This past week I was given the opportunity to review One World Dominion, an unauthorized Risk Supplement, from Interformic Games. The game, although it looks somewhat cheaply made, comes in a plastic bag with directions and 44 cards to replace the normal Risk Cards. Also included are several quick reference cards and 3 blank cards so that you may add your own new special powers.

I must say that the addition of special powers printed on the cards certainly added a new element to an otherwise drab game. The powers, printed on the cards themselves, range from something as powerful as Fortification (add 2 to all of your defensive die rolls until the end of the attackers turn) to the super powerful Mutant Horde (This card creates a new, neutral player. Turn all of the armies in one area of your choice into homicidal Mutants. They attack randomly each turn. After each battle all of the dead defending soldiers become homicidal Mutants). Personal preferences aside, One World Dominion has a few problems with balance.

First of all, a lot of the cards in the deck rely on another card to already be in play. Although this in itself will let you hold cards for bonus armies, remember that each and every enemy also draws a card each turn. The powers of the cards rule this game. If you should be unfortunate enough to not draw any cards that are worthwhile; more than likely you will lose. With cards like Fortification, Mutant Horde, Nuclear Terrorists (which destroy all armies in a random country), and Mind Control (Replace half of an enemies army with your troops) the game can become rather one-sided very quickly.

The cards are set up in almost pair-like design. Each card has another card that can counteract it. A worthy design concept, but it seems to have fallen rather short. The power of the cards are so powerful that, should the counter not be available at the time of the play, the person playing the card will happily dance all over the board. Also, every person playing almost immediately becomes reliant on the cards for their powers rather than their value. In all of the games I played, there were three sets of cards turned in. These were turned in as a joke after an opponent had just fallen. All of his worthless countering cards were cluttering his now enormous collection.

In short, I recommend this supplement to someone who is bored to tears with normal games of Risk. The cards add a much-needed flavor to the game, but can become abused very quickly. The One World Dominion unauthorized Risk Supplement is available from Interformic Games for $6.00 a copy. Anyone interested in buying a copy should send a check or money order to: