Splendor – Board Game Review | Solo Play? How To Play With 5 People?

 

Why is Splendor so popular?

Splendor has it all when it comes to a nice, low-stress board game for your family. Play with just you and your partner, or play with 3 to 4 players. The simplicity of Splendor makes it easy to learn and easy to teach. Teach your teens how to play watch them manage their resources and come up with a plan for victory. Enjoy the artwork that was illustrated by Pascal Quidault. Don’t worry about over-committing your time as Splendor usually only lasts about 30 minutes.

For these many different reasons, the game has held up its reputation for being a very good game. Well rounded as a game that has a nice taste of everything you want in a board game. If you’ve been thinking about getting a copy of Splendor then I would recommend you do so ASAP. In my opinion, you won’t regret it.

Before I Knew What Splendor Was

Why is Splendor so popular? This was a mental question I even asked myself before I played it. Being such a board game enthusiast I get a lot of games that cross my path in life. Social media is probably the area where I get most of my encounters. Splendor is one of those games that had crossed my path many times. I never knew exactly what it was about, I assumed something with treasure, maybe it was a pirate game I used to think. Either way, I knew that it was popular and most likely a fun game to play. That’s when I made a mental note and decided that one day if given the chance, I would have my copy.

After I Played Many Games With Many People

Now that I’ve played it numerous times with many of my family members and wife. I feel that I am also on the side that greatly supports this game and understands its popularity. It’s been out for many years as of today I am late to show up to this party. A couple of years after its release in 2014, Splendor was given awards for being one of the “Best Board Games Of The Year.”

Splendor is about playing a Renaissance Merchant, who I guess is buying different assets with the gems that you have acquired. Those assets help you to buy bigger and more valuable assets. Over time as you collect these different assets that are represented by cards. You’ll be given a set amount of points that are shown at the top of your card. Once you reach 15 points total, you win.

How long does a game of Splendor take?

A typical game of Splendor will last around 30 minutes. I’ve seen my cousin Zach completely run the table and finish the game in what felt like 10 minutes. I’ve also seen it last around about 45 minutes just cause it was one of those types of play-throughs. When it comes to playing with fewer and fewer players, that will decrease the playtime more and more.

I think the game time for Splendor is perfect. It doesn’t feel so long that you start to get bored, and not so short that you wonder what happened altogether. Most of the games you play will be in that 30-45 minute range, which is a sweet spot for time in my opinion.

Is there a strategy to Splendor?

Of course silly, there’s a strategy in almost every game. Splendor is a simple game that has a healthy amount of room for individual strategy. Some people will try to focus on collecting gem colors. While others will go straight for points and adjust as they go.

I will look at the card setup and count yes count, how many of the same colors there are on the board. I don’t use it as a permanent plan, it’s more of a rough draft that I adapt as the board changes.

Is Splendor an easy game?

It depends is the correct answer. If you’re 8 years old, then the game might seem a little challenging for you at first. I think you would get it after a few times. For us older than 10, I find it to be a very simple game that has very easy concepts to learn. The rules aren’t confusing or complicated like some games. There are only a few different pieces so you don’t get lost in all of the many components. So with few game components, comes fewer rules, and with fewer rules comes less to learn and more simplicity.

Is Splendor too simple?

I don’t think so, let me tell you why. If you are looking for a game that has a ton of complexity, rules, and an extreme amount of strategy then Splendor isn’t what you are looking for, but if you are looking for a fairly laid-back game, that’s well-rounded in almost every way, then look no further. Splendor is simple, yes, but it’s not so simple that you don’t take an interest in playing. I played my first game, understood the concept of the game, and looked at my wife and said “I can tell I’m going to like this game.”

Maybe just maybe this game just fills the void of what I need in a board game. So maybe I’m biased, but it’s a popular game for a reason. I’m sure many people find the same things endearing for themselves. Take your time, try it yourself, and see what you think. That’s my best advice.

