| Subject Name: | Redemption CCG |
| Image Link: | File:Redemption cardback.jpg |
| Image Caption: | Card back of Redemption |
| Designer: | Rob Anderson |
| Publisher: | Cactus Game Design |
| Players: | 2-5 |
| Setup Time: | < 2 minutes |
| Playing Time: | < 45 minutes |
| Random Chance: | Some |
| Skills: | Reading Card playing Adding & Subtracting |
| Footnotes: | 1 Some rules allow more players. |
Redemption is a collectible card game based on the Bible. It involves Biblical characters, places, objects, and ideas. The object of the game is for players to use their Heroes (good characters) to rescue Lost Souls by defeating their opponent's Evil Characters, with the first player to rescue five Lost Souls winning the game.[1] Redemption was first published in July 1995 by Cactus Game Design[2] and its creator, Rob Anderson, continues to develop and produce the game and is the final authority on rulings.
The object of the game is to rescue the required number of Lost Souls (usually five) before the opponent does. To rescue a Lost Soul, a player must initiate a rescue attempt by playing a Hero. The opponent then plays an Evil Character to block the rescue attempt and start a battle. In a battle, players take turns playing Enhancement cards to make their characters stronger. When both players have finished playing Enhancements, the player whose character's Strength is equal to or higher than their opponent's Toughness wins the battle; if the Hero defeats the Evil Character (either by having higher Strength or by removing the Evil Character from the battle via a special ability), the Hero rescues the Lost Soul. After the battle, the winning character remains in play and can be used again on the next turn, and the losing character as well as all Enhancements played during the battle are discarded. Souls can also be rescued by the “Son of God” card.
Unlike popular trading card games like Pokémon and, Redemption has no built-in resource system; that is, players are not required to meet any requirements or pay any costs in order to put cards into play. Restrictions or penalties are instead placed on the special abilities of the cards themselves in order to balance game play.
One unique aspect that sets Redemption apart from other CCGs is that while every deck contains both good and evil characters, the game is only won by using good characters. Evil characters can prevent the opponent from winning, but they themselves do not have a chance to win the game.
Most types of cards are indicated by an icon in a box in the card's upper-left corner. Certain cards have more than one icon.
Each Character, Enhancement, Site, Covenant and Curse card belongs to one or more brigades, indicated by the color of their icon box. An Enhancement of a given brigade may only be used by a Character of the same brigade. The colors of the good brigades are Blue, Clay, Gold, Green, Purple, Teal, Red, Silver and White, and the colors of the evil brigades are Black, Brown, Crimson, Gray, Orange, Pale Green and Yellow. A card with a rainbow icon box belongs to all brigades of the corresponding good or evil alignment.
The first release of Redemption was in 1995 as a set of 2 starter decks (50-card decks A and B, now out of print) and a set of Limited Edition cards, followed by an Unlimited Edition reprinting.
The game was developed by releasing expansion sets and other starter decks, including, in order of release:
| Set Name | Release Date | |
|---|---|---|
| Originals (Limited and Unlimited Printings) | 1995 | |
| 1st Edition Starter Decks (A&B) * | 1995 | |
| The Prophets (Expansion) * | 1996 | |
| The Women (Expansion) * | 1997 | |
| The Warriors (Expansion) * | 1999 | |
| 2nd Edition Starter Decks * | 2000 | |
| The Apostles (Expansion) | 2001 | |
| The Patriarchs (Expansion) | 2002 | |
| The Kings (Expansion) | 2003 | |
| 3rd Edition Starter Decks * | 2004 | |
| Angel Wars (Expansion) | 2004 | |
| 10th Anniversary Starter Decks * | 2005 | |
| The Priests (Expansion) | 2006 | |
| Faith of Our Fathers (Expansion) | 2007 | |
| Rock of Ages (Expansion) | 2008 | |
| Thesaurus Ex Preteritus (Expansion) | 2009 | |
| The Disciples (Expansion) | 2010 | |
| Faith of Our Fathers (Extended Expansion) | 2011 | |
| Rock of Ages (Extended Expansion) | 2011 | |
| 4th Edition Starter Decks | 2013 | |
| Rock of Ages (Collectors Tin #26) | 2013 | |
| The Early Church (Expansion) | 2014 | |
| The Persecuted Church (Expansion) | 2015 | |
| Cloud of Witnesses (Expansion) | 2016 | |
| Revelation of John (Expansion) | 2017 | |
| The Fall of Man (Expansion) | 2018 | |
| Prophecies of Christ (Expansion) | 2018 | |
| Prophecies of Christ 2 (Expansion) | 2019 | |
| The Lineage of Christ | 2020 | |
| Gospel of Christ | 2022 | |
| Israel's Deliverance (Starter Decks) | 2023 | |
| Israel’s Rebellion (Expansion) | 2023 | |
| Roots (Expansion) | 2024 | |
| Israel's Inheritance (Expansion) | 2024 |
- Out of print
In August 1996, Cactus offered 750 complete sets of all published Redemption cards at about $150 a piece.
