Ranking All 17 Stonemaier Games

[@olivierjodoin2283]

This is by far the best video with ambassadors you have done so far. Great selection of people. I think it helps that it was a topic that everyone felt passionate about.

[@jameystegmaier]

Thanks! Though I've really appreciate the input from other ambassadors on previous videos too, all on topics they're very passionate about. :)

[@optimustibbs]

Brilliant job by the ambassadors, and Jamey it's so good to see how conscious you are of getting everyone's opinions. Super!

[@ThePercOfGaming]

As one of the 20 ambassadors who was asked to vote I am glad to see so many of my favorites on the top. To this day I still love Scythe (the game that got me into SM), Tapestry, and my number one Expeditions. I also appreciated how well spoken each of the people you had on were.

[@jameystegmaier]

Thank you for voting (and for playing all of our games)!

[@thetasigma1905]

I would love to see a Charterstone sequel or variation. I played through this legacy game twice with my wife and daughter, once at home (Australia) and once on holiday in Bali. Both have been the most memorable and happiest game experiences with my family. Thank you Jamey.

[@jameystegmaier]

That makes me happy to hear! Thank you for playing Charterstone. :)

[@theromulans]

Wow, you've sold me on checking out Tapestry more seriously. Thanks!

[@brandonablack]

This was fun! I was glad to hear everyone's thoughts on the games. It's really helpful when deciding on which game is right for different groups of people. I have to admit I too was surprised by the ranking of a few of them, but I'm obviously not as familiar with them as the ambassadors.

[@zabelkid]

Tapestry feels so good, the progression feels good, completing a track, filling up the Capitol city. I love playing the game, it feels good even when you lose.

[@jameystegmaier]

Thank you! I aim for that sense of progression in almost all of our games, but I'm glad it feels particulary good in Tapestry. :)

[@StevenStJohn-kj9eb]

First, let me say you have recruited some well-spoken Stonemaier ambassadors. These guys do a great job explaining game features. For me, I have a clear 1 and 2: Scythe and Tapestry. Then there's about half dozen SM games that could be number 3 on any given day. Probably I'd say Wingspan, just because there is so much content for it and because the Asia solo mode is so good. Of those half dozen I'd highlight both Between Two Castles and Euphoria. These games were lower on the list in the video, but they are both such solid and pleasant games. They both work at 6 players, which is a rarity in the game market; Between Two Castles is probably the best 7 player game out there.

[@zacharywooten8499]

Just played tapestry for the first time a few days ago and can’t stop playing it. Already in my top 10 games of all time. Love to see everyone else love it too

[@jameystegmaier]

I'm so glad you're having fun with it! :)

[@dkshadowstalker]

Loved this list, and love the games. I would reverse one and two, placing Scythe first, but part of that is also because this was one of the first games that my son was so entranced by, he was determined to figure out a way to make certain factions work without going to the Internet to look up how other people may have done so.

[@MakeTimeForGames]

I’ve collected quite a few Stonemaier Games now, I have loved every one of them. I appreciate all the details that go into a Stonemaier game and have even started to judge how well a game is made by comparing them to a Stonemaier game. Great video!

[@jameystegmaier]

Thank you so much!

[@stevemyers8588]

I agree with @MakeTimeForGames, that the Stonemaier Games do an excellent job of taking into account soooo many details, yet as the ambassadors noted, making the actions of the games relatively basic and progress logically. Nice job, Jamey! As for my family’s number 1 - probably Viticulture (which is a relaxing play with a glass of wine in hand!) or Wingspan. Appreciate all the comments from all the ambassadors on all the games. Thank you. (Looking forward to Vantage!)

[@jameystegmaier]

@@stevemyers8588 Thank you!

[@Breyfunk]

Was happy to be able to contribute my ranking for this! To me, once I played Scythe, it set the standard for what a board game could be, the sheer freedom of playing that game however I wanted was astounding. Also the art set a standard of what a board game could look like. I have been hooked ever since!

[@ThePercOfGaming]

The art, simplicity of mechanics, and depth of game play for scythe makes it one of my favorites to this day as well. Even if it has been a while since it was at the table.

[@kallethen9389]

Scythe was the game that got me interested in the hobby. I had seen an article talking about the art for the game and it intrigued me a lot. The art was beautiful and the setting was interesting. I became even more interested when I found that it could be played solo. I'm glad to have discovered it as I've gotten many enjoyable hours not just out of Scythe, but out of boardgaming in general.

