7 wonders board game geek

This is rewarded by access to additional points or city developments. The creation of a small building might facilitate the easy development of a more prestigious structure later, but without the building costs. For example, the building of the baths will allow easy construction of the aqueduct at a later age for free.

Other players might choose a military strategy. Military might enables a player to score points and victories against their immediate neighbours. They could choose to use cards and resources constructing army barracks to defend themselves at the expense of other city buildings. Players on the opposite side of the game can look on in amusement, blissfully detached from the ensuing battles, instead of concentrating on amassing a strong trading or civic community.

Ultimately, there are numerous pathways to victory. After three rounds Ages it is a point salad of scoring to identify the winner. Whether playing with three or seven players, 7 Wonders usually concludes within 30 to 40 minutes. The title is gilded, colours more vibrant and box artwork clearer. The box itself is a fraction larger, by only five millimetres. Open the box and there is more evidence of the thought given to presentation.

The punch-out cardboard is of identical thickness. The only change is that the military conflict victory tokens are now black instead of red. The defeat -1 tokens remain red. This makes it easier to distinguish them during the military battle phase. One significant improvement is in the rule book. The previous set of rules was slightly cluttered and had an almost muddy appearance. These newer rules are clean with a larger font and printed onto light paper.

This makes the understanding and rule clarification much easier. As an aide-memoire, there are three additional printed sheets for players to use during a game. These summarise some of the icons and symbols and also will explain the cost of certain buildings etc. This is perfect for players who are new to the game and could be useful when taking on the second edition cards for the first time. The wonder cards themselves are a significant step up. The first edition cards were labelled A and B, but were identical on each side.

This time, the two sides depict day and night. The colours and images are vibrant and realistic. The requirement of each wonder is almost identical between the two editions. The rewards you gain from building each stage of the wonders are also almost unchanged. There are still three Ages to play in 7 Wonders 2nd Edition , with seven cards dealt to each player. The mechanics of drawing a single card to use to develop your wonder and city is identical.

Players still pass the remaining cards to the left or right and receive the remaining cards from the player on the other side.

The game is firmly marketed as a player game. There is no scope for the two-player automaton variant that the first edition offered. That said, 7 Wonders Duel is a far superior two-player game and Repos Productions have rightly removed this element of gameplay in the second edition. The reverse of the game cards are clear, shiny and have a premium feel.

They are completely different from those of the first edition and the other first edition expansions. This also means there is no backward compatibility. Gamers need to be aware of this, although Repos will no doubt release second editions of the other 7 Wonders expansions with time. These are not yet widely available. The actual dealt cards are almost identical in type and form.

During the First and Second Age, many of these cards are resources or manufactured goods, perhaps with a few low-value civic buildings. The Third Age is where the wonder develops and the building phase kicks off. To assist those with colour recognition problems, each card type still has the same colours: brown for resources, grey for manufactured goods, yellow for trading etc. However, each has its own specific shape or icon. This is placed subtly alongside the title of the card.

Is it worth it? Let me say up front that Agora seems to be an even more drastic change than Pantheon. The display of cards each age is larger, there is an entirely new way to win, and special effects and cards galore. The new cards are Senators, which allow players to take control of six different Senate chambers, each providing a permanent bonus while controlled; control all six and you automatically win, much like the military track or science icons.

Both types of Senators have some easily forgotten, wonky rules. It is often true that winning by points is an afterthought once it is clear that neither player will make it on military or science. Those are essentially the two focal points of Agora, so I do enjoy the experience quite a bit now that I have the rules down pat. And of course, the abilities of the Senate chambers and Conspiracy cards influence the various other card types. However, Agora is a great expansion for players who, like me, have played hundreds of games of 7 Wonders: Duel, and might be ready for a serious change of pace.

Agora changes 7 Wonders Duel significanty but retains its excellent core. It is an enjoyable diversion from the standard game. Review — 7 Wonders Duel: Agora.

Designer Antoine Bauza, Bruno Cathala. Artist Migeul Coimbra. The islands are discovered with the Green tack on the fleet board and give you access to private resources, Ground Shields, Naval Shields, and other good stuff. You'll get to choose one of 4 different islands. After each age, you will resolve ground combat just like before, but there will also be Naval combat, where everyone participates. It pretty much works like this; Everyone compares their naval strengths, and the winner gets X amount of VP, and the runner up gets a bit less.

In bigger player counts even the third place gets a couple of points. Of course, this scales with the ages, much like ground combat. Cool stuff!

This expansion makes good on its promises on increased interaction and adds a lot of content without slowing the game too much, a very welcome addition to the family!

Our favorite along with Cities.