Tiny but mighty

As you might know, I really love the concept of micro games, and how a few components can still lead to fun gameplay. 🙂 Le Roy des Ribauds fits this bill exactly. It has just 16 cards, which are 4 copies of 4 types, but it’s still exciting and strategic! It reminds me of Love Letter, not just because of the small contained deck, but because games can often be over in mere turns - that’s no problem though, you can just reshuffle and go again! 😁 A notable difference with Le Roy des Ribeauds though is that it is for 2 players only.

Let’s investigate how the game is played! 🕵️
During setup the deck is shuffled, players get 3 cards each, and 4 facedown cards in a row will make up the “Court”. Gameplay is simple: On your turn you either flip a card face up in the Court and activate its effect, or exchange a card from your hand with one in the Court - either placing yours faceup and activating it, or placing it facedown to plan for a future play.

There are four different types of cards, each with their own ability.
👑 Kings let your either reveal a card in Court, or draw 2 cards from the deck then discard 2.
🛡️ Knights allow you to swap the position of two cards in the Court, then reveal or hide one.
🗡️ Assassins allow you to take a peek at 2 facedown cards in the Court.
🪭 Queens let you check 2 cards of your opponent and making them discard any Queens.

Now for the most important part - how can you win the game? There are actually 3 victory conditions! 🧐 You win:

• If there are 3 Kings faceup in the Court during your turn
• If you have 3 Queens in your hand at the beginning of your turn
• If there is a face up card between 2 face up Assassins in the Court

The multiple ways to win really make this game! As games are quick and the game state can change very fast, it's good that you can pivot. You have to pay attention to how many Queens are out - if your opponent has 3 it’s over! Facedown cards can also be dangerous. If your opponent knows some are Kings or Assassins, they could quickly combo them into an instant victory! It’s very cool. And the cards look superb with gold foiling on them! 😍