Mysticana: A Foundation Deck (Game System)
- Designer: Dustin Dobson and Jamie Thul
- Publisher: Button Shy
- Players: varies by game, from 1-6
- Age: 8+
- Time: 15 minutes
- Played with review copy provided by publisher
Living elements interweave throughout the realm. A water guardian extinguishes a roaring wildfire that leaves behind unrecognizably scorched earth. The seared avatar of that earth rises and consumes the water of a dozen seas. With infinite variations on their eternal cycle, no element can ever reign supreme.
Mysticana is a Foundation Deck: an 18-card deck that includes multiple core games using just the base cards with even more games added through small expansions. The deck features cards with 6 ranks across 3 suits (elements) which have a “rock-paper-scissors” hierarchy. The back of each card reminds you of the fact that Water beats Fire beats Earth beats Water… The cards are numbered from 2-6 with an Avatar in each suit; each game gives different rules to the Avatar card. Cards can also be of two different types: Creatures or Locations.
While each game might make use of the deck’s design in different ways, the flexible foundation enables new games to fit in seamlessly alongside previous entries. All of the games use the base 18 card Mysticana deck, though some of the games have added cards which are used.
The base deck includes rules for three core games: Nine Perils, Sorcerers’ Showdown and The Path Ahead. I also have two small 6-card expansions: Arcane Artifacts and Cave of Djinns
Nine Perils (solo, 15 min)
The prophecy foretells nine great perils, warnings of coming doom. As a seer, you must peer into the future and find a path to avoid these perils.
A solo-only game of limited information and anticipating the future to avert nine disasters using the Mysticana deck. Using your hand of 1-3 cards (based on the difficulty chosen) play against the central timeline of 9 peril cards. Each turn you’ll flip one of the peril cards in the timeline face-up, draw a new card into your hand, then play a single from your hand into a free space in a separate row below any peril card. After 9 turns, going from left to right – compare each peril’s rank and element against the adjacent card’s rank and element. As you compare, any card with a superior element gets +1 to its rank. Avatars have no rank in this game, so they are only compared based on their element. If there is a tie, the tied peril as well as the one to the right are determined by the column two to the right. Each of the perils must be successfully outmatched to win!
This game can be modified a bit (two rows) in order to fit on airplane tray table, and it worked just fine – I kinda had to overlap my played card on top of the peril card to get it all to fit depth-wise. Surprisingly challenging, and it usually takes some shenanigans to set up a few ties in order to give you some breathing room in the resolution – as you skip a battle when there is a tie, you then give yourself a spot to just lose a battle…
Sorcerers’ Showdown (2p, 15 min)
Two sorcerers clash in battle, each spell and counterspell growing less predictable as they wear down.
A dueling-like “trick taking” game for 2 players using the Mysticana deck – with Avatars having the rank of 1. In the first round, players are dealt 8 cards and choose 6 to battle with, setting aside 2 to hold onto for the next round. The first player then plays a card to start a clash. The other player responds with a card of their own, matching the element if possible. The clash is evaluated by rank and element, with the winner capturing both cards – placing them face down in a distinct 2 card pile. Should an Avatar (rank ⟐) win a clash, the winner steals a pair of previously captured cards from their opponent. Clashes are played and resolved until both players are out of cards. Should one player have all of the captured cards, they win! Otherwise, players take the 2 cards set aside at the beginning of the round and draw a hand size that is 1 card less than the previous round to continue the duel.
This is an interesting take on the classic game of War as the RPS element makes it a bit more layered. There is a little bit of planning and risk/reward in deciding what to set aside. As long as you can win one battle, you can try to set aside high cards to bolster your next hand. As each hand has one fewer card, you’ll have a better and better chance to win all the tricks in a round… or steal the win with a timely Avatar victory.
The Path Ahead (2-4p, 15 min)
In every corner of the realm, travelers engage in a timeless game of deduction and chance
A guessing game for 2-4 players that uses the Mysticana deck, with Avatars having the rank of 1. Each round, the active player guesses whether the next card drawn will be stronger or weaker than the currently showing card (accounting for rank and suit). A correct guess moves play to the next player; an incorrect guess earns a consequence card (either the mystery top card of the deck or the top card of the discard pile). These may count against the player’s score if not used to make a set of matching consequences – if a player ever has a pair of the same rank or three cards of the same element, they can discard that set. At the end of each round, which is triggered when any player has 3 cards in their hand – each other player takes one more turn and then players add up any consequence cards they still hold and add it to their running score from previous rounds. The game is over when any player hits 20 points, with the lowest-scoring player the ultimate winner.
