June 7, 2025: Wiz-War Developer Notes

Yep, we released Wiz-War over a year ago.

But, you see, I wrote this nice Developer Notes piece and due to an unfavorable alignment of the moon and Sagittarius, or something, it didn't run.

Better late than never! And if you have not seen Wiz-War, well, I still think it's a heck of a good game, and if you read this and think it sounds interesting, your friendly local retailer will gleefully take your money. Or so will Warehouse 23. It's the circle of life!

***

Wiz-War, by Tom Jolly, is a tactical game of magical combat in a dungeon. Up to six wizards draw cards, cast spells, steal treasures, and do their best to cut their foes off at the knees.

And . . . we are now shipping our big, beautiful ninth edition of Wiz-War. As a very-long-time fan, I think it's the best yet. If you missed it on Kickstarter, you didn't really miss it . . .

You have one character, two treasures to guard, and one to five foes. You draw cards, cast spells, and die horribly . . . or, preferably, make your rivals die horribly . . . or maybe you steal two treasures from other wizards and win that way! The components are, literally, solid. It has heavy map boards and full-color rules, and it's awesome. There are eight character standies, so the last person to choose is never "stuck with Orange" (or whatever). The requisite d4 is a double-numbered d8 for easier rolling.

What's the play like? There is a lot of "You do that? Well, I do THIS!!" – the whole spirit of the game is bloodthirsty but good-natured. In my headcanon, the survivors bring their defeated rivals back to life after the game, and everybody heads to the local tavern.

My development goals for Wiz-War were:

• Get rid of the FAQ. There should be no questions so predictable that they aren't answered in the rules! We shall see how well I succeeded.

• Restore the game to its purely tactical, single-character roots. The 8th edition, by Fantasy Flight, is a fun game, but it changed the direction of play, introducing deck-building and subsidiary characters to a game that played just fine, and faster, without them. (Fantasy Flight graciously allowed me to use card ideas from their edition, which I appreciate hugely.)

• Get a great cartoonist to illustrate the game, to fit the humor of Tom Jolly's original creation. 100% achieved! Phil Foglio did the cover, counters, and standies, and they look fantastic.

• And the overarching goal was to present this classic game in a way that would please the fans of the original (four decades of them), and attract new players. I think we have a success here!

This is one you'll easily be able to get me to play at conventions. Please?

-- Steve Jackson

PS – Another great thing – we have STL files to let you 3D-print the eight wizards (including the one who floats!), sculpted by the amazing Kim Beaton. This is a W23 exclusive now.