Gudnak Game Review

The Basics:

  • For ages 10 and up  (publisher suggests 12+)
  • For 2 or 4 players
  • Approximately 30 minutes to complete

Geek Skills:

  • Active Listening & Communication
  • Counting & Math
  • Logical & Critical Decision Making
  • Reading
  • Strategy & Tactics
  • Risk vs. Reward
  • Cooperative & Team Play
  • Hand/Resource Management

Learning Curve:

  • Child – Moderate
  • Adult – Easy

Theme & Narrative:

  • Wage war with your faction of choice for honor, glory, and control

Endorsements:

  • Child Geek approved!
  • Parent Geek approved!
  • Gamer Geek approved

Overview

Chinese military general, strategist, philosopher, and writer who lived during the Eastern Zhou period (771–256 BC), Sun Tzu, said, “Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.” In this game, you control an army of a single faction focused on war for its own purposes. You build your forces and bring them to the field, combining groups to push hard against your enemy’s stronghold and control the land. But beware. While you may have built your army from scratch, know that your opponent has also done so. Ultimately, victory won’t go to the stronger army but to the more innovative player.

Gudnak, designed by Timothy S. O’BrienIan Oliver and published by Chaotic Great, is comprised of 168 cards (representing four different factions and neutral resources), four Strong Hold tiles, one double-sided Battlefield game board (one side is used for a two-player game and the other side for a four-player game), and player aid cards. The cards are thick and durable. The Strong Hold tiles and game board are made of thick cardboard. There is real quality here. The illustrations by Vittoria Pompolani are simply outstanding. Colorful and detailed, each piece of art (and I do mean “art”) on the cards significantly reinforces the game’s theme and narrative.

Preparing for Battle

To set up the game for two players, complete the following steps.

First, have each player decide which faction they want to use. Each faction has its strengths and weaknesses, allowing players to explore different strategies and tactics. Moreover, each deck of cards the players will use must be built using a very small and easy-to-understand ruleset. Several pre-built decks are described in the rulebook, giving players immediate action to some entertaining combinations and options. If these pre-built decks are not to the player’s liking, they are welcome to build their decks using one faction and the neutral cards that can belong to any of the four factions.

The four factions are summarized here:

  • The Refractory: A faction built around strong religious zealotry and intense military might.
  • Shardsword Alliance: A group of different races who have formed a tentative peace agreement that allows them to combine forces.
  • The Gloaming: An undead hoard with a penchant for destroying the living.
  • Delguon: Underdwellers who have made a kingdom in the dark now rise to the surface to claim the lands of light.

Second, place the Battlefield in the middle of the playing area with each player sitting at opposite ends.

Third, find and place the player’s Stronghold tile in the Battlefield in its designated spot.

Fourth, have each player shuffle their deck, place it face-down, and draw the top five cards. The player’s draw deck for the game’s duration is the face-down deck. The player’s discard pile (the “Graveyard”) is the space directly next to their Stronghold tile.

That’s it for game setup. Determine who will go first and begin.

WAR!!!!

Gudnak is played in turns, with each player alternating turns until the game’s victory condition is met. A player’s turn is summarized here.

Phase One: Start

The first phase of a player’s turn is for the player to evaluate if their Stronghold is under siege. This happens when the player’s opponent has one or more cards in front of their Stronghold.

  • If the player’s Stronghold is under siege, the topmost card of the player’s draw deck is flipped and put into their Graveyard.
  • If the player’s Stronghold is not under siege, the player draws the top-most card from their draw deck and puts it in their hand.

Phase Two: Take Action

Each player has two Actions they can take on their turn. Actions can be taken in any order, and a single action can be taken twice. The actions are as follows and only cost the player one Action unless the card specifies differently:

Draw

Like the Start of Phase One, the player draws the topmost card in their draw deck and adds it to their hand. They cannot take this action if no cards are in the player’s draw deck.

Deploy

Take one Fighter card from your hand and place it on an unoccupied square in the back row (the row of squares closest to the player’s Stronghold tile), or add it to a single Fighter or a Stack with a Fighter card on top that shares one or more traits. If the Fighter card is played to its square, it becomes “fatigued,” meaning it cannot take another action on the player’s current turn.

Stacks are created when two or more Fighter card that shares one or more traits are combined. Traits indicate a sub-type of the Fighter card. Specifically, “Brute,” “Soldier,” “Hunter,” “Hero,” “Demons,” and “Tokens.”

Stacks deserve more explanation than me just saying, “It’s a group of cards in a single pile,” which it is, and so much more.

Stacks represent a group of Fighters all moving across the battlefield as one. There is no limit to the number of Fighter cards in a stack, but only the topmost facing card represents the Stack as a whole. It’s also the only card that can be targeted with effects, take actions, be sacrificed, and destroyed. Think of all the other cards in the Stack as “along for the ride.”

Stacks allow the player to do two things. First, to make use of the limited space on the game board, allowing them to play more cards to use, but with limitations on how they are used. Second, if the topmost card in a Stack is removed, the Stack remains for as long as there is at least one card remaining in the Stack. This allows the player to keep ground lost or earned without rebuilding their army.

Move

Move a single Fighter card or a Stack to an empty square. The Fighter and Stack become fatigued as a result.

Attack

Attack an adjacent opponent’s Figher card or Stack. Combat is quickly resolved by evaluating the Fighter card’s base power and any additional modifiers. The Fighter card with the highest power wins the battle with ties resulting in both Fithers losing. A Fighter card that loses is removed from the Battlefield and placed in the player’s Graveyard.

If the opponent’s Fighter card is moved to the Graveyard, resulting in an empty space, the player moves their surviving Fighter card or Stack to occupy it.

