Mobamon | PREVIEW

About Mobamon, from BoardGameGeek:

In the known regions of Monsterra, trainers bond with powerful elemental creatures called Mobamon. Only the greatest trainer in the world will earn the right to claim the legendary Apex Stone. Teams of five clash across an elemental hex based map, battling through jungles, fountains, and objective zones in a race to fill their Mobadex first. Mobamon is a 1 to 6 player tactical board game that fuses MOBA style teamfight combat with monster drafting, capturing, and evolution. Players select a team of 5 Mons, equip Items, and play Action Cards each round to move, attack, and outmaneuver opponents across a modular hex board. Mons can be evolved at the Nexus Tower using Evostones, captured wild Mons grant powerful spell like abilities, and Talent cards provide passive edges that shape each trainer's playstyle. Each game is played over 7 rounds of two phases: the Equip Phase, where players secretly slot Items onto their Mons, and the Action Phase, where players take turns activating Mons to move, attack, capture, and push toward victory. Combat is resolved through cards where attackers play Action Cards to strike and defenders play Block Cards to counter, with Items triggering off key moments like attacks, blocks, and knockouts. The first team to claim 5 Mobadex Entries wins. Entries are earned by knocking out an enemy Mon or by evolving a Mon at the Nexus Tower using Evostones, so victory is as much about smart evolution timing as it is about aggressive combat. -description from the publisher