Riot Games first leaped into the tabletop arena with Mech Vs. Minions, a cooperative game with miniatures and a big world of possibility. It’s hefty, it’s high-dollar, and it’s one of the top-50 board games on BGG.
One of the designers, Chris Cantrell, has returned with a new game that couldn’t be more different. Tellstones: King’s Gambit builds on the lore of League of Legends by introducing the popular Tellstones game of Demacia. This is a bluffing game of manipulation, mental fortitude, and competitive point-scoring.
It’s also a cerebral upgrade to the shell game, especially when two players play loose and fast.
Instead of three cups and one ball, though, we’re looking at seven stones on one line, with bragging rights assured to the one who comes out on top.
STORY
Where did this cunning game of wit and memory come from?
To the loyal citizens of Demacia, Tellstones is known most often by the name “King’s Gambit”.
Many centuries ago, legend tells of King Santon the First. His claim to the throne was challenged by his brother, Amigus, and their dispute threatened to plunge the entire kingdom into civil war. Seeking to avoid any bloodshed or deception, the two of them agreed that whoever won a game of Tellstones would be the true and rightful king, while the other would be his sworn protector and high marshal.
Santon risked everything that day, to save the lives of his people. Victorious, his reign was long and just, and Amigus served him loyally until his dying day.
Thankfully, the stakes aren’t that high for the average gamer, but it can feel just as tense when you’re staring into the eyes of an opponent, trying to determine if they know the symbols hidden in the Line or if they’re bluffing.
The winner isn’t always the one who successfully names the symbols. Sometimes, it’s just the one who avoids making a mistake the longest.
GAMEPLAY
The shell game works like this: 1) a hustler with fast fingers, a faster mouth, and a possibly nefarious setup implores a passerby to partake in a game of chance, with the mutual agreement of money exchanging hands after the game is played; 2) the hustler moves the ball and cups; 3) the passerby fails to identify the correct cup; 4) the hustler gets some money and suggests that the passerby try again; 5) the passerby realizes their folly… and tries again.
Tellstones: King’s Gambit is almost as simple, except that money isn’t involved—though maybe drinking should be—and the two players end the game with one as the winner and the other the rueful or forlorn loser.
Few components are in the sleek metal box because there isn’t much needed to set up a game. The “Line” is a thin felt playmat. The “Pool” is comprised of the seven stones—the Crown, Shield, Flag, Sword, Knight, Hammer, and Scales. And then two markers track each player’s score while the reference cards remind the players of the available actions and “Boast” replies.
Gameplay is easy.
On each turn, players choose from one of six actions—Place, Hide, Swap, Peek, Challenge, and Boast. These actions will either manipulate the order and visual state of the “Line” or they will involve scoring points.
One symbol is randomly selected to start faceup on the “Line” and then the game proceeds with the first player. Placing, hiding, and swapping all require the active player to tell their opponent what to do. The opponent will place a certain symbol on one side of the line, hide a symbol that is currently faceup, or swap two symbols while retaining the faceup or facedown status of the stone.
Those are the first three actions.
Peeking is just that. A player will examine a facedown stone to remember the hidden symbol.
Challenging and boasting are where points are won or conceded. Challenging a player forces them to name a particular symbol on a stone. Points are awarded depending on the result. Boasting is where the game gets more lively. It ends the game, one way or the other unless a player accepts the other’s boast. A player will insist they know all of the hidden symbols and the opponent must respond.
Correctly identifying all of the facedown stones guarantees victory.
Missing one ensures defeat.
But, like any good bluffing game, Tellstones isn’t about the game. Not really. It’s about who you’re playing. Figuring out how their brain works, how they try to remember information, and, subsequently, how to manipulate and interfere with that. It’s a game where a good poker face can win faster than an elephant’s memory.
What I like about it is the conversations in between turns, designed to distract and unsettle. I enjoy the moments when I’m so certain about the order of the line, only to make a mistake on my first stone flipped. Mind games are best when they continue to surprise and unbalance you. And Tellstones does that effectively by creating enough variables to disrupt your perfect retention of the in-game events.
There aren’t three cups and one ball. There are seven stones and seven symbols. There are moments of dialogue that interrupt your focus. There isn’t one hustler. There’s two.
That subversion of the classic game makes for something more special. Two tricksters go head to head, and there are a lot of ways to mess with your opponent.
VISUALS
For the most part, I’m happy with the production quality of Tellstones. For $30.00, you get a highly-portable game that’s also pretty durable. I don’t love the closing mechanism of the box, which feels a little flimsy, but the metal exterior will hold up to a lot of dings and drops before it starts to affect functionality.
What I do love are the stones. The thick white pieces are big and satisfying to hold in the hand. The dark blue ink contrasts nicely with the creamy white plastic that makes up the stone. The padded insert in the box also protects these stones when you’re not playing and when traveling.
The markers are basic transparent glass gems and both the rulebook and reference cards are printed on nice thick paper.
I don’t love the felt playmat that makes up the “Line” but I understand its necessity. A neoprene mat wouldn’t have folded as easily in such a small box, so this gets the job done. Cardboard would have also been a bad option, especially for frequent use, and paper would be destroyed too easily. It’s not as nice as the stones or the game case, but it doesn’t hurt the overall appeal of the game that Riot has designed.
Going back to the rulebook, it gets the job done. I think it indulges a little too much in the lore and flavor of League of Legends, but everything is clean, organized, and it’s easy to get started with the game. That includes the reference cards that players keep by their sides.
REPLAYABILITY
A small game like this lives off its replay value because it’s simple to learn, easy to transport, and doesn’t rely on hundreds of pieces to function.
Tellstones is a fun game that isn’t hindered by the two-player requirement. It’s fun to watch people play this game and it’s quick enough that you can switch players out to allow everyone a chance.
Also, the game variant included accommodates four players working in teams of two, so that is a bonus.
I played multiples times with different players, and I enjoyed myself a lot. I think that it’s always smart to have smaller games like these that you can bring anywhere and Riot Games has done a good job with creating a portable box that holds everything you need.
WHAT IT COULD HAVE DONE BETTER
The quality of the felt playmat could have been better, but the rest of the components were a nice enough quality. For $30, I’d have liked to have had actual stone “stones” rather than plastic, especially given the absence of other components other than the mat and glass score markers.
Also, this game drags the most when you have players that go slow. When they are taking their time to really memorize everything and delaying speedy turns, it can be pretty boring. It’s best when players move quickly and see who can keep track of everything (or mostly everything) while the stones move all over the line.
So make sure you’re not playing with a slowpoke.
Finally, I would have liked more variants to accommodate different player counts. The four-player variant is a nice addition, but any way to increase accessibility in games is something I look for and value.
A timed game in which opponents take turns manipulating the line of stones a certain number of moves before challenging the other player would have been interesting.
A version where one random stone was left out of play, facedown, while the others were shuffled facedown and placed on the line, with a finite number of moves for each player before challenging and boasting was available. That would prevent some level of certainty and provide another engaging way to play.
I think there’s enough foundation in Tellstones to have devised more game variants for players. With a small game like this, it’s also valuable to have numerous ways to interact with the smaller box of content.
VERDICT
Tellstones: King’s Gambit is a stone-swapping, head-spinning memory game, and it is a reminder that you don’t have to have a dungeon-crawling, miniature-heavy big box to have a good time. It’s across the spectrum from Mechs Vs. Minions, and I don’t think it will have the lasting power of that adventure, but it’s still a fun experience.
If you’re a fan of League of Legends, if you like memory games, or if you are looking for another small-box game to take with you to scratch that traveling tabletop itch, then you might want Tellstones.