Regardless of the outcome, any Fighter cards involved become fatigued.

Defend

This action is only available if the player is under siege or at risk of being sieged due to the opponent’s Fighter card or Stack at their Stronghold’s gate. The player may choose any number of cards in their hand equal to the power of the enemy Fighter card, destroying it (moving it to the opponent’s Graveyard).

Use Ability

Some Fighter cards have abilities that can be activated. To do so, announce the ability and resolve it. The Fighter card then becomes fatigued.

Play Tactics

Tactic cards are played from the player’s hand but not deployed to the Battlefield. Instead, they are played and immediately resolved, then go to the player’s Graveyard. All Tactic cards have an action cost of zero (meaning it costs the player nothing to play it), two, or three.

Phase Three: End

The player’s turn is now ending.

All Fighter cards (and their associated Stacks) are no longer fatigued.

The next player now takes their turn, starting with phase one, as noted above.

Victory!

The game ends when either player cannot draw or discard a card from their deck to resolve their Stronghold being under siege. Victory goes to the other player unless it’s a tie or a stalemate.

Building Armies

Gudnak’s deckbuilding aspect is very straightforward. Each deck comprises one faction and any number of Natural cards for no more than 20 cards. Each deck is comprised of the following number of card types:

  • Five Heroes
  • Five Tactics
  • Ten Basic Fighters

And that’s it, to a certain degree. Each card has a Power value that determines how many of each card type can be in a deck. For example, out of the five Hero cards, one can have a Power value of “3”, two with a Power value of “2”, and two with a  Power value of “1”. Using the simple rules provided, each player will bring to the table a deck that is comparable in Power to their opponents. The determining factors that will influence victory or defeat are what cards come into play, strategies and tactics used, and shrewd battle instincts.

Game Variants

Gudnak can be played with two players or with four, allowing for a much more brutal free-for-all battle or a team vs. team game mode. The other side of the game board is used, allowing for four Stronghold tiles to be put in place. Deckbuilding rules and gameplay remain the same, with the only change being the victory condition.

To learn more about Gudnak, visit the game’s webpage.

Final Word

The Child Geeks had a great time not only learning how to play the game, but also admiring the artwork to a point where they were coming up with their own stories about the different creatures and heroes in the world of Gudnak. Of particular interest – and great delight – were the dogs with wings. According to one Child Geek, “I really like this game. I like how it plays. I like how it looks. I like everything about it.” Another Child Geek exclaimed with great excitement, “I love this game! My favorite armies are the Knights and the Skeletons, but I don’t mind playing as any of them. They are all fun.” Even when the Child Geeks lost, they still felt like winners. It came as no surprise that the Child Geeks all voted to HIGHLY APPROVE Gudnak.

The Parent Geeks found the game to be tactical, strategic, engaging, and really easy to play. As one Parent Geek put it, “Here is a game that sets up in minutes, plays quickly, leaves me satisfied, and yet hungry for more. Good news! A new battle can be waged in no time, bringing me back into the thick of it with a smile.” Another Parent Geek reported, “A solid game. It reminds me a lot of the older game Summoner Wars, where you played with cards on a board just like this. But this game is faster. It’s easier to enjoy. I liked it and will get my copy as soon as possible.” When the Parent Geeks took a vote, they all agreed that Gudnak was good stuff.

The Gamer Geeks played several games and immediately stated two crucial points. First, this is a “beer and pretzels” kind of game as far as rules are concerned, but the strategic and tactical gameplay far exceeds its easy setup and execution. Second, the many different options to build armies meant that the game had endless replay value and was a solid selection not only as a game filler but as the main attraction for an evening of board gaming. Light and highly functional, the games were always quick but brutal. One Gamer Geek stated, “This game made me smile. I enjoyed every aspect, from the deck building to the action on the game board. Nothing seemed amiss or out of place. Exceedingly well thought out game that delivered from the very start.” Another Gamer Geek reported, “Hell, yes. Total goodness.” Gudnak was a clear winner with our gaming elitists. 

Gudnak delivers. It isn’t overly complicated, but has depth. It isn’t excessively tactical, but it provides a lot of options. The game fits nicely in that small to-fill place where a game is engaging and engrossing in equal measure without being too heavy or too light. Simply put, it’s a very well-balanced and tight little game. Best of all, with the many different ways to play and the ability to customize your armies, there is seemingly no end to how many other games you can play and enjoy a different experience every time. If that isn’t “value,” I don’t know what it is.

Do try Gudnak when your time allows. Put it on the table, play a quick game or two, and see if you want more time with the game, even though you just put it away. I think you will.

This game was given to Father Geek as a review copy. Father Geek was not paid, bribed, wined, dined, or threatened in vain hopes of influencing this review. Such is the statuesque and legendary integrity of Father Geek.


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About Cyrus

Editor in Chief, Owner/Operator, Board Game Fanatic, Father of Three, and Nice Guy, Cyrus has always enjoyed board, card, miniature, role playing, and video games, but didn't get back into the hobby seriously until early 2000. Once he did, however, he was hooked. He now plays board games with anyone and everyone he can, but enjoys playing with his children the most. Video games continue to be of real interest, but not as much as dice and little miniatures. As he carefully navigates the ins and outs of parenting, he does his very best to bestow what wisdom he has and help nurture his children's young minds. It is his hope and ambition to raise three strong, honorable men who will one day go on to do great things and buy their Mom and Dad a lobster dinner. Cyrus goes by the handle fathergeek on Board Game Geek. You can also check him out on CyrusKirby.com. Yes, he has a URL that is his name. His ego knows no bounds, apparently....

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