Blood & Treachery! Get Ready for Spartacus the Boardgame
July 27, 2012 by beerogre
That's right guys... If you're a fan of the epic TV series Spartacus: Blood & Sand and Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, then check out the brand new Spartacus Boardgame... Spartacus: A Game of Blood & Treachery... coming soon from Gale Force 9!
Here's the official word on the game and some information on what's coming soon for your favourite show...
Gale Force Nine, a Battlefront Group company announces the release of Spartacus: A Game of Blood & Treachery.
Spartacus: A Game of Blood & Treachery is an exciting game of twisted schemes and bloody combats inspired by the hit STARZ Original series. Players assume the role of the Dominus of a great house competing for influence in the era of ancient Rome. Players vie for dominance through careful diplomacy, cunning intrigues and the glory of the Arena. Undermine the machinations of rivals, leverage your wealth for advantage at market and pit your gladiators in bloody contest all with the goal of seeing you house rise to supremacy.
John Kovaleski CEO of GF9: writes “With innovative game mechanics, high production values and the rich and inspiring source material from the STARZ show, Spartacus: A Game of Blood & Treachery is much more than just another licensed product. The deep game play and compelling social interplay will have you and your friends rolling dice again and again. We are huge fans of the show, and have been able to turn our passion into a great game. Hopefully, this is just the beginning of our range of Spartacus product.”
Ferrell McDonald, SVP, Marketing for Starz Entertainment noted, “We are very pleased to be working with Gale Force Nine to bring the vision of this exciting and evocative game to life. The unique game play and attention to detail perfectly capture the look and feel of the Spartacus series. Fans of the show will love it and fans of great games will find this is more than just another licensed game.”
Airing in more than 150 countries, and translated into 15 languages, the Spartacus franchise has been an international smash for the network. In the United States, more than six million viewers have watched each episode, which has set ratings records for STARZ. The upcoming season, "Spartacus: War of the Damned" airs in January 2013, and will be the highly anticipated epic conclusion for the series.
Spartacus: A Game of Blood & Treachery is recommended for 3 to 4 players ages 17 and up due to mature content and graphic language.
Spartacus: A Game of Blood and Treachery releases September 2012
Games are set to last around 2-3 hours and there are a plethora of cards on offer, from the 4 rival house cards of the players, to 104 intrigue cards that allow you to deceive and outmanoeuvre your opponents.
Of course there's still the gladiators themselves... you'll get a miniature each to represent them as the give their (albeit imaginary) lives for your entertainment.
So what do you think guys?
Do you think this is one to watch out for... or perhaps just a good excuse for a toga party?
I hope the man himself isnt a playable character, otherwise the start of every game in my house will go like this
‘I’ll be Spartacus’
‘No I’ll be Spartacus’
‘No, I’ll be Spartacus’
Ad infinitum.
We’d never get a game going.
I’m Spartacus!
No, I’m Spartacus!
No I am Spartacus
We’re gonna crucify Spartacus!
It’s ‘im, *points*
Lloyd is Spartacus!
“Oh, what the… Crucify all of them. It’s not like there’s a shortage of gladiators.”
Yeah, I never got more than halfway through the first season of the series. Do they show the part at the end where he dies in battle and the remaining 6000 members of his army are crucified along the Appian Way between Rome and Capua. Where does that feature in the board game?
Well I like the TV show, and I like board games, so naturally I think this should be pretty awesome.
BoW Ben
This kind of thing can be awesome or awful depending on if the game works or not – there is rarely a middle of the road thing
I like the “Decapitation” score zone on the board.
I’ve sometimes looked at Blood & Sand, but this could appeal to my lazier side more (and give me more time to work on all those other game projects) if I get gladiator jones-ing again.
I have a relative in the family named John Hannah that plays one of the major roles in the TV show. The slave master.
Besides that little bit of info, this game looks like it could be fun.
They could of at least used Andy Whitfield on the cover to support his family and estate. He was the only Spartacus. The new guy just isn’t the same.
Looks interesting but a long game (and 3+ players booooo). I would have liked to see a quasi re-make of of the old AH Gladiators. One on one – mano e mano – in the Arena!!! Still I will keep an eye on this one! Cheers
One thing I will say is that I wish they hadn’t gone with the actual actors for the character art on cards. If anything it should have been done even more grungy and with the ‘drawn’ style they use on the opening and closing sequences for the show.
Would have made it look potentially a little more serious, since it is a gladiator game lol. There’s also the video game coming out soon, so I guess they have realised how interesting the Spartacus show really was lol.
BoW Ben