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The first card a player must play is a Biome Card. This card will set the base for what types of cards may feed into the Ecology. Only one Biome Card is needed per Ecology. Each Biome Card is dictated by its own color and abbreviation. Biomes give healthy ecology bonuses when five specific roles have been filled within the food web. OBJECT OF ECOLOGIES: The object of Ecologies is to be the first player to earn 12 Victory Points. NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 1 to 6 players MATERIALS: 21 Biome Cards, 10 Factor Cards, 77 Organism Cards, 1 Small Booklet, and 1 Card Box TYPE OF GAME: Strategy Card Game AUDIENCE: 12+ The aim of Ecologies is to build a healthy, thriving ecosystem. When you are playing against other players, you’ll all be aiming to be the first to get 12 victory points. Let’s see how you do this by looking at the rules you need to know. The Set-Up Players may move their organism cards around their food web during their turn. Producers can never be moved, but cards that have numerous roles may be shifted. This must be done carefully, as a whole food web can collapse if something drastic changes. If a card is without a food source, it must be discarded. After the chosen number of Producers have been played, additional organisms may be added to the Ecology. The second row will be reserved for C1 cards or SD cards. The third row will be reserved for C2 cards. The fourth row will be reserved for C3 cards, and anything above will be C4 cards.
In ECOLOGIES, you build and maintain food webs in diverse biomes around the world. Each biome has a different ecology, and gives unique rewards when it is healthy and balanced. But watch out, your opponents may decide it's easier to disturb and degrade your ecosystems than nurture their own. In this hectic environment, you must choose how best to protect and care for your ecologies. Strategic Thinking It takes strategy and thought to not only smartly build your own ecology but to think ahead to unbalance your opponent or keep yourself from taking damage No, it is a powerful defensive perk, but has several limitations. While the bonus protects all your organisms in every biome from destruction, it does not protect against negative cards in general. For example, other players can still play “parasitism” or “biomagnification of pollutants.” The bonus really only prevents opponents from pointing to one of your organisms and saying “I’m using my special card or ability to destroy this.” In fact, using “biomagnification of pollutants” on a healthy desert ecology would drop the maximum trophic level of the desert to C2 and therefore render it unhealthy. This would immediately remove the healthy ecology bonus and allow for targeted destruction of organisms. In effect, the biomagnification card is a counter to the healthy ecology bonus. When you open Ecologies, you’ll see plenty of different cards. But don’t worry; understanding how the game works is simpler than you might think. The cards are separated into three categories, which we’ve outlined below. Ecologies is an awesome, educational game that allows for each player to build their own in-depth ecosystem. These systems are sensitive, and one wrong move can cause the whole thing to crumble, losing all the points associated with it.Do you still have gameplay questions about Ecologies? Here are some of the most common questions we get asked:
Due to the nature of the game, you can play Ecologies on your own. You’re battling against the cards and trying to build your working ecosystem, so if you’re looking for a fun single-player game, give Ecologies a try. When opponents single out another player, it is known as “targeting.” Some actions are towards all players, or certain players at random, but when one player chooses another player, or their cards, that player has been “targeted.” What’s the difference between purchasing a new card with unwanted cards from your hand versus cards you already played on the table? There is no specific rule for this; let the dealer go first if you struggle to choose someone. Once each player’s turn, you will follow four steps to complete your go. Every player follows the same pattern, so to simplify, we have laid it out in sections below.
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Does the tropical forest healthy ecology bonus allow a player to see an opponent’s cards when stealing? The game takes inspiration from titles like Settlers of Catan, Agricola, and Dominion. The gameplay is rooted in authentic science, as it is used in the classroom to teach real concepts to biology students. While it is scientific enough for the classroom, it is also strategic enough for any game night.
These cards can be played throughout the game and boost or damage an ecosystem. In addition, players can move cards around their ecosystem during their turn. However, do so carefully because it could cause problems. After the previous step, the player can put down up to two cards from their hand to help build their ecosystem. When are players allowed to rearrange their cards? Can they purposely turn healthy ecologies on and off this way?This card is added to one of your food webs and prevents other players from interacting with the food web you chose. This means they can no longer play cards on your web or destroy any of the organisms in that web. They can’t interact with the ecology at all. You can still add cards however, and even destroy the ecology if you wish, but no one else can interfere with it. Cards are arranged with plants/algae on the bottom and predators on top. Players negotiate trades and use biotic and abiotic factor cards to affect their webs and the webs of players around them. It is a race to get to 12 victory points, with players using different strategies such as focusing on one biome, going for perks and bonuses, or disrupting other ecologies. The points system is based on ecological trophic levels. The producers (plants) are worth less and as you make your way up the pyramid organisms are worth more, as it takes a lot of energy to sustain them. In real life only roughly 10% of the energy makes it from one level to the next, meaning you have to have acres of land and hundreds of animals just to sustain one apex predator.
If the Producer card is destroyed, all cards above it must be discarded unless they can move to another viable Biome that the player has created. Biome cards each have their own bonus associated with it. These bonuses may be fulfilled when there are cards in each of the five roles. Ecologies isn’t a simple game to play, but it isn’t as complex as it might first appear either. So, don’t be put off if you struggle in your first few games. To start playing Ecologies, one player should be chosen to go first. Ecologies is fun to play again and again as you learn from your mistakes and successes. It is fun to try out new strategies and play with different levels of competitiveness. 3 Reasons Ecologies is a Favorite Once a biome card has been put down, you can develop it further by using creature cards. Creatures need to match the color and abbreviation of the biome to be played. After adding creatures, you will need to add food sources called consumer cards. Factor cards may also be played throughout the game. These cards may benefit or severely farm the Ecology players have worked so hard to build! These may be played at any point throughout the game, and the rules must be followed.Gameplay is rooted in authentic science, as it is used in the classroom to teach real concepts to biology students. While it is scientific enough for the classroom, it is also strategic enough for any game night. The goal is to build healthy food webs in different biomes. If you create a healthy ecology you are rewarded with the perks and powers of that biome. Each organism card lists what it eats and what it’s eaten by. Cards are arranged with plants on the bottom, predators on top. There is a trade mechanic similar to Catan where players trade with others based on what their individual needs are. It is a race to get 12 victory points and different organisms give different points. There are biotic/abiotic factor cards that can affect opponents and different strategies such as focusing on one biome, going for perks and bonuses, or disrupting other ecologies. Players earn points with their organism cards. The player earns the points as long as the cards are viable in their current ecosystem, meaning they have food and aren’t harmed. Once one player makes 12 points or more, they win. Ecologies Card Game – Educational and Enlightening!
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