The Quacks of Quedlinburg: A Review

The Quacks of Quedlinburg is a push-your-luck potion-brewing game designed by Wolfgang Warsch, and has become a popular choice for gamers of all experience levels.  This is a fun “bag-building game”.  Players collect chips (ingredients) and add them to their own personal bag. Throughout the game, players will draw ingredients from their bag to  brew potions.  Your brews will gain you points, which you can use to purchase better ingredients.

The Quacks of Quedlinburg is a modern classic!  Quacks is a fantastic push your luck game.  The Quacks of Quedlinburg won the prestigious Kennerspiel des Jahres award in 2018 as “The best board game”.  It is a game for 2-4 players, ages 10+.  The game only takes 5 minutes to learn, and 45 minutes to play.  If you want to add a 5th player, there is an expansion for that.  

Quacks is produced by CMYK Games, and is readily available from stores like Target and Amazon.com.  

Contents:

The contents are nice, and they are plentiful.  The rulebooks are colorful, and well designed.

Quacks of Quedlinburg – A look in our box. We purchased those little storage container from Walmart to help organize our gameplay
Contents list from the Rulebook

Here’s a breakdown of the game’s key points, along with some pros and cons to help you decide if it’s right for you.

Gameplay:

  • Players act as quacks (unqualified doctors) brewing potions by drawing ingredient chips from their bags.
  • All players start with same potion ingredients, and blindly pull ingredient chips from their bags trying to brew a powerful potion.    
  • Higher value chips bring more points, but drawing too many “cherry bomb” ingredients will explode your potion, ending your round prematurely.
  • Players manage risk and push their luck, trying to maximize points before busting.
  • Simple rules, quick rounds, and simultaneous play keep the game moving.
  • At the end of each round, players take turns using points generated to buy more ingredients.  
Ingredient Books. These can vary from game to game, making each game different if you want.

Pros:

  • Easy to learn, quick to play: Makes it a great gateway game for beginners.
  • Push-your-luck mechanic: Creates tense and exciting moments.
  • Variable ingredients: Adds replayability.
  • Family-friendly theme: Lighthearted and fun for all ages.

Cons:

  • Luck factor: Some may find the reliance on luck to be too strong.
  • Limited interaction: Players mostly focus on their own potions.
  • Downtime after exploding: Players who blow up early must wait for others to finish (just a few minutes though)
  • Component wear: The white chips can become scuffed after repeated plays. This happens because most people really enjoy the game. 😉
The Quacks of Quedlinburg box back – Shows contents

Overall:

The Quacks of Quedlinburg is a well-designed, accessible game that provides a fun and exciting experience for casual and experienced gamers alike. If you enjoy pushing your luck, managing risk, and lighthearted competition, this game is definitely worth checking out.

Pojo Notes:

  • Players take their turns at the same time.  So there is no down-time really, except if you explode your pot early.  
  • Super simple to learn and teach!
  • Add a 5th player with the expansion: The Quacks of Quedlinburg: The Herb Witches.

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