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En Garde simulates a fencing match between two competitors. Turns are broken down into movement and attacking actions on a two-dimensional board. Decisions are enabled by a shared deck of known cards (five copies each of cards 1,2,3,4, and 5). A hit wins a round, and five round wins gets the match win.
For many, fencing is something of an oddity. Its antiquated ideals and weaponry are quaint and romantic, and as such appeal to niche collectives. Knizia’s games are said to lack theme; instead En Garde focuses it. En Garde strips away the culture of the sport and focuses solely on the contest.
A depleted deck favours the aggressor, but advancing recklessly will cost you. Parries and lunges will give you options, and you will need to assess your opponent’s chances to evade counterplay. When playing En Garde you oscillate between evaluating the state of play and anticipating how your opponent will do the same.
Familiar Knizian mechanisms are at play. The shared deck will find siblings in Lost Cities and Battleline. The En Garde deck is smaller, allowing players to more accurately approximate opposing holdings. It also means ending a round by decking is less an alternate win condition and part of the strategy as a whole.
En Garde is less popular than most of Knizia’s catalogue of quick-playing, two-player games, but I think it is a gem. It has more direct conflict than Lost Cities and gives you more control than Battleline. Knizia has distilled fencing so that it is only contest. A round will involve intense focus, but can take less than a minute to play accurately.
As someone who values interaction through contest, En Garde is recommended.
En Garde is available in hard copy and for iOS.
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Mark Saya
United States
Los Angeles
California
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Good review. I too have been a fan of this game for a long time. Its economy of means is stunning. I recently got the app version and am very happy with it though I still prefer face-to-face play.
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I agree. I am a big fan of stripped-back gameplay but don't like abstracts. I need reasons to break the equilibrium!
En Garde is an excellent reduction. It feels very tit-for-tat, but not in a 'take that' way, but rather a 'gotcha  ' way.
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