@@freedom2663 only he can answer but from what I understand in his other videos he doesn’t sleep much and works a lot. :) sometimes he u boxes at 1 am. Somehow he always has high energy.
Great review. Big box for a deck building game. Anyway, I think there is more to this game than you give it credit. It is not only about creating a better deck (though it is very important), but also how wisely you use those resources and what combos you can generate with your deck. It is also about balancing the need to build your engine (deck + cities) with battling both dragon and opponent. Anyway, I look forward to trying it out. Thanks for the review!
"Difficult to track all these resources and what you're spending." All my deck builders have Magic The Gathering Spindown dice for this reason. They're D20s, but the numbers are arranged to find numbers quicker. Even if you don't play MTG, those dice can be picked up for pretty cheap and are a huge asset to deck builders with a lot of resources. I may check out the original game
I'm curious how Alex feels about the added text in the Solo expansion Monster cards, and in the text found in the Ploy expansion box. Ploy rules draft will be coming out on July 19th, so I guess it may take a little more time for an opinion unless he got an early prototype. Thanks to Alex for mentioning the size of this box, I think it's just too large for me for mostly 2 player games that I expect to play. But I love the thickness and look of the player mats, so I think I will consider getting them.
Thanks for the review. I watched a few play-through but your review confirms what I saw and what i was after, an easily accessible deckbuilder. My other half doesn't like complex games so this was just what I was after. PS Did I miss the disclaimer? :oD
Regarding the physical footprint of this supposed to be small deck builder: it's smaller, if you go for the regular box without the extra storage, playmats and so on.. it is roughly like the boxes of the tiny epic series (as far as I can tell). Not sure if the token box fits in there though..
The token box should be separate. I think it’s approximately the same size as the base game box, which is approximately 1.5x the size of a standard Magic Thd Gathering deck box
I have both Mysthea and Icaion. They both have the same issues that this seems to have. It seems like Tabula Games tries to appeal to an international market and save costs while doing so. This winds up making what could be great games into solid, but lackluster experiences. I still enjoyed them though. On the flip side though, it does prevent having those singular game-breaking cards.
I completely agree with the criticism of games that give you lots of resources, and no way to track them. I solve this the old MTG way - keep a few D20’s on hand and use them to count.
Alex, I didn't think you were much into these kinds of games, so surprised to see this one almost grabbing a 4. Would you still recommend Ausonia over it?
Couple of things that I don't think is that clear on the kickstarter page. Do you need the original game? Does it have the same cards, just more? What is the benefit of having the original + the new one? For a head to head game, couldn't it end up being too many cards to cycle through?
It doesn’t need the base game, it’s a standalone product. It has totally different cards, plus new mechanisms. If you get the big box with “all-in” you also get two mini-expansions with more cards themed around new mechanisms. It’s a two player game. If you want to play with 4 players, you need 2 base game decks or one base deck and a Guilds deck. I don’t know if there will also be 6-player game modes which will require 2 base games + Guilds. Having a bunch of cards means you’ll hardly cycle through all of them in a single game. That means replay value and adapting your strategy to what the market is offering.
More precisely, the Volfyrion’s Lair, cities and base decks cards are exactly the same as the original game, including the artwork. The troop, building and command cards in Guilds are all different from those in the base game, so you can mix them when playing a 4-player game and you’ll have a broader selection of cards, unlike what happens if you were to shuffle together two core game decks.
Nice review, i've already backed the game, but i have a question: so the main difference between Volfyirion and volfyirion Guilds is some additional cards and mechanics, right? You say that tokens are also part of the game, but it seems to me, that you have buy them addionally even with the the most expensive backing option. Or am i wrong?
What deck building/tableau builder would u recommend as the best? I love the flashy tokens, mats and deluxe look, but agree with your ctitiques which make the game a no go for me :(
For small box games, I like the original Valley of the Kings series if you want deck-building as a focus. For tableau building, I like Oh My Goods (and the expansions).
