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Asymmetric Dueling2020
Unmatched: Cobble & Fog box art

Box art via BoardGameGeek

Asymmetric Dueling

Unmatched: Cobble & Fog

Sherlock, Dracula, and the Invisible Man walk into a foggy alley and start swinging.

3.7 out of 53.7/5

Designed by Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, and the Restoration Games team (Noah Cohen, Chris Leder, Brian Neff) · 2020

Players1-4
Play time20-40 min
WeightLight-Medium
Ages9+
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The verdict

A gorgeous, fast asymmetric duel that's easy to teach and hard to put down, as long as you're here for thematic punch-ups and not deep tactical chess.

Best for: Two players who want a quick, theme-soaked brawl they can learn in five minutes

The full review

What it is

Here's the pitch: who'd win in a fight, Sherlock Holmes or Dracula? Cobble & Fog hands you four Victorian icons and lets you find out. Holmes brings Watson and reads your hand like an open book. Dracula sends his three sisters out to do the dirty work. The Invisible Man flickers between fog tokens, and Jekyll bottles up rage until Hyde comes out swinging. You get two actions a turn, move or attack, then bluff cards face down. That's it.

The catch

What real players keep praising is the theme and the accessibility. Reviewers have taught this to 12 year olds and seasoned gamers in the same sitting, and the minis and artwork get gushed over across the board. The honest catch, and plenty of folks say it, is that some turns fall flat. You're drawing cards, waiting for a good hand, shuffling around a board that doesn't always reward clever positioning. It meanders. A few matchups also feel lopsided depending on who you draw.

Who it's for

So know what you're buying. This isn't a brain-burner, and if you want tactical chess you'll feel the shallow end. But as a fast, beautiful duel you can pull out, teach, and finish before the kettle's cold, it's one of the best in the Unmatched line. Stretch it to three or four players in teams, mix fighters across sets, or just settle the Holmes versus Dracula question once and for all. Get it for the duels.

What other players say

This write-up is grounded in real reviews and player discussion, not just one opinion. A few worth reading:

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