Stats:
No. of players: 2-4
Amount of time to play: 20-30 min
Age requirements: 12+
Set-up time: minimal

Hero Realms is a fantasy-themed, deckbuilding card game. You build your deck while trying to defeat your opponent.

Hero Realms Rules Description:

Hero Realms is closely related with Star Realms. It is not a straight reskin of the game, but they do share many similar mechanics.

You start Hero Realms with 10 starter cards and 50 health. On your turn you draw five cards and play them in any order. You total all your gold and combat played for the turn. Gold is spent to buy cards from the market and combat damages your opponent. Bought cards go into your discard pile. Once you finish it is your opponent’s turn. This goes on until someone loses all their health.

Some cards get you actions. They may be used once per turn. They might replenish your health, force your opponent to discard a card, or let you draw a card. You may also gain Champions. Unlike other cards Champions stay in front of you until your opponent defeats them by doing damage equal to their health. If they have the guard ability your opponent cannot attack you until that Champion is defeated. Defeated Champions go in your discard pile.

There are four different factions in Hero Realms. Each faction is represented by a different color and symbol. Some cards’ special abilities only trigger if you play more than one card of the same faction.

You can also get Character packs for Hero Realms. Each Character pack includes a unique starting deck. Currently there are five different classes; cleric, ranger, fighter, thief, and wizard. The packs introduce thematic mechanics through the unique starting cards, different starting health and special ability cards. One special ability can be used once per game and the other cost two gold but may be used once each turn. The cleric heals themselves, the ranger scouts their deck, the fighter does damage, the thief forces their opponent to discard a card and the wizard draws a card.

Quick Review of Hero Realms:

Hero Realms is a fun, streamlined deckbuilding game. It is easy to teach, learn and play. It makes a great introduction to the deckbuilding genre and can be enjoyed by a variety of ages.

The art looks great. The rules are easy to read and follow. You can teach this to non-gamers and be playing in minutes.

I enjoy Star Realms, but the Character packs and fantasy theme make Hero Realms a better game. You will want to try out all the Characters and see which play style you like best. With the base game and Hero packs, it is best with two players.

If you are looking to add a deckbuilding game to your collection, Hero Realms should be on the list. It is easy to teach, plays quickly and appeals to a variety of gamers.

Score and synopsis: (Click here for an explanation of these review categories.)
Strategy 4 out of 6
Luck 5 out of 6
Player Interaction 6 out of 6
Replay Value 5 out of 6
Complexity 3 out of 6
Fun 5 out of 6
Overall 5 out of 6