Best Deck Building & Pool Building Board Games

Tyrants of the underdark needs more love, please give it a try

Orleans is a great Euro bag builder.

The Quest for El Dorado is top notch entry deck builder racing game.

Cubitos is more enjoyable to me than Quacks but slightly more fiddly.

I do like your picks and I’ve heard good things about Wonderlands War, but the theme turns me off.

I see several people recommending Star Wars: deckbuilder so I’m interested to try that.

Dale of Merchants should be on the list

Tyrants of the Underdark

Thanks for the video!

Where's the Aeon's End series..? Come on, even not in the first ten..?

One of my best is the DC deck building game !!!

Have you tried the new Star Wars Deck building game? I liked it more than star realms and hero realms. (Love hero Realms)

Dominion almost at the very top when ranked at year 2023. I am shocked. Last time I played this was in 2014. When did you play it last? I can appreciate the sentiment, but I don't see myself choosing to play it ever again ahead of any other games you mentioned.

DC Deck Building Game is one of the bests, and I find it weird that so many lists for these never mention it

Dc deck build should be somewhere on this list. So many expansions. You can mix multiple different sets to create a new game every single time. Plus who wouldn’t want to play as Superman or Batman

My Top 10 is:

1. Dune: Imperium
2. Lost Ruins of Arnak
3. Legendary: Aliens
4. Imperium: Classic/Legends
5. Tyrants of the Underdark
6. The Quest for El Dorado
7. Aeons End
8. Dominion
9. Thunderstone Advance (especially the coop tower defence mode)
10. Orléans (bag building)

Some honorable mentions, I mean games that are partly higher on my all time list but Deckbuilding is either a minor part or it's no typical Deckbuilding (e.g. no drawing from a deck or no shuffling), but still you individualize your deck/hand during the game:
1. Pathfinder Adventure Card Game
2. Great Western Trail
3. Mage Knight
4. Mombasa/Skymines
5. Luna Maris
6. Condordia
7. Spirit Island
8. Blackout Hongkong
9. Viscounts of the West Kingdom
10. Century: Spice Road

Hey guys , how come you didn't even mention Tyrants of the underdark? It's pure gold + area control

This is only the 2nd video I’ve watched of yours and both mentioned Wonderland’s War…a game I’ve never heard of before! Will definitely be looking into it more. Just subscribed!

I always find it interesting when Dominion makes it onto a list like this, but no one mentions Arctic Scavengers. It’s basically Dominion with an actual theme and a bluffing mechanic. Very underrated!

Surprised to not even hear a mention of Lost Ruins of Arnak from y'all? Star Realms (and Shards of Infinity) should be on this list, but surprisingly I enjoy the GI Joe Deck Building game more than both of those. It is not often that you get to roll dice in a deck-building game, and I love that in GI Joe DBG. Also, Warp's Edge is an amazing bag-building game, one of my favorite solo games of all time.

No Ascension Tactics love? Pretty awesome that it combines deckbuilding with moving around a board for territory control.

Star wars the deckbuilding game ? :)

where is Terraforming mars (or ares expedition) 😢
also quest for el dorado for me - deck build racing game !

Living forest review please ❤

Nice video. I'll throw my hat in for Quest for El Durado. My favorite deck builder and one of my favorite games, period.

I think my favorite deckbuilding game is the DC deckbuilding game. Not sure what my list would be, but I know that Millennium Blades, Thunderstone Quest and Lost Ruins of Arnak would be somewhere up there. Also love Warp's Edge as a bag builder. Love Quacks as well. Always heard good things of the Harry Potter deckbuilding game and wanted to try it.

Good list, I enjoy most of these. I'd add Spirit Island and Moonrakers. If you like Dominion and negotiation games, you will like Moonrakers a lot.

For me and my son we have a lot of fun with Star Wars the deckbuilding Game these days. A must-have for everyone who loves the Star Wars Theme. Check this out. You‘ll love it - perhaps 😬

1. If you are not familiar with Shards of infinity and Ascension Tactics (not the entire series before it) - you should definitely try them.
2. Volfyirion looks simple, smells generic (both fantasy and deckbuilding wise) - BUT(!) despite being so small -
Is REALLY really fun.
3. Try out Xenoshyft in 2 players. - You might like its twist.

