Product Information
Board Game Geek Rating: 5.65. Board Game Geek Avg Player Rating: 7.11. This is the Kickstarter Edition of the Archmage Board Game. Published in 2018, it's designed for 1 to 4 players. Note that paid add - ons from the Kickstarter Campaign are not included unless stated otherwise.
In this game, a few magically - talented individuals with their followers journey from villages through the wild to the Ruined City. At its center stands the cursed Tower of Magic. Once, the Archmage and her Order ruled using the combined magic of mythic races, but that ended long ago.
Now, only fragments of the mythic races remain in the Ruined City. Human newcomers, descendants of ancient Mages, arrive to seek wisdom and magic from the mythic races. These races guard six different spheres of magic.
Archmage is a euro - thematic hybrid. Players become fledgling Mages, traveling to recover relics, gather followers, and train apprentices in magic. As their Order grows, they compete apprentices, gain spells, and build their own Mage tower.
Each turn has two phases: The Journey, where Mages move across a hex - tiled map, discover locations, gather relics, and face opponents. At Journey’s End, Mages perform actions based on their ending location. Ending in a Town lets them collect resources, in a Settlement they can recruit followers, with a Mythic Race they can train apprentices, in the Wilderness they gain area control, and in the Mage’s Tower they train and test apprentices.
The game features a modular spell system with 18 spells in the base game and expansions planned. Spells are used by spending Relics, the unique magical currency of each mythic race. After a set number of turns, the Mage with the most powerful Order becomes the new Archmage.
We're excited to support campaigns like Archmage. When you buy Archmage from TheGameSteward, a large part of your money will go towards backing new Kickstarter games. If you have questions about buying or need game advice, contact The Game Steward.
How to play Archmage:
First, each player takes on the role of a fledgling Mage. In the Journey phase of each turn, move your Mage across the hex - tiled map. Try to discover new locations, send your followers to get relics from Ruins, Libraries, and other sacred places related to the mythic races. You'll also run into and deal with your opponents' followers.
At the Journey’s End phase, what you can do depends on where you end up. If you end in a Town, call on your Followers to give you the relics and resources they've gathered. In a Settlement, you can recruit more Followers. With a Mythic Race, train your Followers as Apprentices in their magic, but you'll need to spend Relics. In the Wilderness, your followers can control the area better. And in your Mage’s Tower, train and test your Apprentices by moving them on the mandala on the player board to change your available spells.
When using spells, remember you need to spend Relics. The game lasts a certain number of turns based on how many players there are. At the end, the Mage with the most powerful Order wins and becomes the new Archmage.
Things to note: The paid add - ons from the Kickstarter Campaign are not included unless it's said otherwise. Also, each mythic race has its own unique Relics which are used as the magical currency for spells.
Maintenance advice: Keep the game components, like the hex tiles and player boards, in a dry place to prevent warping or damage. When not in use, store them in the provided box or a suitable container to keep everything organized.
