Trolls are not big and stupid, as many would have you believe. Not long ago they lived among us and they used their cunning magic to look like us humans.
They lived with their cattle in the mountains. Their caves were beautiful and luxurious with a lot of silver, gold, gems, and a table full of delicious food. In Sweden, there is an expression for this “Rich as a troll”.
Trolls were not evil if you didn’t treat them badly, they could even be helpful to those who treated them well. But they often played tricks on humans. Their magic power (trollkraft) could distort the vision of humans so the troll looked like a human, an animal, a log, and a stone and even become invisible. But they also had some weaknesses. They couldn’t stand the sounds of church bells or steel, not to mention the sight of sun.
Trolls & Princesses is a “worker movement” game. You play as one of four troll clans and to get the mountains king’s favour, you try to impress him. The players get favour (in the form of victory points) when they do what trolls usually do: swap changelings, “hire” humans, tear down church bells, kidnap princesses, build their cave, and use troll magic. To succeed, the players must collect resources and move around their trolls to do different actions. The player with the most victory points at the end can crown himself the ultimate troll clan leader.
—description from publisher
- Deep engine with multiple action paths and synergies
- Strong two-player optimization opportunities
- Cavern tiling system yields varied, emergent layouts and diverse end-game scoring
- Rule set can be fiddly and state-heavy, risking dead-ends with certain tile layouts
- End-game scoring tables and king-card interactions can be complex
- Balance can vary with card/t tile draws in different runs
- trolls, bells, changelings, outposts, and princesses competing for points in a skein of actions and tile-building
- fantasy world where trolls vie for favor with the Troll King, manipulating villages and cavern networks
- humorous, tongue-in-cheek, fantasy-themed exploration of mischievous troll politics
- Skeleton Legend
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- King tiles / King’s cards — King tiles grant extra AP or special effects; King’s cards provide additional scoring or powerful actions.
- Resource management — Three main resources (obsidian, diamonds, gold); resources enable actions, outposts, and end-game scoring.
- Set collection / end-game scoring — Score is driven by completing sets of bells, changelings, and outposts; princesses contribute major points.
- Tile drafting / cavern tiling — Players draft cave tiles to place in their cavern networks, unlocking new actions and scoring opportunities.
- Village actions / beds for princesses — Villages provide actions; beds are required to house princesses, influencing which actions can be taken.
- Worker movement / AP allocation — Trolls move to different locations, and actions cost action points; the Troll King provides additional AP in some cases.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- This game is based off of a Skeleton Legend
- This is a medium weight strategy game that features worker movement as well as action point allowance
- Everything you're basically going to be able to do twice on your turn
- Befriend the princess in both villages
- There are a lot of things going on in this game
- The end game scoring is all detailed on the back of your player aid
References (from this video)
- Strong thematic flavor with a playful mischief motif between trolls and humans
- Deep strategic depth with multiple paths to score and interact with opponents
- Good emphasis on player interaction via shared resources and crowding strategies
- Tutorial format demonstrates play through concrete turns and decisions
- Rule complexity can be intimidating for new players
- Prototype components may differ from final production quality
- Games may have longer play times, requiring patience and commitment
- Trolls build caverns, employ tricks on humans, and capture princesses to enhance their caverns and scoring potential.
- A fantasy world with trolls and humans living in a mountain, caves, and villages; trolls aim to build luxurious caverns, lure humans, and capture princesses.
- Tutorial narrative with thematic flavor and host commentary
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Action point allocation — Each turn grants action points from trolls in a cavern and from the Troll King; these points are spent to perform actions.
- Deck-driven events / endgame timer — Reveal a top card each turn that drives village events and indicates when the game ends.
- King tile activation — King tiles provide special actions; players gain more king tiles and can activate them to influence play.
- Mobility and cauldrons — Move trolls between cauldrons and board areas to enable actions; placement on cauldrons determines available actions.
- Resource management — Track and manage resources like obsidian, gold bars, diamonds, cows, bells, and other tokens to enable actions and scoring.
- Tile placement / network expansion — Place cave tiles to the left of your area or on the village board to expand the caverns and unlock new resource spots.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- we are not evil trolls we just want to build out luxurious Caverns
- this card shows a Roman numeral two at the top and then it shows a human in the middle
- it's time to stop playing through the game for the tutorial and instead talk about what happens once the game is over