Dogs of War

Dogs of War Deep Dive

What the Community Thinks About Dogs of War

Dogs of War draws consistent praise across board game channels for its unusual combination of area majority influence and Euro-style efficiency. BoardGameBollocks calls it one of the best back and forth games available and admits that despite the title, it is not really a war game. Good Time Society, whose host has disclosed a part-ownership stake in Play to Z Games, the publisher bringing the upcoming reissue to GameFound, describes it as an area majority game built around a tug of war between noble houses. Board Game Barrage's hosts rank it high among their favorite games, describing it as a negotiation-heavy title that feels unlike other games on the market and still fits into a relatively short playtime.

The disagreements are mostly about presentation rather than the underlying game. The Dice Tower's hosts call the production overblown and overproduced yet still say they liked the game a lot and point to a cult following that has kept demand alive for years. Board Game Barrage's hosts spar openly over the cover art, with one host pushing back on the anthropomorphic dogs and joking about a boycott while the other shrugs it off. All You Can Board's Carlo, who is not always the biggest fan of area control, still put Dogs of War on a most-wanted list on reputation alone and on the strength of designer Paolo Mori's other work.

Core Mechanics That Define Dogs of War

Shifting Faction Influence

The central engine is an area majority influence system that Good Time Society describes as a tug of war between noble houses and different player powers. Players do not belong to any faction themselves; they build influence with houses that pay out independently, and Board Game Barrage explains that a player's accumulated influence with a faction gets multiplied by that faction's own victory points once everything is revealed. Because influence is tracked privately, nobody at the table knows for certain which houses their opponents are backing until the numbers are compared, which Board Game Barrage says keeps negotiation and shifting alliances central to the experience even though the theme reads as combat.

Worker Placement Meets Area Control

All You Can Board's Carlo pairs that influence system with a worker placement layer, calling the combination of worker placement and area control unusual since there are not many other games that build around both mechanisms at once. On top of that base, Carlo notes the game gives each house asymmetric player powers, so learning Dogs of War means learning what a given house can do that the others cannot. Good Time Society adds that the new edition is bringing further new player powers and battlefield cards on top of the original set, extending that asymmetry rather than simplifying it.

The Dogs of War Experience

Deceptively Simple, Constantly Shifting

BoardGameBollocks sums up a turn as playing a card, assigning some units, and taking a reward, and calls the whole system completely and utterly batshit simple to operate despite the constant repositioning of influence between houses. The same host frames whoever holds the most influence at any moment as the one who gets first crack at rewards that build toward more points later, which keeps the back and forth swinging quickly from turn to turn.

A Bait and Switch for Euro Gamers

Board Game Barrage frames Dogs of War as a trick to play on Euro gamers, describing it as a good bait and switch: the efficiency of deciding where to commit units feels like a Euro game until players get dragged kicking and screaming into direct conflict over the houses. The same hosts add that all of this plays out in a relatively short time span, so the escalation from efficient placement to open conflict stays brief rather than dragging on.

What Makes Dogs of War Stand Out

Overproduced in the Best Way

The miniatures are a recurring talking point. BoardGameBollocks calls Dogs of War one of the most overproduced games imaginable, arguing the stunning miniatures are completely unnecessary but make the game better simply by being on the table. The Dice Tower's hosts use similar language, calling it overblown and overproduced while still saying they liked the game a lot and pointing to a cult following that keeps asking for a reprint. Good Time Society, previewing the upcoming GameFound reissue from Play to Z Games, reports that the new edition swaps some of the original plastic pieces for wooden captains and armies alongside new art and graphic design; the host disclosed a part ownership stake in Play to Z Games before covering that campaign.

Paolo Mori's Pedigree

Designer credit is part of the draw for reviewers who have not even played the game yet. All You Can Board's Carlo puts Dogs of War on a most-wanted list mainly because of designer Paolo Mori, citing Ethnos as a fantastic game and Via Magica as an underrated one from the same designer. Good Time Society also credits Mori with Captain Flip and Libertalia.

Potential Drawbacks

Not Really a War Game

BoardGameBollocks pushes back on the box's promise directly, asking whether Dogs of War is a war game and answering not really, despite the title and the battlefield theme. The same review frames the actual experience as closer to a back and forth influence contest than any kind of military simulation.

Divisive Cover Art and an Elusive Copy

Board Game Barrage's hosts spend real time debating the cover art, with anthropomorphic dogs becoming a running joke about drawing a line and even joking about a boycott. Good Time Society's Bons adds a practical drawback: the original printing was so hard to find that a copy once sold out in minutes during a board game deals sale, and English copies have since resold for around $115, keeping the game out of reach for players who missed the original run.

If You Enjoy Dogs of War

Board Game Barrage compares the way influence shifts throughout a game of Dogs of War to Tycoon India 1981, another game where a player's position keeps moving as the game plays out.