For Glory

I did not come to For Glory expecting much, and instead found a very jolly deck-builder that teaches cleanly and gets everyone into the arena quickly. You take charge of a stable of gladiators, chase glory, and wait for the point when the table starts making more noise than the rules.

The core is straightforward: you build your deck around your gladiators and your choices, trying to gather the glory that puts you ahead. Once the arenas fill, the game changes gear and opens into a separate little combat game, using a system with the feel of Conquest LCG — exactly the right family resemblance for a gladiatorial fight.

The base box only plays with two, and that contest is a little more considered: you watch what the other player is preparing and choose when to lean in. Add the expansion and it becomes a free-for-all; everyone lunges at whatever is available, gladiators crack skulls, the necessary complaints begin, and the noise is part of the game. You will wreck your friends’ plans for a bit of glory. They will enjoy it less than you do.

It is not my favourite deck-builder with karate, because Ascension Tactics exists, but For Glory remains very good at what it does. And when the Crupellarius is cracking skulls while you shout “are you not entertained?”, it has already done its job.