The galaxy has been a peaceful place for many years. After the ruthless Terran—Hegemony War (30.027—33.364), much effort has been employed by all major spacefaring species to prevent the terrifying events from repeating themselves. The Galactic Council was formed to enforce precious peace, and it has taken many courageous efforts to prevent the escalation of malicious acts.

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These differences in approach show even more starkly in other areas of the games. The nature of Eclipse as a structured game comes from the way it resolves its rounds, especially in stark comparison to grandpappy Imperium. Eclipse is honest with you: eight rounds and no more. Over those eight rounds, you grind for tech, control territory and participate in glorious battles to win. Twilight Imperium is far more snarky. Sure, it says, you can win by winning fights and controlling territories, but the mercurial objectives revealed slowly round after round say otherwise. In my wife’s own words, I can tell if a game is good if she keeps on coming downstairs to the game from her at-home job to take turns all day long. Eclipse provided such an experience for her, despite her initial misgivings. Color me surprised. Twilight Imperium has a working but inelegant storage solution, a vast improvement over the options given by other Fantasy Flight titles like Arkham Horror. Even so, setup will still take you at least 45 minutes to an hour, as you pull out the customised cardboard chits for each of the base game's 17 factions and either set up the galaxy yourself or add another stage to the game - building the galaxy in a delightful cut-throat minigame, one that sets up the galaxy as a boon for you or a bane for your friends. Twilight Imperium wants you to be champing at the bit to play, which is very distinct from Eclipse’s approach.First and foremost, the production quality of the game is top-notch. Every component is designed to have its own little niche inside of the game box, and there is virtually no spilling over of components when inside. It is perfect. Category Board Games Tags Asmodee, BGG Top 100, Eclipse, Zatu Gold Award SKU ZBG-ASMECL021 Availability Twilight Imperium's latest fourth edition released in 2017, 20 years after the sci-fi epic first hit tables.

Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy Wiki Official Rules | Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy Wiki

I do have some gripes about the Rulebook. I do find that the printing is rather small and cluttered, and would have preferred some more spacing out between different sections of the book. However, on the plus side, it has some very good examples of gameplay broken down between 4 fictitious players to give you a better sense of how Eclipse plays out. And I do wish that there was a separate handout available detailing researchable Techs for easy access rather than having to search for the Rulebook every time you need a reference. Eclipse is a "4X" game where players will command a human or alien species that explores, expands, exploits, and exterminates their way to victory. Over 8 rounds, each player will select actions to achieve their goals, carefully managing resources, engaging in epic battles with one another and the Ancients that lie in wait. Only one will guide the galaxy toward the second dawn.Not sure what game to buy next? Buy a premium mystery box for two to four great games to add to your collection! Buy Premium Box » Eclipse places you in control of a vast interstellar civilization. Explore new star systems, research technologies, and build spaceships with which to wage war. There are many potential paths to victory, so you need to plan your strategy according to the strengths and weaknesses of your species, while paying attention to the other civilizations' endeavors. Great selection of games and offers. Always delivered on time. Great to support an independent business.

Eclipse: Second Dawn for The Galaxy – Board Game by Eclipse: Second Dawn for The Galaxy – Board Game by

After a few years of waiting for shortages of the game that was between printings and having accrued enough savings, I can finally say that I own the 2nd edition of Eclipse now. Though, to this game’s credit, this may not happen at all depending on players strategies. Because there are multiple paths to victory. Travel between various sectors/hexes in this games requires warp portals between two hexes be aligned. If the symbols for warp portals do not line up, you need to find an alternate way to get to your destination.Twilight Imperium wants you to be champing at the bit to play, which is very distinct from Eclipse’s approach. Combat is another animal altogether. Eclipse is clear with its stakes. Your ships are weak and you have to improve them. How you do it is up to you, but you need superior firepower, armor, accuracy - or all three. With the dice generally being more receptive to generating hits (with only one of the die’s six sides guaranteeing a miss), when you initiate a fight it’s because you know what’s coming. Because for every action you take there’s a double cost of influence and money which means that every decision you make needs to be geared towards a very clear goal. Are you going for tech? Great! Better hope that no one invades! Are you building towards a military victory? Better get those ship upgrades right or you’ll be very embarrassed when your armada collapses in the face of the enemy defence fleet.