Bardwood Grove (Kickstarter – Deluxe Edition)
Contents - Description
Bardwood Grove is a tableau-composition euro game where each player assumes the role of a fantastical Bard. Set in The Five Realms universe (Merchants Cove, Rise to Nobility, Cavern Tavern), players will adventure to the Halfling Realm, the home to the finest, highly-talented, and most-legendary Bards of all the land.
As Bards, players will manage a unique tempo dial mechanism to build temporary Song tableaus from your deck, while exploring and activating locations around the lush woodland city. Each Bard starts with asymmetric skill decks that match their style, such as the Bardbarian, Sword Dancer, and Wardrummer. Learn new Bardic skills, tell tales and perform gigs, soothe the dissonant creatures invading the Grove, and contend with other Bards for the most Glory and Fame. Once all Glory has been collected, the Bard with the most combined Glory and Fame wins!
Each turn, players draw two cards from their unique skill deck and play one to their Story (discard pile) for instant benefits, while the other is added to their Song (tableau). Bardwood Grove challenges players to carefully craft their Song tableaus, coordinating them with their Composition cycle that governs how frequently they sing. As players strategically use resources to upgrade their decks, Songs will release powerful combos and allow players to interact with multiple locations. This creates a unique ebb and flow to the game, as players build their songs, and then decide when and where to sing them.
Rumor has it that Bardwood Grove is full of hidden secrets. As the game is played and decisions are made, players will unlock content and evolve the game naturally. An achievement system tied to the choices and performances of each game will guide players through a series of unlockable content. As new content emerges through each play, the game will provide players with new content that is based on unique outcomes and player decisions. Grove locations will change, additional Bardic skills can be unlocked, Bard decks become more powerful, new Bards arrive in town, and a variety of characters (both good and bad) can enter the game.
Unravel the mysteries of Bardwood Grove!
Additional information
| Ages | 14+ |
|---|---|
| Players | Solo, 2 Players, 3 Players, 4 Players |
| Play Time | 60m – 90m |
| Designer | Carl Van Ostrand |
| Mechanics | Deck, Bag, and Pool Building, End Game Bonuses, Movement Points, Solo / Solitaire Game, Variable Player Powers |
| Theme | Card Game, Fantasy |
| Publisher | Final Frontier Games, Giant Roc, Super Meeple |
Video
Ratings
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adamw
After the first play, I do love the theme and presentation (for the most part - it does feel cluttered too) and have a pretty good feel for this game's vibe. I think the juice is not worth the squeeze here - lots of mechanisms stuck all over. Like different currencies to check and manage - this one to buy cards, that one to buy monsters, etc. Some are temporary, some are not. Cards of differing types - one goes over here and then into the discard, others on top of your deck. Some used instantly, others delayed. Event cards are just more to remember plus an ever increasing, slathered on display of end game scoring. The game loop was intriguing, but odd. Playing your song (the main event of the game) was very long indeed - up to 4 actions plus evaluating the best way to use many cards. It made for a lumpy experience - extremely fast turns followed by a very long turn. The game ran slow as a result. With all that, I haven't even begun to open the many expansion/enhancement boxes!
Kelley_D
Have about 4 plays, so still pretty fresh, but with new content being added from more plays, feels like it will stay interesting for a while. For me it hits a nice spot of not complex, but some good decisions and some really fun combos when you build your song tableau and time your movement, stones and card tableau just right for a big turn. Unlocking new bards and new mechanics is a fun way to introduce new rules and complexity. It seems a little overwhelming at the beginning just to know: where should I go, what should I do first? But after 1 play, or during first play, it comes together nicely. I love art by The Mico, so that’s a bonus for me!
mercopparis
[b]----Evaluation----[/b] [b]Presentation: [/b] 4/5: Art & Graphic Design 6/6: Components 5/7: Theme & Integration [b]Total = 15/18[/b] [b]Logistics: [/b] 5/7: Effort to Learn 5/7: Shelf-Space 5/8: Avoids Content Bloat 7/10: Setup & Teardown [b]Total = 22/32[/b] [b]Gameplay: [/b] 5/6: Rewards Skill 7/8: Length & Commitment 9/10: Flow & Arc 9/11: Experience Variability 13/15: Satisfying Decisions [b]Total = 43/50[/b] [u][b]GRAND TOTAL = 80/100[/u][/b] [b]----Comments----[/b] These are my thoughts on the deluxe version, and only with the base game - no unluckables yet. If you love sequencing in games, Bardwood Grove is for you. And that "you" is me, because it's one of my favorite things to do; get a bunch of resources/actions, and figure out how to sort them in the most rewarding way. I don't know if Concordia is a direct inspiration, but there are similar mechanics here. The motif tiles work like the Prefect, which is a great addition. The deck building also has a similar pace, although the details are quite a bit different. It's one of the more interesting things in Bardwood actually, because there are 4 (I think?) different types of cards, all working in harmony (pun time) together. You want each type because they all do great things, but you'll have to be choosey because you can't do everything. Which is critical to long-term enjoyment. If I accomplish almost everything every time I play, what's the point of returning? I want to explore different strategies and try to decipher the puzzle the game presents. AP is mostly a personal problem, but games can definitely invite the issue in. This is right on the cusp of being too much, especially with more players. 3P is probably the sweet spot I imagine. You can preplan your turns a bit, but other players will affect it a bit. As for other comparisons besides Concordia, I'd say Alexander Pfister comes to mind. He also makes those mid-tempo based deck builders, like GWT, Cloudage, Blackout Hong Kong, etc. Revive or Endless Winter maybe? Those comparisons are based on the deckbuilding aspect. Movement wise, there are probably a lot as it's worker movement (not placement) on a grid. Ship movement is kind of like Stroganov, in that it resets movement fairly often. Anyway, this game took forever to deliver. I originally backed it to get the Merchant's Cove materials, but I don't even own that game anymore (at this point). However, I'm glad I have it as it's been a joy so far. I look forward to unlocking more content, which is an element I like (speaking of Pfister and Revive...).