Dungeon Universalis Sample Gameplay | A Short Playthrough of Several DUN Turns | Sponsored Video

Always Board Never Boring recently received a review copy of Dungeon Universalis from Ludic Dragon Games. Having already reviewed the game, he now runs through several sample turns to show some of the basic gameplay elements, such as exploring, searching rooms, and fighting some orcs.
Thank you to Ludic Dragon Games for making this video possible. You can find out more about Ludic Dragon games on their official website:
ludicdragon.com/
If you want some time stamps, here they are:
00:00 Intro
02:20 Heroes
04:28 Automated dark player
05:43 Setting up the dungeon
06:20 Turn one - opening doors and exploring
11:01 Turn two - safety zones, traps & furniture
15:03 Turn three - searching
16:56 Turn four - placing monsters & combat
25:14 Turn five - more combat & magic
29:55 Final thoughts
#DungeonUniversalis #DUN #LudicDragon
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[@angelk.8285]

Thanks for sharing! This is the most deep, the most immersive, the most complex and the most rewarding experience i have with a dungeon crawler. Looking forward to more of your dungeon universalis videos:)

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks for watching. I'm really pleased to hear you've had such a great time with the game; it certainly offers a lot to dive into and explore. This playthrough sample is my third DUN video, and I don't really plan on making more. While I can appreciate a lot of what the design does, and I can see why so many people would love it, it just didn't really land for me.

[@olafbuddenberg4787]

This game is awesome. Thanks for the detailed look at gameplay!

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks for watching.

[@JoeyJoJoJoestarJuniorShabadoo]

This really reminds me of a PC game called Low Magic Age, right down to the graphics style. If you don't have friends I would just buy that, and it's only $15.

[@jamesmorgan3623]

Thank you, this was really informative.

[@p.henrique9088]

My favorite game of all time. Great video, thanks!

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks for watching. Glad to hear you are enjoying Dungeon Universalis.

[@mort2k]

Just stumbled on this video, really easy to follow along! Thanks for this, ill check out some other videos now ;)

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks for watching.

[@phildevey6302]

Curses! I said after your review that I couldn't commit to another massive game, but this playthrough is drawing me in. I'm glad it is only on kickstarter at the moment, or I might be looking for a copy. There seems to be a lot to keep track of, and this was only a small introductory scenario, but I'm sure you can learn it all gradually. Thanks for the playthrough, very interesting.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks for watching. There's definitely a lot to keep track of, especially when you get to the bigger fights where every monster has a different weapon, and they'e all different sizes, with different special rules, in environments with lots of terrain and cover. Something you really need to invest in, and possibly develop some methodical systems for ensuring you don't overlook anything.

[@phildevey6302]

For a couple of games with fiddly rules (like the combat in the Sword & Sorcery board game), I have a written checklist where you start with the base stats of the warrior (say), then look at several things in a set order before coming to the final total. If you look at it each time, it gives you a good chance of not missing something. I did like the look of this game, it looks great on the table. You are definitely endangering my wallet!

[@JamesMartin-bc8xq]

This game looks right up my street or dungeon corridor, thanks for the play though example ,really like the design of the dungeon tiles too.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I'm glad the video was helpful for you. The game comes with a lot of map tiles for creating the dungeons (inside and out) and they all look great.

[@daviddupont517]

Very interesting. I like to learn about this game. Some mechanics look clever like the point for the dark player without mini

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

It's got a lot of clever stuff going on, for those who want a really in-depth system to explore.

[@Viktor14_]

This game looks awesome. Love the mechanics - they are complex but intuitive at the same time. The VP balancing system between heroes and dark player is pretty neat as well

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I have to be honest, I didn't personally find the game intuitive and really struggled learning the rules. Some of the biggest issues for me are just remembering to do things, like checking for safety zones, or remembering all the rules for using shields. There's obviously a lot more than what I showed in the video, but I'm glad you were able to see enough to decide you would enjoy it; it has lots of neat ideas. Thanks for watching!

