Kindred Spirits is the latest title from Ludus Vulpes designers Kirsty Buley and Phil Fox.
In this game, players play cards to gain influence over a central play area, aiming to be the highest-scoring player at the end of the game.
Players are drawing on the power of their Kindred Spirits… Spirit animals aiding the players' harvesting of magical energies.
So is this game as magical as it sounds?
Releasing the spirits
Packed inside a thin square box adorned with an ethereal, almost space-like themed cover, you get a cloth scoreboard, sets of square cards, some for the ethereal plane and sets of kindred spirit cards and their spirit guide card, and both large and small totem stones for each spirit.
The totems are small acrylic pieces, each individually designed to resemble their respective spirits, with colouring to match.
The spirit guide and kindred spirit cards are adorned with quite simply stunning artwork from Gaby Spencer. The spirit guide cards each include a symbol of similar design to the totem pieces, and the kindred spirit cards include a number in each corner.
The ethereal plain cards are slightly larger cards than the kindred spirits, with a plain space in the centre and branching paths. Each side of the ethereal plain cards shows different paths, offering variability in set up for each game you play, and also creates inherent difficulty variability depending on set up.
The cloth scoreboard has a similar style to the box art, with a spiral scoring path heading towards the centre of the board.
Returning to the kindred spirit cards… You get 4 different spirits, each represented by unique animal art. The animals include the Hare, Raven, Tiger and Pegasus. The artwork is stunning, so much so that we have purchased a print from artist Gaby Spencer to hang on our wall; you can see why Ludus Vulpes wanted her to provide artwork for this game.
Time to harness the energies
This game caters for up to 4 players. Each player will pick 1 of the 4 spirit animals and take their spirit guide card to serve as a reminder of each player's kindred spirit. Each player will then gather up their totem stones, adding one of their smaller ones to the 0 space on the scoreboard.
Each player then takes the 1 and 6 card of their spirit, and then their remaining cards are shuffled into a single deck which includes all players' cards. These are then dealt out equally to all players to form their own deck. This means each player now has cards for their kindred spirit, as well as the kindred spirits for other players.
Players draw 3 cards, and they are ready to go.
Now for the playing area.
For your first game, it is worth playing with the most simple set up, where all paths are connected along orthogonal paths in a rectangular-shaped grid of between 15-25 cards (depending on player count). Once you get used to the game, you can use the alternate sides of the ethereal plain cards, offering diagonal paths and, in some cases, no paths at all, creating dead ends. The rulebook also offers a variety of more interesting setup grids, which can also aid in providing some inspiration for your own setup designs.
On a turn, a player will play a card, generate spiritual power, then release stored power.
Play a card
You choose and play a card from your hand, playing into any empty space on the ethereal plane.
Generate spiritual power
Once you have played your card, you proceed by playing your totem stones onto that card and any connected cards.
Connected cards can either be cards connected in a numerical sequence (e.g. 1, 2, 3…. Or 4, 3, 2 …. Or, your connected cards can be of a kind (e.g. all 3’s). The connected cards must also be connected via the ethereal plane paths, creating golden bonds. There will be times that you place totem stones on cards containing other totem stones, both yours and/or other players'.
The final placement rule to be aware of is regarding which size totem to place.
If the kindred spirit card is yours, you place a large totem; if it is of an opposing player, use the smaller totem.
Release stored power
During this stage, you remove all totem stones that were on any cards you have just placed new totem stones on. Each stone removed will score for the owner of that stone, where small totems score 1, and large totems score 2.
Play will continue until there are no spaces left for spirit cards on the ethereal plain.
Once end game is triggered, players will proceed to score additional points based on what stones they have in the ethereal plain, gaining bonuses based on the size of their remaining stones, then also additional points for removing them as with standard game scoring.
The player with the most points will win.
Final thoughts
Before considering our thoughts on the game itself, we just need to talk about the art and artist, Gaby Spencer. The card art is beautiful, and is worthy of being on your wall to admire (hence why do in fact have the crow print on our wall to admire) Each piece has character and is stunningly presented, enhancing the theme of the game. What is really lovely is the section of the rulebook which is dedicated to Gaby Spencer and her work, meaning if you are a fan, you can go and find more examples of her work. This is a nice touch.
The game itself could essentially have been an abstract game, but has opted for a theme, alongside selected artwork, that enables it to look lovely on the table. The vibrant artwork enhances your ability to engage with the game, each piece enabling players to quickly grasp where both their own and opponents’ cards are.
The game has inherent tension built in, where every card you play not only helps you, but also your opponents. So much so, there are times you might actually score less on your turn than other players as you release their totems. In an ideal world you would get your totems on as many of your kindred spirits as possible, but this doesn’t mean you’re going to score them easily as other players my not score that card as part of their connected numerical sequence or ‘of a kind’ cards. Scoring really does go back and forth, and it is very rare to see one player ‘run away with it’.
The variability in set up really allows for plenty of replayability. Whether using some of the suggested patterns, or making your own, no two set-ups of the ethereal plane need be the same. Couple that with how the kindred spirit cards are dealt, and play really does progress differently each time.
As with all Ludus Vulpes titles, you can tell passion is seeped into the design. Never the most complex games, but these are games great as gifts, with beautiful design, and can easily be taught to the whole family or friends. But that doesn’t stop it from having some depth of strategy. Knowing when and where to play certain cards that benefit either you or the opponent is key to getting the best scores.
If you have played other titles by these designers, you will likely enjoy this game also, well worth adding to your collection. If you are unfamiliar with them, correct that and check out this game. It’s another great example of how small, independent, passionate designers can create fantastic games that find a real place in the heart of players.
About the authors
We are Peaches and Meeples, busy professionals who love to chill out to fun table top games. We love board games, card games, miniatures games, competitive or co-operative. Put some dice in our hands and we are in our happy place.
We are also proud guinea pig parents to two lovely fluffballs of joy.
