Marco? Polo! Finding the Solo Campaign in Worldbreakers

Visit an alternative 13th century history in Asia where mythium and guilds create a web of special powers in Worldbreakers.
There hasn’t been a great deal of coverage about Worldbreakers: Advent of the Khanate, yet I’m not one to turn away from a solo campaign! My husband was most interested in this one, but I opened it up first to bring to my solo table. Ha! With an intriguing setting and lots of cards, I eagerly set everything up to dive into the chapter-based solo campaign!
Spoiler Alert
I wouldn’t say that there are major surprises in the solo campaign, but I’ve included some information and cards. The chapters have a bit of storytelling to them, yet this isn’t an experience where you earn surprise rewards by making certain choices. Nothing here is truly a spoiler… But still, just a quick warning that this has some top-level details!
Game Overview
Game Name: Worldbreakers: Advent of the Khanate
Publication Year: 2023
Designer: Elli Amir
Artists: Many (8 Credited)
Publisher: Sextant Studios
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
With a pre-constructed deck of followers, locations, and events, the goal is to collect a set amount of power ahead of the solo opponent. This can be tricky, as attacks must be mitigated in order to gain resources from mysterious locations. There are lots of card combinations to find, too!
First Play
March 30, 2024
Complexity
2
Latest Play
April 2, 2024
Expansions
1
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
10
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
9
Game Area
34" x 18"
Low Score
2
Playing as Marco Polo
Although the game includes a set of 4 different characters, the solo campaign is built around playing as Marco Polo… And only Marco Polo. Which does limit the variety a lot.
However, the starting deck contains enough cards to learn about the main strategies, along with the nuances.
I also picked up the recent expansion, Worldbreakers: The Indigo Sisterhood, which includes fancy dice to track guild standing. So much better than sliding cards around!
The rulebook was a little lengthy, yet it explained a lot and I was impressed. Not too many complexities or keywords!
Starting at Chapter 1
A big draw of this game is the setting, which looks at an alternative history across Asia. There are all sorts of diverse characters to appreciate and learn about.
Each chapter of the solo campaign features a little blurb that acts as an ongoing narrative. This is broken up into a pair of 5-chapter parts, for a total of 10 chapters.
I was certainly intrigued by what might happen and how my choices might affect the outcomes.
In practice, this is a straightforward solo campaign with no branching storyline… But it still has some variety.
Battling Khutulun
The solo opponent uses a random deck of double-sided order cards to send out followers and attack. They can be quite brutal, and I definitely struggled at first.
Take a look at these characters, though. So awesome! The entries that end with a feather were taken from real history, which was a nice way to indicate real influences.
I grasped the rules easily enough, barely needing to look at the rulebook, but the strategies eluded me for a bit.
So much power! Since I wasn’t allowed to attack, my power came from developing various locations.
A Clever Victory
A-ha! But then I had a neat idea… This was a turn when I knew the solo opponent was going to attack.
Without blocking the Kalari Adept, the solo opponent would gain 1 power and also damage this location, meaning I wouldn’t be able to get that middle benefit.
Oh… But look closely. I only had a single action left in the round after this, and probably couldn’t survive.
So I let him attack this den, thereby damaging it enough for me to then develop it for 2 power. Victory! It was a neat moment where I benefited from taking damage. Cool!
Considering What a Campaign Game Means to Me
In my collection, there are a lot of unplayed solo campaign games. So many! I often pick these up, expecting to play them when I have a vacation or long span of time to enjoy the full storyline. Over the years, I’ve learned that splitting up a campaign into something I play sparingly takes me right out of the story and experience. Not a good idea!
With this one, the campaign is designed to be pretty quick, although I don’t know if I had a different idea of what this would entail. It mostly comes down to adding cards to a deck and increasing the strength of the solo opponent. I thought there might be some unique rewards or different chapters, but I blame myself for those ideas.
At the end of the day, maybe I’m looking for a very specific sort of campaign game: One that has branching storylines without requiring tons of hours to reach the end. Just seems like I need to keep on playing to narrow down my favorite choices some more, which is fine by me. Ha ha! The journey is a fun one, filled with games. What’s not to like?!
Wounds Upon Wounds
Not being able to attack meant that my followers were always there to block, and that made it clear how I could defend all sorts of attacks. Look at this neat lineup!
The high health values helped them absorb attacks and last a couple of rounds, while the block ability was even more beneficial to me. Take that, Khutulun!
However, I found that each chapter started to feel a little repetitive. My deck was fun for a few plays… Not 10+ plays.
Maybe it was a little much giving myself 2-3 tries per chapter, though. I probably should have moved forward.
Expanding the Deck
I enjoyed the activity that happened at the end of most chapters… Drafting! From a shuffled deck of specific cards, I had a chance to choose from a selection.
This is where the variety will likely come into play. The cards I didn’t draft were removed entirely, not simply shuffled back into the deck. Hard decisions, indeed!
It was neat to mix in some void guild cards and other followers, locations, and events. Very neat synergies!
Alas, I felt like I learned everything about my deck, and believe this is a game better enjoyed with my husband.
Session Overview
Play Number: 1-10
Expansion: Worldbreakers: The Indigo Sisterhood
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Chapters 1-4, Warrior Difficulty Level
Outcome: 3 Wins & 7 Losses
It wasn’t too easy to win! I enjoyed the setting and seeing new cards, which introduced new abilities and additional flavor text. The solo campaign could be a very fun experience, but I peeked through the rest of it and didn’t see anything that would bring me back to complete every chapter. Still, I enjoyed the overall solo experience!
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
6
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
7
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
+ Pros (Positives)
- Each piece of artwork is excellent and features a diverse cast of characters who bring the vivid setting to life.
- The rules are easy to understand with a clear rulebook and reference cards that include almost everything.
- Flipping turn order involves literally flipping a board back and forth, which is actually quite useful for tracking.
- Lots of interesting card combinations exist and aren’t apparent with a single play, particularly after drafting.
- Sometimes, not defending and damaging a location can be an indirect but clever way to reach victory.
- Flavor text includes a mixture of real history and game-specific details, which helps make each card seem vital.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The solo campaign has some variety with deck drafting and card order, but doesn’t offer a branching storyline.
- After a small number of plays, there isn’t a lot to discover with the same deck, yet solo is limited to two decks.
- All of the artwork is beautiful, while the iconography and tokens feel a little jarring when placed nearby.
- Some of the solo opponent rules aren’t as clear in regards to which follower abilities are used or ignored entirely.
Victory Conditions
Complete the Chapter Power Requirement
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Complete chapter 1.
Complete chapter 2.
Complete chapter 3.
Complete chapter 4.
Continue the Conversation
Have you had a chance to play the solo campaign in Worldbreakers: Advent of the Khanate? What are some of your favorite cards in the deck? I’m still very excited about this setting, even if it might not be something I play solo again. There were many excellent moments during my plays, and I love how every card offers up something thematic!
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