[@Viktor14_]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Thanks! the way I see it, all rules seem to make sense - safety zone to keep party together, exploring actions, range and melee combat mechanics, advantages and dissadvantages of weapons and pieces of equipment, etc. And actually being able to keep all rules and options in mind is what would make you a better DUN player a d have better chances to beat your oponent. For example, one hero abandons the safety zone and the dark player forgets to stop him/her to try to spring trap - well, too bad for the dark player. Or uf the hero forgets to use the shield ability to block incoming damage, too bad for the hero. Only real challenge I see is keeping track of the active buffs, debuffs and other modifyers for the characters at any time - hope the app would facilitate this a bit. Anyway, hope you do one or two playthroughs to see more of it while I wait for my copy to arrive! Cheers

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I have a slightly different perspective, I guess. I much prefer for people to know and remember the rules, and being a better player comes from making better use of those rules, rather than someone being disadvantaged just because they didn't remember something. And of course, DUN being such a big, expansive game, packed with so many ideas, means it takes quite a lot of dedication to get that familiar with it. I hope you really enjoy the game when you get your copy.

[@totallyjackedup6047]

Thanks ABNB!!! Now waiting for my copy is even harder

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks for watching. I hope you really enjoy it when it arrives.

[@robertlykins728]

Game looks awesome I want a copy!

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I'll share news of the next Kickstarter when it's available.

[@garyfindlay8052]

Looks like a fun game. Especially if you have a large collection of minis from other dungeon crawler type board games.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

There are hundreds of different enemy types in the game. It spans two bestiaries at present! And even individual enemies have loads of options. Orcs can have sword and shield, axe and shield, double handed weapon, bow, javelin, and so on.

[@garyfindlay8052]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring that’s excellent, sort of feels like a mix between red box d&d and heroquests(s)

[@bagger245]

The current ongoing KS made me watch this video. DUN seems to be a descendent of Advanced Heroquest

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I said as much in my review, actually. There are even some events that seem to be directly ported from Advanced HeroQuest.

[@DustyLamp]

I think I may buy into this, with the full knowledge that it will sit wistfully on my shelf until I have a random month of spare time (retirement, in all likelihood)

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

It does take a time investment, but I think it will pay off for the people who stick with it.

[@SeipherNL]

*wall of text* Ever since I discovered this last year I been keeping my eye on it! Seems like the perfect dungeon crawl to me, leaning to a more darker, hardcore playstyle. (once you get the rules down from the looks of it haha) I like the more tactical approach to combat and stuff. a while ago I added some alternative rules to Heroquest using the combat system from lord of the rings strategy battle game to make combat more hardcore and dynamic to get a similar style. Placement is really important because if you can't move a space back when losing a combat you can get hit hard (it also prevents door camping), and also implemented initiative when monsters are revealed a bit like here. Zone of control in front of characters etc. It worked really well. But would love to get my hands on this 1 one day and get proper into it!

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

In a way it sounds like you were adding in elements from Advanced Heroquest to your HeroQuest games. That game has an amazing balance of exploration and tactical combat, and made good use of initiative and control zones. Oscar has said he loved Advanced Heroquest and it was clearly a bit of an influence as he was putting together the rules for Dungeon Universalis.

[@SeipherNL]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring oh nice, sounds like I may have to have a little read of advanced heroquest rules then! Big sucker for systems, like the ones in DUN. Sometimes more than actually playing the games haha

[@somekindofdude1130]

Could you more of this? Also could you cover the spells? I really like the idea of it and i cannot fimd much online or at least, a watchable video around this topic

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I'm afraid the game is no longer in my collection, so there will be no more content for it on the channel. I did a sample playthrough, unboxing, and review. I don't know if that will help you out.

[@nickgraney2119]

Great coverage as usual. At the start of your play through when you described the campaign book it sounded like you were describing gloomhaven (jaws of the lion specifically). I can't quite work out who this product is aimed at? The amount of time you would have to invest on an individual basis seems staggering to me. A gaming group who would play nothing else perhaps? Either way it seems to have so much depth to the mechanics, if not lacking in soul, an odd paragraph here and there wouldn't quite do it for me. Thanks ABNB

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Thanks. It's a very densely packed game with lots to remember. I think that makes it tricky for solo play, as you are relying on your own recollection all the time, but it also might make it a bit harder to get a group together for it. I guess, ultimately, it's for the gamers who want a really deep rules set to jump into wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, that isn't me, but there will be some people who are going to absolutely love what the game is doing.

[@mattclem6753]

Any chance of more? This was really helpful

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I'm glad you found it useful. Sorry, there are no plans for any more Dungeon Universalis content on the channel.

[@bjjzombie]

I am anxiously awaiting this one. How would you rate the component quality?

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I thought everything was good. I thought the artwork was great, and the books are very nicely produced (although there are still issues with it being a translated text). All the tiles, tokens and standees are nice, and I thought the cards were fine. The miniatures are good, although below what you would expect from bigger companies. While the insert has a fair stab at arranging a lot of things, I think people who play regularly will want a better solution for easily accessing everything.

