Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Low interaction
Scales well
Deep strategy
Luck-sensitive
How it plays
How does it play?
Spend dice to move your knight and the shared wizard around Arthur’s rondel, complete missions, repel traitors, and earn the crown.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Area Majority
Compete to have the strongest presence in areas that award control or points.
Rondel
Move around a circular action track that limits which actions are currently reachable.
Worker Placement
Commit limited workers to action spaces before opponents occupy them.
Set Collection
Gather related items that become more valuable when scored together.
Roll-and-Move
Roll dice or spin a dial to determine how far a piece moves.
Read the full game description
Merlin casts two to four players as Knights of the Round Table competing to succeed King Arthur. At the start of each round, every player rolls three personal dice and one Merlin die. A die moves the matching figure around the circular action track: knights travel clockwise, while Merlin may move in either direction and is shared by everyone. The landing space determines the action, so the puzzle is not simply which action to take but how to sequence fixed movement values, staffs, flags, and the contested wizard. Around the rondel, players gather shields and building materials, gain influence in principalities, erect manors, acquire Grails and Excalibur, and complete mission cards. Traitors gather during the game and must be defeated before the scoring checkpoints or they cost prestige. Across six rounds, majorities, completed objectives, controlled regions, and constructed assets create several routes to points. Merlin is a dice-driven Eurogame about turning constrained movement into an efficient, resilient plan.
