Zarcana

Zarcana
John Cooper
territorial control on a board of cards, with CCG-like card effects
:Players	Players:
:Time	Length:	unknown
:Complexity	Complexity:	High
Trios per color:		5
Number of colors:		1 single-color stash per player
Pyramid trios:
Monochr. stashes:		1 single-color stash per player
Five-color sets:
- - - - - - Other equipment - - - - - -
deck of Tarot cards
Setup time:		5 minutes
Playing time:
Strategy depth:		High
Random chance:		Medium
Game mechanics:
Theme:		Mystical
BGG Link:		10996
Status: Complete (v1.0), Year released: 1996

Zarcana was designed by John Cooper, circa 1996, one of the first games created for the pyramids beyond Icehouse. Pyramids are used to occupy territories on a board constructed out of cards. Players use the abilities of occupied cards or play cards from their hand in order to maintain territorial advantage; hand management is also a critical part of the strategy. Zarcana has been described as Pikemen meets Magic:the Gathering.

Zarcana was obsoleted by Gnostica, which was designed to be easier to learn and more strategically challenging.

External Links

• The rules are available online.
• Andy Looney likes Zarcana better.
• Zarf (Andrew Plotkin, world's biggest Zarcana fan) has made some custom Zarcana pieces and a handy-dandy rules reference.
• Cerulean's custom-built Tarot-less Zarcana deck: The Gallery, has all the game text on the cards.