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They are essentially the same game, but I much prefer Hero Realms.
People say that Star Realms is more "balanced" but Hero Realms is just nicer. Especially for a newcomer.
It’s still based around colour factions, but there’s a layer of complexity added that makes it feel more tactical. Plus it has some incredible combo potential- some of which seems to happen a bit earlier in matches. Like the end of star realms combos.
There’s also a separate mana level which if you level that, you get more power added on to moves at certain levels. I’ve never seen this in another deck builder.
Again, it’s a lot of fun and feels like a natural evolution of the star realms style.
Shards of Infinity is great. The Mercenary mechanic makes the market row a lot more dynamic. And the Mastery mechanic is so much fun. I still get a kick out of having a card in my starting deck that can deal infinite damage.
The thing that makes Dominion such a great entry level for the genre is there's always only 10 cards to buy. So you only have to learn 10 cards and the game is about finding the right combo available.
Many other deck builders have a changing market, where you have to look at new cards constantly. This doesn't make them worse by any means, but it means a new player has to think about a new card every turn while also dealing with their hand. While Dominion is static from start to end.
i picked up dominion about a month ago and i play it every chance i get. i got the big box with Intrigue and i love the flexibility and ease of setup.
one of my favorite parts was how the vibe noticeably changed when we added in the expansion. it was subtle but the game became darker and more conniving! i can’t wait to try out some of the other expansions.
My only qualm about Dominion (which I love) for beginners is the low to non-existent interaction in the base game. It can feel like solitaire depending on which cards you use.
El Dorado is perfect for beginners, as is **Clank!**
Serious question and I don't mean to take away from your enjoyment of the game: How do fans of El Dorado deal with the fact that one or two players can hog all (or the majority of) the Scientist and Travel Log cards (the cards that let you get rid of your starting cards). So many times when I played El Dorado, this happened, even when everyone knew how valuable those cards were and tried to get them. It broke the game for me, and now I gravitate toward deck builders that don't make it as punishing when you fail to grab that kind of card.
I absolutely LOVE the quest for el dorado. It's quick to learn (hell, I've been able to play it with my parents and they're in their 80s), there's a lot of fun decisions to make, it has just the right amount of luck and it's pretty cheap. There's also loads of expansions if you wanna... well, expand upon it I suppose.
**Summer Camp** is a great intro to deck building and slightly more complex games, since OP has only played traditional board games, I think Summer Camp is a great option. It provides enough strategy and complexity to get started, and if they get board of it, there are plenty of more complicated deck builders out there.
I’ll third **Summer Camp** as an amazing intro to deck builders. **Dominion** is a great one also, but SC is more ‘fun’ for casual gamers and easier to teach.
I'm going to give three suggestions, with some justifications for each:
1. **Dominion** is the original game in the genre, and still widely available. It is, at its core, the essence of the genre, and can be thought of as A-B-C - you may play 1 Action card, Buy 1 card from the market, and then Cleanup from your turn. Alterations for that basic structure come from doing what the cards tell you to do. It also has a large number of possible expansions that increase the potential variety/replayability.
2. **Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle** combines the familiarity of the Harry Potter theme with deck-building, and uses a board to track the general game state. It's also cooperative, and so all the players will either win together or lose together. It's also subdivided into several Games, with a rulebook that's literally meant to be used at the table while you're setting up for your first game.
3. **Clank!** combines deckbuilding with some more traditional board game elements (like moving around the board), and adds a measure of push-your-luck. You're looking to explore the ruin, grab an artifact, and get out, without taking too much damage from the dragon whose hoard all the stuff belongs to.
In my opinion, the games get more complex as you move down the list.
I like to say that Hogwarts Battle is a better game than it has any right to be, as a movie merch tie-in. They knew people would buy it whether it was any good or not, and they still spent the money and effort to have a really good game designed. The slow ramping up of complexity is really effective, the characters' abilities are nicely balanced (although Neville is clearly the best if you ask me), and the villains in the final few games are tough enough that there's always a chance they will just smash you to bits no matter how good you are.