Several artists have contributed, including Mike Bennett, Jeff Haynie, Michael Carroll and Mark Poole. Some artwork has been taken from other Christian products and from classical artwork.Former art director Doug Gray also made many of the images for the cards himself.
Soon after introduced the idea of a collectible card game (CCG), Rob Anderson realized that the Bible would be a "wonderful source for this type of game".[3] Redemption was soon designed and has since grown to be the top selling Christian CCG. Additionally, recent (as of this writing) final releases of several long-running trading card games, including Lord of the Rings[4] and Star Trek,[5] make Redemption the second-oldest trading card game in consistent production, only behind Magic: The Gathering.
Contributing to the continued popularity of the game is the ability - especially earlier on - to easily collect the cards due to the more common distribution, smaller set size (as of 2006, there were only about 1,800 unique cards), lack of super-rare chase cards and a slow release of sets (one set is released only every 1–2 years).
A rulebook has been developed and gives a reference for understanding the interactions between the card types and the cards. The most up-to-date rulebook is the 10th anniversary rulebook. An "exegetical" guide is also available for more seasoned players, containing detailed descriptions of every game term.
Tournaments
The nature of the game allows for and has resulted in a National Tournament structure (within the U.S.). Tournament levels range from Local to District to State to Regional to the National tournament. The National tournament is held once a year and is held in a different location each year. For official tournaments, prizes are provided by Cactus Game Design and they generally include Redemption booster packs and Tournament Promotional Cards. Redemption Nationals is open to all players; there are no prerequisites for entrance.[6]
Online Tournaments
Redemption tournaments are also held online through Lackey CCG, Zoom, and once through the official Redemption Table Simulator (RTS). Online tournaments can be found through the Cactus website or the Redemption discord and function in the same way as face to face tournaments sans the time limit being longer.
Categories of Play
At each tournament, one might play Closed Deck, Booster Draft, Type 1, or Type 2. These categories have different deck building rules.
Ranking System
Redemption has also implemented a Redemption National Ranking System (RNRS) allowing players who cannot make it to the National Tournament to be recognized. Points are awarded for placing in each level of tournament.
| 2-player Sealed Deck | Multi-player Sealed Deck/Booster Draft | 2-player Type 1 | Multi-player Type 1 | 2-player Type 2 | Multi-player Type 2 | TEAMS | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationals | RNRS | Nationals | RNRS | Nationals | RNRS | Nationals | RNRS | Nationals | RNRS | Nationals | RNRS | Nationals | RNRS | ||
| 2015 | Dayne Maust | Chris Fachman | Daniel Huisinga | Josiah Beers | John Earley | John Earley | Charles Johnson | Brian Jones | Justin Alstad | Justin Alstad | Justin Alstad | Justin Alstad | Jordan Alstad & Martin Miller | Gabe Isbell | |
| 2014 | Joseph Zimmerman | Justin Alstad | Joshua Knitt | Jordan Alstad | Zac Cornell | Jordan Alstad | Ray Imgrund | Tim Maly | Jordan Alstad | Jordan Alstad | Dayne Maust | Dayne Maust | Josiah Beers & Jerome Beers | John Michaliszyn and Justin Alstad | |
| 2013 | Justin Alstad | Bill Voigt | Matt Townsend | Bill Voigt | Josiah Beers | Josiah Beers | Tim Maly | Tim Maly | Justin Alstad | Gabe Isbell | Tyler Stevens | Jayden Alstad | Martin Miller & Chris Ericson | Martin Miller | |
| 2012 | Ian Kratzer | Noel Mendoza | Alex Olijar | Jordan Alstad | Martin Miller | Martin Miller | Chris Ericson | Chris Ericson | Josiah Beers | Kurt Hake and Jordan Alstad | Jonathan Greeson | Jonathan Greeson | John Earley & James Roepke | John Earley | |
