Few topics are so compelling as the Greek gods. Perhaps it’s because, like us, they’re fallible – prone to pettiness and vanity as much as they are to wisdom. Shiny new hellenic board game For the Gods! celebrates the classic pantheon, but its focus is not on the flawed actions of the deities – it’s the petty squabbles of their followers.
I played an early prototype of Mighty Boards’ For the Gods! at UK Games Expo on Friday. At first glance, it’s a game that’s worthy of devotion. Even the prototype board, a vibrant archipelago of islands, is stunning. The wooden ship meeples, and the plastic towers you gradually populate the board with, add to the grandeur.
For the Gods! is a smooth mix of bag-building and area control. The concept is simple and easy to dive into: on your turn, sail to an island, collect a devotion token (if available), and build a tower.
Moving and building require you to spend tokens from your hand (five tiles randomly drawn from your bag). Towers must be made of tiles with matching pips – though don’t worry if you only have a single tile to offer, you can come back and make it taller later.
You can also add a single god devotion tile to your tower. This activates that god’s powers.
In exchange for your ardour, Poseidon will teleport you across the map, or Demeter will grow another of your towers to new heights. With 12 gods to mix and match, each game feels a little different.
The tallest tower in each segment scores the most points, with lesser scoring available for second place. In the case of ties, the tower with the highest-value pips takes victory.
The teach was smooth sailing, but For the Gods! Can be surprisingly brutal. Everyone is polite and accommodating for the first few turns, while empty segments are plentiful. But once the board becomes crowded, competition heats up.
Quickly (because the game only takes around an hour to play), you realize whether your plans were best laid or put upon shaky foundations. There’s no mollycoddling for misplays, and it’s possible to end the game on drastically different scores.
I secured the highest-scoring segment early, and several of my towers went entirely unchallenged, while the other zealots were busy squabbling over other sections. That meant I ended up scoring 20 points more than the loser – a gulf as vast as an ocean.
Despite the way final scoring can smite your morale, this is an accessible strategy game. It’s one I can see myself bringing to the table of beginner hobbyists – though that approachability might deter me from repeat plays.
I’d need more time with the game to fully assess its balance and replayability. But, as far as first impressions go, For the Gods! makes a pretty darn good one. Want to share your own UK Games Expo stories? Hit us up in the Wargamer Discord.
Source: Wargamer
