Forum Trajanum

Stefan Feld is a bit of a legend. Known for making games described as ‘point salads’ where you can literally score points in a variety of ways. Known for Castles of Burgundy, Feld games are often accused of lacking theme, or being dry and in many ways Forum Trajanum is no different. But by using some interesting mechanisms and a variety of ways to score points, Stefan Feld has almost done it again.

While not on the same level as Castles of Burgundy or some of Feld’s other classics, Trajanum is definitely up there. In the game you will be taking tokens from your player board to make space for buildings which you will then use in various point scoring ways. The tokens represent citizens on one side, but give you actions on the other side.

Each turn you will take two tokens from your board, choosing one for yourself and passing one on to the player to your left. Once each player has a token of theirs and one of another players, everyone chooses the actions they wish to take.

Actions tend to get you more wooden meeples of various colours which then allow you to build. You can also gain various upgrades but you will have to pay the wages of citizens used for upgrades.

Due to the numerous points available you will have to decide whether to specialise in one area or spread yourself thinner. There is some player interaction in the battle to populate a main area on the board in a mini area control battle.

In typical Feld fashion, you get more points the early you achieve things which drives you to really focus in the early rounds. The whole game smacks of clever design and plays quicker than you would expect. If you enjoy your ‘point salad’ games then this is one for you.

Player Count: 2-4
Time: 60-120 Minutes
Age: 12+