Cyclades Legendary Edition hauls in half a million in crowdfunding for revamped Bruno Cathala board game
I gave all my lunch money to Zeus.
The “director’s cut” of Cyclades has hit crowdfunding platform Kickstarter and already managed to earn nearly $600,000 for a Legendary Edition of the beloved board game.
As previously reported on Dicebreaker, the sequel to Cyclades ended up being a full reimagining of the original design by Bruno Cathala & Ludovic Maublanc that leaves very little untouched. Both Cathala and Maublanc returned to remaster their territory control board game set amongst the Greek Isles, which will be published by Open Sesame Games.
Cyclades: Legendary Edition will fold all of the expansions into the core game while also taking a fine-toothed comb through the rulebook for some tightening and modernising. Fans of the first Cyclades need not worry - the main gameplay loop of constructing win-condition building through conquest, politics or philosophy, while also bidding for the gods’ favour in between rounds remains largely untouched.
This “classic mode” allows three to five players to vie for their own portion of the Mediterranean sea, claiming and defending territory from would-be rivals. A new and separate teamplay mode is tuned for four to six players, splitting them into teams of two and tossing some light cooperative mechanics into the mix - defending key seaways and building sites becomes a lot easier with a friend.
Those more interested in facing off against a single opponent will be happy to hear that Cyclades’ head-to-head mode has been “enhanced and improved” in the legendary edition, fleshing out the board game’s strategic offerings for couples and those nights when only a single member of the tabletop crew can make game night.
One of the most prominent changes to Cyclades in the upcoming legendary edition are the previously announced modular game board tiles. We now have a clear example of how these work, and they look like more jagged chunks of Spirit Island’s landscape pieces. The group will assemble the pieces of Cyclades’ map during set up with no prescribed order, meaning the physical layout of the game can vary drastically between sessions.
Some other miscellaneous changes and additions include a new god added to the pantheon of boons that players will bid on in between movement and combat phases, mercenary units earned by pledging fealty to Hera and a slew of new heroes and creatures pulled from Greek myth. Speaking of, the campaign page claims that changes to the bidding phase of the game has been rejigged and is now reportedly “shorter and more dynamic”, which helps with the overall flow of the game.
Beyond the mechanical engine, artist Miguel Coimbra has returned and applied a comprehensive facelift to all of the board game’s implements, as well as artwork inside the box and on its cover. Monstrous miniatures that represent classical foes such as one-eyed giants, hydras and Medusa match the fresh illustration style you can see on the cards and modular board piece.
The Kickstarter campaign for Cyclades: Legendary Edition will remain open through August 8th and is funding the creation of a physical box going for €59 (about $65/£50). Fulfilment is expected to begin in December 2024.