Tips & Strategies (3)
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La Boca - Tips & Strategies

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Tips & Strategies (3)

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Andy {Avid Gamer}
Apr 21st, 2014| Strategy
6 of 6 gamers found this helpful
“Narrate Your Large Block Needs with Your Partner”

In La Boca, speed gets you points. One way to greatly prolong your round is for one player to start moving around a piece that is already set for the other player.

When playing, I find it very helpful to state exactly what I need to see for a given piece when putting it down, especially the larger blue, yellow, and red blocks. These blocks are often where people get caught up, and agreeing on their placement early often sees the rest of the board fall into place.

When placing the larger blocks, one player can start by saying what they need to see of it, and the other person responds with their needs. This is especially helpful when the color you need is on the second level; knowing if the other person needs that color on the first level or not will often tell you quickly if the block needs to stand up, or lie down.

Work with your partner early to place those large blocks and you’ll start shaving precious seconds off of your time!

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Andy {Avid Gamer}
Apr 21st, 2014| Strategy
5 of 6 gamers found this helpful
“Determine What Blocks are Hiding”

One of the worst feelings when playing La Boca is for both people to declare their board complete, be about to stop the timer, and find a block lying out of the box. This often happens with one of the single cube blocks; it is not needed to be seen by either player and gets forgotten.

To avoid this, the first thing you want to do is make sure all of the blocks start to the side in a single spot that both players can see and access them. Having a stray block sit on one player’s side of the box where it can’t be seen by the other greatly increases the chance it will be forgotten.

Next, take a second when you’re done to verify everything is on the board. When one player has their side finished, it often helps to have them start handing remaining blocks to their partner, clearly stating the color and asking if they need it. If they don’t need it, the player that has finished can find a hiding spot on the board where neither player will see it, while the player with an incomplete side finishes their setup.

Hiding blocks don’t come up on every card, but when they do, having a plan for how to deal with them can keep the team from inadvertently leaving it out altogether.

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Critic - Level 5
Professional Advisor
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Marquis / Marchioness
Andy {Avid Gamer}
Apr 21st, 2014| Rule
5 of 6 gamers found this helpful
“Wait on Using the Red Block for Experienced Players”

La Boca comes with two sets of cards, easier and harder versions that are differentiated by whether they use the red block or not. Should you jump right in and use the red block from the beginning? It doesn’t look that bad, right?

I highly recommend playing your first game without the red block.

While it may not look like it at first, the red block adds a good deal of difficulty to the game. Without experience with avoiding overhanging pieces and fitting everything within the grid, trying to build around the red piece can be frustrating. I’ve found for new players, including the red piece leads to the game feeling like a chore, as opposed to an enjoyable experience. Additionally, starting with the red piece robs you of the ability to up the difficulty later (assuming people play that long).

To counteract the inevitable desire of players to jump in with the red piece, I let them know we’ll give it a try after the game is over, and let people try a few rounds with it. Every time I’ve done this, the players have agreed that it was the right decision to leave it out, as they feel the increased difficulty. On the plus side, it also seems to guarantee a second play, either immediately following, or the next time we get together, as people are anxious to tackle and conquer the red piece!

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