General Information
Play Time: 30+
Designer: Marc André
My Recommended Age Group: 10+
Player Count: 2-4
Difficulty 1-10: 4

How many people do you need to play Splendor?

At least 2 players are needed to play Splendor. Most players know that the game goes up to 4 players but many don’t know that you can add a fifth player by adjusting two rules (I will explain how to do this in a question coming up soon.) Also, there is a special fan-made “Solo Splendor” version that I have in this post as well.

What is the rule for 3 players in Splendor?

Similar to playing with 2 Players, when playing with 3 people there are a couple of rules to adjust.

With 3 players
Remove 2 tokens of each gem color (there should
be only 5 of each remaining).
Don’t touch the gold.
Reveal 4 noble tiles.

It’s as simple as that, just a few adjustments and everything else is the same. Then you and two other friends can play till you can’t take it any further.

Can I play Splendor with 5 people?

Playing with 5 people is actually really easy to set up and to play. There are two adjustments that you will need to make.

First, the maximum token limit is now 8 instead of 10 tokens. This is to ensure that it doesn’t feel like tokens are hard to get or always out of stock.

Second, you will add 1 noble to exceed the number of players by one. So since there is five players, you will have 5 nobles plus 1 for a total of 6 nobles to choose from.

I haven’t had the opportunity to play 5-player Splendor, but it is nice that there is a variation out there that accommodates more players.

Can you play Splendor with 2 players? How do you set up Splendor for 2 players?

The game setup for 2 Players is easy and quick to set up.

With 2 players
Remove 3 tokens of each gem color (there should
be only 4 of each remaining).
Don’t touch the gold.
Reveal 3 noble tiles

My wife and I will play 2 players all the time and enjoy ourselves. We always seem to go back and forth with who’s on a winning streak at the time. So if you’re wondering if this is a good game for 2 players, I would say yes. It’s very good.

Can you play Splendor by yourself?

Yes! Here are the rules and setup for Solo Splendor!

Solo Rules for Splendor

Setup:

1. Arrange the game as usual with 3 levels of cards, each containing 4 cards.
2. Adjust token quantities based on your chosen difficulty:

• Easy: 6 tokens of each color plus all joker (yellow) tokens.
• Medium: 5 tokens of each color plus all Joker tokens.
• Hard: 4 tokens of each color plus all Joker tokens.
• Insane: 3 tokens of each color plus all Joker tokens.

Randomly select and place 2 Noble tiles.

Order of Actions:

1. Choose one of the following actions:

• Take 3 gem tokens of different colors from the stock.
• Take 2 gem tokens of the same color if there are 4 or more of that color in the stock.
• Reserve 1 development card and take 1 gold token (joker).
• Purchase 1 face-up development card from the middle of the table or a previously reserved one.

1. If you have more than 10 tokens, return tokens to the stock until you have 10.
2. Remove 1 token from the game:

• If you have a token in the stock, return 1 to the box.
• If no tokens are in the stock, discard one of yours in the box.
• If there are no tokens, the game ends, or you must obtain all cards with the cards you have depending on your chosen variation.

How to Win:
You can choose one of these conditions to win:

1. Reach 15 points before all tokens are depleted.
2. Obtain all cards by accumulating cards while you have tokens, then having enough cards to obtain everything else available. You can stop once you have 7 of each color, as no cards require more than 7 tokens.

I found this version of solo play on BBG, it was posted by a fan in 2015 named Tony Huffman. Here is a link to the forum Tony posted on “FORUM LINK.”

All credit to Tony, he did a great job summarizing it and explaining the solo version in his blog post. I just found it and reformatted it for you all to find.

What age is appropriate for the Splendor board game?
Is Splendor good for kids?

I think that a reasonable age to start to teach Splendor is around 10 years old. I’m sure some kids will grasp it very quickly at age 10, and I think it will just be easier as their age goes up. Since the rules and complexity are low, it helps to simplify the game for all our kiddos.

