Liberté

Place faction blocks across France, steer the elections and see which side of the French Revolution you end up on.

Designer: Martin Wallace
Published by: Valley Games, Inc.
Editions by: Warfrog Games

France, 1789 to 1799: the Estates General meets, the monarchy wobbles, and the Revolution goes through radicals, moderates and royalists in turn. Liberté (1998) is a game of power for three to six players, played in four turns, each made of several rounds followed by an election. The main action is placing faction blocks on the map and marking your control with a token on top. Two card decks, A and B, steer the story: A tends to help the moderates and royalists, B the radicals. When one type of block runs out, an election decides which faction forms the government and who gains from it. It is a political area-control game with open drafting of cards, and its feel is tension and shifting loyalties around the table.

Four turns from 1789 to 1799Radicals, Moderates and Royalists compete for controlElections decide which faction forms the government

Who it's for

You like area-control games with a political theme and a group that enjoys the push and pull of influence, with four players around the table.

Not for you if…

You want quick, light fun or a game with no history. Its theme is the French Revolution and the rules ask you to pay attention to election timing.

Vibe's take

Tense and political. You build stacks of influence, then watch an election swing the whole map, so timing and sense of the table matter more than any single move.