Where to Play Brass: Birmingham: Online, Local, and Beyond

A tournament is a few days a year. Improvement happens in the weeks between: playing often, against opponents who push you, and talking about the games afterward. This lesson is about finding those games.

Online play

For several years, the easiest way to play Brass: Birmingham online was its official digital edition on Steam. That changed in 2026. On May 24, 2026, the publisher and developer of the digital versions announced that both Brass and Brass: Birmingham would leave the Steam store at the end of that month, citing changes to the licensing agreement, as reported by Delisted Games.

At the time of writing, we could not find a current official way to buy and play Brass: Birmingham online. Fan-made versions exist, but they are not official, so we do not link them here. Check Roxley’s page for the game and the game’s BoardGameGeek page for current options.

Local play

• Your local game store. Many stores host open game nights. Ask whether anyone plays heavy economic games, and bring your copy. A Brass game needs three hours and a big table, so ask ahead.
• Roxley’s fan community. Roxley’s site links to a Brass fan group on Facebook, a good place to ask about players near you.
• Conventions. Board game conventions often run open gaming late into the night, and heavy games find players there. The WBC is the obvious one for Brass, and its open gaming runs alongside the tournaments.
• Start your own. Our guide on how to start a play group walks through it, from the first invite to a regular night.

If you are near Indianapolis, join the Indianapolis list for first word on local learn-to-play nights as The Ludarium grows.

Finding the right opponents

The best practice partners are a little stronger than you and willing to talk after the game. Three or four regulars who play monthly will teach you more than a dozen strangers once each. If your group is new to the game, run the whole group through this course together, a level at a time.

Grow your own pool

If strong opponents are scarce, make some. Every player you teach well is a future practice partner. Use the teaching lesson to run a clean first game, offer the rulebook’s Canal Era introductory game to anyone nervous about the length, and invite the players who enjoyed it back within a couple of weeks, while the rules are fresh. A second game is where most players decide whether Brass is for them.

The Brass family

Roxley publishes three games on the Brass system. Once Birmingham feels familiar, the others are a natural next step.

Brass: Lancashire is Martin Wallace’s original. Roxley’s edition adds new art and player mats and, by Roxley’s description, improved 2 and 3 player rules. It plays 2 to 4 in 60 to 120 minutes, the same listing as Birmingham. Players who love Birmingham’s link math and era structure will feel at home.

Brass: Pittsburgh is a new sequel set in America’s Gilded Age, designed by Gavan Brown, co-designer of Birmingham, and Martin Wallace, and built on the Brass system. At the time of writing, it was in late pledge on Gamefound.

Upgrades for your own copy

Roxley’s Birmingham page says the Deluxe edition has been retired and will not be reprinted, and it points to a Collector’s Edition offered through Gamefound late pledge. The retail edition of Brass: Birmingham plays exactly the same game. Iron Clays are Roxley’s poker-chip style money, a popular upgrade for a game with this much cash changing hands; our accessories gift guide has more on that kind of gift.

None of this is needed to play well. A retail copy and a regular table are all it takes.