10 Greatest Strategy Board Games Of All Time

Narrowing down a list of the 10 greatest strategy board games of all time is no easy task.

In my experience, almost every board game that I have played involves some kind of strategy as you devise a plan to win. That said, this list includes games where strategy is the core part of gameplay. While there might be slight reliance on luck, your strategy, and that of your opponents, will ultimately decide who are the winners. In this list, you’ll find some evergreen classics, along with a few relatively new ones.

10. Carcassonne

The strategic part of Carcassonne boils down to how you’re laying down the tiles. Sometimes, you would be forced to lay down the tile at only one possible spot. But more often than not, you’ll have to figure out the most efficient spot for dropping down your tile. When it comes to drawing your tiles, it’s entirely dependent on luck. But it’s up to you when it comes to the placements. Similarly, you’ll also need to place your Meeples strategically as they fetch you all your points.

9. Splendor

Splendor has strategic decision-making at every step as you choose how to spend your gems. Being a jewel maker is no easy feat at all. Picking the gems most efficiently is the hardest thing to balance, and it becomes harder if you and your opponent are going for any of the same colors. Also, you don’t have any control over which card is going to pop up next. More often than not, you might end up spending your gems on a card, only for an even better one to come up from the deck. Despite some reliance on luck, Splendor, whether played in groups of 2 or more, relies heavily on strategic decisions.

8. Wingspan

The beauty of Wingspan lies in the fact that you can only make one of four available decisions at every turn. In simpler words, you’re already giving up on three alternate decisions every turn. The goal is to choose what you think is going to be the most efficient decision during a turn. However, a game changes every moment, as you and your opponents take turns to pick up new cards. While you can decide how to play the cards, elements like card draws and food tokens aren’t mostly in your control. Hence, you’ll need to think deeply in order to succeed in this incredible nature-themed game.

7. Pandemic

Pandemic is very different from other strategy board games on this list. For starters, you play with other people, and not against them. Pandemic is also one of the best co-op board games you can add to your collection. The common goal is to work with your buddies to solve a disease and prevent it from spreading. But you don’t get a magic wand; instead, you’ll need to work with the cards dealt to you. How you play out the cards from your hand, along with your buddies, will ensure if you manage to halt the next COVID-19 or not. Pandemic is also available in different themes and timelines, offering great many choices to players.

6. Twilight Imperium

Twilight Imperium is almost three decades old, and it’s one of the best strategy board games of all time. Over the years, Fantasy Flight Games have made some changes with every new edition, and the latest one (fourth edition) perhaps has the most strategic decision-making at every step. Players choose from different factions, with the ultimate goal of rebuilding it. Every turn, you’ll have to choose between one of the many available actions, which again depends on the cards you draw. You can’t control every piece of the outcome in Twilight Imperium, but relying on sound decision-making will make your life easier.

5. Ticket to Ride

Ticket to Ride can be one of the most elaborate strategy board games you can come across. On a map, you and your opponent(s) are building the longest railroad possible while connecting cities. Each turn, you can only take one of three possible actions. There’s a lot of emphasis on the risk-rewards approach. Having more destination tickets will allow you to score more, but only if you can connect the route. You can stack as many train cards as you want, but you’ll have to keep pace with your opponents while laying down the routes. While the overall theme is simple, Ticket to Ride can have an extremely strategic approach at times.

4. Scythe

Scythe is arguably the best board game that I have played but don’t own in my collection. Its theme can delight fans of strategic and general board games equally. There are five factions, and you have to vie for dominance in the closed city known as ‘The Factory.’ Each turn, you can make multiple decisions, but there’s always an opportunity cost. Scythe has very little reliance on luck in the form of Encounter Cards. Other than that, every outcome will be based on your decision/actions. Additionally, every faction grows differently, adding to the overall complex nature of the game.

3. Ark Nova

Ark Nova is undoubtedly one of the new entrants to the world of strategy board games, and it inherits core parts from other hits of the genre. Like Ticket to Ride and Wingspan, your chances of winning depend on action cards. But the role of the cards is a lot less reliant on luck and more on your ability to understand what to do with them. The main goal is to improve the appeal of your park and collect conservation points. But your opponents will try to do the same, and the primary strategy is about how you play out the cards.

2. Brass: Birmingham

Brass: Birmingham sits on top of the list for strategy board games on BGG. While the game, published in 2018, doesn’t attempt to do something radically new, it implements all key aspects required for a successful strategy title. The main objective is to build, develop, and establish a thriving network of industries, which takes place across two eras. In Brass: Birmingham, you have a total set of six different options, but you can only make two decisions every turn. I am a massive fan of the theme of this particular board game as well, which helps it rank slightly higher than other names on this list.

1. Catan

Catan is a great family game until someone rolls a seven on the dice. Catan is undoubtedly one of the older titles on this list of great strategy board games. There are multiple expansions that help to expand the base experience. At its core, Catan relies more on strategy than luck. You have to be very careful about placing your first settlements. From there on, every step involves strategy. Whether you’re trading resources or expanding your settlements, there’s always an opportunity cost. A good roll of dice will benefit you immensely, but your chances of winning depend mostly on your decision-making abilities.

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