This one is a little bit of memory, a little bit of risk management, but mostly just guessing at the outcome of the next card flip. In general, if a low card is up, bet on a win; if a high card is up, bet on a loss. There is at least a little more decision space on which card to take; as setting up a pair or a flush can save the day.
Arcane Artifacts (2-6p, 15-30 min)
The world is full of long-forgotten items of power. Will you harness their enchantments or gamble on your own fortunes to prevail?
Arcane Artifacts is a multiplayer 6-card expansion to the Mysticana deck. In this lightweight game of chance and skill, each player receives 2 cards and hopes to have the best combination for the round. After the initial deal, players may discard 1 of their cards to draw a replacement, then each player decides whether to stay in the play or resign for the round. Players who resign earn a single point for dropping out. If all players but 1 drop out, the remaining player earns 3 points. Once all players have committed, a new card is flipped; this determines amount scored for the round and also changes the value of each Avatar (rank ⟐). If an Avatar is flipped up, it is worth 7 points this round and all Avatars have a value of 7. Players reveal their hands to see who holds the best score. Each round also features one of 12 Artifacts, which offer a bonus to the player’s hand who meets their criteria most effectively. Rounds are cumulative, and the first player to win a round and have 30+ points is declared the final victor!
This feels a bit like Hold’em poker with the bluffing, though you have to wait until after committing to play to find out what the stakes are for the particular hand. The special rule from the random Artifact helps keep things unpredictable and usually makes sure that no one is entirely sure of the result until the cards are revealed.
Cave of Djinns (solo, 15 min)
For those who stumble into the Cave of Djinns, there is only one way out. Should you fail to solve the djinns’ riddles, you will surely suffer their wrath.
Cave of Djinns is a solo-only 6-card expansion to the Mysticana deck. In this evolving puzzle, the player must solve the djinns’ riddles through careful card placement. Each of the 6 double-sided djinns are placed in a loose pyramid shape, with space around each djinn to play a card in each orthogonal direction – leaving 13 empty spaces to play cards. The player draws 2 cards and plays them both in sequence each turn. Each djinn shows a specific arrangement of cards around them which must be fulfilled to solve their riddle and earn an immediate one-time bonus. You can only try to solve a riddle when all four spaces around a Djinn are occupied – and they must all meet the criteria of the riddle in order to solve it. Solved djinns offer a reward – allowing you to move a Mysticana card to a different location, to reclaim a played card and put it in the discard pile or to switch 2 face up cards. The solved Djinn is then covered by an adjacent Mysticana card. Complete all 6 riddles to escape the cave with wits intact! You lose if you cannot draw a card or you have completely filled the 13 spaces without solving all 6 riddles.
This might be my favorite game of the set, I find that the puzzle here is really neat, and honestly, quite difficult. You have to hope to get a few efficient card plays that work on adjacent riddles, or else, find ways to trigger reclamation of cards to re-open spots to allow you to play a new card to work on a different riddle. I have actually not yet won this game, but I am going to keep on trying.
My thoughts on the game system
Overall, there is an amazing amount of variety in the games in this super small package. Though it is a bit crowded, I have fit the original 18 card deck and rules as well as the two six-card expansions and their rules into a single Button Shy card wallet. It’s a super tiny package to hold five different games. As the player count ranges from solo to 6p, you can be assured to have something in your pocket for just about any situation! None of the games ever outstays its welcome as they all pretty much play in about 15 minutes.
I have had a chance to play each of the games at least once – the solo games multiple times on my trips to and from Spiel this year – and they have all been fun to learn and explore. I just love the variety here, and this is one of the games that might end up in my car or go bag in case I need a game without wanting to take up too much space.
There has been a lot of fan-based expansion work going on as well – if you check out the game system’s page on BGG, there are already a number of different fan expansions that allow you to use these 18 cards in many more ways. Though the wallet is already jammed full, if I get a chance to try out some of those other fan versions, I might print up a few rule sets to further expand the flexibility of this small but mighty game system that fits in your pocket.
Ratings from the Opinionated Gamers
- I love it!
- I like it. Dale Y
- Neutral.
- Not for me…
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