I’ve only ever played as the Riverfolk on digital. No one in my group has played as them IRL either. Thinking I’ll do so soon because the discussion and influence of selling cards and services IRL is much different than trying to do so on the app. ‘Oh buddy, look, you could seriously use some warriors down there.’ ‘Looks like you may turmoil next turn, I’ve got just the bird card you’re looking for’ Let me sell you my kidney, damnit. I’ll do it. I’ll sell my own mother if I have to. Buy my services!
The otters are a bittersweet love. I love the design, the idea behind the mechanics, the level of interaction with the other players. On the other hand, you are far too dependent on the other players and their resources. The other players can simply stop buying to prevent the Otters from winning, which is hard enough because of their rather passive play style. But I like to play them in rounds with beginners because they are so supportive and you can explain the functions of the cards to them when you sell them.
I think they are a bit complicated to have in a game with beginners and it's best for the new players to learn the game focused on what their faction can do, not what they can do plus what this other faction can allow you to do if you pay them and are you getting a good enough price on that thing. Yes, the table can definitely freeze out the Riverfolk by not buying anything but the reasons for buying are twofold. Sometimes you need to juice up the Riverfront in order to help contain a bigger threat so you don't mind giving them some funds so they can do more policing. If the Riverfolk start winning, then yeah they have no business expecting sales since they are the primary threat to win. But if Riverfolk are struggling in last place and players still won't buy... That's a player problem, not a faction problem. Fortunately you can solve this by explaining what I've just told you and hope that they see reason. Riverfolk are a tough faction to win with in competitive play if opponents are not buying but they can still find success.
I’m surprised you didn’t mention that you can spend your own otter funds to place a trade post in a clearing you rule. Don’t always have to spend opposing factions warriors to place a TP.
Good point, it's very hard to remember every single thing that somebody might not be able to infer. When I said "you spend funds matching the ruler of the clearing" I felt like covered it, especially with an example but I can imagine people thinking that it must be enemy pieces. I'll bring this up in my strategy guide for Otters since I think it's one that's more needed.
I'm really grateful for this clarification! It's the main reason I looked for an "how to play" video, since in the rulebooks the only examples are with enemy pieces! 😁
It's my goal to have as many people playing Root as possible and my contribution is to just smooth that learning curve as much as I can. Enjoy the game, it's one I never tire of.
I would be happy if you would also make guides for the first four factions. This would be a better way to pick up beginners who want to get started with Root. The Vagabond in particular can be a bit tricky for beginners.
I love your vids and style. I would love to see your faction guide for each of the base factions as well, just because the explanation would be so helpful for teaching the game to new people. Like me!
I plan to hit all the base game factions as well. Just covering the content people are more likely to be unfamiliar with first. I'm glad you're enjoying the videos!
Congratulations for the tutorial! There's only one thing that isn't clear to me about the crafting part ( 16:57 ) : once all the spots available on my board have been exhausted, I can't produce anymore? Or, instead, after placing a warrior on a free spot, does that continue to count me as a permanent production unit? If the first option is true then I find the production capacity of the riverfork really limited.
At 25:35 you can see that I reopened the crafting spot at the start of birdsong by moving the fund back into the funds box. Each crafting spot can be used once per turn.
Congratulations! I wouldn't say OP since your opponents have a lot of control over your engine. They can overfeed or overstarve you and your performance will be dictated largely by how your opponents buy. They key for them is to buy just the right amount so they get value but don't go so far as to turn the Riverfolk company into the Riverfolk Corporation LLC.
It was my favourite faction for the longest time, only recently unseated by Lord of the Hundreds but still such a joy to play, especially when tabletalk is possible.
about the little tidbit about the keep in the beginning - is that really true for setup also? I mean sure, it makes sense because you are technically placing something inside, but what happens if the otters set up first and then the marquise? The clearing isn't a homeland so the cat player could still setup their keep homeland right there effectively also resulting in a clearing with keep and otters, but the order was different of course.
Yep, you're absolutely right. The Keep can be placed on enemy pieces but not the other way around. This never came up in standard setup because keep was always the first piece placed but in ADSET, as long as the clearing isn't a homeland (and you're following all other setup rules of course) the Keep is allowed to be placed on enemy pieces.
