Since I have only played on TTS (TableTopSimulator), I am not going to do a full breakdown of how the game works. Plus, it’s a prototype so things are subject to change, though the module on TTS is very solid. And the rules, hopefully shared immediately at launch are pretty good. So instead I’m going to jump into what did and didn’t work. I do talk about that some in a video below, though.

Edgeguard Preview Video

What Didn’t Work?

This is going to be a massive box game. Now that’s not a massive negative for me. Granted, I’d likely need to find more space on my Kallax by clearing out even more games. But when I see a big campaign game, I fully expect that it is going to take up a lot of space. For some people, who maybe don’t have a dedicated gaming space, that might make this harder to get.

Also, this is going to be a game where there is a fair amount of housekeeping to it. Set-up of finding the tiles will take time, finding the enemy tokens, minis and cards, and pulling out everything for your character. I am waiting on the Kickstarter to see how much of a big deal I think that will be. Mainly because I hope they are thinking about storage and how to make it as fast to the table as possible. Because, compared to other dungeon crawl games, this one can get you into and through a scenario pretty quickly.

Neither of these things are a big red flag for me though. In fact, both are issues that I expect for most campaign games. Especially if a game is going to have minis. And I don’t know, maybe there will be a standee version, but I suspect that most people would go with minis anyways.

What Works?

The Characters

Let’s start with the characters, the characters are very generic, and now that sounds like a negative. I actually maybe should mention that in there, but I’ll say it here now, they could be more exciting. But how the characters play, and I’ve only messed around with the different ones while I’ve played true solo, is different. The warrior does what they are supposed, same with the caster, the healer, the rogue and the ranger. Everyone plays in their archetype.

And to make that work, each class is going to have their own cards that build out your hand. What I really like about the cards is that they are powerful. For a caster, for example, you play a card that uses resources to blast everyone in a row, column, or diagonal from where you are. That is a great ability, but it costs when you do that, it costs to get it back and it costs to use it again. That is very fun, and when you level up, you unlock new card abilities to add to your hand. And you have to pass on others, though you can pay to swap them in.

The last with with the characters that is fun is that you can multiclass. In a lot of dungeon crawl games, or RPG like board games, you pick and class and go with it. In Edgeguard, you can change up the class you are playing. Granted, they can never overtake your main class, but it allows you to customize your character more so. The only other one I can think of off the top of my head is a light boss battler or dungeon crawler in Adventure Tactics. This one gives you more than that seems to.

The Enemies

I also really like how simple the enemies are to operate. There are campaign games where it takes a lot of work to get the enemies up and running. And while you do need to find the minis, place out tokens, find the cards for the enemies, their actual turns are pretty simple. And the enemy AI doesn’t change that much, except for when it does.

The enemies, like the players, have a chance to get a critical success. For the players that just means more damage, but for the enemies, that changes their behavior. The Shadow, Assassin, for example, if you get it’s third critical hit option has a shot to immediately take a character down to one hit point. Granted, that takes a little bit of luck. But if you are being swarmed by a number of bad guys and get hit by that, you are in big trouble.

Combat

As for combat itself, I appreciated how fast it went. When I play solo, some games can bog down in combat and set-up. Now, the game is going to take a chunk of time to set-up. And I’ll miss being able to click a button on TTS and have it do that for me. But at the same time, the combat itself is nice and straightforward. The game is simple to play, but has depth in the decision making space it gives you. So a nice sweet spot for me.

Mainly, going back to the cards, I appreciate how good the decisions are for what you do with the cards. The resources that you need to spend to do a more powerful spell or attack off of a card, that is a good choice. I know when I play RPG’s on the computer, I try not to be the person who just hordes every ability or potion just in case there’s a time I need it more. This game could run into that issue, but only because of players, with the cards that you play. But you can get them back, it just costs. So you don’t use them randomly, but also, you don’t want to horde them.

Who Is It For?

Edgeguard is going to be a game for people who love their campaign games. If that is what you play, and you have a dedicated space for it, it’d be a nice one to keep on the table for a while. I think that most people know if they are that, especially if they are looking to back a game on crowdfunding.

From my time with the game, and remember it’s been on TTS, I think that Edgeguard is probably more accessible than some dungeon crawlers. Yes, there is a fair amount going on with all the different stats that make it feel like more, but overall it was easy to follow what was going on. For that reason another group it’d be good for is the person introducing new people to dungeon crawlers. There will be some RPG elements that take a bit to learn, but the core dungeon crawl game play should be easy to pick-up.

