Stats:
No. of players: 2
Amount of time to play: 60-120 min
Age requirements: 8+
Set-up time: 5 minutes (if your spellbook is already assembled)

Druid vs Necromancer is the latest expansion for Mage Wars. Included are two new mages with unique playing styles and spells.

Druid vs Necromancer Expansion Description:

As the title Druid vs Necromancer would indicate, this expansion introduces these two new mages to the Mage Wars arena. This post will mostly cover the new mechanics and elements in this expansion. If you have never tried Mage Wars you can read an overview of the base game here.

The expansion introduces a Druid and she and her plants have come to take over the arena. Her Spreading Vines special ability aids her. It allows her to place a vine marker in her zone or any zone adjacent to a zone containing a vine marker. The vine markers extend the range of future vine spells. Her other special ability Treebond allows her to bond with a friendly tree conjuration. This gets her Innate Life +4 and Channel +1. The tree also gets enhancements of Innate Life +4, Armor +1 and Lifebond +2. These will help keep both the Druid and the tree alive longer. The Druid is trained in the Nature school and level 1 Water spells.

The other new mage is the Necromancer. He comes with an army of undead to fight with and for him. He is only trained in the Dark school and Holy spells cost him three times as much to add to his spellbook. The Necromancer is a Plague Master and is immune to poison. He can even spend mana to make units with a poison marker on them take an extra point of direct damage. His other special ability lets him designate an undead creature to be his Eternal Servant. This grants the Eternal Servant Piercing +1 and Reanimate.

A few new rules have been added in this expansion too. The new rules cover conjurations attack actions, destroyed cards and their effects, spell school training and cards being removed from the game.

There are new spellbooks styled for each new mage and suggested starting spells for them too. Also included are new tokens and 216 spell cards.

Quick Review of the Druid vs Necromancer Expansion:

Druid vs Necromancer is fun expansion that adds some more options for mages and spell cards to the Mage Wars series.

The components for this game are really nice. Everything from the spellbooks, to the card and token quality and art are very well done. The rules are well written and easy to follow.

I like that the two new mages and not more of the same. They both play differently then the other mages available. The Druid and her plants cover the arena and slowly overwhelm her opponent. While the Necromancer can swarm his opponent with units that may be weaker but have the strength of numbers.

If you have the base game and like the play styles these new mages offer, you should pick up the Druid vs Necromancer expansion. If you are just looking to add some new spell cards and mage options to the arena, try this expansion out.

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