Making Magic with Arcana Rising: Charms, Potions, and More

Learn spells from areas like alchemy, herbology, and potions to find the best times to cast them in Arcana Rising.
The realm of magic takes on many forms with solo games, yet I often enjoy learning and casting various spells. With Arcana Rising, I had all I wanted in a quick play time! I enjoyed playing multiplayer several times, and decided to try out the included solo mode. The spell combinations seemed interesting, as did the pyramid draft with lots of choices!
Game Overview
Game Name: Arcana Rising
Publication Year: 2021
Designer: Tim Armstrong
Artist: Yaroslav Radetskyi
Publisher: Grey Fox Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Over the course of 3 rounds, spells may either be added or cast. A pair of pre-determined types are available to cast, though, so the decisions can be quite interesting. Finding synergies and combinations offers a fun experience, all in a very quick and straightforward solo mode.
First Play
May 21, 2023
Complexity
2
Latest Play
May 22, 2023
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
4
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
43
Game Area
40" x 20"
Low Score
20
Spells and Currency
The game is all about finding the right times to cast spell types, which always happen in pairs. There are some fun combinations, although it’s all about victory points.
With my upgraded version, the components are a little fancier, yet nothing else is changed in terms of gameplay.
Resources are placed directly on each of the spell types, and then these may be spent to purchase a new card.
Alternatively, rather than adding a card, the current turn’s spell types may be cast. At the right time, this can lead to tons of resources to convert into victory points. Fun!
Pyramid Card Draft
Solo involves a pyramid of cards with a mix of face-up and face-down cards. If spells aren’t cast, the spell choices are shown from the lowest row. Very easy to think about.
The benefit to having some face-up cards shown allows for a little bit of planning. Every other turn involves flipping over some unknown cards, so there is some luck.
Prices are shown as specific resources, or an increased cost for a mixture of any available resources.
This is simple, yet still allows for some fun decisions during each round. Only some of the cards are used, too!
Abacus Tracking
The most interesting upgraded component, at least according to me, is the abacus! There are 6 different colors that may be used to keep track of victory points.
I bump anything on my table constantly, so I was a little wary. However, this worked like a charm! The values stayed in place even when I moved the entire abacus.
The only tricky part were the beads on the far ends, as the decorative cover was a little larger and locked them in.
Maybe these will be re-purposed to use for some more of my solo games. Very nice and compact solution!
Spell Types and Casting
Each pair of spell types is randomized during the setup for each round. Most of the time, this will result in 2 different types cast at various times throughout the round.
Sometimes, though, a double spell type comes up for a possibly lucrative combination. It all boils down to seeing what cards are available to buy and when to cast them.
The final turn of each round may also be used to cast the most recent spell, as these stack on top of each other.
It’s a pretty simple system that doesn’t necessarily stand out, yet it works well enough with some fun turns!
The Challenge of Designing Above the Average
I thought that the solo mode was a pretty average sort of experience for me. There wasn’t anything wrong with it, but I didn’t feel drawn to the game. The mechanics didn’t feel novel, and the theme disappeared for me. Not every game needs to be entirely unique to be great, yet there needs to be something that will distinguish it from the crowd.
Thousands of games are published each year, which is excellent for finding lots of new solo modes! But a game that leaves an average first impression isn’t likely to hit my table that often. My husband likes this one enough to keep it, and that’s sort of how I feel… “Good enough.” It does what a game should do, but risks not having any staying power.
That’s not a dig against the design, though. Good games are difficult enough to bring into the market! I just wish there was something more compelling here. Could there be something great or excellent? Definitely. It just feels too bland to see any expansions for, which could have been the way to level it up in some ways. Still, it’s not a bad game.
Charms and Herbology
Not entirely certain what would be the best strategy, I ended up trying to pair charms and herbology. There were some synergies between my spells, after all.
I ended up with a pretty mediocre final score, though, as I definitely didn’t cast enough spells! Those spent resources likely would have been better as victory points.
Like I mentioned previously, there isn’t anything amazing to see here, yet the design is solid enough.
The repetitive artwork also distracted me so that it turned into a pure numbers game devoid of the magical theme.
Improving My Magic
A-ha! I tried a few different strategies, and ended up doing quite well by casting more and discarding lots of spells.
Since only a portion of the cards are seen with each play, there really isn’t a single winning strategy. Some spell types will simply be more important based on the cards.
But it was all about generating resources and turning them in for victory points. At no point did I really feel like I was connected to the theme, despite the nice components.
At least this play resulted in no wasted resources! I was able to convert them all into victory points.
Session Overview
Play Number: 1-4
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Outcome: 28, 20, 40, 43 (4 Losses)
Definitely room to improve! I enjoyed moving a spell into a different spell type to help me generate some extra victory points. The one-use events can be worth it, especially if the resources match up. I didn’t come close enough to the highest scoring tiers to earn any wins, although each play flew by. I felt like I was building a spell board that could be cast at the right times to generate lots of resources for me. That abacus is absolutely amazing!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
7
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
4
Quality
Components & Rules
9
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
6
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
7
+ Pros (Positives)
- Gameplay progresses smoothly with meaningful choices and very little downtime between turns or rounds.
- Choosing to buy a card or cast spells is simple, yet can be interesting when considering future available cards.
- The pyramid draft is a clever way to offer choices and a little information about what cards may be purchased.
- Only a single resource token is needed to represent different types based on what part of the board it sits on.
- Spell cards make up the majority of the deck, but events and artifacts may show up as additional options.
- Many cards interact with other spell types to provide interesting combinations, especially when cast together.
– Cons (Negatives)
- All of the mechanics work well, but there is nothing that really distinguishes the solo mode over other options.
- The box was not designed for upgraded components, so the top and sides noticeably bow outward.
- Each piece of artwork is used on the same type of card, which makes it more likely to turn into a numbers game.
- Some cards feel more powerful and useful than others, particularly in terms of the overall spell types.
Victory Conditions
Score 50+ Points
- Overall Goal Progress 75%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 30 points.
Score at least 40 points.
Win at least 1 game with no leftover resources.
Score at least 50 points.
Continue the Conversation
What do you think of Arcana Rising? Are there other magical themes that appeal to you? I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing to offer a solid sort of experience, although there isn’t a lot here that makes the game stand out. The spell combinations are quite fun, though, and I suppose I won’t forget about the abacus anytime soon!
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