Heh, well, some of the biggest problems with the single stash games is that the general public and retailers don't know about them, thus the idea of adding them to the tubes where possible. This gives non-Icehouse fanatics more of a reason to pick up a stash or two. It also gives the retailers more of a reason to stock the single stashes. Right now, none of the three local hobby shops in town carry Icehouse pieces, although they all carry Fluxx and some of the other Looney Labs games. Now, I can order Icehouse games and stashes through the hobby shops, but that won't get the casual buyer to pick them up. As a matter of fact, the Icehouse set I picked up from the FLGS was an old Martian Chess set that they had sitting on their shelf for quite some time. I'll say that I'm not sorry that it hadn't sold as that gave me the chance to get it, but I will say that I wish they sold more Icehouse stuff. I may just have to make a deal with them when the Treehouse stashes come out. We also have many retailers who don't know about ICE-7 because they order through their distributors. If the distributor doesn't carry it, or push them to pick them up, or whatever, they won't have them to give out, as well as the catalogs. And, even if the retailer does have the ICE-7 and/or the catalogs, that doesn't always mean that the customer will know that. They may think that this is the only game that you can play with Icehouse pieces. And, even though it says to visit looneylabs.com for more rules, most people won't have a computer with them at the game store, and many won't think about it when they get home, unless they buy the game. I think it's important to remember that things like Treehouse and popularizing single stash games are goals aimed at bringing Icehouse games into the eye of the general public in an inexpensive manner. (I think that's the goal anyway.) Those of us on this mailing list already know about Icehouse and support it as best we can. Sheas, I talk too much. Ok, two more things, quickly and they relate. Terminology, I was wondering if we might try and make a glossary of terms for Icehouse, maybe have it on the website somewhere, a section of general terms, and then maybe sections devoted to terms for specific games. i.e. nest would be a general term and it means the placement of a smaller pyramid inside of a larger one, while koan would be specific to Zendo (at least at this point) and refers to the structure of pyramids created by the master or by the student. Several of these terms are already defined under Zendo, but new players will have no idea to look there. Also, the Rules Images, making a set of standardized rules images and a glossary showing what they mean may also be helpful. For most of us, they are relatively easy to figure out, but they may be confusing for a new player. It can also be a nice easy way to pass information regardless of language as well as make for nicer looking quick-reference sheets. I know that Fluxx translates fairly easily because of the strong reliance on imagery used on the cards, as does Aquarius. Ok, enough for now, Scot Sulzer -----Original Message----- From: icehouse-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:icehouse-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Ryan Hackel Sent: Monday, January 23, 2006 4:53 AM To: icehouse@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [Icehouse] Ruminations on Treehouse Color balance: It also occurred to me that the Rainbow tube of Treehouse could also make a great 'extra pieces' expansion for Zendo, since those I know who have the bosed set wish it had more pieces in it. Three tubes of Rainbow Treehouse would also be the best way to get a binary Homeworlds set at this time. Single Stash: As for more single stash games, ICE-7 comes with Tic-Tac-Doh, and retailers are (or should be) handing them out with the purchase of pyramids, so each Treehouse set already comes with a playable single-stash game beyond Treehouse itself. IceSickle is playable with the Treehouse tube, and it comes free in the Looney Labs catalog. For other single-stash games, here's a list: http://icehousegames.org/wiki/?title=Category:Single_stash Terminology: I think this is a good time to introduce Icehouse jargon. I'd rather see proper terminology with a concise explanation than to use terms that are inconsistant with other Icehouse products. 'Upright' is intuitive enough, but 'flat' or 'nest' may need some more explanation. I agree with previous comments that consistancy of language on the Treehouse rules is important. ---Ryan Hackel, novICE --- On Mon 01/23, John G Bell < jgbell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx > wrote: From: John G Bell [mailto: jgbell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx] To: icehouse@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Date: Mon, 23 Jan 2006 01:42:55 -0800 Subject: [Icehouse] about treehouse colours and things <br>On Jan 23, 2006, at 1:25 AM, icehouse-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <br>wrote:<br><br>> I might go along with the Tree House is always green...<br><br>I don't know if this has been mentioned yet, but it occurs to me that <br>an Treehouse set all the same colour might look too much like a <br>regular set of pyramids. The advantage to having mixed colours, for a <br>retailer, is that they look different.<br><br>Also, the rainbow shows off the cool variety of colours.<br><br>Everyone should start thinking of alternate games with the minimal <br>sets these would provide. What about a mini volcano or mini martian <br>chess ruleset?<br><br>Getting the price point below $10 could turn out to be an awesome <br>move. When I heard the price target, I thought about getting sets for <br>all the people I know.<br><br><br>_______________________________________________<br>Iceh ouse mailing list<br>Icehouse@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx<br>http://lists.looneylabs.com/mai lman/listinfo/icehouse<br> _______________________________________________ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! _______________________________________________ Icehouse mailing list Icehouse@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx http://lists.looneylabs.com/mailman/listinfo/icehouse -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.375 / Virus Database: 267.14.21/236 - Release Date: 1/20/2006 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.375 / Virus Database: 267.14.21/236 - Release Date: 1/20/2006