Colección del juego base y las 4 expansiones autojugables de un juego de batalla de cartas de Domina Games para uno o dos jugadores.

La edición limitada Legendary Set sólo tendrá una tirada de 2000 unidades, y no la volverán a reimprimir. Cuando se acaben, se acabó. ¡Avisaos sus quedáis!


Parece que el Legendary Set aparte de los 5 sets dentro de una caja chula, también traerá 2 tapetes, dados molones, cartas foil y libro de arte.


Por otra parte, aunque el juego trae un modo solitario en el que nos vamos enfrentando a diferentes IAs de cartas de enemigos incluidos en todos los sets, desde Japanime Games han comentado que van a estudiar la posibilidad de incluir también los modos solitarios de estilo de aventuras que la editorial japonesa tiene subidos en la web.

Es un juego minimalista y rápido que se distingue de otros juegos del tipo en la forma en que se construyen los mazos: de 40 "cartas clave" (hay 2 de cada tipo, creo), a cada jugador se le reparten aleatoriamente 15, y de éstas tienen que elegir sólo 7 para usar durante la partida. Las cartas más fuertes tienden a ser de un solo uso, lo que significa que hay que equilibrar la longevidad y el poder al tomar las decisiones. Además, una mano de 7 cartas significa que puedes hacer suposiciones sobre lo que podría tener tu oponente, aunque sin una certeza total.

Para el modo solitario cada caja incluye 20 cartas que se usan únicamente para el solitario. No es un sistema "pegado". Son enemigos que hay que ir derrotando, y creo que cada expansión tiene su IA.

Luego cada expansión se puede mezclar con el base, pero es autojugable. Cada una ofrece nuevos elementos. Por ejemplo una añade monedas de oro y demonios. Otra la congelación de cartas, lo que permite que su efecto se retrase a turnos posteriores para añadir profundidad estratégica adicional. Otra se enfoca solo en cartas con habilidades ofensivas. Y así.

"I played Blade Rondo (specifically the Grim Garden set) a couple years back and enjoyed it quite a bit, so in preparation for the imminent launch of the campaign for the English edition, I brought it back to the table. I thought I would just post this under the original game entry rather than Grim Garden because I suspect people will for the most part only be looking at this one. For those interested in picking up the game, I hope you find my thoughts at least a little helpful!

Blade Rondo is a fast and light hand constructing, dueling game where each player picks only 7 cards to use per game! However, if you are at all familiar with Domina titles, of course there is surprising variability in strategies to pursue. Naturally, the artwork and graphic design are also absurdly gorgeous! Each set of Blade Rondo comes with 40 sword cards, of which 15 are dealt to each player to begin the game. Each player chooses 7 cards to form their hand and removes the rest from the game, then they are ready to begin, taking turns playing those cards to achieve victory by reducing their opponent's life to 0. Each player has three stats—attack, defense, and voltage—all beginning at 0 (except for the second player who begins at 1 attack). Most damage is dealt by physical attacks which utilize your attack stat minus your opponent's defense stat. However, there are also magic attacks which circumvent defense. If you enjoy some light mind games, this game delivers as cards will allow you to manipulate your stats, but sometimes it can be a bit of a waste if your opponent can counter you. For example, if an opponent is playing heavily into magic, then raising your defense may not be as high a priority, but if they are also raising their attack stat then they could be planning a sudden heavy physical attack. Voltage, on the other hand, is a more simple part of the game. At the beginning of every turn, players gain +1 voltage than they did the prior turn, which is a mana like resource spent to play cards (so, for example, on the first turn of the game you could play one card of cost 1, and on the fifth turn of the game you could play any combination of cards with a cumulative cost of up to 5). In this way, players are able to scale up in power over time in a balanced manner (no "mana screw", as the Magic: The Gathering players would put it 😆). I appreciate that the game begins with simple moves and then quickly opens up to allow for satisfying big plays. Additionally, because you know how much voltage you will have on any given turn, you can plan around what turn to play specific cards in order to most efficiently use all your voltage. However, there are always the once per turn options to spend 1 voltage to gain +1 attack or spend X voltage to gain +X defense, so voltage rarely feels wasted.

The card play is simple but remains engaging with different card types and keywords in addition to new mechanics being introduced in different sets. Most cards can be returned to your hand at the end of your turn sort of like having a learned spell to cast as often as you would like, while others are one time use. There are also cards which summon followers which remain in play and perform their effects every turn, as well as response cards which are played face down and can be flipped over during your opponent's turn in reaction to one of their played cards which triggers its conditions. The game rewards planning ahead and knowing what to expect from your opponent which makes it an ideal game for the same players to tackle multiple times and really get to understand the synergies. If you aren't familiar with the cards or not paying attention, you can lock yourself out of paths to victory. For example, your attack power may be too low and your opponent has maximized their defense, or you have too many expensive cards you won't be able to field in time. It's key to have a range of costs and attack types in your hand in order to respond to an opponent effectively. You can try to predict the cards they have access to, but those 10 cards left over after dealing at the beginning of the game switch things up enough that you never know exactly. It's also possible to spread too thin though and not pay enough attention to cards that synergize well, as the combos in this game are plentiful. I love the puzzle of picking up your 15 cards and trying to piece together a plan on the spot. That being said, each set is still small enough that, at least for Grim Garden, it only took a few games to reach a good point of understanding, of which each lasts about 15 minutes. The rulebook includes recommended starting hands for each player for an introductory game though which is quite helpful too.

As always with Domina releases, I enjoy that the solo mode has its own unique AI cards (of which each and every one also has incredible artwork!) and doesn't need to repurpose other components in a clunky manner as so many tacked-on solo modes tend to require. The solo mode varies a fair amount by set, but at least in Grim Garden a game consists of five consecutive battles against increasingly difficult enemies of which there are quite a variety making for a fresh combination every time. Each enemy has various effects it will perform in order each turn as well as unique rules. As they don't have their own hand to play from and are fairly predictable once revealed, I find the decision making is more focused on being as efficient as possible rather than trying to respond to the AI, although that is certainly a factor to heed. Once again, each set provides unique aspects to make it a new experience such as sideboards of sword cards to play on any turn or enemies which provide unique rewards when defeated. My only negative surrounding the solo mode is that there are a few cards which need reworked effects for which you must refer to the rulebook. As a solo gamer at heart, I would absolutely recommend the game just for solo though!

I originally purchased Grim Garden for the purposes of testing the waters and deciding if this game is for me, and I must say my one major complaint was that I want more content which luckily is available in spades! I'm sure that the variability and new synergies to explore increase an incredible amount with all five sets to mix and match, and I'm greatly looking forward to it. As a personal preference, I also wish there was a little more going on at the table. Even with the added solo mechanics and a good mix of cards which remain in play as summons or reactions, I wish there were some more inventive card effects, but each expansion also offers unique mechanics which will alleviate this issue for me I'm sure. On the other hand, what keeps this game beautifully smooth and accessible is its streamlined gameplay, and I can certainly appreciate that as well. With the knowledge that Grim Garden is far from all Blade Rondo has to offer, my score is going to be 8/10 for this one!

8/10"