You want epic? Let’s get epic. Twilight Imperium is a legend in the board game scene, and one of the largest board games Level One Game Shop has. Now, it’s getting even bigger! Prophecy of Kings has been announced. It’s the first expansion for Twilight Imperium, and adds 7 all-new factions (up to 24), pieces to play 2 more players (up to 8), a brand new Leader system, and  Exploration decks with new Relics to discover. Twilight Imperium does everything big!

A Grand Opera in Space

Usually new-generation board games try to be simplify. They try to include elegant rules that help the game flow smoothly. They try to include just the right amount of pieces so the game sets up quickly. Usually hobby board games try to be accessible and affordable, and slim down their designs to fit that goal.

Usually.

Then there’s Twilight Imperium. It contains a truckload of plastic pieces, cardboard tiles, and decks of cards. Also, it has three rulebooks, which are constantly updated based on player feedback. And, it takes more than 4 hours to play, probably closer to 8 for players learning the game. Lastly, Twilight Imperium tells a grand story, on par with Star Wars or Game of Thrones, of several alien species vying for dominance at the end of their civilization.

While this all seems excessive, especially compared to smaller but fun and elegant games like Ticket to Ride or Century: Spice Road, all of this "foofaraw" does have a purpose. All of its rules and pieces contribute to the grandest of grand strategy games. The scale of Twilight Imperium’s story and gameplay is intriguing and enticing to many people. Even while the current Fourth Edition of Twilight Imperium is the sleekest, most easy-to-play version, the game deliberately chooses to forsake accessibility to maintain its grand scope.

Cosmic Expansion

So what do you do for an expansion of an already grand-scale game? Why, more of the same, of course! The newly-announced expansion for Twilight Imperium, called Prophecy of Kings, has plenty of new gameplay options. To start, there’s 7 unique new factions, each with their own backstory, mechanics and strategies. This bumps up the number of factions players can choose from to a whopping 24. Then, there’s more starships and starbases, enough to accommodate 2 additional players. These new player colors allow up to 8 players to play at once. And to make sure this galaxy is big enough for the 2-to-8 of us, there’s 40 new system and hyperlane tiles.

But there’s more, too! Prophecy of Kings also introduces two new rules systems to the game: Leaders and Exploration. There are a set of Leader cards for each faction, highlighting remarkable individuals who shape the course of history. The new Exploration decks make discovering new planets much more interesting. Each card is a different random encounter, and may even be a powerful Relic that can give your faction a strategic edge.

An Epic Twilight Imperium Expansion

Prophecy of Kings shows that everything Twilight Imperium does is big. Taking feedback from the passionate community of Twilight Imperium players, the expansion provides lots of new and interesting options to tell your version of this grandiose space opera. And just like its predecessor, Prophecy of Kings may ask a lot from its players, but rewards in an exciting, challenging game of cutthroat strategy and epic storytelling.

Check out Twilight Imperium and Prophecy of Kings at BoardGameGeek!