Uploaded December 2018 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
Hey, we actually get another 5er on here! It's the least favorite format among veteran players, but we keep seeing games that break the mold most people think 5ers fit. This is another neat one!
Things start off great for me, landing the 26 for a mere $30 on turn 2. Was able to burn my cheap coal on the 04 to stay at 1 city that turn, then build to 3 on turn 3. That's always your goal when bidding for a 21/25/26 on turn 2 - make sure you can power 3 on turn 3, as that should guarantee you can reach 5 cities on turn 4. This game shows that you can do this even if you power only 1 city for another turn - using a different resource from that of your big plant helps a lot here!
Meanwhile, amitss went for an efficiency-based strategy that often left them toward the top of the turn order. That's normally a losing position in 5P, but this one was different...
Later on i landed the 32 to pair with my 26 - not an ideal combination since both use oil, but 32 was way cheaper than 30 in the auction. Wish i could've landed the 31 that dropped at the end of that turn, though - that may have won it for me.
As is, the endgame got quite interesting. daroj already had 13 capacity, and amitss won the auction for the 20 to also reach 13 capacity. Meanwhile i was sitting at 12 cap but could've bought a plant like 19 to reach 14. The problem was that i was just short of ending the game if i did that, so i figured i was better off hoping for one more turn so i could use my capacity advantage to win. In the end amitss opted to end the game, correctly figuring out that they had a lot more money than daroj. Even building an extra 2 cities, it was an easy win. Guess i should've bought a plant and built to 14, but then i think i lose next turn anyway.
5P games get stereotyped as "buy two big plants early and end it before Step 3", but this was a case where money won out. Not unlike the previous 5er i posted here, so i think there's still work to be done in understanding this format at a high level.
If you'd like to learn more about Power Grid, please check my blog for strategy articles on each power plant as well as a guide to 2-player games:
maninmotiongoingnowhere.wordpress.com/power-grid-strategy-individual-plant-articles
Hey, we actually get another 5er on here! It's the least favorite format among veteran players, but we keep seeing games that break the mold most people think 5ers fit. This is another neat one!
Things start off great for me, landing the 26 for a mere $30 on turn 2. Was able to burn my cheap coal on the 04 to stay at 1 city that turn, then build to 3 on turn 3. That's always your goal when bidding for a 21/25/26 on turn 2 - make sure you can power 3 on turn 3, as that should guarantee you can reach 5 cities on turn 4. This game shows that you can do this even if you power only 1 city for another turn - using a different resource from that of your big plant helps a lot here!
Meanwhile, amitss went for an efficiency-based strategy that often left them toward the top of the turn order. That's normally a losing position in 5P, but this one was different...
Later on i landed the 32 to pair with my 26 - not an ideal combination since both use oil, but 32 was way cheaper than 30 in the auction. Wish i could've landed the 31 that dropped at the end of that turn, though - that may have won it for me.
As is, the endgame got quite interesting. daroj already had 13 capacity, and amitss won the auction for the 20 to also reach 13 capacity. Meanwhile i was sitting at 12 cap but could've bought a plant like 19 to reach 14. The problem was that i was just short of ending the game if i did that, so i figured i was better off hoping for one more turn so i could use my capacity advantage to win. In the end amitss opted to end the game, correctly figuring out that they had a lot more money than daroj. Even building an extra 2 cities, it was an easy win. Guess i should've bought a plant and built to 14, but then i think i lose next turn anyway.
5P games get stereotyped as "buy two big plants early and end it before Step 3", but this was a case where money won out. Not unlike the previous 5er i posted here, so i think there's still work to be done in understanding this format at a high level.
If you'd like to learn more about Power Grid, please check my blog for strategy articles on each power plant as well as a guide to 2-player games:
maninmotiongoingnowhere.wordpress.com/power-grid-strategy-individual-plant-articles
