Shadow Kingdom's of Valeria: Rapid Review
Information:
Mechanics: Worker Placement, Drafting, Engine Building, Tableu Builder
Player Age: 14+ Player Count: 1 - 5 Players Time to Play: 30 - 75 Minutes
Game Designer:`Stan Kordonskiy
Game Artist: Mihajlo DimitrievskiPublisher: Daily Magic GamesYear Published: 2021BGG Weight: 2.55Disclaimer: A review copy for the game was provided by the publisher.
Player Age: 14+
Game Designer:`Stan Kordonskiy
Game Artist: Mihajlo Dimitrievski
Rundown:
It is time for the wardens of darkness to come out of the shadows and amass armies of champions and troops to prove they are worthy of being the General for Shadow Kingdoms of Valeria. This is done by collecting troops (dice) and completing battle plans.
It may sound like a simple goal but in the game you must move to one of five shrines every turn to gain a troop and the location benefit. The benefits include gold, magic or victory points, gems that can be used to manipulate troops, reserve battle plans and champions, and continuous or end game abilities. Once a player has amassed enough troops they will return to their camp and complete a battle plan. This can be either a reserved plan or one can be bought directly from the board display.
Alteration:
There is plenty of alteration in every part of the game. Firstly, the game will constantly feel fresh as the dice are randomly rolled and randomly placed on different shrines throughout the game. This creates tough decisions for players to choose where to go. To the left of the board there will be award cards. These are the game goals that will award players who complete the goals throughout the game. In general there are three different types included in the game box and one card from each type is used per game. The first player to complete each goal will score more points than subsequent players.
Additionally, there are three types of champions; one with one-off abilities when you recruit them, ones with ongoing abilities that will activate when a condition occurs and champions that have end game scoring abilities. Collectively these champions help the game to feel unique and will offer the players a choice to pursue different strategies from game to game.
Production:
The production in this game is amazing. The meeples for each player is screen printed and shaped to match their respective creature. Not only are they shaped like the creature but their sizes also differentiate which was a nice touch. The character boards and player markers are all printed on thick cardboard stock and the dice are nice and chunky. All these components help the create the feeling of immersion into the world of the Shadow Kingdoms.
Interaction:
There are multiple chances for interaction between players as every turn has the chance to block opponents. This can be done by reserving/refreshing the battle plans, taking the troops they clearly need or by removing all the troops from one shrine meaning that no players can go here until the troops are refreshed.
The main interaction for this game is not between players but with yourself. Each character board starts the game with multiple sections blocked off by player markers. Whenever a battle plan is completed you may remove one of these markers to free up more space for troops, more reserve locations, more room for champions or other improvements.
Not only do you remove the marker but you also get to place it on a campaign board. These campaign boards offer potential scoring opportunities. When the marker covers the spot it has a one-off scoring bonus and there is also connection bonuses for when two markers are across from each other.
There is plenty of decision space in taking a troop each turn as you want high values because it will increase your chance of getting more victory points when you complete battle plans. However, if you gain small numbers instead you will get a large discount at the gold shrine. You will gain gold equal to this discount value and this discount will be factored in when you reserve battle plans or gain champions. As champions get more expensive for each champion you already have, this discount will become more and more important in late game.
Determination:
Pros:
- Interesting dice drafting.
- Challenging decisions.
- Interesting upgrade system.
- Great art and production.
Shadow Kingdoms of Valeria is a great game that now equals with Card Kingdoms of Valeria as my favourite Valeria game. Not only are you constantly faced with engaging decisions but you also feel like your character board is telling a story. You get to amass an army of dark champions while upgrading your character to create a story of the battles you have triumphed. Shadow Kingdoms is a great game that is getting many more plays in my collection and has earned a Go-to Golden Game seal.
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