The Quacks of Quedlinburg - The Hit Game of Potions and Pushing Your Luck

Bought for 42 bucks at the time of purchase about a year ago. Now its on sale for 40 bucks so seems like sales are common here. As a Quack, you'll be making the best potion you possibly can with the ingredients that you have. You'll be able to buy new ingredients with quirky abilities that will increase your progress and get you more money for ingredients. Be careful because you have ingredients in your pouch that you randomly pull that will explode your potion. Work to get as many victory points as possible every round with your potions. The cool bits: -Its fun. Of course that is going to be the most important part. Its fun enough that a lot of my friends have gotten their own versions once they learn how to play. -WHAT ARE THE CHANCES!? WHAT ARE THE ODDS?! The best thing to hear from your opponents and the worst thing to have to say. You can have 20 ingredients in your bag and only one piece will explode your potion and you may think.....what are the chances...? Let me tell you something. This game will make you question all that is holy in this world and make you wonder what the word "probability" even means anymore when you pull the ONE thing that takes you down. Nothing in the world will make sense after this game. Math is a lie and nothing is real. -Easy to pick up...if you've played board games before. Since this game has a lot of moving parts and different things to read and remember, I would say if you're super new to board games and aren't used to the way the manuals are usually worded, it'll take a bit of time. If there's one person in the group that has some experience with games or has played the game before, it's easy to explain and teach people. -One of the places where this game shines is the replayability. Every ingredient has 4 ways you can play them and the fact that you can mix and match different sets makes this game new almost every time. I've played this game many times and there are so many combos I have yet to explore. Some sets are easier than others, though, and if you play with new and different people each time, you may find yourself playing Set One a lot since its the easiest to pick up for newbies. Of course this is more of a me-problem since I'm a people pleaser and want new people to like the game. The ehh bits: -This game got so damn many pieces. I'm not a board game vet like some people (I have maybe 15 different board games that arent just Monopoly and Life) but I still have to bring this point up. Not the worst thing to complain about but I've considered getting a dedicated Quacks of Quedlinburg organizer (they do look pretty nice) on Etsy for like 60 bucks. The game is THAT fun but also has THAT many pieces. -Game balance can be a little rough. Its more noticeable in some games of Quacks than others but sometimes when you get that early lead, it seems like you're unstoppable sometimes. For the other people playing catch up, its a bit rough. I can already hear some people saying "just get good, kid" but again, I'm a people pleaser and I want everyone to have fun. There are some balancing mechanics but its also pretty easy to make your own balancing mechanics too. -Kind of easy to cheat. The whole "pulling from a bag" kind of relies on the honor system. Its pretty easy to palm pieces when your hand is in a bag for a lot of the game. If you palm the explosives, you'll "never draw them". Of course this will depend on your group but its worth mentioning. TLDR: A great game. The ehh bits are hardly ehh bits theyre just situational bits. Any game that has friends buying it after your monthly game night deserves the 5 stars. Its fun, a nice concept and has crazy replayability. A game is fun when you get a little mad and this game does it in a fun way.

LOVE this game!

I played this game at my friend's house and had to get it afterwards. It's a fun strategic game that not too difficult to learn. I'd say it's a tad bit more difficult to learn than Catan which isn't saying much. There's a ton of replayability with this board game as well. My wife and I like to mix up the book sets and the fortune deck offers differences between games as well. There is a bit of RNG since you are just grabbing chips out of your bag but I like that depending on the chips you purchase, it can really make or break your game. There's also a catch-up mechanic in this game in the form of rat tails and it really does play a huge role in this game. I've had absolutely terrible pulls at times but the rat tails have brought me back into the game. Overall, it feels relatively balanced. You can pull poorly and still get back with rat tails, you can pull really well and just be ahead all game. It'll really depend on how you build your "deck" of chips to progress yourself through the game.

Quacks is a huge hit with everyone! One of my coworkers brought it to my office several years ago, and all of my coworkers proceeded to order it for themselves because it was that much fun. We used to play it regularly after work (speaking in past tense because covid later made us switch to working remotely). It’s technically a 4-player game, but we would pair up and play in teams of two so more people could play at once. People of all ages enjoy it - I’ve played it with my parents, my 17-18yr old nephew and his girlfriend ask to play it every time they visit, and my friend even had us play it at her bachelorette party. After my parents played it, my mom ended up asking for it for her birthday. I will say, there are a LOT of pieces and rules, which can make it a bit intimidating the first time you play. But it’s so worth it! After a couple of practice rounds, you’ll pick it up and start to have a great time. There are a variety of strategies you can choose from, but luck is also a factor! There are also two different sides to the board and to each ingredient card, so if you want to change it up you can try out a new set of rules (I’ve always stuck with the side I know, but someday I might branch out!). The fun parts of the game are deciding how risky you want to be, and then the shopping for new ingredients. Also, the ruby pieces are really appealing - they remind me of a cross between Gushers candies and the jewels the dwarves mined in Snow White (maybe keep small children away from them because even I have to admit they look like they would taste good). If you’re debating whether you should order this game, the answer is yes.

This game is a blast! Easy to learn, super engaging, and different every time you play. The “push your luck” potion brewing is hilarious and keeps everyone on their toes. Perfect for game nights with friends or family!

I purchased this game because my adult son was coming to visit and said we had to have it! It takes a few tries to learn the game, but then it is quite enjoyable. It is a quality-made item, very colorful and built to last. We love board games in our home and this was a fun addition.

This game can be a bit complex to learn, but once you get the hang of it, it’s interesting and dynamic! There are many different variations that come with it, so you can change it up often. It takes an hour or two to play. It helps to have the rule book out the first several times you play. It guides you through, step by step, so you don’t miss anything.

Such a fun game. Easy to teach! Box is sturdy/thick, I'd recommend buying some game piece holder dishes for all the different colored tokens as it can get messy quick when laid out of the table. Great gift for family game or friend board game nights. I'd say 12+ is a good age range as some of the mechanics are a little complicated.

El juego llego en buenas condiciones, lo recomiendo mucho para jugar con amigos y familiares.

This has quickly come to be our go-to game of the moment. It's simple with a good balance of luck and strategy. It's fun to get further and further around the potion pot as you get more and more ingredients with each turn. It's quick to learn and new people can get in on the action quickly. It's great that most of the play happens simultaneously so you're not waiting around for slow players to try to calculate every possible outcome before they play (you know who you are!). Kids and adults could play together without one player dominating. It can be frustrating if you get behind though, because there's really no way to catch up. This is a really great addition to our game collection. Highly recommended!

We enjoy playing this game quite a bit - especially my kids do since due to the luck-of-the-draw component they actually have a good chance of winning (as opposed to more purely strategic games where they tend to lose most of the time). The base game feels a bit unbalanced though at times - we found that whoever has a decent lead (~5-6 points) at any point (even early to middle of the game) will usually win it. Deducted one point for this. We've made a house rule so that the player who is last (in victory points) gets to roll the bonus die which helps a bit to even it out more. The extension Herb Witches also helps with game balance so I would recommend that.

Box came slightly dented but otherwise all pieces as included.

Pieces were missing