Kamigami Battles is a deckbuilding game for 2-5 players. The game features gods and other mighty figures from various pantheons. Court of the Emperor is an expansion that utilizes tons of gods and mythological beings from Chinese mythology. This expansion adds six gods, nine warriors, one disciple and one temple to the experience.
Court of the Emperor doesn’t change much of the core gameplay that is established in Battle of the Nine Realms and River of Souls. Instead, Court of the Emperor adds more depth to the various mechanisms. This especially applies to attacking. Most of the attackers in Court of the Emperor have effects that activate if they deal damage to a defender. These extra effects add a welcome amount of strategy to Kamigami Battles, which was previously a game that rewards patience early on. Now players can attack early on and still do things like heal or build a better deck at the same time. There is certainly some power creep here, but it’s welcome due to the amount of depth it adds to the experience.
The new disciple card, Clay Warrior, is a defensive card that has a react ability that blocks two points of damage. The card also has a neat effect that allows it to block damage from the discard pile, giving it more flexibility in case of emergency. The drawback on this is that the Clay Warrior is moved back into the Hall of Heroes, effectively lost to the player for the rest of the game. It’s yet another card that adds tons of depth to attacking and defending.
The Gods in Court of the Emperor are diverse, with varying abilities that can change the way that players play Kamigami Battles. Erlang Shen can cancel the effects of other gods, while Yu Hoang can completely shuffle the Hall of Heroes. Each God feels unique, and while Yu Hoang’s ability can slow the game down, every new God is welcome.
The art in Court of the Emperor is some of the best in the franchise. The linework and coloring are both splended here. Everything is clear and the designs themselves are all unique yet faithful. There is also a lot less fanservice in this entry, though there are still plenty of gratuitous shots of the women of Kamigami Battles. Those who are turned off by the fanservice still likely won’t have their minds changed about Kamigami Battles, but its nice to see all of it toned down a bit.
As the newest Kamigami Battles expansion, Court of the Emperor does a stellar job at making the most out of all of the game’s mechanics. Interesting effects that add depth combined with fantastic art makes this the best expansion yet.