- Publisher(s) : Blackrock Games
- Designer(s) : Virginio Gigli, Simone Luciani
- Artist(s) : Paolo Voto
- Players : 2–4
- Playing time : 30–60 Min
- Weight BGG : 2.35
What's this?
Etherstone is a card game for 2 to 4 players. On the forgotten planet of Nobura, ravaged by the corrupting Purple Void, you play an ambitious faction leader who collects Etherstones via dice drafting to summon Entities and defeat common Threats.
How do you play?
Part of it is structured around two distinct phases:
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Drafting Phase: Players build their starting hand by selecting 7 Entity cards via a draft system (one card is chosen, and the rest are passed to a neighbor) and choose one Leader from two options . This step is crucial as it defines the synergies of your game .
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Main Phase: In turn, each player performs one action from the following :
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Select a die: Choose a die from the reserve to gain 2 Etherstones of its color and activate the abilities of its cards related to the color or value of the die .
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Summon: Pay the resource cost to play an Entity card from your hand in front of you, triggering its powers .
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Attack: Use the strength of your Leader and Followers to defeat an active Threat card and add it to your loot .
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Rest: Restore your Followers engaged during an attack to make them usable again .
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Void Pact: Mandatory rescue action if you are “corrupted” (zero health) to reset your health, at the cost of a penalty points at the end of the game .
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The game ends when a player empties their hand, the Threat deck is exhausted, or there are no more Point tokens on the table.
Is it good?
The first thing that strikes you when discovering Etherstone is its magnificent illustrations. The science-fiction comic book style, ultra-colorful and sometimes reminiscent of Enki Bilal’s universe, makes you want to draft simply for the pleasure of seeing it.
The game is reminiscent of Res Arcana : here, you keep your starting hand throughout the entire game, with no possibility of acquiring new cards along the way. As a result, the initial draft is unforgiving: if you don’t choose the right cards, you risk struggling until the very end. Strategic depth is therefore established from the first minute with a particularly demanding draft.
Etherstone features an ingenious dice selection system: dice aren’t just used to obtain resources, but act as a powerful engine to activate combos on your board. However, randomness can sometimes be frustrating if the values needed for your abilities don’t appear at the right time.
Otherwise, the structure is fluid: attacking, gathering resources, developing your game engine… It’s all about timing and keeping a close eye on your opponents. Behind this apparent simplicity lies real tactical depth, driven by exhilarating synergies and asymmetrical leaders that boost replayability. The games are tense and sometimes even a little too short, as you wish the fun could last longer.
One small drawback, however: while the art direction is sublime, the theme remains rather abstract, which is a bit of a shame. Furthermore, the game uses numerous icons and technical terms that aren’t always intuitive or sufficiently explained in the rulebook for some complex combos. You’ll therefore need a few practice rounds to get the hang of it completely smoothly.
In short, Etherstone is an intense combo game where every decision, from the initial draft to the tactical choice of dice, shapes your strategy to dominate the game. It’s a must-have for fans of Res Arcana who appreciate its unique visual style.
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Etershtone Review
Positives
- Gorgeous art direction
- Ingenious dice system
- Strategic Depth
- Demanding starting draft
- High replayability
Negatives
- Theme in retreat
- Iconography to be tamed
- Random dice
- Ruthless draft
