In this episode, we see what happens when heroes from stories and legends battle it out in Unmatched!

Unmatched is actually a series of games from Restoration Games. That company specializes in taking older games and redesigning them for a modern audience. They have “restored” games like Downforce, Fireball Island, Thunder Road, and Dark Tower. Unmatched is based on a more recent game, Star Wars: Epic Duels, from 2002, with the redesign done by Rob Daviau and Justin D. Jacobson. In both games, two players each take control of a different hero, and each hero has its own unique deck of cards for attack, defense, and special abilities. You place your hero figures on a board showing a battlefield, then take turns moving around the battlefield and playing cards from your hand to attack your opponent.

In this episode, the 12-year-old and I discuss Unmatched: Cobble & Fog, a set that includes four heroes: Sherlock Holmes, the Invisible Man, Dracula, and Jekyll & Hyde. Each hero has a different set of cards to play, and pretty much every card has some special ability on it, all thematically linked to the heroes. For instance, the Invisible Man is all about the hit and run, doing a little damage and then fading into the mist to avoid getting hit himself. Or take Sherlock Holmes, many of whose cards involve either looking at the opponent’s cards or getting bonuses if his player can guess what the opponent is playing. One thing I love about Unmatched is how different each hero plays, yet how well balanced they all are.

Come for the one-on-one Victorian-era combat, stay for the 12-year-old’s reaction to seeing the Unmatched Jurassic Park set with a giant t-rex!

Buy Unmatched: Cobble & Fog on Amazon.

Explore the fan-created heroes on Unmatched Maker.

Visit the First Player Token website.

Order a First Player Token coffee mug.

Join the First Player Token Facebook group.

Follow @firstplayertoken on Instagram.

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Music: “Open Road” and “The Concept,” https://www.purple-planet.com/.