Here be Dragons sails out of early access!

“America had often been discovered before Columbus, but it had always been hushed up.” – Oscar Wilde

Overview

“Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas in 1492. In 10 weeks. With 100 men. With 3 ships. This is a LIE!“

Set in a satirical, alternate 15th century, Here be Dragons is a pseudo-historical, turn-based strategy game. Players take on the role of the ‘real’ explorers, fools and lunatics forcibly sailing across a living map under royal order, battling pirates and sea creatures with a combination of tactics and luck. These events, known as the Avant Armada, would later be stricken from all record and the truth replaced with the lie.

Narrative and Styling

Besides the overarching narrative that history is full of falsehoods, Here be Dragons adds an extra element of storytelling in the adventures of each of the protagonists. The game begins in an inn and every voyage begins with the innkeeper recounting each unwilling explorer’s expedition. These tales tie into the game’s themes and add character to the overall experience as well as adding jaunty intervals to what could otherwise become a fairly repetitive exercise. The writing style is light-hearted and fun, with a few ye olde nautical motifs in keeping with the game’s tone, however, the humour can be somewhat hit or miss.

There is a jolly narrator in sections of the game but little voice acting for the most part. The music and sound effects are fun, appropriate and implemented well; they added to the general ambience but didn’t stand out in any original way. Here be Dragons has an interesting overall aesthetic, akin to a cartoon version of an old treasure map with an aged, sepia stained colour palette. This is a fitting style for the game given that combat takes place upon a literal map rather than at sea.

Gameplay

As expected, the start of the game incorporates a tutorial clarifying the most basic combat mechanics, whilst this is helpful it was overly wordy at times, often seeming to attempt humour at the expense of clear, succinct instructions. However, different elements of gameplay are introduced very gradually and this combined with fairly unpunishing defeats means that learning by playing is both manageable and satisfying.

Each character’s voyage will include a number of battles against enemies of increasing variety and difficulty, players will encounter a range of creatures from sharks to leviathan and other mythical beasts of the deep, all with their own unique abilities. Combat uses a dice activation system to establish initiative, bolster attacks, heal and upgrade the fleet. Whilst this adds a random element and ensures a level of variety, the element of luck counters the tactical nature of the game and can generate some frustrating results.

Here be Dragons also adds some extra mechanics such as collecting ink bottles that spawn throughout battles, this provides the player with Errata which can then be used to change the tides of an encounter with options such as rerolls and extra heals.

Summary

Here be Dragons will provide multiple hours of gameplay featuring a range of combat and enemies, a touch of humour and some pleasing visuals. It is a satisfying tactical experience with replayability afforded to it by the random nature of the dice mechanic and I’d happily recommend it to anyone looking for a turn-based strategy game with a more casual feel.

If you enjoyed this you may also be interested in our reviews of luck-based Dicey Dungeons or the more strategy focused Shortest Trip to Earth!

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