5 Games Like Dominion: The Best of the Rest

Dominion is a beloved deck-building game that has captured the hearts of many. Unfortunately, it’s not for everyone. If you love Dominion and want to find more games like it, we’ve got your back! In this blog post, we will talk about 5 other games like Dominion in some way or another. We’ll also give you tips on which versions of these games are best for beginners.

Best Choice
Aeons End
Aeons End
Best Dominion Alternatives
Aeons End is a fantastic alternative to Dominion because it’s much easier, but still has an incredible theme and unique gameplay.
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What Is Dominion Board Game?

Dominion is a deck-building card game where players are tasked with building their decks over the course of several turns in order to “buy” more cards. Cards can be bought by either gold or victory points (VP), and VP cards tend to give you special abilities that may help you later on. Dominion was created by Donald X Vaccarino and published by Rio Grande Games.

Dominion is one of the best games to get into if you’re just starting out with board gaming. It’s an easy game to learn, doesn’t take too long (around 45 minutes), and has a lot of strategies for when you get more advanced.

Dominion can be played with anywhere from two to four players, and it’s also available in an online version if you’re interested in playing with friends who live far away.

The Gameplay of Dominion

The gameplay of Dominion is fairly straightforward. Players start with an identical, very small deck of cards and draw five cards to begin their turn. On a player’s turn, they will play one card from their hand, which might give them more money or victory points (VP), draw another card, then discard down to the maximum number of cards in their hand.

There are different types of cards that each do something different, including money cards (Copper, Silver, Gold) and victory point cards (Province, Duchy).

Actions are also available to allow players special abilities or let them manipulate the game state in some way. Players will buy more powerful action cards as their deck grows through the buying phase of the game.

Why Do You Need to Play This Game

Dominion is great because there are many different strategies you can use to play the game. It’s also very easy to learn, so it makes for an excellent board game for large groups of people who might not be familiar with more complicated games like Settlers of Catan. Dominion is one of those games that has a lot of replayability since there are so many different card options. You can play the game over and over again with a fresh set of cards, but you’ll never have exactly the same experience twice.

Games Like Dominion

Dominion is one of the most popular games out there, but not everyone loves it. If you’re looking for similar games to Dominion that are easier or harder than the original game, we’ve got some recommendations below!

ImageProduct
Best Dominion Alternatives
Aeons End review
Aeons End
  • For 1-4 players
  • Cooperative deck building game
  • Unique gameplay

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Best for Deck Building
Star Realms review
Star Realms
  • Amazingly rich yet easy to learn game play
  • One copy supports 2 players 
  • Rich full color artwork

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Best for Quick Decks
Ascension: Realms Unraveled review
Ascension: Realms Unraveled
  • Combines with any other Ascension sets
  • For 1-4 players
  • The gameplay is fairly straightforward

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Best for Big Decisions
Trains: Rising Sun review
Trains: Rising Sun
  • Can be played independently or mixed with the original Trains release
  • Features new rules and game mechanics
  • 2 to 4 player game ages 14 and up

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Best for Fans of Magic: The Gathering
Rune Age review
Rune Age
  • For 2-4 players
  • Includes over 250 cards, 38 tokens and a custom 6-sided die
  • Designed by Corey Konieczka

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1. Aeons End – Best Dominion Alternative

Aeons End is a cooperative deck-building game where players are tasked with protecting the human race from an impending apocalypse. In this post-apocalyptic world, you play as one of four different heroes who has been gifted powers by mystical crystals that give them special abilities to help fight off monsters and protect their city fortress. Aeons End is a lot of fun because the theme and gameplay are both very unique from what you might expect from your typical deck-building game.

If you enjoy Dominion but want to try something that’s easier, Aeons End is a great alternative since it has pretty simple rules and doesn’t take up as much time as an average session of Dominion. You can play a full game of Aeons End in around 30 minutes, and it’s also available as an online version if you want to try the digital version!

Gameplay

The gameplay of Aeons End is fairly straightforward. Each player starts with a small deck and draws five cards on their turn, just like Dominion. Players will play one card per turn from their hand in order to gain new abilities or use those powers to fight off monsters that come out of portals at the end of every round.

If a monster is fought off successfully, it will reward players with loot cards that can help them buy more powerful abilities.

