When you host a weekly in-person board game night, or you run a digital board game server, choosing the game of the evening (or which to start) can often be a dizzying endeavor. Deck-building games can be a solid choice for the evening--especially ones with multiple versions and expansions to change up the game for seasoned and unseasoned players. It’s what made Dominion and its tapestry of different expansions one of my absolute favorites for game night… and pretty much any night, as you never get the same game twice.
Dominion was released in 2008 by Rio Grande Games. It’s an award-winning deck-building game that many have come to think of as a model for the genre. Since its initial release, it has added a whopping 15 expansions. Each expansion adds depth with different cards and featured elements to the game based on themes. The last expansions, Allies and Plunder, were released in 2022. Games generally last between 20-30 minutes but can go longer depending on the number of players, their experience playing, and their play style. Games range from 2-6 players but are often best played with 3.
The Base Game
- MSRP: $44.95 USD
- 2-4 Players (best with 3)
- 20-30 minutes
- Ages 13+
The base game of Dominion introduces players to the core elements of deck building as a process. It includes Kingdom cards that allow players to exercise different series of actions and Action Cards that the player can use to purchase Treasure Cards and eventually Victory cards. You need this base set to play further expansions and get a handle on how gameplay goes. Once you have the core game and are familiar with how it plays, you can start mixing it up with expansions.
Dominion Expansions
Dominion's many expansions add different elements to the game on top of the original base. It’s where the fun really starts to emerge as each expansion adds cards and new mechanics that vastly change player strategies.
With so many opinions on favorite expansions, it took a lot of work to determine which mine was. However, after mass deliberation, the following expansions are my top picks for ones that you should consider adding to your buy list.
Dominion: Seaside Expansion
Contents: 300 cards, including 26 new kingdom cards featuring new elements
- MSRP: $44.95 USD
- 2-6 Players
- 20-30 minutes
- Ages 13+
Seaside is a whole boatload of adventure for those looking to jump into the murky and dangerous waters of battles in addition to their base game. It is consistently the top choice in all my board game hangs in person and online. It adds nautical-themed cards such as pirates and sea witches and the concept of duration cards.
Dominion: Plunder Expansion
Contents: 500 cards, including 40 new kingdom cards featuring new elements
- MSRP: $44.95 USD
- 2-6 Players
- 20-30 minutes
- Ages 13+
Plunder is one of the newest expansions, and I’ve found it enjoyable throughout my gameplay. It is also the top choice of Theresa Duringer, the CEO of Temple Gates Games, who worked on creating the digital version of the game. Plunder adds even more pirates, along with loot, events, and traits. Gaining loot (also used as treasures) can be fun and exciting as there are several different loot cards with different abilities that one can randomly end up with. These treasures can do things like add additional buying power, attack other players, gain even more loot, and many other actions.
Dominion: Nocturne Expansion
Contents: 500 cards, including 33 new kingdom cards featuring new elements
- MSRP: $44.95 USD
- 2-6 Players
- 20-30 minutes
- Ages 13+
Fans of stories of vampires, fairies, and witches will also thoroughly enjoy the Nocturne expansion. The game adds the concepts of Night cards, Boons, Hexes, and Heirlooms. It’s a whimsical set of cards that goes from the lighter to darker sides of the game, surprising players in delight and horror.
Dominion: Intrique Expansion
Contents: 300 cards, including 26 new kingdom cards featuring new elements
- MSRP: $39.95 USD
- 2-4 Players
- 20-30 minutes
- Ages 13+
Like the first expansion, Intrigue is beloved by many. The spy-themed expansion adds more Victory cards to the game. It adds cards that allow for multiple actions, spying, and gossiping, which does indeed get you places in this expansion. There’s even a card that helps prop up for the poor player who draws a few treasure cards in their hand. My personal favorite cards in this expansion include the Minion, the Shanty Town, and the Courtier. Feel free to tell us which ones yours are in the comments below.
Dominion: Menagerie Expansion
Contents: 400 cards, including 30 new kingdom cards featuring new elements
- MSRP: $44.95 USD
- 2-4 Players
- 20-30 minutes
- Ages 13+
Animals are our friends in this expansion. A menagerie of different animals, from falcons, sheepdogs, camels, black cats and horses, will help you in your quest for victory here. They bring in the elements of horses, ways, and exile cards. While this expansion does not add any mythical medieval animals, it allows the player to interact with their action cards in a mechanic called Ways. Through Ways, you’ll be able to tap into the energy of an assortment of animals, from seals, ox, chameleons, moles, butterflies, and even… a worm? Yes, even a worm.
Other Dominion Expansions
If you enjoyed the above expansions and want to learn about others, you're not going to run out of expansions anytime soon. Buddy, there are a lot. The others are listed below (note that some are difficult to find in print). Several of these games are also very good as they add their own layers to the game, which can create fun ways to play it.
A note of caution, however, for folks looking at Dark Ages: that particular expansion dips into the concepts of poverty and can include language in the cards that some may find less enjoyable to experience in the game due to the names of the cards.
More Ways to Play
Like many board and card games, you can play Dominion in several different ways, physically and digitally. The game is incredibly accessible.
A digital version of the game developed by Temple Gates Games came out on Steam in February 2024. The base game is free to play on Steam. Expansions cost different amounts, ranging from $4.99 for Intrique to $5.99 for Alchemy, Cornucopia, and Guilds to $10.99 for all other expansions. You can also buy all the expansions in a launch bundle for a reduced price on Steam. You can play the game, with or without expansions, online on Steam against the computer on different levels of AI: very easy, easy, medium, and hard. They also have a daily game where you can play the AI, giving all users a way to play the game and see several different cards in expansions for free.
For folks who want to play against other humans on Steam, there are multiple ways to do that. For groups of up to six who are already friends on Steam and have exchanged friend codes for Dominion, once one player in a group has access to an expansion, everyone that the player plays with will also be able to play the player with those cards. Online play also allows folks to play random players who may or may not have access to other expansions.
Dominion.games is another way to play the game in your browser with friends. This game was done by a different team and is operated on the Shuffle iT platform. Like the Steam edition, the base game for the browser edition is free. However, if you’d like to play expansions, there is a monthly cost. The Core Subscription, for what these developers feel are “the simpler half of the cards”, costs €2.15 per month. With all card expansions, the Complete Subscription costs €4.30 per month. All of those purchases are priced in Euros. Only one player per game needs to buy a subscription to have access to cards so that everyone in a game team can play alongside the player with the cards.
Bottom Line
With a 7.6 rating on Board Game Geek, several board game enthusiasts like me will swear their love to Dominion, but even a few of my friends in my dedicated board game group have not found themselves fans of the game. While the game can be beginner-friendly, it can also feel incredibly complex to folks not experienced with deck-builder games, even without multiple expansions. It can take a few games to learn the game's groove. (In my experience, this is often when trying to show the game to a player online vs in person, as deck-building is an easier understood process when one can see it visually and tactically.) However… once you do, if you do, it can be a loved game that will always be different every time you play it.
For more, be sure to check out our picks for the best board games to play right now, as well as the best solo board games. And if you're looking for other deep dives into expansions, take a peek at our Betrayal at House on the Hill Buyer's Guide.
