Have you ever desperately wished that you could attend a school where you learned spells and hexes instead of trigonometry and economics? We may have had little luck in this world, but board games offer us the chance we never had. Study up on your witchcraft and brush up on your potions, because these games will grade you on your magic skills- and everyone wants to be top of the class!
Epic Spell Wars: Hijinx at Hell High is all about competition between students to be the Class President—a rank that means a bit more than just a note on your college application. At Hell High, it’s a position worth fighting for, quite violently if necessary! Bully your fellow students, sabotage their attempts to climb the social ladder as you promote your own, and lose yourself in the spectacular art that illustrates this dark comedy!
The simply named Magic School is a small card game that can be played solo or with your family (including children), and in this case you’re trying to help rather than hinder each other. You have to complete quests to complete your education, and those quests rely on your memory. Match the right magic items to the right owners, and maybe you’ll all graduate with honors! For younger players, this game may be a great introduction to the world of offbeat gaming, and who can resist the artwork of such adorable witches and ghosts?
If you want to pass your classes, you have to make things explode at the right time and place! Potion Explosion Second Edition asks you to make potions through sets of marbles, matching them by color and taking them from a unique dispenser. And of course, the only way to really test out a potion is to drink it yourself. We all want to be Student of the Year, and that means making the most valuable potions you can. Go for broke and blow everything up- it might just send you to the top of the class!
Sometimes magic schools are eerie rather than whimsical. That’s the case with Miskatonic University: The Restricted Collection, where Professor Henry Armitage (whom Lovecraft fans will recognize as the hero of The Dunwich Horror) has you searching through the school library to uncover some very dangerous spells and sigils. This might result in your being expelled or so horrified that you drop out of your own accord, but isn't it worth taking those risks to read forbidden grimoires that no one else has access to? Surely your sanity is a fair exchange for good grades...
The indie card game Witching Hour starts off with a some simple spell ingredients, but it’s a little more complicated than that- you’ve got to enchant items, conjure hexes and brew potions if you want to defeat your school rivals and control the Witch Cup. Only the strongest students will prosper at your witch academy, and it takes a lot of work to be the strongest witch! Embrace the dark side and manage your hand of cards, and when it comes to the other students, remember to show no mercy.
School has never been so much fun! There’s a magical game in this list for you no matter what your age or mastery of strategy—and all of them will give you an education you wish you really had. Or, if you did attend such an academy yourself, please let us know...