Heroica: Nathuz (Lego game)

Plays: 3Px3, 2Px1.

Heroica: Nathuz is one of four games in Lego's Heroica series. Games in this series can be merged to create larger maps and scenarios. Heroica: Nathuz is a simple dungeon crawl game for children. Players play the roles of heroes, collecting items, buying weapons, overcoming obstacles and fighting monsters. The eventual goal is to defeat the boss monster or to capture the magic staff. On your turn you roll a die to move, and if you encounter a monster, you roll a die to attack. Every character has a special ability, which can be activated if you roll the shield side of the die.

I played with my children (8 and 6). I found that the rules were not clear, and I had to decide how to interpret them. I think this is a game that parents would play only to entertain their children. The game is very simple and doesn't have many interesting decisions. You don't get to use your character's special ability often, because you can only use it under certain situations (e.g. when fighting), and even then you only have a one sixth chance of activating it. It is also hard to save enough money to buy the fancy weapons. Maybe this aspect only works when you combine sets and create larger maps. The children enjoyed the game well enough. They were enthusiastic about creating their own map and making up their own stories and rules.

Evaluating it as a boardgame, I feel Heroica: Nathuz is designed by an amateur. As a toy though, it does entertain the kids and let their imagination run free. So, think of it as buying a tool set, not a boardgame.

The yellow figure is the barbarian, good at melee combat. The black figure is the thief, good at recovering money from monster corpses. The red figure is the wizard, good at ranged combat.

Bats are the weakest monsters. In the background you can see a rack with lots of fancy weapons. Too bad it's hard to afford one.

A map designed by my daughter. That passage on the lower left is basically a waste. Who would go all the way there to collect a lousy torch. Holding a torch lets you move an extra step.