The Taverns of Teifenthal may seem like a strange name for a board game, but considering it is the second game to come out by game designer Wolfgang Warsch it’s not surprising at all. The whimsical names of his board games only add to the intrigue of playing them. The title for his other popular game, The Quacks of Quedlenberg, didn’t have much to do with the game itself. The Taverns of Teifenthal however, does give insights into what kind of fun can be had inside the box.

In this 2-4 player game, players take a stab at running a successful pub. You have patrons, brewers, waitresses, dishwashers, beer, and money. To make your pub stand out above the competitors you’ll need a healthy combination of all these components to win. Beer lures in better patrons who give you more cash flow, while cash flow gives you the ability to upgrade your pub to receive more visits from royals. Royals give you the most victory points in the game, and are essential to getting the best pub in town.

Glorious Aspects Of The Game

This game combines traditional deck building techniques with a unique twist, in which you pass and play dice at the same time. I’ve played quite a few games and this is the first time I’ve seen the pass and play of dice–where what you role could potentially affect other players. It’s this aspect of the game that makes The Taverns Of Teifenthal truly stand out.

The game itself is well balanced. There is a sense that it was extensively play tested. There are multiple ways to victory and nothing can derail you so much that you feel you couldn’t get back on track to still win the game. I think well balanced games are hard to create, and this one was very well designed. There is enough variability in the game to have a different strategy or “Different” game each time, which is a huge plus when you are spending money on a game.

Besides the actual game play itself, The Taverns of Teifenthal has extraordinary artwork. It looks and feels like you are running an 18th century style pub. This makes it easy to slip into the role of “pub owner” and suspend your reality for a while. Who needs to go out and see people during the covid-19 crisis when you have your own pub and patrons who are expecting you to give them the beer they are craving?

Things The Game Is Missing

Although there is the unique aspect of passing and playing dice, The Taverns Of Teifenthal is really a solitaire style game. There is not much player interaction in the rest of the game. As somebody who loves player interaction and have “screwage” factors in gameplay, there is not much of it here. Sure, you could take a dice that your opponent needs and leave them with dice that are less than satisfactory, but they still have plenty of options and it wouldn’t ruin their entire strategy.

The amount of pieces in the box could scare anybody away from wanting to play it. There is just so many moving parts. This is because when you upgrade your pub you have to be able to flip pieces over to reflect that upgrade. Although the actual game play itself is quite easy to understand, I understand that a huge amount of pieces can be overwhelming. In truth, it is hard to put the game away because things need to be sorted back into their respective piles.

Overall I would highly recommend The Taverns of Teifenthal to anybody wanting to experience a new game with a unique twist of gameplay. It’s well worth the cost of the game. I see myself playing this game for years to come. Like Donna and Tom said in Parks and Rec, “Treat Yo Self.” If you treat yourself to this game you won’t be disappointed.