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Mechanic Mondays – Hand Management

Welcome to Mechanic Mondays! Since this is the first in the series let me introduce what MM has in store. Each monday I will look at various game mechanics; BoardGameGeek has 51 mechanics listed so we should be good for the whole year! (ok almost the whole year). Each week I will explain how the mechanic plays out, a few games that utilize the mechanic and how well the mechanic interacts with other mechanics.

Hand management. An interesting mechanic and one I would argue plays very well with others. It is very modular and can and has been used in some very interesting ways. Traditionalist would argue hand management is a mechanic in which players have a hand of cards and must carefully select which cards are played and when. Such games would include classics such as Rook, Phase 10, and Uno. There are of course newer games that still use this mechanic in such a manner including games like Summoner Wars and Imperial Settlers (one of my favorite games of 2014).

Other games have taken Hand Management to a new level so that cards in hand must not only be managed in the sense of when they are played but also where they are positioned while still in the hand. This is best done when used in conjunction with other mechanics and was used fantastically in Bohnanza in which players must manage the hand they hope to end up with vs the hand they have via donating and playing cards. This is also done well in Hanabi where players must play with their hand revealed to all other players so everyone can see their hand except themselves. Players are given clues about their hands and must arrange their hand in a manner that they will remember which cards are which so they can play their cards correctly without having ever seen the card they are playing.

I would argue that the core foundation of hand management comes to getting the cards you want on the table when you want them there. How you do so can be carried out in a manner of ways, in many games you play what you wish while in others such as Bohnanza you play a specific card (the top card in your hand) while in Magic: The Gathering you play a card based on if you can afford the casting cost and if you deem playing it of value at the given time.

One of the glorious things about this mechanic is its ability to play well with others. Many mechanics have the habit of stealing the show; HM, however, works with the mechanics it shares the stage with; especially when dealing with mechanics such as hidden information, card drafting, simultaneous action selection and set collection.

Many games utilize this mechanic; as of writing this there are 7,781 games on BoardGameGeek linked to the mechanic; clearly a popular element to find in games both modern and vintage. Along with the previously listed games a few of my other favorite games that utilize this mechanic include:
Munchkin, Bang!, Gloom, Dominion, and Pit
*note according to BGG Pit doesn’t use the Hand Management mechanic; I would argue it does. There are also some who would think it is an odd game to list here, but until your grandma has elbowed you out of a 3 for 3 trade to win her the game; you haven’t truly lived…

So what are your thoughts? Do you like Hand Management as a mechanic? What are your favorite games that use this mechanic? What about your least favorite games? What mechanics do you love to see merged with Hand Management? Let us know on social media with the hashtag #mmHandManagement

Visit again Tomorrow as I take a look at the Uwe Rosenberg card game Bonahnza! Until then you can find us on social media!
Twitter @Gam3rsR3mors3
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