Games Like Cloudspire: A Fresh Lane Combat Pick

If you love the Cloudspire board game, you already know the itch: waves of minions pushing down lanes, a slow build of pressure, and turns where a single placement decides the fight. When people ask me for games like Cloudspire, I have started pointing them toward a new one I have been watching in preview: Trials of MAYA. I have not played the final game, since this is a prototype campaign, but the shape of it feels right for anyone who chases that lane combat tension.

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.

Why fans of the Cloudspire board game should look

Cloudspire alternatives usually get the pushing and the lanes right but lose the puzzle of when to commit. Trials of MAYA keeps that puzzle front and center through its card activation system and the Energy Gambit, where one committed card sets your initiative now and your energy later. When Polyhedron Collider talked through it on their podcast, the presenter said, “I think this was a good version of this MOBA kind of game. I thought the activation mechanism with the cards was quite clever and felt different, felt fresh to me.” That freshness is the reason it belongs next to Cloudspire on a shortlist rather than in its shadow.

Minions you steal instead of just kill

The part that will grab lane combat board games fans is what happens to defeated minions. Rather than clearing them off the board, you bank their hit points and bring them back on your side. Polyhedron Collider described it well: “when you attack a minion, you take their hit point chips… you put them in a store on your side of the board. And then when you defeat a minion, you can bring that minion back under your control.” That reservoir of stolen health turns every minion trade into a real decision, which is exactly the flavor Cloudspire players love.

Board presence and modes

The prototype is big and colorful. In a video that walks through the 2v2 Siege mode, The Game Boy Geek highlighted “beautifully sculpted miniatures” and a magnetic spawn point capture he called “a really cool idea.” Trials of MAYA runs Siege 1v1 and Siege 2v2 (Battle for Dhaara), a Headhunters free-for-all for two to four players, plus solo and co-op scenarios. Sessions land in the 60 to 180 minute range, with about 15 minutes of teach time. Variety is a recurring theme. In a sponsored preview from Never Bored Gaming, the hosts said, “If asymmetry is your thing, then this game is right up the alley, because I feel like none of these players played alike.”

Should games like Cloudspire be on your list?

Cloudspire is a special game, and I am not here to replace it. But if you are collecting games like Cloudspire because you want that lane pressure with a fresh card engine on top, Trials of MAYA earns a look. You can try it on Tabletop Simulator before backing, and the Gamefound campaign is running right now. I will be watching to see how it plays over repeated sessions, which is where these battles tend to shine.

Rulebooks and public metadata are on BoardGameGeek, the full breakdown is on the official page, and the campaign is live on Gamefound now.