Back to Imperium: Classics and Living Through History
Guide the rise of an ancient civilization through an abstract but memorable history with Imperium: Classics.
Years ago, I jumped into a brand new solo series that looked like it was going to be amazing. Imperium: Legends looked wonderful, and let’s just put a couple of things together here: First edition and solo unrest. The major rulebook error sullied the solo mode for me for over 2 years, but finally… I was ready to jump in to start over with Imperium: Classics!
Game Overview
Game Name: Imperium: Classics
Publication Year: 2021
Designer: Nigel Buckle & Dávid Turczi
Artist: Mihajlo Dimitrievski
Publisher: Osprey Games
Solo Mode: Included in Imperium: Horizons
With a small nation deck and pool of common cards, the entire story of a civilization can be told. A solo practice mode offers a timer to understand the nuances of each nation, as each one plays quite differently. Through leadership and careful planning, history is quickly made!
First Play
March 20, 2024
Complexity
4
Latest Play
March 29, 2024
Expansions
2
Setup Time
10 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
8
Play Time
50 Minutes
High Score
100
Game Area
36" x 22"
Low Score
57
A Use for UberStax
It’s been ages since I last built a vertical play space with my UberStax, and they seemed perfect for this one!
The commons took shape easily enough and I had the chance to put all of the boxes behind it to give me a little inspiration to actually play well for once. Ha ha!
Although this might not look exactly like the standard array, building vertically gave me a clear view of every card. It took just a little adjusting for other placements.
This card display amounted to a table depth of a card and a half, which was significant for keeping things closer!
Getting Creative
I added a couple of card holders to either side to hold the main deck and exiled cards. This made it easy to keep those apart without adding much table space. Nice!
Tokens found their way into some rather messy piles, although these have middle dividers. No mixups here.
My initial experience years ago was beyond frustrating with the unrest issue… Basically, collapse happened each time due to the solo opponent hoarding unrest in history.
That was a mistake in the rulebook, which I understand, but it’s just a little precursor to explain my hesitation.
Learning to Play
What makes this game so excellent? Gradual learning and understanding. Those might sound boring at first glance. But hold on, because even years ago, I saw the potential!
The nation of choice is a key piece to each play. I started with the Macedonians: Low difficulty, basic strategies, and a good place to start understanding the concepts.
Over multiple plays, not only does a nation make sense, but so do the common cards. So many possibilities!
Like this young Calico Critter, I had no idea what I was doing at first. Yet it was all about studying and learning…
Finding a Rhythm
Oh, yeah! I’ve actually played multiplayer over the years, so this wasn’t as much of an initial learning session as it might have been. But the Macedonians? Brand new to me.
And I don’t have the exact words to describe what went on. Things moved along nicely enough at first, and then it all started to come together in even more interesting ways.
I could see my inefficiencies and issues. My initial score was only passable, but I had a good sense of my mistakes.
With the trade routes module, I had the chance to add some complexity into the mix and discover even more!
The Power of Historical Storytelling
Many accolades come from the mechanics and intricate card combinations, which are certainly some of the standout aspects! But what really made the game something special for me centered around the historical storytelling. I could have focused on just playing cards and looking at the icons and text… Yet that would miss a vital point of the system.
I took several history classes way back in the day, and enjoyed learning a lot. Since then, though, I haven’t done much in terms of reading or learning more about history. And there is so much of it! As I played as the Macedonians, I felt like I recognized some of the cards, yet it amounted to very little. I could see I needed to learn more. And I wanted to.
Just doing very basic research brought the cards to life even more. I could appreciate the locations of the specific regions on a map. Philip II became more real, as did the phalanx and companion cavalry units. The only thing I wish the rulebook included was a bibliography or list of recommended historical books for each nation. So much more to learn!
And I’ll note that knowing the history doesn’t mean that I feel forced into playing a certain way. The abstract nature of a lot of cards means they can be applied in many different ways. It simply feels like that part of history is more or less emphasized in subtle ways during that play… Or that I need to work on my actual gameplay decisions. Ha ha!
Expansion and Glory
The Macedonians make use of regions and seem to have strategies that make the most of these. However, I might have acquired a few too many to support the glory action.
Thematically, having too many unplayed regions feels like a leader who doesn’t have a set goal. Rather, it’s like a plan to expand in every direction without a clear purpose.
