I think new players can learn Spirecrest in conjunction with the base game, and I think its mechanics integrate fluidly with the base game. But for those who do in fact enjoy playing Everdell in solitaire and want to add just the right amount of complexity and new mechanisms, then I wholeheartedly recommend taking a closer look at the Spirecrest expansion. I was worried the Visitors would turn into a late-game dumpster dive, but the mechanism is preventative. And yet, this little pack introduces a mechanical element that seldom rears its head across every product in the Everdell family: take-that.

If you’ve seen pictures of all the cute new critters and giant gritters online then it’s important to note that the retail edition of Spirecrest comes with only one new critter type, the Fox. This makes for a fun end-game scoring mechanism, and provides motivation to manage your resources/cards meticulously at the end of the game so you can score some major bonus points. Charting means you take a faceup map tile — there is one more than the number of players — which can earn end of game bonuses. Each of the three regions of the mountain board has an associated deck of cards, which represents the creatures and locations your Traveller will encounter over the course of their journey. They are large and awkward, and they obscure the game materials that normally stand out so well just sitting on the table.I’m not the sort that necessarily wants to see myself or my handwriting in a (non-legacy) game, so the custom cards are not that appealing to me. As noted in the setup section, there is always one more Map Tile than number of players playing so even the last person to Prepare for Season still gets a choice of tiles. I also say “hardly” an expansion because three cards that are worth a collective two points with a stack of rat meeples hardly amount to radical transformation. As I moved into college, I started playing Magic: the Gathering with a group of guys and my love for board games slid to the wayside as I progressed into gulp adulthood (not to mention a long obsession with World of Warcraft.

I wager this bet because the Discovery Cards is where you can score yourself one of the lovely Big Critters that come in the expansion. This notion of weighing the pros and cons is also applicable to the act of deciding on which Discovery card to acquire. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. I can understand those who feel that the effects of the weather cards are too punishing, transforming Everdell from a relative tranquil board game affair into something more serious and complex. The Spirecrest expansion adds a second set of actions to your season and does not distract you from the main objective of building your city.On the plus side, the Player Powers are a lovely concept to offset the higher player counts for those who are so brave. Spirecrest also includes 4 new sets of workers for players to use as their game faction: badgers, foxes, lizards, and owls. I find myself focusing a lot on saving up the necessary resources to ensure that I always finish traversing my three Map Tiles, but this could be to the detriment of my city.

Earlier, I mentioned the added complexity of Spirecrest, and I don’t think I’m wrong about this as even the 2 nd page of the rulebook recommends that you do not play Spirecrest mixed with another expansion but don’t worry, almost all of the added mechanics take place when you Prepare for Season. But if you do, you will indeed have a tale or two to tell of your exploration of these previously uncharted lands.The Reserve token gives folks a chance to work towards a grand payoff by holding onto a card before its moment. This expansion is challenging compared to the others which makes for better (and longer) game play, IMO. As I mentioned Spirecrest has a new board that slots neatly into the cutout at the bottom of the main board. It is important to note that the acquisition of map pieces operates on a “first come, first served” mechanism, where players are moving their Traveller independently from one another much like the dynamic round structure of the base game in terms of the changing of seasons. This expansion features a new Mountain board, Discovery cards, Weather cards, Big Critters, Maps, and Expeditions!

I still think plain old Everdell is a 10/10—with cardboard chits, the base cards, and the squishy berries. You simply take the leftover tile, add it to Rugwort’s expedition row and then proceed to the next step of the Exploration action.This mechanic, which determines how Critters are claimed for “free” via a Construction, requires a bit of attention, but it bridges the gap well. After each season, the rabbit progresses in the exploration, and you can choose a journey token from the few that are available. Personally, I welcome the added nuance and depth that the Spirecrest expansion brings to the game table when playing Everdell solitarily.