Tabletop Spotlight: Builders of Blankenburg
This game of resource management turns worker placement on it’s head – You are the Builders of Blankenburg!
Worker placement and resource management games are pretty popular because the mechanics translate to pretty much any genre or setting you want to fit them in. But, as our friends at Dragon’s Lair Comics & Fantasy pointed out, the Builders of Blankenburg take that model and tweak it slightly to create a unique experience. Check it out in our Tabletop Spotlight:
In a typical worker placement game you’d get a pool of workers that you can put around a board of some type and they would do the job of building or collecting resources. But in Builders of Blankenburg, you are the worker. You have to decide what you’re going to do on your turn that will earn your renown. The player with the most renown at the end wins. It order to build structures you’ll need to generate income and in order to generate more income, you’ve got to build structures that the visiting citizens actually want. Sounds easy right? Only problem is you’re not the only builder in town…
The materials and contents are pretty good quality so no complaints with that. I also appreciate the art work as Drake points out in the video – it has an “acrylic-on-canvas” look that gives it some depth. Another thing I liked about the game is the double sided game board – they are different so that adds some extra replay value to it. Couple that with the randomness from the citizen cards and you’ve got a recipe for a repeatable game night!
Overall, Builders of Blankenburg has some good tweaks to the classic worker placement/resource management systems that are in so many other game. It’s not earth-shattering, but it’s certainly a unique experience and that makes it worth checking out if you’re interested in those types of games. The game also has an expansion called Builders of Blankenburg:Cutthroat which adds some extra depth to the game too. Both are available online now so go check them out:
Builders of Blankenburg
“In Builders of Blankenburg, you are one of many people working to build up the town and earn prestige in the eyes of the count. Prestige is earned by building structures throughout the town, but to do so you’ll need enough silver to purchase the proper resources with which to build. Pay attention to the citizens of the growing town. If you build what they’re looking for, you’ll have a steady stream of income. Builders of Blankenburg introduces the novel citizen track, an ever increasing populace who seek different places to live and work, while also serving to determine the length of the game. But beware, new events and visitors each turn can disrupt your best laid plans. Make your imprint on Blankenburg to become its most prestigious builder and earn the key to the town!”
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The strategy to win Builders changes everytime you play it and plays differently with more players – You have to stay on your toes if you want to achieve sweet, sweet victory!
