Reigniting the Excitement of Playing Scythe a Decade Later
Lead a faction in an alternate 1920s world filled with mechs and new technologies where war looms on the horizon of Scythe.
In a startling discovery, I found out my most recent play of Scythe was last decade. Last decade?! And I barely even got into trying it out solo. With unplayed expansions and tons of content I never dug into, it was time to get back to this fantastic setting. Armed with a spiral-bound rulebook and all the excitement of new game, I brought it back to my solo table!
Game Overview
Game Name: Scythe
Publication Year: 2016
Designer: Jamey Stegmaier
Artist: Jakub Rozalski
Publisher: Stonemaier Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Tasked with expanding a faction, there are many ways to build up resources and make choices to move ahead. Mechs dot the landscape where control is important, particularly at the mysterious central location. With plenty of action options and lots of variety, each play can be quite epic!
First Play
August 4, 2019
Complexity
3
Latest Play
August 3, 2025
Expansions
15
Setup Time
15 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
6
Play Time
1 Hour & 30 Minutes
High Score
83
Game Area
48" x 36"
Low Score
26
Extended Legends
As I dug through the box and figured out where I wanted to begin, I was reminded of the Scythe: Board Extension. This is used for a larger play area with 70% bigger hexes.
Necessary? Not at all! It probably wasn’t the best choice for playing solo without any other expansion content… But I was pretty impressed with the sheer scale and beauty.
Honestly, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be and I felt entirely immersed in the setting. Just what I wanted!
It took me a little while to figure out the best way to arrange the components and learn the rules… But I was soon ready!
Zehra & the Crimeans
Since I was intrigued by every faction, I randomized the setup to reduce that choice. And so it was that I was the Crimeans, led by Zehra and her trusted eagle, Kar.
These large hexes were pretty awesome, and I loved seeing the artwork in greater detail! I ended up using standee bases to hold the encounter tokens. Much easier to spot them.
And naturally, I forgot how awesome the action selection system is here with its limitations and opportunities.
I decided to really put myself to the test by using a total of 3 different solo opponents… The challenge had begun!
Stories Through Art
Although this is very much about area control and clever ways to maintain a strong position through various paths, the steampunk world is still filled with wonder.
Encounters are quite rare, but each faction usually has about 2-3 options within close range. I sent Zehra to the east to investigate the events going on in a hex near her home base.
I love the way these cards offer no flavor text nor title: It’s all about choosing options and interpreting the situation.
This spot seemed like a glimmer of hope, and Zehra decided to purchase a plot of land and invest in her homeland.
Factory Showdown
The Factory is the central hex and is extremely important in terms of area control and gaining a new action. However, racing to get there didn’t feel like the right move this time.
Zehra sat back and watched as the trio of other factions slowly converged, inching ever-closer. It wasn’t long before tensions overflowed, and a battle took place.
Olga charged at Gunter, who was only just pausing after being the first faction to take control of this lucrative spot.
I was only too glad to allow them to battle! Olga won and managed to place a star, yet I was carefully biding my time.
Replacing Overwhelming with Exciting
I’ll be honest: A lot of games on my shelves come with large boxes and an enormous amount of content. A lot of time, just thinking about the effort of bringing a huge experience to my table is overwhelming. Unpacking everything to set it all up can feel like a lot, and that’s not even taking into account reading a rulebook, either for the first time or as a refresher.
That feeling of being overwhelmed isn’t something to just ignore, though. However, when I know I’m in the right mood to spend a lot of time with a game, I’m trying to pause before that sense of a game being too much takes over. In a lot of cases, there’s also an excellent experience waiting to be discovered! And in many senses, that’s what makes this hobby exciting.
When I spotted this enormous box on the shelf, complete with several unopened accessories hanging out nearby, my first instinct was to back away. However, I’m glad I didn’t! This play was amazing and I can’t wait to see what else might happen with more plays. Expansions are waiting for me, including a campaign that’s always received high praise. Exciting, indeed!
Double Battle Time
Immediately after Olga won, Bjorn charged in from the north… And a charging musk ox is nothing to laugh at! However, Olga maintained her position and won again.
I had to pause to wrap my head around the solo opponent cards a few times, and may have made some minor mistakes here and there. Yet it seemed to be working well!
