Author: CJ Taylor

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Small note: If you’re new to Dominion and would like a quick overview, please check out Rio Grande’s Product Page. This article assumes you’re at least somewhat familiar with the game—maybe you own a copy or are exploring it online. If that sounds like you, read on!

I remember the mid-90s, hanging out at a friend’s apartment, playing Magic: The Gathering from dusk till dawn. Multiplayer was always my favorite format, and I loved stepping away from the table to tweak my deck, then jumping back in to test new strategies. That feedback loop of playing, refining, and exploring the cards was thrilling.

Fast forward to now—those Magic days are long past, replaced by family game nights with Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, and Acquire. Then in 2017, a friend introduced me to Dominion, and I was hooked. It brought back that same deckbuilding excitement, but in a faster, more accessible way. Dominion quickly became a family favorite and even inspired me to spend Saturdays in the workshop building custom accessories for the game.

I’m A Bit of A Fan

I spend most Saturdays in my workshop doing woodworking (including the gaming table in the pic, which is a WIP). I know there are plenty of vendors on Etsy offering these kinds of accessories, maybe even fancier ones. But my love for woodworking led me down this path. Considering how much we love playing Dominion, I knew it was worth the time and effort. It’s definitely enhanced play, and I’m so glad I did.

I’ll break the pics down real quick.

The Lazy Susan: I made a two-tier lazy Susan to hold the kingdom cards. We usually put the coin and land cards on top and the rest of the cards on the bottom—though cards like Platinum and Colony take their spot when they’re in play. The extra slots on the bottom tier are perfect for side cards, especially when Traveller cards show up. I also created a divided tray to sit on the top, complete with a cover for storing all the tokens.

The Big Boxes: Two boxes to hold all the cards. Yes all the cards. And if Vaccarino keeps cranking out expansions… I’m going to need to make another box.

Trashing Box and Card Stand: A simple box for trashing and a card stand to hold up events, landmarks, projects, etc along with a little shelf to hold player project markers.

Player Boxes: Each player has their own box containing all the tokens, mats, and alternate cards like Shelters and Heirlooms. The lids do tuck under the box during play. All those boxes fit into a larger box that also holds the rulebooks.

Why Dominion Is Phenomenal

Having a reasonable bias to the game already, I would like to point out a few reasons as to why:

Groundbreaker

The in-game deckbuilding mechanic really started with Dominion, revolutionizing tabletop gaming. Before its release in 2008, most card games relied on pre-built decks or extensive deck construction prior to play. Dominion flipped that concept on its head, introducing a dynamic, in-game deckbuilding system where players build their deck as part of the gameplay.

This innovation paved the way for numerous other games that adapted and expanded on this idea. Ascension, for example, added a more fluid card market with ever-changing options, creating a different layer of strategy. Star Realms incorporated direct player conflict into the deckbuilding mechanic, blending it with a combat-driven space theme. Aeon’s End refined the mechanic further by removing the need to shuffle your deck, giving players even more control over how their strategies unfold. Dune Imperium mixed deckbuilding with worker placement, adding depth and variety to the mechanic. Empires of Zidal have borrowed the core concept, proving that Dominion’s legacy continues to shape game design.

As the grandfather of in-game deckbuilding, Dominion’s simple yet elegant approach has become a cornerstone of modern game mechanics, inspiring countless designers and expanding the possibilities of what a card game can be.

Awards

It has won numerous awards both in Europe and the United States. Even for the skeptic that may perceive awards as “critic’s choice”, over 2 million copies of the game have been sold.

It’s Simple Yet Complex

I have discovered this is a game where you can explain the basic rules to children and older folks alike. The reason is quite simple: ABC – action, buy, cleanup. The complexity of course is in the strategy, but how to play is very simple. I think history has shown that’s a common attribute across highly successful games.

