Players: 2 to 4 players
Age: 10 and up.
Length: 60 minutes
Contents: 54 Card, 120 Tiles, 80 Wooden Kingdom Markers, 1 Tile Bag, Rules
Horus is Mayfair's Egyptian-themed, tile-laying game where players set up and
expand their territory along the sacred Nile River. As their influence grows, they venture into new territories in hopes of
gaining favor from Horus, the falcon-headed god. This game is not as complicated as I first thought, but a bit of strategy
is still, nonetheless, required. Certain decisions must be made; what kind of terrain will the desert become? How and where
do you plan to block your opponents from expanding their territory? Clever playing of the cards and tiles is the key to determining
the outcome of the game. The player with the most points scored from the influence in the different placed terrain tiles wins
the game.
Each player gets 20 wooden bits in whatever color they choose(four different
colors for up to 4 players- black, blue, white and gold). Random tiles are then shuffled and placed in the bag while selection
tiles are separated into five different piles representing each of the 5 different terrain- marsh, river, hills, farmland,
desert. After initially placing three river tiles (one river start, two river ends) to mark the starting point of the
game, each player performs a series of actions in the following order during each turn: 1.) Drawing a tile and placing it
on the board. If it's a terrain tile it can be placed anywhere, but usually next to a tile of the same terrain and as
long as they don't block the future course of the Nile River's flow. If it's a river tile, the player places it on either
of the spots where the river end tiles sits, which in turn is moved adjacent to the selected river tile. The player
then draws another river tile from the stack and places it adjacent to a river tile. If they so choose, they may turn the
tile over to reveal its Necropolis side. The Necropolis mostly acts as a deterrent against other players from expanding
to a spot adjacent to it, and doesn't figure in the scoring. If a Horus tile is chosen, it can only be
placed adjacent to a river tile, but will double the score of any player's terrain that border's it. 2.) Play a card from
your hand. Selecting a card from your hand, a tile matching the terrain as indicated on the card must be selected from
the stack and placed on the board as according to the rules. 3.) Place influence markers. You then take wooden influence
marker and place it atop a free space terrain that matches the size number as indicated on the card you've just played; it
doesn't have to match the terrain type on the card. Should the card played is a river transport card, you can then
place two adjoining river tiles from the stack and move an influence marker from one territory adjoining the river to
another. 4.) Draw a card to replenish any non-river transport cards played from the hand. The game ends once two types
of terrains have been exhausted. The points are then tallied for each territory based on a scoring system, and the player
with the most points wins.
Horus is one of the funnest all-around games I have played in recent years.
The tile-laying aspect of it is quite simple, yet there is enough depth to keep participants involved and coming back for
more. Another plus is that games usually last about 30 minutes, so it won't hold up anyone with a busy schedule, and allows
for new layers to join in. Horus is similar in nature to other classics like Dominoes and Cribbage in that it can be played
by people of all ages, and is the kind of game you would often find going on in a pub, open square, or park. It also works
well as a teaching tool for children. Designer Jean Vanaise has showed his genius with the development of this game. By incorporating
the best elements of gaming with his own ideas and the visual presentation of the stunning artwork in the game pieces, he
has created a timeless classic with a style that is uniquely his and will be a main fixture in the board game industry for
generations to come. 5 OUT OF 5 STARS
