Shuffle Dungeons preview – Shuffle for initiative

Back at Origins Game Fair, I was able to get my eyes on Shuffle Dungeons when the boys from Zero Strategy Games stopped by the GamingTrend booth. After a quick demo, featured in the video above, I was intrigued by the game and wanted to get it to the table for myself. After a few playthroughs, I can say that what Zero Strategy Games has on their hands is a winner.

Shuffle Dungeons is a game for one to four players that takes about 60 minutes to play. In classic dungeon crawl fashion, heroes explore a dungeon encountering monsters, traps, magical boosts, and loot to upgrade their characters before facing off against the dungeon boss. Players will win or lose through their collaboration and whether they can successfully take out the master of the dungeon.

Heroes

Each player starts the game by choosing a hero; two if playing solo. A basic dungeon is constructed based on player count with a random dungeon boss chosen and scaled to the number of players. The game comes with 8 base heroes, each with different speed, health, and attacking power aspects. Each hero also comes with a special ability that can be used once per turn in the dungeon.

Dungeon Cards

As players take their turns, they will draw and play cards from a randomized deck of dungeon cards. Each card has two sides, one featuring a room or corridor in the dungeon and the other side an enemy or power-up for the hero. Each hero can hold up to three pieces of equipment in the form of a weapon, armor, and a spell card. 

• Weapons are found on the back of traps and add attack power when heroes face enemies in the dungeon.
• Wards are rooms that spread power over a featured grid found on the card. Any rooms featured on the map. These wards can be special power ups to attacks, grant special movement abilities,
• Armor, found on the back of wards, gives more health to the hero. When damage is taken, it can be assigned to the armor. If the armor reaches its limit of damage, it is discarded.
• Shrines grant the players once per turn bonuses when they enter them.
• Spells, opposite of shrines, give players another special ability that can be used once per turn.

Spells, armor, and weapons all have a special upgraded condition on their card that powers them up.

Monsters and Bosses

The last type of card found in the deck are monsters. Monsters protect a horde of treasure, and while posing a threat to the heroes, are necessary to get enough upgrades to face the final boss. Monsters have a grid printed on their cards similar to the wards, except that when a player ends their turn in one of the indicated spaces, a battle begins. Each monster will roll one or two dice and add their attack value to the total. The player will then roll dice and add bonuses to their base attack values based on any attached equipment or snacks played. If the player wins and deals enough damage, they will get the horde of cards the monster is stashing. If the player loses, then they will take damage and any other effects listed on the monster card.

Players can aid each other if they meet in the dungeon by helping in battles and trading cards. Players will continue taking turns and performing actions to add dungeon tiles and explore the dungeon and gather equipment and consumables until they are ready to reveal and take on the final boss. If the final boss can be dealt enough damage, the game is won.

Rule Variations

As players learn the game, they can add rule variations to adjust the difficulty of the game. In the Crumbling Dungeon variant, monsters get forced to the top of the deck. Each round cards are burned from the dungeon stack based on the number of monsters in the dungeon. Monsters will remain on top of the deck, forcing them to the top. The Out of Time variant gives players a clock, ending the game when the dungeon pile has been worked through. The Win or Die variant gives monsters the edge in dice rolls. The Next Level challenges players to face bosses meant for more players.

Shuffle Dungeons gives players a lot of variety in a small box. With the amount of heroes, dungeon cards, player counts, and game variants in the rule book provided to the players a countless number of combinations can be brought to the table. The multiuse cards give players an interesting choice on whether to keep cards for their equipment or play abilities, or use their room sides to expand the dungeon. Players only get a hand size of three, so choosing what cards to keep and what to burn to make the best tableau for the final boss adds another crunchy decision space. Another great facet of the game is the simple ruleset. It allows new players to pick up the game and experienced players to get their dungeon crawl fix in under an hour. While not fully complete, the preview copy of the game had some enticing artwork and an easy to follow rulebook. The cards are easy to read and the monsters and equipment have some fun artwork.

While still in development, I am excited to see the final product after the crowdfunding campaign ends. I think that Shuffle Dungeons will be a great entry into the medium/lightweight space. The cooperative nature allows players to work together towards a goal and will be one I’m excited to introduce to my local school’s gaming club.

If you are interested in picking up Shuffle Dungeons, the Kickstarter campaign runs through Friday, September 6th, 2024 and can be found here. Check out the Zero Strategy Games website here for information about the game post campaign and other projects from the company.

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