Islebound
Sail between island towns, build your capital and conquer harbors with pirates and sea monsters.
Who it's for
You enjoy building an engine over a couple of hours and like a fantasy sea setting. Strongest with three or four players.
Not for you if…
You want something short or low-commitment. Two hours of planning is a lot if the table just wants a quick game.
Vibe's take
Meaty and slowly accelerating: early turns feel modest, and by the end your buildings and crew chain into satisfying combos. Competition is indirect, mostly over towns and buildings.
About this game
A sailing game where you build an engine out of islands. You captain a ship in a fantasy archipelago and hop between island towns, collecting resources, hiring crew and commissioning buildings for your capital. Each building has its own power, so what you put together decides whether you turn into a trader, a builder or a raider. Recruit pirates and sea monsters to conquer towns: conquered towns let you use their action for free and charge a fee when rivals dock there. It is a long, thinky evening rather than a quick round, with a little dice risk and a lot of ways to chase points. Best with three or four ships on the horizon.
Get it
Mechanics
By the numbers
Players
Duration
60–120 min
Ages 10+
Complexity
2.7 / 5 — MediumBGG Rating
6.5/10
Rank #1,365
3.8k ratings
Published
2016
Language
Moderate text
Designed by
Ryan Laukat
Published by
Red Raven Games
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