Corsairs of Valeria: Review
Information:
Mechanics: Dice Rolling, yahtzee, Race
Player Age: 8+ Player Count: 2 - 5 Players Time to Play: 15 - 20 Minutes
Game Designer: Wouter van Strien
Game Artist: Mihajlo DimitrievskiPublisher: Daily Magic GamesYear Published: 2020BGG Weight: 1.00Disclaimer: A review copy for the game was provided by the publisher.
Player Age: 8+
Game Designer: Wouter van Strien
Game Artist: Mihajlo Dimitrievski
Objective:
Argh me matey's! Hoist the mainsail and lift the anchor because Valeria has entered the high seas with this latest aquatic adventure. Corsairs of Valeria is a push your luck/Yahtzee dice rolling/racing game. The aim is simply to make your way up the board and gain 6 treasures. If 6 treasures has been gained by a player then the game ends immediately and they are the winner. The game may also end if the track had been completed twice and whoever has the most treasure at the end of the game is the winner.
Game Anatomy:
Ship Boards:
The ship board will be used to track your grog and treasure; once you have six treasures you instantly win the game. The grog allows you to reroll any number of dice on your turn but you may only hold a maximum of four grog at a time.
Dice:
There are six symbols on the dice.
1. Bottles will give grog equal to the amount of grog depicted to a maximum of four; if five dice show bottles then the player can resolve the dice and roll again.
2. Cannons will allow the player to shoot either opponents or the merchant ships in their section, if a merchant ship is shot then the player will gain the bonus listed on the ship equal to the number of times it is hit.
If three or more cannons are rolled then the player may shoot any opponent and steal their silver coins. For every cannon above three rolled, the opponents is also pushed backwards one space. Instead of using the cannons in this way, another action is available when all five cannons are rolled; one treasure can be stolen from any opponent.
3. The skull symbol is cursed and will lose the player one silver per skull; if five of these are rolled then the player may pass the dice to opponents.
4. This die face is a combination of grog and skull. This die face counts as both the skull and grog and can count towards the five dice bonus for either symbol.
5. Maps will allow the player to move forward equal to one movement per map depiction, if all five dice show maps then the player can move up to five spaces forward and backward (or a combination of forwards and backwards) this turn and if a player passes a line that connects to an island they will gain the bonus grog or silver listed on that island.
6. Coins will give the player silver coins equal to the amount of dice depicting this symbol.
Captain Cards:
There are captain cards that gives players a unique special action. On the top left of the card there is a letter which will show when in the turn the special ability activates.
Silver Coins:
Silver coins are your path to treasures. Whenever you have five silver it will automatically transfer to one treasure. You can only have five silvers at one point so if you gain six silvers in one action you will only gain the five silvers before it changes into a treasure, losing that last silver.
Race Track:
This is where the players sail across the sea. This is a modular race track that has a start and an end, and contains unique challenges to each side. It consists of three pieces that can minimally change the layout of the path. Whenever players pass an island that is connected to the section they crossed into, they will gain the silver or grog depicted on that island. Ending a turn on a whirlpool will return that player to the start of the race track, ending on a sea monster will lose them all their silver, and ending on a pirate flag will lose them all their grog. When a player reaches skull island they will gain the silver that resides there.
Set up:
- Give each player a ship token, with the matching ship board. Set the treasure at zero and the grog at 2.
- Randomly give each player a captain card.
- Form the racetrack by placing the start island in the centre of the table, shuffle the four middle tracks and place three randomly; the fourth will not be used in this game. Place the volcanic island (skull island) at the end of the track.
- Place two silver on skull island and give each player two silver.
- Each player places their ship on the start island.
- The player who most recently lost a game will be the first player, give that player the five dice.
How to Play:
On your turn you will roll all five dice, if you are unhappy with the result you can spend one grog to re-roll any amount of dice. Once you are happy with the dice you will now resolve the actions starting with the skull dice. Your turn will then end and you will pass all the dice to the next player. When a player reaches skull island for the first time all players will return to the start and all the middle tiles will flip to the other side; changing the race track. The game will end once a player has reached six treasures or once skull island has been reached twice, the player with the most treasure will be the winner.
Final Thoughts:
Pros:
- Bonus for getting five of a kind.
- Fun racing game.
- Easy to learn.
- Great art, same styling as other Valeria games.
Cons:
- I wish there were more middle race track sections included for variability.
Corsairs of Valeria is another great addition to the Valeria family. Unlike the others in the Valeria family, this is designed to be a filler weight game. It combines push your luck, Yahtzee and racing game play in a fun way that keeps players coming back. I wish there were as much variability with the map tracks as there is with the captains, but besides that it is a great addition to the Valeria family and will be getting many more plays from me.
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