An eternal conflict for the land of Ironwood is raging between two factions: the stalwart and hard-working Ironclad, settlers of the iron mountains; and the ferocious Woodwalkers, swift and deadly shadows of the forests. Both factions struggle for the ultimate control over the land for its greatest treasure: the Larimor Crystals, a mysterious substance holding immense energy within. It can be found both inside the colossal mountains and scattered across the dense forests.
The Ironclad extract the essence of the crystals and process their energy to fuel their machines and mechanical inventions. If they succeed, their giant forges will swarm the land with endless armies, and establish ultimate dominance over Ironwood.
The Woodwalkers use the crystals’ raw magical power to discover and retrieve three ancient totems from secret ritual sites, hidden in the mountains. Once retrieved, the combined power of these totems will summon the Guardian, the ancient protector of the woods, to wipe out the Ironclad once and for all.
One way or another, the eternal conflict is finally coming to an end.
Ironwood is a rules-light, highly asymmetric, card-driven tactical game for 1-2 players. Each round, you and your opponent alternate playing a total of 3 of your faction-specific cards for their action effects. These effects include positioning your warbands, initiating combat, extracting crystals, bestowing temporary passive effects, and many more. When combat occurs, you will use the same cards for their combat values instead, in a simultaneous bid to gain combat bonuses, inflict and fend off casualties, and augment the Dominance value of your warbands to win the combat.
The two factions are completely asymmetric in their play styles, decks, victory conditions - even in which parts of the map they can access.
As the Commander of the Ironclad, your primary goal is to lay down the foundations of your forges in the outer mountains, and once you have collected enough crystals, build forges on the foundations. As the Chieftain of the Woodwalkers, your mission is to locate your people’s ancient totems through Vision cards, clear the path to them by defeating Ironclad warbands, and finally securing them in the outer forests, beyond the Ironclads’ reach. Once you have retrieved the third totem as the Chieftain, or built the third Forge as the Commander, you immediately win the game.
Ironwood also features a low-upkeep solo mode against the Ironclad or the Woodwalkers. Although both solo opponents work on the same main principles, each of them bears its faction’s unique aspects and features.
Vie for the favor of the gods in the Trojan War struggle between Hector and Achilles.
Iliad is a tile-placement strategy game for two-players by Reiner Knizia. On your turn, select one of two tiles from your hand and place it onto the board adjacent to an opponent's tile. Both players have symmetrical pools of tiles, with their strength ranging from 1-5, along with the Dolos tile that mimics your opponent's adjacent tiles. The key to victory lies behind the relentless tension of where and when to commit your tiles. When placing a tile, you may also activate the tile's ability, which can serve to turn the tide of war.
As the fighting and turmoil subsides, the two remaining candidates vie for control of the newly established Senate Chambers and attempt to secure the power to rule Oshra peacefully. They do so by offering influential Heroes a position in their secret Council of Leaders. Whoever builds the strongest influence, will win.
GameplayIn 7 turns, players manipulate the two rows of Heroes and secretly ask some of them into their Council of Leaders.
Setup
Shuffle the Hero and Leader cards.
Deal each player 3 Hero cards (to be kept secret).
Deal each player 1 Leader card (to be kept secret) and add it to your Council
Create 2 rows of 7 face-down Hero cards on the table (so that only their faction will be visible, but not their strength).
Create a face-down draw pile of the remaining 8 Hero cards and place it next to the 2 Hero card rows.
Leave space for a face-down Council of Hero cards for each player (to be kept secret).
GameplayPlay in turns. When it is your turn:
Take 2 heroes from either of the 2 rows on the table and put them in your hand. You can take any hero you want (face up or face down) as long as the hero is not blocked or blocking another hero.
Now put 2 cards from your hand back into the open slots in the rows you just created. Put the cards back face up (so that their strength is shown). You can play any heroes you like, even the 2 heroes you just took.
Take 1 card from your hand and either:
Add it face down to your secret council of leaders. You can have as many leaders as you want, but do note that the strength of these leaders will not count towards your final score.
Place it face down (so that their strength is not visible) on top of an unblocked hero in one of the rows to block it. Place it such that the faction and strength (if face up) of the hero below it can still be seen.
Finally, draw 1 card from the draw pile. If there are no more cards on the draw pile, skip
this step. The game ends when both players have emptied their hands after 7 turns each.
