Have you ever played Settlers of Catan and wondered, "Who was here before the settlers came? Whatever happened to the aboriginal people of Catan? Did they see us coming and move elsewhere? Or did we push them off, much like the history of North America? Did they fight back? What is THEIR story?"
Well, now we get a chance to hear, or better yet, play, their story. In Spirit Island, a cooperative area control game, you play as the spirits of the island, working to rid the island of pesky settlers/invaders and protecting the land's aboriginal people. You can choose between such spirits as Lightning's Swift Strike and River Surges in Sunlight and help defend the Dahan, natives of Spirit Island, from the European settlers who strive to raid and pillage the land.
Last month I visited Table Top Cafe twice with the sole purpose of playing this game. One session was with two players and the other was with three. Both experiences were awesome. So awesome, in fact, that I didn't take any pictures! Sorry... Anyway, I don't feel like it's fair to do a full review after so few plays (you really have no idea about replayability at that point), but I wanted to tell you about this great game that I am saving up money to buy (it's sold out now, but a reprint is coming mid-December).
The basic premise of the game is that European invaders are landing on your island and as a spirit of the island you want to protect yourself and the indigenous peoples that reside there.
A player turn consists of three phases:
(1) Grow
(2) Gain Energy
(3) Play Power Cards
During the growth phase you will choose one of your spirit's growth abilities (they are different for each spirit). These will allow you to spread your presence around the board, learn new powers, retrieve used powers, and gain energy.
Second, you'll earn any energy that you've gained from your growth phase or your regularly energy gain per turn.
Lastly you'll play power cards from your hand, which are what you will use to defend your island. Your powers allow you to destroy invaders and their settlements, move them around, move the Dahan around, spread your presence, remove blight (basically decay/destruction of the land), create fear (which gives you bonuses against the invaders) and support your fellow spirits. Once a card is played, it cannot be used the next turn unless you do an action during your growth phase that allows you to retrieve some or all of your used cards.
There are two types of power cards: fast and slow. Fast powers go into effect immediately. Slow powers take place after the invaders have activated. You need to plan and talk a lot with your fellow spirits to see when your powers will come into effect.
After fast powers have been enacted, the invaders activate.
(1) Fear
(2a) Ravage
(2b) Build
(2c) Explore
(3) Advance invader cards
The invaders' actions are really a very neat mechanic. First, any fear cards you've gained by terrifying the invaders come into play. These will affect their actions this turn.
The second part of the phase has three parts. First, a card highlighting a specific type of area (e.g. water, mountain, plains, etc.) that is in the "ravage" section of the game board will be under attack. Dahan and a spirit's presence in those areas can be damaged. Second, a specific type of area that is in the "build" section of the game board will be built upon. The invaders build new towns and cities. Lastly, a specific type of area that is in the "explore" section of the game board will be explored and new settlers will show up.
To finish off, the invader cards are advanced. This means that the areas that were explored this turn will be built in next turn and the areas that were built on this turn will be ravaged next turn. This gives you time to plan and prepare for the upcoming attacks.
After this step, slow powers of the spirits come into effect.
And then you do it all over again!
I love cooperative games. I love board games that utilize cards for actions/powers. I don't usually love area control games, but I like the cooperative and anti-settling way that it's done in this game. I cannot wait to my hands on this one again!
Last month I visited Table Top Cafe twice with the sole purpose of playing this game. One session was with two players and the other was with three. Both experiences were awesome. So awesome, in fact, that I didn't take any pictures! Sorry... Anyway, I don't feel like it's fair to do a full review after so few plays (you really have no idea about replayability at that point), but I wanted to tell you about this great game that I am saving up money to buy (it's sold out now, but a reprint is coming mid-December).
The basic premise of the game is that European invaders are landing on your island and as a spirit of the island you want to protect yourself and the indigenous peoples that reside there.
A player turn consists of three phases:
(1) Grow
(2) Gain Energy
(3) Play Power Cards
During the growth phase you will choose one of your spirit's growth abilities (they are different for each spirit). These will allow you to spread your presence around the board, learn new powers, retrieve used powers, and gain energy.
Second, you'll earn any energy that you've gained from your growth phase or your regularly energy gain per turn.
Lastly you'll play power cards from your hand, which are what you will use to defend your island. Your powers allow you to destroy invaders and their settlements, move them around, move the Dahan around, spread your presence, remove blight (basically decay/destruction of the land), create fear (which gives you bonuses against the invaders) and support your fellow spirits. Once a card is played, it cannot be used the next turn unless you do an action during your growth phase that allows you to retrieve some or all of your used cards.
There are two types of power cards: fast and slow. Fast powers go into effect immediately. Slow powers take place after the invaders have activated. You need to plan and talk a lot with your fellow spirits to see when your powers will come into effect.
After fast powers have been enacted, the invaders activate.
(1) Fear
(2a) Ravage
(2b) Build
(2c) Explore
(3) Advance invader cards
The invaders' actions are really a very neat mechanic. First, any fear cards you've gained by terrifying the invaders come into play. These will affect their actions this turn.
The second part of the phase has three parts. First, a card highlighting a specific type of area (e.g. water, mountain, plains, etc.) that is in the "ravage" section of the game board will be under attack. Dahan and a spirit's presence in those areas can be damaged. Second, a specific type of area that is in the "build" section of the game board will be built upon. The invaders build new towns and cities. Lastly, a specific type of area that is in the "explore" section of the game board will be explored and new settlers will show up.
To finish off, the invader cards are advanced. This means that the areas that were explored this turn will be built in next turn and the areas that were built on this turn will be ravaged next turn. This gives you time to plan and prepare for the upcoming attacks.
After this step, slow powers of the spirits come into effect.
And then you do it all over again!
I love cooperative games. I love board games that utilize cards for actions/powers. I don't usually love area control games, but I like the cooperative and anti-settling way that it's done in this game. I cannot wait to my hands on this one again!
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