A Universal Truth

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." - Pride and Prejudice " It’s the Regency Era and you’ve set out to make the perfect match! Search for a love who is enthralled by your accomplishments and is agreeable to your financial situation. Forge good relationships with friends and family, and then secure lasting affection with acts of courtship. Who will tie the knot first?

A Universal Truth is a strategic game of courtship set in the Regency era. Features include dice and card drafting, hand and pool management, tableau building, set collection, multi-use card combos, risk management, asymmetric abilities and over 200 unique characters from the period.

"Marriage is indeed a maneuvering business." Are you up for the challenge?

Critical Reception

Rahdo:

"Jen and I sat down and played this multi-use card game and were blown away by it. This is a real hidden gem for 2022... If you're a fan of Jane Austen or if you're just a fan of really good card games, you'll want to check this out."

"It is really smart, really crunchy, and also very cutthroat."

"It deserves to be seen by more people 'cause it's a really smart design."

"The game comes with six different built in modules so you have a lot of different variety. You could make it a pure gateway game... When you turn on all six modules, it becomes incredibly sharp and crunchy. It also becomes pretty cutthroat."

"Oh my gosh, it's such a fantastic solo game."

"Everything in this game feels so incredibly thematically grounded."

"A wonderful design, a wonderful presentation... so evocative."

"Who is it a good fit for? People who are looking for either a very very light, breezy, fun, fast, family-friendly retelling of a Jane Austen novel... or looking for a big, a battle of wits, a very very crunchy game that will really push you..."

"Few games push multi-use cards as hard as this."

"wow this could be a top game of the year contender, but there's a bit more take-that woven in [than] we care for."

(compiled from teaser video, R&R, final thoughts, BGG comments)

Chairman of the Board:

"Something I really did like about this game was the ability to tinker the game or tweak the game to your level of complexity." (received Chairman's Commendation)

Marco Omnigamer:

"I found it quite enjoyable as a solitaire."

How to Play

The first player to successfully make a match wins A Universal Truth! To match a love interest, you must satisfy all of their requirements as specified on a card below their picture.

(Final card art shown.)

Money – The income / dowry sought.

Social Amity – Positive relationships with important friends and family.

Affection – Acts of courtship.

Accomplishments – Sets of matching accomplishments in the colors and quantities desired.

You will work to build a tableau of these categories for your character and love interest until you have met all of the required criteria. Once you have secured their affection, you're declared the winner!

One option you have on your turn is a unique combination of dice and card drafting. Draft from the available dice pool to move your player token on a shared rondel. The card where you land is drafted into your hand. Also try to position yourself advantageously for upcoming events.

Careful planning will be required to obtain the cards you want while preventing the other players from achieving their goals. If you draft too aggressively, you may end up losing cards and precious time, as you may only keep three cards when the dice are rerolled. Therefore, you must prudently balance card acquisition and usage.

Another option you have on your turn is to use the cards in your hand. In many cases, this will require determining which cards are best suited to each other and how to benefit from their complementary attributes. Manage your hand appropriately by maximizing your potential, flexibility, benefit to your tableau, and preparation for the moment when a reroll may be desired or required. Take card actions at just the right time to avoid missing an opportunity on the rondel or the chance to slow your opponents by taking the dice they need.

Finally, once you begin to build your tableau and create sets of accomplishments, enjoy the special abilities that your talents bring you. Each of the 36 accomplishments opens a particular turn option or ongoing effect for you. These can be real game changers as you and your fellow players figure out how to use them to their best advantage and how they might interplay with each other.

(Note: Earlier prototype artwork, components and rules shown in video. For full rules, visit the BoardGameGeek page.)

Solo Mode

"I found it quite enjoyable as a solitaire." - Marco Omnigamer

The game features a solo mode in which you can compete against a rival for the hand of your own beloved!

Efficiency - Where the multi-player game is a race to be more efficient than the other players, the solo game requires you to be efficient in other ways. A timer deck is depleted as you add to your tableau, so you must make sure to add cards that will truly benefit you. Additionally, the timer deck is depleted at each reroll, so you mustn't dawdle. If the timer deck runs out before your tableau is completed, your rival whisks away your love interest forever. Finally, your beloved will only wait around so long - you must finish courting before the draw deck runs out completely.

Hand Management - Just as in the multi-player game, you should be aware of your hand size as you may only keep three cards when a reroll occurs. Also like the multi-player game, you will need to discard a reroll symbol or your entire hand to reroll. However, in the solo game, the responsibility lies with you. You will always be the one to reroll at the end of a round, making these considerations unavoidably important. Plan incorrectly and you'll end up losing your remaining hand and precious time!

Card and Dice Drafting - As in the multi-player game, you will take interleaving turns with your rival, potentially drafting dice and cards. However, you must also decide how to manipulate your rival's actions in the solo game. After each of your first two of turns, you must decide which opportunity for your rival on the rondel will end up benefiting you the most or harming you the least. Stay ahead or hold back to ensure your next moves are the right ones.

Advanced Mode - A more challenging solo experience is also available. In addition to not running out of time, you must also beware of your rival suitor's intentions toward your love interest. If your rival manages to draft just ten hearts, you instantly lose. This incorporates the blocking aspect of the card drafting which you must now manage in addition to considerations of your own efficiency.

Variable Difficulty - Each of the three constraints on the solo mode may be adjusted to your taste for easier or harder games. Add/remove cards from the timer stack, remove cards from the draw stack, or increase/decrease the number of rival heart drafts that are allowed.

(Note: Earlier prototype artwork, components and rules shown in video. For full rules, visit the BoardGameGeek page.)