@@nitrorev I check every wiki and rule book and every one of them says you have to put the keep to the corner or the map which are only 4 of them. Isn't it illegal putting the keep to inner places?
@@Combobaka It's for Advanced Setup. It's in the Marauder Expansion but you can find the ADSET cards and all other cards by searching for "Root cards".
Hello, I have some questions: can Woodland Alliance use riverboat service to spread sympathy? can woodland Alliance use mercenary during evening military operation to move and organize?
WA can use riverboats to spread sympathy, yes. But you cannot organize mercenaries because mercenaries are ONLY for rule and battle. Further, WA can only organize their faction warriors and otters are not your faction warriors (faction warriors are what's printed on the back of the faction board).
You get 2 extra funds per turn. So if you don't spend your funds, eventually you'll have a lot of actions. You'll want to spend a few early on so you can craft but be stingy with spending them unless you need that trade post. Getting players to buy using tabletalk is the key part of playing the faction well.
When building a Trading Post for foreign wars, can I create it if I do not have my own warriors in stock to place guards? Or can I still only put a TP token, but without a war?
Yes, you can place a trade post even if you don't have warriors. You must place a warrior if able, but don't have to if you cannot for some reason, like an empty supply
Yes, the trade posts are not included in your purchase so they are still enemy pieces that you can battle for points. However, if there are Riverfolk warriors in the same clearing as the trade post, if you decide to battle the trade post, you are technically battling the Riverfolk faction and therefore the mercenaries go back to being enemies for the sake of the battle. Mercenaries doesn't allow you to get past the Riverfolk defenders.
@@nitrorev and if there are only river wars and a trading post in the clearing, how will the battle happen or will I technically not be able to fight to destroy the TP?
@@davletham1813 I think the easiest way to clear this up is to just read the Law of Root directly word for word. "The buyer treats Riverfolk warriors as their own for rule and battle against any faction EXCEPT THE RIVERFOLK". As soon you try to battle the trade post (IE battling the Riverfront) mercenaries turns off and you no longer control the Riverfolk warriors and since you don't have any of your own warriors in the clearing, the battle cannot begin in the first place.
If there were 2 cat warriors and 2 otter warriors in a clearing and the cats purchased mercenaries, then battled and rolled 3-3 (assuming against 4 birds in the clearing), is the order of removal of pieces always cat-otter-cat, or can it be otter-cat-otter?
Can the otters still be powerful if no one trades with them the whole game? I've had the most trouble with this really, no one trades with me because they don't want to give to my engine.
It's definitely harder to win, but that's where you need to up your sales pitch. Don't just convince them that they need one of your cards, tell them that you don't have a chance without any sales so a single purchase won't change much. Additionally, if you can't do anything, you cannot contribute to board management so if somebody else is winning, you should turn to the loser and get them to understand that you need to work together to stop the winner and a purchase would allow you to help.
I do have a question. MAY I hire Riverfolck Company mercenaries to build something far away from my pieces?. For example, if i am the Earies and river folck start on the opossite edge of the board, my i buy their starter warriors to buid a Nest There?
Absolutely, yes! Mercenaries help you with rule, building a roost only requires that you rule the clearing (and there's an open building slot) you don't have to rule with your own warriors. An important side note is that the Eyrie's ability Lords of the Forest which allows you to rule on ties requires there to be an Eyrie faction piece like a bird warrior or a roost. So if you hire mercenaries to rule a clearing without your pieces, you must rule the clearing outright as any other faction does, not in a tie since the mercenaries don't benefit from your special rule without Eyrie warriors present in the clearing.
They are a strong faction but have a lot of choices you can take, many of them are bad. I might make a strategy video about Riverfolk soonish since a lot of people seem to struggle with them. My advice is to not spend your funds right away, try to get more value from them for a few turns (draw and craft a lot) before giving them back and try to spend your own warriors for trade posts before spending those of an enemy since it's easier to spend those later on.
