Iconic Viking board game Blood Rage is getting a sequel
Blood Rage, Eric Lang’s hit Viking board game, is finally getting a sequel, Blood Rage: Valhalla. New publisher Tabletop Tycoon has revealed that this standalone sequel to the 2015 original is in development, with a Gamefound campaign “launching soon”.
Like its big brother, Blood Rage: Valhalla will be a strategy board game steeped in Norse mythology. Unlike its sibling, this version takes place in the afterlife. Tycoon Games calls it an “area control wargame” in which you will “fight eternally for the favor of the Gods”.
The webpage for the game promises “familiar mechanics, twisted by the Gods”. The preview includes a player board with the same spread of actions as the original – Summon, March, Upgrade, Quest, and Contest, plus lots of upgrade slots – so this does seem to be very similar to the older game, which featured a mixture of card-drafting rounds with area-control wargaming.
Maybe the differences will show as “the Gods shift the playing field as the war rages on, forcing combatants to adapt”. What that means, it’s too early to say – a map that changes mid-game, perhaps?
Like many games originally published by CMON, a big part of Blood Rage’s appeal comes from the excellent miniatures packed into the box. The Valhalla preview shows renders of several new figures, and silhouettes of others. Assuming the final miniatures are manufactured at sufficient quality to capture all the detail in the renders, they should be the equal of the original game.
Speaking of the original game, Tycoon Games states that “repackaged and remastered versions of Eric Lang’s original Godly series” – Blood Rage, Rising Sun, and Ankh: Gods of Egypt – plus their expansions, will be available through the crowdfunding campaign.
Are you a mega fan of the original Blood Rage? Do you think either of its two sister games were superior to it? What one change would you like Valhalla to make to the Blood Rage formula? Come and chat about it in the Wargamer Discord community’s board game channel!
If you’ve played Blood Rage to death, and can’t wait for Gamefound fulfilment to get another title to the table, check out Wargamer’s guide to the best board games ever made to find your new favorite!
