Clank Catacombs: My Favorite Mechanism

Jamey discusses his favorite mechanism in the deckbuilding dungeon-crawler, Clank Catacombs.

[gcanceko]

I really appreciate how your videos go deep but are super accessible. I feel like it’s like having a great conversation with gaming friend! I also like how you try to weigh what decisions went into designing - there are more observations than straight up judgements or criticisms.

[KennyZetterberg]

Just wanted to say, that I REALLY love that you keep doing these :) even tho I drop in and out from design, I always love hearing your thoughts on games and what makes them tick! Love what you're doing, good sir :)

[dannyanderson]

Got a chance to play this at the Dice Tower Retreat. I own all of the Clank games, but this one seriously makes you think, why weren't all Clanks created like this. The exploratory nature of this version is perfect for the theme.

[atiliolavoie]

Can’t wait to play this! I’ll be receiving mine on Thursday. Looking forward to it. I loved the original Clank! and Clank! In! Space!

[derickkopff]

Just played our first game. Loved it. Your comments are spot on.

[IIIWITHOUTaNAMEIII]

Really looking forward to getting this one. The legacy version is also still waiting for my son to learn how to read.
But in general I just love that they find innovative ways to make the core concept interesting.

[zacdredge]

Clank Catacombs is something I've been looking out for. I haven't bought Clank and I had already wondered if they would fully embrace a procedural approach to the board itself so I was glad to find out about this. Think I might go for it and then I have the most replayability and don't need every expansion. Actually think a bit of chaos suits a dungeon crawler better; ironically reminiscent of old PC games in the same genre and feels more thematic because someone exploring a dungeon won't know all the rooms beforehand.

[TerreDiceGames]

We are just loving Clank Catacombs!!! The lockpicks were extremely enticing to me as I just loved freeing all the prisoners and getting through locked passages thematically. Great video ☺️

[woundsdrone]

Great thoughts on it. I got my copy a couple of weeks ago and played the first episode of the solo campaign to learn the mechanisms and I agree 100% with lock picks being the best thing about this game. The tile placement is phenomenal especially when it comes to cards that interact with the tiles and turn them making you have to reconsider options.

[LeeKenshin]

So glad this is a stand-alone version. I recycled my finished copy of Clank Legacy (kept a few things) a couple of weeks ago in anticipation of this which I was able to get during my FLGS BF sale. Sadly, I forgot to keep the 5-6 player Clank board from Adventuring Party expansion. Planning to try the solo mode tonight and multiplayer at Thurs game night. Sounds like a complete enough game with plenty of variability that this may be all the Clank (with Adventuring party) I need.

[whitewolf]

Also I have a question about the game, I’ve never played any Clank game but I really want to buy one, I held off when I saw Catacombs was coming to see which version I should buy and so I want to ask you, which version do you recommend? :)

[kevinwallace]

Glad I watched, we just played this and I completely missed that each player starts with 3 lockpicks. We also found that it's less forgiving than regular clank... 1 person died and 2 ppl got out, but would have died 1 turn later. I do prefer it that way though.

[Jakob_Price]

Do you have a shirt for every scythe faction? Love the video too, just tried Clank! the first time the other day, and this looks like an interesting iteration on the concept.

[dereksimmons]

Random question: Do you have John Company anywhere on your radar? It doesn't seem like a top 10 game for you, but it has a lot of interesting elements that would suit this mechanism series.

[cotj]

I love the original Clank! + water expansion, but have not jumped at this one yet. Is it really different enough to justify owning both? or just a cool iteration on the system?

[kerim]

Jamey, to continue from your "What I learned from Clank" video, I think Catacombs showed me that making a game more thematic does not necessarily make it more engaging. I think discovering the dungeon is a fantastic idea, but having played the game a dozen times, it leads to so many unexciting random setups. I realize I really miss strategizing my path/turns in other iterations of Clank.

[Erginartesia]

Bevvy … love that word and never hear it.

[whitewolf]

What are your cats’ names? They’re really cute :))

[boardgamedesignsa]

Played Clank! In Space with a few of the expansions and it was a great time. That why i wanted to get In Space over the normal game or Legacy as you end up with a unique but structured board. Love the tile placement and card design side. New tiles for new expansions but to bring the legacy part back in, they can always build an expansion with the rewards being based on Legacy mechanics. Would you say there is enough variation in the combination of tiles? Keeping the stakes high yet rewarding?🦙🦙🦆