If the monsters aren’t stopped in time, however, they’ll attack and destroy certain aspects of your city which make up its power source. Too many attacks to the power source mean game over for everyone!

Details

  • Game Time: 30 Min
  • Age: 13+
  • Players: 1-4

Final Thoughts

Aeons End is a fantastic alternative to Dominion because it’s much easier, but still has an incredible theme and unique gameplay. It also plays quickly so you can get through multiple games in one sitting without having too long of breaks between sessions! Give this game a try if you’re looking for something different from your typical deck-building game.

Price
4
Quality
5
Variety
5
Portability
5

2. Star Realms – Best for Deck Building

Star Realms is a fantastic deck-building game that has you fighting in space with different factions to try and take control of the galaxy. The gameplay in Star Realms revolves around managing your hand size, which changes depending on what cards are available for play at any given time. You’ll start off each turn by drawing five cards from your deck, and you’ll also get to draw two cards from the Trade Row if they’re available.

Trade row cards are special because there’s a chance you might be able to play them as an instant or use their ability as soon as they enter your hand.

You can spend money at any point during your turn in order to buy new ships for your deck, and these ships will either go directly into play or sit in your discard pile until you need them later.

Gameplay

The gameplay of Star Realms is very unique compared to other deck-building games because you don’t spend your action points on buying new cards or using your powers. Instead, you’ll spend your money to attack other players or their bases directly if they’ve built any up in the centre of the table. You can also use cards with defense values to protect yourself from attacks, and this is where strategic planning comes into play because having too many powerful ships sitting at home won’t do you much good when you’re constantly under attack.

Details

  • Game Time: 30–60 Min
  • Age: 12+
  • Players: 2-6

Final Thoughts

Star Realms is a fantastic deck-building game that’s beautifully designed and offers some unique gameplay. If you enjoy Dominion or Thunderstone, then Star Realms might be the ideal next step for you because it has slightly simpler rules but still retains an incredible amount of strategic depth.

Price
5
Quality
4
Variety
5
Portability
4

3. Ascension: Realms Unraveled – Best for Quick Decks

Ascension is a deck-building game that has you using your starting cards to gain new powers and buy more powerful, unique cards to add to your deck so you can gain even more abilities. The gameplay in Ascension is pretty straightforward, but it’s also incredibly competitive with players directly attacking each other on their turns if they build up enough attack power.

Every turn in Ascension starts by drawing five cards from your personal deck of ten cards, and this will be the only card you have to work with until your next turn.

You’ll also get a bonus card from the Stone Deck, which is made up of cards that are always available for play if you can afford them or meet their requirements on turning in stones at the end of your round.

Gameplay

Ascension is a deck-building game that focuses on building up your own abilities more than buying new cards. You’ll spend most of the time in Ascension focusing on what powers you have available to buy more powerful cards with or using those same powers as an instant ability during another player’s turn. Players can also discard down to three cards at the end of their turns, and this can be a huge disadvantage if you’re not careful because it limits the number of cards that you’ll draw for your next turn.

The gameplay in Ascension is fairly straightforward but there’s still quite a lot to think about during each round because every card has an ability and players directly attack one another when they build up enough attack power.

This is where the strategy comes in because you can’t just focus on buying powerful cards for your deck without also considering who might be attacking your next round or how much defense you have available to protect yourself from being attacked.

Details

  • Game Time: 30–45 Min
  • Age: 13+
  • Players: 1-4

Final Thoughts

Ascension is a fantastic deck-building game that requires players to focus on building up their own abilities rather than just trying to buy powerful cards every turn. This makes for some incredibly strategic gameplay where you’ll need to carefully plan ahead and spend your money wisely in order to survive during the game’s final rounds.

Price
4
Quality
5
Variety
5
Portability
4

The only downside of Ascension is that it can take a while to come back up on cards if you’re playing against some aggressive opponents, but this is where the game’s multiplayer mode shines because players tend to be more careful when they know their opponents will attack them directly. If you enjoy Ascension or competitive deck-building games in general then Realms Unraveled might just be for you.

4. Trains: Rising Sun – Best for Big Decisions

Trains: Rising Sun is a deck-building game that focuses more on choosing the right combination of cards from your hand to build up or complete sets because each card has its own unique abilities. Players will need to carefully plan out their strategies and think ahead in order to succeed, but this also makes Trains one of the most competitive deck-building games on the market because players can directly attack one another at nearly any time during their turns.