A trio of solo opponents also wasn’t as hard to manage as I thought it might be. Just a little more bookkeeping.
With all of the battles, that should have given the Crimeans an edge in battle. But Zehra lost, even with good planning.
Mystery in the Clouds
War was not Zehra’s strong suit, and after all of the setbacks, I took a different approach with her. The next time she had the opportunity to move, it was to an encounter.
From the shores of the misty river, an airship emerged. There weren’t many available options, yet guiding it through the clouds seemed like an appropriate thing to do.
I imagined Kar doing a bit more in the guidance department, soaring and swooping for a better view.
This would be the last encounter for Zehra, yet I love how much variety there is in the deck. Always something new!
Wolf Among the Sheep
Another aspect I thoroughly enjoyed were the objectives. The pair I drew were quite different, with one more about gaining power and being all about war and battles.
Zehra took a subtle approach to station herself and a mech in a territory that looked like it was only there for resource production. Even the nearby mechs never approached!
Granted, that was due to the solo opponent’s action cards, yet it still felt like it added some thematic flair to gameplay.
I felt like I was behind at times but not in the worst kind of way. The Crimeans had some impressive accomplishments!
The Final Map
From a half-formed plan, the last few rounds saw Zehra advance with her mechs. The Factory was hers! I timed the final star placement just as this mech settled itself in.
With no structures and a fairly low popularity, I figured it would be a pretty sad showing. However, final scores were all within 5 victory points of each other… And I wasn’t last!
Maybe I didn’t play perfectly, yet this felt like a satisfying conclusion. So much happened, and I held my own.
I certainly have a lot more to discover and look forward to seeing what sorts of challenges and stories are up next!
Session Overview
Play Number: 3
Main Accessory: Scythe: Board Extension
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Normal Difficulty Level
Outcome: 61-63-65-60 (Loss)
Not too bad, especially considering that popularity! A few different choices would likely have led to a win, yet this felt like the right amount of challenging gameplay. I have expansions to incorporate, and a campaign to get into… Just want to be sure I’m comfortable with all of the rules! Those workers and mechs don’t move themselves. Ha ha!
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
7
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
9
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
9
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
7
+ Pros (Positives)
- Action selection choices are neat with different top and bottom rows, plus the limitation of not repeating an action.
- Playing against multiple solo opponents doesn’t add too much extra overhead and feels like a fuller solo experience.
- Encounter cards feature artwork without flavor text, allowing major moments to come to life differently in each play.
- There is a race to place every star, but there are all sorts of choices to make and strategies to try out to reach the end.
- Battles are important but infrequent, allowing many play styles to work well, even when never entering a battle.
- Play time is a bit lengthy, yet the feeling of being engaged with every round makes the time fly by in a surprising way.
– Cons (Negatives)
- Learning the rules for solo opponent movement can take some time to correctly understand the priorities.
- Remembering everything to do can be tricky, particularly related to the enlist spaces and potential ongoing bonuses.
- With the board extension, the play area might be much too large for some tables, and standing up can be tedious.
- Although the rules aren’t difficult, the flow of gameplay and all of the moving parts takes multiple plays to internalize.
Victory Conditions
Score the Most Points
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game at the easy difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the normal difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
What do you enjoy the most about Scythe? Do you have a preferred number of solo opponents to play against? I still can’t believe it’s been so long since I last played, but that’s often a positive… Just goes to show that wonderful game experiences are on the shelves, patiently waiting for me to re-discover them. Looking forward to exploring this one further right now!
Did you get 2 extra automa decks in order to play against 3 bots? Did you print them out?
Does the game get more difficult against more than one bot?
I purchased a few extra decks from Meeple Source to play against multiple solo opponents! I believe there is the option to print out decks instead of purchasing them, though, along with a digital app if that might be of interest.
Playing against a single solo opponent in the past felt pretty simple and straightforward. The difficulty level is a main determinant, but I found that having a trio to work against filled in the map more and kept me planning from multiple directions. I didn’t have a full area of the board to do whatever I wanted with: There was pressure from all directions, and since the solo opponents can also attack each other, the experience felt a lot more interesting.
Hope that helps!