Viking Route: Compass, Magnets, and a 3D Drakkar in a board game never seen before

In Viking Route, a cooperative game for 1 to 4 players, a group of heroes sail a magical Drakkar to the World's Edge and beyond. Influenced by magical Ravens, sent by Odin to steer your course, and by the winds of Fate, the heroes will face powerful and monstrous creatures out of the Norse Mythos. Designed by Martino Chiacchiera, Luca Maragno, and Guido Albini, and illustrated by Alberto Orso, the game was developed by Dam Things and is published by Ares Games.

Viking Route: a game with a compass, magnets and lots of action.

Viking Route is original and visually stunning thanks to a clever magnet-based movement system and a majestic 3D Drakkar.

It has engaging gameplay: you play on two boards to sail a Viking longship through endless dangers, trying to defeat enemies and bosses with high levels of cooperation and many possible strategies. It is also possible to modify and upgrade the Drakkar with additional parts.

Don’t be tricked by Viking Route’s endearing art style: though it is a game suitable for everyone, thanks to its strong aesthetics and fantastical setting, its strategic nature and adjustable difficulty levels will present even experienced players with a challenging gaming experience.

Let’s learn more about how the game works.

The Drakkar

The 3D Drakkar, divided in six zones.

In Viking Route, the heroes will find themselves aboard a real 3D Drakkar on which they will have to cooperate to control Sails and Tiller, fight enemies at a distance and on the ship, organize resources and sound a magical horn to call on Odin’s Ravens and the Wind.

The Drakkar is divided into six zones where the Vikings can activate different actions:

• Ballista: fire!
• Deck: embark/disembark and play Help of the Gods cards.
• Lookout: Interact with the Ravens and the Wind.
• Sails: adjust speed by changing the sails.
• Hold: store and recover food, weapons, and repair materials.
• Tiller: steer the Drakkar.

The compass represents the Drakkar, and the Magnets, the Ravens and Wind.

Compass and Magnets

Viking Routee uses an ingenious compass-and-magnets movement mechanic. The main game piece, the Drakkar, is represented on the scenario boards by a compass, and multiple magnets (the Ravens and Wind) are manipulated by the players to steer the course of their ship.

The Raven and the Wind are magnet-embedded miniatures that, on one side attract the red needle of the Compass and on the other side repel it. The farther a Raven or the Wind is from the Compass, the less influence it has on the needle. Conversely, the closer it is, the greater the influence it has on the needle. When the Drakkar is activated, the Compass moves in the direction indicated by the needle. Therefore, manipulating the Ravens and the Wind is used to influence the direction in which the Compass moves.

The four characters, each with a different ability and unique stats.

The Vikings

You can choose to play one of four different characters, each of whom has a unique special ability and different stats, like Life Points, Inventory, and Combat power.

• Helga Hunthild, the Queen of the Sigrid clan.
• Urwulf Trygvel, illegitimate son of the King of the Gromskreem clan.
• Astrid Revnar, the oracle-Princess of the Morugban clan.
• Kuba, the last of the Yrsa.

Game Modes

Viking Route can be played in two different modes:

Ragnarok: a free play mode where each game is stand-alone, and a unique combination of rules generates different Scenarios.

Campaign: a series of connected games in different Scenarios (using different game boards), each in a specific setting with its own rules, guiding the crew through the story of Viking Route: