Septima EN
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You choose Heal. She also chooses Heal. The shared bonus saves both of you, but suspicions grow. The Witch Hunter flips the card. Someone will pay.
WHAT IT'S ABOUT
Nine witch actions, only one move. And growing suspicions.
Designed by Robin Hegedűs and illustrated by Villő Farkas and Barbara Bernát, Septima is set in a world where magic exists only in the memories of a few. Witches, secret practitioners of a forgotten healing art, live on the fringes of society. In Noctenburg, the Septima — the wisest among them — is about to relinquish leadership of the coven. Witches challenge each other to prove their worth and succeed her.
Each turn, you secretly choose one action card from nine possibilities: Move, Gather, Brew Potions, Heal, Recruit, Plead, Chant, Ritual, Recall. If another witch chooses the same action, both of you gain a powerful bonus. But every shared action raises citizen suspicion and attracts Witch Hunters. Gather ingredients, heal the sick, master spells, and save sisters from trials. Your coven starts with one witch, but can grow to four members, each with unique abilities. The one who gains enough Wisdom and survives becomes the new Septima.
What they say abroad
"The simultaneous action selection with shared bonuses creates a unique semi-cooperative tension."
The simultaneous action selection with shared bonuses creates a unique semi-cooperative tension.
— Meeple Mountain
Septima è il gioco più accessibile di Mindclash, ma mantiene tutta la profondità strategica. La prima partita scorre in due ore, la tensione rimane altissima fino all'ultimo turno, e la voglia di rigiocare arriva subito.
— FroGames
Septima
The game includes an official automa that simulates an opponent with a dedicated deck of cards and rules. The experience is complete: the automa competes for Wisdom, participates in trials, and can steal your witches. It only loses the psychological reading interaction of simultaneous selection, but the strategic tension remains intact.
FrogScore · FroGames editorial rating · based on rules, international reviews and game sessionsYour weapons
Four elements that make the coven turn
Nine action cards
Move, Gather, Brew, Heal, Recruit, Plead, Chant, Ritual, Recall. Each turn, you secretly choose one. If someone else chooses the same, you both get the powerful bonus written at the top. But every shared action raises suspicion.
Ingredients and potions
Gather herbs in Noctenburg's four districts, combine them to brew potions. Potions give you immediate Wisdom and special effects. But Hunters patrol: if they catch you gathering, you go to trial.
Your coven
You start with one witch. By saving sisters from trials, you can reach four members, each with unique abilities: the Reckless casts spells for free, the Healer heals better, the Chanter masters chants. The more witches you have, the more actions you can take.
Public trials
When a witch goes to trial, citizens are counted: whoever has more on their side wins. If you win, the witch joins your coven. If another player wins, the witch goes to them. Losing the right trial can cost you the game.
Come si gioca
Video dimostrativo di gameplay.
🎲How to playThe rules in four steps▼
How to play
The flow of each round
Each round is simultaneous and fast-paced: choose an action, reveal it all together, execute it, check for suspects. Repeat until the deck runs out.
Each player secretly chooses one of the nine action cards from their hand. You can choose any card, even the one used in the previous turn. All think together, then reveal simultaneously.
Reveal the cards. If two or more players have chosen the same action, all of them get the powerful bonus written at the top of the card. Then each performs the basic action: move witches, gather ingredients, brew potions, heal citizens, recruit allies, plead for support, sing spells, perform rituals, or recall the past.
Each shared action raises the Suspicion token on the track. If suspicion exceeds certain thresholds, Witch Hunters are activated: they place tokens on the districts of Noctenburg and increase control. If a witch gathers ingredients in a occupied district, she immediately goes to trial.
If a witch has been captured, a public trial is triggered. All players count their allied citizens: whoever has the most wins the trial. The acquitted witch joins the winner's coven. Then a new round begins. The game ends when the action deck runs out or when a player reaches the Wisdom needed to become Septima.
⏱️Your first gameThe chronicle, moment by moment▼
A game in five moments
What happens at the table
Not the rules. The experience.
The first coordinated move
Everyone chooses cards secretly. You reveal them together. Two players chose Gather: the shared bonus is huge, but the Suspicion token goes up by two. The Hunters are closing in. No one speaks, but everyone understands: shared actions are powerful, but dangerous.
The first ingredients and potion
You gather herbs in Noctenburg's districts. You combine them to brew your first potion: it gives you immediate Wisdom and an effect that lets you move for free. You start to see the possible combos. But the Hunters have placed a token in your district: next time you gather there, you go to trial.
The first trial
A player was caught while gathering. Public trial. Citizens are counted: whoever has the most wins. She has three, you have four, the other has two. The witch joins your coven. Now you have two witches, two actions per turn, double the power. The others give you dirty looks.
