SeaFall
{{Short description|Board game}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Infobox game
|subject_name=Seafall
|designer=Rob Daviau
|publisher=Plaid Hat Games (2016)
|illustrator=Jared Blando, Brian Valeza
|players=3–5
|genre=4X
|system=Legacy
|setup_time=10 minutes
|playing_time=90-120 minutes
|random_chance=Moderate
|skills= Strategy, tactics, logic, logistics}}
SeaFall is a board game designed by Rob Daviau and published in 2016 by Plaid Hat Games.{{cite web | url = https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/oct/22/seafall-legacy-format-pandemic-legacy-designer-rob-daviau-board-games | title = SeaFall: is the legacy format heralding a new era of board games | work = The Guardian | date = October 22, 2016 | accessdate = October 27, 2016 | first = Mark | last = Wilding }} SeaFall is a game of colonial era exploration which uses a legacy format, meaning the board and components change during each game, creating a different game each time and a story with a beginning, middle, and end.{{cite web | url = http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/gaming/2016/08/rob_daviau_s_legacy_board_game_seafall.html | title = This Man Will Change the Way You Play Board Games |work = Slate | date = August 25, 2016 | accessdate = October 27, 2016 | first = Nicholas | last = Hune-Brown }} The game is played by 3–5 players, each of whom takes on the role of a province taking to the seas after a long dark age.{{cite web | url = http://www.polygon.com/2016/2/9/10951990/seafall-preview-pandemic-legacy-rob-daviau| title = First details on Seafall, the next game from co-designer of Pandemic: Legacy | work = Polygon | date = February 9, 2016 | accessdate = October 27, 2016 | first = Charlie | last = Hall }} Players explore the game board with their ships, revealing islands and other surprises. The game contains 430 entries in a Captain's Booke, a journal which is read in sections when players trigger in-game events called milestones. The story contains about 15 games' worth of content, with each game taking about two hours to play.
The release of the game was originally announced in 2013, and its release was repeatedly delayed.{{cite web | url = https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/08/the-hottest-new-board-games-from-gen-con-2016/| title = The hottest new board games from Gen Con 2016 | work = arstechnica | date = August 13, 2016 | accessdate = October 29, 2016 | first = Nate | last = Anderson }} Many called it the most anticipated board game of 2016, coming on the heels of Pandemic Legacy: Season 1, an extremely popular legacy format game designed by Daviau and Matt Leacock that was released the year before.
Gameplay
File:Seawall-board-stickered.jpg
Set in an approximation of our world coming out of the Dark Ages, each player takes on the role of a mainland empire that is rediscovering seafaring technology and setting out to explore the world. Through the use of a team of advisors, each player discovers islands, develops trade, acquires resources and technology, and initiates conflict.{{cite web | url = https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/148261/seafall| title = Seafall Main Page | work = boardgamegeek | accessdate = October 29, 2016 }}
SeaFall evolves from one game to the next using a legacy system developed previously by Daviau in his Risk Legacy and Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 games. The components of the game itself will change, as islands the players discover on the map will be marked with stickers, and players' actions in a game will trigger events, which cause sealed packets to be opened which contain new pieces, cards and rules to be revealed.{{cite web | url = http://planetjh.com/2016/10/18/well-that-happened-unplugged-entertainment/| title = WELL, THAT HAPPENED: Unplugged Entertainment | work = Planet Jackson Hole | date = October 18, 2016 | accessdate = October 29, 2016 | first = Andrew | last = Munz }} There is a Captain's Booke which contains 430 Choose Your Own Adventure-style narrative entries, which are read when players trigger certain milestones.{{cite web | url = https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/11/seafall-review-a-messy-flawed-amazing-board-game/| title = SeaFall review: Hotly anticipated board game is a work of flawed genius | work = arstechnica | date = November 19, 2016 | accessdate = December 5, 2016 | first = Tom | last = Mendelsohn }} Over the approximately 15 games which constitutes the campaign, a story develops which has narrative arc with a beginning, middle, and end.
Players have choices over how to pursue victory, with military aggression, exploration, and mercantilism all being viable strategies.{{cite web | url = https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/09/rebuilding-boardgames-rob-daviau-on-seafall-and-th.html| title = Rebuilding Boardgames: Rob Daviau on SeaFall and the Legacy Games | work = Paste | date = September 26, 2016 | accessdate = October 30, 2016 | first = Luke | last = Winkie }}
References
{{reflist|35em}}
External links
- {{bgg title|148261}}
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJjoxACoVuM SeaFall Instructional Video] on Watch it Played
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dFQwKz1F4s SeaFall Review] on Shut Up & Sit Down
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJoZA_V9b5I SeaFall Review] on Dice Tower
- [https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/11/seafall-review-a-messy-flawed-amazing-board-game/ SeaFall Review] from Ars Technica