Euthia: Torment of Resurrection

Euthia: Torment of Resurrection arrives in a box that seems to have required a small forest of cardboard. After a long session freeing components from their sheets, it spreads cards and tokens across the table as though the living room has been requisitioned as a continent. The production is lavish, almost aggressively so, and there is a particular pleasure in seeing a large game finally given enough room to breathe.

Each player takes a hero out into the map to explore, pursue quests, fight monsters, and unlock an MMO-like power tree, all while working towards the scenario’s objective. The resemblance to Mage Knight is clear in the wandering and character growth, but Euthia leaves out the demanding deck-building element; its adventure develops more directly.

Competitive scenarios are largely multiplayer solitaire, with a race towards the objective, though you can spend resources to strengthen the monsters waiting for other players. Co-operative and PvP scenarios are there too, but larger groups pay for the expedition in downtime: at four, waiting becomes the map’s second monster.

It takes two or three plays before the game begins to move naturally. There are many rules, along with wearying little exceptions and micro-rules, and setup and teardown require a place in the evening of their own. This is not a Tuesday-after-work choice when all you want is to open a box and unwind; it is a lifestyle game, a decision to return to the same dungeon crawl for a while. Make that decision, though, and it produces rich, rewarding sessions.

Updated session

After three plays, the first impression has held: Euthia needs commitment, and a medium scenario has yet to show its full scope. It has not become lighter, but the later plays confirmed that the investment pays off.