Abstract but shamanic duel
Cairn is a duel between two shamanic tribes - well it’s an abstract 2p game, so the game could’ve had simple pawns, but let me tell you, the presentation of this game is amazing! 🤩
The gameplay itself is wonderful: simple mechanics, but great depth. Every move has to be carefully thought through! You win by building 3 monoliths, which gets harder as the game goes on.
On your turn you just perform an action, check for the so-called transformation effect, then your opponent is up.
Action selection is very clever! 🧐 There are 3 action tiles and you have to choose one - they’re “Move”, “Summon a new Shaman” and “Leapfrog another pawn”. After doing the action you have to flip the tile over, and this changes the possible action! Depending on the tile’s side:
🥾Movement is either orthogonal or diagonal
🌀Summoning is possible either on the white or the black totem spot of your side
🐸You can jump over either your own or your opponent’s pawn
So you see, you don’t just have to consider the best action for you, but to see what options your opponent will have afterwards. 🤯
And what is this transformation effect I mentioned earlier? It’s actually a 4th tile that is not an action. If you manage to put your pawns in the depicted way in line with an enemy pawn, you get to remove it, build a monolith tile there and get a point.
You can also get a monolith and a point if you manage to leave the board through your opponent’s side. You win by having 3 points! 🏆
Monoliths come on the board like this and change things up in a big way. Each time a figure lands on a monolith, you activate its special effect. And another important thing is that you don’t get points if you remove a pawn or leave the board in a spot that already has a monolith. So the more monoliths out already, the less opportunities to score.
It’s just an awesome concept that you can literally start playing in minutes, but as you play you start to see the depth and tactics. 👌 The action tiles are a clever idea and make for a great interactive experience. And like I mentioned earlier, the game looks simply beautiful 🤩, which is a huge plus in my opinion, even for abstracts like this.
