Brimming with monsters, treasures, and fiendish traps, Dungeon Crawlers have long been among the most beloved tabletop games. In their classic form, they pit archetypal heroes against grisly minions, vast winged beasties, and, of course, the dark overlord waiting at the end. But dungeon crawler board games aren’t limited to pulp fantasy – we’ve played a diverse bunch to pick this list of the best around.

Dungeon crawlers are so popular because they blend the intricate systems and engaging decision-making of great strategy board games with the thrilling adventure and roleplay of RPGs. These games have given us some of our best ever tabletop experiences – one of the titles below spent years on our list of the best board games, and was only beaten out by its own sequel.

The only limitation to note is that most don’t play at their best without a group of three or four at least – if you’re looking for a two-player experiences, try our guide to the top board games for couples.

If, however, you’ve got a party of heroes ready to dive into an adventure filled with tactical choices, emergent storytelling, and colorful campaigns, then venture forth!

The best dungeon crawler board games are:

1. Gloomhaven

The mammoth Gloomhaven is considered one of the best dungeon crawlers. As well as taking you on a wild, magical adventure through fantasy lands, it’s also a legacy board game. This means you have a long-term impact on the world around you (exemplified physically on the board game via stickers and secret envelopes), and you also play as part of an ongoing campaign spanning over a hundred hours.

A cooperative board game to its core, Gloomhaven, sees your group pick their heroes from a selection of unique Gloomhaven classes, then join forces as a party, fighting your way through various quests and a branching storyline covering more than 90 scenarios.

These include exploring an ancient crypt, vast mountains, and a dragon’s lair. Unlike many other dungeon crawlers, Gloomhaven uses a eurogame-style card system, rather than dice rolls, to determine combat outcomes.

If that all seems a little intimidating, beginner-friendly Gloomhaven ‘lite’ board game Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion is an excellent standalone entry to the series. It covers a smaller number of scenarios and even includes an in-depth tutorial to help players new to dungeon crawler games.

2. Star Wars: Imperial Assault

Journey to the thrilling centre of a Galactic Civil War in Star Wars: Imperial Assault, which follows the Rebels just after they’ve destroyed the legendary Death Star.

Imperial Assault is easily one of the best Star Wars board games ever made, packing plenty of iconic miniatures, a cracking tactical combat system, and two strong play modes: a detailed ,multi-mission coop campaign, and a competitive skirmish mode that sees you duke it out with a friend in a galaxy far, far away.

Perfect for fans of the Star Wars universe or sci-fi board games in general, up to four of you control the Rebel heroes — which include the likes of a rage-fuelled Wookiee, a haunted Twi’lek and of course, a gung-ho smuggler — against one Empire player, who, when the time comes, can even summon Darth Vader to the table. Until then, they’ll be hurling plenty of Stormtroopers at you.

Along with the menacing combat, which sees you generally outnumbered and low on resources, each mission is part of an ongoing Star Wars saga, making story events a key part of enjoying Star Wars: Imperial Assault.

3. Warhammer Quest: Cursed City

A standalone follow-up to popular Warhammer dungeon crawler board games Silver Tower and Blackstone Fortress, Warhammer Quest: Cursed City sees you rolling dice, sneaking around streets warped by hellish entities, and wiping out swarms of ferocious bats.

Roam the tiles of the Cursed City of Ulfenkarn, which is ravaged by zombies and facing almost certain doom underneath its new murderous overlord. A cooperative game, you pick a hero and, in typical dungeon crawler board games style, take on a series of missions. As well as cutting down vampires, you’ll also be stalked by the bringer of Night Unending himself, Radukar the Wolf.

Including 60 of the detailed miniatures so prevalent in the Warhammer series, you’ll need to assemble and paint a vampire lord or two before you sink your teeth into the campaign. Warhammer Quest: Cursed City is an excellent choice for both fans of the series and dark fantasy-themed dungeon crawlers overall.

4. HeroQuest

The classic fantasy adventure game, HeroQuest is an oldie but a goodie that’s been recently relaunched and revised. A cooperative board game, one of you will play game-master-cum-evil-sorcerer Zargon, while the rest take on the mantle of your typical fantasy heroes – very reminiscent of the DnD classes.

Pick a quest, build up rooms with items, treasures, traps, and monsters all of a fantasy ilk (think skeletons, gargoyles, and goblins), and get playing. The item miniatures in particular are just adorable – including tiny doors, tables and skulls that look awesome repurposed as Dungeons and Dragons miniatures.

Ideal for getting the little ones involved in some dungeon crawler board game antics, HeroQuest is suitable for kids over nine years old. And once you’re done with the main game quests, there are plenty of expansions to wield axes, wand, and bow at.

5. Nemesis

Enjoy the bleak horrors of the cosmic void in the Alien-inspired dungeon crawler board game Nemesis, in which you and your crew fight for your lives on a spaceship infested with alien intruders. However, there’s a catch: not all of you have the same objective.

If you enjoy some light backstabbing, you’ll be pleased to hear Nemesis turns some players into traitors. While the traitors are busy leading their brethren to a blood-soaked death, the rest of the group play sci-fi stalwarts like the smart scientist and shooty soldier.

And, of course, no xenomorphic experience is complete without some Alien-esque beasties to roam the ship. Between these and your rather untrustworthy crewmates, you may find completing objectives and keeping the ship afloat rather challenging. Nemesis is filled with eerie atmosphere and gut-wrenching moments, so it’s ideal for fans of horror dungeon crawlers.

6. Mansions of Madness

One of the more advanced dungeon crawler board games out there, recent editions of the Lovecraftian-inspired Mansions of Madness come with their own app. This cuts down on admin, making your passage through cursed cosmic wastes, shimmering tentacles, and cursed mansions all the more immersive.

If you’re looking for eldritch themes, look no further than Mansions of Madness. Each adventure sees you building up a location using tiles and using actions cooperatively to solve whatever unspeakably horrifying mystery it throws at you.

As well as interacting with objects, finding pathways, and getting locked into desperate battles with all sorts of otherworldly baddies, you’ll also need to cooperatively solve puzzles, break codes, and sweet talk the NPCs to get ahead.

Chances of death with each campaign are high, as the end of the player phase not only triggers a turn for all your enemies, but also can set up more enduring effects. An absolute must for fans of horror board games, with its app assistance Mansions of Madness is also perfect for folks new to dungeon crawler board games.

7. Zombicide

One of the best dungeon crawler board games set within the modern era (unless you try out the fantasy expansions), Zombicide casts players as a motley crew of survivors desperate to stay alive in your typical undead apocalypse. It’s a collaborative board game, and you each play a survivor with different skills and specialities.

The zombies themselves, which vary in strength, speed, and miniature design, are controlled through decks of cards and primitive AI responses. For example, your standard zombie horde will always head towards noise — so it’s not always wise to jump into combat with your rifle locked and loaded.

As well as the fun teamwork Zombicide encourages (it really is brutal surviving out on its menacing death-strewn streets), it also levels up with you, meaning that the stronger you become, the nastier and more hectic the zombie threat gets. This can lead to some truly epic gameplay moments and gives this dungeon crawler tons of replayability.

Before we go, a spot of advice: with their expansive maps and extra components, dungeon crawlers tend to require more table space than most other board games. If you’re planning a big campaign, you might need a dedicated surface – our guide to the best gaming tables has some recommendations to help out.

As for other board games to play, we’ve pulled together expert board games guides across the tabletop spectrum, from mainstream classics all the way through to the best sex board games for adult players to try.