"Whenever I design any variant, or when anybody sends me one, I always say if at all possible within the context of the game don't have two home supply centers touching each other"
About this Quote
A designer’s rule of thumb dressed up as etiquette: don’t let the game hand anyone an effortless start. Davis is talking about “home supply centers” like they’re just map furniture, but the subtext is power distribution. Two adjacent home centers create a natural clump of safety and speed: fewer defensive seams, faster consolidation, easier growth. In a strategy game built on negotiation and pressure, that kind of geographic free lunch can quietly decide outcomes before players even speak.
The phrasing is revealingly diplomatic. “If at all possible within the context of the game” acknowledges the constant tug-of-war between elegant theory and messy realities: thematic maps, historical geography, iconic borders. It’s the designer admitting there are constraints, but still planting a flag for fairness as the default. And “whenever anybody sends me one” hints at a community of variants and tinkerers, with Davis positioned as gatekeeper and mentor - the person who has seen enough broken maps to know where balance dies.
What makes the line work is its understated confidence. It doesn’t moralize; it operationalizes. The rule isn’t about aesthetics, it’s about forcing interaction. Separate the home centers and you force players to choose: defend or expand, ally or bluff, commit or hedge. Touching centers reduce that tension and make early play more mechanical. Davis is protecting the fragile social engine of the game: the part where geography creates vulnerability, and vulnerability creates diplomacy.
The phrasing is revealingly diplomatic. “If at all possible within the context of the game” acknowledges the constant tug-of-war between elegant theory and messy realities: thematic maps, historical geography, iconic borders. It’s the designer admitting there are constraints, but still planting a flag for fairness as the default. And “whenever anybody sends me one” hints at a community of variants and tinkerers, with Davis positioned as gatekeeper and mentor - the person who has seen enough broken maps to know where balance dies.
What makes the line work is its understated confidence. It doesn’t moralize; it operationalizes. The rule isn’t about aesthetics, it’s about forcing interaction. Separate the home centers and you force players to choose: defend or expand, ally or bluff, commit or hedge. Touching centers reduce that tension and make early play more mechanical. Davis is protecting the fragile social engine of the game: the part where geography creates vulnerability, and vulnerability creates diplomacy.
Quote Details
| Topic | Vision & Strategy |
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