Tag: Multi-Use Cards

Games with Multi-Use Cards give players cards that have a variety of uses, but typically only allow the player to select one use.

Ezra and Nemahiah

| T3d-1978

In his first year as king of Persia, Cyrus the Great issued a decree in writing to the Israelite exiles living under his rule:

The God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and has appointed me to build a temple for Him in Jerusalem. Any of his people may go up to Jerusalem in Judah to build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel. And in any place where survivors may now be living, the people of Persia are to provide them with silver, gold, goods, livestock, and offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem. – Ezra 1:2-4 (paraphrased).

Decades later, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes reign, the king noticed a sadness in his cupbearer, Nehemiah. When asked why he looked so ill, Nehemiah replied:

May the king live forever! Why should I not look sad when the city of my ancestors lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire? If it pleases you, and if I have found favor in your sight, let me go to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I may rebuild it. – Nehemiah 2:3-5 (paraphrased).

The aim of Ezra and Nehemiah is to be the player with the most victory points (VP) at game’s end. Points are gained primarily by building the temple, rebuilding the city walls and gates, and by teaching the Torah to the returning exiles. Players may also seek to develop their land, travel to settlements outside the city walls, or stoke the altar’s fire to keep it burning day and night. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah will be doing their part to keep the people focused on what is most important.

Over three weeks (rounds), players will use their hand of cards, workers, and resources to do their part in rebuilding the great city of Jerusalem. After six days of work comes a Sabbath day of rest when food will be needed, and the week’s work will be reflected upon. The game ends after the third Sabbath has been completed.

—description from the designer

Game Mechanics:

  • Chaining
  • Hand Management
  • Multi-Use Cards
  • Solo / Solitaire Game
  • Tech Trees / Tech Tracks
  • Track Movement
  • Variable Set-up

Game Specifications:

  • 1 – 4 Players
  • 90 – 120 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 3.83

Expeditions

| T3d-1978

The sequel to Scythe sends players on a new adventure into Siberia, where a massive meteorite crashed near the Tunguska River, awakening ancient corruption. An expedition led by Dr. Tarkovsky ventures into the taiga to learn about the meteorite and its impact on the land. Itching for adventure, heroes from the war privately fund their own expeditions to Siberia, hoping to find artifacts, overcome challenges, and ultimately achieve glory. Expeditions has completely different mechanisms than Scythe, though the goal was to capture some of the same feelings that Scythe evokes, with a slightly darker, more supernatural theme.

Expeditions is a competitive, card-driven, engine-building game of exploration. Play cards to gain power, guile, and unique worker abilities; move your mech to mysterious locations and gain cards found among the tiles; use workers, items, meteorites, and quests to enhance your mech; and use power and guile to vanquish corruption.

—description from the publisher

Game Mechanics:

  • Action Retrieval
  • Deck Building
  • Grid Movement
  • Hand Management
  • Melding and Splaying
  • Modular Board
  • Multi-Use Cards
  • Solo / Solitaire Game
  • Tags
  • Variable Player Powers
  • Variable Set-up
  • Victory Points as a Resource
  • Worker Placement

Game Specifications:

  • 1 – 5 Players
  • 60 – 90 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 3.05

Evenfall

| T3d-1978

It’s Evenfall, and the Clans of Magic are preparing for a new era. Evenfall is the time when the boundaries of reality collapse and the supernatural awakens. The World-Tree opens its glowing gateways to unknown distant regions. Send Witches from your clan to discover and control new Places of Power. Use them for arcane rituals and battle for the favor of the Powerstones. But there is only one seat on the Enchanted Throne! Do you have the skills to lead the world into a new era?

Evenfall is a card-driven, engine-building game with both novel and familiar mechanisms for 1 to 4 players. Manage your resources, execute your actions in an efficient order, and discover card and action synergies that generate victory points. The game ends after three rounds, then the player with the most points wins.

