Plan B Games | Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra | Board Game | Ages 8+ | 2 to 4 Players | 30 to 45 Minutes Playing Time

Product Information

You see, Sintra, which is just the easier way for me to refer the newer game at this point, has a variable board setup of sorts. With this in mind, it only matters which Pane colors you select to place on your Palace Board when playing the “B” side. Sintra is a nice variation on a theme that I would be happy to play, but in the long run Azul owns a permanent spot in the collection.

Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra challenges players to compete by carefully selecting glass panes to complete their windows while being careful not to damage or waste supplies in the process.This game is very easy to pick up and play, as you draft your coloured tiles to your personal player board. I find that the broken glass track is particularly brutal in two player games where it is possible to manoeuvre your opponent into picking up far more Pane Pieces than they can place.

As a glass artisan, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to demonstrate your exquisite abilities for King and country.However, at the end of the day, it’s still an abstract and that’s just not the kind of game I’ll ever love. Everything is done very professionally with this company and always lets you know every step of the process.

Take your trees through their life-cycle, from seedling to full bloom to rebirth, and earn points as their leaves collect energy from the revolving sun’s rays.Any left over Pane Pieces are considered broken and placed in the Glass Tower and the player moves their marker on the broken glass track down a number of steps equal to the number of Pane Pieces placed in the Glass Tower. That said, I recommend first-time players start with the original game before diving into the sequel, just for the sake of getting comfortable with the core system. After furnishing the Palace of Evora, King Manuel I now seeks to commission the World’s greatest stained glass artisans to adorn the Chapel windows of the Palace of Sintra. Carefully pick where you sow and when you grow, as trees in the shadows are blocked from light, and from points. Every decision is multi-faceted, logical, and rewarding – and it’s tremendous fun to watch an opponent go reeling after you take the piece they really needed!

The introduction of new mechanisms can easily make a game feel bloated, without actually enriching the play experience. There is quite a lot to think about in what at the outset appears to be a light and fluffy abstract puzzle game. Much like the great designs of Reiner Knizia, Azul simply stepped out of the way of the players and allowed them to work the system.

I would highly recommend Sintra to you if you enjoyed the original Azul or if you like simple, yet strategic, drafting games! Introduced by the Moors, “azulejos” (originally white and blue ceramic tiles) were fully embraced by the Portuguese, when their King Manuel I, on a visit to the Alhambra palace in Southern Spain, was mesmerized by the stunning beauty of the Moorish decorative tiles. In this version, players can expect to discover new artwork and components, including translucent window pane pieces, a tower to hold discarded glass panes, and double-sided player boards, and many other new additions. The first time a player takes tiles from the middle, she takes the first player tile along with those she selected. Overall there are some similarities: the factories and taking pieces mechanic, the negative impact of taking more pieces than you can place on your player board and the quality of the artwork and components.