Sky Team Review: Prepare for Landing

Pilot tasks:

Co-Pilot tasks:

Did you notice that, besides your joint tasks, neither of you can land the plane without the other? That's what's cool about Sky Team!

You'll play together in the following way: players can talk to one another before they roll their dice to review landing strategies, that is, what they'll do. After this, they'll both roll their dice (4 each) in secret (behind a player's shield), and, from then on, both will have to focus on their actions and can't talk anymore. You'll need a lot of focus. This is one of the game's rules: you each have a set of tasks to complete, and the right time to do them.

You can only put your dice in two places: the axis (to keep the plane in the right landing position) and the engine (to control your speed). So, each player will only have 2 dice left to do their own tasks, and there are a lot of them.

Oh, and I haven't said yet, but the numbers you get on your dice (1 to 6) influence your actions, obviously. Each result affects the game differently depending on where you place them. For instance: for the engine, the pilot's and the co-pilot's dice, together, indicate the speed of the plane and thus how fast it goes (or not) to the airport.

Dice in the axis work like a tug-o-war. The difference between the pilot and the co-pilot's dice indicates how inclined the plane's axis is, and thus how "turbulent" the flight is.

Deploying the landing gear is a pilot's responsibility (as we mentioned before), and you can do it at any time, but you'll need to roll 3 certain numbers on your dice. Deploying and regulating the flaps works similarly, but it is a co-pilot responsibility (as we mentioned before), and you'll need to go through 4 stages in a certain order and get certain values on your dice. It isn't easy to be a co-pilot!

You'll also have to go through a certain order and get certain values on your dice to activate your brakes, and it's up to the pilot to control them, stop after you land, and not go beyond the track.

The value on your dice also indicates where the plane is in the air traffic. That's how the control tower can communicate with you and clear the traffic on your approach path. This is crucial! I'll stress that the co-pilot can communicate with the control tower twice per turn, which is one more than the pilot, who'll obviously have to focus on other activities.

The only task that doesn't involve dice is preparing coffee, and that makes sense in the game, as maybe you get a number on your dice that makes no sense anywhere else. You'll just spend them on coffee. Coffee helps you mitigate your dice RNG as well, considering you can prepare up to 3 cups of coffee, and, when you use it (take it), each cup lets you change the number on your dice by 1 (either more or less). That's really helpful!

Well, now that you know you need to put dice in the engine and the axis, and you have to manage the others as pilot and co-pilot without talking to each other (because you need to focus), it's up to you to land the plan together.

I'll stress that the numbers you get from your dice count from the minute you place them somewhere (I lost some matches because of this). That means, if you put 2 dice in the engine speed and that makes you go towards the airport, the plane will move right then. If you only warned the control tower about your moves afterward, and there's a plane in your approach path, you will collide and lose. So, pay attention to this. In Sky Team, the order of the factors does alter the results!

Engine speed also interacts with the plane's axis; if you change the axis beyond what the plane can take, you'll lose control and crash it. So, place your 4 dice carefully!

That's a Sky Team turn!

You'll only have 6 turns until the plane gets to the right altitude to land. Therefore, you need to get to the airport by then because if you get to the airport too fast, at the wrong altitude, you'll have to hoover the airport until you get into the proper altitude, and control (quite heavily) your speed.

At this moment, that is, when you see the airport and are at the right altitude, that's the last moment you'll have to do anything (in the right order) to not mess up the landing procedures. Clear the air traffic (and make sure there are no other planes in your approach path), set the plane's axis (no inclination), deploy your landing gear, activate your flaps, and slow your speed until it's less than your brakes.

If you meet all of these conditions, victory! Otherwise, it's over for you and your partner as pilot and co-pilots. You'll either go beyond the track (as you won't be able to use your brakes), crash with the track because your axis is wrong, or can't deploy your landing gear, or activate the flaps. Or worse, you'll lose altitude far away from the airport and have to do an emergency landing that will kill all passengers.

In Sky Team, you either win or die! It's that simple!

Get ready for incredibly stressful and focused moments - it's a good type of "stress", and actually is one of the game's features.

It may seem like you don't get to play much: you only have 4 dice per turn, and you have to place them somewhere. However, it's not like that in practice. You know, as well as your partner, what you need to do, but each number you get on the dice affects the way you play, and not knowing what your partner got makes everything more exciting.

The engine and the axis, which rely on both players simultaneously, are the most critical aspects of the game, and messing them up is often how you lose the game.

Use your smallest numbers in the axis, as it has a limit. If you overload it, the plane will tip over and crash. Use your mid-to-high numbers in the engine, as you have to boost it, but not a lot, and get the plane to the airport.

It's not that simple, however: there are places (which we've mentioned before) that ask for specific numbers, and some even ask for a specific order. This means you can't get the dice you need that easily. Sky Team leans heavily on dice management, and relying on your partner's focus completely as well.

Obviously, a little bit of coffee goes a long way to mitigate this, but you only get to take 3 cups per turn, and you have to make it to consume it, so it's not that simple. I strongly recommend you make some coffee early on, and make more any time you can.

As the game only has 6 turns before you have to land your plane, be careful with your flaps; they need to go through 4 stages. This means, in the worst-case scenario, it might take 4 of your 6 turns. You'll also need to deploy your landing gear (3 stages) and your brakes.

I've lost many Sky Team matches because I messed up the order of my tasks. For instance, I lost because I boosted my engine and only afterward talked to the control tower. I couldn't clear the traffic and collided mid-flight.

Because I didn't have coffee, I've lost many matches, as my dice made me lose control of the plane once I put them on the plane's axis, and we crashed into the landing track. What I mean with all of this is that the order in which you do your tasks matters in Sky Team. Be careful with that!

Follow these tips and land your plane safely! That's the idea behind Sky Team!

Check out this unboxing:

Learn the rules:

Watch some gameplay:

If you want to show someone, like your kids, that teamwork is important and a part of life, that everyone has responsibilities, and that they need to control their stress and anxiety, Sky Team is perfect for you! Besides, obviously, teaching them some math and logic, as usual.

I've played many coop games in which the iconic "alpha player" called the shots, and bossed everyone around. Sky Team solves this issue by limiting the communication between players, so you'll need to work together. Your partner is important and you both actually do help each other, as both of you have crucial roles to play. Without them, you can't finish your tasks. That's quite a lesson!

Sky Team shows us what responsibilities are like, as there are tasks only one of you, in particular, can complete. That's great, as it makes everyone feel important, and active - your responsibility is crucial for the game. Your partner needs you, and if you don't play your part, you'll fail. This is great for your self-steam.

There are two features I consider critical in Sky Team: the axis and the engine. They are responsible for the most stressful moments in the game, and, obviously, give you a lot of anxiety, as both players need to set them to succeed. Controlling them is important. You need to put the right dice on them, as you can't put just any dice, and thus the number you get from your dice makes all the difference in the world. Learning how to make the right choice in tough situations is great for the game and our lives.

And, as usual, Sky Team also teaches you some math and logic, as the order you set your dice, that is, the logic you put them on the board is critical (I told you how I lost the game many times because of this). Their numbers are also essential, that is, to put the right number on the right spot. This is great for kids.

The main lessons in Sky Team are: learning how to work as a team, taking responsibilities, and keeping a cool head in tough situations. These skills make us all better!

I strongly recommend Sky Team for your collection!