Vanguard Exiles Preview

I got the chance to check out the Early Access demo of Vanguard Exiles. Developed and published by The Tea Division, it’s a strategic board game–like autobattler set in a fantasy dieselpunk version of post-World War I, where bands of exiles are coming together to create their own Vanguard to reclaim the world, and you’re the general that will lead them to victory. No pressure, right?

I totally missed the tutorial, but I figured it out on my own and there were tooltips to explain what the heck was going on. To win a match, you must reach a certain amount of Victory Points (VP), which are earned by capturing tiles using the exiles you deploy. The units and powers you have access to are determined by a (I'm guessing) random selection of units from two factions that you can pick from before your game starts. Once you’ve done your prep, it’s time to fight! It’s separated into three phases: Deploy, Reveal, and Skirmish.

In the Deploy phase, you’ll be placing your units and using your actions (if you have any) around the various zones (tiles) available to be taken. You should use everything you have every turn. There are no resources needed to use them and it all comes back in the end, so there’s no need to hold back, just make sure to spread out. Multiple units in one spot don’t capture the tile faster, it just gives you more defence for when your opponents come to try and take it.

After you’ve done all you can and ended your turn, it’s time for the Reveal phase, where it’ll show you how much trouble you’re in, such as seeing the units deployed by your opponent and activating effects. Maybe there’s a new modifier to a tile, buffed a unit, or even reduced a tile’s VP to zero. It’s the calm before the storm.

Finally, it’s time to Skirmish. Take your hands off the keyboard because it’s all automatic. Your units will capture tiles, fight off enemies, and move to support each other when needed. It’s satisfying to see your strategy works out, expected or not. The AI can seriously pull off some devious moves that might catch you by surprise.

After every Skirmish, you can recruit a new unit or get a new ability. Some are free, but others will need gold, which you obtain from capturing Mines. A good enough unit can be the difference between winning and losing so you better choose carefully or even save that gold for a better roll. If you don’t have the gold, though, you can save them for the next round. Once you’re done strengthening your army, new tiles will be added, some old ones may be disabled and you go again until someone reaches the required VP. Each turn is only a few minutes, which does keep the flow of the game going. Although, I was only playing against AI, so it might be a little longer of a wait time against a real player.

I’m going to be honest: I was sort of sceptical that I would like Vanguard Exiles, but it is pretty fun, and I’m eager to play another match. I guess that does make sense, considering the game was designed by Richard Garfield. You know, the guy behind Magic: The Gathering. There’s some serious potential here, and I can’t wait to see what else is in store.