I had a lot of fun with star realms (which was mentioned as well). It's fast, cheap, easy-ish to learn (just have to learn basic iconography) and has variety if you get the commanders or scenarios.. It get's samey once you know the cards (hence commanders and scenarios) but I still like to pop it out for a chilled experience. I think I have something like 50-80 games under my belt and many gamers around me like it.
Star/Hero Realms is really nice but i also like Terrors of London, even if the campaign was a mess. The game actually is nice and my favorite deckbuilder with tableu aspect is tyrants of the underdark which will get a 2nd edition soon.
It’s called “knowledge”. Not magic, not influence, not any other fancy word. It’s knowledge. I know that ultimately it’s just a word, you can easily play the game with red, blue and purple resources as that matters, but every single tiny bit of abstraction is ultimately not helping in getting into the game. I mean: if I would abstract any Lacerda game, I would probably play none of them. I know that in the end every single game is just a bunch of mechanisms, but I think it’s essential to try our best to stick to the names and flavor created by the devs because that tremendously help making a game click. Honestly I’ve seen games with much more complex to track resources
I don't disagree on having games that have more complicated resources, for me the specific issue I had with the original, before they had these tokens, is that the complexity to track didn't line up with the depth of the game. This is a simple quick game to me, if you take away the simple and quick then it loses part of why I wanted to begin with.
@@BoardGameCo yeah I can totally understand that. I just don’t see it THAT complicated to track 3 resources, since each one has its own pretty straightforward use: battle for attacking and getting wonders, command for getting new cards from the market, knowledge to manipulate wonders. To me it’s not that different from resources in “vanilla” deck builders like Ascension or Star Realms and the depth in Star Realms is very relatable to Volfyrion’s in my opinion. Maybe Guilds will give you additional “mods” to play with and make the game more attractive 😉
Huh, funny that they didn't amplify the use of knowledge in any way. I enjoy the back-and-forth of turning wonders or whatever they're called (since you usually do need to make calls of which ones to flip), but I was sooo sure an expansion would add a new mechanic of some sort for it. One example could've been using it for a Path of Light & Shadow -esque promotion system.
I feel that the lack of text isn't necessary a con... I feel that it's language Independent so you Just need a PDF rulebook to understand the game, plus there Is no RAW - RAI difference and maybe, no OP elemenrs
If we, collectively, want better games to be created, money needs to go where there's real innovation and awesomeness. I can accept 3/5, so very relieved you're not as bought and paid for as certain others, but still. There's a bit too much if/but stuff in here for me. Be truthful and harsh, and people will love you for it. If you're not you might make the game companies like you a bit more, but the community eventually won't. It's a decent deck builder, I agree. I own it and have played it quite a bit, however its redeeming features imo is that it's really small, easy to transport, simple mechanics-wise/easy to teach and pretty forgiving (i.e usually let's you do _something_). However there are a lot of really good deck-builders out there. A lot. The more you add on top of this one, the less table-time it will see for everyone except some hardcore Mysthea fanatics. You still get a thumbs up, however I was hovering over that other one for a bit when you did the 4/5 schtick, unsure of myself and sweating nervously :P
Man you produce content faster than I can consume it. Ur a machine. Do take rest if you need.
I think Alex is a robot and Rina just feeds instruction books into a slot in Alex and she hits play and me makes the video. Rina Is a puppet master.
@@freedom2663 only he can answer but from what I understand in his other videos he doesn’t sleep much and works a lot. :) sometimes he u boxes at 1 am. Somehow he always has high energy.
Soooo, this is the same is the OG, but with tokens
Great review. Big box for a deck building game.
Anyway, I think there is more to this game than you give it credit. It is not only about creating a better deck (though it is very important), but also how wisely you use those resources and what combos you can generate with your deck. It is also about balancing the need to build your engine (deck + cities) with battling both dragon and opponent. Anyway, I look forward to trying it out. Thanks for the review!
Excellent review, very thorough. Thank you for being honest and direct with your Pros and Cons.
