What is reverse-bidding anyways?
Empire's End puts players in control of identical empires (for now) that will inevitably fall to ruin. Each round a new event occurs. There are multiple types but most consistently will be a disaster. Here, a card is drawn and based on the number will be what location is in danger. Depending on the type of disaster will be what resources can be used in an auction. Players will go back and forth bidding until someone decides to take the disaster card. They concede the auction losing their location to ruin but they also gain all of the resources that were bid in the round as well as the card which can be slotted underneath a location to be used for later. There's also an economy phase where goods can be produced. The industry phase will let you play cards from your hand or potentially repair a destroyed location if you can afford it. Finally, the conflict phase. A card will be flipped from the conflict deck and players will tally combat points on their tableau as well as spend the axe resources to meet or exceed what the card says. This will provide them with resources and points. Of course if you did not win, you will also have to swap tiles. It's not a huge penalty but it could have repercussions later on in the game. Any time one of those phases are completed, the game will advance. The game ends when the end of the track has been reached. Players will tally any final scoring cards on their tableaus as well as any non-destroyed locations.
The Good: The reverse-bidding concept is unique. While you may lose the auction, you still gain plenty to justify taking the potential points hit. It's a fun twist on bidding. The tableau building piece of the game is well implemented. Getting to make some of the other phases stronger by losing means you'll be constantly trying to set yourself up later on in the game. If you lose a high value building but manage to gain enough hammers to repair it by losing less desirable ones means you can flip the game upside down.
The Okay: Having players control identical empires seems a little odd thematically. It emphasizes the importance of specific tiles for everyone but Rome and Egypt aren't the same thing. I haven't experimented with house ruling randomized empires but that could be a simple fix. With less players, you'll have less resources being moved so it can make it tougher to get enough to do certain things. It works fine with two but you may not be able to as much as you'd like to. Something that I wish was added to the retail version as well is a counter tile. Not only to quickly see what needs to be destroyed but also to keep the tiles in order. As cards get placed underneath, they'll become disheveled taking away some of the general order of things. While minor, they can be a bit of a nuisance while playing.
Final Thoughts: Empire's End came onto my radar after Origins a couple of years back. John D. Clair and Kwanchai Moriya are two of my favorite designers and artists in board games. Something you can always count on is a unique twist on a familiar mechanic. Reverse-bidding does just that. This is one of the better bidding games I've had the pleasure of playing and being so adaptable to different player counts gives it a spot in the collection for a long time coming.
Thanks to Brotherwise Games for providing a review copy.