Gameplay

Trains is a deck-building game that has players using their starting cards to gain new powers and buy more powerful, unique cards which they can then use to complete sets of different types. Each card will have its own special ability or bonus power if you’re able to successfully complete the matching set before your opponents do, but this also makes Trains one of the most competitive deck-building games because players can directly attack each other on their turns.

Trains do have a multiplayer mode but it’s best played with four people so you don’t need to worry about anyone ganging up on you too much during your turn.

The game is fairly straightforward and simple enough for new players to pick up quickly but it still takes some serious strategy and planning to make the most out of your turns.

Details

  • Game Time: 30–45 Min
  • Age: 14+
  • Players: 2-4

Final Thoughts

Trains: Rising Sun is easily one of the best deck-building games on the market because it has a lot to offer both new and veteran players. It’s simple enough for newer gamers but still requires some serious strategy so you won’t get bored if you’ve been playing board/card games for years now either.

Price
5
Quality
5
Variety
4
Portability
4

The only downside is that it can take a while to come back up on cards in the late game if you’re playing against some aggressive opponents, but this is where Trains truly shines because players tend to be more careful when they know their opponent will attack them directly. If you enjoy deck-building games or competitive strategy titles then I would definitely give Trains: Rising Sun a try.

5. Rune Age – Best for Fans of Magic: The Gathering

Rune Age is a deck-building card game where players start off with two different decks and can buy new cards to add to either of them depending on their strategy.

Players will need to carefully plan out how they want to progress through the game because each card has its own set of abilities that you’ll need to take into account before playing.

This also makes Rune Age a very competitive deck-building game because you can directly attack your opponents at nearly any time during their turns. If you enjoy other card games like Magic: The Gathering then it’s definitely worth trying out because the gameplay is fairly similar, but this one has been streamlined into a board/card hybrid that offers just as much depth and strategy as any collectible card game.

Gameplay

Rune Age is a deck-building card game where players need to carefully plan out their strategies and choose how they want to progress through the match.

This means we’ll need to buy new cards for both of our decks depending on our strategy – buying more units for offense or stronger buildings/runes that offer different bonuses and abilities if you’re able to complete their matching sets.

With the abilities and bonuses that each card as you’ll need to carefully plan out your strategies, but this also makes Rune Age one of the most competitive deck-building games because players can directly attack each other at nearly any time during their turns. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing though since it gives both players something to think about when it’s their turn which keeps the game interesting and competitive.

Details

  • Game Time: 30–60 Min
  • Age: 14+
  • Players: 2-4

Final Thoughts

Rune Age is a deck-building card game with similar gameplay to games like Magic: The Gathering, but it’s been streamlined into a board/card hybrid that offers just as much strategy and depth. It can be fairly competitive so if you don’t enjoy direct player vs player combat then this might not be the best option for you, but this makes it one of the most interesting deck-building games because you’ll need to carefully plan out your strategies and choose how you want to progress through the match.

Price
3
Quality
5
Variety
5
Portability
5

People Also Ask

What is the deck-building game?

Deck-building games offer a lot of strategy by allowing players to buy new cards for their decks which can either help them or hinder their opponents depending on how they plan out the game. The most popular deck-building games are Dominion and Ascension, but this also offers players more options like Trains: Rising Sun since it's designed for two players instead of five (which makes the board smaller).

What is the best deck-building game?

Dominion and Ascension are probably some of the most well-known (and also fairly expensive) games in this genre, but it's hard to go wrong with any title that offers a lot of depth and allows you to play competitively. If you like Magic: The Gathering then Rune Age might be worth checking out, but this also has an expansion that adds more content and cards to the game if you want even more variety than what's available in the base set.

Are board games similar to card games?

There are a lot of similarities between the board and card-based video/tabletop games since they both offer a lot of strategy by allowing players to carefully plan out their strategies and choose how they want to progress through the match. This is one of the most popular deck-building games because you'll need to buy new cards for both your decks depending on what kind of strategy you're going for which adds an extra layer of depth that keeps everyone engaged until the very end.

Summary

Dominion has seen over a dozen expansions in the past decade, including hundreds of new cards and multiple variants to explore! With so much content available it can be difficult to know which one to choose first – that’s why I’ve compiled this list of my top five for your convenience.

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