Let's Talk Nightfall & Star Realms

I doubt there's anyway I'd buy this, but the (played out) theme I don't mind, and I've enjoyed deckbuilders when I play them. I simply haven't felt the need to buy one yet.

Anyway, one of my FLGS has Nightfall and Martial Law on the clearance table for $15 each.

Anyone still playing these?

I also saw Star Realms for $15. I like the size of that box...how long are its legs though?

I bought Star Realms at Gen Con, played my physical copy there once, and then grabbed the iOS port of it, which I proceeded to play a zillion times. Almost all of those games had the exact same feel to them. I sold my physical copy (it still had that one play on it) and haven't touched the iOS game in months. It's small and quick, but it's the exact same thing every time.

There's an expansion out now, or several, I don't know, which may fix that.

Nightfall I was pleasantly surprised at. With two players it's great, and three is also not bad. More and you're looking at too much chaos. But it's a much more fun and interesting slam-fest than Star Realms.

I've had Star Realms for a while, played it a bunch, then got it on my phone. I've been playing it a lot each day, and I'm about done with it. I don't think it has legs at all, each game plays out just as you'd expect once you know the cards.

I'd rather play Zeppelin Attack or Valley of the Kings. Even on the phone, Ascension is a much smoother game. I mean, I've spent $10-$15 on games that weren't as good as Star Realms, but it's just played out for me and I don't think that $20 expansion boosters with cards that work slightly differently is going to swing it.

Nightfall is OK, played it a bunch on iOS, but not even my favorite iOS board game. Save your money for your GW Specialist Games Reclamation Project.

Let's face it, no deckbuilder is going to have legs like Dominion. Not just because of the massive range of cards for it and the endless variety, but also because it's so non-specific. Yes, that is actually an asset for this kind of a game. There are no fancy mechanics like some of the other deckbuilders have gone with, it's very straightforward. That keeps it more evergreen than some of these other games. I still have some issues with it, but it is still ultimately the deckbuilder I'd reach for when I want to play one of these kinds of games.

Star Realms is really good though, and it's great for two players. And it's cheap. And small. It does wear out after 100 plays or so though.

Nightfall was interesting, but ultimately not something that will be in the conversation moving forward. It's a little awkward, more convoluted than it needs to be, and it has a VERY specific theme that you'll either get into or not.

Ascension is still great, I'd say it's still up there with Dominion and it's another one good with two. It's one of my most played IOS games. Totally has legs.

Really liking Fantastiqa right now...not sure how long it'll stick around, but I'm digging how different it is than all of the above...and it has a fantasy setting that's more CS Lewis than Tolkien, which is kind of nice for a change.

Valley of the Kings is way better than you'd think it would be. Quite a little sleeper, that one.

I got into Nightfall in a big way when it came out, and I own almost all of it. That said, it's been forever since it hit the table and it probably never will again. But of all the deckbuilders I've tried, none of them are as cutthroat and aggressive as Nightfall. It's pretty awesome. 3 Players is the sweet spot.

I haven't played Star Realms so can't compare the two, but I thought I'd put up my hand and say that I'm still a Nightfall fan and still playing it. I have the full set and enjoy it most with three or four players. I can't see myself trading it away at any point, but it may end up becoming a shelf toad if I find another deckbuilder that I like better. Haven't yet.

Nightfall is a bit awkward and in many ways feels amateurly designed, but I think it got better as the card sets were released. The cards in the last 4 sets are more interesting than the first 3.

I also think that Star Realms is the type of quick game that satisfies some part of your brain, but really isn't all that rewarding. Pretty repetitive and kinda plays itself.

Between the two, I'd say Nightfall wins. But for combative deck builders I prefer Puzzle Strike and Rune Age to both.

I agree with Oatmeal in that Nightfall is amateur. I played it three times, then tried the iOS version, and decided that it was fully garbage. Now, I don't like deckbuilders very much, and those I do like more than a little are few and far between, so this wasn't ever going to work for me, as much as I wanted it to. It was just very jumbled.

Star Realms is a lot easier on the brain, and I like the art pretty well, but it's, again, not something I would ever want to buy.

It's the chaining mechanic that makes Nightfall. From drafting your private archive to looking over the public archive at the start of the game, you're not focussed on which are the best/strongest cards but which ones are going to chain together well and create great combos. Triggering kicker effects via some clever chaining is satisfying and once everyone at the table becomes deft at chaining, that's when the game starts to shine.

Death and Taxis wrote: It's the chaining mechanic that makes Nightfall. From drafting your private archive to looking over the public archive at the start of the game, you're not focussed on which are the best/strongest cards but which ones are going to chain together well and create great combos. Triggering kicker effects via some clever chaining is satisfying and once everyone at the table becomes deft at chaining, that's when the game starts to shine.

Nightfall's chaining mechanism is brilliant and I'm shocked it hasn't been copied (although I guess the Warmachine/Hordes Deckbuilder *kinda* copies it? I can't remember I only played the WM game once)

The problem I find with Nightfall is that, while an odd mix of cards can make a game of dominion less fun, a sub-optimal mix of cards in Nightfall causes the whole thing to crash.

Really the only non-Dominion deck builders with any legs are Puzzle Strike and Core Worlds and Core Worlds is more of a tableau game.