Enchanted Plumes: A Solo Display of Colorful Feathers
Collect feathers and arrange beautiful plumes in delightful patterns to attract a picky peahen with Enchanted Plumes.
Most bird-related solo games are all about the birds themselves, but Enchanted Plumes stands on its own with its focus on beautiful feathers! I enjoyed playing previously, and it had been long enough since the box patiently waited on my shelf. The colorful artwork was just what I wanted, and it was time to see if I might be able to achieve my best score yet!
Game Overview
Game Name: Enchanted Plumes
Publication Year: 2021
Designer: Brendan Hansen
Artist: Echo Chernik
Publisher: Calliope Games
Solo Mode: Official Solo Variant
With an ever-changing train of feathers, the goal is to put together plumes. The trick is to make sure to place the low-value feathers at the top and ensure the right colors flow through. It’s far from easy to impress the peahen, who resides somewhere near the bottom of the deck!
First Play
June 1, 2023
Complexity
2
Latest Play
August 31, 2024
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
12
Play Time
10 Minutes
High Score
89
Game Area
26" x 16"
Low Score
58
Gorgeous Artwork
Most of the art is centered around the individual feathers, yet the peafowl are simply beautiful throughout!
I must say that the peahen always shows up when I would rather she wait another couple of rounds. Ha! That random timing is part of the fun, though.
Since the game is officially listed at 2-5 players, it can take a moment to realize that the official solo variant came from the designer and works amazingly well. So great!
I eagerly got back into this one, thinking through my moves and making sure to get these plumes planned!
Just Shy of Complete
Oh, so close! A complete plume scores a bonus of 1 victory point per card. Had I pulled it off in this case, I would have scored an additional 21 victory points. Now that’s great!
This might look like a repetitive game on the surface, but each play proceeds very differently. It’s all about the order of the cards and figuring out how to use a lot of them.
In this plume, I didn’t start out with a lot of colors, which seemed to be working out… Right up until the end. Ha!
No matter: I had other ideas in mind to try other strategies to get the peahen to notice my magnificent feathers!
Multi-Plume Approach
A-ha! Rather than trying for a single gigantic plume, I played it a little safer and completed a few smaller ones. This was still shy of a victory, but the peahen noticed!
The decision space really is quite intriguing. Starting a plume isn’t just about placing a lot of different colors, but also accepting negative victory points in the largest row.
Although I had some great ideas, it was still hard for me to place high-value cards… Maybe I need to do that, though!
Winning takes a lot of clever decisions, and I’m slowly getting closer. Notice me, peahen. Goodness. Ha ha!
A Convincing Plume
No one can question the fact that this is clearly a plume belonging to a duck. His face should tell you that no questions are allowed when a Calico Critter is this cute!
I suppose I could arrange my play area in a less organized way to make my plumes look a little bit like actual plumes… But I shall leave that to this fellow. Ha ha!
My only real complaint is how similar some of the colors look and how their unique patterns get covered up.
The peahen sadly took no notice over this duck imposter, but I let him waddle home with his feathers in tow!
The Fun of Little Board Game Memories
Not all of my solo games have strong memories attached to them, even though I might enjoy them for many reasons! This one has a fun story behind it. I attended a convention around the time it first came out, and my boss picked up a copy for us to play together. We looked at it before getting roped into an… Unfortunate playtest of an unfinished game.
But then we managed to play near our booth! I took a lot of risks and recall being told I was going to lose so badly. Although I still lost, it was by a margin of 1 or 2 points and we laughed about how I actually knew what I was doing. Ha! I ended up picking up my own copy a few years later when I learned about the official solo variant. Such a great game!
So now when I score poorly, I just laugh about this great memory. I might not know what I’m doing most of the time, yet I’m usually on the right track, even if I’m going down my own random path of risky strategies. Ha ha!
Session Overview
Play Number: 7-10
Solo Mode: Official Solo Variant
Outcome: 58, 74, 66, 89 (4 Losses)
Still chasing after my first proper victory! But I came very close and can see how I might be able to pull this off in the future. Gameplay is simply charming and delightful with this one, and I’m so glad I brought it back to my table! Definitely a unique little solo puzzle that offers beautiful artwork, a quick playtime, and plenty of meaningful choices. I’ll just have to keep working my tail feathers off to impress the world’s pickiest peahen. Ha ha!
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
4
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
9
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
6
+ Pros (Positives)
- Gameplay moves very quickly with the ability to plan some moves ahead of time, or at least have a rough idea.
- Choosing how large a plume should be is an interesting decision that’s very dependent on the available cards.
- Limiting negative victory points with the initial feather card placements is not as easy as it might seem at first.
- The higher scoring tiers are challenging to reach, yet victory never feels like it’s impossible or too difficult.
- Aside from a few issues with similar colors, the feather artwork is beautiful and makes for a nice table presence.
- Straightforward rules are relatively easy to learn and remember, making it simple to play practically any time.
– Cons (Negatives)
- It can be easy to lose track of removing cards from the train with the way cards might be swapped as an action.
- A bit of card counting is required with some of the larger plumes to ensure the right cards are possible to draw.
- The peahen is shuffled into the last few cards of the deck, which can end a play a little too soon and unexpectedly.
- Some of the feather colors are a little too similar and the unique patterns are mostly covered up during play.
Victory Conditions
Score 96+ Points
- Overall Goal Progress 50%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 70 points.
Score at least 80 points.
Score at least 90 points.
Win at least 1 game with a single plume.
Continue the Conversation
What is your favorite thing about Enchanted Plumes? Have you achieved a high score to draw the attention of the peahen? This one is just a delightful little puzzle that I’m so glad to have in my collection! It’s certainly not easy to even come close to a victory for me… Yet. With a little more practice, I’m confident I can put on a lovely feather display!
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