Review: Dungeon Architect Cards

What's going on everyone! Today I've got a review for those of us that like RPG's and other games with dungeon crawling! I got a hold of the fine folks over at Simian Circle Games who not only have an awesome RPG but cards that help aid in making random dungeons on the fly as well. The product in question is their Dungeon Architect Cards(or DAC for short). So sit back, Grab your trusty #2 and lets take a look at how this all works!

As always, here's a bit to get us going:

"Dungeon Architect Cards are a deck of 53 cards (plus 1 instruction card) that allow role-playing enthusiasts, world builders, GMs, gamers, map makers, dungeon designers and anyone who has an imagination to quickly create and describe unique dungeons."

    

Now, As it states, there are 54 cards total in this deck. These cards have different rooms, passages, hallways or secret rooms on them as well. Not only that but they also give you some descriptors to help aid you in your creation and fuel your imagination.

To use DAC's you simply go through the deck and take the cards you would like to include in your dungeon. Start by shuffling them up and then you're ready to go, it REALLY is that easy!

This review is a bit different. The reason being, over the years I've made quite a few dungeons from scratch myself. So since this is made as an aid, I thought it would be a PERFECT way to try out someone who has NEVER made a dungeon.. My lovely wife!

So I gave her the cards and some graph paper and a notebook, tossed her a pencil and asked her to make a dungeon however big or small that she would like to do. The result was impressive to be honest! 

She came up with a smaller sized dungeon and even wrote some details about it which was surprising to me. Not to be rude, but even she will tell you that she just doesn't have as bright of an imagination for such things usually when it comes to making them up on her own.

DAC's truly opened up her mind and let her run free, creating a dungeon she could be proud of. The best part was, it was fast, simple and fun!

On to my opinion:

Art: The art is great, it's nothing fancy but it doesn't need to be. It's very clear and easy to understand what is what and where it is.

Design: The design of the cards and the fact that they're double sided is wonderful. The layout on each card is precise and exactly how you would expect something like this to be. Very pleasing to know that there is no confusion on these cards.

Quality: The quality of the deck of cards and the box is great. The colors are nice and bright and everything just "Feels" like a quality deck of cards. The box is nice and sturdy with thicker cardboard and the cards fit perfectly in the box so there is no worry of the box getting crushed while being stored.

Should you buy this? If you're looking for a great way to make dungeons on the fly, YES! Not only is it easy to do but quite literally just about ANYONE can make an awesome dungeon with some lore to it as well as treasures!

I learned one important thing while reviewing these cards... They open the door for others out there who might be intimidated at the thought of making a sprawling dungeon. This is a wonderful thing to know because now, I can share the fun WITH my wife or any other friends and let THEM make part of a story all their own!

PICK UP YOUR DECK HERE!

I can't wait for a possible chance to review another deck they're working on called WORLD ARCHITECT CARDS! Now THAT should be fun! :D

I'm going to be working on scans of the dungeon my wife created as well as the descriptions she wrote for it. I'll update this post as soon as those are available. :)

As always, thank you for reading and take care! :)

-Tim