[CrimsonFox]

Game # 2: Pawnbarian (2021)

FIrst off F this gAME. tHERE i SAID IT.

If you like chess, and weho does there is a chance you will love this game. Chess variant games are odd. Chess purists might hate them because it corrupts the pure essence of chess by adding extra things and everyone else hates them because...well...it's chess. I had a card game in the 90s called Knightmare Chess where you had cards which gave the pieces extra abilities. And that's what this does. YOu have 5 characters you can choose from and you must traverse 7 levels of 3 dungeons each to "win". at least with that character. There are definitely interesting thigns.It's a reduced board with new pieces or should I say you have a character and you draw cards deck builder style and also can buy abilities for each piece. And then there are monsters which you must defeat also with hard abilities that hit you, leave stinkclouds, pull you, take 2 hits to kill, etc. And there are hit points. YOu get the idea.
The characters vary and some are more fun than others. The Pawnbarian can change a pawn to queen as long as you have one available. Immediaately or on your next turn.
The Mystic has ghosts you can drop available square.
The Berserker can leap two squares.
The Nomad shoots squares when it attacks but stays where it is.
The Knight Templar can purify spaces from clouds.

And of courser you can buy abilities such as shield, major shield, cardinal splash, diagonal splash, purify, cantrip (which gives you an extra move)

So you must traverse the capybarra dungeon, the golem dungeon (things with electricity that trigger attacks and things if you take an extra move), and the foul dungeon full of stinkbombs and monsters that pull you forward after a move (which are the bane of my existence)

There are problems. I rage. It tells you how much damage each square will do to you if you go there...but that's not accurate when it comes to the void pullers so you;ll fail a lot. Big learning curve. But ifg you like chess it's definitely a challenge you might like. I really had to watch someone else play the last dungeon to make any headway in it. And now it's really okay. It was my build.

So like...yeah I'm not sold in it being a great game and there is the roguelike RNG factor as always.