FiefA fief was a large rural estate that served as the economic, political, and social foundation of the Middle Ages in Western Europe.A fief was divided into three main areas:• Lord's demesne: land belonging exclusively to the feudal lord, where production was intended for his own sustenance and profit;• Serf holdings: plots of land lent to serfs, who made their living from them and paid dues to the lord, AND• Communal lands: areas held in common, such as forests and pastures, used by both the lord and the peasants for hunting, fishing, and gathering firewood.FiefIn Castle Combo, your fief will inevitably suffer from “Mixed Fief Syndrome”: you end up creating a “bizarre” fief where a lavish bishop lives next door to an executioner simply because the “combo” demanded it.The game captures the era’s “social divide” perfectly: the Castle versus the Village. It presents these “two worlds” in a lighthearted way, showing how they need to work together—or at least put up with each other.The Castle, representing the elite, is home to the character cards that score highly but cost a fortune in coins. These are the stuck-up nobles, pompous generals, and lavish clergy. They do not get their hands dirty, but they bring the game’s true prestige: victory points.The Village, on the other hand, represents the common people and is where the game really comes to life. Peasants and artisans are cheap, generate coins and keys, and move the messenger. The Castle may have the gold, but without the Village keeping the whole machine running, the noble will starve in the first round.Castle Combo has a great deal to teach us about the society of the time from a historical perspective.Let’s get to know Castle Combo!Game DetailsCastle Combo is a game for 2 to 5 players, ages 8 and up, designed by Grégory Grard and Mathieu Roussel. The artwork is by Stéphane Escapa.Game BoxCastle Combo was released in 2024 by Catch Up Games, and came to Brazil that same year through Grok Games. Its main mechanic is open drafting.Game ComponentsSince its release in 2024, the game has been nominated for awards, received recommendations, and, of course, won some. Here is the award history of this acclaimed game:- in 2024, it was nominated for Best Card Game at the Board Game Quest Awards;- that same year, it was nominated for and won Light Game of the Year at the Golden Geek;- also in 2024, it was nominated for Best Introductory Game at the Origins Awards;- in 2025, it was recommended by the Spiel des Jahres, AND- in 2026, it was nominated for Best Family Game by the Nederlandse Spellenprijs.Let’s get to the game!The GamePeople currently live either in the Castle or the Village. Your mission is to summon these people—including nobles, clergy, scholars, artisans, soldiers, and peasants—each with a special ability. Together, they can make your fief prosper and earn prestige. To summon them, you can rely on Michel, the messenger, but of course, everything comes at a cost. Manage all these factors and become the best ruler!That is the setting of Castle Combo!Before the game’s setup, it is important to get to know the components:- Castle and Village Character Cards;- Messenger;- Coins, AND- Keys.The Cards, whether they belong to the Castle or the Village, represent the inhabitants of these two locations. They all share the same anatomy, but their abilities, costs, shield(s), scores, and other information naturally differ.Card AnatomyThe Messenger is a key part of Castle Combo. Wherever he is—the Castle or the Village—is the location from which you can buy Cards.Michel, the MessengerCoins are used to pay for Cards when they are purchased, and they are also used at the end of the game in the event of a tie.CoinsKeys have a major impact on the game’s strategy. They serve three purposes:- moving the Messenger;- replacing Cards from a given location, AND- scoring points at the end of the game.KeysWith the components introduced, it is time for the setup:A) shuffle the Castle Cards and form a deck. Reveal the top 3 cards in a row beside the deck;B) do the same with the Village Cards: shuffle them, form a deck, and revealthe top 3 cards in a row beside the deck;C) place the Messenger pawn beside the revealed Village Cards, ANDD) each player receives 2 Keys and 15 Coins. Place all remaining Keys and Coins within everyone’s reach; this is the supply.Setup complete! Choose the first player at random.Game SetupStarting with the first player and proceeding clockwise, players take turns until each player has 9 cards in front of them in a 3x3 grid. This is their completed fief.A turn has just 4 steps:- spend a Key, if desired;- buy a Card;- resolve the Card’s ability, AND- move the Messenger pawn and replenish the location’s Card.You may spend a Key if you wish, but note that you can spend only one Key per turn to take one of 2 actions:- move the Messenger OR- replace the Cards at the Messenger’s current location.Moving the Messenger is highly strategic. It determines which location you will buy a Card from, so choose carefully.Moving the Messenger from the Village to the CastleIf you choose to replace the Cards at the Messenger’s location, all 3 Cards there are discarded and 3 new Cards are revealed. This is the famous refresh, which is very useful when none of the Cards at the Messenger’s current location interest you and moving him to the other location would not help much either.Replacing the Village CardsSpending a Key can greatly improve your turn, but holding on to them is also important, since each one is worth 1 point at the end of the game. Use them sparingly—or, better yet, strategically.Now it is time to buy a character Card. This action is mandatory: you must buy one of the 3 face-up cards at the Messenger’s current location and pay its cost in Coins.Some Card abilities provide a permanent discount when buying Cards from a specific location—the Castle, the Village, or both. This is shown by a gold line on the Card, and the best part is that discounts stack. The only restriction is that a Card’s cost cannot be reduced below 0 (zero) Coins; in other words, you do not gain Coins if your discounts exceed the Card’s cost.Discount ExamplesIf, when buying a Card, you do not have enough Coins—or simply do not want to spend any—you can take a Card without paying its