Tips & Strategy

Practical first-game teaching and tactical advice for brewing efficiently.

Teach one collision first

Start with the regular pick, show one matching collision, then show how its removal exposes another. Only then add potion powers and Little Help. Use six basic kinds for the first game and keep expansion rules for a later session.

Plan the whole chain

Check what falls together after each collected group. A large collection is useful only if its colours fill your two recipes or fit your Pool; compare useful ingredients rather than simply the longest chain.

Buy a better regular pick

A Little Help costs two points, but removing one blocker before the regular pick can complete a potion immediately and unlock its power. Compare that concrete benefit with the penalty. Help taken after the regular pick can also finish a nearly complete recipe.

Drink for momentum

There is no point bonus for saving an unused completed potion. Use a power before the regular pick if it improves the dispenser; use it afterward if it finishes your other recipe. Keep one for later only when its future opportunity looks better.

Choose replacements for achievements

Look for a third potion of one kind or a fifth distinct kind while considering the ingredients saved in your Pool. An easy completion plus a four-point Skill token may beat an awkward high-value recipe. Watch the countdown: the table may be only one round from the finish.

Player counts

In two-player games the four-token countdown gives you little time to recover from slow recipes. In larger games, the dispenser changes more between your turns, so keep a flexible plan rather than expecting one precise marble to remain.

[Sixth] With five or six players, check the Bell before planning your turn. The fuller dispenser may become the new source of picks.

Videos and the rules

The videos are teaching aids; the publisher’s rules and confirmed rulings control play. A potion may count toward both achievements, and drinking does not lose its points. Replacements arrive only at turn end. Older base-game teaches do not explain the later two-dispenser mode.

Sources

• Potion Explosion - How To Play — Watch It Played.
• How To Play Potion Explosion! — Geek & Sundry.
• Potion explosion in about 3 minutes + expansion — 3 Minute Board Games.
• How to Play Potion Explosion - Rules in Minutes — BoardLiveGame.
• Potion Explosion - Game Play 1 — Watch It Played.
• Potion Explosion Board Game Review + How To Play — Board Game Museum.