Last modified October 10, 2025 by Krushpin

Here's a comparison of the three games in Shem Phillips' South Tigris trilogy based solely on my perception of them. Specifically, I'll be focusing on the depth and complexity of the mechanics. Spoiler alert: these are three EXCELLENT games!

To briefly summarize the timeline of events, I had already tried a few games in the North Sea and West Kingdom series but it didn't click that much, except for Viscounts and its expansions. I found them either bland (North Sea) or too long for what they brought new to my table (West Kingdom).

Later, motivated by very positive reviews, I bought Scholars and then we played it 2 or 3 times and I got rid of it. I found it a bit "scripted" in the sequence of actions and not very interesting since I tend to appreciate more open games. Without knowing it, I had just made a serious error of judgment! However, I had seen that there was some potential and I remained open to playing it again eventually.

Then the twist came when I tried Wayfarers. It was love at first sight and we played a few games in a week. I discovered a depth that won me over, thanks to its mechanics tied with gold thread. It made me want to try Scholars again and it was on the second try that it clicked. Same observation as for Wayfarers: it takes a few games to appreciate the extent of the designer's work on the mechanics.

Finally, when Inventors came out, I was waiting for it with very high expectations and the game delivered! Even more twisty than its two brothers, it completes the trilogy with a bang. I can now say that Shem Phillips is a beast apart!

We've since tried all 3 expansions for these games and they all enhance the gameplay, either with additional mechanics to balance out less than optimal strategic paths or by adding replayability.

We're now on the verge of adding Moonsaga to our experience, like the cherry on top of the sundae. Everything seems to indicate that this trio of games, along with their respective expansions, represents a new milestone in the heavyweight Euro game niche.

Wayfarers (2022)

The most affordable of the three, both for its simple mechanics and its playing time, which doesn't exceed 90 minutes for experienced players. A typical medium heavy.

In this game, we represent a traveler who relates his adventures in a journal, describing the places visited, the people met and the different celestial objects observed. Honestly, the theme is very abstract but it still allows you to assimilate certain mechanics well.

Its depth is based on the fact that we are constantly torn between enlarging our machine (board) or rather optimizing it and using it to focus on the race for icon diversification. It is precisely this mechanic that determines the duration of the game. If a player "rushes" and focuses on reaching the end of the newspaper track, the game ends abruptly and we do not have time to enjoy our board long enough. We must constantly fight to stay on the thin fence, not to lean too much to one side or the other and get out of "tempo".

The depth also relies on the vast selection of actions that lead us to necessarily diversify our icon collection. This is necessary to progress in the game but, at the same time, it goes against the classic principle that we must specialize to improve our actions. We must therefore remain alert to the pace of progression of the game. Fortunately, we have time to see the end of the game looming and prepare for it, but we must stretch the elastic of our machine's optimization as much as possible to give ourselves scoring opportunities.

The complexity of Wayfarers is significant when compared to the average of other medium-heavy games, but it remains manageable for a game of this scale. Well-known and widespread mechanics of worker placement, dice manipulation, icon collection, and tableau building are at the heart of the game. Thus, it is not the mechanics themselves that give it its complexity, but rather the way they are woven so tightly. Each action has short- and long-term repercussions that must be anticipated and evaluated. Thus, it is recommended to prepare a sequence of optimal actions and to be ready to adapt with plans B, C, and D, in the event that another player puts a spanner in the works... And that happens often!

The rules are generally simple and, when integrated with the theme, are easy to learn. As with any Shem Phillips game, there are a few small rules that are easy to miss. This is part of the learning curve and should be accepted, but it doesn't hinder the fun. Personally, I like to reread the rules after a game or two: it allows you to see if you applied everything correctly the first time or if adjustments are necessary.

The expansion adds depth but also additional rules and that is why it is strongly recommended to play the vanilla game before integrating it.

Scholars (2023)

The middle child. It's longer than Wayfarers (about 2 hours) and can be considered a Euro heavy.

In this game, you discover scrolls written in various languages ​​and translate them into Arabic. To do this, you hire translators and put them to work. You can also improve your actions by increasing your influence in various areas.

The depth of Scholars rests, a bit like its sibling, on the delicate balance between specializing in one type of action and diversifying to be able to take advantage of several aspects of the game. In particular, we want to quickly climb along the numerous tracks, we want to fight for the majority in the sectors of influence and we want to position ourselves advantageously for the translation of scrolls by hiring competent translators (but not too expensive!).

