Ravensburger Star Wars Villainous: Power of The Dark Side - Strategy Board Game for Ages 10 & Up, 2-4 players

Product Information

The only thing that differs between players is their villain’s unique objectives. For example, all eight of General Grievous’ Lightsaber Tokens are positioned away from the Sector and in easy reach as the Separatist commander will have to collect them throughout the course of the game. STAR WARS VILLAINOUS: PLAYING A GAME The game is at its malevolent best when you’re playing regularly with opponents who are familiar with every character on the table and can therefore strategize accordingly by gauging how close each player is to winning the game. One advantage of playing with three or more players is that it’s harder to pull ahead when multiple minds are keeping tabs on each other. This often results in a leading player receiving a combined barrage of Fate cards to slow them down, while a single opponent simply cannot deal out the same frequency of damage. Overall, I was incredibly pleased with this latest instalment to the Villainous franchise. I’m a huge fan of both Star Wars and Villainous, so when I heard Ravensburger were developing Star Wars Villainous: Power of the Dark Side, you can imagine my excitement. I’m pleased to say it did not disappoint. For strategy game fans, Star Wars Villainous is a definite step up from the original Disney Villainous game. The new resources and board space create a lot more strategic options to work with, adding to the fun and replay value. It’s a shame the price we have to pay for this is shutting out some younger or less patient fans of the franchise. But if you’re up for the challenge, this is a compelling addition to the Star Wars tabletop line-up. Star Wars Villainous: Power of The Dark Side review: Also consider Each Vehicle card provides a new location for your Sector that your Villain can move to at the beginning of your turn, and will provide you with actions and a special Ability.

The Disney Villainous series began in 2018 with Disney Villainous: The Worst Takes It All, featuring Captain Hook, Maleficent, Jafar, and others. The game asks players to take on the role of famous Disney villains, working against each other to become the first to enact their own unique goals and objectives. Star Wars Villainous: Power of the Dark Side debuted in 2022, adding famous characters like Darth Vader, as well as vehicles and other mechanics, to the award-winning series known for its meaty, yet welcoming, strategic gameplay. This next product is both an expansion and a stand-alone game, allowing players to experience the core Star Wars Villainous experience for the first time or mix and match characters with the Power of the Dark Side product that came before it. The Villain Movers are beautifully designed, but the flakes embedded within each figure aren’t evenly distributed and can make them look unintentionally damaged. (Image credit: Future) As we near 4 million Villainous games sold worldwide, we are excited to expand the Star Wars Villainous ​galaxy,​ with Boba Fett, the most highly requested villain in the galaxy,” said Florian Baldenhofer, international category director at Ravensburger, in a news release. In much the same way, some Fate cards are brutal. If deployed correctly, these can really level the playing field and have opponents cursing your name. In one of my test-sessions, Vader was served with an effect that stops him using Ambition abilities (and thus winning the game) unless he discarded his whole hand of cards… which contained the very cards he needed to win. It was a delicious Catch 22. Similarly, another saw Kylo Ren hit with a well-timed Rey that reset a lot of the player's hard work. Basically, they add real spice to proceedings and give you some much-needed breathing room if you're falling behind. Choosing villains from the Star Wars universe for this introductory game must have been by no means an easy feat. There are just so many wonderfully evil bad guys to choose from! Thankfully, Ravensburger did a great job with their choices.

At the start of your turn, before moving your Villain Mover, you must gain one Ambition token from the general Supply (referred to as The Chamber.)

It's true that the game isn't perfect. For instance, I'd recommend the original Villainous instead if you're unfamiliar with the series (Power of the Dark Side is slightly more complicated than its predecessors). However, that isn't to say newcomers should avoid it - it just requires a little patience. Indeed, perseverance will reward you with one of the better strategy board games for adults you can get right now. The expansion was announced last month, with the much loved/feared Mandalorian Boba Fett taking centre stage on the box. It has since been revealed that the remaining characters joining Fett will be the Seventh Sister (Star Wars: Rebels), and Cad Bane (The Clone Wars, and The Book of Boba Fett). Between these three characters, there is a wide range of the Galaxy’s best-loved lore, and so there should be something to love for most Star Wars fans out there.Currently there are many versions of Villainous available including Disney Villainous along with its multiple expansions and of course, Marvel Villainous. Different incarnations of the game seem to have their own twists and differences which make for a refreshing experience each time you play. The list of additions only continues to grow as Ravensburger is showing no signs of slowing down in adding to this fantastic franchise. Hello There Villainous, the award-winning board game series published by Ravensburger, is finally getting the expansion that fans have been clamoring for. Star Wars Villainous: Power of the Dark Side arrives this August, and will include Darth Vader, Kylo Ren, Asajj Ventress, General Grievous, and Moff Gideon as playable characters. The Star Wars Villainous movers are some of the best this series has ever seen (Image credit: Future)

Sometimes this blooming does take the color out to the edge of the surface,” Webb said, “so you’ll see that really sharp color pop through on the surface, and then it’ll recede as it goes in.”From a technical perspective,” said Webb, “these use a specific colored powder that’s infused into the base color, and then swirled around. Then they kind of bloom a little bit so we get this very cool kind of galactic feel.” Like other pawns in the Villainous franchise, all of the movers in this new game will be translucent and cast a colored light across the table during play. But when you hold them up to the light they will shimmer with a “kind of universe effect,” Webb said. The result should be a set of oversized, sculptural game pieces that feel like part of the Star Wars universe. If you like the concept of this game but are put off by the learning curve, the obvious alternative is the original Disney Villanous game. It’s similar but simpler, and still a lot of fun. And maybe your family and friends will prefer the idea of playing Maleficent or Captain Hook over characters from Star Wars. There’s a Marvel Villainous too if that strikes your fancy.

Star Wars™ Villainous uses the award-winning Villainous game system with added elements to fully immerse players in the Star Wars™ Universe. Deploy iconic ships like TIE Fighters as you engage with the Millennium Falcon. Use Ambition to power your Villain’s unique abilities, whether you’re playing as a Force user, leader, or manipulator. Taken as a whole, this makes Star Wars Villainous one of the best additions to the franchise in years. For me, it's a stronger entry than Marvel Villainous and builds on the formula in clever ways. Should you buy Star Wars Villainous: Power of the Dark Side? A lot of this comes down to how unique each villain feels. Like so many of the Disney Villainous expansions, the characters here provide an experience we've not seen from the game before. Clone Wars staple Asajj Ventress has to complete mission cards inspired by the show, for instance, and these usually involve hunting down specific heroes for a reward. Star Wars Villainous will be the first in what is now the franchise’s third game system, the first two being Disney Villainous and Marvel Villainous. Characters aren’t compatible between the three systems, so no putting Thanos up against Hades or Darth Vader for instance. But that means Star Wars Villainous’ new mechanics are also unique and distinct.Deep Space is a special area on the far right side of your Villain's board. This area is specifically used for playing Vehicle cards, as well as certain cards that are able to be played to Deep Space or that can be played on top of Vehicle cards. Whilst we will do everything we can to meet the delivery times above, there may be factors outside of our control and we cannot guarantee delivery within this time frame.