Viscounts of the West Kingdom
60m - 90m
1 - 4 Players
Ages 12+
60m - 90m
1 - 4 Players
Ages 12+
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Viscounts of the West Kingdom is set at a time when the King’s reign began to decline, circa 980 AD. Choosing peace over prosperity, our once strong King began offering our enemies gold and land to lay down their axes. But peace is a tenuous affair. As poverty spread, many people lost faith in his ability to lead and sought independence from the crown. Since finding favour in his courts, our future has also become uncertain. As viscounts, we must be wise and decisive. Loyalty is to be upheld, but gaining favour among the people must be our priority, should there be a sudden shift in power.
The aim of Viscounts of the West Kingdom is to be the player with the most victory points (VP) at game’s end. Points are gained by constructing buildings, writing manuscripts, working in the castle and acquiring deeds for new land. Players begin with a handful of townsfolk, but should quickly seek out more suitable talents to advance their endeavours. Each turn they will be travelling around the kingdom, looking to increase their influence among the various areas of society. The game ends once the Kingdom reaches poverty or prosperity – or potentially both!
—description from the publisher
| Ages | 12+ |
|---|---|
| Players | Solo, 2 Players, 3 Players, 4 Players |
| Play Time | 60m – 90m |
| Designer | S J Macdonald, Shem Phillips |
| Mechanics | Area Majority / Influence, Deck, Bag, and Pool Building, End Game Bonuses, Rondel, Solo / Solitaire Game, Hand Management, Modular Board, Set Collection, Variable Player Powers |
| Theme | Medieval |
| Publisher | Banana Games, CMON Global Limited, Fever Games, Lavka Games, Lord of Boards, MEEPLE, Mosaico Jogos, Pixie Games, Primigenio (Ediciones Primigenio), Schwerkraft-Verlag, TLAMA games, White Goblin Games, Yayoi The Dreamer, 株式会社ケンビル (KenBill), Garphill Games, Portal Games, Reflexshop, Renegade Game Studios |
Afram64
This one took me the longest to grok out of the 3 West Kingdom games (I think these productions have reached peak iconography levels, and the rulebook hurt my brain), but after a couple of plays this is definitely a keeper (I'm a solo gamer). Not yet sure where it ranks among the 3, but this is really good.
Albia
[size=16]❦ [/size] [b]Solo Mode[/b] // Included in the Base Game [size=16]❦ [/size] [b]Required Play Space[/b] // 42" x 26" [size=16]❦ [/size] [b]Setup Time[/b] // 5 Minutes [size=16]❦ [/size] [b]Play Time[/b] // 50 Minutes :thumbsup: The component quality is excellent, from the townsfolk cards to the tiered castle that holds all of the map pieces. :thumbsup: Finding synergies between the cards is a lot of fun and can help lead to a focus on certain actions to move ahead. :thumbsup: Interplay between debts and deeds, as well as corruption and virtue, adds an interesting layer of gameplay. :thumbsup: Multiple solo opponents create different action focuses, which can create very different solo play experiences. :thumbsup: Setup involves a number of randomized elements to add gameplay variety without a lot of extra effort. :thumbsup: Certain turns may lead to a lot of careful planning, yet play time moves pretty quickly without much upkeep. :thumbsdown: There are a lot of icons to learn, and despite the guide, remembering the solo opponent’s rules are difficult. :thumbsdown: With so many possible actions every turn, it can be easy to lose track of something or get lost in the choices. :thumbsdown: The game end condition of emptying a deck of cards can feel a bit disconnected from the rest of gameplay. :thumbsdown: It isn’t always clear what sort of strategy is the best to take with the way the solo opponent can act too randomly. [url=https://gamewardbound.com/tag/viscounts-of-the-west-kingdom/?utm_source=boardgamegeek&utm_medium=comment]Read the Session Reports and Review at Gameward Bound »[/url]
Ardsami
(3.4) I want to like it, but it feels too complicated without being fun. Gimmicky even? And tedious. Felt like a point salad.