From: "davidlhsl" <DavidLHsl@...>
Reply-To: piecepack@yahoogroups.com
To: piecepack@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [piecepack] Re: IPG's piecepack
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 02:26:40 -0000
--- In piecepack@y..., "Steve Dupree" <dubistbullionkpf@h...> wrote:
>
> What size poker chips do you have?
> -steve
1-1/2" seems to be standard. I purchased two sets -- Bicycle produces
an inexpensive set that you should be able to find at Wal-Mart or
Toys R Us, among other places (other brands should also suffice). I
also purchased a more expensive set of clay chips that are heavier,
twice as thick (1/8" vs. 1/16"), and available in more colors than
white/red/blue. Oddly enough, the cheaper Bicycle chips stack better
than the clay chips, so it's not necessary to indulge in such
extravagance. :)
Both the Bicycle brand and clay chips have an area in the center that
supports the 3/4" piecepack coins. Even though the piecepack pyramid
bases are larger than 3/4", I find that they can stand very stable on
a chip.
Some examples of hex board designs: a game called Hex (each player
tries to connect both sides of the board) is played on a board up to
11 x 11 rhombus shape, which requires 121 white chips. The main body
of a Chinese Checkers board has 5 hexes per side and is shaped like a
hex, requiring a total of 61 chips. Add 15 chips per player
starting/ending triangles, and you are looking at 151 chips for a
full 6-player board (to conserve chips, use white for the main area
and alternating red/blue for the points, then play with piecepack
coins or other tokens). A 6 hexes per side/hex-shaped board requires
91 chips. The Bicycle chips come packaged with 100 chips (50 white/25
red/25 blue), so you need about 3 sets to create the 3 board types
described.
If you create stickers for the piecepack coins (printed on a full-
page label sheet, for example), you could stick them on some of the
poker chips with the number on one side and suit on the other, and
use the chips as large-sized coins.
When I purchased the Bicycle chips at Wal-Mart, I also purchased some
pieces of felt that were cut into 9" x 11" rectangles. I can arrange
various pieces to support whatever size piecepack or hex board (using
poker chips) I require. The felt helps to both protect the piecepack
tiles/chips and the playing surface (usually a table). The felt also
helps to prevent the tiles/chips from sliding around, though I find
that the wood piecepack tiles do try to cling to the felt.
Finally, a straight-edge such as a ruler can be helpful in keeping
your poker chip rows straight as you construct your hexboard.
David