Our family loves games! When I received the opportunity to review Battle Sheep I was excited. The game is part of the Timberdoodle Third-Grade Curriculum Kit. Battle Sheep is intended for ages 7 and up. The games can be played with 2-4 players. After watching a short video on Timberdoodle's website about Battle Sheep I knew right away that our whole family would have fun playing this game. Battle Sheep is a game of strategy and can get pretty intense as opponents try to battle against each other to secure the most pastureland. This game may look like a child's game but it can definitely get pretty intense when played by competitive players. For the younger child, this is a great way to introduce your child to strategy. The simplistic game board, or in this case pastureland, is not intimidating for young children. The fun sheep tokens make for colorful play. The game takes about 15 minutes to play.
The Battle Sheep Chips have some darn cute sheep on them.
I was very surprised at how thick the chips were. I was expecting cardboard
chips like what normally comes with most games. These are high quality game chips.
The pasture tiles are made of very thick durable cardboard. The
playing side is made of quality game board material. The tiles are
definitely built to last.
How to Play
Each player is given the same amount of pasture tiles. They take turns laying the pasture tiles down in order to form a game board. Each time you play the board will look different. This is great for the games replayability. Each player uses their 16 sheep to try and secure the most pastureland. Players have to be strategically thinking several steps ahead as the opposing sheep herds try to fill up pastureland and block you in. Players are only allowed to move in a straight line. Sheep must also move as far as they can go in an unblocked straight line. The player that ends up occupying the most pastureland at the end of the game wins!
At the beginning of the game each player places their sheep chips on one of the
outer pastures. Each player needs to spread out from their opponents.
On your first move you need to split your sheep stack into two stacks. You can
divide it any way you want to but you must always leave at least one sheep.
When you make your first move you need to move your desired amount of sheep
in a straight line as far as you can go across the board until you either:
reach another sheep stack or cannot go any further.
Some more rules:
You may NOT have more than one sheep stack in the same pasture.
(Oops, we neglected to follow this rule when we first played.)
You may NOT combine or jump over other sheep, even your own.
It does take a couple of rounds to get the games rules and strategy down.
Counting to see who has occupied the most pastureland.
My 20-year old son said that Battle Sheep reminded him a bit of the game of chess.
I got my 70+ year old mother to play Battle Sheep.
Overall, Battle Sheep was a hit. I would recommend Battle Sheep to other parents as well as educators. Everyone enjoyed the game and it will definitely be a game that we will continue to play. One of my older daughter's who is a Nanny took the game with to play with her kiddos. My daughter said, "The kids are 10 and extremely competitive. This game provided a fun release encouraging strategic thought and movement. Battle Sheep is a strategic and enjoyable game for children and adults of all ages. Twins at the age of 10 quickly caught on to the object of the game eventually beating someone twice their age. The chips high quality each displaying a uniquely different sheep on each piece. It is an altogether fun game to be enjoyed by all."
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