Game Mechanic: Deck Building

Perhaps, one of the newest mechanics to hit the board gaming hobby is Deck Building games. When I first started really getting into hobby games this was the mechanic that was all the rage. Dominion, the first game to have this mechanic, had just hit the shelves.  Everyone was talking about this innovative new game that you just had to try.  So we did.  Dominion turned out to be an excellent game and remains a favorite in our household.  As expected, soon more large and small box expansions hit the shelves for Dominion.  And as expected many game designers took the mechanic and created their own games.  Some expanded on the idea, while others kept the mechanic pure.  


Truthfully, deck building did not start with Dominion.  It has been around much longer in the world of collectible card games like "Magic: The Gathering."  Dominion, however, was the first to use it as a complete game, available in one box. 

Hallmarks of Deck Building Games

Start Cards

Each player starts with the same set of cards / dice or chips depending on the game.  For example, in Dominion you start out with cards, Quarriors dice, and in Puzzle Strike, chips.  These components are used to build your deck.  They are generally weaker than what is available to buy and more limited in what they can do during the game.  For the purpose of ease I will refer to these components as simply cards, for the rest of this post. 

Buy / Market

Puzzle Strike Gem

Players are trying to build the best deck possible so they can defeat their opponents and win the game.  Your start cards give you currency to purchase more cards from the market.  Depending on the game the currency may vary.  In Dominion you have copper, silver and gold.  In Quarriors you use Quiddity, and Puzzle Strike gems.

Players use their currency to purchase more cards from the market.  The market is the cards available to players, to buy.  Markets may differ depending on the game.  The market does not change during Dominion, while in Ascension, as players purchase and defeat cards new cards are added to the market.


Cards bought from the market each have their own unique ability players use later in the game.  In certain deck-building games you are even able to buy victory point cards.  Players are trying to obtain the most useful cards in order to build the most powerful deck.

Draw / Discard Pile

Each player has a draw and discard pile.  Each new turn players draw from their draw pile to create their hand, for that turn.  This hand is made up of the original cards and any cards the player may have purchased.  Players use their hand to perform actions, defeat monsters, or buy more cards.  After buying, a card it is usually put into the discard pile.  At the end of the turn all the cards from the players hand are also placed in the discard pile.

Cards put into the discard pile are not gone.  They are reshuffled into the deck when the draw pile is depleted. 

Shuffling

As the draw pile is depleted players shuffle their discard pile to create a new one.  You need to not mind shuffling, because you will be doing it a lot.  Of course, you can't shuffle dice or chips.  In Quarriors and Puzzle Strike you put your components into a bag and shake it. 

Random Draw

After shuffling you randomly draw your cards.  You never know what cards may be drawn, all you know is what you have put into your deck.  You hope for the best cards, but many a turn may bring you exactly what you didn't want.  After all, it's a random draw.