The tabletop hobby is home to
a fickle, restless bunch of people. However much we have just spent on a new
game, there’s always something else to catch our eyes. Some shiny, must-have
that’s hitting the shelves.
If you’re into collectible or
Living Card Games you always have that pending thrill of a new release, but
being stuck in that release cycle can also make new games outside that cycle
all the more tempting, if only to mix things up a bit.
For many, Ashes: Rise of the
Phoenixborn was exactly what was needed.
Revealed at GenCon 2015, Ashes
is an expandable card game from Plaid Hat Games and designer Isaac Vega in
which you pit your Phoenixborn against your opponent’s in a back and forth
battle of attacks and counter-attacks, full of incredible spells and powerful
units.
With a less aggressive release
schedule than what we are used to with CCGs and LCGs, it became accessible for
those already neck-deep in expansions and cardboard and all was going swimmingly
for the game at first.
Spreading through word of
mouth and players introducing the game to others, Ashes developed quite the
following. Some Magic players even came over to the game as it scratched that
Magic: The Gathering itch, while still feeling fresh.
And the art. My goodness the
art. With wonderful work from Fernanda Suarez on predominantly white cards, the
game has an amazing, clean look to it that looks great on the tabletop.
Tournaments were held, forums,
blogs and podcasts for the game started to appear and the first two expansions
were released to the eager players, hungry for more.
And then.......nothing.
The supply of the first
expansions dried up and became incredibly hard to find. Game kits for
tournaments were suddenly unavailable and any official talk of the deluxe
expansions rumoured for the end of the year, fell silent.
Forums and Facebook pages for
the game turned from enthusiastic discussion to frustrated speculation and the
assumption amongst some that the game was dead.
So what happened?
Seemingly, a number of things.
Plaid Hat were simply not prepared for the popularity of the game and couldn’t
keep up with demand via their parent company F2Z Entertainment.
Then F2Z was acquired by
Asmodee.
While many thought this would
result in greater, more reliable support for Ashes, there would inevitably by a
further delay during the transition period as the two companies settled and the
suits all met to discuss supply and demand issues the game was suffering from.
So is Ashes: Rise of the
Phoenixborn dead?
Well on 27th
February 2017, the silence was finally broken with this:
The long-awaited deluxe
expansions were announced along with news of a series of tournaments that would
shape the creation of a new character for the game.
More previews followed along
with word that we would soon be getting an update to the Ashes rules which would
look to tidy up and clarify a few elements of the game.
Inevitably, dormant podcasts
and blogs quivered back to life. Ashes was on its way back.
But will this be a triumphant
return for the game?
We are, as I said, a fickle
bunch, liable to move on to new things and a lot has happened since Ashes first
graced our tabletops and game stores.
Fantasy Flight Games released
a Collectible Card Game in Star Wars: Destiny, currently emptying many a
gamer’s pockets. Arkham Horror: The Card Game is out and has been well
received. And the colossal form of FFG’s reimagining of Legend of the Five
Rings looms on the horizon.
It is a crowded market that
Isaac Vega is bringing his game back to that’s for sure.
But it was crowded the first
time around too; and if any game can rise from the ashes, surely it’s this one.
