I have logged more hours in MOBAs than I would admit to my dentist, so I am picky about any MOBA board game that claims to bring that feeling to cardboard. Most translate the map but lose the moment-to-moment tension. Trials of MAYA is the first one in a while where the feel seems to survive the trip. Here is my short take on what it actually plays like, based on the previews.
The three card system is the hook
The mechanic everyone keeps circling back to is the sliding card row. TikTok BoardGames called it an amazing MOBA coming to your table and pointed straight at it: “The best part about this MOBA is that it runs on a unique three card system. Every time you play a card, one slides off and provides your champion with energy to play new cards.” That is the tabletop MOBA equivalent of managing mana and cooldowns at once. You feel it in the decisions. As the same reel put it, “you can choose to attack with a low damage hit, but later on it’ll provide the energy to unleash a powerful, devastating blow.” Committing a card now to set up a swing later is the whole game in miniature, and it is the closest a MOBA card game has gotten to the rhythm of last-hitting and saving your combo.
What is Trials of MAYA?
Trials of MAYA is an expandable card-driven arena combat game. It combines three genres: MOBAs, classic 90s tactics games, and TCGs without booster packs. It plays 1 to 4 players in 60 to 180 minutes for ages 14 and up. Siege runs as 2v2, The Battle for Dhaara, and 1v1, Skirmish for Vyati. It launches on Gamefound September 8, 2026.
Does the MOBA board game feel hold up?
The strongest signal for me came from a lifelong MOBA player. In a former League commentator’s review, Gaming Caravan does not hold back: “this game is a fantastic game. And I can’t even speak highly enough.” He scores gameplay a full 7 out of 7 and says “I loved every aspect about how this game played.” When someone who lived in the digital genre says the tabletop version nails it, that is worth more than any marketing line. Rob echoes the point on a different axis. In Rob’s hands-on preview, he calls it “A nice, clean, and unique little MOBA system that really, really, really works out really well. It’s fun.” He also loved that the card actions are “constantly changing,” which forces you to plan ahead the way you would when a teamfight is about to break out.
Where it lands for me
Champions with their own stats and signature cards, minion capture, XP upgrades, a Headhunters free-for-all: the pieces are all here, and they seem to lock together into an actual MOBA-style board game rather than a theme pasted on top. I have only watched the previews, not the final build, so I am staying honest about that. It is live on Gamefound and playable on Tabletop Simulator, so if you love the genre, go feel that sliding card row for yourself.
Rulebooks and public metadata are on BoardGameGeek, the full breakdown is on the official page, and the campaign is live on Gamefound now.