Back in 2021, fellow BGQ reviewer and dueling game addict Andrew reviewed Ashes Reborn. That itself was a release and retooling of Plaid Hat Games original dueler, Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn (2015). Well here we are in 2024 (technically 2023 when it released) and Plaid Hat Games has thrown another curveball into the Ashes line in the form of Red Rains. This time, instead of another trip down the 2-player dueling game avenue, it brings the gameplay into the solo/cooperative realm as you take on the dreaded Chimera and one of its different aspects.
Gameplay Overview:
I’m not going to rehash the in’s and out’s of playing the standard Ashes Reborn game. If you want the full details, you can check out Andrews’s review of Ashes: Reborn here as the player turns are largely the same. But to give you the short of it, you are controlling a unique Phoenixeborn, a spellcaster of sorts, who can recruit allies, summon conjurations, and cast spells. The goal of the original Ashes Reborn was to reduce your opponent’s life to zero. In Red Rains, the goal is still the same, yet your opponent is the Chimera.
A basic turn has you taking one main action and an optional side action. Main actions involve summoning units, attacking, and playing spells. Side actions give you a bit more flexibility such as using minor abilities or changing the face of a die.
Yes, there are dice in Ashes. Resource generation is based on rolling a handful of unique dice that will power all of your abilities. Each die has 3 different levels, with the highest levels being able to sub in for any of the lower levels.
What’s new here is after you have taken your turn, the Chimera goes. If the Chimaera has any facedown aspects, you start its turn by rolling a rage die and its behavior die. Rage dice have a 50-50 chance to land on the bad side, and once all are showing the Red Rains symbol, the Chimera gets a Red Rains token. When it gets enough of those, it triggers its Ultimate Ability (which as you might imagine, is bad for you).
The behavior die is used with a small chart that will determine what it does (6 options). For the most part, it will be revealing aspects and/or attacking with them. The aspects work just like a ally/conjuration in that it has an attack power, life, and sometimes a special ability.
Much like in the core game, turns will go back and forth between you and the Chimera until you both pass. Then there is a quick cleanup phase and a new round begins.
Game Experience:
While I really enjoyed Ashes Reborn, it eventually found its way out of my collection because I just don’t play dueling games very often. As much as I enjoy them, they are mostly a lifestyle game and I rarely have the time to commit to them. But when I heard about a new solo/coop version of Ashes, I was intrigued… and also a bit skeptical.
Sometimes when publishers shoehorn in a cooperative mode into a competitive game it’s… not great (I’m looking at you Masmorra). They might end up really clunky, uninspired, or extremely repetitive. Thankfully, Red Rains is none of those. From my first attempt at taking on the Chimera, I was hooked.
Game designer Nick Conley managed to keep the feel of playing this dueling game but for solo play, which was no easy feat. Your turns in Ashes feel almost the same as when you are playing competitively, as the Chimera has dice, hit points, and units to target. You can attack it, or its aspects, manipulate its dice and cards, or set yourself up for future turns. But what about the Chimera’s turn?
To be honest, it’s really smooth. If it has any face-down aspects, you roll a rage and a behavior die to see what it does. If it doesn’t have any face-down cards, it just attacks with the leftmost, unexhausted aspect. Each aspect has an icon to note whether it attacks a left or right side unit, or your phoenixborn. And the behavior chart is very easy to read. Most entries are one sentence long, without the need of a flow chart or having to get down in the weeds. The only time the Chimera’s turn will take a bit of effort is when it triggers its Ultimate. This advances its behavior card and usually does a ton of damage to your units.
Overall, playing Red Rains is a fantastic experience and I’ve already sleeved my copy and bought a few other Phonenixborn decks to play. My biggest gripe with the game is the way Plaid Hat Games formatted the rulebooks. They split them in two, one for new Ashes players and one for returning ones. This sounds great… except not all the information you need is in each rulebook. I started by using the new player one and was lost in a few areas. After hopping online for answers, I found out that the info I needed was in the other rulebook. So now when I have a rules question, I need to bounce between the two rulebooks to find the bit I need.
But other than that, I don’t have much to complain about with Red Rains. The first expansion comes with two unique aspects and new cards for existing Phoenixborn decks. I’ve tried out both aspects from The Corpse of Viros and Frostwild Sourge and they all place somewhat differently. Combine that with being able to use any Phoenixborn out of a massive selection and this game has a ton of replay value.
Final Thoughts:
Ashes Reborn: Red Rains has catapulted up in my rankings to be one of my most played solo games. I love it. It even made my list of Top 10 Board Games from 2023. I enjoy the massive replay value it has, how easy it is to get to the table, and that I can enjoy a dueling game even when I don’t have anyone else around. I also appreciate that there are different difficulty levels to suit your play preferences. I also appreciated how player turns are mostly the same as the competitive game, so the soul of Ashes Reborn remains intact.
The dual rulebooks are a bit of an annoyance, but the more I play, the less I need to refer to them, so it’s definitely not a deal breaker. If you are fan of Ashes Reborn, this one is worth picking up unless you are a diehard hater of solo/coop play. But even for people who have never played Ashes Reborn, this one makes a great entry into the system.
Final Score: 4.5 Stars – A fun dueling game gets a really good solo/cooperative system. Sign me up!
Hits:
• Core gameplay remains intact
• Lots of replay value
• Can be played solo or two player
• New cards for existing Phoenixborn
Misses:
• The split-up rulebooks are kind of a mess
