A cooperative game of burnination, majesty, and consummate V's
Trogdor!! The Board Game is a co-operative board game for up to six players, based on Trogdor the Burninator and the world of Peasant's Quest, as seen in the Homestar Runner web cartoons and other spin-offs. The game was posted on Kickstarter in July 2018, and the campaign was overwhelmingly successful, having earned over $1.4 million (out of an original goal of $75,000) when it ended a month later. James Ernest of Cheapass Games helped with game design and play-testing.
Players take on the roles of the Keepers of Trogdor, who guide the infamous wing-a-ling dragon as he rampages through the land of Peasantry. The playfield takes the form of 25 land tiles, arranged in a 5x5 square, and players command Trogdor to move, burninate things, devour peasants, and more.
Each of the Keepers has a special power they can use on their turn and a powerful magic artifact that can be recharged and reused when a specific condition is met. It'll take luck, skill, and teamwork to outwit the meddling peasants who can undo your hard work, and the mighty knights and archers trying to drive off Trogdor, and successfully burninate the countryside, the peasants, and the three thatched-roofed cottages on the board.
The game also comes with Stack 'Em to the Heavens, a mini-game based around stacking the peasant and knight meeples.
Tropes:
- Buffy Speak: One of the Items of Trogdor is called "That Dog Tennis Ball Thing, 'cept with Fireballs".
- Cain and Abel: Crangolev is a Keeper of Trogdor and the older sister of Mendelev and Dongolev, the archer twins who defend the countryside. This makes her the Cain to the twins' collective Abel.
- Calvinball: One of the Keepers is "Just The Cheat". His ability reads simply "Duh, you can cheat. What that means exactly is up to you."
- Co-Op Multiplayer: Players take turns controlling Trogdor, working together to burninate the countryside.
- Desperation Attack: If Trogdor takes damage when his Trog-meter is empty, this triggers "Trogdor's Fiery Rage". Trogdor moves around the board based on five movement cards, burninating everything in his path, and players can win if they manage to complete the game's win conditions by the time Trogdor's Fiery Rage ends.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Worchex's ability prevents knights from repairing cottages. His general hatred for knights stems from his favorite knight refusing him a high-five at a joust.
- Elite Mook: The Troghammer is a third knight that comes into play when Trogdor first takes damage. He not only moves with the other knights but whenever the players draw a Troghammer card from the Action deck.
- Her Code Name Was "Mary Sue": Most of the Keepers are from the Trog-canon. Three are deliberately overpowered, made to look like they were added to the deck later with doodles on notebook paper, and are very obviously self-inserts of Strong Bad ("Lord Pastryhorn of Fangleburg"), Strong Mad ("the Haunchgurgler"), and The Cheat ("Just The Cheat").
- Hyperactive Metabolism: Trogdor can devour a peasant to add it to his Trog-meter, which serves as his health bar.
- Joke Character: By virtue of having no special powers of his own, Hardybardy is effectively this.
- Man on Fire: Burninating peasants will cause them to run around while engulfed in flames, burning any tiles they pass over. They can even cause chain reactions by setting other peasants on fire.
- Mole Men: Galgabudge has the appearance of a mole and his special ability allows Trogdor to treat mountain tiles as if they were tunnels.
- Mythology Gag: There are a lot of references to the other parts of the Homestar Runner franchise in the game:
- One of the artifacts is "Ye Flask of Dennis".
- There are also several references to Peasant's Quest, like the Shield of Cumberdale (named for Ron Cumberdale, whom Rather Dashing might be turned into if he fails the trials of the Trogkeepers) and the Super Trinket.
- The minigame Stack 'Em to the Heavens is named after one of Marshie's lines from the web cartoon short "Malloween Commercial".
- "Lord Pastryhorn" is a nod to the Strong Bad Email "3 wishes", where Strong Bad shows off a picture of himself with horns, and admits that the way he drew the horns makes it look like he's got croissants glued to the back of his head.
- Pyrrhic Victory: Winning the game with Trogdor’s Fiery Rage is regarded as this by the rules. Peasantry is destroyed, but Trogdor is too angry and sulky from being wounded to enjoy his victory.
- Rage Quit: Trogdor doesn't lose; he rage quits. This translates ingame to Trogdor's Fiery Rage, in which if Trogdor is hit with no peasants on his Trog-o-Meter the players must draw five movement cards for Trogdor to make a last ditch effort to try and win the game. If he doesn't win by the time he makes his final move, he loses, simple as that.
- Respawning Enemies: Peasants can come back under the right conditions.
- Rule Zero: Players making their own rules is actively encouraged, as said by Sloshy in the second-last song in the Rulebook EP, "Forget the Rules"Make up your own house rules
If you think that it would make it more fun (Oh, it definitely would)
If items recharged on anyone's turn
It'd be easier to get the job done (Yeah, that's the way my friend Doug plays it) - Strange-Syntax Speaker: Stonklar speaks with a "backwardsy syntax". He insists that others speak to him the same way, or he will pretend that he does not understand them.
- Taking Up the Mantle: Cranjegg, albeit reluctantly. He is a fortieth-generation Keeper of Trogdor, though he'd rather pursue his dream of homebrewing "artisanal Old Man Rub".
- Trademark Favorite Drink: Yubbitz's favorite drink is powdered milk mixed with lemonade, but NOT powdered lemonade mixed with milk.
- Verbal Tic: Crangolev is said to end her sentences with "yesss?"
- Un-Sorcerer: Hardybardy is the only Keeper of Trogdor who does not have any special powers; he compensates for it with cool costumes, pyrotechnics, and a deep, overlordy voice, making him wonderful for parties and metal bands.
- Villain Protagonist: The objective of the game is to help Trogdor burn Peasantry to the ground.
- Villainous Breakdown: Trogdor doesn't "lose" when he takes damage with an empty Trog-meter. He Rage Quits. This is the basis for the "Trogdor's Fiery Rage" mechanic.
- Winged Humanoid: Subverted with Worchex, as it is pointed out that his "wings" are actually a part of his backpack.
- Wrap Around: Peasants and enemies can wrap around the board when they move, while Trogdor can only do so under certain conditions. Stonklar's power, for example, grants Trogdor this ability.
- Writing Around Trademarks: One of the alternate Trogdor meeples is based on Homsar's "drawing" from the email "dragon", except it says "Toaster's Choice" rather than "Taster's Choice".
