or collect minerals from the countryside to make some quick money.