Oath Review: A Sprawling, Ambitious Game That's Not For Everyone

Alliances will form and empires will fall in Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile from Leder Games. One player takes on the role of the Chancellor fighting off exiles who covet their power. With numerous ways to achieve victory, how will you leave your mark on the land?

A copy of Oath was provided to Roll For Crit for the purposes of this video.

Intro 0:00
Explanation 01:02
Review 05:58
Crits and Misses 20:52
Final Thoughts 23:49

#BoardGames #TabletopGames #LederGames

[mrp]

I was excited to get Oath, and gifted it to my Daughter for Christmas. It is beautiful, and there’s enough elements here to ponder over. That said, it has been onerous to get to the table. We played the first game, with the instruction manual, with one of the players being my youngest son, who is 10. Took us several days to get through it, as we paused after every few rounds or so. My youngest son has played several games with me, like Root, A Feast for Odin, Terraforming Mars and others, and he’s fine with this one, but likes to take breaks from it. We left it set up on the game table. My daughter plays complex games all the time, ranging from TI4, Dominant Species and War of the Ring…and she was a smidge glossy eyed with it.

I think the game has good potential, but its lack of accessibility may keep it from getting to the table very often. I am not only unsure if this game’s staying power at our house, I’m worried it will collect dust and be a wasted opportunity. I still hold out hope.

[mrp]

13:22 I agree. I tend to use the word ‘feature’ rather than flaw or problem. I may not like a game’s ‘feature’ because it’s not my thing. ‘Flaw’ or ‘Problem’ insinuate that it’s the game’s issue. Like break-ups: It’s not you, it’s me!

[americoxx]

I got my copy of Oath a few weeks ago, took me forever to descide to acquire it because I saw so many bad reviews and people complaining about how King making is a thing in this game, but, the more I read about the game and actually downloaded the game rules from Leder games site, I realized that the game is not complicated, I have a gaming group nd I think we have gather for more than 25 years.... and after playing so many games we developed this mechanic of always trying to stop the player that is wining... so bad that sometimes a player wins because everyone elses just ran out of cards/resources to stop him... so King Making is part of Our culture I guess... About trying to fit this game in a category... well I see it like a Le Havre Game where you interact with several buildings (Denizen) that belong to you or the board, but you have several ways to end the game with the several win conditions... maybe im wrong but thats how I feel this game is... and as Le Havre and games a like the hard part is to actually remember what all denizens do in order to get the maximum beneft from it..

Anyway... Great review as always guys I love you channel!

[The-Duke-of-Zill]

Great review. Certainly one of the most polarising games I've seen. Such an interesting and unique game design and that alone should be applauded if nothing else. I own this with the deluxe components & Chronicle book but just waiting for the right time to get it to the table with my group. Any tips on how to frame the game when introducing it so that people get the most out of it?

[chrisdunn]

Great review and discussion! It mirrored our group's reaction exactly. 1/2 hated it, 1/2 loved. All agreed it was a great game, but only 2 players want to play it. And so, it languishes on the shelf, full of promise and variety and wonder. (Did I mention I was on the "pro" side in the debate?) The game it most closely resembles for me is Vampire Masquerade: Heritage, wherein the choices you make about clan affiliations and which vampires to promote to ancilla shape the world that you and your rivals will be playing in for all future games. The thing, I think, which cause many players to disconnect from such games is the purpose. It is no longer winning-vs-losing, but more watching the world develop based on your choices, victories and even failures. You can't really "lose" oath. You'll be in the next game, perhaps out living with nomads in the outlands throwing stones at the new chancellor, shaping the path of the campaign and perhaps ascending to the thankless job of trying to rule OR you'll "win" and have to struggle to hold together all you previously built. Eventually, you realize Oath isn't about you. It isn't about your times on top and your times under the heel. It is, what it says it is. Chronicles of Empire and Exile. Chancellors come and go. The Empire is eternal!