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Unmatched: Sun’s Origin
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Description
Japan has a long history, rich with brilliant strategists and fierce warriors. We are thrilled to bring two of their larger-than-life heroes to the world of Unmatched. Unmatched is the critically acclaimed, best-selling game of tactical combat between unlikely opponents.
Oda Nobunaga was a 16th-century daimyo credited with unifying Japan. In battle, he commands his honor guard, a pair of unique sidekicks, each with their own health dial a first in the Unmatched system. Tomoe Gozen was the unlikely and unstoppable female warrior, whose deeds found their way into the epic Tale of the Heike. She pursues enemies with singular purpose, punishing them when they flee. The battle unfolds in the storied Azuchi Castle, featuring one of the most intriguing layouts ever released in a two-player map.
Player Count: 2
Time : 20 - 40 min
Age: 9+
Unmatched is a game in which characters from legends, fiction and history, battle it out to defeat their opponents in a high-intensity, fast-paced match. Each character has a special ability that makes their playthrough unique, giving the game endless possibilities. Mixing and matching opponents from different sets and universes to face each other brings nuance to each game.
In this edition of Unmatched: Sun’s Origin, we meet Tomoe Gozen and Oda Nobunaga.
Tomoe
Tomoe Gozen was a female samurai warrior who did not wavier under a turn of events that felt impossible, standing her ground during the war and destroying all that came her way. Tomoe is a ranged character with 14 health and 2 movement. I believe in this game ranged characters have an advantage from the get-go over their melee 2 moving foes. Tomoe’s special ability is when an opposing hero leaves her zone, the fighter has to take one damage. The downside of Tomoe is the small print in the wording of her ability, her effect only deals damage to the heroes. This means that those who send their sidekicks to fight whilst they hide in the distance, won’t be at risk to this ability. Tomoe has three ‘feint’ cards called ‘flash of steel’ which cancels all effects, but like her ability, only if it is a hero, meaning the sidekick effects will always occur. Tomoe has high-value cards and can hit you hard. She has two attacks with a value of ‘7’ that has to be played face up so can choose the suitable defence for one of the highest value cards you’ll see in the game. Tomoe has a great matchup against Oda in which the games I’ve played she typically won, being able to keep her distance and still do damage whilst doing auto damage to those who leave her zone is lovely. However, she wouldn’t be my first ranged character pick as her damage and ability don’t compare to that of Medusa or Yennenga.
Oda Nobunaga
Oda is regarded as ‘the great unifier’ of Japan and was the leader of the ‘oda clan which launched a war to action this. Oda used great patience and strategic techniques which have been applied to the traits of his unmatched character. Oda is a melee character with 2 movement and 13 health. Oda has two sidekicks, The honour guards. One red and one blue, each with six health. Oda’s ability is the Master strategist, other friendly fighters in Oda’s zone add plus one to the value of their played combat cards. Oda has card effects which take place if the opposing fighter is flanked, which means that they are adjacent to two or more fighters under your control. These abilities make the honour guards a very valuable piece of your play that you do not want to lose. The downside about Oda is the fact that he relies so heavily on his sidekicks. With only 6 health they can be taken out quickly, and if they do that Oda’s ability is gone. Oda is undoubtedly an entertaining character to play and unique in that the player is forced to think strategically when manoeuvring, so his deck feels very thematic.
The Good
I was very eager to get this set because I love me a ranged character and it didn’t disappoint. Tomoe is a strong attacker which can give a lot of people a run for their money. I think despite Tomoe being slightly better against Oda, there are matchups in which Oda has completely destroyed people too ( I don’t want to talk about it, it is far too soon)
I think thematically Oda’s use of flanking and strategy in his ability makes for such an interesting playthrough, most cards make use of flanking or encourage movement which I think provides you fun playing him whether you win or lose.
The art style as always unmatched is beautiful, it matches the set and the cards look so cool, there is so much attention to detail when it comes to the cards, boards and boxes. I also love the minis and have recently been painting them, and I’ll be getting to this set soon.