[@Vlad65WFPReviews]

Ok, so in your review video you show the complexity may be too much to enjoy - but now this playthru looks wonderful and logical. I guess I will need to look at the next kickstarter as a possibility. Very good video - well done!

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

As I mentioned in the review, at its heart the game is pretty straightforward - One action, one quick action, one move, open doors, explore, search, hit monsters. I wanted to show a very basic playthrough of that core gameplay, and this is about as simple as it gets. It's the layers of rules that get added that can create the complexity I talk about in my review. For example, in this video I talked briefly about using shields. However, there's a lot more to deal with I didn't go into. There are special blocks, there's pushing attackers with a shield bash, they work differently against breath and magical weapons, and they can break against larger opponents, and each of those elements is another little sub-system to ingest and store away for when you need it. And enemies are as complicated as the heroes. Each orc can have a range of different weapons, all of which modify their stat profiles, and they have special rules that make them much more interesting and intricate than a simple stat profile. So, once you are fighting six or so enemies of varying sizes, in an environment with terrain and elevation, there really is a lot to keep juggling. Of course, none of this is a bad thing. For people who want that incredible level of detail, this game delivers. I'm really pleased the playthrough has encouraged you to check out the next Kickstarter. I will post an update once Oscar has confirmed dates for when that's going to be.

[@johnmiddleton4291]

You are also just watching an edited video without all the rules reading and fumbling with books and cards. How much of that was edited out?

[@Vlad65WFPReviews]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Thanks for your detailed reply. As a content producer myself I should have remembered all the editing we do - and how much behind the scenes rules digging you had to do. This exchange reminds me of Mage Knight, a great game that largely makes sense but is also stacked with layers of rules for specific situations - some of them "exceptions" or contradictions - and which is largely why I don't play it.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Mage Knight is probably the most complicated game on my shelf. Surprisingly, I really enjoy it, but I've only ever played it solo, and the level of complexity means I don't get it to the table half as much as I would like to.

[@paulharper7185]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring "And enemies are as complicated as the heroes." or even more complicated. As a starting hero you have a couple skills but some monsters you fight can have 5 or more. Trying to make any type of elegant AI system is impossible with that many options. This right here is a solo play killer for me, I can't do it all.

[@martyndragar7910]

I like this when's it out to buy?

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

It's not, unfortunately. It was a Kickstarter only game, currently going through fulfilment. There will be a Kickstarter for another print later in the year. I will make sure I post an update here on the channel when Oscar has confirmed dates.

[@nickgraney2119]

Did you ever mosey on back to this game after putting it down a year ago? Have you looked at League of Dungeoneers which is about to close on Gamefound (second print). I know you don't back kickstarters etc anymore, but it does seem right up your Warhammer Quest style of street. I have backed a Queen Level of the second print, it seems to have all the good bits of the classics with a side serving of new great stuff (watched a lot of other channel content on it including play throughs). Regards, Nick 😊

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Once I reviewed Dungeon Universalis it was time to find it a new home because it just didn’t work for me. League of Dungeoneers is interesting but after a lot of research I felt it would probably end up being a bit more fiddly than I would like. I would definitely give it a whirl if I got the chance though.

[@nickgraney2119]

@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Have you got Jaws Of The Lion, the simpler version of Gloomhaven? I have and my lad isn't really into it so we no longer play. I could donate if it was of interest. No worries if not

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

@@nickgraney2119 It’s been on my list for a long time but always seems to get pushed down for things I want more. If you could drop me an email using the email address on the “about” page of my channel or else message me through Facebook (link in video description) I would love to discuss this with you.

[@jtfike]

Wouldn’t you have gotten a +1 for exploring a room and also +1 for finding a special item?

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I was following through the example in the book. There's a very good chance I still missed something. I really didn't get on with this game.

[@philjackson5389]

hi any chance you could send me a pic of the encounter card titled thief from this game cheers 😊

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I'm sorry. I've already moved on Dungeon Universalis to a new home.

[@007nikster2]

What is your opinion on League of Dungeoneers?

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I haven't played it, but from what I've seen it looks interesting, and I know it already has a good following from the downloadable version; but again it's a game that is packing in the content and I instantly got the impression that playing solo is going to end up with lots of bookkeeping and cross-referencing. I suspect my final assessment would be similar to my assessment of DUN, although it does look a little more streamlined. In other words, I am sure I would appreciate the design, but would probably feel the design spends too long getting in the way of me enjoying the game itself. It would probably shine for me playing with a group to share the load of everything that has to be done. I generally feel the best solo games efficiently streamline the core concepts of the experience they want you to have. I have my eye on Dungeoneers, though. I don't back Kickstarters, but I do always pay attention to them and subsequent retail releases.

