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Meanwhile, the Vagabond plays all sides of the conflict for their own gain, while hiding a mysterious quest. Explore the board, fight other factions, and work towards achieving your hidden goal. If you and your game group love interaction between players and negotiation then the Riverfolk expansion has to be top of your list. This expansion offers the otter Riverfolk company who are constantly trying to peddle their wares to their fellow woodland creatures. They set the costs of their wares to try and capitalise on the chaos of woodland war. As your opponents scrabble to gain traction in the woods, you can expand your trade operations with the hope to toppling the power tower in your favour. The other faction in this big box expansion is the Lizard Cult, these are the mormons of the Root world, spreading the good word of their leader throughout the land.
The Marquise and her feline legion are in control of the woodland. They start with a warrior in every clearing except one. They pushed out the forest’s previous rulers and now subjugate its denizens – the foxes, mice and rabbits. All factions can also gain victory points in a couple of ways to help them get to the winning total of 30. Removing an opponent’s buildings in battle will always earn you points, as will crafting certain items. As well as these methods, each faction has unique abilities that grant them other, more effective ways to gain points.Meanwhile, at the edge of the region, the proud, squabbling Eyrie have found a new commander who they hope will lead their faction to resume their ancient birthright. The stage is set for a contest that will decide the fate of the great woodland. It is up to the players to decide which group will ultimately take root. When I first heard Root being talked about I had one burning question: would it play well at two players? I was concerned that the balance of the game would be off when the number of factions was reduced. It turns out that I needn't have worried. Every conflict encourages opportunists who travel around trying to make a profit and a name for themselves. In Root, this role is played by the Vagabond, a lone wanderer who is allied to no one and everyone. The Vagabond is just a single pawn that can move freely around the board, no matter who's in control. The second time I played, however, I was playing a two-player game with my wife. I'd seen the rules in practice and was able to avoid the traps I'd walked into previously. It was much easier to teach the game to just one other person. On opening the box, I was immediately drawn in by incredible artwork and high-quality components. Clearly, there is so much detail and love throughout the entire design of the game. The maps, player boards, and cards each have unique and charming artwork. Praise must be given to artist Kyle Ferrin for illustrating this fantastic world!
The obvious draw of the Riverfolk Expansion is the two new factions it introduces. These are the titular Riverfolk Company and the devious Lizard Cult. Both come with delightful screen-printed wooden meeples, cardboard tokens, player boards and reference cards. Even before we get into playing the game itself, I have to say that the Riverfolk and Cult warrior designs are my favourite across the whole Root series. Those little grinning Lizards are adorable.If you’re teaching people Root for the first time, make sure they know what to expect. If they can read the rules beforehand, even just for a single chosen faction, even better. The game gives you two rule books – one ‘Learning to Play’ walk through and one complete rules guide, the ‘Law of Root’. It even gives you a walk-through to follow on your first two turns. Even so, you won’t work out all the rules until you see them in action and that first play through is likely to go wrong. If you accept that and press on, you’ll find that this game is truly excellent. Components And Art Finally, I must add, I am actually good at Root. I lost 2 of perhaps the last 30 games I played. I have my preferred factions, but I can play as any of them and give anyone a run for their money. Having said that, I have never won a solo game against the Mechanical Marquise that came with the Riverfolk Expansion, and that’s both what this piece will focus on and also what I would rather no one brought up in my presence ever. However, if you manage to craft something at the forge then as a reward you get an extra point and get to draw a card. This might slow down someone like the Rats who need items but really help the Eerie as they would get that extra point despite their ‘distain for trade’. Worth The Fight The Ronin, a racoon, however, is faster, starting with two boots as well as a sword. His torch action allows him to exhaust a sword to do an extra hit, being one of the more violent vagabonds. The strongest in the set for me is the Adventure. A wise old owl, the Adventure starts with a boot and hammer and is able to damage an item to use it as any other one. This makes him much more adaptable. However, with so much care and design in the rest of the aesthetics, it always feels sadly dissatisfying to be playing a character that doesn’t look like the meeple in front of you. Well not any more! A Myriad Of Meeples However, Leder Games have four shiny new mechanical factions for us, and it’s a marked improvement. They slot into regular games of Root neatly, freeing players up to choose the smaller factions. Now, groups of two or three are no longer confined to the same factions. You can play as the Lizard Cult, or the Woodland Alliance, or whichever takes your fancy.
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