Great fantasy game with high long-term motivation

The game Material:
About 300 tickets waiting in the relatively big box waiting to be viewed and tested. The artworks are mostly really succeeded, sometimes it is to me almost a bit colorful (when compared with the HDR or SW LCG), but by the color delimitation of different types of cards you can not get messed up. Very positive.
Also noteworthy: The pieces are the wooden bench, no ugly plastic chips or the like detract from the good first impression. The Cardboard Tokens are stable. Of course it would have been great if you had had the Mages 4 contained in the base game as a figure here, but there are also plenty of units that would be located as a plate-cards next to it. So it is uniform (s) - and does not make much difference for me (especially since you covered depending on the game situation maps must place among his mage / can).
Especially nice detail that has to do with the game mechanism: The Spell Books. There you will find all the cards that have been chosen before the game to create their own personal spellbook in 4-sheet protectors. Which brings us to a special feature of the game ...

The Game:
Mage Wars is not just a card game, after all, there is also a not small fancy game board on which our magicians including Entourage gather.
The game begins with each player (1on1) itself chooses a magician - and then puts together a suitable spellbook from the available maps for this. In "apprentice mode" spell books are pre-constructed, later you can then put together their very own spellbook. This one is not limited by a number of cards, but by the value of "magic".
Every magician belongs to a particular school of magic, their magic, he can buy the normal price (one always has a certain number of spell points available (120)). The spells that do not originate from his wizard school cost double. Spell out the quasi opposite Magic School are even more expensive (the priestess belongs to "Holy" -Zauberschule, for they cost the "Dark spells" then three times!). The good: It is quite possible also to use this: So you can surprise his opponent with a nasty demon, although it really only angels and knights should have available. The "Deck Building" possibilities are virtually limitless.

Game play consists of a "Ready-phase" and "action phase". In this all units are made ready to play again, you get fresh Mana (via "channeling"), paid for spells that you would like to maintain or must (so-called Upkeep phase) and chooses from his spellbook up to two spells, which you want to play in this round like (and places it face down in front of him).
Here hides the special nature of gaming. While in other card games though could prepare his deck accordingly - but in the end always was dependent on whether one takes the right card at the right time, you have at MW at any time all the cards to choose from, can choose at any time between units, buffs, Equipment , traps, counter spells and the like - as long as you can pay for them. Example: A really nasty demon can sometimes cost 15-20 Mana - since you generated per round but only 10-12 (depending on the Mage and additional equipment), it is sometimes called "save save, save" - ​​so plan always nice in advance what you want to do next so.
In the early rounds it has always be found to equip the more or less "naked" Mage with proper equipment, ie armor, wand, ring, amulet or shield. The increase in cases of doubt the armor, let melee strike or give a better a defense dice roll, with which you can make an attack run completely into the void (which, however, only 1 per round) ...

In the action phase, the players take turns moving their units, which can make either Motion Plus Quick Action, movement + movement or Full Action. When quick action include most attack, a Full Action, for example, summoning a powerful unit. The order in which you move his team, is a left itself, that can be completely free to decide at what time you moved his Mage. That in contrast to all other units also has the opportunity to talk to almost any point in the round a QuickCast. This is not apparent with all spells, but at least the smaller, lighter. Of course, this Qucikcast must be paid to MANA (and the spell must have been selected in the Ready-phase course at the beginning.

If it comes to the fight - then decides yet again (also) the luck of the dice. Each unit has a certain number of red attack dice show the numbers 0, 1 and 2, where it also is 1 and 2 with underlying star - in the latter case, which represents a critical damage, which can be blocked by armor or similar ,
What is fought like and over which distance depends on the units. There Counter Strikes, weapons with long-range, anti-tank weapons, it conjures nasty crops from the soil that make the enemy unable to move. Enumerate all possibilities offered by the game, is beyond the scope here.

My first impression is certainly excellent. You might want to also check out a lot of tutorials and explanatory videos on the net, to enter more deeply into the matter. The game seems easy to learn, but to be difficult to master. And it's what we're always looking for players