7 Wonders New Edition: Leaders Game Expansion

My first expansion for 7 wonders. It adds a preliminary phase before the game where you draft a few different leaders, and a phase before each age where you can decide to play one. Each leader is different; with a different name (from history) and special power that either gives victory points, bonuses to help you pursue a certain play style, or rewards you for that play style. Because of the drafting nature of receiving your leaders, some of your opponents may have insight into who yours might be and what you may try to do, and you will have the same information. This adds a new dimension to the strategy that goes into decision making and can make the adaptability that is required in the base game more important. I found that it tended to balance the game a bit better for new players, so it is often good to start playing with it as soon as you feel that the newer players will survive (since they'll probably stand a better chance of winning anyway). And since all the leaders are real historical figures, they can stand as a starting place for teaching children (or adults) about the history of the leaders throughout the world's cultures. The only drawback to 7 Wonders Leaders is that it adds about 10 minutes to the playing time, which takes away from one of the best aspects of the base game.