Warcults is a brilliant standalone fantasy wargame that may be used as a companion to the masterful Cave Evil, and joins its exalted necro brother as my all-time favorite board game ever. Whereas Cave Evil is a resource management and dungeon crawling fantasy experience with war game conflicts, Warcults feels more like a thematically unique and strategically dense wargame with exploration, weird fantasy, and resource management mechanics. I feel Warcults is better balanced than Cave Evil, where sometimes the chance Necromancer and a fortunate early draw can result in an instant blow out or major disadvantage. I enjoy playing both the full campaign and also a single map with the preselected teams chosen by the designers.
Warcults immediately leaps into strategically deep playing on turn 1. Cave Evil is more atmospheric and focuses more on cards and team building, whereas Warcults is strategically gripping from the start and then uses the theme to result in combats that could never occur anywhere else and a near limitless variety of possible attacks and combinations. The paths to advance the Commanders and Warlord and the species attributes also add a great RPG flavor and substantially grow one's attachment to their chits. My Black Abyssal Bear wore an Evil Hat and my foe was saved (repeatedly) by a Cave Potato, and in another game, I killed my foe's Warlord very early, and he was unable to call for reinforcements.
Few games play this enjoyably while telling such rich, dark, funny, and weird stories, and the art--by Mat Brinkman and others--is incomparably moody and terrific.
Bravo, designers--I'm really looking forward to exploring the full depths of this eldritch creation!
2019-04-13