Smetch Rat Social Club

A membership game club on Longmont's east side billing itself as a third place for nerdy people — Magic, Lorcana, HeroClix, and 24/7 keycard access for members.

Smetch Rat Social Club is not built like a card store, and that's deliberate. The model is membership: members get keycard access to the space around the clock, which is why the Google listing reads open 24 hours even though staffed retail runs a much tighter schedule. The tagline — third place for nerdy people — describes the intent better than any category label.

Magic: The Gathering is the core game, with Disney Lorcana stocked and HeroClix carried as a genuine niche that almost nobody else in Boulder County supports. Board games, miniature games, and TCG accessories fill out the shelves, and an eBay storefront handles the overflow. There is a formal structure behind the casualness: published event rules, organized leagues, and a program called WERC all live on the shop's own site.

The walk-in schedule is what to plan around. Doors open at 6PM Thursday and Friday and close at 10PM, Saturday runs 1PM to 10PM, and Sunday is 1PM to 6PM. Monday through Wednesday there is no staffed retail. Treating this as a Thursday-through-Sunday operation will save a wasted drive; ignore the 24-hour listing unless you hold a key.

The club is explicit about who it's for. Google attributes list it as LGBTQ+ friendly and a transgender safe space, with a gender-neutral restroom, wheelchair-accessible entrance, restroom, seating, and parking, and a free lot out front. Reviewers name Tyler, who runs it, more often than they name any product.

Location puts it on the east side of Longmont in the 80504 ZIP off Skyway Drive, well clear of the Main Street cluster where the other shops sit — a different crowd and a quieter room by design. The 4.8 average across 78 reviews reflects a small, loyal membership rather than walk-in volume, and the recurring themes are ongoing leagues, friendly hosts, and a genuine welcome for players at any skill level.