Independence: Patriots vs. the Crown

Independence: Patriots vs. The Crown is a two-player deck-building strategy game depicting the American War of Independence. One player takes command of the newly founded United States, struggling to turn revolution into genuine independence. The other represents the British Empire, determined to suppress the rebellion in its American colonies.

Each player begins with their own deck of 10 Core Action cards, but as the conflict unfolds, they can acquire additional cards connected to the 14 States represented on the board. To gain one, however, your Units must reach the corresponding State and make use of its Loyalty marker. Acquired cards can become part of your deck or be committed to the wider war effort, meaning that your position on the board directly shapes the options available to you.

Cards allow players to recruit and move Units, manipulate the situation across the States, and build powerful combinations of actions. Certain effects can be duplicated using symbols on other cards, allowing a carefully constructed hand to produce increasingly ambitious plays. At the same time, every card added changes the composition of your deck – taking everything available is not necessarily the path to victory.

The two sides wage war in fundamentally different ways. The Americans rely on mobile Continentals and Militia, with Militia able to Hide from the British, protecting them from most effects and helping the Patriots avoid unwanted Battles. British Redcoats have more restricted movement on land, but their Fleets allow troops to redeploy along the coast and reach distant States. Their objectives are equally asymmetric: the Patriots' initial path to victory is to spread Independence across the colonies, while the British seek to eliminate the Continental Army.

The conflict is further shaped by Leader, Event, and Strategy cards. Cards can be committed to Leaders such as George Washington to activate their unique abilities or committed to War and eventually sacrificed to play powerful War cards. These introduce historical events, additional Leaders, and new Strategies – including alternative Victory Conditions capable of completely changing what each player needs to accomplish.

In Independence: Patriots vs. The Crown, deck-building, military movement, and the struggle for colonial loyalty are all parts of the same conflict. Winning the biggest Battle is not enough. You must decide where to fight, which States are truly worth contesting, and which cards you need to turn your strategy into victory.

—description from the publisher