[@007nikster2]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Thanks for the insight and response. I backed it because it looks like a more manageable DUN and I'm the opposite in that I don't mind the crunch if it's solo because I can take my time with it. I don't expect my friends would want to do all the bookkeeping or have the same level of enthusiasm and buy-in for this kind of crunchy game. I'll probably be able to get one of my hardcore gamer friends to play it with me however.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

@@007nikster2 Well I hope you end up enjoying it. It does look more manageable than DUN to me. I do tend to end up playing my crunchiest games solo just because they are hard to get to the table with other people (Mage Knight for example), but even when I am sat quietly by myself I can find too much fiddling about is a chore that gets in the way.

[@mort2k]

I also was on the edge of backing DUN, but chose LoD instead, hoping it is a bit more easy to manage but crunchy at the same time. I play mostly with my wife, and i would assume adding companions to the party (4 is recomended) would fit nicely. The companions seems a lot simpler than the characrers themselves. Full coop game fit our playingstyle better than 1vsMany. I know DUN can be soloable, but LoD was build as a coop experience.

[@lergof0202]

The example itself is super confusing. Because Page 25 of the rulebook specifically says "Searching a room action cannot be combined with a movement." Yet the example shows Borgon searching the room, then moving. I don't get it. It's even further clarified in the searching for secret doors action that action cannot be combined with a move in the same turn. Searching rooms basically has the same language. Ugh.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

Unfortunately, I really struggled with this game. I found the rules difficult to internalise as there were so many little details, and so many things that seemed like they weren't explained quite right or even contradicted themselves. That's why I followed the example in the rules for this video to give an indication of gameplay. I eventually passed the game on.

[@lergof0202]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Completely get where you're coming from. I want to love this game, I really do. I think I probably just need to house rule a little bit of it and dumb it down a bit.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I think there's a lot you could excise to streamline the whole thing, and as there is so much crammed into the game it's perfect for picking and choosing the things you want to keep.

[@dragonmartijn]

I hope everything goes ok with your wife.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

She's fine. Thank you.

[@1000jjwalker]

I still have mixed feelings about this game but if was to fall apone it.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I have mixed feelings myself. Thanks for watching.

[@Mark-nh2hs]

The game looks and plays ok but the complex rules and wall of text is a bit off putting it's as if they have thrown as many realistic ideas into it and it becomes too much bloat and so much to remember. I don't mind complex games but there is a limit 🤣🤣. The wall of text for everything made my eyes bleed 🤣🤣

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

It's quite intense. Lots of rules and variables to juggle.

[@johnmiddleton4291]

Man is this game dry. Almost no flavor text or descriptions at all. It's like role-playing Excel.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I hadn't really thought about the lack of flavour text. There's some scattered through the game. You get a bit between missions in the campaign, and then a little introductory paragraph when you start a mission. The missions generally have quite a lot of different setup instructions and special rules so the focus is on those. I think people who really get into the rules will see their own narrative through the mechanisms. They will imagine how the heroes are watching each other's backs as they scurry around inside the safety zones, and that sort of thing. Unfortunately, I still spend a lot of time checking rules (or forgetting rules and then remembering them a few minutes later), which is something I talk about on the channel quite a bit as something that drags me out of a game. I feel like I'm playing the rules, rather than playing the game. It's that constant checking, rather than anything else, that prevents me from investing in the story and what's going on with the heroes. I think having someone with some dramatic flair running the dungeon for you would also go a long way!

[@johnmiddleton4291]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Sure you can have an emergent narrative, but that's not the same as flavor text and background text to present the setting. It's also not the same thing as story, as we have discussed many times. You can WFRP without ever reading any of the Old World background, but isn't all of that why gamers are there in the first place and not in another game?

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

I'm surprised there isn't a lot more flavour text, as the game is based in the designer's own world, which he has written a novel about. I expected a lot more of that to be showcased for people who were already invested in that world. I guess maybe the idea is to go away and read the book too.

[@johnmiddleton4291]

@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring He really wrote a novel? I wonder if it's any good? Was it translated too? Maybe that should come with the game too.

[@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring]

It's called Raazbal. I could only find a Spanish version on Amazon.co.uk so I don't think it's ever been translated.