ScoringTo determine the final score, proceed as follows:
Reveal your Leader and Heroes in your Council
Then, consider each of the 4 factions (Imperial Army - red, Hill Tribes - green, Water Folk - blue, Undead - black) separately in no specific order:
Determine the total Influence per faction, adding together all values of 1 faction . If applicable, also add your Leader’s value to the total Influence.
See who has the highest total Influence of the chosen faction. Now check which of the 2 rows of heroes has the most Heroes of this faction. The player with the highest total Influence will get all Heroes from this row (face up, face down, blocked, and blocking) and add them to their Army. The other player will get the heroes from the other row. In case of a tie, either because the Council of both players have equal Influence or because there is an equal number of Heroes in both rows, players will take the Heroes from the row closest to them.
If a player has no Leader or Heroes of the chosen faction under consideration, the heroes from the row they obtained will be discarded.
Discard all cards in the Council. They don't count towards the final score.
Each player counts the total Strength of Heroes in their Army. The player with the highest total Strength wins and becomes the new Emperor. In case of a tie, the player with more Heroes in their Army wins. If there is still a tie, a rematch is due.
General Orders: World War II pits competing commanders against each other in a tug of war for control over a crucial Second World War battlefield, either in the mountains of Italy or the islands of the Pacific. Players strive to seize crucial strategic assets that unlock special abilities, and prevent their opponents doing the same.
Balance the desire to gain these advantages with the need to secure supply lines, ward off aerial assault and artillery barrages, and protect your vulnerable headquarters in this compact and elegant two-player game.
Welcome to ArleIn Fields of Arle, created by Uwe Rosenberg, one to two players live as farmers in the small and peaceful town of Arle in East Frisia. The flax grown in the land surrounding the village makes it a profitable place to work and live. Fields of Arle takes players through four and a half years of this era of prosperity, with different opportunities available as the seasons change. Farm the land to capitalize on the demand for flax, or find other ways to make the most of the small town’s prosperity.
Work the LandWhether you delve into flax farming or leverage other areas of expertise, always make sure that you have the land to build up your village. Construct dikes to keep the waters at bay and expand your fields. Dry out bogs to harvest peat and then clear the land for cultivation. Create more fields for your livestock, buildings, or future crops; after that, you can decide whether to house animals or cultivate a forest for timber. Perhaps you’d like to take up some flax farming for yourself, or diversify and try out a little bit of everything.
Tools of the TradeAt the outset of each half year, you’ll choose how you’d like to spend that time working. There are many ways to build your fortune. Use the Master space to increase the tools at your disposal, focus on the Cattle Trainer to make the most of your livestock, or build up your fleet of vehicles and ship out goods. Taking stock of your progress differs depending on the season. You may milk your existing livestock or care for a bunch of newborn animals. You could harvest your flax in the fall, and shear your sheep in spring. At the end of each half year, you’ll need to take stock of your progress by unloading your vehicles and feeding your family and animals, so keep an eye on the season and do your best to keep the farm growing and everyone well fed!
Travel and ProsperOnce you’ve made headway in clearing fields and stocking up goods, it's time to make your products available to potential buyers. The more vehicles you have, the more goods you can ship. Send things into the wide world to increase your Travel Experience and grant you points over the course of the four and a half years of the game. Build up your farm and your vehicles and get your goods out into the world to make the most of every season. There are many roads to success in Fields of Arle, so pick your path, work the land, and enjoy the friendly competition as you strive to make your fortune!
ENTHRONE is a two-player abstract deduction game of intrigue and strategy. Manipulate pawns, conceal your identity, and outwit your rival to seize the throne!
A deceptively cute, deceivingly challenging abstract strategy game for two players.
Every time you place a kitten on the bed, it goes “boop”. Which is to say that it pushes every other kitten next to it one space away. Line up three kittens in a row to graduate them into cats… and then, get three cats in a row to win.
But that isn’t easy with both you AND your opponent constantly “booping” kittens around. It’s like... herding cats!Can you “boop” your cats into position to win?Or will you just get “booped” right off the bed?
Approachable but challenging abstract game. Plays in 20 to 30 minutes.
Features a quilted, fabric board that lays over the back of the box, completing the miniature bed playing surface. 8 wood kittens and cats per player - 32 adorable cat pieces in all!
