Clank! The Mummy’s Curse Review

[NOTE: You need the base game of Clank! to play this expansion.]

For our family, Clank! from Renegade Games has been a fantastic game. It scratches our itch for a deck-builder with a fun theme and some “take that” mechanics that allow for healthy competition. Renegade has done a great job of supporting the game with new additions and expansions since its release in 2016. If you are not familiar with Clank!, take a quick look at our review of the base game before digging into this review.

Clank! The Mummy’s Curse is the second expansion for the base game and it introduces some fun additions that fit the Egyptian theme. In this expansion, players are given access to two different locations to explore. One is a pyramid board that has a unique feel due to the diagonal orientation of the board. On the other side you have the Sphinx which is slightly more difficult but has the same set of rules.

This expansion comes with a new deck of cards along with a new dragon token, a new Monkey Idol for the board, the mummy token, a 4 sided die and tokens for the game. The new cards feel balanced and you’ll notice little nods to the Tomb Raider, Indiana Jones, Prince of Persia and more.

I Want My Mummy

The new mechanic this game introduces is the wandering mummy. The boards have 4 different zones that have icons associated with the 4 sided die. The new mummy token will wander around the board  based on each roll of the die. If the mummy moves into the zone of the tomb you’re in, you’ll get a curse token. These tokens give you -2 points at the end of the game.

In Clank! The Mummy’s Curse, players roll the die and move the mummy when a card or token tells them to. The mummy also moves after a player attacks the mummy when they’re in the same zone on the map.

Players can attack the mummy with 2 attack icons or 3 attack icons, both do something different. When you hit the mummy for 2, you’ll receive 4 gold and 1 curse token. When you’re flat broke, this is a good reason to attack. Hitting the mummy for 3 will actually allow you to discard half of the curse tokens you’ve received. It’s really satisfying to shed some curse tokens then see the mummy move into another area to hurt another player. Because the mummy is tied to the roll of the die, you have no control where this token goes next.

I really enjoy this expansion and it adds just enough to justify picking it up for anyone who enjoys Clank!. The two new boards feel fresh and the new mummy mechanic is fun. I’m not totally convinced that the mummy is a big game changer though. The penalty of receiving curse tokens (-2 points), doesn’t seem mean enough.

The last time I played, I threw caution to the wind and piled up curse tokens in the beginning of the game. After chasing the mummy for a minute and using a couple special abilities on the cards I collected, I was down to 2 curses as the game came to an end. I never felt a sense of fear from the curse tokens. I could definitely see how these cards could ruin your day if you received multiple curse tokens at the end of the game as you ran for the exit. I just haven’t experienced that so far in the times that I’ve played this game.

I am so glad we picked up The Mummy’s Curse expansion. This is another way that we can enjoy one of our favorite games and Renegade did a great job adding a new mechanic without ruining the structure of the original game.

Drop by your local game store to pick up a copy of Clank! The Mummy’s Curse or order it through Amazon today.

Highs

• Wandering mummy is a cool mechanic that feels great in the Clank! universe
• New maps, tokens and a new idol give Clank! lovers more variety

Lows

• The curse tokens don’t seem to be a big enough penalty