Quacks Review

Intro

The Quacks of Quedlinburg throws you into the shoes of a medieval charlatan brewing dubious potions for unsuspecting customers. This bag-building game has you literally reaching into a bag of ingredient chips, pulling them out one by one, and placing them in your bubbling cauldron. The twist? Pull too many cherry bomb chips and your entire pot explodes in spectacular fashion.

For 2-4 players, Quacks typically runs about 45 minutes and sits comfortably in that sweet spot between casual and strategic. With an impressive 7.81/10 rating online and a trophy case full of awards (including the prestigious 2018 Kennerspiel des Jahres), this game has proven its worth. The rules are straightforward enough for kids around 10, but there's plenty of meaty decision-making to keep adults engaged.

How It Plays

Each round starts with everyone simultaneously drawing chips from their personal ingredient bags. You'll place these chips along a spiral track in your pot, with higher-numbered chips letting you advance further around the spiral. The further you go, the more points and money you'll earn at round's end.

Here's the catch: if you draw cherry bomb chips totaling 7 or more, your pot explodes. You still get some consolation prizes, but you'll have to choose between victory points or coins instead of getting both like the successful brewers.

After each round, you'll spend your hard-earned coins on new ingredient chips to add to your bag. Different ingredients have special powers when drawn. Green spider legs might let you advance extra spaces, while blue ghostly breath could give you bonus actions. The ingredient books show exactly what each color does, and you can choose different combinations each game.

The game runs for nine rounds, with your scoring track determining both victory points and how much money you earn. Players who push their luck successfully will pull ahead, but those who play it too safe might find themselves falling behind players willing to risk the occasional explosion.

Highlights

The push-your-luck mechanism in Quacks is absolutely brilliant. Every single chip draw creates a moment of tension. You know roughly what's in your bag, but you never know when that next cherry bomb might appear. The mathematical sweet spot of 7 cherry bomb points means you're often dancing right on the edge of disaster.

What really sets this apart from other bag builders is how the ingredient powers create genuine strategic choices. Do you load up on cheap white chips for consistent advancement, or invest in expensive purple chips that might give you game-changing abilities? Each ingredient book offers different powers, so the same color might work completely differently from game to game.

The catch-up mechanism is elegantly designed. Players further behind on the scoring track get bonus coins and sometimes extra chips, while leaders face slightly tougher choices. It never feels heavy-handed, but it does keep games competitive until the final rounds.

Quacks also nails the theme perfectly. You genuinely feel like a sketchy medieval alchemist mixing questionable ingredients. When your pot explodes, there's always laughter around the table. The component quality is excellent, with chunky cardboard chips that feel satisfying to draw and place.

Criticisms

The biggest issue some players have with Quacks is the randomness factor. Yes, you're building your bag and making strategic choices, but ultimately you're at the mercy of blind draws. I've seen players make all the right decisions only to draw four cherry bombs in a row, while their opponent pulls the perfect sequence of high-value ingredients. If you need games where skill always trumps luck, this might frustrate you.

The simultaneous play can also feel a bit solitary at times. Once everyone starts drawing chips, you're mostly focused on your own pot. There's limited player interaction beyond watching others succeed or explode. Some groups miss the direct confrontation or negotiation found in other games.

While the different ingredient books add variety, the core gameplay loop does get a bit repetitive after many plays. You're always doing the same basic thing: draw chips, place them, buy new ingredients, repeat. The decisions matter, but they're not dramatically different from game to game.

Conclusion

Quacks works beautifully for families and casual gaming groups who want something with more substance than pure party games but less complexity than heavy euros. If you enjoy the thrill of risk-taking and don't mind when luck occasionally crushes your best-laid plans, you'll love the constant tension of each chip draw.

This is also perfect for groups with mixed gaming experience. New players can jump in immediately and have fun, while experienced gamers can focus on optimizing their bag composition and push-your-luck calculations. The awards aren't lying - Quacks deserves its reputation as one of the best family-weight games of recent years.