Dominion was released in 2008 and took the board gaming community by storm. It arguably pioneered the deck building mechanic and didn’t force you to sell your hand and your foot unlike the wallet destroying Magic: The Gathering.
Still today it dominates in popularity with the massive re-playability and tons of expansions to add-on to it. Where to start can feel overwhelming, but never fear here are our top beginners tips!
Our board gaming circle of friends here at Non-Fiction Gaming decided to give the Dominion board game a go as we had somehow missed this over the past few years. After a couple of nights play, cursing at all those who played their witches and basking in provincial triumphs we developed our own strategies that are by now, mean and masterful. But they would sure be helpful for anyone picking up this game for the first time.
Dominion Board Game Tip #1
Follow the recommended set of 10 Kingdom cards for the first couple of games.
The card layouts are here for a reason. It slowly eases you into the deck building mechanic without too many complex options. There are five different stages; First Game, Big Money, Interaction, Size Distortion, Village Square. After you’ve played these five game types you can go nuts shuffling one kingdom card of each set and deal out ten to decide your mix!
Dominion Board Game Tip #2
Victory points are your number one priority.
Always be thinking of how a card you select to be in your deck aims to help you rake in the victory points. It can be easy to get excited early on and jank (clog) up your deck with cards that don’t actually help you reach your one and only goal.
Dominion Board Game Tip #3
Stay aware of how close the game will inevitably end.
What piles are running low? Who is likely to be leading? What will people most likely purchase next round? Get in some last-minute victory points if possible if it’s looking like the game will conclude shortly.
Dominion Board Game Tip #4
Try and keep a balanced deck without going overboard on the terminal actions.
Yes it’s fun to play out a massive chain of action cards, but look at where it is getting you. For beginners it can be easy to go overboard on the village cards creating huge chains to have not whole lot to show for it at the end. I can speak from experience while playing 7 cards continuously and finishing up with 3 copper. Not helpful.
Dominion Board Game Tip #5
Cliché yes, but have fun and be patient!
With all the different types of kingdom cards there are to learn, it can take a bit of time understanding how they work with other cards. The deck building mechanic can also be daunting if new to the genre. Overall though this game is insanely fun as you race, compete and try to finish up with the most victory points over your opponents.
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