Here is my second try to practice my english, thanks for answer my question about corvids. Lets see... in the back of the faction riverfolk says...... The more trade posts in clearings of the same suit, the more points you score." This doesn't seem to be the case on the front of the board, since each trade post is worth the same number of points(+2). In my opinion this faction should have been buffed along with corvids, lizards and marquese... What do you think before sooo many games in compettitive mode?
I think the back of the board could have been written a bit better but it's still technically true. You are indeed getting more points the more trade posts you place, because every time you place you hey 2 victory points. The amount doesn't increase but it's still 2 more points than you had before you placed the trade post. I don't think Riverfolk needed a buff, they are about mid strength but it's a very socially-dependent faction. I think they could use a rework to tweak some things because cards are pretty much the only thing that ever gets bought. Maybe a rewording of Protectionism so that you can safely sell riverboats and mercenaries for 1 and not get short changed.
I have a question regarding the vagabond. If I refresh a teapot at the beginning of a turn and then put it from my bag into the tea bar, can I use it directly to refresh other items?
If there are several Riverfolk warriors in an area, with a trade post. Can I buy the mercenary service and raid the riverfolk trading post in the same area? This is very stupid. In this case, there is no warrior to defend the trading post, so I easily get a point??????? please answer
No you cannot do this. Mercenaries only count as your warriors if you battle anybody else besides the riverfront. If you battle the riverfront, the mercenaries return to being enemies for the battle and defend their trade post.
When using R.folk Mercs, can you MOVE them as your own warriors (like the vagabond can do with an allied faction/coalition)? E.g: I am E.Dynasty; I need to satisfy TWO move actions in my decree; Can I to move the R.Folk mercs and then move my E.Dynasty warriors to satisfy these actions?
Yes I am sure it can be in any clearing as long as you're playing with ADSET. If you read the Setup card, it doesn't say the keep must be on the edge, just that it must not be adjacent to an enemy homeland (if possible).
If you lose a trade post, you lose half of your funds rounded up. So you'd lose 2 funds on the first loss of trade post and then your last remaining fund when you lose another trade post. This is why you should be careful of ambush when battling with just 1 warriors and a trade post, and be very careful about Dividends plays. Boat service is not permanent, it's just for this 1 turn.
Hello, If the woodland Alliance were to buy your mercenaries at the start oh bird song, and revolt in a clearing with riverfolk troop, the riverfolk would not have to remove their troops right? since at that point they are not enemy pieces.
@@nitrorev Daylight and evening. Does that mean if Woodland Alliance hire mercenaries for move-->organize, they can use otter merc instead of their own warriors?
I don't know if anyone else has asked this, but can mercenaries be used for battle even when the buyer has none of his own pieces in the clearing with the mercenaries?
Yep! That's next on the docket! Along with Hirelings part 2 and maybe some playthroughs. I've not been able to record much these last few weeks because my neighbor is doing construction but I have a lot of content ideas I'd like to hit.
I’ve only ever played as the Riverfolk on digital. No one in my group has played as them IRL either.
Thinking I’ll do so soon because the discussion and influence of selling cards and services IRL is much different than trying to do so on the app.
‘Oh buddy, look, you could seriously use some warriors down there.’
‘Looks like you may turmoil next turn, I’ve got just the bird card you’re looking for’
Let me sell you my kidney, damnit. I’ll do it. I’ll sell my own mother if I have to. Buy my services!
The otters are a bittersweet love. I love the design, the idea behind the mechanics, the level of interaction with the other players. On the other hand, you are far too dependent on the other players and their resources. The other players can simply stop buying to prevent the Otters from winning, which is hard enough because of their rather passive play style. But I like to play them in rounds with beginners because they are so supportive and you can explain the functions of the cards to them when you sell them.
I think they are a bit complicated to have in a game with beginners and it's best for the new players to learn the game focused on what their faction can do, not what they can do plus what this other faction can allow you to do if you pay them and are you getting a good enough price on that thing. Yes, the table can definitely freeze out the Riverfolk by not buying anything but the reasons for buying are twofold. Sometimes you need to juice up the Riverfront in order to help contain a bigger threat so you don't mind giving them some funds so they can do more policing. If the Riverfolk start winning, then yeah they have no business expecting sales since they are the primary threat to win. But if Riverfolk are struggling in last place and players still won't buy... That's a player problem, not a faction problem. Fortunately you can solve this by explaining what I've just told you and hope that they see reason. Riverfolk are a tough faction to win with in competitive play if opponents are not buying but they can still find success.
