Majestic Nights

If there is any criticism to be made of Armello, it’s that it is almost too lovely. Anthropomorphic animals, dressed in impossibly beautiful clothes, campaign with their colourful cards across hexes of snow and gentle fir trees, to gratuitous French horn and strings. Despite the occasional swamps and combat, the whole experience makes one feel quite like a Disney Princess. Well, if she were a bear.

Even at character generation, however, the sense of accompanying depth is obvious. Do you choose the ring that allows stealth by stone circle at all hours of the day or the one that provides +2 to prestige when you kill with trickery? In time, your answer will be strategic, possibly even ruthless. In this four-player game, being able to anticipate and adapt to player/AI behaviour is pivotal. As you move between objectives, other characters will literally stand in your way. Interestingly, they can also engage you in battle and push you back a hex if they win. Combat is decided with dice and by playing relevant cards, but quickly, as the timer is unforgiving. Cards are also played against terrain and players on the map. This experience would shine with three good, human opponents.

To that end, we asked Trent Kusters, League of Geeks Founder/Director what he’d most like players to experience playing Armello. He tells us, “The magic we feel when utterly absorbed in tabletop games with our friends, or hours deep into those epic adventure films we all grew up with.” So, play a Branberry Ale and settle in for a night of beautiful squabble.