The Pillars of the Earth / Similar games

18 games like The Pillars of the Earth

The best games like The Pillars of the Earth are Ora et Labora, Marco Polo II In the Service of the Khan and Raiders of the North Sea — the closest of 18 ranked alternatives, scored by shared mechanics and category. Ora et Labora shares economic, medieval, religious with The Pillars of the Earth.

Every alternative below links to its own The Pillars of the Earth-style fact page, drawn from MeeplePick’s economic / medieval shelf.

Ranked by shared category (3 pts) and mechanics (2 pts), bonus within 0.7 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 2.8 weight, then BoardGameGeek’s Bayesian rating — one entry per series, 18 shown.

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1. 

   1. Ora et Labora (2011)

   1–4 players · 60–180 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium-heavy · See Ora et Labora alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Religious, Worker Placement, Worker Placement · 5 shared tags · 2 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (50%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · ~15 min longer · +1.1 heavier

   Check price for Ora et Labora →
2. 

   2. Marco Polo II In the Service of the Khan (2019)

   2–4 players · 60–120 min · ★ 8.1 · Medium · See Marco Polo II In the Service of the Khan alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~15 min shorter · +0.6 heavier

   Check price for Marco Polo II In the Service of the Khan →
3. 

   3. Raiders of the North Sea (2015)

   2–4 players · 60–80 min · ★ 7.8 · Medium · See Raiders of the North Sea alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Medieval, Worker Placement, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 2 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (50%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~35 min shorter · 0.3 lighter

   Check price for Raiders of the North Sea →
4. 

   4. In the Year of the Dragon (2007)

   2–5 players · 75–100 min · ★ 7.3 · Medium · See In the Year of the Dragon alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Events · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~17 min shorter · +0.3 heavier
5. 

   5. The Manhattan Project Energy Empire (2016)

   1–5 players · 60–120 min · ★ 7.8 · Medium · See The Manhattan Project Energy Empire alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Events, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 2 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (50%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 5 · ~15 min shorter · +0.2 heavier
6. 

   6. Lancaster (2011)

   2–5 players · 60 min · ★ 7.4 · Medium · See Lancaster alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Medieval, Worker Placement, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 2 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (50%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~45 min shorter · +0.2 heavier
7. 

   7. Caylus 1303 (2019)

   2–5 players · 60–90 min · ★ 7.6 · Medium

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~30 min shorter · same complexity
8. 

   8. Viticulture Essential Edition (2015)

   1–6 players · 45–90 min · ★ 8.1 · Medium · See Viticulture Essential Edition alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Worker Placement · 2 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 6 · ~37 min shorter · same complexity
9. 

   9. Caylus Magna Carta (2007)

   2–4 players · 45–75 min · ★ 6.9 · Medium · See Caylus Magna Carta alternatives →

   Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

   vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~45 min shorter · same complexity
10. 

    10. Belfort (2011)

    2–5 players · 120 min · ★ 7.2 · Medium · See Belfort alternatives →

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Worker Placement, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 2 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (50%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~15 min longer · +0.2 heavier
11. 

    11. Tournay (2011)

    2–4 players · 30–60 min · ★ 7.0 · Medium

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~60 min shorter · same complexity
12. 

    12. Calimala (2017)

    3–5 players · 75 min · ★ 7.2 · Medium

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 5 · ~30 min shorter · same complexity
13. 

    13. World Without End (2009)

    2–4 players · 90–120 min · ★ 7.3 · Medium · See World Without End alternatives →

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Novel-based, Religious · 4 shared tags · 0 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (0%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · about the same length · same complexity
14. 

    14. Agricola Revised Edition (2016)

    1–4 players · 30–120 min · ★ 8.0 · Medium-heavy · See Agricola Revised Edition alternatives →

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Worker Placement · 2 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · ~30 min shorter · +0.7 heavier
15. 

    15. Key Flow (2018)

    2–6 players · 45–75 min · ★ 7.4 · Medium

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Medieval, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~45 min shorter · same complexity
16. 

    16. Spyrium (2013)

    2–5 players · 75 min · ★ 7.1 · Medium · See Spyrium alternatives →

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Economic, Events, Worker Placement · 3 shared tags · 2 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (50%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~30 min shorter · same complexity
17. 

    17. Architects of the West Kingdom (2018)

    1–5 players · 60–80 min · ★ 7.8 · Medium · See Architects of the West Kingdom alternatives →

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Medieval, Worker Placement · 2 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 5 · ~35 min shorter · same complexity
18. 

    18. Mystery of the Abbey (1995)

    3–6 players · 60–90 min · ★ 6.5 · Medium-light · See Mystery of the Abbey alternatives →

    Shares with The Pillars of the Earth: Medieval, Religious, Events · 3 shared tags · 1 of The Pillars of the Earth’s 4 mechanics (25%)

    vs The Pillars of the Earth: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min shorter · 0.6 lighter

Looking for the original? See the full The Pillars of the Earth fact page — players, play time, age and complexity.