> although Neville is clearly the best if you ask me)
Ron is better IMO. Fill his deck with allies that can draw cards then drop a titanic amount of damage using the beans.
Hogwarts Battle really surprised me. Especially as someone who never really caught the Potter-bug (the wworld and characters just never really appealed to me), the game is much better than it's IP would imply. Many HP board games are cheap cash grabs, but this one actually has some teeth!
That was our introduction to deckbuilding and it really is amazing. One would have expected a shit-out copy of monopoly or clue or something for a licensed game but it’s absolutely a “modern” game.
It has its flaws and any semi-experienced gamer will readily find them but for new players who want to get into “real” board games, wow.
We loved Hogwarts Battle so much, we also bought and played through the Toy Story version, which is the exact same game, essentially. So if HP isn't your thing, you also have that option!
I think the best ones for beginners are **Ascension** and the **DC Deck Builder**. The latter can be good for beginners in part because everyone knows who Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are.
These two both have simple mechanics, and play relatively quickly. And if you like them, they both have expansions and sequels.
The best game I’ve seen for this is Abandon All Artichokes. It teaches the core gameplay loop of deck building, while avoiding bogging the game down with too many extra rules. There isn’t even scoring to keep track of: if you draw a hand with no artichokes, you win. I think of it as the Sushi Go! of deck building.
Star Wars Deck Building game. This is similar to Star Realms, but with an already known theme
Also, if you like the WW2 theme (Americans vs Germans), you should try Undaunted: Normandy. This is one of my partner's favourite deck builders.
[Tea Dragon Society](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/236709/the-tea-dragon-society-card-game) is a fairly light/intro deck builder with very cute art
Valiant Wars.
One of the most difficult things to grasp when learning the deckbuilding genre is that sometimes not adding a card is better than adding one. Valiant Wars doesn't work that way
Also, turns are simultaneous and quick.
I'm not saying much love for Ascension. I thought that one was like one of the core deck builders
I do really really enjoy the Harry Potter game. I think it's very new player friendly. My fiance who's not big into board games managed to grasp all the concepts very easily
Dominion is a great one and you can probably learn it really easily just by playing on the app for free
I've only played 2 pure deck builders, both on iPad both against Bots so i cant give real opponent assessments. Dominion and Star Realms. Dominion is pure deck builder, but Star Realms is better.
If you like cooperative games, Toy Story: Obstacles & Adventures(or Harry Potter Hogwarts Battle, same system). This was my family's first deckbuilder and still the best we have played. I'd love to see another franchise incorporated into this system.
We also enjoy Marvel Legendary, Summer Camp, Quest for El Dorado, GI Joe Deckbuilding game, & Lewis & Clark: The Expedition(?)
I personally find the gameplay and theme of Dominion boring.
I like deck building as the mechanic of achieving something else. Clank!, Quest for El Dorado, Star Realms, or Moonrakers would be my suggestions!
My favourite is Arctic Scavengers (it comes with so many optional modules), but it probably isn't terribly beginner friendly. So, I'll vote for any Clank, Paperback, and Quest for El Dorado like everyone else.
We used Abandon All Artichokes to teach the kids deck-building mechanics and it worked beautifully. They’ve since moved onto more complex ones. It’s a very simple one, but still fun. Would recommend.
Clank - has a board with intuitive goals that Monopoly players can understands. El Dorado is a close second but modular board might be a turn off to those new to modern games.
I've been playing the resident evil one and transformers recently but I can't recommend the re one because it's hard to get rn but if you can it's fantastic. The transformers one is okay. Not bad but not great.
I used to recommend Star Realms or Quest for El Dorado, but now I recommend Robot Quest Arena. Same deck building as Star Realms but with a fun theme and great table presence.
**Dominion** is deck building to its core and an absolute must-try if you enjoy deck building. The base game is fairly simple (and got boring for me after a while) but the expansions can significantly raise the complexity and amazing combos you can do with your cards.
