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?
Game description from the publisher: In an age of great battles, valiant leaders, and unscrupulous mercenary armies, fortune lies within your grasp. Ventura is a board game of nobility and conquest for 2-4 players.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Area Majority
Compete to have the strongest presence in areas that award control or points.
Grid Movement
Move pieces between adjacent spaces on a regular grid.
Open Drafting
Select cards or items from a shared face-up display.
Simultaneous Action Selection
Choose actions secretly or concurrently before revealing them together.
Tile Placement
Place tiles to build a shared or personal spatial arrangement.
Modular Board
Build the play area from interchangeable sections that vary between games.
Read the full game description
Game description from the publisher: In an age of great battles, valiant leaders, and unscrupulous mercenary armies, fortune lies within your grasp. Ventura is a board game of nobility and conquest for 2-4 players. Set in 14th century Italy, Ventura puts players in control of warring noble houses, each vying for control of the country's growing wealth. Balance your house’s earnings and maintain your hired soldiers to keep your family’s noble standing. Remember, the best armies are also the ones that cost the most! With more than 120 plastic pieces, 40 Territory tiles, 4 Family Boards, a scoring board, and over 100 cards, Ventura will whisk players into a world of warring mercenaries and noble families, all seeking control of Italy’s burgeoning wealth. Added... Players build a variable map from randomly drawn hexagonal terrain tiles, then maneuver numbered pieces representing groups of associated cards, various types of military units and their leaders. But the game is financial as well as military. Because everything in this game costs money. Pay money to draw a card. Pay more money to PLAY a card. And once those troops are in action, you better be prepared to pay them every turn or they'll leave. You can use your money (florins) to buy victory points directly (only 30 to win the game). BUT, that leaves you with precious little funds for your defense. Can your opponent(s) field an army fast enough to take out your capital (for the win) before you get there with money?