This year, game designers James Browne and Laura Varney decide to create card game with a Greco-Roman setting, the aptly named Triumphus. As Triumphus is fairly original and new it will be produced and distributed by Make Playing Cards in China with art by Rizki Ardia and Yogh18 and a story by Chris Heyes and Matt Oakley, I was curious just original this one is. Let’s find out.

Triumphus is a card game for 2-4 players where players compete for the role of Imperial Merriment Planner, using supply cards to buy reward cards and takes about 15 minutes to play. It plays well at all player counts.

Gameplay Overview:

Much like with other games under house rules, the goal in Triumphus is to have the highest value of reward cards. To accomplish this, players will be collecting reward cards to have the most points when the reward deck is finally exhausted.

Each player starts the game with 5 supply cards. From there, players may perform 3 optional actions during their turn like exchange supplies, collect a reward or sell a reward. Each round, you may pass on your turn. However, once the above actions are completed, you can end your turn. If you have more than 10 supply cards at the end of your turn, excess cards must be put in the discard pile.

Once all the 25 reward cards have been collected, the game ends. Every face-up reward card you've collected is worth the value printed on the coin (4-7 points), while your face-down reward cards are worth 1 point each.

Game Experience:

If Triumphus sounds really simple, it’s because it is. Explaining the game should take only a few minutes and unlike other card games, there is zero setup time. This makes Triumphus an easy choice to pull out with just about any type of player. The downside of this simplicity is that plays are going to feel somewhat similar from game to game. There just isn’t a ton of depth in Triumphus.

That being said, it’s not devoid of gameplay either. Triumphus feels almost like a puzzle. You know exactly what cards are in your deck (there is even a handy rulebook to reference), so it’s only the order in which they are drawn that will dictate your strategy. Of course, there is also the “optional actions” aspect that can throw things off as well. Players must plan carefully because haven’t to discard a card could be devastating.

This action aspect can be as simply or as intense as you want to make it. Once the majority of cards have been played, you can intuitively see exactly which cards your opponent’s have left. In doing so, you can gauge the likely strength of cards they might want to play. If you can time things right, you can sometimes force them to pass on their turn they really wanted to play. The rulebook will show you the exact contents of your deck so you can plan ahead.

Finally, I think Triumphus will work well both as a family game and as a filler game for your gaming group. With no setup time and a play time of only 15 minutes, it’s a great game to pull out while you are waiting for others to arrive. For families, I felt like the age range of 8+ was pretty spot on. However you know your kids better than anyone, so your mileage may vary with that one.

Final Thoughts:

While I enjoy Triumphus, I don’t think it will be replacing any other card games that I play. I much prefer the depth of Lootcrate's Superfight card game over its other brethren. However, one area where Triumphus excels is in its actions. The only components you need to play is just the deck, so you can easily ditch the box and even the rulebook, just tossing the cards in your bag. Which makes this little filler game an excellent choice if you are traveling. While it’s not the deepest of games, as a light, quick playing game, I’ve found that Triumphus hits the right marks for the role it fills.

Final Score: 4 Stars – A quick playing game that, does work as a filler game quite admirably.

Hits:
• Highly portable
• No setup or tear down time
• Scales well from 2-4

Misses:
• Lacks the depth to keep you coming back for more