The race for Wisdom
Mid-game. Everyone is rushing to accumulate Wisdom: you heal the sick, brew potions, sing spells. One player has three witches in her coven and is racking up points. You have more allied citizens, but less Wisdom. You have to decide: go to trial yourself to steal a witch from her, or play it safe and aim for points?
The last turn and the counting
The action deck runs out. Last hand. Everyone reveals cards: three players chose Ritual. Triple bonus, a final explosion of Wisdom. Points are counted: potions, spells, rescued witches, healed citizens. The one who accumulated the most Wisdom wins. The game is over, but you're already wondering: what would have happened if we had shared that action two turns ago?
🐸Good to know beforehandThree honest things, as friends▼
Good to know beforehand
Three honest things
Simultaneous selection should speed things up, but in reality, with four players at the table, everyone thinks about their move for 2-3 minutes each turn. If the group suffers from analysis paralysis, games can stretch to two full hours. With two or three players, it flows better.
If a player wins the first two trials and ends up with three or four witches in their coven, it becomes very difficult to stop them: more witches = more actions = more allied citizens = they win even more trials. There is no real catch-up mechanic: those who start badly struggle to recover.
The first game you'll be spinning your wheels: you understand the basic actions but don't see the synergies between potions, spells, and witch abilities. From the second game onwards, the game opens up, but expect the first one to be a warm-up and that those who have already played will have a clear advantage.
🏆Victory and defeatWhat the end rewards▼
How it ends
How to win and how to lose
The player with the most Wisdom wins. You can lose it along the way if you end up on trial and no one saves you.
Victory
- Accumulate more Wisdom than others: brew potions, heal citizens, sing spells, perform rituals, and save witches from trials
- Build a powerful coven: each saved witch gives you an extra action and unique abilities that multiply your efficiency
- Control trials: if you have more allied citizens, you win trials and absorb other witches, growing while others lose pieces
Elimination or defeat
- Ending up on trial and losing: if no one saves you, your witch passes to another player and you lose power and points
- Ignoring citizens: without allies among the people, you never win trials, and all your witches end up in other covens
- Playing too safe: those who never share actions lose out on powerful bonuses and fall behind in Wisdom, even without taking risks
Septima is simultaneous action selection done right: each turn you read the other players, calculate the risks, and hope someone chooses the same card as you. Then the trials come and you realize that the real game was about winning over the citizens.
💬Frequently asked questionsQuick answers before checkout▼
Frequently asked questions
Septima FAQ
What mechanics does Septima use?
Simultaneous action selection (each turn you choose one card out of nine), hand management (action cards return to your hand after use), variable powers (each witch has unique abilities), majorities (in trials, whoever has the most allied citizens wins), and semi-cooperation (sharing actions empowers you but raises suspicion for everyone).
Is it really semi-cooperative or just competitive?
It's competitive with moments of forced cooperation. Sharing an action with another player gives you huge bonuses, but it raises suspicion for everyone: the Hunters don't distinguish. You have to decide turn by turn whether to cooperate or play solo. It's not a pure cooperative game: only one person wins.
How long does a game really last?
With two players: 60-70 minutes from the second game onwards. With three: 80-90 minutes. With four: 100-120 minutes if the group thinks slowly. Simultaneous selection should speed things up, but in practice, everyone thinks about their move for 2-3 minutes each turn. For the first game, add 20-30 minutes to explain the rules.
Does the solo mode work well?
Yes. The official automa has a dedicated deck of cards and rules: it simulates an opponent who competes for Wisdom, participates in trials, and can steal witches from you. The experience is complete, but you lose the psychological aspect of simultaneous selection (the automa reveals its card without tension). If you like structured automa solo games, this one works.
Is it available in Italian?
This edition is in English. The rulebook is in English, the action cards have clear icons but English text, and the names of ingredients and potions are in English. The game is very iconic, and after the first play, the English language is not a major obstacle, but for setup and initial explanations, someone who can read English without difficulty is needed.
The people behind the game
Who invented it, who designed it, who publishes it — and what else they've done.
Septima is a competitive strategy game for 1-4 players, lasting 50-100 minutes, recommended for ages 12+, designed by Robin Hegedűs and published by Mindclash Games. The main mechanic is simultaneous action selection with shared bonuses: each turn you choose one card out of nine (Move, Gather, Brew, Heal, Recruit, Plead, Sing, Ritual, Recall), and if another player chooses the same, you get a powerful bonus but raise the suspicion of the Witch Hunters. Build a coven of witches by saving them from public trials, gather ingredients to brew potions, heal the citizens of Noctenburg, and accumulate Wisdom to become the new Septima. The game includes an official automa solo mode. Wooden components, illustrations by Villő Farkas and Barbara Bernát, fantasy setting with witches and secret magic theme. Weight 3.7/5 on BoardGameGeek. Available on FroGames.it.
Septima EN
Frequently Asked Questions
The answers you're looking for, no beating around the bush.
📸Do the images match the actual product?
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📦Does the content of the box match what is indicated?
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