Since I’m on the subject regarding simplicity, I will point out the one hangup we found early on. Some at our table, when we first started struggled to understanding the +Action. I found the confusion rested in the rule that every line on the card was to be executed entirely before proceeding to the next card. So some may interpret “+1 Action” as an action that must be played at that time before proceeding. If you find this hanging some early players up, a good way to help them is to grab two different tokens to represent actions and buys to give to a player when “+x Action” is played that they can use after playing the current card to play another.. After a game or so, the tokens shouldn’t be necessary at all.

Countless Variety = Long Shelf Life

It’s often boasted that every game of Dominion is different. That’s because of two main reasons: the variety of cards that can make up a kingdom (cards available) mixed with the different strategies to try. My wife loves to keep the kingdom cards random from game to game. I like to focus on one kingdom and the different deck build options. Whichever appeals to you is available with many options to explore.

Add expansions, and the possibilities grow even more. With 16 expansions to date, each introduces unique mechanics that deepen and diversify gameplay. Here’s a glimpse of some standout features:

• Duration Cards (Introduced in Seaside): These orange-bordered cards remain in play beyond your current turn, providing ongoing benefits. For example, “Lighthouse” offers +1 Coin now and protects you from attacks during your next turn, adding a strategic layer to your decisions.
• Night Phase (Introduced in Nocturne): After your regular turn ends, you can play “Night” cards, which add an extra phase. These cards often give you abilities or effects that don’t require actions, like “Cobbler,” which lets you gain a card for your next turn.
• Tavern Mat (Introduced in Adventures): Some cards, like “Reserve” cards, allow you to set them aside on your personal Tavern Mat to use later, giving you more control over when to trigger their effects. For instance, “Coin of the Realm” provides flexibility by giving you extra actions when you need them most.
• Events (Introduced in Adventures): These are optional effects you can purchase during your Buy phase instead of buying cards. For example, “Travelling Fair” lets you gain a card and place it on top of your deck, while also giving you an extra Buy for the turn.
• Landmarks (Introduced in Empires): These provide end-game scoring opportunities that can significantly influence your strategy. For instance, “Fountain” awards extra points if you end the game with at least 10 Coppers in your deck, incentivizing a normally less desirable card.
• Menagerie Mechanics (Introduced in Menagerie): This expansion adds a variety of animal-themed cards and effects. For example, “Way of the Monkey” allows you to treat any card as if it provides +1 Action and +1 Card for that turn.

Each expansion brings fresh ways to approach the game, ensuring Dominion never feels repetitive. Whether you’re optimizing the interplay of Duration cards or planning for long-term strategies with Landmarks, there’s always a new layer of complexity to explore.

The number of unique piles of kingdom cards with all expansions I believe is now over 400. Want to really see something crazy? Check out this forum post on Dominion Strategy showing some insane number of possible kingdoms.

It Doesn’t Break the Bank Account

“2nd mortgage” is a thing I would say when talking about getting into just about any TCG competitively. While TCGs and Dominion aren’t exactly apple to apple comparisons, it’s is a substantially less expensive route if the deckbuilding mechanic satisfies that itch. The base and expansions all generally have an MSRP ranging $40-45 each. We generally know MSRP is not the usual price we thrifty citizens pay *wink*

A Fantastic Community

Here are a list of links I would go ahead and hit if you haven’t already:

• Discord channel – Fun community, real time chat on anything Dominion.
• Dominion Strategy Forum – Dominion Strategy has a long running history with the Dominion community.
• r/Dominion – A very active Reddit community.
• Boardgame Geek – Because it’s Boardgame Geek! While the forum may not be as active as some of the other links above, do check out shared files, photos and variants. All great stuff.

It was Made by Rio Grande Games

This might be a personal bias, but I’ve never played a Rio Grande game I wouldn’t gladly play again. From well-known titles like Concordia, Race for the Galaxy, Power Grid, and Bohnanza, to lesser-known gems, they consistently deliver.

