Drakon or Cave Troll

By simulacra, in Drakon

I am thinking about getting either Drakon or Cave Troll. From the descriptions they seem very similar. Does anyone have a view of one versus the other and which they would recommend. Has anyone a view on which is better as a 2 player game, which has a more involved strategy and also, which is more fun. I would really appreciate any opinions.

Yop.

I got both. Both are ok games. Tiny, casual, short and easy games, games that you actually take out after diner with your couple friends that know only Uno or frakin Jungle Speed or so...

Ok, and then, in details : I say Drakon is funnier. Because it's an action game, with nothing but action moves : you put your tile, you move, you do the action printed, period. It's quick, everyone grasps it in, what, four full minutes. You play tricks on people and all, everyone laughs, there's a winner in less than fifteen minutes, that's an "aperitive game".

Cave Troll doesn't take four minutes to get it. More like ten. First of all because there are cards. So people draw, read, and think. That's definitely much less fast-paced. So, in the end, more technical. Takes longer, too. From half an hour to one hour, depending on how many players. It's counting, thinking, planning, and tricking game.

So, to sum up :

simulacra said:

From the descriptions they seem very similar.

You see that is not true ;)

simulacra said:

Has anyone a view on which is better as a 2 player game,

I'd say Cave Troll.

simulacra said:

which has a more involved strategy

I'd say Cave Troll.

simulacra said:

and also, which is more fun.

I'd say Drakon.

simulacra said:


I am thinking about getting either Drakon or Cave Troll.

Get both :) as a matter of fact, I prefer Drakon, my woman prefers Cave Troll, so I'm glad I took both ;)

Cheers !

Both of them are lots of fun. I think Drakon is more accessible for non-gamers though. Cavetroll can feel a little puzzle like to me sometimes. Especially with 2 players.

I own Cave Troll and my two boys (9 and 7) both enjoy it, even though they're a bit young to grasp all the finer strategic points. From Hem's informative post, it looks like they would enjoy Drakon as well. I believe I will take the given advice and get both.

I'm glad I stumbled upon this post, as I was sure both games had similar mechanics. Looks like getting both would end up have 2 nice little games.

I like what you said Hem, about Drakon: "Ok, and then, in details : I say Drakon is funnier. Because it's an action game, with nothing but action moves : you put your tile, you move, you do the action printed, period. It's quick, everyone grasps it in, what, four full minutes. You play tricks on people and all, everyone laughs, there's a winner in less than fifteen minutes, that's an "aperitive game".

Sums it up quite nicely.

I could get Cave Troll for less than $35...but Drakon ends up over $50, which IMO is too steep of a price.

I'll continue searching but might end up getting both.

I love the FFG Silver Line games. Fun and fast little games. I already bought Death Angel and Through the Desert (excellent btw). Might as well get Cave Troll and Drakon, would be a nice change over Twilight Imperium and other heavy games.

A bit of an old topic, but then again this forum is kind of dead.

Drakon is pretty useless with only 2 players, as each can go his own way with very little interaction. I haven't played much Cave Troll, but it would probably be better for 2.

However with at least 3 players Drakon can be lots of fun with a lot of player interaction and Take that! moves. It can sometimes get to drag a little bit when games last over 30 minutes and nobody can keep or find enough coins to reach 10.

Columbob said:

A bit of an old topic, but then again this forum is kind of dead.

Drakon is pretty useless with only 2 players, as each can go his own way with very little interaction. I haven't played much Cave Troll, but it would probably be better for 2.

However with at least 3 players Drakon can be lots of fun with a lot of player interaction and Take that! moves. It can sometimes get to drag a little bit when games last over 30 minutes and nobody can keep or find enough coins to reach 10.

I mostly agree with you. Good post!

I feel that Cave Troll has more long term replayability. But I'm talking about the same gaming group over a period of time. If you are casually pulling it out when neighbors or friends come over, Drakon will sustain forever and you'll never have the same game twice. But strategically, Cave Troll poses different problems each and every time while Drakon is more streamlined/linear.

I thoroughly enjoy both games so I always feel bad choosing one over the other because compared to Monopoly or the offerings most people have, these are an oasis within the desert. Even compared to Catan, I would take these two games over it. They are excellent games, and worth getting off the shelf. If I can throw in another casual-style game, the Adventurers games are pretty darn nice as well.

Drakon and Cave Troll are among my favourite games. I love Tom Jolly's stuff. Really, they are utterly different games, but we enjoy them both for different reasons. I don't agree that Drakon is useless with 2 players; I can't count how many great games with two players I've had, bringing Drakon to the cottage or the park (since there are no cards to blow away in the wind). Cave Troll is a blast, and neither game takes ages to learn or explain. You can concentrate on strategy instead of rules. Nobody has a bad time with either of these great games.