I’m surprised you didn’t mention that you can spend your own otter funds to place a trade post in a clearing you rule. Don’t always have to spend opposing factions warriors to place a TP.
Good point, it's very hard to remember every single thing that somebody might not be able to infer. When I said "you spend funds matching the ruler of the clearing" I felt like covered it, especially with an example but I can imagine people thinking that it must be enemy pieces. I'll bring this up in my strategy guide for Otters since I think it's one that's more needed.
I'm really grateful for this clarification! It's the main reason I looked for an "how to play" video, since in the rulebooks the only examples are with enemy pieces! 😁
Fun fact! The Root digital version doesn’t allow this
@@Ch40ticC4su4lthis is incorrect. The digital version does allow this
I appreciate you covering older stuff since I got into this game a couple weeks ago.
It's my goal to have as many people playing Root as possible and my contribution is to just smooth that learning curve as much as I can. Enjoy the game, it's one I never tire of.
I would be happy if you would also make guides for the first four factions. This would be a better way to pick up beginners who want to get started with Root. The Vagabond in particular can be a bit tricky for beginners.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah new NitroRev video!! So happy!!! :D
This made me smile! Thank you so much
I love your vids and style. I would love to see your faction guide for each of the base factions as well, just because the explanation would be so helpful for teaching the game to new people. Like me!
I plan to hit all the base game factions as well. Just covering the content people are more likely to be unfamiliar with first. I'm glad you're enjoying the videos!
Was waiting for this! So excited to watch
Thanks so much! Hope it's useful 😉
Congratulations for the tutorial! There's only one thing that isn't clear to me about the crafting part ( 16:57 ) : once all the spots available on my board have been exhausted, I can't produce anymore? Or, instead, after placing a warrior on a free spot, does that continue to count me as a permanent production unit? If the first option is true then I find the production capacity of the riverfork really limited.
At 25:35 you can see that I reopened the crafting spot at the start of birdsong by moving the fund back into the funds box. Each crafting spot can be used once per turn.
these dudes are OP. won my first game playing with them.
Congratulations! I wouldn't say OP since your opponents have a lot of control over your engine. They can overfeed or overstarve you and your performance will be dictated largely by how your opponents buy. They key for them is to buy just the right amount so they get value but don't go so far as to turn the Riverfolk company into the Riverfolk Corporation LLC.
Thanks for the guide as always! I didnt have the Riverfolk expansion but im now tempting to buy it and play as Rivefolks!
It was my favourite faction for the longest time, only recently unseated by Lord of the Hundreds but still such a joy to play, especially when tabletalk is possible.
about the little tidbit about the keep in the beginning - is that really true for setup also? I mean sure, it makes sense because you are technically placing something inside, but what happens if the otters set up first and then the marquise? The clearing isn't a homeland so the cat player could still setup their keep homeland right there effectively also resulting in a clearing with keep and otters, but the order was different of course.
Yep, you're absolutely right. The Keep can be placed on enemy pieces but not the other way around. This never came up in standard setup because keep was always the first piece placed but in ADSET, as long as the clearing isn't a homeland (and you're following all other setup rules of course) the Keep is allowed to be placed on enemy pieces.
@@nitrorev I check every wiki and rule book and every one of them says you have to put the keep to the corner or the map which are only 4 of them. Isn't it illegal putting the keep to inner places?
@@Combobaka It's for Advanced Setup. It's in the Marauder Expansion but you can find the ADSET cards and all other cards by searching for "Root cards".
Thanks I will check them out @@nitrorev
Hello, I have some questions:
can Woodland Alliance use riverboat service to spread sympathy?
can woodland Alliance use mercenary during evening military operation to move and organize?
WA can use riverboats to spread sympathy, yes. But you cannot organize mercenaries because mercenaries are ONLY for rule and battle. Further, WA can only organize their faction warriors and otters are not your faction warriors (faction warriors are what's printed on the back of the faction board).
