Wyrmspan has you dig to build a sanctuary for Wyrms and Drakes.
Here be Dragons.
You are an amateur dracologist in the world of Wyrmspan, a place where dragons of all shapes, sizes, and colours roam the skies. Excavate a hidden labyrinth you recently unearthed on your land and entice these beautiful creatures to roost in the sanctuary of your caves.
Wyrmspan Game Overview
Quick Rules Summary
This is a fairly in-depth game so this is just a top-level overview of the 3 main things you do turn to turn.
Excavate: You play a Cave card into one of your Caves on your player board. The first is already excavated so you need to Excavate the other spaces during the game.
You put a Coin on the Excavate Action and pay eggs which you collect through the game for deeper caves in the caverns.
Then play a Cave Card from your hand onto the newly excavated space.
Entice: Add a Dragon Card from your hand to an excavated cave placing 1 Coin on the Entice Action.
Dragon cards have a resource cost and a habitat that must match the cave you’re placing them in to.
Explore: Move your Adventurer through one of your Caverns, activating abilities as they pass, this again costs coins.
How do you win?
At the end of the game you gain:
- Points gained during the game
- 1 VP per Coin
- 1 VP for every 4 resources, dragon cards, and cave cards that remaining
- Markers on the Dragon Guild, a rondel that can be advanced by exploring for rewards
- VPs for Dragons in Caves
- End game scoring abilities on Dragons in Caves
- 1 VP per egg
- 1 VP per cached resource
- 1 VP per tucked Dragon card (Cards are tucked under Dragons via abilities)
- VPs for Public Objectives
Most points wins
Main Mechanisms
Action selection is the main one. You have so many coins and each actions costs a coin so you need to use them wisely.
These also hand management and a bit of engine building with the explorer.
USP
I mean, it’s a (not direct) retheme of Wingspan so nothing unique here.
Theme
The theme of building caves for Dragons is more appealing that birdwatching or whatever so it’s pretty cool.
Setup
It took a while, I watched with interest and did not help at all! (I was eating)
Components & Artwork
The components are really nice, but, we played with a pimped out version so I have no idea what the base game is like. Remember when people didn’t need to pimp out Stonemaier games?
Ease of Teaching
There is a lot going on so it could be a difficult teach. But only cards in hand are hidden information and they’re prety basic so it should be OK.
Similar Games
Wingspan, obvously.
Wyrmspan Review
Positives
Fun gameplay.
The comboing of the Dragon abilities as you move your explorer through the caves is good fun.
It’s better than Wingspan.
I did enjoy playing it and would again but…
Negatives
…it’s another mid-weight euro and it doesn’t do enough to make it to my shelf.
To pimp it out to the level I’ve seen it at will cost too much.
Summary
A fun game with a better theme than it’s predessessor that COULD find it’s way to my shelf if circumstances change.
Also, the upcoming fish based Finspan gives ‘milking it’ vibes.
Jesta ThaRogue