Switched from sleeving every game to only sleeving played cards after my Agricola deck got ruined

I used to sleeve every single board game I bought the minute I opened the box. Must have spent like $80 on sleeves last year alone. Then last month I spilled soda right on my Agricola copy during a game night and only the two occupation cards I played that round got stained. The other 500 cards were totally fine. Made me realize I was wasting money and time on cards that never even hit the table. Now I just sleeve the 10-15 cards per game that actually get handled regularly. Has anyone else had a drink spill moment that changed how they protect their games?

2 comments

2 Comments

samthompson1mo ago

Started doing the same thing after a similar spill on my copy of Wingspan. What really changed my mind though was realizing how many games dont even need sleeves at all if you just treat them decently. Like with deckbuilders where you shuffle constantly, yeah sleeve those. But for most euros you could just wipe the cards down with a damp cloth if something happens and be fine. The cost adds up way faster than people admit, especially with games that have like 400 cards and only 20 get played.

anthonyhunt1mo ago

Buddy of mine had a soda can explode in his bag and ruin half the cards in his copy of Castles of Burgundy. He figured the sleeves on the rest saved maybe $12 worth of cards but he'd put over $30 into sleeves.