Verdant (2022) Board Game – Board Game Guys

Verdant is a board game released in 2022 by Flatout Games. Designed by Molly Johnson, Robert Melvin, Aaron Mesburne, Kevin Russ, and Shawn Stankewich, the game has garnered attention for its environmental theme and unique gameplay mechanics. With stunning artwork by Beth Sobel, Verdant has quickly become a favorite among players who enjoy card games that challenge their strategic thinking.

Game Components of Verdant

Plant cards: Each with unique art and specific sunlight needs.

Room cards: Featuring different lighting conditions and colors.

Verdancy tokens: Wooden tokens representing plant growth.

Item tokens: Including gardening tools like water cans and fertilizer, as well as furniture items.

Green Thumb tokens: Special skills to mitigate drafting limitations or add verdancy.

Pot tokens: Scoring tokens for completed plants.

Goal cards: Optional cards for additional strategy and variety.

How To Setup Verdant

To set up Verdant, players start by shuffling the decks of room cards and plant cards. A market is created by drawing four tokens from a bag and placing them in a row, with one room card face up next to each token and one plant card on the other side. Each player begins with a random room and plant card, laid out next to each other. The game also includes a bag of item tokens and a supply of pot tokens.

Gameplay Mechanics and Game Objective

Drafting: Players select an adjacent pair of a card and token from the market.

Tableau-building: Players build a 5×3 grid of alternating room and plant cards.

Plant Verdancy: Plants gain verdancy from adjacent rooms with matching lighting conditions or through item tokens.

Potting Plants: Completed plants are potted using the highest available pot token.

Scoring: Points are scored for completed plants, pots, room bonuses, unique items, and achieving specific goals.

Player Experience

Verdant offers a engaging and relaxing experience, particularly for those who enjoy puzzle games. The game starts with wide open choices but becomes increasingly tight as the tableau fills up, requiring players to plan ahead carefully. The drafting mechanism and the need to balance various scoring conditions create a challenging yet satisfying puzzle. The game is easy to learn, with a well-organized rulebook, making it accessible even to younger players.

Pros

High Replayability: Multiple scoring conditions and optional goal cards ensure a lot of variety.

Easy to Learn: Simple actions and intuitive theme make it easy to teach.

Colorblind Friendly: Unique colors and patterns on cards for easy differentiation.

Relaxing Experience: Ideal for players who enjoy quiet, puzzle-focused games.

Family Variant: Available for simplifying the game for younger players.

Cons

Narrow Choices Late Game: The game becomes more constrained as the tableau fills up.

Limited Player Interaction: The game is largely a multiplayer solitaire experience.

Personal Thoughts on Verdant

Verdant is perfect for players who enjoy quiet, puzzled-focused games where they can work on their own project. It is ideal for those who appreciate a good balance of planning and strategy, and it works well at all player counts, including solo play. The game’s theme and mechanics make it an excellent choice for families and casual gamers looking for a relaxing yet challenging experience.

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