Excalibur — Trickery, Bluffs, and One Dreaded Cursed Blade | Review

Review by Lincoln Hoppe: The Game Bard

A Sword Worth Pulling?

Excalibur is here. But is this the sword you want to pull from the stone? Let's find out.

"Just for a split second, we shared this silent look. He knew, I knew, he knew, and no one else had a clue."

Game Overview

Excalibur is a lighthearted party game of trickery and social deduction for 3-6 players from designers Rob Dougherty and Darwin Kastle, published by Wise Wizard Games. Players use the powers of legendary characters to find and secretly keep the Excalibur chip to win the crown. At the start of the game, the all-important Excalibur chip and the dreaded Cursed Blade Chip are shuffled with a few others and dealt out, so two players immediately hold the keys to the kingdom.

How a Round Works

The rest of the character chips are spread face down on the table in a pool called Avalon, divided into three regions by delightful cardboard blades. Each round is quick. First, everyone draws up to four chips. Then, all players simultaneously choose one chip to play, hiding it in their fist. Everyone reveals at once, and then starting with the crown holder, you resolve your chip’s effect before the crown passes to the left. This continues until a region in Avalon runs out of chips, triggering a final round where whoever holds the Excalibur chip becomes the new winner. Usually.

Beautiful Chaos

Here's where the beautiful chaos kicks in. The character chips are your tools for sowing distrust. You might play the Lady of the Lake, forcing every single player to pass their entire hand to the person next to them. Or you could play Mordred, letting you peek at someone's hand and then swap with them if you like what you see. Maybe you'll play Merlin, who forces anyone with a sword chip to give it to you—including the bad one. But then those players immediately get to steal a random chip back. It's crazy.

The tension comes from never truly knowing who has what, forcing you to read the table, listen to accusations, make your best guess, and do a little bluffing yourself. And just when you think you've cleverly secured Excalibur, someone plays a spirit chip and suddenly everyone is stealing from their neighbor and the sword is gone again. Gosh dang it.

The Cursed Blade

And then there's the cursed blade. If you end the game with this chip, you are the ultimate loser. It creates a hilarious hot potato dynamic as you desperately use steal and return effects to pass the cursed blade to some other unsuspecting knight.

Components & Production

Components-wise, this is the Essentials edition, and if I hadn't seen the Deluxe edition, I wouldn't have known what I was missing. So for my budget-friendly friends and those who are all about the gameplay and don't care about board game bling, this is all you need. In this essentials edition, the beautiful art and thick cardboard chips are fun to hold and exchange, and those lovely cardboard blades divide up the Avalon playing area so thematically.

What Elevates This Game

What elevates this game is the pure player interaction. It's not necessarily a quiet puzzle; it can be a loud, riotous romp of accusations and laughter. That moment when you think you're safe only to have your hand passed to the player you know is getting Excalibur, is both agonizing and hilarious. And because actions are simultaneous with sweeping effects, there's virtually no downtime.

My Experience

With a simple loop and dozens of character chips, the combination of abilities makes every game feel different, but the biggest factor is the group you play with. Reading the expressions and bluffing of your friends and family is just part of the fun. When playing this with my family, it was a constant hide and seek with all information blatantly revealed a few times a game, only to bury itself again in the smokescreen of lies, deceit and delight. And by gum, I keep ending up with that darned cursed blade. Thanks, family.

The other night I had three chips face down, and I knew Excalibur was on the left. I watched my son ponder his choice, my brain just screaming, 'Take anyone but the left one.' He reached out, even touched the chip on the right, and for a second I thought I was safe. But then he slid his hand over and snatched the one on the left. I had to sit there, stone-faced, hiding my agony from the rest of the table. He glanced down at his newly gotten chip. Then his eyes met mine briefly, and just for a split second, we shared this silent look. He knew, I knew, he knew, and no one else had a clue. And in that little moment of silent knowing, with that slight glimmer in his eye, it was thrilling.

Who Is This For?

Excalibur may be for you if you love social deduction, bluffing, and high player interaction. It's perfect for groups who want to laugh, accuse each other, make some bluffs, and create hilarious memories. It's a fantastic party game that's super easy to teach and gets going in minutes, so it's great for people who have never played games before.

Who Is This Not For?

Excalibur may not be for you if you dislike chaos, randomness, and 'take that' mechanics. If you don't like bluffing or social deduction, there's a lot of that in this game. If you want a deep strategic game with perfect information and flawless long-term plans, this is not that game. This game relies heavily on an honor system for some effects, so it's best played with friends who will play by the rules even when no one is looking.

Final Verdict

In the end, for me, Excalibur is a fantastic experience, perfectly balancing simple rules with the chaotic social fun of daring bluffs, cunning deception, and the shared panic of tracking down the one little chip that holds the fate of the kingdom. Winning with Excalibur doesn't feel like you were chosen by Destiny; depending on your group, and certainly for my family, winning feels like you were the last one standing in a magical medieval pillow fight. And losing? Well, I think it's just as fun.

It's not about who's the worthiest knight, but who is the sneakiest. The question isn't just 'can you find the sword?' It's 'can you hold on to it?' So next time my family is looking for a little mischievous fun, I'll head for the game shelves, look for the blades, and draw this baby out of the stone.

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by Lincoln Hoppe

Original Music by Lincoln Hoppe: The Game Bard

A prototype/review copy of the game was provided. Final game may differ from what is shown.

Buy Link: Excalibur

Publisher: Roxley

Designed by: Manny Trembley

Art by: James Van Niekerk, Manny Trembley

Board Game Geek Page: Excalibur

My Board Game Geek Page: Lincoln Hoppe