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Universus

Exploring Universus’ Reign of Kaiju Cards

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Disclaimer

I was sent a couple of packs of Universus’ latest set, Reign of Kaiju to review for my blog. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinion. This will be my honest review. I’ll be using my TCG player affiliate link where possible. Always support your LGS, but the link is there if your LGS doesn’t carry the game.

Table of contents

Introduction

Universus just turned 20 this week (as of writing this post), and that is an incredible feat for a game I’ve never seen anyone play. The game has clearly survived because it is a fun and interesting game. If you’ve never tried it, go pick up a couple of challenger decks. The King of Fighter Team Hero and Team Rival are the newest decks. While I am not a huge fan of these decks, the decks are a fun place to start. 11ake sure you check out the full review.

Now my issue with Universus is that the art doesn’t always hit every set. There are sets that I don’t care for, like attach on titan or Tekken, but then there are sets like Heroes of Exandria that get me real excited. They lost me with King of Fighters, but Reign of the Kaiju brought me back in, I just wish I had more packs to open.

Characters

My favorite part about Universes TCG as a collector is how cool the common rarity characters look. Sure the chase chromes and alt cards are on their one level of beautiful, but I respect the amount of effort the artists put into creating cool looking characters that anyone can have access to. The character art for Reign of Kaiju is simply beautiful. I love the mono color scheme and the old movie poster vibe. Each piece has its own unique flare, and while I can’t tell you how they do against the meta, I can tell you I want them for my collection. Here are a few of my favorite:

Collecting

One of my issues with Universus is how they handle the rest of the set after the unique cards. I understand there are constraints put in place by the licensing agreement, but that doesn’t change the fact that there are some sets in this game that are just ugly. There are sets, like all of Attack on Titan or Teken, that strait up lost my attention because the base rarity cards are boring. Reign of Kaiju has some very cool cards with some fantastic art. I love the comic book style. Here are a few of my favorites:

Ultra Rares

The ultra rares are just epic comic book stills that are going to look so good in a binder. Here are a few of my favorites:

Secret Rares

This game has some of the most beautiful secret rares of any game. If you like one of the ips this game carries, it probably has a card you are going to want to collect. The secret rares for Reign of Kaiju are some the most beautiful pieces I’ve seen, and I am very upset I didn’t pull any in my packs. Even if you aren’t a fan of Kaijus, you are going to appropriate how beautiful these pieces are. The use of color in this set is fantastic, and the way they are able to create such a massive composition in a compact space is commendable. In no particular order:

Impressions

Reign of Kaiju is a very fun set to open. This game is such a coin flip when it comes to openings. I like to go into openings as blind as possible because I don’t want my opinion to be swayed. I was very happy to get packs of this set because I missed out on the older Kaiju sets that have some fantastic art. Coming from King of Fighters, this set was such a joy to open. The devs did a fantastic job at crafting a kaiju theme that feels massive. I love the colors and comic book style of the cards. I enjoy flipping through the cards and looking at all the details.

I don’t know how they scale against other sets, but as a casual collector, I am in love. I am not even mad I didn’t get any of the chases because of how cool the cards look. If you are looking for a place to start, or just love Godzilla and friends for a personal collection, go get your a box or two and enjoy. If your LGS doesn’t carry Universus, you can pick up Reign of Kaiju on TCG player through my affiliate link.

Board Games and TCGs

Shadow Puppets: A Dark Twist on Doomlings Gameplay

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Disclaimer

The folks behind Doomlings sent me the Shadow Puppets Bolster Expansion for free to review for my blog. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinion. This will be my honest review. Make sure you check out my review for the base game. I’ll also be using my Amazon Affiliate link where possible. It really helps me if you use it before you buy anything.

Table of Contents

Box Opening

What’s in the Box?

Shadow Puppets Bolster expansion is a 40 card expansion that introduces four new species of Doomlings: Deeplings, Glitterings, Moonlings, and Fuzelings. The breakdown:

  • Deeplings (12 Cards)
    • 9 x Traits
    • 2 x Dominant Traits
  • Glitterings (12 Cards)
    • 9 x Traits
    • 2 x Dominant Traits
  • Moonlings (12 Cards)
    • 9 x Traits
    • 2 x Dominant Traits
  • Fuzelings (4 Cards)
    • 4 x Traits
  • Ages x 2
  • Catastrophe x 1
  • Bonus Foil Card x 1

What is Shadow Puppets?

Shadow Puppets is an expansion for the Doomlings deck builder game. You will need the base game to play with these cards. Make sure you check out my full review of the base game.

What is Doomlings

Doomlings is a quirky little card game about the end of the world. Players take turns building a strong gene pool from cards they pull from a collective deck. Each card has a value and some have abilities that interact with other cards or players. For example, a card can allow a player to draw more cards each round, giving them a slight advantage. Each round has its unique set of rules based on the age or catastrophe card in play. For example, a card can force players to only play a certain color card. The game ends when four catastrophe cards are played and the winner is the player with the most points.

How to play

Games with Denver James has a fantastic tutorial that you should watch before you get started. Make sure you give him a like and a follow.