My Thoughts On Edgeguard

I always like to finish up a little bit with my opinion. When I do what I don’t like and what I do like, I try and give detailed reasons for that or explain more of it. My thoughts, on the other hand, are going to be more of my opinion.

Edgeguard is hitting a pretty crowded market, and a crowd of games that are on my shelf. Now, that isn’t a bad thing, because I know I love the campaign genre of board games. And I know that I get to playing them. Whether it’s on Malts and Meeples YouTube Channel or with friends.

What drew me to Edgeguard is the epic look at that it had. But that isn’t always going to be enough to keep me looking at it. What is going to keep me checking this one out on Kickstarter is the simplicity of the game in the dungeon crawl. I know what groups I play campaigns with, and a little bit simpler one will be better for some groups. And even for groups who might not play campaign games with me normally.

So is it one for you? Well, if the card play sounds interesting and you are looking for your next big epic adventure, join me in checking out Edgeguard on Kickstarter.

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Pros

• Proven Game
• Proven Company
• Light-weight dungeon crawler
• Leveling Up
• Light-weight Story Game

Cons

• Light-weight Dungeon Crawler
• Light-weight Story Game
• No Base Game Only Pledge
• Too Many Minis

The Page

Letiman Games really burst onto the scene with Adventure Tactics: Domianne’s Tower not that long ago. The game got a ton of praise from the Dice Tower and other places. Mainly for two things, firstly it was a family weight dungeon crawler. So easy to play with younger kids, but still interesting for adults, and that is kind of hard to do. And then the leveling up system, but I’ll talk about that more later.

Now the page itself is good. Like I said, Letiman Games is an established company. They lay out things well and everything makes sense for the different goal levels. But I will knock them on two things with this page.

Firstly, there is no base game only pledge. I think there would be a lot of people who missed the first Kickstarter, maybe thought the game looked too simple, who would want to back it now. But that isn’t an option and over on the Letiman Games website, the base game is sold out as well. This Kickstarter is clearly doing well without that option. Lots of people are getting the expansion and the base game. But they could probably be getting more.

Secondly, all the minis. Now, it’s rare for me to say that minis are a bad thing. And I don’t know that they really are, but part of the charm of the game was that you have nice art for characters that made the game bright and pop. Now you still have those standees, but you can also get plain grey minis that you need to paint to make them look good. And not just for your hero but for the monsters. I think that a lot of people will get the minis, never paint them, and never play with them. I get it that they get more money, but the minis seem like a trap on this one.

The Game

The game, however, seems really cool. I’ve played a lot of dungeon crawls, and I like that this one is targeted for younger players. And I don’t feel like it loses much of anything for adults who are playing the game. With that said, I am not completely sure as an adult that I would want to get to game just for myself to play. Now, I do have a toddler, so eventually he will get roped into playing some games, but that’s several years down the line.

I like that turns are done via cards and dice. If it were only dice with a fixed amount of movement, I feel like that would make the game boring. If it were only cards, I might be fine with that, but I do like rolling a chunk of dice. I think for younger players rolling the dice is a lot of fun as well. Now, with having played Gloomhaven and Tainted Grail, I like combat without dice, but don’t mind dice in my combat.

And I love the leveling up system. The leveling up system is really the best part of the game I think. It is really simple, complete an battle, level up. That means you get a new card to add to your deck, and you can multiclass in this. I think that is where it’ll be really fun for adults. Now I create a hybrid of three different classes and get a prestige class opened to me, that is awesome. I wish more games gave you that option for leveling up your characters.

Back or Brick

So is this game a Back or Brick for me? Right now, Adventure Tactics: Adventures in Alchemy is a brick for me. I say that wanting to back the game. I really want to play the game as well. What is holding me back right now is that my toddler is two and a half. I won’t play this game with him for a long time. Sure I could play with friends, but do I want to spend over $100 on a game that I really want to play with my kid? I

f I were to back this game, I want there to be a base game only option. With that said, everyone seems to love this game, so back it if you know you you want to play it with. When it is back in stock, I will likely pick it up from Letiman Games webstore, but for now, I am passing on this game. And I hope that it makes it to a lot of FLGS’s from this Kickstarter. I love that they are putting it out there as a game for families, but not a game that is just a kids game.

Is Adventure Tactics: Adventures in Alchemy a back or a brick for you? What has sold you on it, or what it keeping you from backing it?

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