19 March 2024
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If you go down to the woods today, you might just find yourself fighting alongside a very special badger. Skoventyr is a short cooperative card game in which players must save Vogter, the soul of the forest from Gamle Erik, the Adversary, and his minions, ideally without burning it to the ground first.
Written by Dan York
What is Skoventyr?
In the game Skoventyr, players must race to defeat all six minions of Gamle Erik before he reaches Vogter who is hiding in the forest. This is done using a deck containing Vogter’s allies such as the Trold, the Formskifter and the Ellefolk, in order to draw those cards from the trade row however, you must incur some form of penalty, damaging the forest or allowing Gamle Erik to take another step closer to where the badger is hiding. Using the cards collected, players must hide enough allies in the forest to overpower each of the six minion enemies using the powerful wrath of Vogter to defeat an enemy and gain a small bonus.
All the while, the Gamle Erik cards in the deck increase in density, making it more treacherous to draw from. These cards do nothing other than allow him to take another step towards your loss condition, then shuffle themselves back into the deck. It’s a tense experience.
There’s a lot of whimsy baked into the presentation of this game, the artwork has a deliberately creepy feel to it, but it manages to remain cartoonish enough that it’s hard to play without smiling all he way through. I am forever thankful that the rules clearly allow players to openly communicate about what is in their hands, this essentially lets the game be a constant discussion and group puzzle-solving activity, rather than a fire-fighting exercise, which cooperative games so can so often be.
The standout mechanism is that drawing cards is always punishing, a large part of the game is identifying what the value of taking actions is, based on how close it pushes you to getting trapped by the adversary or burning down the dwindling forest. The cards all have powerful special effects which can be used by discarding them, rather than using them to directly defeat minions, presenting us with another delightful set of decisions and compromises to make.
Is Skoventyr Good?
Having said that, the base game is not super challenging. It only took playgroups one or two games to figure out a fairly reliable route to victory. Fortunately, the box also includes two excellent mini-expansions, each of which adds a twist on the rules and a notable jump in complexity.
On the plus side, this meant that it was very easy to teach and to get playing quickly, the choice to have two large striking meeples as the focus on the table draws people in and then it’s only a 60 second teach away from players getting to enjoy the puzzle set out before them.
A sharp cooperative puzzle with an unusual theme. It might lack the replay value of a longer, narrative co-op, but with the right combination of in-box expansions there is a solid game for just about anyone here.
Skoventyr is good at all player counts, and could even be played with more than the recommended, just using four dummy players, this could be enjoyed by any number of players. Its small footprint makes this an excellent coffee table game, with enough peril and whimsy to keep folk engaged but not an overload of rules, to allow a very laidback play experience.
Also, the Vogter badger meeple may now be my favourite ever game component.
Should you play the Skoventyr Game?
Yes.
A whimsical and solid puzzle with incredibly appealing and attractive production. The best badger-chasing gameplay on the market.
Try this if you liked… Under Falling Skies
With straightforward rules and a focus on making good sequencing decisions, players who enjoy thrill of risk and reward in Under Falling Skies should absolutely check this one out.
Related Article: Interview with Under Falling Skies creator
Designer: Morten Monrad Pedersen
Publisher: inPatience
Time: 15-30 minutes
Players: 1-4
Ages: 10+
Price: £20
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