I remember attending a charity auction at a con in NC (MACE, now Mythic Con) where a “Rio Grande bundle” came up. Without even seeing the full list of games, I started bidding—because I knew whatever was in it would be fantastic. When I saw what I won I wasn’t disappointed. That experience sums up my trust in Rio Grande Games: when I see their name, I know I’m in for quality.

So yes, Rio Grande absolutely deserves a mention here—and no, they didn’t pay me to say that. They’re just a great company making great games. Dominion is only one of them.

Learn the Different Strategies

I mentioned earlier about the endless play. There are some well paved roads when it comes to some deck building strategies in Dominion.

My hope is this article will work more as road signs for you than repeating so much of what has already been said. Please do check out the articles written in great detail on Dominion Strategy on different ways to build your deck. They mention five in great detail:

• Money – I’d recommend starting here. It’s definitely great for beginners where the tactics can scale as you learn.
• Engine – A classic, strong strategy for deck building.
• Combo – I gravitate to this one a bit. Identify 2+ cards that work together, focus and conquer!
• Rush – If you like the be that guy, this is for you. Seriously, in the right kingdoms this is perfect as it works on the other way the game ends.
• Slog – Be the wet blanket! When certain card combinations come out this becomes the best (and sometimes the only) strategy worth playing.

Put These in Your Toolbox

There are a few things I’ve found essential over time with this game. While a lazy susan may need to be ordered or built, there’s a few online tools I’ve found quite handy.

The Dominion Divider Generator

The need for this becomes more apparent after each expansion purchase. While each box has its own holders for cards, you’ll find shuffling from box to box based on the kingdom list to become quite tedious. This eventually leads to boxing your cards in one place. And of course the next part is how to organize them for quick lookup. This is my go-to for that. The team is really good with keeping on top of having the dividers available for new expansions when they are released.

Dominion Randomizer

There have been some incredible tools for Dominion over the years, and one of the most beloved was Jack of All Dominion. Many in the community, myself included, appreciated its features like randomizing presets, saving kingdoms and listing setup for any kingdom rolled up. These things made it a go-to randomizer for years. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been updated to include the latest expansions, leaving many players nostalgic for its brilliance. This is the last I’ve heard of Jack of All Dominion. But let’s always hope for an update! Awesome tool and I hope one day to see it come back.

Thankfully, there are great alternatives available today. One standout is the Dominion Randomizer. It’s open source, user-friendly, and offers plenty of customization options for creating diverse kingdoms. While it doesn’t replicate everything Jack of All Dominion offered, it remains a fantastic resource for players. And hey, open source: maybe we’ll eventually see all those other features, eh?

Take it to the Next Level

The tabletop experience is great. But there’s also the option for online play. First you have dominion.games as well as the app which is available on Steam, Android and Apple.

Next you have tournament play. If you have an account with dominion.games (Dominion Online) and you’re a part of the Discord community, then hop over here to Dominion League. They have a long standing line of seasons they have been running since 2014. Free to play, pretty cool.

I’m going to be totally transparent when I say I don’t know a whole lot about online or the electronic side of the game. I have some friends that play the app. From what I hear it’s decent. I personally like the tabletop experience the most and while I have a collection of games on Steam that rivals that of my game shelf, when I crank up my Steam Deck I’m currently doing it for Fallout or Diablo 4. So I don’t have a lot of personal experience with this, but I’m passing it along. Check out these resources to take your own Dominion experience to the next level.

Now Go Play!

My friends, fellow curators, I hope you have found something here useful. It’s definitely one of my favorite games and is no coincidence that this was one of the first articles I decided to write here at The Game Curators. I would love to hear your feedback. You can reach me on the Discord server or leave comments on our social media shares.

I don’t want to disclose too much yet but there’s some more interactive things coming to this site for Dominion. I’ve been sharing some ideas with local players who find some ideas I have interesting. I hope you will too. So stay tuned!