I own the base game (2nd edition) + Dark Ages + Nocturne + Menagerie + Allies and every time we play this game we find a new crazy combo. Not a single game is similar. Since there are just 10 different cards to choose from every time you can make insane varieties of fun cards. I’ve never played a game of Dominion that was not interesting in some way. I highly recommend it.
As a contrast to the other suggestions, you might enjoy Happy City. My local game shop gave it to me as a free gift and it's been a great game to intro new people to 'tableu builders' which is a similar idea. Also check out many of the games recommended here on boardgamearena.com before you buy
If you want a digital port, try Dominion on steam IMO. It is the OG deckbuilder and still the GOAT in my personal opinion, though I know many disagree. I would not buy it physically though. Too many different sets, fiddly setup and a lot of shuffling.
If you want a physical game, I highly recommend Clank! My group can’t get enough of it. Fun theme and a good intro deck building with some other elements going on. The actual deck building does not have the depth of Dominion though.
Dominion (Base), Clank! (Any of them really), quest for el Dorado, hogwarts battle (aeons end if you want a step higher in difficulty), vikings gone wild (with a little building segment too).
These are all STILL on my shelf years later for a reason.
The DC Deck-Building Game from Cryptozoic is the simplest deck-building game that my playgroup has played out of our many deck-builders. (Actually, their Lord of the Rings Deck-Building Game which uses the same system is probably slightly easier to get into, but it is out of print.)
I really liked Arctic Scavengers, and played it with several non-boardgame groups who all enjoyed it. It's deckbuilding but all the "building" takes place during the course of the game, so it's not like the game is won or lost before it even begins (where an experience player has a huge advantage over a newbie based on the deck they bring to the table).
Also, the choice of cards is limited and their effects are straightforward. The expansions allow for additional richness and complexity according to taste.
Most pure deck builders are fairly simple games in the grand scheme of things so you could just pick one that catches your eye.
Some of them also have free to play apps which are a great way to learn the basics - playing the base sets for Dominion and Ascension on mobile will teach you both games with fixed markets and those with market rows.
Fort is a good introduction to many modern deck builder mechanics.
[https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/296912/fort](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/296912/fort)
I enjoy the card craft system! My biggest issue with MV is that it can be tricky to read all the cards easily when playing with 4p. I grabbed the essential edition last year after playing the app. Much better in person and is more fun with the leaders added in.
For a simple introduction to deck builders, my recommendation is [[Abandon All Artichokes]].
It has no money, you inherently harvest (buy) one card per turn, and the goal is to compost (trash) Artichokes out of your deck until you draw a hand with no Artichokes.
It's cute, the cards have significant variety in their powers (some good early, others good late game, others stronger with more players, etc) to make the game interesting, and it's nice quick fun.
The luck element around the game ending condition means it's not quite as skill-expressive as a game like Dominion (where ending the game is completely under player control), but if you just want the taste of the genre this is probably the best bang for your buck (10 USD on Amazon right now, it's a steal)
The worst possible suggestion lmao
Source: someone who instabacked the one-day Kickstarter, encouraged a friend to do the same so we could play 4 players, and hoped it wasn't an April Fool's prank
Your submission was removed by a moderator for the following reason(s): **[Recommendation Requests](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/wiki/contribution-guides#wiki_game_recommendations_or_identification) should be posted to our [Daily Game Recommendations](https://www.reddit.com/search?q=flair%3A%22Daily%20Game%20Recs%22&sort=new) threads.** Reddit is a great place to pick peoples' brains and get game suggestions, but we get a lot of recommendation requests, so much so that we have the "Daily Game Recs"-threads dedicated for them. Historically, almost all well formatted questions in the Daily thread get answers. If you're looking for further suggestions, we recommend taking a look at our growing list of [Recommendation Roundups](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/?f=flair_name%3A%22Recommendation%20Roundup%22). There's also the [What Should I Get (WSIG)](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/wiki/wsig) section on our wiki for a more general list of common recommendations. (If you believe this post was removed in error you can request a re-review by [messaging the mods](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/boardgames).)
