Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
Merv: The Heart of the Silk Road is a tense economic game charting the rise and fall of the greatest city in the world. In Merv, players are vying to amass power and wealth in the prosperous heart of the Silk Road.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Contracts
Complete specific requirements to earn rewards, income, or victory points.
Modular Board
Build the play area from interchangeable sections that vary between games.
Rondel
Move around a circular action track that limits which actions are currently reachable.
Set Collection
Gather related items that become more valuable when scored together.
Ownership
Claim assets or areas that remain under a player’s control.
Read the full game description
Merv: The Heart of the Silk Road is a tense economic game charting the rise and fall of the greatest city in the world. In Merv, players are vying to amass power and wealth in the prosperous heart of the Silk Road. Through careful court intrigue, timely donations to the grand mosque, and favorable trade deals, players attempt to redirect as much of that prosperity as possible into their own pockets. Meanwhile, beyond the city walls Mongol hordes approach. If you help construct the city walls, you give up on precious opportunities to build up your own stature, but leave it unprotected and you will burn with the city. Every decision is weighty and the consequences of each misstep are dire. Will you rise to prominence or fade into oblivion? —description from the publisher