—description from the publisher

Game Mechanics:

  • Chaining
  • End Game Bonuses
  • Hand Management
  • Multi-Use Cards
  • Variable Player Powers
  • Worker Placement

Game Specifications:

  • 1 – 4 Players
  • 60 – `120 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 3.09

Dune: Imperium – Uprising LAST BAD IMAGE

| T3d-1978

In Dune: Imperium Uprising, you want to continue to balance military might with political intrigue, wielding new tools in pursuit of victory. Spies will shore up your plans, vital contracts will expand your resources, or you can learn the ways of the Fremen and ride mighty sandworms into battle!

Dune: Imperium Uprising is a standalone spinoff to Dune: Imperium that expands on that game’s blend of deck-building and worker placement, while introducing a new six-player mode that pits two teams against one other in the biggest struggle yet.

The Dune: Imperium expansions Rise of Ix and Immortality work with Uprising, as do almost all of the cards from the base game, and elements of Uprising can be used with Dune: Imperium.

The choices are yours. The Imperium awaits!

Game Mechanics:

  • Automatic Resource Growth
  • Card Play Conflict
  • Resolution
  • Contracts
  • Deck, Bag, and Pool
  • Building
  • Delayed Purchase
  • Force Commitment
  • Increase Value of Unchosen Resources
  • Multi-Use Cards
  • Open Drafting
  • Solo / Solitaire Game
  • Team-Based Game
  • Turn Order: Progressive
  • Variable Player Powers
  • Worker Placement

Game Specifications:

  • 1 – 6 Players
  • 60 – 120 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 3.50

Big Sur

| T3d-1978

Cruise along California’s State Route 1 on the Big Sur Coast Highway to check out the views and landmarks along the most scenic driving route in the world — or rather, invite others to cruise on the highway that you build over the course of play.

In Big Sur, players draft cards to use them either as resources to build new road sections or as the road sections themselves. Your linear path of cards will score for connecting terrain types and meeting other conditions. You can also add notable landmarks to your highway for other unique scoring conditions; these landmarks are based on actual scenic lookouts and locations on Big Sur.

Game Mechanics:

  • Multi-Use Cards
  • Pattern Building

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 4 Players
  • 15 – 30 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 2.00

Apiary 🟡

| T3d-1978

In a far-distant future, humans no longer inhabit Earth. The cause of their disappearance (or perhaps their demise) is unknown, but their absence left a void ready to be filled by another sentient species.

Over the span of untold generations, one species of the humble honeybee evolved to fill that void. They grew in size and intelligence to become a highly advanced society. They call themselves Mellifera, and they have made substantial technological advances in addition to the technology they adapted from human ruins, up to and including space travel.

In Apiary, each player controls one of twenty unique factions. Your faction starts the game with a hive, a few resources, and worker bees. A worker-placement, hive-building challenge awaits you: explore planets, gather resources, develop technologies, and create carvings to demonstrate your faction’s strengths (measured in victory points) over one year’s Flow. However, the Dearth quickly approaches, and your workers can take only a few actions before they must hibernate! Can you thrive or merely survive?

Game Mechanics:

  • Income
  • Multi-Use Cards
  • Solo / Solitaire Game
  • Tile Placement
  • Variable Player Powers
  • Worker Placement

Game Specifications:

  • 1 – 5 Players
  • 60 – 90 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 2.97

1961 🟢

| T3d-1978

In 1961, you can invest in your space program, establish diplomatic relationships, and, most importantly, launch missiles as you and your components strive to win the Cold War. You can play cards in three different ways – as an action, a building, or a supply. But in a Cold War world, nothing is safe for long, and you have to balance internal development with defensive (and offensive) strategies.

There are three ways to win the game: win the Space Race, achieve diplomatic world peace, or be the sole survivor in a nuclear Armageddon. Do you have what it takes to come out on top in 1961?

Game Mechanics:

  • Multi-use Cards
  • Player Elimination
  • Turn Order: Pass Order

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 6 Players
  • 5 – 20 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.67