Despite Scythe, sitting on the 16th ranking spot on Board Game Geek, I've always found discourse around the game to be divisive. After playing it myself, I think this is largely a combination of misinterpreting what the game is about or even outright rejecting it.
**Gideon's Bias**
Review Copy Used: Yes
Number of plays: 10+
Player Counts Played: 1, 2, 3 and 4
Fan of Genre: Yes
Fan of Weight: Yes
Gaming Groups Thoughts: Enjoyed It
**Scythe Information**
Publisher: Stonemaier Games
Designers: Jamey Stegmaier
Player Count: 1-5
Genre: Engine Building and Territory Control
Weight: Heavy
Price: $99
**Pros**
Highly asymmetric factions
A great blend of engine building, territory control, and war
Awesome components including detailed mech miniatures
Interesting mechanisms that make the threat of war as important as war
Tons of freedom with many paths to victory
High player interaction when you pursue it
Excellent action selection system that makes Scythe fast to play and easy to learn despite its weight
Inset player mats are neat
Plays well at multiple-player counts
**Cons**
The board features space for 7 factions, but only 5 are present in the base game
The lack of flavor text on encounter cards makes them feel dry
The Automa for solo play is difficult to learn
The tacked-on diplomacy mechanism is terrible
The combat system is simplistic, that's a bummer considering the coolness of the mechs and setting
The unique character miniatures are essentially for show, as there is no gameplay difference between them.
You can play Scythe "wrong" which will impact your enjoyment if you don't meet it where it stands.
**Links**
Website: https://gideonsgaming.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GideonsGaming
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gideonsgaming/
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/GamingGideon
Kofi: https://ko-fi.com/gaminggideon
**Interested in the card holders I use in my photos?**
They are from Build with Ti'tains whom can be found on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/build_with_titains/
**Time Stamps**
00:00 Overview
01:35 Presentation
04:25 Learning Curve
06:13 Gameplay
08:29 War, what is it good for?
11:27 Player Interaction
15:31 Why it works
17:04 The Rusty Bits
19:41 Player Count
21:34 Verdict
#boardgames #scythe #gideonsgaming