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Onitama
- 2 players
- 15–20 min
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Alchemidus
2015
Rules assistance for Alchemidus
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–127 players
- 30 min
- 10+
- Complexity 1.5/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for Alchemidus
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Alchemidus is a board game released in 2015 for 1–127 players, 30 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Shimpei Sato and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling.
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About the game
In Alchemidus, players try to extract gold by manipulating alchemic formulas drawn from 15 pages of a book of magic. By modifying dice rolls, players puzzle out which processes produce gold. Whoever can get the most gold at the least cost is the winner. In more detail, Alchemidus is a speed puzzle, with players trying to be the fastest to find the cheapest way to convert clay to gold. The game has four pairs of d6 dice, in gold, lead, clay and white to show the process. The 2 gold and clay dice, and 1 of the lead dice are rolled and placed on their respective marker cards. The players must figure how to progress from the two clay numbers, to the one lead number, and then back to the two gold numbers. To do this, there are three rows of five cards dealt out from three small decks. One row has spells to remove a die, so you need that to go from clay to lead. Likewise, another row is spells to add a die, so you need that to go from lead to gold. The third row is to modify dice values. The spells are varied and often symmetrical, so you might have one spell saying "If the total is >=7, do..." and another saying "If the total is <=7, do...", or a spell for odd numbered dice, and another for even numbers. Each spell card has a number on it, the cost of using that spell. The numbers go from 0 to 5 with five cards being 10 and one being 20 (Get any value die). Players must read the spells and quickly figure out the lowest cost method of going from clay to gold. It should always be possible, the spells have sufficient variety and there's enough of them. When one player declares a cost, the others have a little time to declare a lower cost. The player that proves the lowest formula wins the round. The game is well made, the dice and card stock are good quality. The game comes with Japanese rules only but the spell cards are all in English mainly, with notes in Japanese. The spells are sufficiently obvious, gamers will not have trouble figuring them out.
Questions and answers
Alchemidus supports 1–127 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Alchemidus is 30 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Alchemidus for ages 10 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Alchemidus has a complexity rating of 1.5 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Alchemidus belongs to these categories: Puzzle. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Alchemidus are: Shimpei Sato. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Alchemidus as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.