Arcane Wonders - "Furnace"

Photo above is property of Arcane Wonders

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Company: Arcane Wonders

Game: Furnace

Country: USA 🇺🇸

Language: English

Type of Game: Tabletop Game (Board Game) 📬

Genre: Economic Engine Builder, Auction

Date Played: September 14, 2024

Difficulty (based on 4 players): 6/10

Size of Team: 1 to 4 ppl

Time: Unlimited (Approximately 40-60 Mins.)

Price: $40.00 USD

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"Furnace" is a fast-paced engine-building board game set during the Industrial Revolution, where players become 19th-century capitalists competing to amass wealth and build powerful industrial empires. Each player bids on factories and resources in an auction-style mechanic, using strategic foresight to acquire assets that enhance their production engines. The key lies in optimizing your engine by converting raw materials into refined goods and profits over four rounds. With streamlined gameplay and tactical decision-making, Furnace challenges players to balance risk and reward, outmaneuver rivals in auctions, and maximize efficiency to become the richest industrial magnate by the game's end.

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From the moment you pick up the box, it's clear that this game is relatively light on components. However, the quality is undeniable. The chunky wooden auction tokens and beautifully illustrated cards exude craftsmanship, perfectly capturing the spirit of the 19th century. What stands out most is the artwork’s attention to detail. Each card is double-sided, with one side showing a factory in its initial state and the other displaying its upgraded version. The visual progression is subtle yet striking, with the addition of buildings, coal carts, or chimney stacks illustrating the facility's growth. You might also interpret the increasing smog, cloud cover, and darkened skies as a nod to the environmental toll of the Industrial Revolution, highlighting both the progress and the damage it left behind.

So, what’s inside the box?

• Four sets of differently colored Capital disks, numbered from one to four. Plus, one neutral colored disk, for us with a specific Capitalist card.

• Three types of wooden resources, coal, iron, oil

• An assortment of money and upgrade tokens

• Three decks of cards; Company cards, Capitalist cards, and unique Start-up cards

• A round counter, first player token, and single die for us in 2-player games

Overall, we really liked all the components, in addition to the excellent above-mentioned artwork, the resource tokens are individually shaped and colored, making them easy to identify, and the money comes in six denominations.

Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

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"Furnace" is a game of two halves; the Auction Phase and the Production Phase, which are played over four short rounds.

At the beginning of each round players will pit themselves against one another in a creative twist to more traditional auctions, because here everyone has something to gain… win or lose.

The auction works with players, in turn order, placing one of their numbered disks on to one of the displayed Company cards that have been laid on the table (the number varying as per the player count), following two rules:

1. There can’t be two disks belonging to the same player on the same card

2. There can’t be two disks of the same value on the same card

Players continue placing their remaining disks, one at a time, until there are none left to place. Players then proceed to resolving the now concluded auction.

Each card in the auction is resolved one at a time, starting with the left-most card. This is an important point to note, as resources gained from one card can be used when resolving later cards from the auction.

The player with the highest disk receives the card and places it in front of themself. Any other player who had a losing disk on the card will receive the Compensation which is listed at the top of the card – The winning player does not receive this reward!

If a card has no disks on it, then it is simply discarded from the game.

Once all cards are removed, players take back their Capital disks and proceed to the Production phase.

The Production phase is where players get to resolve their Company cards, one by one. This is where the engine building comes in to play; one card might give you some coal, the next card might turn that coal into oil, and the following card might then allow you to sell that oil for cash.

It is important to know that whilst you can activate the cards in any order, once they have been activated, they must be resolved fully and can only be actioned once per round.

All Company cards are double sided with the Upgraded side offering an additional effect. If a card has been upgraded before its basic effect gets resolved then it can use both the basic and additional effects once activated. However, if the basic effect was already used, then it must wait until the next round before the additional effect can be utilized.

Since the Production phase offers no player interaction, it is possible for players to all work through their cards simultaneously; this will save time, but requires a certain level of trust and competence.

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

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The player with the most money at the end of the four rounds wins.

If there is a tie, the player with the most cards wins. If there is still a tie, the player with the most resources wins.

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

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The two distinct phases that "Furnace" has, offers contrasting yet equally strategic gameplay. Both demand careful planning to maximize returns, but it was unanimously agreed that the Auction phase is the standout. Interestingly, the goal isn’t always to win every card; sometimes, losing an auction can yield even better rewards. In my last game, the player with the fewest Company cards ended up winning comfortably, thanks to consistently receiving excellent Compensation during the auctions.

The auction’s open format, allowing any disk value to be placed on any card (with only two key placement rules), ensures uncertainty until the final disk is placed—unless you play a '4', of course. Even a low-value disk like a '1' could secure a card if other players bypass it, adding to the intrigue.

The Production phase may not appeal to everyone. Sitting quietly, rearranging cards to figure out the most efficient activation order can feel a bit slow and dry. However, I personally enjoy this type of productivity puzzle. Unlike other engine-building games, *Furnace* is streamlined and straightforward, with limited options that prevent it from becoming an overwhelming brain burner. Plus, since new cards are added gradually, you have time to adjust your engine bit by bit, ensuring it never feels too daunting.

Initially, the iconography felt overwhelming, but once I read through the well-written and illustrated rulebook, everything became intuitive. Credit must be given to the clarity of the rulebook—after a single read, we were able to dive into the game without confusion or lingering questions.

I often hesitate to use an AI or dummy player in games when there aren't enough human players. However, since player interaction is mostly confined to the Auction phase, we decided to try it, and I’m glad we did. The dummy player, controlled by a die to select Company cards, works brilliantly. The unpredictability of the die roll adds tension and occasional frustration, keeping the auction phase exciting.

For added stakes and replayability, we always include the variable player powers, the Capitalist cards distributed at the start. These inject an extra layer of unpredictability and strategy into the auction, making it even more engaging.

Overall, Furnace delivers a fast-paced experience that’s quick and easy to teach. The Auction phase is lively and suspenseful, while the streamlined Production phase gives you time to plan for future auctions. With only four rounds, the game ends before it overstays its welcome, though I often find myself wishing for a fifth or sixth round, just as my engine is really starting to churn out profits.

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(If you do decide to try this game, give us a shoutout or tag us on social media so we know you heard it from "ESCAPETHEROOMers"!)

Disclosure: We thank Arcane Wonders for providing us with samples of the game. Although a complimentary experience was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.

#RyanDriver #AtHomeGames #TabletopGames #PuzzleByMail #EconomicEngineBuilder #USA #ArcaneWonders