Asmodee gives information on GenCon hot game Black Angel
Asmodee has pre-order information for one of their hottest games of GenCon 2019, Black Angel. Only the most dedicated line-sitters were able to nab one of the few copies of this spectacular game at the show, as it consistently sold out at the start of the convention each day.
“Humanity, through its irresponsible behavior, has rendered Earth uninhabitable. The greatest nations are forced to share their knowledge in order to create the largest spacecraft ever constructed: the Black Angel. Its mission: Transport the genetic heritage of Humanity to a new home planet.”
Black Angel is the loving brain child of Pearl Games designers Sébastien Dujardin, Xavier Georges, and Alain Orban – the creators of the cult dice drafting favorite Troyes (2010). In Black Angel, 1-4 players take on the roles of competing A.I. brains, guiding the eponymous unmanned starship on its thousand year mission to deliver mankind’s DNA to a distant world. The game is a dice drafting game, wherein the players have their own dice pool, used to drive action on and around the starship. However, other players’ dice are free game, and can be bought with resources. Dice come in 3 colors, defining the actions they can trigger, with the number of pips on the die being the strength of the triggered action. Actions allow the player to repair the ship, fight back the evil ravager attackers, gain new technological programs, or execute missions in the planets surrounding the traveling Black Angel. Exterior missions are accessed by beautiful robot meeples, which fly around space in small round saucers. The player board holds a 3x3 grid of technology tiles, which can be activated in unique ways throughout the game. The Black Angel itself “flies” along a conveyer belt board of chevron shaped hex tiles; Strips behind the ship are removed, flipped, and placed in front, propelling Black Angel forward on its journey to a new home world. Mission cards previously played in the disappearing wake of the ship are left behind in space (discarded), giving benefits and scoring opportunities to their owners. All together, Black Angel is a heavy, dice drafting, engine building euro game, sure to be a hit seller once inventory can catch up with the overwhelming demand.
Black Angel comes with game board, 7 chevron space strips, 4 player boards, 64 robot figurines with 20 saucer ships, 18 custom dice, 60 technology tiles, 60 mission cards, 20 ravager cards, clear gem “resource” tokens, red “debris” tokens, scoring discs, and player aids. The game is enhanced by Ian O'Toole's fantastically colorful yet minimalistic sci-fi art. A solo mode is included, and the game should be available for purchase in 3rd quarter 2019. For more information, check out Pearl Games’ website on Black Angel here.