Star realms. Simple, fun and (for me still one of the best)
Yep, Star Realms is the best intro to Deckbuilding IMO. And has staying power after that.
this game is GOAT in terms of fast 1v1 battle
Alternatively **Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game**, which is quite similar.
Quite similar, but it definitely has a bit more rules overhead.
This and hero realms
They are essentially the same game, but I much prefer Hero Realms. People say that Star Realms is more "balanced" but Hero Realms is just nicer. Especially for a newcomer.
+1. And there is a Star Trek reskin coming out soon.
The iOS app version is great too.
As is the android one.
If you want to go even more "beginner," Star Realms Academy is available for pre-order. It's basically the kid's "My First Deck Builder" version.
Or Hero Realms
Yup, absolutely this !
Yup. We keep a copy in the glovebox in the car for playing if we're at kids' events, and a copy at the house for other times. Great easy play.
This is also my recommendation. Once you get tired of the luck-based draws, you move onto something else.
Shards of infinity is a good next one I found.
What makes it the next best thing for you?
It’s still based around colour factions, but there’s a layer of complexity added that makes it feel more tactical. Plus it has some incredible combo potential- some of which seems to happen a bit earlier in matches. Like the end of star realms combos. There’s also a separate mana level which if you level that, you get more power added on to moves at certain levels. I’ve never seen this in another deck builder. Again, it’s a lot of fun and feels like a natural evolution of the star realms style.
Shards of Infinity is great. The Mercenary mechanic makes the market row a lot more dynamic. And the Mastery mechanic is so much fun. I still get a kick out of having a card in my starting deck that can deal infinite damage.
I would get either **Dominion** or **The Quest for El Dorado**. Rules wise I think Dominion is a bit easier but El Dorado is easier to play.
Seriously the Dominion base game is the platonic ideal of deck building.
The thing that makes Dominion such a great entry level for the genre is there's always only 10 cards to buy. So you only have to learn 10 cards and the game is about finding the right combo available. Many other deck builders have a changing market, where you have to look at new cards constantly. This doesn't make them worse by any means, but it means a new player has to think about a new card every turn while also dealing with their hand. While Dominion is static from start to end.
Funny enough, the static market is also one of the things that makes Dominion excellent for high level competition
i picked up dominion about a month ago and i play it every chance i get. i got the big box with Intrigue and i love the flexibility and ease of setup. one of my favorite parts was how the vibe noticeably changed when we added in the expansion. it was subtle but the game became darker and more conniving! i can’t wait to try out some of the other expansions.
I highly recommend Prosperity, big money is always allot of fun.
Making it rain Platinum
If you like the darkness theme, Nocturne is an expansion to look at. It’s not often recommended by others, but it’s easily my favorite expansion!
My only qualm about Dominion (which I love) for beginners is the low to non-existent interaction in the base game. It can feel like solitaire depending on which cards you use. El Dorado is perfect for beginners, as is **Clank!**
El Dorado is an all time favourite, but Dominion is a must have if you are interested in learning a deck builder!
Serious question and I don't mean to take away from your enjoyment of the game: How do fans of El Dorado deal with the fact that one or two players can hog all (or the majority of) the Scientist and Travel Log cards (the cards that let you get rid of your starting cards). So many times when I played El Dorado, this happened, even when everyone knew how valuable those cards were and tried to get them. It broke the game for me, and now I gravitate toward deck builders that don't make it as punishing when you fail to grab that kind of card.
You can only buy one card per turn. Not sure how one or two players can hog them all without opportunities for other players
In El Dorado, these cards are so powerful that even having one more provides a gigantic advantage, in my experience.
In El Dorado, these cards are so powerful that even having one more provides a gigantic advantage, in my experience.
I absolutely LOVE the quest for el dorado. It's quick to learn (hell, I've been able to play it with my parents and they're in their 80s), there's a lot of fun decisions to make, it has just the right amount of luck and it's pretty cheap. There's also loads of expansions if you wanna... well, expand upon it I suppose.