[@Mark-jagger]

Superb video. Great lineup of ambassadors. I enjoyed listening to all of their excellent insights. My favourite, by far, is Scythe. However, I’ve owned Tapestry for a long time and I’m ashamed to say I’ve never played a full game. That will now change after listening to such love for the game from the ambassadors. Really looking forward to playing it now! Thanks Jamey for setting this up. It was so enjoyable. And thanks to you for all your great designs. You provide a lot of joy and that is so appreciated. Mark Hunter Alberta

[@jameystegmaier]

Thank you so much, Mark! I appreciate that, and I hope you enjoy a full game of Tapestry sometime. :)

[@MerrillWhiteKalEl]

I agree with this list. My top game is Tapestry! Got everything and love exploring all the different ways to play. I want to try Expeditions, and we love Wingspan.

[@thrallj]

Truly shocking to see Tapestry at #1 - but I'm happy to see it there! Just picked this up in 2024 with everything and have gotten several plays in so far with all expansions and excited to dig into this game further!

[@ncreson]

I've only played through part of Tapestry. At a convention, I checked it out of the game library with a players wanted sign, read the rules, two people joined me, we started playing and then it was last call and we had to clean up. I got to the game library and I guess they were worried cause I had the game out for a long time but then they saw the box and understood, lol. I did enjoy it, and I think we did a lot of jockeying up the science track.

[@robertaburnes4555]

Scythe will always be my first love. I play-tested it and have taught it every year at every con I've attended -- so much so that I'm now known as ScytheGirl, lol. But I've played more Tapestry than anything else, thanks to the incredible adaptation on Board Game Arena (upwards of 800 games). I love them both, and all the others too. Great video with great commentary. Thanks everyone and thanks Jamey for continuing to produce fantastic games.

[@jameystegmaier]

800 games of Tapestry! Wow! I'm honored to hear that from you (about Scythe too). :)

[@LenoxSpartanFitness]

I’ve been wanting to play euphoria for a while-such a great theme! This video has proven to me that I need to check out Tapestry. I own Western Empires, and while I love that game for its Civ-juiciness, 12-15 hour games are unrealistic. Thanks for making this list!

[@jameystegmaier]

I hope you enjoy Tapestry! :)

[@chrisdettmar9136]

4:13 Minor correction here ( it had been a while since i had played.) the criticism is not the end game trigger, but that it is possible to have multiple people max out all of the tracks. The variety has a way of going "past" the end of a track by removing cubes.

[@mkitten13]

Tapestry is the one Stonemaier game that really has become a tried and true game for me. The variability between the factions and the tapestries means you never play any two game the same way, it all comes down to what presents itself to you and how other players actions affect your options. Wyrmspan is a very recent acquisition that wound up replacing Wingspan for me, not because I had any issue with Wingspan personally, but Wyrmspan is both more my own wheelhouse in terms of complexity (and I really love dragons), and also a game that goes better over with my game group.

[@beornthebear9023]

Really enjoyed this video. I’ve only played 11 though Apiary and Wyrmspan will both be played soon So top 3 (and all in my top 100): Viticulture, scythe, and Tapestry Like them a lot but not in my top 100: Expeditions, Wingspan, and Euphoria Happy to play tier: Rolling Realms, Between two castles and between two cities Wasn’t for me: Libertalia and Red Rising

[@tbahr123]

Between Two Cities/Castles CRIMINALLY underrated here! Such a unique gameplay mechanic, amazing game to play with family.

[@garyclarkson5246]

Just added Viticulture essentials to my collection and played it last night with my family. It was great and well received. My top three are tapestry, wingspan, and now viticulture!

[@jameystegmaier]

Thanks for giving Viticulture a try! I'm glad you liked it. :)

[@denverbarker9899]

Hey Jamey, a couple of questions on Between Two Castles and Between Two Cities. At 6:55 you mentioned this is a favorite for you to send to classrooms. I am running a boardgame afterschool program at my kids ECE-8 school. At each meeting I introduce one-two games and briefly discuss a mechanic that is used in the game (open drafting, set completion, storytelling). I've opened up the club for 2nd grade on up and currently have about 1/3 2nd graders and the rest 4th/5th graders. Christian mentioned he likes these two games because you can put an experienced player next to an inexperienced player which makes me hopeful that this may be a good game for our club. What ages do you think these two games work best for? What mechanics would you point out for them to notice?

