‘Star Wars™ Unlimited: Twilight of the Republic’: less iconic player characters but far more room to move amid the Clone Wars

Having launched in March last year, Star Wars™ Unlimited has become a compact boardgame with broad appeal. A trading card game in nature, players create a profile through which they build up their card collection. Each player puts their base into play in the middle of the table and the goal is to destroy your opponent’s base. Players can attack enemy units, or attack the enemy base, using Leader cards to manipulate the battle.

Each player shuffles their respective deck of cards and draws an initial hand of six cards. If not happy with your first six, not a problem; you’re entitled to something called a “mulligan” where you simply shuffle your hand back into your deck and then draw a new hand of six. But there’s only one chance to refresh and that’s it.

Once settled, each player chooses two cards in their hand to place face-down in front of them as “resources” – currency basically that can be used to pay for cards played throughout the game. The player with the initiative counter takes the first action, which might be to play a card, attack an opposing unit, attack with your unit, use an action ability, take the initiative, or pass. The cost of a card is the number in its top left-hand corner.

The third instalment in the franchise, Twilight of the Republic, is able to be played straight out of the box, featuring two new complete 50-card decks plus cards representing token units and a couple of handy health chips. What differs from Twilight of the Republic and its predecessors, Spark of Rebellion and Shadows of the Galaxy, are the accessibility features included within the box. There are two play mats, one for each player, which include clear labels for how the game board should be laid out, and which also provide insight into the phases of a turn.

Another (big) difference is the setting – right in the heart of the Clone Wars, with all the classic characters, ships, and weapons that hailed from the conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Separatist Confederacy. You get to be either Ahsoka Tano (the female Togruta who was a Force-sensitive outcast from the Jedi Order) or General Grievous (the Kaleesh cyborg who has mastered all forms of lightsaber combat and basically a pest to the Jedi).

Both leaders want to do similar things, albeit on opposite sides of the Clone Wars battle lines using one of two new abilities – Coordinate and Exploit – to outmanouvre or ruin their opposition.

Sure, the characters of Ahsoka and Grievous aren’t exactly the most iconic – not compared to previous offerings of Darth Vader vs Luke Skywalker, for example, but they each come with certain powers and quirks that will keep players entertained.

While people say it’s good to keep your cards close to your chest, in the case of this series, don’t be surprised if you suddenly have to throw a card or two out of your deck. Some cards become suspended so as to create game balance. In November 2024, for example, the Boba Fett leader was suspended since it represented more than half the winners at competitive events around the world. So don’t get too cosy with your characters.

Even if you’re not into playing the actual board game, there’s the option to simply collect cards and, as you can imagine from the house of Lucasfilm, the artwork in this series is superlative – kind of manga meets graphic novella in aesthetic.

Michael Mastess

‘Star Wars™ Unlimited: Twilight of the Republic’ is available from quality gaming outlets such as Gameology, Gametraders, Goldfields and Games Empire.