The game
Idro is a fantastic wargame on a very unusual subject: combats between submarine people people. The mermaids and the tritons revolt against Krosts (giant lobsters with a human head).
It's a game for 2 or 3 players. The submarine environment is dangerous and some wandering animals, the octopuses are attacking the players when they are in an ocean trench. the goal of the game is also unusual because one player have to conquer the main city and one temple in an ocean trench.
The illustration
The illustration, where a Triton attacks a Krost, is signed by Enea Riboldi "Enea79".
Opening of the box
The box contains the rules, the counters, a combat resolution table, a calendar and morale table, a "secret army" table, 2 dice.
The map
The map represents the Moog see, with the Krosts city in the middle. The dark blue area are deep sea. In each of the three ocean trench is a temple. The red spots are paralyzing sea anemones and the green areas are submarine forests. No Krost counters other than headquarters, guards and animals can enter a town.
The counters
My counter sheet has a small printing problem: a gap between black strokes and colours:
Another scan is available here: recto verso
The rules
The rulebook contains 16 pages in 4 languages (Italian, English, German and French)
The game background is fantastic but globally, movements and combats are similar to other wargames. The rule specificities are the following:
- The Mermaids and Tritons armies are made of 4 to 15 counters. Each army is represented by a single counter (with a letter on it) until they are at less then 7 hexagons of an enemy.
- the game includes unusual weapons: paralyzing net, water canon, poison canon.
- The Krosts army includes dolphins, for a faster movement and sharks for combat.
- Each ocean trench contains a maximum of 3 octopuses, that appears randomly: a die throw of 4 5 or 6 for each counter in the ocean trench. When the octopus survive, it moves automatically to the nearest counter.
- The logon is a special octopus that appears after the first earthquake from an hexagon near one of the 3 island (indicated by 2 dice numbers)
The victory is achieved for the mermaids and the tritons when they have one counter on the city temple and one on a secondary temple, in an ocean trench.
The advanced rules give a little bit of complexity:
- the changing currents influence the movement.
- The 2 counter side are used: the clearest side indicates surface trim and the dark one depth trim. It gives a 3rd dimension to the game.
- invocation of the gods that give some bonus during 2 turns.
The price:
This game is rare. It was fast retired from the catalogue, probably due to a lack of success.
| N° EBAY | Price EBAY | Country | Date | Remarks |
| 5900883353 | £ 41 | UK | 2 June 2004 | |
| 5934549294 | EUR 80 | Italy | 20 nov 2004 | NEW |
| 5938402923 | EUR 48,50 | France | 4 Dec 2004 | |
| 5939097117 | EUR 58 | France | 04 dec 2004 | |
| 5950649269 | $ 86 | USA | 24 Jan 2005 | unpunched |
| 5167678009 | EUR 80 | Italy | 1 Mar 2005 | |
| 5170468660 | EUR 36,50 | France | 6 Mar 2005 | |
| 5983423973 | EUR 55 | Italy | 29 June 2005 | unpunched |
| 5233783053 | $ 102,50 | Italy | 2 sept 2005 | |
| 8735385483 | EUR 45 | Italy | 15 dec 2005 |
IDRO overview
reference: W110
A game for 2 to 3 players from 15 years on.
Time of game: 4 hours
Difficulty: 4 (hard)
Date: 1980
Remark: on the box, it is not easy to see the exact number of player, and the game duration in Germany is from 1 to 8 hours :
Links:
Idro on la caverne
Idro on boardgamegeek
Idro on Trictrac
Idro on Isimulacrum
Idro on Bqsfgame (Japon)
Le peuple de la mer in one of the virtual exhibitions of the national french library: La Mer, terreur et fascination with several images and videos)
This exhibition on the sea is in French. But on the French national library site http://expositions.bnf.fr/ , there are also several beautiful exhibitions
in English.
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