A New Door to Kick Open?

February 26, 2013 8:17 AM

We started off with Munchkin, then picked up Munchkin Zombies. Which Munchkin expansion should we try next?
posted by dragonplayer to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (8 answers total)

Best answer: Star Munchkin is great, though it works best as a standalone game (not mixed decks.)

I like the Munchkinomicon expansion.

Munchkin Cthulu is good, too.
posted by rachaelfaith at 8:56 AM on February 26, 2013

Best answer: Have you guys picked up the other regular Munchkin add-on decks (Unnatural Axe, Clerical Errors, etc)? The later ones give you some new game mechanics (steeds, dungeons) to play with. That would be a good place to start. Fair warning -- the deck size gets unwieldy very quickly!

As far as the other genres, my friends probably enjoyed Super Munchkin the most, but that's a good genre for them. Having played most of them as of several years ago (up through Booty), I'd say go with the genre you're most familiar with. From what I recall, the they all play pretty similarly, so pick the one you'll enjoy the most. Munchkin Cthulu was the most different, because of the Cultist class. (I think -- it's been years since I played anything but the classic Munchkin.)

I always wanted to do Western + Space (and maybe Pirates and/or Zombies) to make a Firefly game, but I never got buy in from my group.
posted by natabat at 8:58 AM on February 26, 2013

Axe Cop Munchkin is a hell of a lot of fun if you like the comic, though not for any good game-play reasons. But there is no victory like getting Wexter as your ally, or potentially even becoming Axe Man/Cop/Baby/Warrior.
posted by heyforfour at 9:13 AM on February 26, 2013

Best answer: I would say go with whatever genre you like the most -- you'll pick up on more of the jokes. FWIW, I've got Star Munchkin, Munchkin Cthulhu, Super Munchkin, and Munchkin Fu, and like all of them. I've found that Super Munchkin is a nice gateway to Munchkinism for nongamers -- most people have had some exposure to superheroes. But as you might guess from my screen name, Munchkin Cthulhu is my all-time favorite. It's just not as enjoyable for folks who aren't into Lovecraft.
posted by Shoggoth at 9:28 AM on February 26, 2013

Another vote for Munchkin Cthulhu. The cultists game mechanism is fun and not present in the other munchkins I've played.
posted by momus_window at 10:09 AM on February 26, 2013

Best answer: Star Munchkin is great, as is Cthulhu Munchkin. Eventually, however, you'll reach a point where the game arc feels pretty same-y every time... everyone is buddy-buddy up through level four, then things get a bit standoffish, then the guy who accidentally hits 9th level first gets dumped on mercilessly to prevent him from winning, while someone else lurks in second place at 7th level just to sell gear or play a level up card and then make the dash for level 10 before everyone else can refill their hands with 'screw you' cards.

At this point, I'd recommend Munchkin Apocalypse. It's similar, but actually has an entirely new mechanic - Seals. There is a separate deck of Seals, which are sporadically revealed one after another. Each seal has a persistent global effect which can be positive or negative, and new seals effects take precedence over old ones. When there are a total of seven open seals, the game ends, but the winner isn't the highest level... it's the highest bonus in gear and other cards.

There are also classes that get additional effects and interactions with the seal deck, either opening or closing them at times. It's very interesting, in that it gives the players a new dynamic to work with aside from just 'murder the guy who gets closest to 10th level'. Players actually have incentives to work together, even at higher levels, if their gear isn't what's going to push them into a winning position. "Yeah, if you help me I'll get ninth level from the fight, but if you don't, I'll lose and a seal will pop and Miguel will win instead of either of us. And that cannot happen."

All in all, definitely a set to check out - I've found it most engaging so far.. and I think I've played every single other set/expansion out there.
posted by FatherDagon at 1:57 PM on February 26, 2013

You need the fairy dust expansion! And maybe the dungeons too :)
posted by eloeth-starr at 10:57 PM on February 26, 2013

Response by poster: Sounds like my wish list is getting longer. Cthulhu seems great and Apocalypse now intrigues us. Thanks.
posted by dragonplayer at 6:53 PM on February 27, 2013