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Blood Bound box art

Blood Bound

Game ID: GID0048264
Game Info
Year
2013
Collection
Rating
Mechanic profile
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Description

In Blood Bound, a deduction game played in 15-30 minutes, players assume the roles of members of two clans – the brutal, animalistic warriors of the Clan of the Beast and the graceful, deadly members of the Clan of the Rose – and (with an odd number of players) the human inquisition. Disguised by a secret identity, they try to kidnap the Elder of the opposing clan or give their lives for the benefit of their own Elder. Malicious attacks, aimed indiscretions, and assistance from others will slowly uncover the truth: Who fights for whom? And who is the Elder?

At the start of the game, each player knows three things:

Who they are and to which clan they belong
That a few other players are allies, while everyone else is the enemy of both themselves and their clan
The clan to which one of their neighbors belongs – although some characters can lie about their clan identity

Now the players have to figure out who the Elder of the opposing team is (if there is one) and capture him. To do this, players need to attack, negotiate and deduce, with an attacked player being required to reveal information, such as his rank or clan affiliation. Each player has an ability unique to his character, and this ability can be used only at the moment that he reveals his rank. The Assassin forces players to suffer wounds, for example, while the Guardian protects a player of the character's choice.

In the end, if you capture your rival clan's Elder, you win – but if you capture the wrong vampire, you've fallen into the enemy's trap and lose the game.

Description

In Blood Bound, a deduction game played in 15-30 minutes, players assume the roles of members of two clans – the brutal, animalistic warriors of the Clan of the Beast and the graceful, deadly members of the Clan of the Rose – and (with an odd number of players) the human inquisition. Disguised by a secret identity, they try to kidnap the Elder of the opposing clan or give their lives for the benefit of their own Elder. Malicious attacks, aimed indiscretions, and assistance from others will slowly uncover the truth: Who fights for whom? And who is the Elder?

At the start of the game, each player knows three things:

Who they are and to which clan they belong
That a few other players are allies, while everyone else is the enemy of both themselves and their clan
The clan to which one of their neighbors belongs – although some characters can lie about their clan identity

Now the players have to figure out who the Elder of the opposing team is (if there is one) and capture him. To do this, players need to attack, negotiate and deduce, with an attacked player being required to reveal information, such as his rank or clan affiliation. Each player has an ability unique to his character, and this ability can be used only at the moment that he reveals his rank. The Assassin forces players to suffer wounds, for example, while the Guardian protects a player of the character's choice.

In the end, if you capture your rival clan's Elder, you win – but if you capture the wrong vampire, you've fallen into the enemy's trap and lose the game.

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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 2
This page: 2
Sentiment: pos 2 · mix 0 · neu 0 · neg 0
Mentions per page
Showing 1–2 of 2
Video G4a4j7YdB4s watch it played Rules Teach at 0:29 sentiment: positive
video_pk 65130 · mention_pk 158758
watch it played - Blood Bound video thumbnail
Click to watch at 0:29 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Players work together to defeat monsters.
  • Unique theme of Hunters banding together.
  • Strategic depth in choosing action cards and managing resources.
Cons
  • Risk of not all hunters leaving alive.
  • Potential for loss of collected blood echoes if a player dies before banking them.
Thematic elements
  • Hunters banding together to defeat monsters, collect trophies, and exit the dungeon.
  • Chalice dungeons
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • cooperative play — Players work together to defeat monsters.
  • hand management — Players select action cards from their hand secretly and simultaneously.
  • Modular board — Boss cards and monster cards are shuffled into a dungeon deck, and a final boss is placed in the center.
  • Press Your Luck — Players can take half damage by playing the Hunter's Dream card, but this also affects their actions and health reset.
  • set collection — Players collect trophies by adjusting tracks on their player boards when a monster is defeated.
  • Variable player powers — Each player takes a hunter board and starts with specific cards and tokens.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • hello and welcome to watch it played
  • and that's everything you need to know to play bloodborne
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video c7H0ZZXVYlU ON TABLE Board Games Review at 0:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 39489 · mention_pk 149630
ON TABLE Board Games - Blood Bound video thumbnail
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Unique hero decks that grow and evolve over the campaign
  • Rich thematic integration with Dracula and his Champions
  • Distinct story/run modes (story, roguelike runs, and single battle)
  • Deck-building and card chaining offer deep strategic decisions
  • Visuals and components (minis, 3D terrain) add to immersion
Cons
  • High complexity and potential setup time
  • Rule depth may be steep for newcomers
  • Prototype-to-final component differences noted (e.g., terrain and minis shown as evolving)
Thematic elements
  • Hunt the vampire lords through night battles, with heroes growing stronger over a campaign and facing Dracula and his champions.
  • Gothic vampire world featuring Dracula, his Champions, hunters, and a village with exploration and 3D terrain elements.
  • Cinematic, lore-rich with explicit backstory for Dracula's Champions and evolving hero decks.
Comparison games
  • Black Rose Wars
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • boss/champion weaknesses — Dracula's Champions have three body-part cards depicting their weaknesses that hunters must target to defeat them.
  • Deck building — Each Hero has a unique deck that is expanded during the game with new abilities and items obtained in the village.
  • deck-building — Each Hero has a unique deck that is expanded during the game with new abilities and items obtained in the village.
  • Night/day phases — Gameplay alternates between night (combat with champions/minions) and day (village activities and resource acquisition).
  • resource tracking via circus Caravan — Resources and progress are tracked using a Circus Caravan mechanic, representing night-phase profits and developments.
  • tactic cards and chains — Battles unfold as chains of tactic cards resolved in sequence, involving both hunters and minions.
  • territory/map with hex tiles — The game map is built from hex tiles representing different terrains, optionally including 3D terrain elements like Crypts.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • it's bloody boss battle from one to four players
  • the unique skills are represented by tactic cards each Hero has their own unique deck of cards
  • each Hunter plays a character card with statistics on their own hero board
  • you can play in three game modes first story mode where players will face a series of generated scenarios
  • night phase while during the day face players return to the Village there they can visit different locations
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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