Assassin’s Creed Valhalla fans fund Kickstarter for physical version of dice game Orlog within an hour

A physical version of the Scandanavian-inspired dice game from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla - the latest in the long-running Ubisoft video game franchise - reached its Kickstarter funding goal within 35 minutes of its July 13th launch.

The video game publisher first announced their intention to produce a real-world game based on Valhalla’s dice-based side activity back in November 2020, saying only that it would be partnering with Canadian collectibles producer PureArts. In March of this year, the two announced pre-orders for a deluxe physical edition of Orlog housed in a stylish - and pricey - wooden box.

That print run was extremely limited (no longer available at time of writing) and seemed the only chance fans would have to snag their own copy at the time, short of salvaging bones and driftwood themselves from the shores of Norway. It seems as though the crowdfunded edition flew under most folks’ radar until now, and while it ships in a cardboard box instead of one engraved with the Assassins symbol the much more affordable price point will likely be a welcome compromise.

PureArts will once again spearhead the project to bring the not-actually-ancient Orlog to a modern audience. Each box will contain two dice bowls and matching sets of acrylic dice, currency tokens and stone health counters, a metal game coin for tracking turn order and two full sets of 20 god favour cards bearing the hand-carved look from the video game.

Because Ubisoft’s design team endeavored to create a pastime that players would believe Viking travelers played in taverns and along roadsides, Orlog is fairly simple. Opponents take turns throwing their dice three times, saving back the results that they desire. Each face of the die - swords and arrows attack, helms and shields defend against attacks, coins grant, er… coin tokens, and the deft hand steals those tokens from an opponent’s pile. Because priority alternates between throws, players will have a chance to respond to each selection.

The goal is to eliminate the opponent’s pool of health stones first. Coin tokens can be spent to call upon the aid of the gods through their tokens, each unleashing a unique effect upon the board. Some will be as simple as dealing direct damage, while others will provide healing or strip the enemy’s defensive line to tatters. Players can only bring three god favors into each match, providing a bit of tactical choice before the first die is ever cast.

The Orlog Kickstarter campaign currently sits at CA$331,000 ($265,135/£191,363) of its initial CA$75,000 ($59,930/£43,291) ask. Backers can snag a copy for CA$49 ($40/£29), though that pricepoint is a tad cheaper during the early bird period - 27 hours left at time of publication.

Add-ons for an honestly beautiful linen game mat and extremely ostentatious replica engraved horn - with display stand - are also available. PureArts currently believes shipping will begin to backers in December of this year, and the full game will hit retail sometime in 2022.