2019Mike Gnade, Todd Walsh
- Videos
- 74
- Creators
- 49
1 - 4 players45 - 80 minMedium weight

2023Brandon B, Lindsey Felice, Christopher K Lees, Jordan E Perme
Some reviews. Familiars and Foes is covered on BoardGameVideo.com by 5 reviews, 2 how-to-play guides, 1 recorded sessions, 2 unboxings, and 3 other videos.
From BoardGameGeek
The Good Witches and Wizards of Joralee have been kidnapped by a horde of evil Foes! The only hope is for their Familiars to dutifully band together on a quest to overthrow the Foes and save their spell-casting partners. They'll bumble their way through new spells, unleash ancient artifacts, and craft crazy combo attacks to succeed. They may just surprise their Witches and Wizards with a few tricks (and Familiars) of their own! Familiars and Foes is a co-operative style game where you play as one of five Elemental Familiars with their own unique abilities - Earth, Wind, Fire, Air, or Aether. The game is played in four waves. Each wave increases in difficulty and reveals a new set of Foes that must be defeated to save a Witch or Wizard. On each turn a player must choose one of three actions to perform - a physical attack, cast a spell, or use an artifact. The success or failure of the action is determined by a dice roll or coin flip. The rest of the players have the opportunity to contribute to the active player's turn and create combination moves. They can perform team attacks, use special abilities, or cash in rewards to boost the initial attack or benefit Familiar health. Group strategy is key to surviving and beating the game. The Foes don't just sit idly and take beatings the whole game. They have their own turn each round where they release potentially devastating attacks on the Familiars. The Familiars have a few tricks to defend themselves or they can just hope for a weak attack to survive another round. The game is won when all four waves of Foes have been defeated, all the Witches and Wizards have been rescued, and at least one Familiar is still standing. -description from the publisher
Familiars and Foes has 13 videos from 9 creators: 5 reviews, 2 how-to-play guides, 1 playthrough, 2 unboxings and 3 other videos. They date from 2022 to September 2025.
To learn the rules, start with "Familiars and Foes - 2 Player How to Play" by Merry Married Meeples, which runs 13 min.
For an opinion before you buy, start with "Familiars and Foes Kickstarter Preview from Grant's Game Recs" by Grant Lyon. 5 creators have reviewed it. To see it played, watch "Familiars and Foes Solo Play - Foe Fighting Fun For One!" by Merry Married Meeples.
If you like it, try Set a Watch, Dying Light: The Board Game, SOS Titanic or Dice Throne: Santa v. Krampus, which share several of its mechanics.
8 of 9
2019Mike Gnade, Todd Walsh
1 - 4 players45 - 80 minMedium weight
2026Bartosz Tomala, Przemysław Zub
1 - 4 players60 - 120 minMedium weight
2013Bruno Cathala, Ludovic Maublanc
1 - 5 players30 minLight weight
2022Gavan Brown, Nate Chatellier, Manny Trembley
2 - 6 players20 - 40 minMedium weight
From BoardGameGeek:
The Good Witches and Wizards of Joralee have been kidnapped by a horde of evil Foes! The only hope is for their Familiars to dutifully band together on a quest to overthrow the Foes and save their spell-casting partners. They'll bumble their way through new spells, unleash ancient artifacts, and craft crazy combo attacks to succeed. They may just surprise their Witches and Wizards with a few tricks (and Familiars) of their own! Familiars and Foes is a co-operative style game where you play as one of five Elemental Familiars with their own unique abilities - Earth, Wind, Fire, Air, or Aether. The game is played in four waves. Each wave increases in difficulty and reveals a new set of Foes that must be defeated to save a Witch or Wizard. On each turn a player must choose one of three actions to perform - a physical attack, cast a spell, or use an artifact. The success or failure of the action is determined by a dice roll or coin flip. The rest of the players have the opportunity to contribute to the active player's turn and create combination moves. They can perform team attacks, use special abilities, or cash in rewards to boost the initial attack or benefit Familiar health. Group strategy is key to surviving and beating the game. The Foes don't just sit idly and take beatings the whole game. They have their own turn each round where they release potentially devastating attacks on the Familiars. The Familiars have a few tricks to defend themselves or they can just hope for a weak attack to survive another round. The game is won when all four waves of Foes have been defeated, all the Witches and Wizards have been rescued, and at least one Familiar is still standing. -description from the publisher
Designers
Brandon B, Lindsey Felice, Christopher K Lees, Jordan E Perme
Artists
Brandon B, Jordan E Perme
Publisher
Horrible Adorables
Mechanics