Asmodee Libellud | Seasons | Board Game | Ages 14+ | 2-4 Players | 60 Minutes Playing Time

TERMS:Crystals = Victory points (I referred to them as VP in my review)Seasons track = The circular boardTransmute = exchanging tokens for victory pointsI've already played this at a friends house previously so when I saw this on offer I had to buy it.It's got such a gorgeous insert (see photos) as most games fail to do this and cop out for the lazy approach with the zip seal bags. This game has a slot for every single component to fit snugly inside and you don't have to worry about things sliding around. Even the Seasons track and the Victory Point track have their own cutout to slot right in! Very impressed.So how does this game play? I'd say it works best with 3-4 players but does function 2 players.The game has 4 'Seasons'Blue = WaterGreen = EarthYellow FireRed = Air (Yes I know, why did they not just put Fire as Red and Air as white or something who knows!)(round board) Seasons track placed in the middlePut the assorted colour tokens (energy) of each type next to the relevant sections as well as the matching dice.You'll need to check rules for how many dice to use as this varies per player count but I believe it's X number of players + 1.Give each person a player board and the coloured cubes whilst putting 2 of these on the Victory point board at the bottom 0 spot and the top 0 spot. This is used to track scores.Deal 9 cards to each player and you'll begin drafting a deck, picking a card, passing to the player on the left the rest of them and then picking a card from the deck you just got and so on.By the end you will have 9 drafted cards.Seperate them into years1 2 and 3.3 cards for each year.You'll start with the first 3 from Year 1, then Year 2 will be gained in Round 2 and Year 3 in Round 3.Players take turns rolling the dice, each selecting a dice and gaining said rewards, then playing a card where able to. Then advance the Seasons board x number of spaces based on the number of pips on the dice that wasn't chosen.You can take abilities that allow you to transmute energy into Victory Points or spend energy to play a familiar /card from your hand but you'll need to ensure you have the summoning power to be able to have it infront of you. But when do you want to transmute? The value of the energy tokens fluctuates each season. Do you hoard them until a later season where it's worth more or just transmute early? You can only hold a set number of them tooThe aim of the game is to get the most victory points to win, which is achieved by using card effects as well as gained at the end for the cards you played during the course of the game.You can lose points for each unplayed card.Thoughts/Summary?It's a fun Deck building /Dice drafting game.There's plenty of things to do on your turn and the choices need to be well thought.The luck part of this game is very minimal as it's down to the dice rolls and the dice you're left with.You can still plan ahead on your opponents turn and you'll want to maximise your points.Unlike other games, Seasons is not a type of game where you just earn victory points non-stop.These points will fluctuate constantly as opponents effects make you lose them or cards that require you to spend them. It's a constant roller coaster so it's not something you see really climbing until the mid/late game.Prior to that it's up and down with the VPs. I guess this is a downside as one player is stuck constantly moving scores up and down and then when an effect comes into player that you gain VP when an opponent uses an ability or others, then it becomes even more complicated to keep track.That said, the amount of fun to be had is definitely up there and the components really make it feel all that much more. The huge chunky dice feel amazing to roll in your hand and the satisfaction when you get that one turn where the dice rolls in your favour just feels great. It's very easy to learn, the hard part just comes around understanding the card effects but it's one of those that will come around by the time everyone has rolled once.ProsGreat componentsAmazing insertNice size for storageNot as much downtime during turnsRelatively easy to learnConsFiddly/complicated with keeping track of the VP mid/late game due to how much this fluctuates based on card effectsANNOYINGLY the VP are called Crystals and this just confuses the heck out of people who are new to board games. Consistency is key

I'm going to echo what many say about this game and I've alre said in the title of this review; it's an excellent 2 player game!Tough choices, lots of replayability, combos and puzzly decisions. It's a real juicy one!If you like building up an engine (think everdell, wingspan etc) but with a card drafting mechanic at the start and some dice drafting throughout then you're in luck this game is exactly that!Keep in mind there's quite a bit of randomness in the sense of the cards are randomly dealt and the dice are random. If you don't like luck then stay away, but if you like not knowing what's coming up next and making tactical decisions then you'll probably like this.At 3 or 4 players I can see the game time increasing substantially especially if no one is familiar with the game. If all players are familiar then I could see this moving at a quicker pace but of course it still won't be as quick as a 2 player game. It just seems to be the sweet spot!Highly recommend the first expansion (not the destiny one, haven't played that yet) which adds more replayability and tweaks to the game.

This is a fantastic game and plays well with all player counts but is especially good with two players.Don't be put off by the fantasy theme. This game is all about the mechanics of the gameplay and the theme is secondary. That said, the theme does come through with beautiful art and components that are simply stunning. The whole production from the insert, to the cards and chunky dice, is stellar!I didn't think my Lost Cities and Castles of Burgundy loving wife would like this game but she absolutely does as do I.The game plays in about 45 minutes and is just a great little card play battle with great tactics and card combos. It's also surprisingly easy to learn and teach. I would say an 8+-year-old would easily pick this up.Suprise hit with me and a game that everyone who has played it has fell in love with it.

This game was in our wishlist for a while and we're very happy to finally have it! It's very strategic and can get quite competitive. The game play is well adapted for two players and it's a lot of fun in a small company as well.Play time is usually over an hour, but it gets faster the more you play and learn different strategies. Our first session was two hours long, second was just 1.5 hours and now we usually finish the game between 1 and 1.5 hours.The print quality is good, but wooden bricks look meh. Doesn't affect the game play though and they can easily be replaced by some nice miniatures in the future.

This is a game you have to play several times to really get to know - especially the 50 'power' cards, each with their distinct special abilities. Right from the beginning, you need understanding of these as each player passes 9 nine around deciding, not just which cards to select, but which 'year' they will be preset to play in.Its a largely abstract game with cards that have really nice artwork & very strange names that are abs nothing to do with their powers - so totally themeless. A lot of 'bookkeeping' is involved at the end of each round, as all players work out which cards are affecting each others' scores & there is a LOT of end-game scoring to sort out after 3 'years' are completed.The chunky symbolic dice rolling & movement through the 'seasons' will be the easiest part to pick up &, for such a themeless game, it is beautifully presented. After a few plays you will either be totally into the card play or you won't - so it's fun for those familiar with its mechanics, but I'd say not so much for first timers.