[@jameystegmaier]

Thanks for your questions, and I think it's great that you run afterschool programs that involve tabletop games! For those ages, I'd go with Between Two Cities (and once the kids know it well, you could try Castles with the same kids). The main reason I think it works well in the classroom (beyond what Christian said) is that I think these games teach important communication skills, as you're trying to talk to two different people about they want while also balancing what you want.

[@robertrichardson3888]

1. Scythe 2. Libertalia 3. Expeditions 4. Wingspan 5. My Little Scythe (with my kids) 6. Red Rising 7. Viticulture 8. Rolling Realms 9. Tapestry 10. Charterstone (app only). Scythe is my #2 overall, was #1 before Clank Catacombs came out last year.

[@danbrown2294]

Thanks for this! Jamey, you did a great job facilitating this conversation. Viticulture is what I would have put at the top. If I could play only one game for the rest of my life, that would be it. Were you surprised that your first-ever game ranked so high?

[@jameystegmaier]

Thank you! I am pleasantly surprised that Viticulture is still enjoyed by people (including myself!).

[@asaswain1031]

I love this video. I noticed the counts don’t match the timestamp links in the video. The timestamp for “10-4” actually points to game 13 in the list. The 10-4 section actually starts around 10:41 in the video.

[@jameystegmaier]

Thanks! I'll fix this.

[@seahawk1579]

For the ones i have played: 1) Scythe 2) Wingspan 3) Tapestry 4) Apiary 5) Rolling Realms 6) Viticulture 7) Libertalia 8) Expeditions 9) Between 2 Cities 10) Charterstone 11) Smitten 12) Red Rising

[@tannershort]

My personal list. Excluding any I haven't played. 1.Scythe 2.Pendulum 3. Libertalia 4. Expeditions 5. Wingspan 6. Viticulture 7. Apiary 8. Red rising

[@MSLewis-kq8cw]

Love seeing Pendulum high on someone else's list! Such a unique and wonderful game.

[@vincentgaliano]

I wish Tapestry was still available in France, I'm now curious to play it !

[@dennisgarciamolero]

I really love this video. I love Tapestry and I'm really surprised/happy to see is the top 1. What an amazing game. I only have one question: Jamey, what is your top? 😊

[@jameystegmaier]

I mentioned very briefly in the video: Simply due to how much it has surprised me and how many times I've played it, I picked Rolling Realms as my #1.

[@dennisgarciamolero]

Yeah! Love Rolling Realms! And do you have top 10?

[@jameystegmaier]

@@dennisgarciamolero I do! I won't share it, but my rankings are included in the calculation (the average of all 20 people who have played all of our games).

[@mikaelhansson9260]

Tapestry is my favourite, followed by Apiary and Scythe.

[@lenakimarctaedius3056]

It looks like i would want to play tapestry now. Scythe was the First stonemaier game i played which set a very high bar. It is my favourite

[@daemanj]

I ranked before watching the video 1. Scythe 2. Wyrmspan 3. Viticulture 4. Libertalia 5. Wingspan 6. Charterstone 7. Expedition 8. Tapestry 9. Apiary 10. Rolling Realms 11. Pendulum 12. Between the castle of the Mad King Ludwig 13. Smitten 14. My little scythe Havent played Between two cites Red rising Euphoria

[@jameystegmaier]

Thanks for sharing your rankings!

[@daemanj]

​@jameystegmaier thank you for the video!! I enjoyed watching it and listening!! I would love to be part of this chat minus I am missing 3 games. Scythe was the game that brought me back into gaming and now I love playing so much again!! You have brought gaming back to our lives!!

[@Table.Fables]

Really great idea and video! I LOVE Red Rising even more than expected; one of my go-to quick and simple yet crunchy solo games. On another note; @Jamey any chance we can have a re print of the automa decks for Scythe- I’d like to add more bots but showing out of stock :)

[@jameystegmaier]

I'll check with inventory about the Scythe Automa decks--we either have more or we can definitely make more. :)

[@Table.Fables]

@@jameystegmaier amazing, thank you!

