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Unlock!: Mythic Adventures
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- 2020
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Castle Nightingale
2026
Rules assistance for Castle Nightingale
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2 players
- 30–45 min
- 10+
- Complexity 2.1/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Castle Nightingale
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Castle Nightingale is a board game released in 2026 for 2 players, 30–45 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Bruno Cathala, Jérémy Fraile, and Eliette Fraile and its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Modular Board, and Hidden Movement.
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About the game
Castle Nightingale looms out of the night, both intimidating and full of promise. Three ninjas have slipped inside, searching for the fabled treasure hidden within...yet a vigilant samurai patrols the halls, watching and listening for intruders. Two players face off in Castle Nightingale, with the ninja player trying to steal five relics before the samurai player can capture the three ninja thieves. The castle is comprised of an inaccessible garden surrounded by four double-sided floor boards, each showing two secret passage spaces and areas in five colors. Each turn, the ninja and samurai each choose one of three action cards in hand, with the samurai also choosing a nightingale tile not used on the previous turn. The ninja player resolves their action, then moves across the floor, marking each space of their movement with a footstep token. If they step on a colored space matching the samurai's hidden nightingale tile, the ninja stands revealed; otherwise, next turn the ninja can treat any of their footsteps as their starting space. If the ninja picks up a vase, the samurai can still recover it on their turn by either closing the final secret passage or landing on the ninja's space...as long as the ninja has been revealed that turn. While the ninja moves space to space, the samurai treats each colored area as a single space, allowing them to move quickly within the castle. Each player has specialized one-shot equipment they can use at any time, starting with one item and gaining more as they play certain cards. Each player has ten cards that they'll cycle through until either the samurai has captured all three ninja or the ninja have stolen five of the six relics hidden in the eight vases.
Publishers
- Sand Castle Games
Questions and answers
Castle Nightingale supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Castle Nightingale is 30–45 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 Castle Nightingale 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.
Castle Nightingale has a complexity rating of 2.1 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-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.
Castle Nightingale belongs to these categories: Deduction and Medieval. Its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Modular Board, and Hidden Movement. 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 Castle Nightingale are: Bruno Cathala, Jérémy Fraile, and Eliette Fraile. 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 Castle Nightingale 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.