Another plus for backing this game, is the free bonuses you get if you backed any of their earlier games
"Difficult to track all these resources and what you're spending."
All my deck builders have Magic The Gathering Spindown dice for this reason. They're D20s, but the numbers are arranged to find numbers quicker. Even if you don't play MTG, those dice can be picked up for pretty cheap and are a huge asset to deck builders with a lot of resources. I may check out the original game
I'm curious how Alex feels about the added text in the Solo expansion Monster cards, and in the text found in the Ploy expansion box. Ploy rules draft will be coming out on July 19th, so I guess it may take a little more time for an opinion unless he got an early prototype. Thanks to Alex for mentioning the size of this box, I think it's just too large for me for mostly 2 player games that I expect to play. But I love the thickness and look of the player mats, so I think I will consider getting them.
Thanks for the review. I watched a few play-through but your review confirms what I saw and what i was after, an easily accessible deckbuilder. My other half doesn't like complex games so this was just what I was after.
PS Did I miss the disclaimer? :oD
Nice review, thx for your work.
What's your fav deck builder?
Hard question...I'd have to think about it but offhand games like mage knight, quest for el dorado, dominion etx
Regarding the physical footprint of this supposed to be small deck builder: it's smaller, if you go for the regular box without the extra storage, playmats and so on.. it is roughly like the boxes of the tiny epic series (as far as I can tell). Not sure if the token box fits in there though..
The token box should be separate. I think it’s approximately the same size as the base game box, which is approximately 1.5x the size of a standard Magic Thd Gathering deck box
nice review and the game look interesting and the art is somehow cool. I need to dig more to the game to choose, is it on TTS?
I have both Mysthea and Icaion. They both have the same issues that this seems to have. It seems like Tabula Games tries to appeal to an international market and save costs while doing so. This winds up making what could be great games into solid, but lackluster experiences. I still enjoyed them though. On the flip side though, it does prevent having those singular game-breaking cards.
Have you gotten to Mysthea yet? Pleassss I need a good video of that game.
Thanks Alex! What do you think of Ausonia, especially for 3-4 players?
I like it with 2, willing to play but not in a rush to play at more.
This looks pretty fun and the price is better than I expected it to be when I looked at it...
Yes! I agree on the price.
I completely agree with the criticism of games that give you lots of resources, and no way to track them. I solve this the old MTG way - keep a few D20’s on hand and use them to count.
Alex, I didn't think you were much into these kinds of games, so surprised to see this one almost grabbing a 4. Would you still recommend Ausonia over it?
Couple of things that I don't think is that clear on the kickstarter page. Do you need the original game? Does it have the same cards, just more? What is the benefit of having the original + the new one? For a head to head game, couldn't it end up being too many cards to cycle through?
It doesn’t need the base game, it’s a standalone product. It has totally different cards, plus new mechanisms. If you get the big box with “all-in” you also get two mini-expansions with more cards themed around new mechanisms. It’s a two player game. If you want to play with 4 players, you need 2 base game decks or one base deck and a Guilds deck. I don’t know if there will also be 6-player game modes which will require 2 base games + Guilds. Having a bunch of cards means you’ll hardly cycle through all of them in a single game. That means replay value and adapting your strategy to what the market is offering.
More precisely, the Volfyrion’s Lair, cities and base decks cards are exactly the same as the original game, including the artwork. The troop, building and command cards in Guilds are all different from those in the base game, so you can mix them when playing a 4-player game and you’ll have a broader selection of cards, unlike what happens if you were to shuffle together two core game decks.
Nice review, i've already backed the game, but i have a question: so the main difference between Volfyirion and volfyirion Guilds is some additional cards and mechanics, right? You say that tokens are also part of the game, but it seems to me, that you have buy them addionally even with the the most expensive backing option. Or am i wrong?
i think Guilds is an add on? looking on KS apparantly if you have original Volf you can play an additional mode or two
What deck building/tableau builder would u recommend as the best? I love the flashy tokens, mats and deluxe look, but agree with your ctitiques which make the game a no go for me :(
You tried Lord of the Rings the Card Game?
