Everdell: Mistwood - A Solo Review
Image: Starling Games
Introduction
Ever since starting my blog Table for ONE back in 2019, I've rarely looked back and regretted any of my previous reviews. For one, I try not to dwell too much on the past as this is something I’m already most definitely prone to do anyway. But I also think that my opinions reflect not just the board games I reviewed but also me as a person, where I happened to find myself in life at the time. Alas, there is however one glaring exception to this mindset of mine: Everdell. In my review, I concluded that although the included solo mode was perfectly serviceable from a mechanical perspective I was still hesitant to recommend the game exclusively for solitaire play. Therefore, it might come as a surprise to learn that since my review I’ve solo played Everdell in excess of 100 times squaring off against the cantankerous old rodent known as Rugwort to the point that the game has become the board game equivalent of comfort food.
Now, this is the point of the introduction where you might rightfully ask yourself why on earth I underwent such a rather radical conversion of opinion. To answer that question, I need to provide a bit of a backstory. At the time of publishing my Everdell review, I found myself struggling with severe depression and anxiety. In fact, a significant reason why I started Table for ONE in the first place was to create a safe haven for my mind amidst everything else that was weighing me down literally and figuratively. The solo mode, which I had berated for being too simplistic and rudimentary, turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as the simple rules overhead and ease of managing the solo opponent’s actions made it ideal for my brain which at the time was shot to pieces. With its adorable aesthetics and kindhearted nature, Everdell became a comforting ray of light that pierced the darkness that I struggled with. As such, this particular game holds a very special place in my heart despite the fact that I still think that the solo mode is indeed perfectly serviceable albeit rudimentary and dare I say even bordering on unfair. Thus, I’m immensely excited to be able to review Mistwood; the latest expansion to Everdell which introduces a completely new solo mode where you will be competing against the cunning and villainous spider Nightweave!
Full disclosure: A review copy of the Everdell: Mistwood expansion was kindly provided by publisher Tabletop Tycoon.
Artwork & components
I think it’s safe to say that a large reason for the success of Everdell and its expansions is due to the series’ production values and Mistwood is certainly no exception to that pedigree. Unlike the previous expansions Pearlbrook and Spirecrest, there’s but one edition of Mistwood to be had. Thus, you don’t have to worry about getting what essentially amounts to half the content of the crowdfunded edition (I’m looking at you Pearlbrook…). In terms of actual content, Mistwood is definitely what I would consider a substantial expansion. In addition to four new animal meeples and associated player powers, which will probably be enough of a selling point to a lot of people, the expansion also includes no less than 23 new critters and construction cards. These act as mini modular expansions to the base game of Everdell, a pleasant surprise that I was honestly not expecting when sorting through the components for the first time. For example, the Through Every Season module replaces the original eight Farm cards from the base game with new special ones. These often give you the option of two special abilities to choose from in addition to having variable resource costs.
Photo: Fredrik Schulz / Table for ONE
Similarly, there’s the Corrin Evertail module that chronicles the life and adventures of the legendary founder of Everdell through a series of interlocking critters and location cards! Although not earth-shattering, the inclusion of these card-based modular expansions along with new Legendary cards goes a long way in adding a sprinkle of nuance to the base game of Everdell. Also, I would be remiss not to bring attention to the artistic talents of illustrator Andrew Bosley. A significant reason behind the charm that embodies Everdell is a direct result of the world that Bosley has created and Mistwood proves that he is still on top of his game when it comes to depicting the toiling and brave anthropomorphic inhabitants of the Everdell realm.
Gameplay
“Deep within the twisting branches of Mistwood, many secrets lie hidden. The Monks of Mistwood have recorded the tales of heroes past and present, including stories of Everdell’s founder, Corrin Evertail, and other legendary figures from the Emerald Valley’s timeline. Through every season, the monks help to watch and shepherd the fair citizens of the valley. But deeper within the wood, a mysterious threat has been patiently waiting, making plans and sinister plots… Will the fair valley survive the webbed takeover of the clever spider Nightweave and her army of spiderlings?”