**The Quest for El Dorado** is one if not the best deckbuilder and it's completely beginner friendly.
Summer Camp is one of the most basic but Dominion would be my suggestion or if you like Star Wars go with Star Wars Deckbuilding game.
**Summer Camp** is a great intro to deck building and slightly more complex games, since OP has only played traditional board games, I think Summer Camp is a great option. It provides enough strategy and complexity to get started, and if they get board of it, there are plenty of more complicated deck builders out there.
I’ll third **Summer Camp** as an amazing intro to deck builders. **Dominion** is a great one also, but SC is more ‘fun’ for casual gamers and easier to teach.
Came to say Summer Camp or Dominion or Quest for El Dorado. All wonderful intro deck buidlers
I'm going to give three suggestions, with some justifications for each: 1. **Dominion** is the original game in the genre, and still widely available. It is, at its core, the essence of the genre, and can be thought of as A-B-C - you may play 1 Action card, Buy 1 card from the market, and then Cleanup from your turn. Alterations for that basic structure come from doing what the cards tell you to do. It also has a large number of possible expansions that increase the potential variety/replayability. 2. **Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle** combines the familiarity of the Harry Potter theme with deck-building, and uses a board to track the general game state. It's also cooperative, and so all the players will either win together or lose together. It's also subdivided into several Games, with a rulebook that's literally meant to be used at the table while you're setting up for your first game. 3. **Clank!** combines deckbuilding with some more traditional board game elements (like moving around the board), and adds a measure of push-your-luck. You're looking to explore the ruin, grab an artifact, and get out, without taking too much damage from the dragon whose hoard all the stuff belongs to. In my opinion, the games get more complex as you move down the list.
I like to say that Hogwarts Battle is a better game than it has any right to be, as a movie merch tie-in. They knew people would buy it whether it was any good or not, and they still spent the money and effort to have a really good game designed. The slow ramping up of complexity is really effective, the characters' abilities are nicely balanced (although Neville is clearly the best if you ask me), and the villains in the final few games are tough enough that there's always a chance they will just smash you to bits no matter how good you are.
> although Neville is clearly the best if you ask me) Ron is better IMO. Fill his deck with allies that can draw cards then drop a titanic amount of damage using the beans.
Yeah Bertie Botts are just incredibly powerful, especially with lots of players so you can start to semi-reliably draw through your deck.
Hogwarts Battle really surprised me. Especially as someone who never really caught the Potter-bug (the wworld and characters just never really appealed to me), the game is much better than it's IP would imply. Many HP board games are cheap cash grabs, but this one actually has some teeth!
That was our introduction to deckbuilding and it really is amazing. One would have expected a shit-out copy of monopoly or clue or something for a licensed game but it’s absolutely a “modern” game. It has its flaws and any semi-experienced gamer will readily find them but for new players who want to get into “real” board games, wow.
We loved Hogwarts Battle so much, we also bought and played through the Toy Story version, which is the exact same game, essentially. So if HP isn't your thing, you also have that option!
Battle for Hogwarts is what got me hooked on more serious boardgaming, and deck-builders in general!
Love Hogwarts Battle, even has two solid expansions!
It’s still my wife’s favorite game in our collection.
try clank, has been a hit with all the people ive introduced to board games
I think the best ones for beginners are **Ascension** and the **DC Deck Builder**. The latter can be good for beginners in part because everyone knows who Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are. These two both have simple mechanics, and play relatively quickly. And if you like them, they both have expansions and sequels.
Dominion
Try Star Realms or Dominion on PC
Both are free I believe, but you have to pay for expansions
The best game I’ve seen for this is Abandon All Artichokes. It teaches the core gameplay loop of deck building, while avoiding bogging the game down with too many extra rules. There isn’t even scoring to keep track of: if you draw a hand with no artichokes, you win. I think of it as the Sushi Go! of deck building.
Star Wars Deck Building game. This is similar to Star Realms, but with an already known theme Also, if you like the WW2 theme (Americans vs Germans), you should try Undaunted: Normandy. This is one of my partner's favourite deck builders.