| 2011 | Rebeccah Collins | Noel Mendoza | Eric Wolfe | Scott Kramer | Matt Townsend | Gabe Isbell | Tim Maly | Kurt Hake and Randall Koutnik | Nathan Voigt | Nathan Voigt | Jordan Alstad | Jordan Alstad | Gabe Isbell & Kevin Shride | Nathan Voigt | |
| 2010 | Brandon Abbott | Mike Mendicino | Tyler Stevens | Shawn Capron | Jonathan Greeson | Jonathan Greeson | Nathan Voigt | Nathan Voigt and Matthew Archibald | Gabe Isbell | Gabe Isbell | John Earley | John Earley | Gabe Isbell & Kevin Shride | Ben Michaliszyn | |
| 2009 | Sam Nurge | Josh Randolph | Sam Nurge | Josh Randolph | Gabe Isbell | Gabe Isbell | Brandon West | T.J. Stamp | Gabe Isbell | Gabe Isbell | Ron Sias | Josh Randolph | - | - | |
| 2008 | Michael Huerter | Leeza Wolfe | Jacob Fountain | Gabe Isbell | Tim Mierzejewski | Eric Wolfe and Gabe Isbell | Daniel Whitten | Daniel Whitten | Tim Maly | Kurt Hake | Steve Kamke | Steve Kamke | - | - | |
| 2007 | Chad Soderstrom | Chad Soderstrom | Brad Coverdale | Ben Shadrick | Gabe Isbell | Tim Maly | Daniel Whitten | Daniel Whitten | Justin Alstad | Justin Alstad | Nathan Voigt | Nathan Voigt | N/A | N/A | |
| 2006 | Claude Fong | Claude Fong | Sarah Harris | Ben Shadrick | Chad Soderstrom | Tim Maly | Justin Alstad | Josh Pearson | Ross Lang | Ross Lang | Justin Alstad | Justin Alstad | N/A | N/A | |
| 2005 | Seth Mick | Ben Shadrick | John Nesfeder | Emmanuel Echavarria | Justin Sangillo | Justin Sangillo | David Ebert | Ben Arp | Kevin Shride | Michael Garland | Adam Erickson | Justin Alstad | N/A | N/A | |
| 2004 | Michael Bell | Michael Bell | Ken Shartle | Adam Erickson | Tim Maly | Roy Cannaday | Justin Alstad | Justin Sangillo | Joshua Hey | Joshua Hey | Joshua Hey | Joshua Hey | N/A | N/A | |
| 2003 | Brad Dembo | Brad Dembo | Joshua Meneely | Brad Dembo | Kyle Hostutler | Kyle Hostutler | Evan Sauer | Eric Berkenpas | Eric Largent | Chris Bany | Joshua Hey | Joshua Hey | N/A | N/A | |
| 2002 | Roy Cannaday | Roy Cannaday | Josiah Fiscus | Christian De Los Rios | Keith Bartram | Jesse Pfeister | Joshua Slinkard | Eric Beise | Bryon Hake | Chris Bany | Eric Kimmons | Chris Bany | N/A | N/A | |
| 2001 | Dave Daugherty | Christopher Ramsey | Brandon Knick | Brandon Knick | Keith Bartram | Miguel Arriaga | Ron Sias | Juan Arriaga | Bryon Hake | Bryon Hake | Eric Kimmons | Art Middlekauff | N/A | N/A | |
| 2000 | Nicholas Campbell | - | Aaron Torres | - | Tim Maly | - | Kevin Dulin | - | Eric Kimmons and Ron Sias | - | Daniel Goodner | - | N/A | N/A | |
| 1999 | Daniel Horton | - | Ron Sias | - | Keith Bartram | - | Lana F. | - | Eric Kimmons | - | Patrick Nolan | - | N/A | N/A | |
| 1998 | Ron Sias | - | Ron Sias | - | Jordan Schwag | - | Ron Sias | - | Jordan Schwag | - | Peter Binis | - | N/A | N/A | |
| 1997 | Joel Gorp | - | Joel Gorp | - | Stephen S. Stevens | - | Henry Pickle | - | Tommy Ullbnp | - | Stephen S. Stevens | - | N/A | N/A | |
| 1996 | Jordan Schwag | - | Harold Hamdurgers | - | Harold Hamdurgers | - | Kyle Gloop | - | Fred Schwing | - | Eric Pumpernickel | - | N/A | N/A | |
In the March 1996 edition of Arcane (Issue 4), Andrew Rilstone pointed out that "CCGs need variety. Redemption fails in this regard. The cards all have very similar values to each other, taking most of the fun out of collecting."[7] He also criticized the gameplay, which he called "repetitive and boring". He concluded by giving it a rating of 5 out of 10, saying, "Each card has a relevant quotation on it, and the rules warn us that if the cards ever contradict the Bible, you should stick with the Bible. Er... thanks."
In the March 1996 edition of Dragon (Issue 227), Rick Swan stated that "Redemption plays like a stripped-down game, too slight to sustain the interest of hard-core card players, but good for beginners."[8]