Norse mythology and the Vikings are a very popular theme. From fearless warriors, epic battles and a whole range of more or less friendly deities, you can draw inspiration for creating books, movies, but also computer and board games. In 2015, the famous board game designer Eric M. Lang also decided to reach for the characters of Odin, Loki and others to give players Blood Rage. A year later, thanks to Portal Games, we could enjoy the Polish language version. Shortly after the premiere, I had the opportunity to get acquainted with this title, but due to the constant influx of new products, the game remained on the “play again and may buy” list. Unfortunately, for several years I did not implement this plan. Fortunately, thanks to the Portal Games publishing house, I returned to this board game, which I am very happy about, because the feelings after the games were even better than the first time.
In the game, we lead the Wolf, Bear, Wija or Raven clans. Everyone receives their own board, which contains the information necessary for the game, including the resources and developments at their disposal, the level of statistics and the rage that is used to carry out the action. Our clan includes 1-strength warriors, 2-strength drakkar and a 3-point jarl. The last two units also have an additional ability, while all of the above mentioned units can receive upgrades during the game.
During each of the three ages, we will use a new deck. Red (battle) cards increase our strength, green (expedition) cards must be completed in order to receive the indicated profits, while black cards are developments. Depending on the type of the latter, we will be able to improve the clan, unit (warriors, drakkar or jarl) or monsters.
At the beginning of the round, all players are dealt 8 cards from the appropriate pile. We choose one each and pass the remaining 7 to the person on the left until we have 2 left, which are returned to the box. We are left with six on our clan board and the main part, the action phase, begins. We have five to choose from and they are described at the bottom of the board. We can bring our figure to an unoccupied village hex on the main board (raid), move units on the board (march), gain an upgrade by playing a card from hand (upgrade), take part in an expedition (expedition) or attack and plunder a province (plunder).
Unfortunately, most of them are not free. Bringing a unit onto the board costs a number of frenzy points equal to its power, marching out requires only one, and upgrade cards have the indicated cost. Expedition and plunder are free.
We start the game with frenzy at level six, so initially we will do little action. You need to raise your stats to have more options. In addition to frenzy, we also have horns, which indicate the number of units we can have on the main board, and axes, which indicate the number of glory points we will receive for winning a battle.
After everyone has completed their action phase, they must discard any unused cards, but may keep one for the next era. We then check to see if we have met the requirements of the quest cards, if any. The Ragnarök phase begins, thanks to which we get glory points if our units were in the destroyed province. We move them to Valhalla, so that they return to our resources right after. We can use them in the next era.
After three rounds, the game ends and the player with the most Glory Points wins.
Blood Rage primarily impresses with its performance. Even though the premiere of the game took place a few years ago, the figurines can still be used as a model. The graphics are atmospheric and refer to the Nordic culture. It is very pleasant to look at all the components laid out on the table.
I like the logical connection of what is happening on the board with the theme of the game. Individual provinces are destroyed as Ragnarök approaches. Warriors willingly die in glory to go to Valhalla. Only the return of the dead is incomprehensible to me and contradicts logic, but otherwise the mechanics interact with the story on the board.
Blood Rage is a good strategy board game with nice components, simple rules and a relatively short gameplay time for this type of game. You don’t need much experience to play it, but complete laymen might have trouble making optimal decisions and planning a few moves ahead. Games are very satisfying, especially when you manage to choose matching cards and create a really strong clan that turns out to be invincible.
I recommend the game to both advanced and less experienced players. Blood Rage has been available on the Polish market for several years, so probably many people have already had the opportunity to get acquainted with it, but for those who are just looking for good titles and have not heard about Eric M. Lang’s Nordic game, I recommend this position.
