THE ESTATES @ Stoup Capitol Hill!

"You know, it's like my econ professor at Harvard used to say to me: never examine the motives of the guys writing your checks."

The City Council recently approved the zoning map for a new urban development -- The Estates -- featuring high-end infrastructure and a modern atmosphere for its citizens. Soon after, the banks awarded millions of dollars in loans to six real estate investment firms to help develop this new area. The zoning map for The Estates calls for two rows of four buildings each, located between the River and Main Street. The meadows on the other side of the River are to remain a recreational area for the City.

But, with hopes of larger profits, investors and building tycoons entirely ignore the City Council's demands and begin developing three rows of buildings instead. The Mayor catches wind of the potential for profit and begins planning a new mansion in The Estates, which would double the value of one of the building rows! With some sketchy building permits, investors begin developing buildings on the other side of the River, beyond the designated building zone. However, the City Council takes rigorous steps to put an end to the racketeering with an ultimatum: As soon as the first two rows are completed, the buildings in the uncompleted row will be torn down, resulting in a huge loss for all who invested there. At the end of the day, the investor with the highest-valued buildings will come out on top.

The Estates is a medium-light complexity city-building and negotiation game which incorporates auctions/bidding, investment, and a heavy dose of "take that!"

New players are welcome, and the host is happy to teach if you haven't played before.

3 - 5 players
45 - 90 minutes expected play time, depending on turnout and player familiarity. We may be able to play more than once!

The Estates on Board Game Geek
Rules overview: How to Play with Becca Scott (Don't worry, we'll go over the rules on the day, too.)

A few important details:

• It's Cap Hill, so parking can be a challenge. Sorry, it's a walking neighborhood! Stoup (formerly Optimism) Brewing is located at the corner of Union and Broadway, very close to several transit stops and the First Hill Streetcar.
• There's an open gaming event organized by another group happening at the same time, we'll try to set up near them so all the gamers can hang out together! In the event of a low turnout we can even see if any of them would like to fill the empty seat(s).
• Purchasing something isn't a strict requirement, but it's nice to do since we're using the space. Please support the business if you can!
• Stoup allows outside food and there are several eateries nearby. There's usually a food truck outside too.
• I open signups for most of my events 1-3 days before pressing the "announce" button here on Meetup; if you want to know about that when it happens and have the opportunity to claim a seat before others, you can join the Seattle Board Games Discord server, where I'll post to let users there know as soon as RSVPs open!