Masters of the Night (2021) Board Game

Masters of the Night is a horror-themed board game released in 2021 by Ares Games. Designed by Nikolay Aslamov, this game allows 1 to 5 players to take on the roles of vampires, working together to fight against evil forces that threaten to take over the city. With a runtime of 60 to 120 minutes, this game is recommended for players aged 13 and up.

Game Components of Masters of the Night

Player Minis: Each vampire has a unique, high-quality plastic miniature.

Modular Board: The city is made up of nine modular sections that are randomly placed during setup.

Event Cards: These cards determine agent spawn locations and have secondary effects that ramp up in difficulty.

Relic Cards: Represented with a design resembling newspaper clippings.

Dice: Used to generate a dice pool, primarily for combat.

Minion Tokens: Two-sided cardboard tokens with short life spans.

Box Insert: Designed for easy setup and takedown.

How To Setup Masters of the Night

To set up the game, players first assemble the modular board by randomly placing the nine city sections. Each player selects a vampire character, each with a unique power, and places their miniature on the starting location. The event deck is shuffled, and the top card is drawn to determine the initial agent spawn locations. Players also receive their starting resources and relics.

Gameplay Mechanics and Game Objective

Cooperative Play: Players work together to survive and establish their vampire family’s rule.

Modular Board: City sections have day and night abilities that offer different actions.

Event Cards: Drawn at the start of each turn to determine agent spawn locations and secondary effects.

Combat Mechanics: Deterministic combat using dice pools; a 5 or 6 kills an agent, while a 1 or 2 leaves the agent intact and costs the vampire blood points.

Veil Mechanic: The Veil tracks public exposure; if it drops to zero, the game is lost.

Leveling Up: Vampires can unlock additional powers by accumulating a “body count.”

Game Objective: Players must perform certain mystical rituals before the event deck is used up while keeping their vampiric nature a secret.

Player Experience

Playing **Masters of the Night** is a challenging yet engaging experience. The game offers a strong sense of setting with its black and white art style, reminiscent of the Sin City movies. Each game is unique due to the random placement of city sections and the use of only a fraction of the event cards. Players have meaningful choices to make with an array of potential actions, mystic powers, and relics. The rotating first player role helps mitigate the alpha player problem common in cooperative games.

Pros

Tight, Organized Rules: Clearly refined by extensive playtesting.

Smooth Scaling: Difficulty adjusts smoothly from 1 to 5 players.

Meaningful Choices: Plenty of actions, mystic powers, and relics to choose from.

High Replay Value: Components and random setup ensure varied gameplay.

Quality Components: Excellent miniatures and board design.

Cons

High Difficulty: The game can be very challenging, which may deter some players.

Complex Setup: While the box insert is well-designed, the initial setup can be intricate.

Personal Thoughts on Masters of the Night

**Masters of the Night** is ideal for fans of cooperative games, especially those who enjoy a thematic and challenging experience. The game’s unique blend of vampire lore, modular board, and deterministic combat mechanics makes it a standout in its category. It is particularly suited for players who appreciate strategic depth and are willing to invest time in mastering the game’s mechanics. For new players, it may be overwhelming at first, but the payoff in terms of gameplay and immersion is well worth the effort.

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