Gateway Games: The Quest for El Dorado

Somewhere across the jungle is El Dorado. Between you and it: forests, rivers, villages, mountain passes, and several other expeditions that would very much like to get there first.

The Quest for El Dorado is a friendly introduction to deck building, the mechanic behind games like Dominion and Clank! Everyone begins with the same small deck of cards. Play those cards to move across different kinds of terrain, then use coins to buy stronger cards that get shuffled into your deck for future turns.

That's the clever bit: instead of simply moving your piece toward the finish line, you're improving the engine that moves it. Buy more paddles and rivers become easier. Add stronger explorers and you can cut through dense jungle. Pick the wrong cards and you may find yourself staring at exactly the terrain your deck can't handle.

The race makes the strategy easy to see: build a better deck, choose a smarter route, and get to El Dorado before everyone else!