A few very good deck builders missing from your list or perhaps you don’t consider them that good, Marvel Champions, Imperium Classic/Legends, Undaunted series. I do think Star Realms is worth a place, as well as Dune Imperium.

Ok, no Aeon's End, friendship is over 😅

I don't think Automobiles is a game that would be in top 10 of regular board gamer. But for a car enthusiast like me, it's a wonderfull game that I would choose over Dominion, Living Forest or Quacks.

Luckily this video ended up on my recommended list, otherwise I wouldn’t have found your channel. Fantastic stuff, really enjoyed your video. I own Womderland’s War but, shamefully, have never played it. You’ve inspired me to get it to the table. Also, I really need to bring out the Harry Potter deck building game again.

Thanks guys. You’ve got a new subscriber.

Cheers,
Mark

I agree with your top 2. Dune: Imperium is one of my favorite games. Clank Legacy is the best legacy I have played. I'm also looking forward to Legacy of Yu!

Dune: Imperium at #1 is absolutely right.

No Thunderstone?

Lost Ruins of Arnak are where ? :(

It's simple, but we love the DC DBG. It plays quick, it doesn't burn our brains, and it's fun. The Isofarian Guard is almost here too (on ships right now!), it's a bag building campaign game that looks A M A Z I N G

Orleans and cubitos are two I would add :)

Deck Building was introduced to the hobby by StratCraft: The Board Game.
I am amazed by how many people think Dominion was the first game to feature Deck Building, which is not true.
Paradoxically, the Deck Building in StarCraft: The Board Game (an Ameritrash game) was less random as a mechanic than how it is used nowadays in modern Eurogames.

Not a true deck builder but something very similar is Smash Up! You take 2 pre made decks of 20 cards from different factions, shuffle them together to form your deck then compete against each other to gain control of different areas to score points. Lots of combinations available, tonnes of fun putting together different factions to see how they work together. Just an all round great game! Would love to see you guys review this at some point.

Just out starwars deckbuilding game.
Played a few games and it feels like a solid , fun game. Easy to teach and learn and has some fun mechanics.
Also my son who is not really into games is into starwars so wants to play every evening😂

GI Joe DBG is my fave. Highly underrated game. Especially with the expansions

Have you played Star Wars: A Deckbuilding Game? Better version of Star Realms!

I'm surprised you didn't mention <insert favorite deckbuilder>

MTG drafting is fantastic

Mage Knight and Warps Edge are in the top 3 for me. You gotta enjoy dabbling in solo gaming though!

I actually got mad at this list, so I need to calm a bit before I write this comment ;). I like Dune:Imperium the best too, but not as a deck builder. Dominion all the way. And Quaks 3rd is just such BS. The building in that game is the blandest out of all the ones i've played from the list. It's just push your luck.

Wow except for hero realms as my number 10 I guess what a shitty list 🤣

Not sure about how I rank mine but for sure after the virus and superhot the card game are on my top 3.
Ausonia, warps edge, God of war, hero realms, rune age, Dunguen brawler, feudalia, Shake up, asgard chosen.

So 11...i probably get rid from this list feudalia

No love for the quest for El Dorado?

Try Tyrants of the Underdark!

Okay.... fellas I hate to say this but you're missing some of the best ones so I wanted to weigh in and share my own favourites.

1. Moonrakers
2. Dune Imperium
3. Lost Ruins of Arnak
4. Sorcerer City (is this one a deck builder? I think so)
5. Quacks of Quedlingberg
6. Dominion
7. Clank! Series
8. Endless Winter
9. Star Realms

I haven't played Wonderlands war... but I'm dying to

Did you already check out "Star Wars - The Deckbuilding Game" ? Some say it is very similar to but better then Star Realms

Please do a analysis of Star Wars deck Building game when it releases :D

I miss Aeons End.