[@Swiftclaw123]

Thanks for doing this! I would’ve liked to hear a little more about why the bottom games were put at the bottom, but I understand wanting to keep things solely positive

[@jameystegmaier]

A lot of the responses I got from people was that it was very difficult for them to choose the bottom games, and many of those games still remain in their collections. But the sample size is biased, as these are people who have actively volunteered for Stonemaier Games.

[@optimustibbs]

Also big shout out to Christian for rocking that Essen shirt! See you in October my man!

[@melothica]

Besides the games, you've got to love those colours :) Essen 2024 - so looking forward to it and seeing you again!

[@bigaleka92]

Tapestry is a 10/10 game for me. I loved my first play, and at this point I am well over a hundred plays and it just gets better and better. Viticulture was one of the first games I owned, and possibly one of the most thematic games I’ve ever played. I also love Wingspan. These are my top three Stonemaier games. I also own Expeditions, Wyrmspan and Apiary. I no longer own Scythe or Red Rising, as they didn’t click for me, I’ve played nearly all of the games except Charterstone and Rolling Realms! I definitely own more Stonemaier games than any other company. When Stonemaier announces a new game I know I’m always VERY interested. Keeping a very close eye on Vantage. I have 4 games that I’ve given a 10/10. Tapestry, Wingspan, Dune Imperium and Everdell. I really enjoyed this video. Thanks.

[@jameystegmaier]

I'm incredibly honored that some of our games are 10/10 for you!

[@codymortensen8691]

Realizing there's only 4 that I haven't played. Somehow I completely missed hearing/seeing anything about Smitten until now. The other three are My little Scythe which I have thought about getting for my nephew, Between two Castles which I assume is Identical to Between two Cities, and Charterstone which is high on my want to play list but my legacy games are backed up. I'm finally kinda consistently getting Gloomhaven to the table, Pandemic season 1 I'm only a 3rd of the way through and haven't touched it for a while, and I most recently got Clank legacy and having a lot harder time getting a group for that then I thought I would. Also been wanting to try and get another playthrough of Rise of Fenris with other people only got half way through last time, but I did go completely through it solo and it's so good Scythe is my #1 game of all games. I do want to play Tapestry more I've only played it twice so it has potential to move up my list along with Apiary, Wrymspan, and Expeditions since they are still really new.

[@MaxwellSchmalzried]

Wingspan and Wyrmspan are more similar than Between Two Castles and Cities are to each other I enjoy both, but prefer Castles generally.

[@ryandavis1025]

Definitely try Castles! It’s significantly different than cities.

[@joeyvigil]

Great list

[@frankjoachim9033]

So many great games, for me Expeditions is at the top of the list!

[@MacScelaro]

Scythe will always be number 1 in my heart!

[@andregouveia3258]

Scythe is problably my favorite game, and love wingspan, i only play Tapestry 1 time and i don't enjoy to mutch, maybe i have to try again.

[@mdmccu2]

My top 10 are Scythe, Tapestry, Expeditions, Viticulture, Wingspan, and Between Two Castles, Charterstone, My Little Scythe, Red Rising, and Pendulum. I wonder how this list changes for these guys if it's solo only? As a primarily solo only, my list is a bit different. Solo only: Expeditions, Between Two Castles, Wingspan, Viticulture, Tapestry, Scythe, Red Rising, Pendulum, Libertalia, My Little Scythe.

[@jameystegmaier]

That's an interesting question about solo-only play!

[@mdmccu2]

I should note for anyone reading that Between two castles does not play solo out of the box. However, the expansion does make it solo, with two different play modes that I enjoy immensely and are a great, quick, easy to knock out puzzle with low upkeep. Sometime is can be hard to tell what effect decisions will have on a game when playing automa, but I find the between two castles automa allows for highly strategic decision making and agency, while also having the luck element required to make the game interesting.

[@Nahhnope]

Not all the way through, but it would have been very interesting to have each ambassador's ranking of a game displayed while you're discussing it.

[@MildredGlutz]

I love the humor in Euphoria.

[@jameystegmaier]

Thanks!

[@kikkoarceo353]

Surprised Wingspan was not in the top 3! I thought tapestry and wingspan would be swapped in placement ranks.

[@tannershort]

Where can I find the pendulum end game variant?

[@jameystegmaier]

It's on page 21 of the Pendulum rulebook.