The ever so slightly less good
This is difficult, I love unmatched and this is a good strong set. I think Tomoe just slightly overpowers Oda, which is fine especially if you have more characters to play with but I would recommend a different set to start with. This is a great set if you’ve got a few characters already and want a few more to play with. These have better matchups against others but also worse, as is the way with unmatched so it is fun to experiment and see which players come out on top.
I always get a little disappointed when the map isn’t different on each side, which for the earlier sets it used to be, but now not so much anymore. I think it is because they want to save some creative juices for different maps in the future, but it does take out some of the excitement of seeing how the map affects each player.
Additionally, the box insert is quite tight. I like to sleeve my cards to protect them which I would recommend for durability. However, this box only has room for unsleeved cards so if you wish to protect them you will have to look at other storage solutions.
However, that is all I could think to say negatively about this set. I think it is a really enjoyable set, full of hours of fun (well definitely more fun if you tactically pick Tomoe each time you play this box). Unmatched is truly a game that can be loved by anyone and everyone. It is so easy to learn and will make non-board game lovers love this game.
It seems as though the Unmatched series has been leaping from success to success. With this success has come a slew of new Unmatched sets, including Sun’s Origin, a two-character set focussing on two figures from Japanese history, Oda Nobunaga and Tomoe Gozen. This release is one of a growing list of Unmatched brining historical figures to life, joining the ranks of Shakespeare and Tesla. While the core mechanics are the same as all other Unmatched sets, there are some unique elements that I’ll be exploring here.
Contents and Gameplay
Fans of Unmatched have come to expect an incredibly high standard when it comes to series’ components. With its subtle style and beautiful sculpts, Sun’s Origin is no exception to this standard. Artist Yuta Onoda has delivered a set of beautifully coherent cards, with a new board that really lets the characters shine. Along with the cards, the miniatures themselves are imposing and distinct, standing out, even against the huge selection of other Unmatched sets.
It seems as well that beauty is much more than just skin deep. Along with striking visuals, Sun’s Origin packs some enjoyable features to set it apart from the rest of the family. However, these are rather restricted, only impacting Nobunaga in the form of his abilty. This means the set’s impact on the Unmatched series as a whole is limited to games played with either of the two characters. It is almost refreshing that play is focussed on the characters, rather than the board and its tricks.
For Nobunaga, this new feature brings in rules around ‘flanking’, when a character is adjacent to two or more of the opposing character’s fighters. While this feature would be very fun brought into other sets, it does help balance the scales and make melee/ranged gameplay feel a little more even. In this two-player set, flanking can make some exciting plays, with competitors having to think a little more on their toes to avoid finding themselves on the wrong end of Nobunaga’s sword.
Gozen’s style of play is focussed on her ability, allowing her to cause damage when an opponent leaves her zone. This is driven further by her deck containing cards that can push enemies, allowing for some powered-up combos if timed correctly.
Replayability and Closing Thoughts
Given the nicely balanced abilities of the set’s characters, Sun’s Origin is a great basis for some 1V1 action. How players chose to make the most out of Nobunaga’s flanking rules, or Gozen’s forced movement, make each game feel different and each matchup can be made or broken in a single round. It is worth nothing, however, that while Gozen and Nobunaga pair up quite nicely, their useability on larger boards or against different enemies falters slightly. Another element to consider is that while the abilities of the two characters can make for fantastic plays, they can be difficult to wrangle. This is especially true for newer or more inexperienced players, who may find it more frustrating than fun in the early days.
All things considered, Sun’s Origin is a fun addition to the family, and when played in isolation constitutes a great set. For a couple looking for a new challenge, or for the die-hard Unmatched collectors, this is a great opportunity to get your teeth into something a little more complex.
Scores:
Overall: 89%
Artwork – 5/5
Complexity – 4/5
Replayability – 4/5
Player Interaction – 5/5
Component Quality – 5/5