Finding the Story in an Immersive Play of Unicornus Knights
Weave a careful path through enemy lands and ensure the princess reaches the capital safely with Unicornus Knights.
My first couple of plays with the tutorial mode were an excellent introduction to all of the nuances present in Unicornus Knights. Such an interesting and different solo game! However, I was excited to move into the full game to see the majority of the empire characters and find out how difficult it would be to keep the princess alive across this journey!
Game Overview
Game Name: Unicornus Knights
Publication Year: 2016
Designers: Seiji Kanai and Kuro
Artists: Many (15 Credited)
Publisher: Alderac Entertainment Group
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game (Cooperative)
Princess Cornelia must return to the capital on the other side of the map, yet she always rushes ahead into any enemies in her path. The trick is to clear the way for her, and guide her a little more with a team of unique kingdom characters. Yet time is short, and the empire lurks…
First Play
July 3, 2023
Complexity
4
Latest Play
July 6, 2023
Expansions
0
Setup Time
15 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
3
Play Time
2 Hours
High Score
N/A
Game Area
48" x 30"
Low Score
N/A
Planning the Route
I made a few adjustments to make sure I could use this play area… Because it is quite large, with lots of important information to find! UberStax helped out immensely.
The troop tokens didn’t stand out enough on the map tiles, so I used red cubes for individual units and black gems to indicate a group of 3 units. Much easier to see!
Although setup took some time, it was nice to see the random map layout and the different empire characters.
My own team turned out to feature Annelie and Godfried from my tutorial… Apparently, I just really like them!
Stacking the Odds
UberStax to the rescue! I was able to stack the different empire characters to save some table space and give me an easy way to see all of their information at a glance.
I split them up according to behavior, too: Aggressive, normal, and defensive were all grouped separately.
In this way, movement was a lot easier when it was mainly the aggressive characters who took steps forward.
During setup, I sat there for a little bit just contemplating the best route to the capital. Understanding each enemy took a little time, but was worth the investment!
Madam Josephine
The only new character I drew was Madam Josephine. I loved her character motivation: She was a wealthy merchant who was all about following market trends.
With the empire disrupting her trade, supporting the princess was the best business decision. And her combat statistics reflected someone best left for defense.
It seemed like it might be odd to play with 2 clear support characters, but the supply chain logistics would be sound!
There was already a small story taking shape from the setup process, which was really neat to experience.
The Deadly Corridor
Map areas far from the capital were safe and provided options to get a firm hold on a plan. But closer to the capital, it was simply a massive block of enemies!
Troops took hold nearly everywhere, while empire characters provided their own set of challenges.
Chancellor Kostov, seen near the bottom left with a decidedly clown-like appearance, looked like someone to skip over… Except he prevented victory with his presence.
Princess Amina was located just outside the capital, providing another direct obstacle to the emperor.
My Enjoyment of Solo Game Narratives
Although I certainly have a fun time with strategic solo games that are about maximizing victory points or otherwise doing well without a story, narratives are always great! I was drawn to this game mainly for that idea of a unique story. The princess doesn’t need protecting or saving, yet she must survive without running over too many enemies!
What got me intrigued was the combination of character lore and positions on the map. Tiles are randomized during setup, and not all of them are used. Plenty of options! I lucked out with the Black Knight being so close to the emperor, although as I’ll show, this didn’t give me an easy way to win. Instead, it was about the only way I could actually win.
It’s also interesting to piece together the overall storyline. Although the emperor is depicted as an evil foe who marched into Astoria to claim it as his own, it all seems unusual for him. Princess Amina, his daughter, is loyal to him while being very wary and worried. Meanwhile, Gregorio seems to be the possible source of these evil tidings… Maybe.
Both of these fairly central empire characters ended up on the map right next to the capital. This added more to the story, although it can always change a little bit from play to play. I’ll also say that even though this is a static sort of scenario with the same objective, the changes in characters and maps promise a lot of narrative potential. Awesome!
Decoying for Days
There was no time to stop for photos! I quickly found myself near the end after a couple of hours had gone by, and this play was filled with an ongoing narrative.
Madam Josephine’s home port was threatened by a nearby necromancer and vampire… That’s no way to do business!
So she set out to distract them to the north as the princess found safe passage to the south. Dahaka also came out to chase after the brave merchant, yet she remained safe.
Her ability to send resources when allies were near helped immensely, and she held her own in defensive battles!
Godfried at the Front
With Annelie and Madam Josephine focused on resources, Godfried was the only one designed to fight battles.
His healing ability came in handy many times, yet he took a more offensive role than I think he was designed for. Many times, he had to race ahead to clear the area!
The greatest challenge was in battling the Black Knight, who was conveniently located next to the capital. He could take out the emperor on his own… But only as an ally.
That was a fierce battle, yet Godfried triumphed and quickly moved towards the capital and enemy troops.
In the Shadows
Princess Cornelia was in a dangerous spot. She was set to race ahead 3 spaces during the penultimate round, so Godfried and Annelie desperately cleared a path for her.
Although I had the ability to slow her down and even move her a few spaces with a support card, that wasn’t the plan!
Demian and Marianne were aggressively waiting in the shadows, and closing quickly. Their amassed troops made them deadly for the princess, so there was no stopping.
I might have tried to defeat them at some point, yet Godfried was already tied up with the Black Knight.
Victory in the Capital
The princess had to fight her way through a few remaining troops, weakening her further, yet during her sudden surge in speed, she reached the capital successfully!
I took a moment to admire this interesting storyline. Each character had an important role, and even Annelie moved into a more offensive position during the final round.
The clear path spoke of what had happened, and nearly every empire character came into play somehow.
Although this was a victory, it came at the last moment with Princess Cornelia’s life hanging by a thread.
Session Overview
Play Number: 3
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game (Cooperative)
Play Details: Standard Mode with Warrior & 3 Characters
Outcome: Win
With her very last bit of health, the princess held on with a small retinue of loyal troops! I actually planned for her to strategically take out a few smaller enemies on her path, and she was a fantastic warrior. Although this lasted a couple of hours, time didn’t drag on, and I was totally immersed in the storyline. I look forward to seeing how things change with different characters and map setups!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
9
Quality
Components & Rules
8
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
7
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
8
+ Pros (Positives)
- Character lore in the rulebook provides a very interesting and connected story that can be expanded during play.
- Princess Cornelia is a strong leader capable of winning battles on her own, but planning her route is a challenge.
- There is plenty of variety in the different characters and map tile arrangements, all of which are randomized.
- Although this isn’t a short game, rounds move quickly and are only slowed down by planning out actions.
- Each kingdom character has their own strengths and purposes, allowing support characters to shine in the story.
- Not too many actions are available, yet the interactions and character abilities make for some important choices.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The setup process takes some time and requires a lot of steps to find all of the characters and place the troops.
- Many character abilities must be kept in mind each round, and there isn’t a simple way to remember everything.
- Some rules are confusing with the way they’re worded and the round summary is in the middle of the rulebook.
- Different art styles make the characters less cohesive, and there are a handful of unnecessarily revealing outfits.
Victory Conditions
Complete the Objective
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game in the standard mode.
Win at least 1 game in the tutorial mode.
Win at least 1 game with the warrior princess.
Continue the Conversation
What do you enjoy about Unicornus Knights? Has it ever told interesting and unexpected stories? I loved how each kingdom character shared the spotlight during this play! It was a lot to keep track of many elements at times, yet that was an awesome way to see characters connect. So glad I found a copy and have the chance to tell these fun stories!
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