Getting in contact with Reiner?

Wouldn't it be great if some of the big names of game design lurk the BGDF (even if it's under a disguides name)!

BTW--congratulations on the confluence of ideas!!

It's not that it's "similar to." It's "directly inspired by." I'm temporarily calling the card game "Nineveh & Ur" which should give you a vague idea about which game it is based on.

Much of the gameplay and mechanics are very similar, but with the two player setup, and the fact that it's just cards, many elements are very different. The two-player aspect makes for a lot more fighting for control, while the cards allow for non-obvious sneaking up on an opponent.

Every aspect of the board game carries over to the card game, with the exception of the specific geometry of the board, which is carried over conceptually. The structure of the rules is almost identical, with phrasing changed to make allowances for the mechanics of a card game. There are some small differences, and a very few big ones.

If Reiner has a problem with it, I won't be offended. That just means that I'll be the only person with a copy, and anyone who wants to play will have to play against me. If he's okay with the idea, then obviously, I would want to try to get it published. It's a fun game, but it's an adaptation of an existing game. I'll put it this way: Nineveh & Ur more closely resembles its parent game than San Juan or The Settlers of Catan card game resemble their respective parents, but less than Café International: The Card Game resembles its parent. It is a different game, but it is the same structure and flow.

The only real advantages it has over its parent are A) It's smaller and more portable, B) It would cost much less, and C) It is a bit more tense than the 2-player version of the board game. I'll post more about it after some more playtesting.

Actually, I wouldn't be all that upset if Knizia did just turn around and make his own version, although I strongly doubt he would do so. I'm more interested in good games getting made than my own idea taking the spotlight.

In all actuality, my contact priority would be Reiner Knizia, and assuming things go well with him, it would basically be a toss-up between Hans im Glück (since E&T is actually their game) and Kosmos (since Nineveh & Ur would fit right in on the Spiele für Zwei product line).

It's all up to the good Doctor. If he says not to go forward with it, I respect him enough to just make other games.

Without giving too much away, the card game is not simply a tile-laying game with cards. Not only would that not be a new game, it would take up far more space than is needed.

There are differences, mainly in the fact that Nineveh & Ur is a lot more brutal than T&E. Conflict is far more likely to happen early in the game, on both the internal and external scale. The pace is a lot quicker, and the tension goes up fast. Scoring is only semi-secret, as in Puerto Rico: There are aspects which players can easily see at all times, and aspects which are hidden. There are 12 treasures in N&U, but not all of them will be claimed (Between 9 and 11, depending on how things pan out in any given game). Disasters are slightly less powerful in N&U. The order in which you perform any given actions is a bit more significant in N&U than T&E. Trust me, Nineveh & Ur will be a very familiar game to anyone who has played Tigris & Euphrates, but it is a different game. In playing one, you will be able to quickly and intuitively learn the other, in much the same way that some people use San Juan to teach Puerto Rico.

I really don't want to go too much into detail at this point until I know how Dr. Knizia feels about it, and besides, I still need to do more playtesting (Like at the local Gaming Society meeting this Wednesday). If Reiner likes the idea, you will definitely see it in one form or another. If he doesn't, I'll just post the files for it here.