Vaalbara

Pick a tribe member in secret, reveal at once and grab territories in a tiny Neolithic contest of timing.

Designer: Olivier Cipière
Published by: Studio H
Editions by: Gém Klub Kft., Albi, Evrikus, MEBO Games, Games7Days

Vaalbara drops you into the Neolithic era on the subcontinent of the same name, where you lead a tribe that wants to settle in sedentary villages. Everyone owns the same deck of 12 character cards, each representing a member of your tribe. Every round you secretly pick one card, then the cards are revealed and resolved in initiative order, each character using their talent to take over one of the open territories. Every type of territory scores differently, for example for collections, pairs or variety, and scores stay hidden until the end. Nine rounds, then the highest total wins. It is a quick bluffing-and-timing card game for two to five players, about 20 minutes, from age 10. Released in 2022.

Same twelve-card tribe for every playerSecret picks resolved by initiative orderTerritories that each score differently

Who it's for

You want a short head-games card duel where reading the others matters more than luck.

Not for you if…

You want deep long-term planning or lots of different components. This is a compact, tactical card game.

Vibe's take

Quick, sharp and full of small gasps when the cards flip. You think about what the others will play, grab the best territory a heartbeat before them, and then find out who guessed better.