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
More strategic control
How it plays
How does it play?
Build favor across the Seven Kingdoms, trade by sea, and unite against nomad attacks without surrendering your own prestige.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Worker Placement
Commit limited workers to action spaces before opponents occupy them.
Variable Player Powers
Each player has different abilities, restrictions, or strategic advantages.
Multi-Use Cards
Use the same card in different ways, making each play a trade-off.
Set Collection
Gather related items that become more valuable when scored together.
Contracts
Complete specific requirements to earn rewards, income, or victory points.
Income
Receive recurring resources according to your position, assets, or development.
See all 8 mechanisms
Read the full game description
Tianxia is a strategic worker-placement game set during the Warring States period. Across four rounds, players dispatch governors to regions, climb palace tracks, trade goods through barges, construct income buildings, and strengthen the frontier with walls, soldiers, and towers. The shared nomad threat makes military preparation a collective necessity, but every contribution is also a contest for prestige. Multi-use cards, variable player powers, contracts, and shifting setup bonuses create several routes through the economy, court, and defenses. Passing determines later turn order, so the timing of a final action matters as much as its immediate reward. Solo play uses the same systems with an automated rival, while multiplayer balances indirect cooperation against a highly competitive score. The result is a substantial Eurogame in which commerce and statecraft must remain productive even as the northern border demands attention.
