A board game which parallels D&D with Left4Dead
Zombicide, a board game I hear often with raving reviews. But is it as good as everyone makes it out to be? I thought it was about time I tried this game for myself just to let you know how it truly fairs within the realm of board games.
Zombicide was published in 2012 after a very successful Kickstarter Campaign by CoolMiniOrNot, with multiple variations of the game spanning from modern, fantasy and sci-fi to recent Marvel and DC editions. The game mechanics are basically the same: you and your team of survivors must complete quests in order survive the ever-growing hordes of zombies. You use a bunch of D6 (six-sided dice) for your rolls and hope that your skills in teamplay coupled with your luck of the dice help you on your way to escaping each level.
My friend Kris is obsessed an expert with this game in particular, he has an entire room filled with miniatures for the game as well as game booklets and Kickstarter exclusive items, so I reached out to him asking him where to begin since there are so many variations of this game, since I’m a fan of D&D he said to try out Zombicide: Black Plague.
“Zombicide is a staple for me because it has so much replayability and it’s just so different every time you play. Easy to learn and set up, I’d best describe the game as Left 4 Dead adapted as a tabletop game.
With Black Plague, it really is like playing D&D with aspects like Role-play and lengthy character creations removed and the need for a Game Master. Streamlined for efficiency, Black Plague is a great way to itch the scratch you may have to fight off hordes of Fantasy creatures and undead foes in a Medieval setting.”
– Kris
A collection of the recent Zombicide Marvel games (photo courtesy of Kris)
You’re into D&D, right?
As mentioned earlier, there’s many reskins of the game; Kris recommended I get the Black Plague edition so I decided to purchase it and give it a shot. Here’s my honest review on how I found Zombicide: Black Plague.
Zombicide: Black Plague takes place in a alternate fantasy realm where a plague which turns people into zombies has ravaged the entire planet. Everyone is now on equal footing, the majestic and once noble wizard is helping the peasantry and fighting for survival just as much as the clergy and tavern frequenting ruffians are.
Upon opening the box the first thing which caught my attention was the quality: the board, the tokens, the miniatures, they’re all made with good quality in mind. The box came with a serious amount of miniatures, mostly zombies, and the 6 main characters you can play as. You get a bunch of small cards which represent random encounters and items used in the game.
One cool thing that it also came with was 6 plastic character boards which Kris informed me have become the norm for future editions after this addition to Black Plague; it’s essentially a character slot organiser, your character can use varied amount of items in the game to defend, attack, help and trap – and this is very important to survival, you must work as a team in order to survive. We found it quite easy to play the game which is a good selling point, and the rulebook was very straightforward. The character board was a welcome addition to keeping everything in one place, you can even play this game solo so this set-up is quite ideal.
During our playthrough, my wizard had discovered some dragon bile (molotov cocktails in the standard edition) and set up a trap as the zombies grew in number. Myself and one of the fighters held the horde back as I used a fireball spell to destroy virtually all of the zombies on the board when they inevitably moved towards us, and my trap, allowing the others to escape that round, with us two then leaving the round after, completing the first quest. We were dialed in as a team immediately and really enjoyed the first quest.
You really start to get an understanding very early on with just how much your actions can affect your team and thinking one step ahead is crucial to this game.
The playability of Zombicide is another factor which lends credence as to why this game is so popular. It’s not like Warhammer where you need to focus, you can just learn the rules and play. The game has a level up system that’s very easy to understand and is literally spelt out on the cards for you – which affects the game – and ultimately your game-style. This is all detailed on both your player card and the events cards which you pull each round, anything can happen from absolutely nothing to hordes of zombies or even gigantic brutes terrorising the map, attempting to lessen your chances of escape. The game is narrative driven too so if you like a roleplay element, it has that.
A cheeky excerpt from the rulebook
Zombicide: Black Plague introduction game
What’s more, the game is friendly enough that it’s aimed at ages 14+ with enough content to captivate everyone above that age with some cheeky lore, funny quotes and simple enough rules. The lore was very straightforward and the quests contained within the back of the rulebook are easy to set up and fun to play. With each playthrough, your game changes – you will never play the same game twice, again adding to the playability of Zombicide: Black Plague.
The 6 main characters which come with the board game
Final Thoughts
I dig it. If you’re into zombies, board games, fantasy and having fun with friends, you’ll dig it too. I mean, the zombie miniatures alone can be used for other games too so it’s quite versatile in that aspect, not to mention how well detailed they are.
I would like to play some of the other versions to see what kind of minis, maps and scenarios are in place, but Black Plague alone is a great game that has left me satisfied with the Zombicide franchise.
Zombidie: Black Plague comes with 10 main quests including a beginner quest to get everyone familiar with the rules, it’s really easy to pick up and play and you’ll learn from the get-go to work as a team. Your average game will last from 1-2 hours. Your strategy and the way you play will change due to any number of reasons, and though the box comes with a huge amount of zombies, if you find yourself running out of some to put on the board, you might want to just re-think those strategies…
I give this a solid 10/10. So long as one person knows the rules, you can play it wherever with whomever at any time of the day with playability not being an issue and the minis looking sweet. And that’s just for Zombicide: Black Plague.
– Rabs, The Saucerer