Fancy placing tiles to launch in the air? In this game by Reiner Knizia, you control a fleet of hot air balloons and compete with others to own the skies.
Prepare for take off
Havalandi is a tile-placement game with a push-your-luck element. The game comes with a hot air balloon airship that you assemble into a shared mover piece, one that every player takes turns controlling.
On your turn, you roll a die and steer the airship along the borders of the triangular playing area. The die roll decides how far you move, and the race is on to snag the best launch spots before other players beat you to them. The balloon tokens can only be placed within the line of sight of wherever the airship lands, and the game ends once every player has placed all of their balloons.
Scenic terrains
Likely inspired by the scenic Turkish hot air balloon festival in Cappadocia, the Havalandi box art captures that same sunrise vibe, with balloons dotting the skyline. The board itself is a hex-covered triangle divided into different terrains (green for meadow, red for tulip field, and orange for sand dune), split by a gravel path, which is also a terrain type.
On side A, the path runs from top to bottom, and on side B, it divides the board into three sections from the centre. There is a rope ladder along the side of the board that acts as the point tracker, and all players start their marker piece at zero.
When launching balloons, a fleet scores based on how many different terrain types it touches:
- Gravel + Meadow = 4 pts
- Gravel + Meadow + Tulip = 8 pts
- Gravel + Meadow + Tulip + Sand = 12 pts
Launch example: 1x balloon on gravel + 2x on meadow + 3x on tulip fields + 1x on sand dune.
^ Since the fleet touches all four terrain types (regardless of how many balloons are in each), it scores 12 pts. In addition to fleets, groups score separately whenever 3 or more balloons occupy the same terrain, so that same 3x balloon tulip field group would add another +3 pts on top. *And at some point, you can extend this existing group and gain additional points.
With the double-sided board, side A offers an introductory mode with 7 pavilion hexes, while side B ramps up the challenge with 9. Tokens can't be placed directly over a pavilion, but placing a balloon adjacent to one for the first time earns +3 pts. Side B gives you more chances to score off pavilions, but fewer chances at a big +12 fleet pts or a scoring group when there are more players competing for the same space.
Coveted gravel path
The turn actions in Havalandi simply boil down to: roll the die, move the airship along the border, and park a balloon token on a hex.
Two arrows on the airship indicate the specific hex tracks where you're allowed to place a token, but if neither track has an eligible space, you can instead place on a hex outside the track, provided it's adjacent to one of your existing tokens on the same terrain type. Balloon tokens are placed lying side up and can only be launched from the gravel path.
You're able to launch a fleet by turning the token launch-side up, once the airship's line of sight touches any part of that fleet that traces back to the gravel path. That makes the gravel path a coveted piece of terrain because without it, you can't launch a fleet at all.
Through clever placement over several turns, you'll start to see your fleet take shape, building toward a proper launch.
Relaunch-ability
Even if not every balloon gets launched, the game concludes once everyone has finished placing their balloon tokens (20 normal and 3 special). On top of points from pavilions and launches, a random pair drawn from 7 end-game score cards is used in every game, giving players extra mission criteria to chase for bonus points, but with the heavy luck element, it’s kinda hard to actually strategize around meeting those conditions. You mostly find out at the very end whether your placements happened to match with the cards or not. Outside of that final tally, though, the end-game cards don't affect the gameplay at all.
Between the double-sided board and the randomness of the die, Havalandi offers enough variety to stay interesting across 2 to 4 players. That said, it leans more casual than strategic, since you can't plan where your rolls will take you. Really, the only decision that requires genuine forethought is whether to hold off or launch your fleet early.
The sky is the limit
Havalandi is a solid pick if you want something light enough not to overthink every move. The die is running the show more than you are, but there's real fun in reacting to whatever it throws your way and making the most of it. The push-your-luck tension around fleets and pavilions keeps every turn interesting.
To be honest, since it's more casual than strategic, it suits players who are looking for a filler game with just enough decision-making to stay engaging.
