Kemet: Blood and Sand review by Greame Johnston

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Quick Look: Kemet: Blood and Sand

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Designers: Jacques Bariot, Guillaume Montiage
Artists: Dimitri Bielak, Émile Denis, Pascal Quidault, Pierre Santamaria
Publisher: Matagot
Year Published: 2021

I’m not going to beat around the bush any longer.  Kemet: Blood and Sand is a 10.  I don’t mean it’s perfect and it might not be for you, but after close to 50 plays (including original Kemet) I still get excited about the prospect of tabling this magnificent beast.  I mean, who wouldn’t be thrilled about the prospect of leading a soul devouring, undead army into an apocalyptic battle, mounted on a giant murderous scorpion, conjured up from the timeless black land (Kemet) of ancient Egypt.

Kemet: Blood and Sand combines rational, systematic Euro game sensibilities with an emotional Ameritrash centre.  There is no chance in Kemet,  beyond drawing cards from the rebalanced Divine Intervention deck, and your opponents can’t directly mess with your engine, so you can’t blame Lady Luck when your plans fall apart.  On the other hand, Kemet is not a puzzle to be solved by the application of cold, hard logic.  Player interaction determines the outcome.  Playing well is about understanding your opponents’ motivations, bluffing and blustering, building fragile alliances, holding your nerve, timing your moves , making sacrifices and carrying out the occasional, reckless act of derring do…a bit like being married really.

Kemet: Blood and Sand, seamlessly blends tried and tested mechanics; action points, tech trees, engine building and area control, into a colourful, intelligent, fast moving and engaging experience.  And, like a teenager who has just discovered the wi fi is broken, it gets demanding quickly.  Right from the word ‘go’ you’ll be scanning the technology trays to determine your initial pyramid ‘opening’.  From there it doesn’t let up.  Jostle for turn order, acquire ankhs, build pyramids, draft (even ‘hate draft’) power tiles, pick your battles, occupy temples and hold on for dear life.  3 hours plus later you will either pump the air in sweet, sweet victory or murmur a sullen congratulations and then berate everyone else for not doing enough (to help you win).

And Kemet is no game for turtles.  It provokes you into being aggressive.  Where first and last player may be separated by only a point or two, Battle Points can determine the winner.  Further, the game map is designed with claustrophobic cruelty.  I am never more than a hop, skip, and a jump away from punching Giles in the face, metaphorically speaking, of course.   As a result, anxiety levels are at ‘paranoid’.  My mates are a blood thirsty bunch so Kemet with them is always a lively affair.  Cheers, shouts, exhortations, inventive invectives, even the odd football terrace inspired chant…Kemet is my kind of fun.

Designed by Jaques Bariot and Guillaume Montiage, Kemet was published in 2012 and given a second edition in 2021.  For those with the first edition who are wondering if they should buy the revamp, ‘Blood and Sand’, I’m going to give you a resounding ‘maybe?’.  Blood and Sand has benefitted somewhat from the intervening 10 years of play and feedback.  Tweaks, rebalances and upgrades have subtly improved gameplay.  However, some alterations can be easily incorporated into the original.  There’s even a ‘best of both worlds’ upgrade pack available for those who want Blood and Sand but can’t bring themselves to let the original go.

I recently treated myself to the rather pricey ‘Rise of the Gods’ expansion with the beautiful big black storage box for past and future Kemet: Blood and Sand content and oh-my-(Egyptian) gods!  My chums were all over it.  There were actual ‘oohs’ when I lifted the box lid.  Like a forgotten pharaoh’s tomb cracked open by torchlight, the promise of something marvellous within did not disappoint.  I prefer the ‘old’ Kemet artwork but core Blood and Sand looks pretty good on the table.  Notable component upgrades include superbly illustrated, recessed player boards to hold markers in place, stackable 3D plastic pyramids, minis that are a smidge bigger than in Kemet 1.0 and new monster sculpts which are eminently paintable.  If only I could do them justice.  But hey, if you plump for a cheap copy of the first edition (and the Ta Seti expansion) you won’t be displeased either.

Now for some caveats.  Kemet is on the higher end of medium weight, largely because one has to navigate a substantial (although not insurmountable) amount of interactions between the tiles, the cards and the rulebook.  In my experience,  Kemet is best with 5 players.  The competition for the tiles you need for your engine is more intense and also… more battles (the ‘funnest’ bit).  I haven’t played the 6 player team options but I intend to give them a go.  Although tempting, the expansions are not essential.  In particular, we found the Book of the Dead tiles to be a bit ‘fiddly’ and quickly shelved them in favor of the 4 base game tile sets.   Further, I’ve heard phrases like ‘tile overload’, ‘bash the leader’ and ‘end game whip lash’ being hurled at Kemet.  There are elements of truth in all of these gripes but, in my view, none of them are deal breakers.

Some of us just don’t want to play games this confrontational, and that’s fine, Kemet: Blood and Sand is not for everyone.  If you are a chilled out ‘care bear’ who enjoys nothing more than the gaming equivalent of cuddling up on a comfy sofa with a gentle rom com, then forget it.  This bad boy will kick in your back door, push you around a bit and call you names.  So choose (cartoon) violence and chaaarrge!