One Card Dungeon
12 levels. Dungeon Crawl. Battles on each level. Obtain the Sceptre of M’Guf-yn.
Sounds epic? Then wait for the best part.
ONE CARD TO RULE THEM ALL!
No board, no sets of cards to shuffle or flip- barely anything! All you need is ONE card!
One Card Dungeon is a dice-placement game that highly captivated me over the past few weeks. It’s the most compact game I’ve played to date, with only a card and 12 dice to immerse into battles with monsters as you go deeper into the dungeon. The game is designed by Barny Skinner, and published by the likes of Little Rocket Games, Giga Mech Games, etc.
So, what was the game experience like? Was it easy, or hard? How successful is the game in containing 12 levels on 2 sides of a card? And interestingly, is it ideal in solo mode as it’s claimed to be?
Let’s find out!
All you need to play One Card Dungeon
Fellow noobs at craftsmanship, assemble! You don’t need to sweat on assembling this game since you only need to print ONE card. The card has prints on both sides, so I did some of my Adobe Illustrator magic and placed the layout for both sides of the card on one A4 sheet before printing. So I only needed to print a sheet, instead of two. See what I did here? I saved a paper. Witness!
After printing, you have a few options in hand:
#01- Use a card sleeve to contain both sides of the card. I recommend using cardstock paper in that case, it will make the card much more sturdy then.
#02- Cut the cards and paste them together with glue. It’s for those who can’t stand the glare of laminated sheets. And for the aesthetic souls too. I fall into this category. Because I don’t eat while I play. Take notes!
#03- Be ambitious!. Print the sheet, laminate it, cut the cards, and paste both sides in 3mm PVC/plastic wood. Don’t scoff, it will actually make the game much more majestic. All you have in this game is a card, might as well make it epic (and more durable) while you’re at it!
Pick one that best suits you.
Just a heads up, the game is catchy. So make sure to make the card durable, in any way you see fit!
With the card taken care of, you need 12 D6 dice. It won’t be a problem if you are a game enthusiast, but if you’re new to it, make sure to purchase plenty. It will cover a wide range of PnP games for you.
In case you’re wondering, here’s what the 12 D6 dice represent:
1= You, the adventurer!
3= Energy dice| You roll them on each round and sum them up with your abilities.
4= To track your abilities: movement, attack, defense, and range.
4= To represent monsters (each level has a minimum of 1 and a maximum of 4 monsters)
Card in hand. 12 D6 Dice by your side. What’s next?
A handy playthrough video goes a long way. Though the manual of the game is pretty elaborate and covers the game pretty well, you can check out the gameplay video of Sword and Board Games. I attached the video at the end of the article.
My takes on One Card Dungeon
Easy to learn
Save your head-scratches, for the game is pretty easy to learn. The 12 levels that the game goes through have common game mechanics. On each level, as an Adventurer, you get to:
– move around the dungeon as you brace yourself to attack the monster/s.
– be chased by monster/s if you get a bad dice roll!
– attack monster/s, and protect yourself from it/them.
– protect your health and try not to die!
– pray to the God of Dice that you get no bad dice rolls.
What happens in between the levels is pivotal. You get the opportunity to either fully heal (to 6 points, as denoted by your Adventurer dice) OR increase one of your skills (movement/attack/defense/range).
Do not rush this part of the game. How and when you regenerate your health and increase your skills will play a big part as you go deeper into the game.
(Not so) Easy to win
Just because a game is easy to learn, doesn’t mean it’s an easy game! After having a cracking start the first few times I tried the game, I got decimated (in level 4/5/6) due to a lack of strategy. You need to:
+ Assess every monster on each level, and plan accordingly. For example: the Troll in Level 3 can only attack orthogonally, so position yourself strategically to stay out of its reach. Unless you want to get smacked!
+ Fully regenerate your health at the right moment. Don’t do it every round, but don’t wait for so long that you end up dead! A comparison of the upcoming monster’s attack level vs your defense level can help you assess when to, and not to, regenerate your health.
+ Know which skills to improve first. Increasing any of the skills will be to your advantage, but like I said earlier- assess the upcoming monster to determine which skills will come in more handy, if upgraded.
Compact for the right cause? YES!
The game is beautifully compact. To think that I’m writing about the in-depth strategies of a game that is only contained in ONE card is too hard to believe! The way the monsters upgrade on each level, flipping and rotating the cards to go through the dungeon, or the stunning art (kudos to the Artist, Marco Salogni)- it all comes together to make this game a masterpiece. As a fellow game designer, I applaud the creator for masterfully crafting a realm on just two sides of a card.
Not to forget how easy it will be to shelf, or carry the game around!
Solo? Or a 1v1 game?
My team and I are big (read, huge) fans of customization. The only bit we opt to customize at One Card Dungeon is the game experience, by playing in a 1v1 format. In other words, Adventurer vs. Monsters. And we loved it!
Why?
+ It opens up the aspect of being a protagonist OR antagonist in the game.
+ It eliminates any form of player bias on the monsters. I believe the monsters can truly be ruthless if a player is making their move, not the adventurer!
+ It becomes a feisty contest. The 1v1 format might just make One Card Dungeon eligible for my upcoming game night!
Watch out!
Are you a clumsy gamer? Do game pieces happen to fall off your hands while playing? Then this segment is for you!
The game includes 12 dice, where you’ll flip and place 9 of them while continuously rolling 3 throughout the entire gameplay. Don’t rush, okay? One clumsy move and the dice will be all over the place. And you are doomed if it happens on higher levels, especially when things are (finally) going your way. It happened to me while playing in a 1v1 format with a rather clumsy friend. I know how it feels.
Where to get the game from?
Are you ready to witness the power of One card? Then head over to pnpfinder to download the game for free!
The game is also available for purchase on Amazon, so head over to purchase a copy while the stock lasts- which, last time I checked, is pretty low!
Get busy then- you have monsters to kill and the Sceptre of MGuf-yen to obtain!
Could it be the Sceptre that finally ends your streak of bad dice rolls?
Handy Recommendations
One Deck Dungeon on Amazon
A Handy Printer
Card Sleeves
D6 Dice
Cardstock Paper
Game Overview
Publisher: Little Rocket Games
Designer: Barny Skinner
Artist: Marco Salogni
Number of players: 1 (2 if you want to try 1v1. You won’t regret it!)
Difficulty level: Medium
Rounds of gameplay needed to learn: 1 to 2 rounds
Game duration: 20-50 minutes
Available on: pnpfinder and Amazon
Theme: Dice-Placement | Dungeon Crawl
Number of pages and color: 1 or 2 (color print)
Assembling difficulty level: Easy
Lamination: Not recommended, unless you build it on 3mm PVC board. Opt for card sleeves!
Additional elements required: 12 D6 dice.
Time to learn: Within 20 minutes
Travel-friendly: 9/10
Shelving friendly: 10/10
Rating from PnP Time: 9/10
Tasliman is a board game developer based in Bangladesh, with the dream of exploring the world of games and introducing it to anyone new to it. He is the founder of Kraftz, a brand that develops board games commercially, as well as with reputed entities like BRAC and The Gates Foundation.
