A Cozy Sort of Formskifter “Badger” to Enjoy Skoventyr
Enter a world of Danish folklore and race to stay ahead of Gamle Erik to defeat all of the minions in the forest of Skoventyr.
At a glance, Skoventyr might not seem like a cozy setting with the looming threat of Gamle Erik, yet I find it to fit in that realm. The artwork is beautiful, the pronunciation guide is an interesting element, and the puzzle is rather deep without being complex. Lots of great things to enjoy! And a badger? Well, of course it’s going to be excellent. Ha ha! Into the forest!
Game Overview
Game Name: Skoventyr
Publication Year: 2023
Designer: Morten Monrad Pedersen
Artist: Vincent Dutrait
Publisher: inPatience
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Vogter the badger must work against Gamle Erik, recruiting dubious allies in order to defeat a variety of minions. Staying ahead in the forest is all about hiding and knowing when to utilize special abilities. It may seem simple at first, yet this folktale takes careful planning to reach the end!
First Play
November 24, 2023
Complexity
2
Latest Play
September 13, 2025
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
10
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
N/A
Game Area
32" x 22"
Low Score
N/A
Beautiful Artwork
Having very little knowledge of folklore in general, I always appreciate artwork that brings these settings to life! Every character feels mysterious and unique in a memorable way.
Allies typically involve some sort of penalty for taking their respective cards. Then, it comes down to placing them in the forest to defeat minions or discarding them for benefits.
Very clever mechanics! The randomness of the deck adds decision points as Vogter travels through the forest.
Gamle Erik is always close and the distance between them slowly shrinks, adding a reasonable amount of tension.
Choosing Actions
Vogter is an awesome character! His actions are laid out on more beautifully illustrated cards. There are no restrictions here: The same action can happen twice in a row, if desired.
But finding the right balance is a nice challenge. Vogter doesn’t have the luxury of simply moving ahead to stay hidden at all times. Allies can also be very helpful.
I wasn’t sure if I would like the game during my first few plays, yet increasing the difficulty level has been great!
Granted, I technically moved up to the normal difficulty level with this play… But I’m still steadily moving up. Ha ha!
Minions and Allies
Minions simply indicate the number of allies needed to defeat them. This might seem simple but again, a lot more is going on beneath the surface of the rules and puzzle!
Picking up the right cards is tricky, as the order constantly shifts with every defeated minion. Gamle Erik has a lot of his cards in the deck to move him closer to Vogter.
And then there are times when discarding an ally to use an ability is more important than fighting off minions.
With a quick play time, I had a great time working through this ancient sort of tale! But Gamle Erik was always there…
Caught in the Forest
Oh no, Vogter! I was on the right path with my strategy, but I made a couple of bad choices with the allies. Only a single minion remained, yet Gamle Erik caught up too soon.
I wasn’t discouraged, though: A quick look through the cards indicated I could have used a few allies differently.
Withered trees were also the bane of my existence, yet I had to take more risks with them. Victory was at least possible with a couple of adjustments, and I was ready!
Actually, I had a specific tactic in mind because if ever I needed an extra ally, now was the time for a tiny visitor…
The Juxtaposition of Cozy and a Bit of Darkness
Something I enjoy in many ways are the typical cozy murder mysteries, and playing through this one reminded me of how those concepts can seem so different. At the core is the idea of a mystery, which usually involves a violent death. So how can that also be cozy?! It can. For me, it’s a case of leaving out anything gory and going deeper into character backgrounds.
A central detective or small group cement that coziness, often with dry humor, endearing personalities, or something that highlights their intelligence over the shock value of murder. I found this play to bring up some of these thoughts as I classified it as a cozy game experience, even though Gamle Erik is the equivalent of a demon or devil chasing Vogter. Yikes!
But it isn’t about fear or terrifying surprises: Gamle Erik’s movement pattern is known, and he doesn’t sneak up in an alarming fashion. The allies may look frightening in some ways, yet they have their own stories and are less about being there as evil presences than acting as multi-faceted characters that have both drawbacks and abilities to aid Vogter.
All this is to say that the idea of coziness in any form is quite subjective, yet it’s not necessarily about being warm and fuzzy. There are variations, and I certainly love the feeling when Gamle Erik’s minions are all defeated by a brave badger!
Calling All Badgers!
The plan was to call in the Calico Critters, and I put out the casting call for someone who matched perfectly. A badger wasn’t too hard, right? Mmm, it is when you don’t have any.
I ended up with this adorable French bulldog who was absolutely convinced he was close enough. Ha ha! It was the plucky bandana that really sealed the role for him, though!
With this pair of “badgers” to help me out, I continued to play as I worked out the best ways to utilize the allies.
Vogter failed a few more times, but he never laid down for long… A badger look-alike was there to pick him right up!
A New Formskifter
A-ha! After I earned a victory at the last moment and Vogter celebrated, I realized that this attempt at badgering was about as thematic as could be… That’s a Formskifter!
This ally can act as a copy of other allies, so it was quite fitting here. The perfect Calico Critter, and I didn’t realize it until I played a little longer. A very nice little surprise!
There are modules in the base game box I have yet to try out, yet I’m thrilled that I earned a victory at this level.
Working through the puzzle is a lot of fun, and I continue to enjoy the unique artwork. Well done, Vogter and “badger!”
Session Overview
Play Number: 7-10
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Normal Difficulty Level
Outcome: 1 Win & 3 Losses
Not the withered and damaged trees! This artwork is excellent, though, and there’s never any question about the status of these cards. I had to take a few more risks to reduce the distance between Vogter and Gamle Erik, yet it was amazing when it all worked out! This is a really nice solo experience for me that might seem a little darker in some senses, yet still offers a cozy, autumnal vibe overall.
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
9
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
9
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
6
+ Pros (Positives)
- The Danish folklore theme is very interesting and unique, and the beautiful artwork brings it all to life in detail.
- Gameplay is rather quick and doesn’t feel like it’s filled with overwhelming choices, although there’s still a challenge.
- Adjusting the difficulty level is easy to do during setup and can be tailored to make the experience enjoyable.
- All of the allies are useful, and figuring out when to use their special abilities or fight minions is quite interesting.
- Vogter and Gamle Erik’s wooden standees are fantastic and add a wonderful bit of table presence to the tree cards.
- It doesn’t take long to understand the rules and turn sequence, and only rarely does a specific rule need to be checked.
– Cons (Negatives)
- A certain level of luck and randomness weaves its way into gameplay, which can be a bit frustrating at times.
- Learning how to pronounce all of the names takes some practice and is excellent to include, yet this can be a struggle.
- The ally abilities are pretty clear, yet the iconography isn’t easy to memorize and the summary page is more helpful.
- Once the allies and actions are understood, there isn’t a ton of variety, although the modules seem to be promising.
Victory Conditions
Defeat All of the Minions
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game at the very easy difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the easy difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the normal difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
Have you had success in Skoventyr? What is your preferred way to play with the difficulty level and modules? Said modules are going to be up on my list to try in the future! This is a very unique sort of game that didn’t land for me right away, but there’s a lot to love. It’s been fun to wrap my head around the puzzle, and I look forward to future plays with a “badger!”
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