Add to that a good dose of interaction between players. There's the classic race for the best actions, but also a "semi-cooperative" aspect where each player can use the translators that their opponents have hired, provided they pay compensation. By "subcontracting" them, this translator therefore retires earlier than expected. This has positive aspects for its owner (a retiree gives VPs at the end of the game) but also potentially negative aspects since the translator is no longer available to work (removed from the board). Timing then becomes an important issue.

In terms of complexity, it's a step above Wayfarer because there are several small steps between finding a scroll and finally getting it translated. It's easy to miss an action and have your overall plan fall apart. While the game offers multiple paths to achieving your goal, it can be brutal if you paint yourself into a corner. And that happens during the early games! The fact that other players are competing to hire the same translators adds to the tension. You have to be able to react quickly, and every missing dollar can lead to your downfall.

If you rush into a paid translation, it can fall apart if each step isn't well planned. You have to slowly weave your web and solidify it before going for the big one. That's what makes it satisfying when your plan goes well!

One particular mechanic that increases the complexity of Scholars is the manipulation of dice colors, which can also be modified with our workers. Remember your elementary school art class because you can combine dice of different primary colors to make secondary (stronger) colors. Then, you combine them with workers to once again modify the color and/or value of the dice! This twisted mechanic is in itself a puzzle to solve on each of your turns! It's like a mini-game within the big game.

The expansion adds other complementary mechanics and also a bit of complexity (additional track, black dice, scrolls to publish, etc.). Again, I suggest playing the base game before adding the expansion. That said, of the trilogy, I think this expansion is my favorite and adds the most to the original game.

Inventors (2024)

The youngest of the family. It's the most twisted of the three games and the longest too (2h30). Definitely a heavy, even very heavy, game.

In this game, you play as an inventor whose role is to design, invent, publish, and test your gadgets. The more time, money, and energy you put into perfecting your inventions, the more VP they earn.

The depth of Inventors is manifested in a slew of tightly woven mechanics that every small action has repercussions all over the board, for us and also for our opponents. It's literally a science to try to visualize all the impacts that our moves will generate.

The mechanics of worker placement, dice manipulation, and the tech tree to develop fit together so well that it's almost poetic. Adding to this is a very tight economy, especially early in the game, and every action becomes a must-think.

As in Scholars, there is a strong "semi-coop" type of interaction because once our invention is designed, everyone can participate in building it, publishing it or testing it. Sometimes, we want opponents to participate to accelerate the development of our invention and collect VP. However, we also want to keep the opportunity to reap the rewards of the intermediate stages ourselves. It is sometimes tempting to participate in the inventions of others but is it worth it at the expense of our own projects? Lots of great decisions to make!

To advance our inventions, we must pay our workers, who become more skilled through their use. As in real life, the more skilled you are, the more expensive your services are. Once again, we're caught between two fires: we want to improve our workers, but will we be able to pay them when we need them? Another fine example of the depth of well-integrated mechanics.

In terms of complexity, Inventors stands out from its siblings in that each of the 5 major stages of invention development is subdivided into 7-8 sub-stages. The order of these stages is important and it is easy to forget one or two. Therefore, the game aid is not an option but a necessity for the first few games.

The way victory points are calculated at the end of the game is also quite mixed. Each invention rewards its designer, builder, publisher, and testers in different ways and according to certain performance criteria. You must pay attention to all these scoring opportunities throughout the game and "push" the inventions that best reward your strategy.

As for the expansion, it's the simplest of the three games. Roughly speaking, each player will have two asymmetrical powers at the start of the game: one advantage and one disadvantage. So we need to build our strategy around that.

Conclusion

In my opinion, there is a very nice progression of depth and complexity between the three games. You absolutely have to play them in the order they were released so as not to miss a step and tumble down the stairs for a long time. I am extremely grateful to have been able to try Shem Phillips' games again after a somewhat mixed start. With the South Tigris trilogy, this author has become automatic and I buy all his games with my eyes closed. Apparently he is concocting a final trilogy with even more advanced games. I have difficulty conceiving how this is possible but I am just waiting to be convinced!

Finally, I haven't tried the single-player versions of these games, but it's still a project. I'll get back to you when it's checked off my list!