If the cantankerous old rodent known as Rugwort can be characterized as a rather rudimentary solo opponent, Nightweave proves to be the polar opposite. Rather than simply rolling a D8 die and nabbing the corresponding card from the central tableau, the modus operandi of the solo opponent in Mistwood is far more cunning and interactive. Much like how you as the solo player goes about adding cards and expanding your city, so too does Nightweave. She will create her own city consisting of critters and constructions, all whilst adhering to the general rules of having no more than 15 cards that constitute her own tableau. This alone makes for such a rich, more nuanced Everdell solitaire experience compared to the old solo mode. Now granted, Nightweave never acquires nor spends any form of resources. Consequently, she has the luxury of simply ignoring all card costs and effects as is often the case with board game solo opponents. The one exception and this should give you an indication as to the rather cruel nature of this arachnid foe, is the Fool card which Nightweave will happily deploy onto your city earning you a minus two points penalty in the process. But I digress.
The core actions of Nightweave are dictated by a deck of cards known as the Activity deck. On her turn, the top card of the Activity deck is revealed depicting four main actions. Each action corresponds to Nightweave’s current season and instructs the solo player regarding Nightweave´s target priority within each action. That’s right, the solo opponent in Mistwood also adheres to the shifting nature of the seasons the same way as when playing a multiplayer game of Everdell! Depending on the season, Nightweave will act accordingly. Early stages of play might see her deploy one of her minions, known as spiderlings, to occupy a worker placement spot on the main board which prohibits you from gathering resources again much like when playing Everdell multiplayer. Or she could instead decide to assert herself by striking at the central card tableau, essentially blocking you from accessing certain cards for the rest of her season which drastically limits your available options. The thing that genuinely fascinates me, and I cannot stress this enough, is how much of an interactive solo experience Mistwood provides. Because Nightweave plays by many of the same rules that apply to the solo player, the game ends up feeling less like a solitaire bot experience and more like playing Everdell against a really cutthroat human opponent. Nightweave might take the prepare-for-season action before you do or vice versa, she gains two cards from the central tableau during the transition to Summer much like yourself, the critter and construction cards that constitute her city actually apply when she tries to claim a special event card by having a set number of cards from a particular suit. All of this combines to make a solo experience that is truly something special. And I haven’t even revealed what I consider to be the best part of how Nightweave plays…
Photo: Fredrik Schulz / Table for ONE
You see, in addition to the Activity deck Nightweave can also be played with several modules and expansions all of which alter the rules ever so slightly but more importantly have a drastic impact on how she acts. First, there are the Personalities. During set up, one personality card is drawn at random and assigned to Nightweave. The personality card affects meadow cards adjacent to Nightweave in various ways when she makes an entrance onto the main board. She might force you to discard adjacent cards from the central tableau when acquiring a card for yourself or impose a greater restriction upon which cards are available for you. Not only does this add an element of unpredictability but the Personalities module also ensures that the central card tableau never runs the risk of stagnating as more cards are cycled through compared to competing against the solo opponent in the base game of Everdell. Even better than the personalities, at least in my opinion, are the other two modules: Plans and Plots, both of which are means by which Nightweave influences the game to her favor.
Plans are cards that provide one or several ongoing, long-term abilities that tilt the game state. For example, the Snagged plans card stipulates that in addition to destination cards not counting against Nightweave’s city limit, she also has the audacity of denying you payment when visiting one of your constructions cards that features an open sign! The fact that there are 13 personality cards, each with its own unique flavor and characteristics, makes for a very varied solo opponent in terms of how they behave. This notion becomes even more impressive when one takes into account the second module names Plots. Unlike the more long-term effects of the plan cards, plots are triggered when Nightweave takes the prepare-for-season action. These come in two variants; seasonal plots which have an ongoing effect throughout the current season and impose some form of restriction and one-time plots which as the name implies activate once when drawn from the associated card deck. Although you can play Mistwood using “only” the core Nightweave rules, the inclusion of both the Plans and Plots modules elevate this solo experience even further both in terms of strategical considerations and also variety.
Photo: Fredrik Schulz / Table for ONE
Final thoughts
Rarely is it the case that I consider a board game let alone a board game expansion to be worthy of the epithet essential. In the case of Mistwood, however, I am more than willing to make an exception to the rule as I genuinely think this is an essential expansion if you have the slightest interest in playing Everdell solo. I will always have a sentimental place in my heart for the grumpy yet lovable rat Rugwort but from a purely mechanical perspective, this ol’ boy doesn't even play in the same division as his arachnid successor. Would I recommend the base game Everdell exclusively for solo play? As much as I have enjoyed my plays against Rugwort, from a reviewer´s point of view I would still say no. Would I recommend solo play including the Mistwood expansion? At the drop of a hat!
