Fields of Green and Laughing Over Mr. Cabbagehead’s Farm
Explore ways to improve a new farm through the course of several years and busy harvest seasons in Fields of Green.
Last report about this one for a little bit! Fields of Green has been on my solo table for over a week, yet this is well-deserved. It’s a wonderful balance between simple mechanics and challenging decisions. Scoring well takes a lot of planning, although there’s always a memorable story to tell… Even with the losses. Back to these freshly plowed fields!
Game Overview
Game Name: Fields of Green
Publication Year: 2016
Designer: Vangelis Bagiartakis
Artists: G. Bobrowski, T. Jedruszek, & N. Robinson
Publisher: Artipia Games
Solo Mode: Included in Fields of Green: Grand Fair
From a simple silo and water tower, a little farm takes shape with all sorts of locations. Every card features a pleasant scene that brings the farming experience to life. Machines putter along, animals make contented noises from pastures, and crops rustle in the breeze. Wonderful!
First Play
January 27, 2019
Complexity
3
Latest Play
November 20, 2024
Expansions
5
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
40
Play Time
35 Minutes
High Score
89
Game Area
34" x 28"
Low Score
0
Excellent Watchdogs
During this play, I had a pretty sweeping area of fields and buildings. I needed to pick up a lot of livestock in later years, though, and the perfect solution came up…
Watchdogs! They ended up on the edge of my area that housed all manner of small animals and birds: Rabbits, ducks, turkeys, and more. Definitely the right choice!
It’s also nice to think about some of these abilities and how they feel rather thematic, particularly for animals.
Rabbits get more expensive to feed as their numbers increase, and watchdogs benefit from things to watch!
So Much Heavy Rain
Water management is a big part of the puzzle, although this isn’t complicated. It comes down to planning out how to harvest each field, which usually requires water.
The event cards made it a little easier this time, thanks to lots of humidity and rain! Silly me had a well to refill the water towers, so this rainfall didn’t actually help.
Empty water towers are worth victory points, of course, so figuring out how to utilize the water efficiently is key.
Despite some events not being particularly helpful, these made all the difference in making each play stand out!
A Modest First Year
I reset once more and decided to take a closer look at my decisions throughout my 4 years of farming. This had to be the play that would put me in the highest scoring tier!
Cabbages. They defined my farm from the start. Ha! I rarely see all of the same type of card come out so early, but I could see a use for their ongoing abilities.
The donkeys were pretty pleased, too. No one likes too much cabbage, so they got a lot of leftovers to eat.
I was making progress on the solo objectives and could see a lot of possibilities with adding more livestock.
Repairing Everything
Well, I lost sight of my livestock focus immediately when it made sense to invest in some new constructions!
Repair stations would keep the machinery humming along, and I picked up some valuable equipment to add to locations. Those donkeys became quite valuable!
But I probably made a misstep with some choices here. I should have stocked up on food by strategically placing livestock, yet only a herd of buffalo were added on.
The cabbages kept everything moving, though, although I realized I wasn’t helping myself with so many… Ha ha!
Getting Immersed in a Fairly Ordinary Setting
A lot of time, a game’s immersion is often tied to fantasy or sci-fi in worlds that feel entirely new or unusual. Being able to convey that creative setting in a way that brings it to life is amazing! But what about the everyday world? I might say that farming isn’t exactly fantasy… It might seem ordinary or even a little on the boring side to some players.
The “ordinary” can still be a very enjoyable place to visit in board games, though! The artwork style here makes each card feel like it’s alive: I can almost hear the people chatting away, snoring under apple trees, or yelling at the latest tractor mishap. Similarly, the fields and livestock all seem like more than just static images on the cards.
It’s a setting that might not appeal to all, yet it’s an interesting example of how an everyday sort of setting can feel so immersive. I love looking for the hidden details on each card. Some might not have something special, but the majority make me smile as if I’m getting a glimpse into the world of my tabletop farm. Just a fun and pleasant sort of game!
Working Too Hard
The third year didn’t look very promising, and it was one where I expanded the farm… Yet failed again to take advantage of those cabbages. Great planning. Whoops.
A strange crop circle showed up to relocate an entire field of cabbages, which was probably the most exciting thing!
I’d also like to apologize to the animals for installing a shearing shed, which looked like it was used for horses and goats. Evidence of my bad farming skills. Ha ha!
It was pretty clear I wasn’t on track for a high score, yet the final year was coming up for this cabbage-laden farm!
The Final Tableau
It wasn’t exactly anything to be proud of, but my final farm was still vaguely impressive! Had I continued, perhaps the newly added ostriches would have helped.
The solo objectives were still achieved, so at least I didn’t fail! It was just hard to put together a cohesive strategy.
I don’t even think it was the fault of the card order: I apparently wanted to make Mr. Cabbagehead’s Farm? Ha!
Still a wonderful game, even if I’m nowhere close to a high score yet. Just seeing the artwork is fun for me, as is coming up with these little stories to remember it all!
Session Overview
Play Number: 39 & 40
Main Expansion: Fields of Green: Grand Fair
Other Expansions: Many (4)
Solo Mode: Included in Fields of Green: Grand Fair
Play Details: Early Planning & Events Mini-Expansions
Outcome: 55 & 64 (2 Losses)
Although the numbers didn’t tell of a successful farm, I still dominated the market on cabbages… And when no one wanted to eat them, my nearby donkeys were all too pleased with the extra feed. Ha! Next time, maybe I’ll diversify my fields a little more for a chance to score well!
%
40 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
9
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
9
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
9
+ Pros (Positives)
- There is a great deal of variety in the cards, as less than half of each deck will be seen during each play.
- Drafting cards is a simple process with some important decisions, and this works quite well in the solo mode.
- A farm slowly takes shape in a way that feels thematic as a small economy is created with the different locations.
- Even the seemingly boring cards have little details that are worth looking for in the lovely, relaxing artwork style.
- Play time moves along quickly due to the straightforward rules and interesting decisions with what to do next.
- Working out how to make the most of each card is a very rewarding challenge that changes with each placed card.
– Cons (Negatives)
- Keeping the cards organized and reserving the correct amount of table space can be a little challenging at times.
- The coins and stars are difficult to tell apart with the way each set is the same shape and color.
- Some level of luck is needed for some of the highest scores with the cards that are available to create synergies.
- Attractions from the expansion can be a lot of fun, but they tend to distract from the core gameplay concepts.
Victory Conditions
Score 70+ Points
- Overall Goal Progress 67%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 70 points.
Score at least 80 points.
Score at least 90 points.
Continue the Conversation
Have you had any memorable plays of Fields of Green lately? Are there any other games where you enjoy coming up with little stories along the way? This is such a great experience! I hope I can play it a little more regularly, in the hopes that I focus on victory points and not… Cabbages. Ha ha! Time for me to temporarily retire from tabletop farming!
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