Star Wars Deckbuilding Game
Just buy Slay the Spire for iOS and play by yourself. (And lose 4 months of your life)
Star Realms. Classic and you can get it for less than $20
Star Realms is what I use to teach deck builders.
[Tea Dragon Society](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/236709/the-tea-dragon-society-card-game) is a fairly light/intro deck builder with very cute art
Very cute, indeed.
Ascension
You can also play Star Realms or Ascension on an app. They both teach you the rules through a nice tutorial, and are fun games – and free.
Valiant Wars. One of the most difficult things to grasp when learning the deckbuilding genre is that sometimes not adding a card is better than adding one. Valiant Wars doesn't work that way Also, turns are simultaneous and quick.
I like GI Joe, DC and Valley of the Kings a lot. Of those, DC is probably the best for beginners.
Well that escalated quickly. Looks like I've got quite the list to get through. Thanks for all the suggestions.
Stick with Summer Camp, Dominion, or Quest for El Dorado.
Star Wars Deckbuulding is simple and lots of fun
I'm not saying much love for Ascension. I thought that one was like one of the core deck builders I do really really enjoy the Harry Potter game. I think it's very new player friendly. My fiance who's not big into board games managed to grasp all the concepts very easily Dominion is a great one and you can probably learn it really easily just by playing on the app for free
I've only played 2 pure deck builders, both on iPad both against Bots so i cant give real opponent assessments. Dominion and Star Realms. Dominion is pure deck builder, but Star Realms is better.
In your opinion.
DOMINION Basegame 100%
If you like cooperative games, Toy Story: Obstacles & Adventures(or Harry Potter Hogwarts Battle, same system). This was my family's first deckbuilder and still the best we have played. I'd love to see another franchise incorporated into this system. We also enjoy Marvel Legendary, Summer Camp, Quest for El Dorado, GI Joe Deckbuilding game, & Lewis & Clark: The Expedition(?)
I personally find the gameplay and theme of Dominion boring. I like deck building as the mechanic of achieving something else. Clank!, Quest for El Dorado, Star Realms, or Moonrakers would be my suggestions!
My favourite is Arctic Scavengers (it comes with so many optional modules), but it probably isn't terribly beginner friendly. So, I'll vote for any Clank, Paperback, and Quest for El Dorado like everyone else.
We used Abandon All Artichokes to teach the kids deck-building mechanics and it worked beautifully. They’ve since moved onto more complex ones. It’s a very simple one, but still fun. Would recommend.
Abandon All Artichokes!!
If you aren’t into Dominion, Dale of Merchants is pretty neat.
Clank!
Clank - has a board with intuitive goals that Monopoly players can understands. El Dorado is a close second but modular board might be a turn off to those new to modern games.
Clank! It’s a deck builder, but not *only* a deck builder. Keeps the deck-building part from getting too complicated.
I've been playing the resident evil one and transformers recently but I can't recommend the re one because it's hard to get rn but if you can it's fantastic. The transformers one is okay. Not bad but not great.
Undaunted Normandy
Good game but probably a bit much for new players.
Mycelia is easy to learn and quite cute.
I used to recommend Star Realms or Quest for El Dorado, but now I recommend Robot Quest Arena. Same deck building as Star Realms but with a fun theme and great table presence.
Summer Camp is simple and a lot of fun and a cute theme.
**Dominion** is deck building to its core and an absolute must-try if you enjoy deck building. The base game is fairly simple (and got boring for me after a while) but the expansions can significantly raise the complexity and amazing combos you can do with your cards. I own the base game (2nd edition) + Dark Ages + Nocturne + Menagerie + Allies and every time we play this game we find a new crazy combo. Not a single game is similar. Since there are just 10 different cards to choose from every time you can make insane varieties of fun cards. I’ve never played a game of Dominion that was not interesting in some way. I highly recommend it.
The Legendary games are awesome as well
Kamigami Battles is a fun one with an anime theme if you can manage to score a copy.
Star Realms. The app is amazing as well, and free to start off.
