Stonemaier Games: My Little Scythe by Hoby & Vienna Chou | A Competitive Family Strategy Board Game Where You Embark on Adventure with Your Animal Friends and Start Pie Fights | 1-6 Players, 60 Mins

This is a wonderful game both for younger gamers, but also for the more experience gamers who want a different, more light hearted experience.Summary: "My Little Scythe" is a game for 1-6 players (there are fun solo rules) for ages 8+, and a game is supposed to take 45+ minutes. The game is by Stonemaier Games, the same people that brought you Scythe, also a miniatures game.(Please see the enclosed pictures.)The game is complete specified on the card-stock aids. Each player has a choice of one of three actions each turn: move, make, or seek. The goal is to get a trophy in four of the eight possible trophy areas that range from collecting and delivering special items, to winning pie fights (the non-violent competitive option in this game), to completing quests (only with three or more players).Each player can only get credit for each trophy once per game.Games generally last 30-60 minutes in our group's experience.On to the Dr Games’ Criteria …GO/NO GO Criterion• Complexity: (GO) You can actually play with younger children 6-8, but having an adult there to help with rules and also adjudicate results is helpful. The three options, move, make, or seek, make for closed-ended turn choices. Also, it will become clear early on which of the trophies you are in the running for, further limiting complexity.• Balanced: (GO ) Yes, it is completely, completely balanced.• Chance (GO) There are small amounts of randomness in quests that pop-up, where things are located, etc., but the game mostly revolves around the other players' choices, your own strategy, and how those two things interact.• Clarity: (GO) Yes, everything is in the rule book (if you include the well done pictures and diagrams). You will likely want to play through a couple of short scenarios before playing with a group. At least one person should understand the flow of play and have an idea about general strategy to share.• Reasonable Time: (GO) The game takes thirty to sixty minutes.Bonus Criteria• Social: There is friendly competition in this game. If you are clever, you do not really compete with the other players in a head to head way. You can try to go for different trophies than your competitors.• Unique/Interesting Mechanics: The friendship attribute is a nice touch. You can get points by being nice and helpful to other players. This is a great thing to encourage. I almost missed it (we have not used it), but the record of accomplishment sheet is a very cool idea. My cousins and I would have played this game non-stop if there had been a permanent record of our exploits.• Informed: Not in general, but the painting guide is helpful to inspire young artists.• Rewards Throughout: Every time you collect a trophy, it is yours for the rest of the game.

I bought MLS on a whim, anticipating future grandkids.I got it home and opened it up. First, it is adorable. The miniatures are just cute, the board is cute and the components are nice... especially the gems and applesHowever, the game play is great. My adult kids were home for spring break, and we easily got a dozen games in....Although my son and I share an "Anybody but YOU can win"-play style. We eventually had to quit, as we just felt weird being nice to each other....However, the focus on friendship is great.The game is VERY similar to Scythe, but way more approachable. There are 8 goals - win a pie fight, deliver gems and apples to the castle (The Factory) and a host of other things (Raise your Friendship to 8, is the same as Popularity to 16)One big sticky part.....It is NOT colorblind friendly. I played with two adult friends who are both different degrees of colorblind. It was like a kindergarten classroom, "You're right! That IS blue!"Over all, I really love this game.

I picked this up because my 6YO daughter loves to play board and card games with me but is too young to grasp many of the more complex games we own. I was initially worried about the 8+ age range on it, but she picked up the game after our first play and beats me often.The game has a good mix of area control, resource management, and tableau building that help introduce these concepts in a very simple and straightforward way.The components and artwork on this game are much better than what you see on many games in the same price range. They even include guidance on coloring the minis that are included should you want to. This level of quality seems to go along with everything Stonemaier games has a hand in (Scythe, Viticulture, and Between Two Castles of Mag King Ludwig are all good examples).We love this game and according to BGG Stats is the game I have played the most so far this year. I would definitely recommend it for those with children to want to move on from more simple matching, spinner, or deduction type games into something that introduced more complicated.

I really loved Scythe and hoped that this would be a more watered down version of it that my 7 and 10 year old would be able to play. I wasn't disappointed. Like the Scythe game, there are multiple ways to win. You move around the board collecting apples and diamonds to deliver, performing quests and get into pie fights where the winner takes all the loot from the other player on that position. The game is over when a player gets 4 trophies in 8 possible categories. They can win by being aggressive (winning pie fights) but also miss out on opportunities since there are paths to winning by being nice and sharing. It is a game that not only teaches good strategy, but also decision making and the consequences of actions. They learn how to not use all their power at once just because they can, because it will make them vulnerable to the next player who tries to pie fight them. It is one of my favorite games in my collection to play with my kids now.

too many ways to win. I wish it was a lighter game. If you go over all possible moves it can take forever to win. i dislike chess for the same exact reason. I have never seen someone playing chess having fun. why? no time, you need to bust your brain.

Little Scythe is a fantastic game for young ones and adults alike. I really enjoyed the game-play mechanics and the relatively fast paced nature of the game. The game came packaged beautifully and the minis were beautiful. This game is playable by to up to 6 people but I found four people to be the sweet spot. If you like board games with heart and some strategic thinking sprinkled in, this is the game for you :).