What is Shadow Puppets

Shadow Puppets is a darker themed expansion that essentially allows players to play trap cards. It allows players to disrupt a players turn, swap cards, and even give away cards. It also introduces the subvert mechanic which allows players to sacrifice Doomlings for points. What makes Shadow Puppets unique is is dark edgy flavor of both the abilities and artwork. The set does have a few demonic looking Doomlings. This is your trigger warning.

Review

The Shadow Puppets expansion brings some surprisingly needed dark humor, with interesting mechanics that only make the game more fun. If you like the flavor of the set and need some more trap cards, go get yourself a copy.

Quality

Doomlings is a high quality card game with some very good looking game pieces. The Shadow Puppets Bolster expansion is no exception. The cards are a little thinner than I am used to, but the art and quality of the card stock is as excellent as ever. I still recommend using sleeves. I may be a crazy person that sleeves everything, but it really makes shuffling the cards easier. You will be shuffling this game a lot, and the sleeves will help preserve the game.

Mechanics

I absolutely love the mechanics for this set. Nor only is each new species flavorful, the interactions it creates are so much fun. I love the fact that at any moment, you can just disrupt a persons turn or strait up ruin their whole strategy. There is a card that lets that lets you swap gene pools. You can build a bad pool on purpose to swap with someone who is actively trying to win and ruin their day. It’s like the blue shell in Mario, but with more control. Of course, someone can just swap hands with you and ruin your strategy. That feels pretty balanced to me.

I really like the ages in this expansion. One lets you draw 3 and discard 2. This creates some very tough choices, but it is always fun to draw cards. The other mechanic lets you swap hands, and this can absolutely ruin someone’s day. If you want a set with a lot of disruption, Shadow Puppets is fantastic.

Conclusion

I love Doomlings and recommend to anyone who wants a fun and simple game to pull out at game night. The game is easy to teach, especially for people new to the hobby, and the game is family friendly. Most importantly, it is very easy to set up and take down. Games of Doomlings are pretty quick, but the interactions make it meaningful.

Now if you’re looking for an expansion, Shadow Puppets is awesome. The disruptive nature of the expansion gives the game a layer of fun I didn’t think it needed. It has definitely earned its spot with the rest of my collection.

You can pick up your copy of Shadow Puppets on the official Doomlings website, or on Amazon through my affiliate link.

Board Games and TCGs, Pokemon TCG

Pokémon Paradox Rift is now available for Preorder at Pokemon Center!

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The upcoming Pokémon set, Paradox Rift, is set to release on November 3rd, but it will be live on Pokemon TCG live on the 2nd. The set will include:

  • 13 Pokémon ex and seven Tera Pokémon ex
  • 34 illustration rare Pokémon
  • 15 special illustration rare Pokémon and Supporter cards
  • 28 ultra rare full-art etched Pokémon ex and Supporter cards
  • 7 hyper rare gold etched cards

Paradox Rift will be introducing some new mechanics that are bound to shake up the meta. I know it is a little early to be thinking of the new set, but if you want to get an early jump on Holiday shopping, or just want to open a box on launch day, go put in your pre-order in before it sells out.

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Iron Valient Elite Trainer Box ($59.99)

Paradox Rift Iron Valient Elite Trainer Box includes:

  • 11 Pokémon TCG:Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift booster packs
    • Each booster pack contains 10 cards and 1 Basic Energy. Cards vary by pack.
  • 1 full-art foil promo card featuring a Future Pokémon
  • 1 full-art foil promo card featuring a Future Pokémon with a Pokémon Center logo
  • 65 card sleeves featuring Iron Valiant
  • 45 Pokémon TCG Energy cards
  • A player’s guide to the Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift expansion
  • 6 damage-counter dice
  • 1 competition-legal coin-flip die
  • 2 plastic condition markers
  • A box to hold everything, with 4 dividers to keep it organized
  • A code card for Pokémon Trading Card Game Live

Roaring Moon Elite Trainer Box (59.99)

Roaring Moon Elite Trainer Box includes:

  • 11 Pokémon TCG:Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift booster packs
    • Each booster pack contains 10 cards and 1 Basic Energy. Cards vary by pack.
  • 1 full-art foil promo card featuring an Ancient Pokémon
  • 1 full-art foil promo card featuring an Ancient Pokémon with a Pokémon Center logo
  • 65 card sleeves featuring Roaring Moon
  • 45 Pokémon TCG Energy cards
  • A player’s guide to the Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift expansion
  • 6 damage-counter dice
  • 1 competition-legal coin-flip die
  • 2 plastic condition markers
  • A box to hold everything, with 4 dividers to keep it organized
  • A code card for Pokémon Trading Card Game Live

Paradox Rift 6 Pack Booster Bundle ($26.94)

Includes 6 Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet—Paradox Rift booster packs

Single Booster Pack ($4.49 ea)

This is just for a single pack if you need it, or if they run out of boxes.

Paradox Rift Booster Box ($161.64)

The booster box comes with 36 packs and it is a fantastic product if you love cracking packs.

That’s all that’s out so far, I am sure we’ll get different bundles and starter decks the closer we get to launch. Until then, make sure you grab your copies before the scalpers do. Till next time, thanks!