Questing through dangerous dungeons in search of loot and magical artifacts goes together with board games like peanut butter and chocolate, and the Talisman: The Magical Quest Game series was one of the first to make that combination so compelling. The first edition of Talisman was released back in 1983 by Games Workshop – now best known for their Warhammer and Lord of the Rings tabletop war games – introducing players to its various regions and the Crown of Command. Now, more than 40 years later, Avalon Hill has released the fifth edition of Talisman, and once more, you will be able to test your mettle against the dragon and see if you can claim the crown for yourself.
In Talisman, you and up to five friends select from 12 possible characters in this contest for the Crown of Command. These include a nimble thief, an arcane wizard, and a mighty warrior, among others. This latest edition of Talisman maintains a similar flow to previous iterations – roll dice, move to a space where you may draw an adventure card that could spawn a monster, grant you a magic item, or send you to a tavern where a dice roll determines your fate. Then it’s the next player’s turn, and this cycle repeats until a character who has managed to claim one of the titular Talisman relics passes through the Valley of Fire and defeats the powerful Elder Dragon, claiming the Crown of Command and winning the game.
This rather simplistic – or perhaps aged – approach to adventure board games is not a detriment but rather a point in Talisman’s favor. Right now, there is no shortage of campaign-style board games that feature grand adventures, like Elden Ring or Divinity: Original Sin, and even Avalon Hill’s other Games Workshop revival, HeroQuest, feeling like evolved extensions of Talisman. However, many modern examples can be intimidating and expensive for younger players or those new to the hobby. While it may not be a game I reach for with my seasoned group of gaming friends, I can see it being a great choice when hanging out with my nephews or a group of friends who are less experienced with board games but open to trying something new.
While the actions you take on your turn may seem mundane compared to more modern adventure games, much of Talisman’s appeal lies in the balancing act of Do I try to get stronger, or do I move ahead? This tug-of-war – needing to grow powerful enough to defeat the final dragon without falling too far behind – adds a layer of second-guessing to every turn. How much of a risk do you take by not going after that next enemy for its rewards in favor of getting a jump on the others by heading to the next area?
For all your planning, Talisman is highly luck-dependent, with nearly every aspect determined by a die roll. Calling it “Adventure Monopoly” wouldn’t be entirely off base, though fortunately, Talisman is far more fun (and much quicker to play). You roll a die to determine movement, with your only decision being whether to move clockwise or counterclockwise. The outcomes of different spaces are dictated by another die roll or a random draw from a deck of cards, and combat is yet another roll of the dice. This heavy reliance on chance won’t be for everyone, and the fifth edition includes a Fate resource which allows you to reroll dice or move up to six spaces on your turn, it doesn’t quite go for enough and I would have loved new mechanics that further mitigate the luck element and reward strategy more.
This latest edition makes some changes that help speed up the game and make it less punishing for players. One example is the iconic Toad transformation, which turns a player into a toad, reducing their strength, craft (magic), and movement. Previously, this effect lasted three turns, but now it only lasts one. Character death has also been significantly adjusted. In past editions, when a character died, all items, followers, gold, and other trinkets they had accumulated were dropped on the space where they fell, and the player had to start fresh with a brand-new character. In the fifth edition, you retain all your items and simply move to the Village space, where you can pay for additional lives at the start of your next turn.
While this change makes the experience “nicer” and more forgiving, I feel it also removes some of the tension and sense of danger in confrontations. As a smart inclusion, the rulebook features many of the old rules in the back as “Alternate Rules,” with all new fifth-edition changes marked for easy reference by returning Talisman fans.
Alongside the gorgeous redone artwork featured all over the game, much of the rest of Talisman Fifth Edition’s design and aesthetic feels dated and could use some updates to help with accessibility. Text on the board and cards is very small, and the fact that all text is always facing outwards means that no one, regardless of where they are seated, will ever be able to read all of the spaces on the board.
Inside the rule book, there are descriptions of all of the spaces, but a player aid – a fairly common component in modern games – that has them listed instead would have been a great help, and is honestly something I plan to print out and keep in my game box. Even the stat tracking cones – a hallmark of the Talisman series – feel like they could have benefitted from a bit of a refresh too.
Besides from a colorblind standpoint, being able to tell the difference between the ever so slightly large cones and the smaller ones was troublesome even up close on your own board, let alone across the table to gauge the other player’s stats. I get that it’s part of the game’s identity, but perhaps having each stat be a different shape, add some sort of stylized texture, or even just making the difference in size more easily distinguishable, would have gone a long way. Maybe a premium component add-on will come out one day that tweaks this and gives us some good coins too; worst case, there’s always 3D printing and the fan community.
Speaking of add-ons, the Talisman games are known for their plethora of expansions (see our Talisman buying guide), and while it’s still early in this edition’s lifecycle, its first expansion does something no other Talisman expansion has done – introduce a co-op mode. Talisman Alliances (see at Amazon) transforms the base game into a campaign/legacy-light experience, featuring five Trials that players work together to overcome, earning rewards they can carry forward.
With envelopes and small boxes to open, my friends and I enjoyed this tweak to the formula, as it nudges the game slightly toward strategy. We could plan how to tackle objectives, trade amongst ourselves to optimize our chances, and watch as the Doom Track made the game progressively more challenging. I wasn’t as fond of swapping out cards from the main Talisman deck before playing, but it’s a small inconvenience, and Alliances’ rulebook provides clear instructions on how to reset your game to stock Talisman when you’re done.
Despite releasing in 2024, Talisman Fifth Edition feels very much rooted in the past – for better and for worse. Some may find its mechanics outdated, while others may view them as faithful adaptations of what has kept Talisman alive for over 40 years. I land somewhere in the middle, wishing the game relied less on dumb luck and rewarded strategic play more, while also appreciating the new fifth-edition rules that make it a kinder, faster experience. The Alliances expansion also makes Talisman a fine gateway game into the adventure board game genre – made even more appealing by its reasonable retail price.