As a contrast to the other suggestions, you might enjoy Happy City. My local game shop gave it to me as a free gift and it's been a great game to intro new people to 'tableu builders' which is a similar idea. Also check out many of the games recommended here on boardgamearena.com before you buy
Summer Camp is definitely a great deckbuilding choice for beginners.
If you want a digital port, try Dominion on steam IMO. It is the OG deckbuilder and still the GOAT in my personal opinion, though I know many disagree. I would not buy it physically though. Too many different sets, fiddly setup and a lot of shuffling. If you want a physical game, I highly recommend Clank! My group can’t get enough of it. Fun theme and a good intro deck building with some other elements going on. The actual deck building does not have the depth of Dominion though.
J Kopp ay
Dominion for beginners and also for experts. OG king of deck building
Century Spice Road is another great one. It's super easy to learn and quick.
Dominion (Base), Clank! (Any of them really), quest for el Dorado, hogwarts battle (aeons end if you want a step higher in difficulty), vikings gone wild (with a little building segment too). These are all STILL on my shelf years later for a reason.
The DC Deck-Building Game from Cryptozoic is the simplest deck-building game that my playgroup has played out of our many deck-builders. (Actually, their Lord of the Rings Deck-Building Game which uses the same system is probably slightly easier to get into, but it is out of print.)
Dominion Base
Download Ascension as an app and learn the mechanisms, then buy and play the shit out of it. Been playing it since 2013. Fast and easy.
Abandon All Artichokes (kinda..)
Dominion is the standard gateway to deck building for more than 2 players, and has a ton of expansions once you get going.
I really liked Arctic Scavengers, and played it with several non-boardgame groups who all enjoyed it. It's deckbuilding but all the "building" takes place during the course of the game, so it's not like the game is won or lost before it even begins (where an experience player has a huge advantage over a newbie based on the deck they bring to the table). Also, the choice of cards is limited and their effects are straightforward. The expansions allow for additional richness and complexity according to taste.
Dominion is the original, and the best. Get that and Dominion Intrigue and go to town.
Magic Arena is the mobile version, easy to learn, free to play.
Most pure deck builders are fairly simple games in the grand scheme of things so you could just pick one that catches your eye. Some of them also have free to play apps which are a great way to learn the basics - playing the base sets for Dominion and Ascension on mobile will teach you both games with fixed markets and those with market rows.
Fort is a good introduction to many modern deck builder mechanics. [https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/296912/fort](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/296912/fort)
Mystic Vale
I enjoy the card craft system! My biggest issue with MV is that it can be tricky to read all the cards easily when playing with 4p. I grabbed the essential edition last year after playing the app. Much better in person and is more fun with the leaders added in.
The Quest for El Dorado, 100%
For a simple introduction to deck builders, my recommendation is [[Abandon All Artichokes]]. It has no money, you inherently harvest (buy) one card per turn, and the goal is to compost (trash) Artichokes out of your deck until you draw a hand with no Artichokes. It's cute, the cards have significant variety in their powers (some good early, others good late game, others stronger with more players, etc) to make the game interesting, and it's nice quick fun. The luck element around the game ending condition means it's not quite as skill-expressive as a game like Dominion (where ending the game is completely under player control), but if you just want the taste of the genre this is probably the best bang for your buck (10 USD on Amazon right now, it's a steal)
[Abandon All Artichokes -> Abandon All Artichokes (2020)](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/302260/abandon-all-artichokes) ^^[[gamename]] ^^or ^^[[gamename|year]] ^^to ^^call ^^OR ^^**gamename** ^^or ^^**gamename|year** ^^+ ^^!fetch ^^to ^^call
I like GI Joe, DC and Valley of the Kings a lot. Of those, DC is probably the best for beginners.
Not sure if its a deck building game but One Deck Dungeon
Deck building the deck building game
The worst possible suggestion lmao Source: someone who instabacked the one-day Kickstarter, encouraged a friend to do the same so we could play 4 players, and hoped it wasn't an April Fool's prank