For small box games, I like the original Valley of the Kings series if you want deck-building as a focus. For tableau building, I like Oh My Goods (and the expansions).
I had a lot of fun with star realms (which was mentioned as well). It's fast, cheap, easy-ish to learn (just have to learn basic iconography) and has variety if you get the commanders or scenarios..
It get's samey once you know the cards (hence commanders and scenarios) but I still like to pop it out for a chilled experience. I think I have something like 50-80 games under my belt and many gamers around me like it.
Star/Hero Realms is really nice but i also like Terrors of London, even if the campaign was a mess. The game actually is nice and my favorite deckbuilder with tableu aspect is tyrants of the underdark which will get a 2nd edition soon.
@@C42ST3N is not the first time that someone point to Tyrans of the underdark is it so good? When there will be the expansion?
It’s called “knowledge”. Not magic, not influence, not any other fancy word. It’s knowledge. I know that ultimately it’s just a word, you can easily play the game with red, blue and purple resources as that matters, but every single tiny bit of abstraction is ultimately not helping in getting into the game.
I mean: if I would abstract any Lacerda game, I would probably play none of them.
I know that in the end every single game is just a bunch of mechanisms, but I think it’s essential to try our best to stick to the names and flavor created by the devs because that tremendously help making a game click.
Honestly I’ve seen games with much more complex to track resources
I don't disagree on having games that have more complicated resources, for me the specific issue I had with the original, before they had these tokens, is that the complexity to track didn't line up with the depth of the game. This is a simple quick game to me, if you take away the simple and quick then it loses part of why I wanted to begin with.
@@BoardGameCo yeah I can totally understand that. I just don’t see it THAT complicated to track 3 resources, since each one has its own pretty straightforward use: battle for attacking and getting wonders, command for getting new cards from the market, knowledge to manipulate wonders. To me it’s not that different from resources in “vanilla” deck builders like Ascension or Star Realms and the depth in Star Realms is very relatable to Volfyrion’s in my opinion.
Maybe Guilds will give you additional “mods” to play with and make the game more attractive 😉
Definitely looking at the 16 euro small box version.
Except that that's just for retail and not including anything from the campaign while having less box quality (tuckbox).. 😕
@@norbertspie8157 sometimes we have to get the game that fits us even if another one is better.
Oh hey! Here's hoping this is as good as the base game.
Huh, funny that they didn't amplify the use of knowledge in any way. I enjoy the back-and-forth of turning wonders or whatever they're called (since you usually do need to make calls of which ones to flip), but I was sooo sure an expansion would add a new mechanic of some sort for it. One example could've been using it for a Path of Light & Shadow -esque promotion system.
I feel that the lack of text isn't necessary a con... I feel that it's language Independent so you Just need a PDF rulebook to understand the game, plus there Is no RAW - RAI difference and maybe, no OP elemenrs
Too bad, I line deck builders but this just doesn't look like anything I'd want to play over hero realms, clank!, Legendary 🤷🏻♂️
Yep, it's definitely competing in the same space as hero really and the like.
If we, collectively, want better games to be created, money needs to go where there's real innovation and awesomeness. I can accept 3/5, so very relieved you're not as bought and paid for as certain others, but still. There's a bit too much if/but stuff in here for me. Be truthful and harsh, and people will love you for it. If you're not you might make the game companies like you a bit more, but the community eventually won't.
It's a decent deck builder, I agree. I own it and have played it quite a bit, however its redeeming features imo is that it's really small, easy to transport, simple mechanics-wise/easy to teach and pretty forgiving (i.e usually let's you do _something_). However there are a lot of really good deck-builders out there. A lot. The more you add on top of this one, the less table-time it will see for everyone except some hardcore Mysthea fanatics.
You still get a thumbs up, however I was hovering over that other one for a bit when you did the 4/5 schtick, unsure of myself and sweating nervously :P
Yep, I like deck builders...this does some things better than others but not enough to hit 4.... although it can get better with expansions