The Card Game That Blends Flip The Table Action And Historic Realism

San Diego games publisher Pique Games, headed by James and Amy Fazio, have announced their 2-6 player, 20-40 minute, take-that, and set-collection empire building game called Regency.

James is a college dean and professor, while Amy homeschools their four children. They believe education and gaming go hand-in-hand and have sought to make Regency historically accurate, culturally diverse, and tons of fun to play.

In an interview with Crowdfunding Nerds, James Fazio stated:

“Education is integral to everything we do in life. You learn best when you are having fun … the more you are having fun, the more you are learning”. 

Influences

James, formerly a tournament-level Magic: the Gathering player, has incorporated some of the best action/reaction moments from that game into Regency. 

Thematically, Regency is similar to 7 Wonders, where players control a kingdom under a historical ruler such as Alexander The Great, Cleopatra, or even Genghis Khan. 

Game Story

As all of history’s great empires were forged through conflict, so in Regency, acquiring and maintaining control means stepping on some toes. 

Regency imitates this classic power struggle as players compete for limited resources, in their quest to amass the greatest empire and reign supreme. 

In Regency, you will be expected to get as good as you give, so you will have to carefully weigh your aggressive or defensive actions as your every decision impacts all players. 

Gameplay

Regency is designed to be pick-up and play with minimal setup time. James explains that they created the game to be the perfect tool to introduce non-board gamers into the hobby. 

There is one pool of cards all players are fighting over. The game is won when the first player completes their fiefdom by amassing citizens from six castes: Nobles, Religious, Military, Merchants, Commoners, and Brigands. Because of these simple rules Regency has an easy entry point for non-board gamers. 

Unique Qualities

Each ruler that a player controls has unique qualities to defend or interrupt their opponent’s that are true to their ruling prowess. For example, Military leaders such as Alexander The Great will have better defenses than a Nobel ruler such as Queen Elizabeth. This means you must be alert and have your wits about you when playing, as your weaknesses are your opponent’s strengths! 

Championing a rating of 9.1 on Board Game Geek, Regency is undoubtedly a game that is making some big waves in the board game community and definitely one to keep an eye on. 

To Kickstarter!

Set to launch on Kickstarter on the 16th of February 2021, you can sign up for email updates here.