So if the whole table ignores them, never use their services, they are in trouble having just two actions per turn?
You get 2 extra funds per turn. So if you don't spend your funds, eventually you'll have a lot of actions. You'll want to spend a few early on so you can craft but be stingy with spending them unless you need that trade post. Getting players to buy using tabletalk is the key part of playing the faction well.
When building a Trading Post for foreign wars, can I create it if I do not have my own warriors in stock to place guards? Or can I still only put a TP token, but without a war?
Yes, you can place a trade post even if you don't have warriors. You must place a warrior if able, but don't have to if you cannot for some reason, like an empty supply
After purchasing Riverfolk mercenaries, can I attack trading posts?
Yes, the trade posts are not included in your purchase so they are still enemy pieces that you can battle for points. However, if there are Riverfolk warriors in the same clearing as the trade post, if you decide to battle the trade post, you are technically battling the Riverfolk faction and therefore the mercenaries go back to being enemies for the sake of the battle. Mercenaries doesn't allow you to get past the Riverfolk defenders.
@@nitrorev and if there are only river wars and a trading post in the clearing, how will the battle happen or will I technically not be able to fight to destroy the TP?
@@davletham1813 I think the easiest way to clear this up is to just read the Law of Root directly word for word. "The buyer treats Riverfolk warriors as their own for rule and battle against any faction EXCEPT THE RIVERFOLK". As soon you try to battle the trade post (IE battling the Riverfront) mercenaries turns off and you no longer control the Riverfolk warriors and since you don't have any of your own warriors in the clearing, the battle cannot begin in the first place.
If there were 2 cat warriors and 2 otter warriors in a clearing and the cats purchased mercenaries, then battled and rolled 3-3 (assuming against 4 birds in the clearing), is the order of removal of pieces always cat-otter-cat, or can it be otter-cat-otter?
Cat otter cat, the purchaser takes the first hit
Correct! Thanks PHocto
I love your videos!!
Can the otters still be powerful if no one trades with them the whole game? I've had the most trouble with this really, no one trades with me because they don't want to give to my engine.
It's definitely harder to win, but that's where you need to up your sales pitch. Don't just convince them that they need one of your cards, tell them that you don't have a chance without any sales so a single purchase won't change much. Additionally, if you can't do anything, you cannot contribute to board management so if somebody else is winning, you should turn to the loser and get them to understand that you need to work together to stop the winner and a purchase would allow you to help.
I do have a question. MAY I hire Riverfolck Company mercenaries to build something far away from my pieces?. For example, if i am the Earies and river folck start on the opossite edge of the board, my i buy their starter warriors to buid a Nest There?
Absolutely, yes! Mercenaries help you with rule, building a roost only requires that you rule the clearing (and there's an open building slot) you don't have to rule with your own warriors.
An important side note is that the Eyrie's ability Lords of the Forest which allows you to rule on ties requires there to be an Eyrie faction piece like a bird warrior or a roost. So if you hire mercenaries to rule a clearing without your pieces, you must rule the clearing outright as any other faction does, not in a tie since the mercenaries don't benefit from your special rule without Eyrie warriors present in the clearing.
Nice video. Ty.
only ever win once with riverfolk, its kinda weird to play for me ( along with corvid ) >.
They are a strong faction but have a lot of choices you can take, many of them are bad. I might make a strategy video about Riverfolk soonish since a lot of people seem to struggle with them. My advice is to not spend your funds right away, try to get more value from them for a few turns (draw and craft a lot) before giving them back and try to spend your own warriors for trade posts before spending those of an enemy since it's easier to spend those later on.
@@nitrorev Yess please!!!
Here is my second try to practice my english, thanks for answer my question about corvids.
Lets see... in the back of the faction riverfolk says......
The more trade posts in clearings of the same suit, the more points you score." This doesn't seem to be the case on the front of the board, since each trade post is worth the same number of points(+2).
In my opinion this faction should have been buffed along with corvids, lizards and marquese... What do you think before sooo many games in compettitive mode?