I didn’t document all of my moves, yet the solo practice mode only takes 12 rounds… And it’s all so exciting!
History took shape and I found myself getting interested in learning more about the real Macedonians.
Testing Out Tributaries
Tributaries are a type of card, often only in the commons, that represent alliances and treaties with other nations. I focused on them, even if they didn’t align that well.
That’s another excellent aspect: Each nation has a small set of ideal strategies to pursue most of the time.
What happens the rest of the time? The commons. Those cards often supplement a strategy, but they sometimes make for a very interesting and different sort of focus.
Corruption even factored heavily in the later rounds, and I didn’t expect that to happen with my best score!
Stories Behind Cards
Each time I played, nothing was the same. The same set of nation cards took me in all different directions as I tried out new things and discovered some unfortunate choices.
Did I master the Macedonians? Not even close! I figured out how to use most of the available cards well, but not to a reliable extent. Yet I wasn’t looking to achieve that.
Instead, I could see the stories emerge from these cards. Each one tied into the history I was telling in some way.
I’ll also note that I thought 12 rounds would be far too short, yet it felt like the right sort of timer for a solo play.
Learning to Be Great!
At the end of this session, where I played once each day for a number of days, I definitely felt great! Indeed… I made sure Alexander was great twice during this play. Ha!
I had a few mild rules mistakes and some ambiguities, yet overall, playing as the Macedonians gave me the chance to fully appreciate what this game system offers.
With the full collection of 30 nations, I’m looking forward to playing them all to understand how they work.
Then, maybe someday, I’ll move onto challenging the solo opponent that doesn’t steal all the unrest anymore… Ha!
Session Overview
Play Number: 1-4
Expansion: Imperium: Horizons
Solo Mode: Included in Imperium: Horizons
Play Details: Solo Practice Mode, Macedonians A & B
Outcome: 57, 83, 68, 57 (1 Win & 3 Losses)
So much fun! I probably need to work on how I use the phalanx card and choose regions, yet this was awesome. I even started to spot some interesting ways to make some of the common cards work together. If I can pivot that knowledge to apply to a nation, I may very well score even better. Next time, it will be with another new nation!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
6
Quality
Components & Rules
8
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
10
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
10
+ Pros (Positives)
- Each nation offers a different experience and strategy focus, and it takes many plays to see all of the nuances.
- There is never a single way to progress since the common cards change decisions and offer new synergies.
- Stories develop through a small number of cards, which is an excellent way to encourage researching real history.
- Although 12 rounds for the solo practice mode may sound small, it provides an excellent timer and challenge.
- Gameplay lasts for just around an hour with meaningful decisions and limited downtime for a great experience.
- History feels like it’s made each round through a combination of nation-specific and broad-reaching cards.
– Cons (Negatives)
- Although the rulebook covers a lot, there are edge cases and order-of-operations ambiguities to look up.
- Final scoring takes some time with the different ways that individual cards award victory points.
- Card quality is mediocre at best, and even with sleeves, these tend to warp enough not to lie perfectly flat.
- Icons and important text are located in various places, making it easy to overlook important abilities at times.
Victory Conditions
Score 80+ Points in the Practice Mode
- Overall Goal Progress 86%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 80 points in at least 1 practice mode game.
Score at least 90 points in at least 1 practice mode game.
Score at least 100 points in at least 1 practice mode game.
Win at least 1 practice mode game as the Macedonians.
Win at least 1 practice mode game as the Persians.
Win at least 1 practice mode game as the Romans.
Score at least 110 points in at least 1 practice mode game.
Continue the Conversation
What do you like about Imperium: Classics? Do you have a favorite nation or strategy you like to pursue? I’ve barely scratched the surface of what this game series has to offer, and I can’t wait to keep on playing! My decisions seem to be getting better, although the core element is that feeling of living through the history of a nation. Simply amazing!
Granted, it’s a unique design. But I sold it all the same. The gameplay was too convoluted for me, too long at the time I played, there were too many things to shuffle and sort out during and between games and the rules (plus errata) hard a hard time sticking with me. I guess this is not my ideal board civ game yet.
Oh, and… I don’t like the Mico’s art (personal and minority opinion of course) !
