Flamecraft - A Solo Review
Image: Cardboard Alchemy
Introduction
Imagine a magical fantasy realm, one where dragons are not depicted as massive winged beasts hellbent on spreading terror throughout the kingdom whilst hoarding treasure. Instead, they are cute and friendly creatures of modest stature who derive great satisfaction from using their fiery talents to help human shopkeepers make the toastiest of bread or the shiniest of emeralds. This is the setting of Flamecraft, the latest board game from designer Manny Vega and publisher Cardboard Alchemy which took the board game community by storm when it was up on Kickstarter last year. Indeed, much has been said about the visual flair of this seemingly adorable board game but is Flamecraft a classic example of style over substance? Join me, as we explore the world of cute artisan dragons, recipe fulfillment, and clever shop name puns.
Full disclosure: A review copy of the retail version of Flamecraft was kindly provided by publisher Lucky Duck Games.
Components and artwork
Note: Some of the photographs in this review feature components from the deluxe version of Flamecraft such as the plastic dragon miniatures. These were acquired and paid for by myself and are not included in the retail version of the game.
The King is dead, long live the King! When the cover of a board game credits the artist before the designer, you know the publisher in question is pretty confident in their product. In fact, one simply has to look at the illustration that adorns the box cover of Flamecraft to know you’re in for a game that in terms of overall aesthetics borders on being aggressively charming. Like the works of the legendary Studio Ghibli, illustrator Sandara Tang paints a world filled with wonder, warmth, and joy. This feeling permeates every single illustration, and I defy anyone not to be the least bit moved by seeing these dragons of modest stature baking bread or creating magical potions to the delight of the villagers. From a visual perspective, Flamecraft is nothing short of a triumph and further proof that board games should be considered literal works of art.
Photo: Fredrik Schulz / Table for ONE
This notion also extends to the actual components, where the neoprene mat that serves as the central game board undoubtedly is the star of the show. It’s honestly quite wild to think that we have reached the point where retail editions of board games include neoprene playmats and yet here we are. However, there is one aspect of the components in the retail version of Flamecraft that goes against the grain and that is the player pieces themselves. Not that they are of poor quality, on the contrary. It’s just that I feel that they don’t match the rest of the art style that permeates Flamecraft. Still, the fact that I’m taking the act of nitpicking to a whole new level simply serves as a testament to the overall quality of Flamecraft in terms of component quality and visual flair.
Gameplay
In Flamecraft, players are competing to become the most renowned and talked-about shopkeeper, sorry, Flamekeeper in town. You will do so by visiting the ever-expanding assortment of available shops whilst adding artisan dragons to collect resources and potentially trigger special abilities that will allow you to manipulate the board state. In practice though, this is a game of recipe fulfillment where players are collecting the necessary supplies in order to cast enchantments, which upon completion will reward you with reputation or as we in the board game industry would call victory points. This combined with a sprinkle of worker placement makes for a game that is relatively easy to learn whilst still offering a bit of crunch.
On your turn, you must visit one of the available shops in town thus placing your dragon pawn on said shop card. From there you have two options. Either you choose to gather goods from both the actual shop and also any artisan dragon cards that are currently present. At the beginning of Flamecraft, each starting shop is paired with a matching dragon that in addition to having a special power also grants an associated resource. For example, visiting Draco Bell (one of the better title puns that’s on display) in the earlier stages of the game will net you two meat goods; one from Hickory the dragon and one from the shop itself. However, this is only one of several aspects associated with taking the gather goods action. In addition to amassing resources, players also have the option of adding an artisan dragon card to one of the available slots so long as they are able to match the icon on the card with the prerequisite of the shop. In doing so you are making the shop more profitable, as future visits will yield a bigger reward in the form of the number of resource tokens gained from taking the action in question. Since the shops generate more and more resources as the game progresses, I found Flamecraft to have a very nice flow in terms of pace.
