There aren’t many perfect board games out there but Ex Libris might be one. Whenever I bring this game to a game night, rarely anyone has heard of it but everyone is eager to try. In a matter of five minutes, people are having a great time with the game. What makes it so great?
Ex Libris: The Theme
Ex Libris has one of the most fun set ups of any game. I would try to do it justice but the official description is just too good.
In Ex Libris, you are a collector of rare and valuable books in a thriving fantasy town. The Mayor has just announced a new seat in the Village Council, Grand Librarian. The prestigious and lucrative position will be awarded to the citizen with the most extraordinary library! Unfortunately, several of your book collector colleagues (more like acquaintances, really) are also candidates.
To outshine your competition, you’ll need to expand your personal library by sending your trusty assistants out into the village to find the most impressive tomes. Sources for the finest books are scarce, so you’ll need to beat your opponents to them when they pop up – especially if they match your library’s secret focus!
You only have a few days before the Mayor’s Official Inspector comes to judge your library, so be sure your assistants have all your books shelved in time! She is a tough cookie, and will use her Official Inspection Form to grade your library on several criteria including alphabetical order, shelf stability, prominent works, and variety. And don’t think she’ll turn a blind eye to books the Council has banned! You’ll need shrewd planning, cunning tactics, and perhaps a little magic to surpass your opponents and become Grand Librarian!
That’s right! Building the best library is your mission. There are a variety of ways to curate the best collection of books and yet the game is accessible to all levels of gaming experience.
Ex Libris: The Gameplay
Ex Libris is a worker placement game. Different locations are revealed each round that each have a different effect. As you gain cards with books on them, you add them to your own personal library. Each player gets a unique library with a special power to use to their advantage. None of the locations have complex effects and are usually pretty straightforward.
Your library is scored on a variety of aspects. You have to have a diverse set of books but avoid too many banned books. Your library has to be stable meaning placement matters. It has to be alphabetized, a mechanic that the game helps with. Again, none of the rules are difficult to figure out and yet the strategy can run deep in Ex Libris.
The Flavor
The flavor of the game is what puts it over the top for me. Games who go the extra mile always are my favorites. In Ex Libris, all of the cards have a various number of books on them. Each book has a unique title. Here are some of the titles you will find in this game.
-Poets Who Didn’t Know It
-Barbecuing With Hellfire
-Conjury To Avoid Jury Duty
-Stories So Short, They’re Practically A Paragraph
-The Ballad Of Derpy JibJob
This is just scratching the surface. Part of the fun of Ex Libris is reading the titles of all the books. The game didn’t have to do this but they did and it makes the game so much fun.
Final Thoughts
Ex Libris is a must have game. The play time is about 45 minutes so your guests won’t be committing to an afternoon of library building. Everyone will get a laugh from their unique book titles. The original game went out of print for awhile but the second edition has been released as well as an expansion. Put Ex Libris atop your wish list.
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