Ravenshire is well-known among adventurers – it is the best place to commission new weapons, shields, and armor from some of the most renowned forges. Unfortunately, the Forgemaster has gone missing and the Blacksmiths Guild is in desperate need of a new number one. Do you have have it takes to lead them? Forge away and find out!

What Is It?

Worker Placement + Dice Rolling – Each round players will roll their dice (workers) to determine what numbers they have available to place on the board for actions. Any numbers can be placed at any spot, but it will change the amount of rewards the spots will give players. Some dice also start on the board each round since players will take a die back each time they place one to use to run a guild (gain rewards based on their color). They’ll then use the dice they collect in the production phase on the other half of their board to generate or manipulate resources.

Resource Management – Players will collect resources throughout the game to complete contracts. They can earn bonuses for spending extra resources, if they can manage to produce enough.

Contract Completion – Players will earn points by handing in resources to complete contracts. These contracts can also give them action tokens, reputation, and/or more resources.

Variable Player Powers – If desired, players can use assistant cards to have unique abilities in the game such as manipulating resources, rolling extra dice, free upgrades, and more.

Who Is It For?

  • 1 to 4 Players – Solo is okay if you don’t mind managing the automated opponent, but I prefer it multiplayer. I think it scales well, so I like it at any count
  • Ages 12 & Up / Mid-Weight Gamers – Straightforward gameflow, but layers of strategy, so definitely good for those with some gaming experience
  • Fans of worker placement (dice as workers), contract completion, and managing resources
  • Players who enjoy some simultaneous play (production phase)

Variants

Solo – Automated opponent is used (can also be used in 2-3 players games). The AO uses dice to gather generic goods, represented by cubes. Cards determine what dice it places/takes and where. It runs guilds for goods/coins and can complete contracts. It does not do the production phase. – I thought solo was fine. It was pretty smooth and easy. It was just a little too much upkeep for me, more than I wanted to do, so I probably wouldn’t play it often. I think it can be useful to learn the game though. I also feel like the AO is unnecessary for a 2-3 player game since the game works well at any count.

PROS

  • Aesthetics – Nice art and overall table presence
  • Components – Good across the board. I particularly like the dual layer player boards
  • Really nice game flow – turns are snappy during gathering, and the simultaneous production phase keeps the game moving
  • Rules – Well written and clear
  • Little asymmetry of the assistant cards add to the game; I like how they can affect your strategy to capitilize on your strength
  • Flexibility – Love that you don’t get locked out of spots because of what you roll, and that different spots will be better with low numbers while others are better with higher numbers
  • I thought the “play one / take one” with workers was unique
  • A bit puzzley with a few paths to victory
  • Separate rulebook for the AO, which I think works well to learn from

CONS

  • I don’t like the oversized rulebook; it’s the size of the box, but it just feels unmanageable
  • Theme is not super strong
  • Set-up and clean-up is a bit long
  • Action tokens can be hard to come by, but they are super vital

Final Thoughts

I think the game has a lot of flexibility in how players can use their workers, which just works so well, and helps you feel like you always have options on your turn no matter what you roll, and no matter what dice are available to take. Similarly, I like that you can’t always rely on the exact same strategy because you don’t know what you’re going to roll; it helps the game feel different play after play and keeps it fresh.

I really enjoy upgrading guilds too. I think the green one is almost always the best, because it helps you get multiple resources quickly, but they all have value, and it always makes sense to try and flesh them out so that you can gain benefits no matter what dice you take.

The game flow is excellent and the game does not overstay it’s welcome. I definitely recommend this one!

Additional Information:
My Final Rating – 8/10

Designer – Sam Stockton
Artists – Liam Peters, Andrea Radeck
Publisher – B.A. Games
MSRP – $70.00
Website

*I was provided a copy of this game to do this review*

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