I’m glad you enjoyed it as much as you did. Some day, you’ll surpass Alexander in your conquests !
I agree that it’s a game that can take a little bit to get into with all of the rules and moving parts. But no worries if it’s not for you! I firmly believe that a high rating and a low rating can both be true for the same game. Just depends on the player! The important part is understanding where your opinion comes from, as that will often help you find the right games for you in the future.
Thanks for the vote of confidence! It does appear I might know a little bit about some strategies, but Jessica the Great may take some years to ever happen. Ha ha!
I’m excited for you to explore Imperium more. I started with Horizons a few weeks ago and recently got Classics and Legends to complete the collection.
This is my first time seeing Uberstax and it looks like an ideal solution for solo Imperium to take up less (flat) table space and bring everything closer. How many pieces, minimum, would you say is needed? In your photos, I see many, many layers but I assume it’s to organize everything to look aesthetically pleasing for blog purposes. Thanks!
Very nice! I hope you have a great time digging into gameplay: There’s so much to discover and enjoy!
The UberStax display I used here consists of 43 pieces, although the top row could probably be dropped without a lot of issue. This is the breakdown of how it’s made to create something that’s usable and very sturdy:
– Foundation: 3 rows of 6 pieces (Assembled seemingly upside down, but this adds stability)
– Main Display: 3 rows of 6 pieces (Colorful because that’s a very abstract sunrise for some fun!)
– Top Area: 1 row of 7 pieces (Offset for some visual interest and a little extra stability)
UberStax typically come in sets of 60 pieces, so this display is what I can use for most games. I have 120 pieces total so I tend to go a little bigger with the designs, but there’s a lot you can do! UberTrayz are nice for token organization, and will also attach if you’d like. I’ve made some designs that have the UberTrayz integrated as part of the foundation, which can be neat.
Seems like I might want to make a post showing off lots of ways to use these! Although I have a pretty large table to utilize, saving space is nice… But so is having everything right in front of me. Much easier to see. Hopefully, that answers your question, but I’m happy to provide more details and photos!
I played this a bit when it came out, but had a Tabletop Simulator session that was a bit of a slog. I recently received a review copy of Horizons and that’s restored my interest.
Most people seem to love or hate The Mico’s art; I quite like it when he’s doing manly warrior types, but really not when it’s other figures (like the Japanese woman on the Horizons cover, visible to the right of centre in the second photo here).
When you do get into the bot opponent, I heartily recommend the bot cards in Horizons as opposed to the system in the earlier solo mode manual. Similar effect, much less work.
I like this 2- and 3-player too as long as the players are reasonably quick. I’d like to try it with 4 some time, but it would be an all day game…
Very nice to hear about your restored interest! The new bot cards look amazing and take away most of the work. I know that a couple have a few issues to remember, but overall, they are a very welcome addition after I’ve moved on from the solo practice mode.
I’ve done several 2-3 player games, too, and agree that 4-player seems like it could take some time. We’re usually very focused on our own nations, yet one of the keys to the full experience (from what I enjoy, at least) is understanding your opponents and making sure they’re not getting too far ahead.
Nice to see you enjoying this. It’s my number one solo game. Even before Horizons was released, it was my number. Expanding to 30 nations to choose from just increases replayability to phenomenal levels!
So awesome to read! I thought I was done with the first couple of boxes, but the new nations sound really neat. I like how there’s a complexity scale that’s easy enough to follow. Although I could probably jump ahead, there’s something so awesome about seeing how each nation works and figuring out some really clever card combinations. Sounds like both of us will be playing for a long, long time to come!
Appreciate the idea for using uberstax! I tried out going through the motions to get an understanding on game flow but never ended up playing the game. Good to know to read errata since I only have Classics and Legends. Fingers crossed that this will hit the table soon!
You’re very welcome! Definitely sounds like I should share some other UberStax design ideas I’ve used over the years. They’re not perfect, but nothing else I have beats the table space savings and absolute delight of having cards (or even tokens) arranged in a way that doesn’t require looking down all the time.
Good luck playing! Horizons actually includes printed replacements for Classics and Legends, although I don’t say that to break any wallets. The Horizons PDF rulebook is one I would highly recommend learning from: It’s the most up-to-date, and also includes the solo practice mode I’m using.