Beasts and Diplomacy - 2026/01 Update - Unboxing the Final Prototype

About Beasts and Diplomacy, from BoardGameGeek:

Beasts and Diplomacy is a card drafting, tableau-building game where players become Knights of the land of Aterra, competing to assemble the best Exhibition of wild and rare Beasts that appeal to the Diplomats of the land. Players must also try to fulfill their secret Quests while ensuring they have enough Ore to maintain their ever-growing Maintenance costs. Like many card drafting games, Beasts and Diplomacy offers interactions like players taking cards before others can get to them, however, unlike other drafting games the design focus isn't on scarcity, but on opportunity. As you play you will have to constantly react to your opponents' actions and formulate new short term plans to achieve your long term goal of having the most balanced Exhibition. When one door closes, several new ones open. It's up to you to find your own path. While the game's actions are fundamentally simple (e.g. icon matching and drafting), Beasts and Diplomacy offers lots of depth and replayability. Your first playthroughs will leave you with a sense that you are just scratching the surface of what is possible, but with experience you'll learn to manage risk, finances, and action sequencing, which will lead to highly tense and competitive playthroughs. After 3 days of drafting cards, undercutting each other and building the perfect exhibition, your exhibitions will be evaluated by your Diplomats and your secret Quests. The Knight with the most Influence Points wins!