Forbidden Stars / Similar games

18 games like Forbidden Stars

The best games like Forbidden Stars are Star Wars Rebellion, War of the Ring Second Edition and Cry Havoc — the closest of 18 ranked alternatives, scored by shared mechanics and category. Star Wars Rebellion shares fighting, miniatures, science fiction with Forbidden Stars.

Every alternative below links to its own Forbidden Stars-style fact page, drawn from MeeplePick’s bluffing / fighting shelf.

Ranked by shared category (3 pts) and mechanics (2 pts), bonus within 0.7 of Forbidden Stars’s 3.8 weight, then BoardGameGeek’s Bayesian rating — one entry per series, 18 shown.

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1. 1. Star Wars Rebellion (2016)
   2–4 players · 180–240 min · ★ 8.4 · Medium-heavy
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Science Fiction, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling, Hand Management · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~60 min longer · same complexity
   View Star Wars Rebellion on Amazon →
2. 2. War of the Ring Second Edition (2012)
   2–4 players · 150–180 min · ★ 8.5 · Medium-heavy
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Dice Rolling +1 more · 5 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (83%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~15 min longer · +0.3 heavier
   View War of the Ring Second Edition on Amazon →
3. 3. Cry Havoc (2016)
   2–4 players · 60–120 min · ★ 7.2 · Medium
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Science Fiction, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Hand Management · 3 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (50%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~60 min shorter · 0.6 lighter
   View Cry Havoc on Amazon →
4. 4. The Battle of Five Armies (2014)
   2 players · 90–240 min · ★ 7.9 · Medium-heavy
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling, Hand Management · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: both play at 2 · ~15 min longer · 0.3 lighter
5. 5. StarCraft The Board Game (2007)
   2–6 players · 180–240 min · ★ 7.3 · Medium-heavy
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Science Fiction, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Modular Board · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~60 min longer · same complexity
6. 6. Scythe (2016)
   1–5 players · 90–115 min · ★ 8.2 · Medium
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Science Fiction, Area Majority / Influence, Card Play Conflict Resolution · 2 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (33%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 5 · ~47 min shorter · 0.4 lighter
7. 7. Frank Herbert's Dune (1979)
   2–6 players · 60–180 min · ★ 7.6 · Medium
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Bluffing, Fighting, Science Fiction, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Hand Management · 3 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (50%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min shorter · 0.4 lighter
8. 8. Earth Reborn (2010)
   2–4 players · 180 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium-heavy
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Bluffing, Fighting, Miniatures, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling, Hand Management · 2 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (33%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~30 min longer · same complexity
9. 9. Chaos in the Old World (2009)
   3–4 players · 60–120 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium
   Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling, Hand Management · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
   vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 3–4 players · ~60 min shorter · 0.6 lighter
10. 10. A Game of Thrones The Board Game (Second Edition) (2011)
    3–6 players · 120–240 min · ★ 7.6 · Medium-heavy
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Bluffing, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Hand Management · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min longer · same complexity
11. 11. Exodus Proxima Centauri (2012)
    2–6 players · 180 min · ★ 7.2 · Medium-heavy
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Science Fiction, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling, Modular Board · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min longer · 0.2 lighter
12. 12. Eclipse Second Dawn for the Galaxy (2020)
    2–6 players · 60–200 min · ★ 8.8 · Medium-heavy
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Science Fiction, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 3 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (50%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~20 min shorter · 0.3 lighter
13. 13. Rising Sun (2018)
    3–5 players · 90–120 min · ★ 7.9 · Medium
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Bluffing, Miniatures, Wargame, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement · 2 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (33%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 5 · ~45 min shorter · 0.6 lighter
14. 14. Deep Madness (2018)
    1–6 players · 60–120 min · ★ 8.0 · Medium
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling, Hand Management, Modular Board · 3 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (50%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 6 · ~60 min shorter · 0.5 lighter
15. 15. Dune (2019)
    2–6 players · 120 min · ★ 8.1 · Medium-heavy
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Bluffing, Fighting, Science Fiction, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement · 2 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (33%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min shorter · same complexity
16. 16. Mansions of Madness (2011)
    2–5 players · 120–180 min · ★ 7.3 · Medium
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Fighting, Miniatures, Area Movement, Dice Rolling, Hand Management, Modular Board · 4 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (67%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · about the same length · 0.6 lighter
17. 17. Battlestar Galactica The Board Game (2008)
    3–6 players · 120–180 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Bluffing, Science Fiction, Area Movement, Dice Rolling, Hand Management · 3 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (50%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 6 · about the same length · 0.6 lighter
18. 18. Nemesis (2018)
    1–5 players · 90–180 min · ★ 8.4 · Medium
    Shares with Forbidden Stars: Miniatures, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling, Modular Board · 2 of Forbidden Stars’s 6 mechanics (33%)
    vs Forbidden Stars: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 5 · ~15 min shorter · 0.5 lighter

Looking for the original? See the full Forbidden Stars fact page — players, play time, age and complexity.