Journey to the Underworld, Part One: An Introduction to Clank! Catacombs

June 30, 2025

In Clank! Catacombs, you’re a thief looting a mysterious dungeon that changes each time you play, and with the Kickstarter campaign for the Underworld expansion, new players will have the opportunity to get Catacombs and both of its expansions at a bargain price!

Whether you’re a new player getting ready to jump into the Catacombs for the very first time, or a veteran treasure hunter eager to learn what awaits in the new expansion, let’s take a look at Clank! Catacombs, how it evolved with the Lairs and Lost Chambers expansion, and what players can look forward to when they delve even deeper in Clank! Catacombs: Underworld!

Uncharted Territory: The Ever-Changing Dungeon in Clank! Catacombs

What would you be willing to do for a fat bag of glistening treasure that would set you up for life on easy street? Would you delve into the darkness of a mysterious, ever-changing labyrinthine dungeon guarded by a skeletal dragon? Would you be willing to slay monsters along the way, be haunted by ghosts, and compete with other zealous adventurers?

If your answer to these questions is “yes,” welcome to Clank! Catacombs!

In this deck-building board game, players venture through a mysterious and dangerous dungeon, on a race to get in, grab the most treasure, and get out before getting burnt to a crisp! This requires a delicate balance of being both swift and sneaky, because each Clank! you make risks the wrath of the undead dragon Umbrok Vessna!

**An evolution and a refinement… Clank! Catacombs is now my go-to game in the Clank! universe. It provides immensely satisfying gameplay, wrapped in a visually appealing package.**

–GeekDad

A Deck-Building Adventure

Your cards, randomly drawn each round, determine what you’re able to do in the catacombs. With the ability to acquire new cards every turn, it’s up to you to build a deck that will see you through to fortune and glory! You’ll want to grab Boots to move around, Swords for monster-slaying, and Skill to acquire even better cards, but watch out, because cards can also make Clank!, increasing your odds of being fried in a dragon attack! Some of the best cards also make the most Clank!… how much are you willing to push your luck?

Clank! Catacombs is perhaps the best iteration of a five-game series, adding more deck control, more variety and a dungeon built of randomly-drawn tiles to re-create the thrill of exploring the unknown.

-IGN, The Best Deck-Building Board Games for 2025

Uncharted Territory

In Clank! Catacombs, the dungeon is randomly generated, revealed gradually over the course of the game as players choose which paths to take. You never know which surprises will be waiting on the next tile, so it’s important to get used to expecting the unexpected!

Portals transport you all around the dungeon depths. Wayshrines offer vast riches to intrepid explorers. Prisoners are counting on you to free them. Ghosts, once disturbed, may haunt you, even unto death!

However, the precious Artifacts are the most valuable treasures of all, and the best ones will only be found by those willing to go deepest into the dungeon. Along the way, you’ll also find gold, which you can spend at Markets for precious items such as Lockpicks, giving you more abundant access to Major Secrets, locked passageways, and more!

I’m discovering stuff as we go, and I love the sense of discovery… Catacombs gives me everything that Clank! did, and the map is different every time. I mean I love Clank!… but this is better. 9/10.

-Tom Vasel, The Dice Tower

How to Avoid Dragon Attacks 101

Of course, no one ever said that robbing an undead dragon’s lair was easy, and that’s why you’ll want to be careful with the Clank! you make, because the more you have, the more likely you are to be targeted by dragonfire when Umbrok Vessna attacks!

When you make Clank!, whether by cards and other means, it will accumulate in the form of cubes, which get thrown into a bag, along with everyone else’s when the dragon randomly attacks throughout the game. Cubes get pulled from the bag with every dragon attack, representing damage to their owners. Be wise with the Clank! you generate, because too much damage will knock you out of the game completely!

Clank! Catacombs is full of calculated risk versus reward decisions, […] the absolute sweet spot of tactics, variety, and good old-fashioned fun.

-Gamesradar+

Expanding the Catacombs: Lairs and Lost Chambers

Clank! Catacombs released to widespread acclaim when it debuted in 2022, and it wasn’t long before new ideas were cooking in the Dire Wolf design kitchen. While the base game provided endless replayability in the form of a dungeon that changes with every single game, the modular nature of its design lent itself to all kinds of possibilities for new ideas. That’s exactly what you get in the Lairs and Lost Chambers expansion!

Lairs and Lost Chambers brought a variety of new surprises to the catacombs. Lairs contain fearsome monsters, with valuable Trophies for adventurers daring enough to slay them. Lost Chambers are unique rooms, each with their own special rules, most of them offering some kind of benefit in exchange for a cube from your supply. You’ll also find Pit Traps, providing you an opportunity to trash a card — and damaging you if you don’t!

Lairs and Lost Chambers expands upon what Catacombs does best, offering fun new mechanics within the familiar trappings of cards and dungeon tiles.

Clank! Catacombs is one of my all-time favorite board games and Lairs & Lost Chambers adds a lot of really fun rooms filled with monsters, you can also win trophies, so damn good.

–ProZD

Delve Deeper than Ever in Clank! Catacombs: Underworld!

What would the next steps be for the deck-building adventure? With Lairs and Lost Chambers expanding on the catacombs, it made sense to look in a different direction for the next expansion — what lies even deeper than the deepest dungeon?

You’ll get the answer in Clank! Catacombs: Underworld, where a whole new dungeon layer awaits players in the form of the Underworld! Seek new treasures such as the precious Artifact Enhancers, guarded by the mighty Underworld Guardian Kerberos, or manifest a destiny of fortune and glory with Fate Cards! Slay Harpies and earn undercoins to pay the toll of the Underworld, or buy yourself useful new boons from the Underworld Market!

Just like Clank! Catacombs and Lairs and Lost Chambers, which each brought their own flavors to the Clank! formula, Underworld has unique ambitions of its own. Learn more about what awaits in the Underworld in Part Two of this preview series, and be sure to check out the Kickstarter Campaign to stay updated on new Design Diaries from Paul Dennen!

Learn more about Clank! Catacombs: Underworld:

Why Kickstarter?

In a period of great uncertainty in the tariff landscape of the United States, one thing that we’re 100% sure of is that we have no plans of passing those costs to backers. Kickstarter helps us to offset our tariff burden and avoid price increases with better margins, more efficient logistics, and direct outreach to fans.

Whether you’re a veteran Clank! player or a new adventurer jumping in for the first time with the full Clank! Catacombs set, your pledge ensures that you’re not only getting a great game expansion, but you’re also helping us manage the increased costs of doing business in the current climate. We appreciate your support!

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