The Red Cathedral (PT, EN, ES)

Description

Autumn is not the best time to climb scaffolding in Moscow, but it is still much better than winter. Tsar Ivan wants results, and our team will prove that we are the best builders in the city. Surely, if we close these decorative arches with the brightest stones, we will be sure to be on the list of trusted workers of the state.

Sheila Santos and Israel Cendrero are the game design duo known as Llama Dice. To date, they have published several titles with different Spanish publishers (1987 Channel Tunnel, Mondrian, Smoothies), and The Red Cathedral is their first game with Devir. Pedro Soto (Holmes, Sherlock & Mycroft, Papua) and Chema Román (El mundo de Águila Roja) are responsible for the game's graphics, paying homage to Iván Bilibin, an iconic 18th-century Russian artist, which, despite being later than the game's time, results in a very recognizable style.

The Red Cathedral is a medium-sized Euro strategy game in which players take on the role of construction teams. Their job is to build St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow together, commissioned by Ivan the Terrible. But only one of them will be able to win the Tsar's favor.

During the game, players can perform one of three actions: assign themselves a section of the cathedral, send resources to that section to build it, or visit the game board to obtain more resources. Each of these actions has its own mechanics and requires players to pay attention to what their opponents are doing.

By assigning sections of the cathedral, players will take ownership of spaces in each of the columns that make it up. The more sections each player has built and completed in each tower, the more points they will earn at the end of the game.
Players can send resources to the sections of the cathedral they have claimed. Completing each section will reward them with cash and prestige points. They can also place decorations on completed sections to gain even more recognition from the Tsar. This part of the game also acts as a clock, as once the player completes the construction of their sixth section of the game, it triggers the end of the game.

The game board shows us the now iconic rondel of The Red Cathedral. This is where players will obtain all kinds of resources to carry out their work in the cathedral, as well as obtain favors from guilds and professionals to optimize their visit to the market. In the central rondel, players will choose the die they want to use and advance as many spaces as its top face indicates, thus obtaining the resources indicated in the final box where they leave the die.

The Red Cathedral is an accessible game in terms of rules, as it is very easy to assimilate the different levels of the game, but it has a very interesting level of strategy. It will certainly appeal to those who are inclined towards games in which the challenge lies in optimizing the game and not in the complexity of the rules.