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- BGG rating
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Rebirth
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Dragon Master
2004
Rules assistance for Dragon Master
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2 players
- 5–20 min
- 8+
- Complexity 1.2/5
Rules assistant for Dragon Master
For 2 players
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Dragon Master is a board game released in 2004 for 2 players, 5–20 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Reiner Knizia and its main mechanics are Tile Placement.
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About the game
Dragon Master is designed by Reiner Knizia and originally published and released in Korea. Your aim is to create vertical lines that score lots of points. As you sit on neighboring (rather than opposite) sides of the playing area, your horizontal lines appear as vertical lines for your opponent, and vice versa. The game ends when both of you have played all your 8 cards into the playing area. The 4x4 grid is now complete. Count each of your 4 vertical lines individually and compare the weakest column from both players to determine the winner. Whoever has the higher score in this line wins. In case of a tie, compare all vertical lines. If all lines awarded the same number of points, the game ends in a draw. Based on the early Reiner Knizia games Sono and Prisma, and then reworked as Robot Master Note: the rules in the Victory Point Games promo edition are slightly different: 1) There are only 20 dragon cards in the deck. Players are each dealt 8 cards; the remaining 4 are discarded without the players knowing their values. 2) The grid size is 4x4. 3) Each column is worth the sum of its values. A pair of cards in the same column counts as 10x the value (e.g., 2 "2" cards in a row would be worth 20 points). Three or more cards of the same value in a column scores 100 points.
Categories
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Pegasus Spiele
- Korea Boardgames
- Matagot
- Ediciones MasQueOca
- Paper Iyagi
- Victory Point Games
Questions and answers
Dragon Master 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 Dragon Master is 5–20 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 Dragon Master for ages 8 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.
Dragon Master has a complexity rating of 1.2 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.
Dragon Master belongs to these categories: Fantasy. Its main mechanics are Tile Placement. 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 Dragon Master are: Reiner Knizia. 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 Dragon Master 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.