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Unchained

Unchained

2024·David Gregg

2 - 4 players
30 - 60 min
Heavy weight: Expect a long teach

From BoardGameGeek

The Universal Monsters are unchained! In the officially licensed deck-building game Unchained, players draft their initial decks for an asymmetric start, then continue purchasing cards on each of their turns while simultaneously sparring with the other players by attacking and defending with cards in their tableau. In more detail, on a player's turn, they: Spar: Compare their total offense to an opponent's total defense, with a fatigue card going to the player with the lower value. Chain: Play cards from their hand by matching icons; opponents may add to the chain as well. Learn: Discard cards for effort, then spend effort to acquire cards. Draw: Refill their hand to five cards, shuffling as needed and taking a fatigue card on each shuffle. Each card can chain into other cards, creating powerful combos. Learn the signature moves of the Universal Monsters and try to stay in the fight the longest. The game continues until all fatigue cards have been taken, at which point the player with the least fatigue wins. Unchained reimplements Nightfall with some notable changes: An asymmetric starting draft with no pre-set starter decks, so the action starts on turn 1. Streamlined card costs and abilities for a broader audience. A new 3x3 purchasing grid system inspired by fan variants of Res Arcana. Tokens to track card offense and defense. A shield that can be activated to negate the player's next fatigue card. -description from designer

Unchained

Watch first

Learn to play

How to Play Unchained (Rules School)15:19

How to Play Unchained (Rules School)

Game Boy Geek

Game Boy Geek

Review

Unchained Review: No Melody?19:38

Unchained Review: No Melody?

The Dice Tower

The Dice Tower

Which Unchained video should I watch?

Unchained has 2 videos from 2 creators: 1 review and 1 how-to-play guide. They date from April to May 2024.

To learn the rules, start with "How to Play Unchained (Rules School)" by Game Boy Geek, which runs 15 min.

For an opinion before you buy, start with "Unchained Review: No Melody?" by The Dice Tower.

If you like it, try World-Z League, also by David Gregg, or Volfyirion, Baseball Highlights: 2045 and Pondscape, which share several of its mechanics.

All videos

Unchained Review: No Melody?Review19:38

Unchained Review: No Melody?

The Dice Tower

The Dice Tower

How to Play Unchained (Rules School)How to play15:19

How to Play Unchained (Rules School)

Game Boy Geek

Game Boy Geek

Creators who cover this

All channels
Game Boy Geek
Game Boy Geek
1 video of this game
The Dice Tower
The Dice Tower
1 video of this game

Games like this

All games

World-Z League

2022·David Gregg

Videos
6
Creators
3
Mainly reviews

1 - 4 players·30 - 60 min·Light weight

Volfyirion

2019·Federico Tini, Alessandro Veracchi

Videos
36
Creators
32
Mostly reviews and how-to-play

1 - 2 players·15 - 30 min·Medium weight

Baseball Highlights: 2045

2015·Mike Fitzgerald

Videos
68
Creators
42
Mainly reviews and how-to-play

1 - 4 players·45 min·Medium weight

Pondscape

2025·Tomáš Holek

Videos
33
Creators
30
Mainly playthroughs and reviews

1 - 4 players·20 - 35 min·Medium weight

About Unchained

From BoardGameGeek:

The Universal Monsters are unchained! In the officially licensed deck-building game Unchained, players draft their initial decks for an asymmetric start, then continue purchasing cards on each of their turns while simultaneously sparring with the other players by attacking and defending with cards in their tableau. In more detail, on a player's turn, they: Spar: Compare their total offense to an opponent's total defense, with a fatigue card going to the player with the lower value. Chain: Play cards from their hand by matching icons; opponents may add to the chain as well. Learn: Discard cards for effort, then spend effort to acquire cards. Draw: Refill their hand to five cards, shuffling as needed and taking a fatigue card on each shuffle. Each card can chain into other cards, creating powerful combos. Learn the signature moves of the Universal Monsters and try to stay in the fight the longest. The game continues until all fatigue cards have been taken, at which point the player with the least fatigue wins. Unchained reimplements Nightfall with some notable changes: An asymmetric starting draft with no pre-set starter decks, so the action starts on turn 1. Streamlined card costs and abilities for a broader audience. A new 3x3 purchasing grid system inspired by fan variants of Res Arcana. Tokens to track card offense and defense. A shield that can be activated to negate the player's next fatigue card. -description from designer

Designer

David Gregg

Artists

Daniel Horne, Thomas Verguet

Publisher

Trick or Treat Studios

Categories

Card GameFantasyFightingHorror

Mechanics

Deck BuildingHand ManagementPattern BuildingTake That
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