Clash of Clans - Why do I keep playing?

Due to the business of life, I haven't played any boardgames lately.  However, there is one game that I still play regularly, Clash of Clans. 

I have been playing Clash of Clans (CoC) for a quite a while now, and for a period I was really into it.  I was in a clan with my brother, which one of his friends had started.  We were buys in clan wars, having one going almost all the time.  It was a good clan to play with, helping each other out and working together relatively well in wars.  The problem I started to find is that playing at that pace takes a lot of commitment.  During the "fight" days of a war, I had to be on at least twice to attack (which was pretty close to every other day).  A war that didn't go our way was a losing proposition in terms of resources, so I had to farm to keep up my armies.  And then farm on top of that to actually have some improvements for my base.  I decided that this was too much, and scaled back my playing time.

I decided to try only playing once a day, just to keep my base up, in case I decided that I wanted to play more seriously again.  I figured that within a month or two I would either get bored and stop playing all together, or get back into it, even if not quite as much as before.  Instead I have found that I am having fun playing it once a day, with the occasional day I miss and the occasional day I play a second or third time.  Instead of being worried about wars, I just raid when I am on.  It takes a lot longer to build up enough resources for upgrades, but they are slowly coming.  I found that the strategy of keeping my town hall out and vulnerable (see previous post) along with a defense around all my resources means that often enough people just attack me for the trophies and leave my resources alone.  Of course this doesn't happen all the time, but enough that the resources alone (without raiding) is a slow net gain.

My Current Clash of Clans Base



I am also finding it surprisingly fun to plan and execute raids; when I was playing a lot these were more of a requirement than a fun part of the game.  Now I look for people I can get a big gain off of, or a base that seems interesting to attack, or just someone I think has too many trophies.  I can choose depending on my mood at the time! 

Take today for instance; within a few clicks I found a target with a good amount of resources to take, and a decent base, making it a more tactical attack than is sometimes required.

My Target Today

 I decided to try and go in from the top and used all of my spells (which I often don't use due to the cost of making more), and was relatively successful.

My Target's Base Near the End

 Although this attack cost me more than normal, the loot I gained was significantly more than the elixir cost, plus all the gold and dark elixir too.

Gained Loot!

I am glad I scaled back my playing time, so it is now a joy instead of a commitment.  I only play a few minutes most days, but it has become a part of my regular morning routine.