I think that Splendor is a perfect game for kids too. Management of different tokens, coming up with a place for a possible card you want, and then executing that plan are all great skills to learn for this game.

Then there are even more in-depth kinds of skills of observation by watching your fellow merchants and monitoring their current plans. Observing and maybe learning new strategies for themselves.

Are there expansions?

YES, YES, AND YES! There are lot of extra content that Splendor gives you to satisfy your hunger. I do not own all of these expansions. The only one I have personally played is the original and the Marvel version…so far. Just a forewarning, Marvel Splendor and Splendor Duel are both their stand-alone versions of Splendor. Marvel is very similar just converted to the Marvel universe plus adding a few additions. Splendor Duel is its own stand-alone game, inside the Splendor universe.

Here is a link to Amazon for each game. I recommend getting the “Cities Of Splendor,” as it comes with 4 different expansions in one box!

Bonus Splendor Gemstones

I’ve been spending time looking into expansions and resource organizers. I stumbled across physical gemstones to take the place of the tokens. They look amazing. If you know someone who is a big Splendor fan then I would highly recommend getting these gemstones as a gift. (Also works well for the many expansions like “Cities Of Splendor.”) Here’s a link to Amazon if you’re interested.

Are any of the expansions worth buying?

This is a good question to ask, but first, you must ask yourself the first and most important question. Do you like Splendor? If yes, then how much? Is this a game you think is in your top 10? I think that if Splendor makes it in your top 10 then you definitely need to get a least 1 expansion. In my opinion, there are two potential buys to choose from.

First is “Cities Of Splendor,” from everything I’ve seen this is the ultimate expansion! It comes with 4 different additions to the base game, which adds so much content. All the content added is fresh, new, and original. This is somewhat surprising cause it all builds off of the base game.

Then comes my other buying option, the “Marvel Splendor” expansion. Now I’m a good old-fashioned, honest fan of Marvel. I love seeing all the characters I get to collect while playing one of my favorite games “Splendor.” It’s fun to see all the artwork, while most importantly attempting to salvage all the infinity stones! If you’re a bigger fan of Marvel, then this expansion might be the best option for you. I really enjoyed playing it.

What is the difference between cities of splendor and Splendor?

So it’s not as much of a difference as it is more of extra content for the game. Cities Of Splendor takes the base game and adds more cards, cities that replace nobles, strongholds, and trading posts that give you special abilities.

It’s like adding 4 different versions of the game onto what we all know and love from the base game. I have not had a chance to try it out, I just know a lot about it. Trust me, i will soon have my hands on it and I will be enjoying playing it till I can’t take it anymore.

How many people can play the Splendor expansion pack?

According to the boxes, all of the Splendor expansions (except “Splendor Duel”) are 2-4 players! So I suggest everyone you would normally play with will need to be there to try the new expansions.

Can you play online?

Yes, just like a lot of games in the board game universe, we are spoiled beyond belief with all our access to amazing games online.

Here is the link to “Board Game Arena” to register and play Splendor Online!

My Wife’s 2 Cents

Hello Everyone! So my two cents on Splendor are I think this is a really good game that is fun. We have played it quite a bit with family and with just each other and im still not board of it. I also think this could be a fun way to teach younger kids colors, cost, numbers, and matching. I feel like it could be easy enough to teach them the game without using all the rules and just using it as a fun way to learn.

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CATAN	Check On Amazon	Here	Great game for brainstorming and fun. I have literally passed out laughing from this game. I even wrote about it in my review of the game. Go check it out!
FIRE TOWER	Check On Amazon	Here	Clean, simple, and fun. I love the way the game was designed around such an obscure topic. Such a unique game that will make you want to have everyone play with you.
KA-BLAB	Check On Amazon	Here	Great game for brain storming and fun. I have literally passed out laughing from this game. I even wrote about it in my review of the game. Go check it out!

Thanks for taking the time to look over my review. I hope that it brought you some kind of value. God Bless.