A Battle for Control of the Meadow in March of the Ants
Enter a meadow claimed by a colony of ants and an invading army of centipedes in March of the Ants.
Part of my goal to play a single board game at a time sort of fell apart lately. At the same time, if there’s one thing that solo gaming has taught me, it’s that the whole point is to do what seems most enjoyable! So I decided to return to the base game of March of the Ants for a refresher before adding in the expansion modules. Go, ants, go!
Game Overview
Game Name: March of the Ants
Publication Year: 2015
Designer: Tim Eisner and Ryan Swisher
Artist: Tim Eisner, Ryan Swisher, and Peter Wocken
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Ants aren’t a very popular subject in the board game world. They’re pretty awesome, though! This is a game all about growing and protecting a small colony.
I was about ready to move onto the expansions, except I realized I needed a little more experience. To the meadow!
First Play
March 4, 2020
Complexity
3
Latest Play
March 27, 2022
Expansions
2
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
25
Play Time
40 Minutes
High Score
26
Game Area
34" x 24"
Low Score
4
Overrun by Centipedes
Uh-oh. Some may recall that I seemed to have stumbled on a strategy that worked pretty consistently.
Surprise! This was an absolute massacre. The centipedes just kept coming, and I actually wondered if I was about to run out of them. Even successful battles didn’t matter.
What went wrong? I think a lot of my previous success came down to a good bit of luck.
This first attempt wasn’t even close. The centipedes just kept showing up. Stoney Mound was the worst… I believe 3 monsters showed up back-to-back after each one died.
Strategic Action Planning
For some reason, my past plays rarely involved anything beyond exploring and marching. Foraging for new cards was almost entirely a rarity, and playing cards never happened. Instead, I used any cards for extra ferocity in battles.
This definitely worked, but I rather liked looking like an amateur. I found out that there was a lot more to the game than just following the same path. Once again, this is why I’ve been focusing on playing a new game many times before moving on. There are many things to discover! And I think I would be happy with under 20 games in my collection…
But, I digress. This time, I had to think a lot more carefully about every action. Constantly battling the centipedes dwindled my ants because many of them were lost each time. I tried and tried, but all those legs were hard to beat!
Another Attempt
The good news about my second play was that I made it through the end of the final season. The bad news?
There was another loss! It may sound strange, but I like to lose occasionally. To master a solo board game can make it feel repetitive and boring. Not this one, clearly.
At the same time, I can see how the base game is a little on the simpler side. It can come down to luck, yet it doesn’t have a lot of additional ways to play.
Enter the expansion modules! I started to read the rules, and plan to have a followup post very soon.
Session Overview
Play Number: 9 and 10
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Normal Difficulty Level
Required Play Space: 34″ x 24″
Setup Time: 5 Minutes
Play Time: 10-15 Minutes per Play
Outcome: 8-8 and 10-13 (2 Losses)
Maybe it was a good sign that this earthworm didn’t completely emerge from its tunnel. Turn back, friend!
I enjoyed this pair of plays immensely, even though I lost.
%
20 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
9
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
9
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
6
Victory Conditions
Defeat the Broodmother
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 expansion game at the easy difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the easy difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the hard difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the normal difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
What are your thoughts about a board game about ants? Does it need to be at least 3 times larger? March of the Ants is awesome in its own way, and I’m enjoying all of the different nuances with the strategies. It’s time to move onto the expansions, yet I hope this shows how solid the base game is. There shall be more ants in the near future!
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