I think the back of the board could have been written a bit better but it's still technically true. You are indeed getting more points the more trade posts you place, because every time you place you hey 2 victory points. The amount doesn't increase but it's still 2 more points than you had before you placed the trade post. I don't think Riverfolk needed a buff, they are about mid strength but it's a very socially-dependent faction. I think they could use a rework to tweak some things because cards are pretty much the only thing that ever gets bought. Maybe a rewording of Protectionism so that you can safely sell riverboats and mercenaries for 1 and not get short changed.
I have a question regarding the vagabond. If I refresh a teapot at the beginning of a turn and then put it from my bag into the tea bar, can I use it directly to refresh other items?
No, you refresh the number of items based on tea and that number doesn't change. Hence why you should very rarely exhaust or damage your teapots
If there are several Riverfolk warriors in an area, with a trade post. Can I buy the mercenary service and raid the riverfolk trading post in the same area? This is very stupid. In this case, there is no warrior to defend the trading post, so I easily get a point??????? please answer
No you cannot do this. Mercenaries only count as your warriors if you battle anybody else besides the riverfront. If you battle the riverfront, the mercenaries return to being enemies for the battle and defend their trade post.
25:02 Can I also move riverfolk warriors by purchasing the mercenary service? Or just battle and rule?please answer
Just battle and rule
Just battle and rule
If I have an informant card and a charm offensive card, can I use informants for the riverfolk?
Yes! This combo works for all factions including Riverfolk
When using R.folk Mercs, can you MOVE them as your own warriors (like the vagabond can do with an allied faction/coalition)?
E.g: I am E.Dynasty; I need to satisfy TWO move actions in my decree; Can I to move the R.Folk mercs and then move my E.Dynasty warriors to satisfy these actions?
No, Mercs are only yours for rule and battle, you cannot move them.
Are you sure you can put cat castle in the river? I think it should be on edge of the map
Yes I am sure it can be in any clearing as long as you're playing with ADSET. If you read the Setup card, it doesn't say the keep must be on the edge, just that it must not be adjacent to an enemy homeland (if possible).
Umm.. What happen in funds (let say i only have 3 warrior in funds) if in that turn, my TP destroyed 2 times?
Boat services are permanent?
If you lose a trade post, you lose half of your funds rounded up. So you'd lose 2 funds on the first loss of trade post and then your last remaining fund when you lose another trade post. This is why you should be careful of ambush when battling with just 1 warriors and a trade post, and be very careful about Dividends plays.
Boat service is not permanent, it's just for this 1 turn.
WHEN YOU SAID THE THING AR 32:43 I GOT A ADD THAT SAID “their legally robbing you”
Hello, If the woodland Alliance were to buy your mercenaries at the start oh bird song, and revolt in a clearing with riverfolk troop, the riverfolk would not have to remove their troops right? since at that point they are not enemy pieces.
Remember, Mercenaries only applies in daylight and evening. Revolt happens in Birdsong, so they are still normal Riverfolk warriors at that point.
@@nitrorev Daylight and evening. Does that mean if Woodland Alliance hire mercenaries for move-->organize, they can use otter merc instead of their own warriors?
@@Easterlingofrhun Mercenaries are ONLY for rule and battle.
Can i use their markets like frabication´s pieces? with the card of the tunnnels
No, because Riverfolk explicitly do not have crafting pieces. So Tunnels is a useless card for them.
I don't know if anyone else has asked this, but can mercenaries be used for battle even when the buyer has none of his own pieces in the clearing with the mercenaries?
Yes they can be used this way.
Great video! :)
how would the vagabond buy to the riverfolk?
31:19
Don’t the marquise have to start in a corner??
Not when using Advanced Setup. And I always play with Advanced Setup.
Please, moles next🙏
Yep! That's next on the docket! Along with Hirelings part 2 and maybe some playthroughs. I've not been able to record much these last few weeks because my neighbor is doing construction but I have a lot of content ideas I'd like to hit.
@@nitrorev cool cool!
@@nitrorev awesome, been craving for more of your vids... can't wait!
@@nitrorev your vids rock!!
can you can you focus focus the the camera please
I will will try try in the future future.