variable player powers

878 Vikings: Invasions of England

The year is 878. For the past 75 years, Viking raiding parties from Norway and Denmark have been terrorizing the coasts of England with ‘hit and run’ attacks. The treasures and stories gained from these attacks have allowed the Norsemen to raise huge hosts of eager men seeking glory and riches. These armies now stand poised to thunder across England where they will settle and farm the fertile land they conquer. The divided English kingdoms are unprepared for this impending onslaught. The Vikings are coming!

In 878: Vikings – Invasions of England, players control the invading Vikings or the English nobles who are trying to withstand the invasion. Viking players either play as Norsemen Viking freeman or as the fearless Viking shock troops known as Berserkers. The English play as the Housecarl, the Kings’ household troops, or as the Thegns who were regional noble Leaders. The English players will also be able to call up the peasant levies, called the Fyrd, to defend their cities.

Players for each side strategize together in order to coordinate their strategies. Each side attempts to control Cities on the map to win. The English start the game controlling all of England but a Viking Leader will invade from the sea each Turn. The English players raise reinforcements from cities they control, while the Vikings must wait for a new invasion for reinforcements. The game ends when the Treaty of Wedmore is called and the side controlling the most cities wins the game.

Anachrony

It is the late 26th century. Earth is recovering from a catastrophic explosion that exterminated the majority of the population centuries ago and made most of the surface uninhabitable due to unearthly weather conditions. The surviving humans organized along four radically different ideologies, called Paths, to rebuild the world as they see fit: Harmony, Dominance, Progress, and Salvation. Followers of the four Paths live in a fragile peace, but in almost complete isolation next to each other. Their only meeting point is the last major city on Earth, now just known as the Capital.

By powering up the mysterious Time Rifts that opened in the wake of the cataclysm, each Path is able to reach back to specific moments in their past. Doing so can greatly speed up their progress, but too much meddling may endanger the time-space continuum. But progress is more important than ever before: if the mysterious message arriving through the Time Rift is to be believed, an even more terrible cataclysm is looming on the horizon: an asteroid bearing the mysterious substance called Neutronium is heading towards Earth. Even stranger, the scientists show that the energy signature of the asteroid matches the explosion centuries ago...

Anachrony features a unique two-tiered worker placement system. To travel to the Capital or venture out to the devastated areas for resources, players need not only various specialists (Engineers, Scientists, Administrators, and Geniuses) but also Exosuits to protect and enhance them — and both are in short supply.

The game is played in 4-7 turns, depending on the time when the looming cataclysm occurs — unless, of course, it is averted! The elapsed turns are measured on a dynamic timeline. By powering up the Time Rifts, players can reach back to earlier turns to supply their past "self" with resources. Each Path has a vastly different objective that rewards it with a massive amount of victory points when achieved. The Paths' settlements will survive the impact, but the Capital will not. Whichever Path manages to collect most points will be the new seat for the Capital, thus the most important force left on the planet...

Shuffle Grand Prix

Shuffle Grand Prix is a Racing Card Game where fellow drivers battle in a fast-paced, strategic challenge to out-distance the competition.

Just like your favorite racing video games, you select your drivers to take advantage of their unique abilities. Play cards to slow your opponents and protect yourself against sabotage. The person who travels the furthest distance by the time the distance cards run out takes home the checkered flag. It is everyone for themselves out there, so don’t be left behind.

With just the right amount of strategy, intense graphics and action to amuse and engage, Shuffle Grand Prix is a family-friendly game that appeals to the competitive side of us all. It’s also a great gateway into light strategy games!

Wizard Kittens

Wizard Kittens is a semi-cooperative set collection card game. Players are wizard kittens who have accidentally released a few curses from the library's restricted section. Now they must defeat the curses before they're caught by the librarian, Professor Whispurr.

Each turn plays quickly but offers interesting decisions, most often around which spell to use and how to use it. Spells allow kittens to draw extra cards, sling cards at other players, discard cards out of their own play areas, or trade any two cards in play. No player can use the same spell two turns in a row, either.

The game ends when either the last of the six curses is defeated, or when the Professor Whispurr card is drawn from the ritual component deck. If the kittens defeated the last curse, then they tally up points (including a secret objective Extra Credit card), and the highest score wins. If they are caught by Professor Whispurr, then the Cleanest Paws Clause applies. All kittens with 10 or more points lose, and from those who are left, the kitten with the fewest cards in their play area wins.

-description from designer

Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan

The journeys of Marco Polo continue in Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan, an epic follow-up to The Voyages of Marco Polo. After traveling to Beijing, your travels now take you back to the West in the service of the Khan, sending you to the farthest reaches of his empire in search of wealth and fame.

Marco Polo II is a standalone game based on The Voyages of Marco Polo, and you don't need the original game to play this one. This new journey will present unique challenges, with new and different actions, new scoring rules, and a new good: rare and valuable Chinese jade.

Retread old paths with renewed purpose, or find new ones as you explore farther west, continuing to build the immortal legacy of Marco Polo!

—description from the publisher