Gamewright Dragonrealm - A Game of Goblins & Gold & Rat-A-Tat Roll - A Fun Numbers Dice Game

Our family loves Dragonwood. It was one of the first games my daughter learned how to play, so it has a place in our hearts. When I saw that there was a new game by the same folks, I purchased it sight unseen. After the first few plays I can honestly say ... meh. It's extremely similar to Dragonwoods. You have the same card/dice mechanisms (cards in ascending order do one thing, cards of the same number do another, etc.) Instead of capturing creatures, your exploring locations, but you "explore" the exact same way you "capture" in Dragonwood. There are a few new mechanisms. The way failed quests are treated is great and the goblins are a nice addition. I even like how each location is scored. But it just doesn't seem that different. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad game. If I was tied down and forced to give an honest nostalgia free opinion, I would say that Dragonrealm is a better than our beloved Dragonwood. Heck, we're even wondering if we should retire Dragonwood in favor of Dragonrealm, because it is an improvement (though nostalgia will keep us from doing so).My final thoughts are this:- If you're purchasing for a child who is new to games and you want something that's not too intimidating, get Dragonwood. It's easy to learn and fun for the whole family.- If you're purchasing for a slightly older crowd and don't already own Dragonwood, Dragonrealm is a solid game. It has more strategy and feels like an upgrade to Dragonwood.- If you already have Dragonwood ... eh. It's not a bad game, but we really didn't feel like it was different enough to make it a must have purchase.

Comparing this to Dragonwood, this game draws out the “purchase” of location cards by placing a # of explorer meeples on location cards instead of just winning a card immediately by the roll of the dice (exact same roll of the dice based on set collection principles). Your competition for the cards are now cute little goblins instead of just other players. You don’t lose a card on a failed roll, but your meeple goes to the academy “to train,” and then gives you an extra point on a subsequent dice roll. 👍🏻 There are 1st & 2nd place earnings (rewarding efforts of the “loser”), plus dragon points at the end (to add in with your coins). There are dragon locations (instead of cards), and there is a location with a unicorn on it (to the great relief of my 5 yr old who lives for the unicorn card in Dragonwood). There isn’t a ladybug card, but there is a cute chipmunk. Our 4 year old son understood well enough to play with light guidance, our 5 yr old & 7 yr old daughters loved it, played through, no prob. Both initially preferred it to Dragonwood because it has more nuances & mechanics involved. After playing a few more rounds, and 2 player, our 7 year old does miss “racking up the cards” that Dragonwood offers, as this game only offers a handful of location cards to win in 1 game. In 2 player I lost out on a location card twice to Goblins, and just ended up with 1 card at the end. Still a solid game. Can be called a filler. Easy enough for kids to learn and play.

We have played and loved Dragonwood for years, so when I heard there was a "sequel" of sorts, I was probably more excited than my kids. If you know and love Dragonwood, this takes it a bit further, with a lot of the same mechanics as that. But even if you haven't played it, it won't be too hard to learn. I love the bright colored, wooden pieces and the oversized location cards. Adding these elements makes the game more interactive, since you are competing for places on the location cards. Plus, there is the added challenge of goblins trying to take over the locations before you can. I like that everyone gets at least one special ability to use when trying to win. A great game for kids and adults. If your kids are experienced with game playing, they could start playing at age 5-6 with some guidance.

We have three boys, ages 4, 6, and 9 and they all love playing Dragonwood. Even the 4-year-old understands how to play, even though he lacks a bit of strategizing...Dragonrealm expands on the ideas in Dragonwood but adds some complexity and strategy that Dragonwood lacks. In Dragonrealm, you are dealt locations on the landscape instead of individual encounters. You will have to encounter each location multiple times until the location is full in order to capture the points associated with it.To make things more interesting, players might draw a goblin card from the deck which fills one space on the location indicated with a goblin. This can cause the goblins to capture the location or force a player to split the points with the goblins.If you have older kids (8 or so and up), you could jump right into this game. For younger kids or just to get used to the way the game works, Dragonwood might be a better entry point. Both games are great for all ages, however, so if you started with Dragonrealm, you will still enjoy Dragonwood.Multiple dice will need to be rolled in this game so, for smaller kids, I would recommend a dice tower or some other way to contain the dice: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=dice+tower&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

Great, quick playing, 2-4 player game in the Dragonwood world. Love Dragonwood and now I love Dragonrealm. Adds a new level of competitiveness as you place your Meeples on cards you’ve fought monsters on but that other players can also place their meeples on as they fight the monsters. Most meeples on the card wins, 2nd place also gets coins but winner gets coins and the card for endgame points.

This is a super fun game that we learn to play quickly and still enjoy after multiple rounds of the game. My eight-year-old through my teenagers and young adults and I can all play together and have a great time. We have Dragonwood as well, but find this to offer a bit more strategy and complexity without being overly confusing or challenging. And it’s really fun, and a nice twist to Dragonwood providing a little extra fun and strategy.

A nice variation to our much beloved and very frequently played Dragon Wood game. It’s a good fantasy game and exciting to play. The game is very well presented and attractively illustrated - the box, cards and pieces come in deep colours and seem of good quality. The instructions are clear, don't take too much time to read and it is very easy to get into, especially if you are already familiar with Dragon Wood as it works with the same mechanics i.e it is turn-based on cards drawn from a pile.Each game takes about 30 minutes and can be played with up to four players. Our 7-year old is most fanatic and almost ecstatic when he plays Dragon Wood. He likes this version as well, but slightly struggled initially with the added complexity.In the end we continue to be drawn more to Dragon Wood itself that is just slightly quicker, as exciting and brilliant in its simplicity. I would still rate this one with 5 stars.

High quality light strategy + luck board game. Great for taking younger kids who are already familiar with Dragonwood mechanics to the next level, or older ones can just start here. Highly recommended.

Bought this on a whim for my girlfiend and me to play , she was skeptical and thought it was a bit nerdy but we played a couple games and we both love it. Lots of playability and easy to make up new rules as you go along if you want to change up the strategy.

I have the game Dragonwood. This is a great addition to my collection. I've taught this game to the children I work with and they love it. It is easy to learn and so much fun to play.

Lots of fun and a great way to teach kids some math and probability as well as cause and effect. Set in the same setting as dragonwood and expands upon the premise. Well thought out and beautifully illustrated as usual. We have a ton of GameWright games and enjoy them all.