[@patrickvalo8822]

Just bought Tapestry. I think its just the right mid weight game that is aging as fine wine. If I enjoy it alot i already plan on getting all the expansions and the new rebalance

[@jameystegmaier]

I'm so glad you're enjoying it already!

[@foyoGames]

Charterstone #1 ...granted I haven't played Expeditions, Wyrmspan, Apiary, Fenris, or Tapestry expansions

[@HorseIRL]

Scythe is best Stonemason game for us by far. Especially with Fenris.

[@CactusJackter]

I'm casually 'working' on a dinosaur variant of a Span game as a passion project. If the incredibly slow progress I'm making actually gets anywhere is it something I should be sending to you or would it be acceptable to post it as a fan variant on the discord etc? Am I overstepping my bounds just by doing this at all? If so where would I ask for permission to pursue it or should I stop straight away? Cheers.

[@jameystegmaier]

We're always open to fans sharing just-for-fun variants for free, following our guidelines for making it very clear (on the cards and in posts about them) that they're fan-made, not official, and not for sale.

[@CactusJackter]

Thanks very much.

[@raymyers700]

I will watch it later so sorry if I missed this as I was jumping around to just get info (I find these kinds of lists very enjoyable): did the raters do something like a Pubmeeple selection where you are faced with two choices and you have to select one and basically slightly reject the other...or was it a culmination of everyone's top 17 with some kind of value associated with top picks?

[@jameystegmaier]

We used the same tier system I showed in the video as a tool, and those who ranked the games gave me a list of the bottom 7, then ranked the other 10. tiermaker.com/create/stonemaier-games-17065587

[@JeremyJohnsonmcmxcAD]

I think Wingspan and Tapestry would easily switch places if voted on by Stonemaier audience instead of ambassadors who obviously are heavier gamers.

[@jameystegmaier]

I can understand that assumption, but I don't have any data indicating that our 600+ ambassadors are heavier gamers, especially with most of our games being in the medium category.

[@jamestiberio9262]

Interesting that wyrmspan is much lower than wingspan. I wonder if it is more for the approachability. I love wingspan but i like wyrmspan better in every way.

[@jameystegmaier]

I think it's because Wyrmspan is so new--not as many people have tried it yet.

[@jamestiberio9262]

@@jameystegmaier ah, that would make sense. Don't get me wrong, I own all the components for wingspan including the big box but I looove all the little tweaks to wyrmpan that my wife and I find that smooths it all out. So happy with it! I would love to get apiary but I'm finding a lack of space to put it.... Haha

[@Ian-R-Wilz]

It's really nice seeing the 2 newest games so high already. They are brilliant games. Wingspan not being top 3 was a big surprise. I think it might get the most discussion among all gamers (casual and hardcore). Tapestry being #1 was a bit of a surprise as well as it's not talked about as much. I was totally expecting the top 3 to be Scythe, Wingspan, and Viticulture in that order, simply based on games I hear talked about more. I currently own 10 of the games and play them exclusively solo on the table top but have played Wingspan, Viticulture, and Tapestry on BGA multiplayer. For solo play my top 4 (in alphabetical order) are Apiary, Rolling Realms, Viticulture, Wyrmspan. I have played an 11th one thanks to having My Little Scythe in my board game club).

[@ShineOnYouCD]

I just don’t get the crazy love for Tapestry. I enjoy it, it just felt very samey after like 5 plays.

[@jameystegmaier]

That's the great thing about people--we all have different likes and dislikes. :)

[@ShineOnYouCD]

@@jameystegmaier I have played it about 10 times on BGA and I don’t love it, I’m sorry Jamey. lol. I do enjoy it enough to have played 10 times though. Haha

[@dantooinetoo]

I enjoyed that you tackled this, but was kinda put off by the fact that it was all white dudes. Where's the female ambassadors?

[@jameystegmaier]

Here's how it worked: I sent out a survey to all 600 Stonemaier ambassadors, who are people who have chosen to get involved with Stonemaier Games (a mix of men and women). 20 people replied to the survey saying that they've played all 17 of our games; I followed up with them to ask them to rank our games and to invite them to join me for a video. Of those 20 people, 1 was a woman--a great ambassador who helps with playtesting and proofreading--but she was not interested in joining the video.

[@junepaologuarin8762]

The games are goof. I do not resonate with some of them though.