Photo: Fredrik Schulz / Table for ONE
The second main action that is available is to enchant. In addition to gaining reputation i.e. victory points, enchanting is another way to further improve upon the shops in town in terms of gaining additional resources from visiting them on future turns. In order to enchant a shop, the player chooses one of the five available spells from the faceup row on the main board that matches the icon of the shop in question. Each enchantment is a prerequisite that needs to be satisfied in order to cast the spell which in Flamecraft takes on the form of specific quantities of goods hence the recipe fulfillment of the game design. Once cast, the enchantment card is then tucked behind the shop revealing only the icon which indicates that the shop is now producing one additional good to a maximum of three. Again, it's worth emphasizing how well these two mechanics work together to create a game that has a really enjoyable pace. The more fruitful the shops become, the easier it is to fulfill future enchantments which in turn prevents the game from dragging on for too long. And seeing how the shops, and the artisan dragons that frequent the establishment, provide more and more goods you rarely find yourself in a situation where you need to start completely from scratch in terms of gathering the required resources, especially towards the latter half of the game.
Photo: Fredrik Schulz / Table for ONE
As for the solo mode, I found Flamecraft to be something of a mixed bag. On the one hand, it’s an exceptionally easy one to manage in terms of upkeep. At its core, playing Flamecraft solitaire boils down to a beat-your-own-score affair. Once you have taken your turn as per the multiplayer rules, the top card of the artisan dragon deck is flipped face-up. Going clockwise from the dragon card market, you compare the icon of the revealed artisan dragon with the available shop slots that are on display until there’s a match upon which said dragon is allocated to the shop in question. Should the placement of an artisan dragon fill the third and final slot, a new shop card will be added to the central board thus progressing the in-game timer one step toward the end of the game. In addition, if the revealed artisan dragon is of a color other than yours the corresponding dragon pawn is placed on the shop cards. This simulates the worker placement aspect of the game design, where players are jockeying for prime positions at the shops which force future visitors to pay a “fine” in the form of resources to gain access. Again, it’s simple yet effective which is something I applaud about a solo mode. Finally, the dummy player will attempt to cast an enchantment from the market row that matches the icon of the revealed artisan dragon thus further contributing to the nice pace of Flamecraft as previously mentioned.
But on the other hand, the solo mode feels like a water-downed version of the multiplayer experience. Not only are a significant portion of the shop cards simply not compatible with playing Flamecraft solo but the same also applies to the companion cards. These are special cards that are dealt out during setup, granting each player a one-time special ability. Although one could make the argument that the companion cards are icing on the cake rather than fundamental for the core game design, it still feels somewhat disappointing when a solo mode isn’t able to utilize all aspects of the multiplayer experience. Especially considering this notion extends to also include the deck of fancy dragons. Seriously, they are literally called fancy dragons. Provider of end-game scoring conditions, they provide players with optional strategies to chase after beyond the points earned from casting enchantments. There is however a silver lining to be had regarding the solo mode of Flamecraft and that is that the game features unlockable achievements. In addition to adding additional fancy dragons to the deck, they also allow you to swap shop cards or add new ones to the available roster. Although there is still a significant portion that is restricted from solo play, having unlockable achievements definitely extends the longevity of Flamecraft as a solo board game experience.
Final thoughts
At the end of the day it all comes down to a single question: would I personally buy Flamecraft exclusively for solo play? For me, the answer is yes albeit with a caveat of sorts. Although the solo mode excels in terms of being easy to manage whilst also simulating several of the key aspects that constitute the core game design, it still leaves me with the niggling sensation of playing a “light version” of Flamecraft. Despite this, there are so many positive aspects that make this such a lovely little game in no small part thanks to the absolutely stellar artwork and production quality. Likewise, there’s more to Flamecraft than simple recipe fulfillment. It’s a game that is accessible whilst simultaneously providing enough crunch, a combination I’m finding increasingly alluring when I’m in the mood to play a solo board game at the end of a long workday. Also, I think it’s safe to say that given the state of the world these days in terms of the doom-and-gloom meter going berserk I think we all could use a few more cute artisan dragons in our lives.
