The Anarchy
- Players
- 1-4
- Best withThe player count this game plays best at.
- 1 player
- Play timeHow long a full game runs once everyone knows the rules.
- 90 min
- AgeThe minimum age printed by the publisher.
- 13+
- ComplexityHow demanding the rules are, from 1 (very light) to 5 (very heavy).
- 3.9 / 5
- Year
- 2025
About the game
The Anarchy transports players to 12th-century England, where the death of King Henry I ignites decades of civil war between Empress Matilda and King Stephen. Playing loyalists to Stephen, you build up your domain over five rounds, defend your castle, and construct siege weapons to storm rival strongholds. A web of chaining actions, income tracks, and tech-tree-like progression drives your rise in bravery, loyalty, influence, and might. It supports solo play as well as groups of up to four, letting you wage the historical Anarchy at your own pace. Careful engine-building and resource chaining reward players who like to plan several turns ahead.
Hobbli's Notes
We appreciate the ambition of layering a full campaign/scenario structure with chaining and tech-track progression onto a relatively unexplored slice of medieval history. As a newer release, we haven't logged enough table time to fully judge its balance and long-term replay value, so treat our take as provisional. The solo mode looks like the game's strongest pull given its very low listed downtime. Expect a meatier evening than the "City Building" tag alone suggests: this leans into heavier engine-building territory.
What we like
- Rich engine-building through chaining actions and tech tracks.
- Strong solo mode with very low downtime.
- Unusual, underused historical setting (the English Anarchy).
- Five-round campaign arc gives a satisfying sense of progression.
Keep in mind
- Heavy complexity and long playtime may deter casual groups.
- As a brand-new release, long-term replay balance is still unproven.
- Paper-and-pencil tracking may feel fiddly to some players.
Who it's for
Likely to appeal to solo gamers and engine-builders aged 12+ who enjoy medieval history and multi-step tech-track progression; best in smaller groups given the game's weight.
