Starling Games | Everdell: Bellfaire | 1-6 Players | Ages 14+ | 40-120 Minutes Playing Time

Product Information

My daughter even passed me her Rugwort cards as part of a card effect. It was a sweet gesture, because she knew I would just discard him at the first opportunity in favor of resources, points, or anything else.

Everdell is a board game for 1 to 4 players designed by James Wilson and published by Starling Games in 2018. In the game, players take the role of forest animals building a city over four seasons by collecting resources, recruiting workers, and constructing buildings. The game has been well regarded by reviewers, with its art and components receiving strong praise. Axolotls: At the beginning of the game, place 1 of the "any" resource tokens on each of the Basic locations on the board

The new Bellfaire special Events are less specific events than those found in the base game. These can be added to the game in a number of ways, depending on preference: Once everyone has completed their actions for the final season (fall) the game ends. The winner is determined based on the sum total of points on all of the cards that players have in their personal tableau (up to a maximum of fifteen.) There are eight bonus objectives to score as well (four of which are randomised during setup) and some cards provide bonuses when combined, or bonuses for collecting certain resources or similar.

While I now own the wooden EverTree, and it is beautiful, I would hardly call it necessary. It is more of a conversation piece for the mantle than a practical component. Before we logged a half-dozen plays of the base game, we dispensed with the assembly of the tree. While the world stretches less into the third dimension without it, I cannot defend it as anything more than decoration for those playing on oversized tables. The Bellfaire market brings with it unique player power cards. Each of the game’s countless meeple factions can hold unique powers, meaning players must fine-tune their playing style to best take advantage of these new and exciting abilities. This asymmetrical mechanic means that there are combinations-a-plenty when it comes to meeples and no two games will be the same. Various cards didn’t take up space in our cities, which opened the door to my daughter’s city containing 22 cards (thank you Corrin Evertail!) and mine having 20 thanks to a Farm/Greenhouse combo that was outside the city, a Legend/Harvester combo, and others.Hedgehogs: If you did not gain a berry when you placed a worker on a Basic or Forest location, gain 1 berry. The garland award introduces a majorities aspect to the game. It gives 6 and 3 points at the end of the game to the 1st and 2nd place player, respectively, for certain objectives, such as most production cards, or most critters. There are 7 garland award tiles, and only 1 is in each game. This mechanic adds interactivity, as they are more common objectives for which players are competing. One of the biggest criticisms I’ve heard of Everdell is that it can veer into multiplayer solitaire, but this majorities bonus — and some of the content in the other expansions — fixes that. During setup, shuffle the Garland Awards and draw 1, placing it either faceup beside the main board or in the designated area on the Bellfaire board. Pearlbrook was the first box expansion to see the light of retail day after the base game and Collector’s Edition. The western expansion introduced a new scene—the River. It also introduced the first oversized and specialized meeple—the Frog Ambassador, a specialized resource—the Pearl, and a game-changing substitution in the Wonders. River destinations instantly became a charming and lucrative source of resource swapping. Adornment cards introduced fascinating ways to spend the Pearls. The twenty new cards drew players into the new locations and options by earning and rewarding pearl collection. Everdell Board Game Review: A Charming Forest Adventure". The Board Gamer. 2023-03-05 . Retrieved 2023-04-23.

You may only do this 1 time for each Production card (you may not use this ability to activate a Production card 3 times). You must discard the card before you activate the Production card. After playing Pearlbrook, I was a little worried about Spirecrest. This massive expansion introduces beautiful new scenery, another oversized specialized meeple—the Rabbit Traveler, several tokens and cards, and, of course, the OVERsized (and wonderfully adorable) Big Critters. What separated Spirecrest from Pearlbrook and landed it higher on the list is the way the new mechanisms keep attention on the base experience. Regardless of the merits, I knew from the start that Bellfaire would have to appeal to me somewhere other than the player count.First, I recognize how important solo gaming can be within the hobby. I know the original Rugwort solo experience was viewed with mixed sentiments. Too punishing: I think that is the common phrase that accompanies the rat. With Nightweave, however, there is now a solo experience that feels more like the actual game with several twists. The board itself is fantastic quality with absolutely gorgeous artwork that clearly depicts all of the key locations, without ever losing the sense of style that links visual functionality perfectly with the whimsical woodland setting of the game. On the board, the player will position a three-dimensional model of the Evertree, which towers over the board and features a couple of tiers of branches on to which cards and animeeples will be placed. There are also a number of bonus cards (some of which are random) that will be added to either the branches of the tree, in clearings around the board or along the river that runs across its top third.

Among the additional modules is one of my favourites – that of specific player powers. Each of the different animal species now benefits from a specific power or ability, and it’s nice to see that Bellfaire includes cards for all (as far as I know) of the animals that feature in the base game and all of the expansions featured in this review and released at the time of writing. Also included in Bellfaire is my least favourite expansion – the player boards. These simply allow players to store resources and workers whilst giving them a “start” to place their tableau into – sadly, these stay in the box for me. The Bellfaire board contains the Market location, and spaces for the Flower Festival Event and Garland Award tiles. You may place the Market board beside the main board, or use the Market area on the Bellfaire board. My favorite addition comes from 15 cards which introduce asymmetric player powers. At the start of the game, each player gets 2 player powers and chooses 1 to keep. These are small bonuses that help guide your strategy. For example, the “Mice” player power allows you to gain 1 of a resource you don’t have when you visit a basic or forest location. The “Otters” can use resin as any resource. The “Cardinals” have a hand limit that is 2 higher (so 10 instead of 8 initially), and, when they draw cards, they draw an additional one. In all, there are 15 new player powers, and they add an interesting and engaging amount of asymmetry without adding much complexity. Though they aren’t necessary (and may clash) with the other expansions, this is a straightforward and effective way to spice up Everdell for experienced players. Finally, a word of praise for the board itself in all its unorthodox glory. No rectangles here, folks! I applaud the decision to use rounded edges, insets, and interesting contours. I think Everdell feels more like a world right out of the box because the board is so very strange. Even in its unusual dimensions, it is terribly efficient and a fit showcase for the game.Bellfaire offers a number of expansion options that may be used when playing the base game of Everdell or one of its expansions. Before setting up the game, players should choose which modules they wish to include. The details for each module, including setup and rules, are outlined below. With an expansion stretching in each compass direction, it sure seems like we’re closing the book on Everdell (in terms of game production, anyway) , and the critters are at home on many a kallax around the world—probably on top, though, because of the sheer size of the box. I suppose it’s time to start evaluating the full panoramic experience.