cost by placing it face down in your play area.By doing so, you ignore the Card’s ability, end-game points, and any other information printed on it. However, you immediately gain 6 Coins and 2 Keys as compensation. This is shown on the back of the cards.Card BacksAfter buying—or not buying—the Card, place it in your play area according to the following positioning rules:- each Card after the first must be placed orthogonally adjacent to at least one other card in your play area, AND- at the end of the game, your play area must form a 3x3 grid.Positioning RulesNow it is time to resolve the Card’s ability. This is mandatory. The Card itself is taken into account when resolving its ability, unless the ability provides a discount.Ability ExampleFinally, move the Messenger pawn and replenish the location’s Card. If the Card you bought has a Messenger icon printed on it, move the Messenger pawn to the location shown:- Village: brown/down, OR- Castle: gray/up.Messenger Movement IconsIf there is no icon, or if the Card was taken to be placed face down, the Messenger does not move. To finish, reveal a Card to replenish the location’s Card that is missing.After that, it is the player to your left’s turn. That is a turn in Castle Combo.End of the GameThe game ends as soon as all players have built their play areas with 9 Cards.There is one important detail before final scoring: Cards with “Purse scoring.” When the game ends, players place their remaining Coins on Cards with “Purse scoring” in their play areas. Each purse can hold as many Coins as the number printed in black on the Purse.This Card can hold up to 4 Coins, and each Coin is worth 2 pointsNow it is time to count the points:- points on each Scroll: count the points on each scoring Scroll shown on your Cards. Each scoring Scroll refers only to the elements in YOUR OWN play area when scoring. Face-down Cards are worth no points, AND- one point per Key: each Key you have is worth 1 point.Coins not stored in Purses are worth no points; they are used only as a tiebreaker.Your final score is the total points from all your Cards and Keys.The player with the most points wins the game. In the event of a tie, the tied player with the most remaining Coins wins. If the tie persists, the tied players share the victory.Strategic TipsIn Castle Combo, the key is to optimize your use of resources and carefully plan your card placement to maximize your scoring Scrolls—in other words, to do what the game’s name suggests: “combo.”To do this, your initial goal should be to focus from the beginning of the game on building an “economic engine” based on obtaining permanent discounts to reduce your use of Coins. This will have an excellent impact throughout the rest of the game. Focus on this early on.If your Coins run out or become scarce, your only option is to place a Card face down, immediately gaining 6 Coins and 2 Keys. You can also use this to pay for more valuable Cards. Use this resource sparingly, since face-down Cards have no abilities and are worth no points at the end of the game.Keys are important because they provide both flexibility and points. They let you move the Messenger or replace all 3 Cards at a location, but keeping them also earns you points at the end of the game. Manage your needs carefully, checking whether, for example, replacing 3 Cards is worth giving up the guaranteed point from the Key.Since the game ends after each player has 9 Cards arranged in a 3x3 grid, plan your Card placement carefully so that the Cards have synergy—in other words, so they can “combo.” Shields also have synergies, so manage them carefully, as they can earn you good points, just like “combing” rows and columns. There are several point multipliers based on these elements; after all, the game is about “combing.”Do not ignore “Purse scoring.” It is the only way to convert your Coins into points. Remember that all Coins outside “Purses” are worth no points and are used only in the event of a tie.With that in mind, stay alert for the opportunities the game presents. Use Purses, save Coins, use Keys wisely, build your best strategy to create synergy among your character Cards, “combo,” and win at Castle Combo!Unboxing, Rules, and Gameplay VideosEnjoy the Unboxing:Watch a Rules video:Check out a Gameplay:Educational TipsIf you are looking for a game with eye-catching artwork that is easy to explain and for kids to understand, as well as fast and fun, Castle Combo is the game for you!They clearly spared no expense on the game's artwork, which is beautiful and fun. The characters are well suited to the medieval setting, and it's easy to see the kids admiring the illustrations. Kudos to the artist.This is a real “hook” for kids: the cards make strong use of color, and there are plenty of icons but very little text, allowing the game to move along quickly. The kids soon memorize the icons and play on their own, without needing help during the game.The game is a lot of fun! The kids hesitate to spend their coins on character cards and risk running out, but at the same time, they recognize the advantage of having those cards, since they can earn more coins, keys, discounts, or points. It's fascinating to watch the kids “analyzing” their options; this is part of the game's learning curve and of their developing reasoning skills.The game's “combo” system applies to every card, so the kids are constantly exercising this skill throughout the game. It's wonderful to see them celebrate buying a card that will “combo” with another.Castle Combo offers all of this, but beyond the fun, it also gives kids the opportunity to develop important skills, including:- resource management: managing coins and keys;- strategy: knowing where and when to use their resources;- spatial awareness: placing cards orthogonally to maximize points;- decision-making: deciding what to invest in and where to spend their resources; AND- logical-mathematical reasoning: calculating the points from their “combos.”From an educational standpoint, Castle Combo covers resource management, encourages strategic thinking, spatial awareness, decision-making, and logical-mathematical reasoning—and it's fun on top of all that!I highly recommend Castle Combo for your collection!!!
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