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Much like the game’s namesake, Ashes initially looks more like a rebirth of older titles than something completely new. The basic gameplay of Ashes is not terribly new to your average card game player. Players alternate taking a single Main Action and an optional Side Action until both have consecutively passed, at which point the round resets and things start again from the top, repeating this process until one of the Phoenixborn falls. The game provides the option to work within the confines of the 6 pre-built “starter” decks right out of the box, or to mix-and-match with simple, but meaningful deck construction rules.ĭuels take place over several rounds, each consisting of a variable number of player turns. Each character has a unique collection of conjurations, units, spells, and power dice at their disposal. This is played out in a fight to the death, typically 1-on-1, although multiplayer is available. Still, Ashes has taken this in stride, developing an original universe centered around the land of Argaia and its humanity-saving Phoenixborn, powerful wizard-warriors sent by a higher power to destroy the chimera, an evil of one sort or another.Īs an Ashes player, you take control of a Phoenixborn driven mad with a lust for power, seeking only to destroy the others like yourself in hopes of collecting their ashes (get it?) and becoming all-powerful. It is a fiction that has been imagined a thousand times before and its frequency in card game design rivals that of zombies in other genres. Many a gamer could see reason to roll his or her eyes at another game simulating a duel between magic wielding sorcerers.

While it is just one of many “expandable card games” to be featured on store shelves, the newest contender, Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn from Plaid Hat Games and designer Isaac Vega, is seeking its own place at the table, blending the non-collectible distribution model of popular games like Android: Netrunner and Doomtown Reloaded with the blended fantasy card dueling of its mentor, Magic: The Gathering. We sit now in the era of anti-collectible card games, games that look to eliminate the need to chase rarities and spend top dollar to play the game well or in a preferred style. Fortunately, many savvy designers and publishers have worked around this model, specifically targeting the one undeniable weakness of games like Magic and its ilk – the cost to stay relevant. While many have entered the arena with the goal of overthrowing this titan, Magic’s ability to stand strong has proven that attempting to create a sustainable competitor in the collectible game market is somewhat futile. Some twenty years later, the reign of this game stands strong – it truly is the King of Collectible Card Games.

In 1993, Wizards of the Coast turned the world of hobby gaming on its head, releasing the first set of Magic: The Gathering, a dueling card game about magic-users fighting to the death with fantastical spells and mythical creatures at their command. Designer: Isaac Vega | Artists: David Richards, Fernanda Suarez | Publisher: Plaid Hat Games, 2015