A player shuffles his cards in his hand deciding if it’s the right moment to play his Tidal Wave card. Next to him a player is playing a Quick Match game on her phone while discussing her solo Jericho Spellbane strategy with another player. In between games, other players in the store pop by the Shadow Era tables to demo a game with their local Champion, Chevy Sharp, and are soon battling it out and picking up cards of their own. It’s another busy Sunday at Dicehead Games in Cleveland and the Shadow Era community is growing.

Sharp, Cleveland’s local Champion, picked up Shadow Era first on his phone and then computer. Initially drawn in by the artwork and easy gameplay, the depth and strategy of the cards kept him playing. Moving to physical cards was an easy transition, as it played by the same rules. A regular at his local hobby store, he brought his cards into the store and got others hooked. Those at Dicehead Games love playing card games and are often looking for something new to try out. Starting with a few demos, players rapidly picked up Shadow Era and started asking for Meltdown tournaments to build their collection. Shadow Era is “amazingly balanced and easy to learn,” explains Sharp, which is why so many Dicehead player have picked it so quickly. After running a few monthly tournaments, many in the store now have their own decks and get together to play weekly with organized tournaments happening several times a month. Chevy has also helped show off the game at the annual Cleveland Geekster event. Taking over a section of Dicehead’s booth, he demoed the game and invited locals to continue the fun every Sunday at the store.

Dicehead Games regular, Ryan Stansberry, has a love for trading card games and the list of those he plays is long. As two of his favorite games have recently been killed off, he was looking to pick up another. Drawn in by similar mechanics, he was impressed by Shadow Era’s “simple and fun” gameplay. However, simple does not equate to easy, and as Stansberry plays the game more, the depth and strategy of the gameplay becomes clear. “I enjoy the tournaments,” says Stanberry and he looks forward to wining foils to add to his deck. But he better bring his A-game as local player Kaitlyn Cannon is in it to win it! “We have a great time here,” Cannon says, and with regular gameplay and tournaments she is honing her Shadow Era skills... and increasing her win rate!

While the local scene has constructed deck, draft, and Meltdown tournaments, they also like to experiment with new gameplay formats and discuss card strategy and design. Players at Dicehead have tried out the four-player games in the physical version, which is being worked on for the digital game, with great success. “I have always been one bursting with ideas about how to make any card game better,” explains Sharp. Dicehead has a very strong and intense TCG scene but also a “very friendly player base,” explains Sharp and welcomes everyone to come chat about the game and play some matches.

Digital and physical players are welcome to join in some Shadow Era fun at Dicehead Games Sundays from 2:00pm to 6:00pm. Diceheads at 200 Paul Huff Pwy #12 at the Bradley Square Mall in Cleveland, TN.