Oceans

2020

Oceans is a richly illustrated, interactive engine builder game. Evolve your species in an ever-changing ecosystem and dive into the mysterious depths!

90
minutes

2 - 4
player(s)

12+

Medium

About the game

Oceans is a captivating and immersive board game that plunges players into the wonders and mysteries of the aquatic world. This game is a spectacular journey into the depths of the marine ecosystem, where you will find yourself in a vibrant, living ocean teeming with various species of organisms.

In Oceans, you will assume the role of a marine life form and navigate through the challenges of survival and evolution. The game is set in the breathtaking underwater world, where the only law is the survival of the fittest. Your ultimate goal is to adapt, evolve, and outsmart your opponents in order to thrive in this ever-changing ecosystem.

Game components Unboxing the fun!

Oceans is a fascinating board game that is themed around the evolution of marine life. This engaging game comes with a variety of components, each with a specific purpose and function within the game’s mechanics. Here are the components of Oceans and their purpose:

1. Species Boards: Each player will receive a species board. These boards represent the different species that you can evolve during the game. They have spaces for population and traits, which can be adjusted as the game progresses. The species board interacts with the game through the use of cards and tokens.

2. Tokens: The game includes population tokens and scenario tokens. Players will use these tokens to populate their species and mark scenario effects. Tokens are used in almost every aspect of the game, from gaining population to tracking the progress of the game.

3. Surface Cards: Surface cards represent the traits that your species can evolve. These cards will be applied to your species boards, altering the characteristics of your species. The traits provided by these cards interact with the game in various ways, influencing feeding habits, defense mechanisms, and population growth.

4. Deep Cards: Deep cards represent powerful and unique evolutionary traits. These cards are more potent than surface cards but come at a higher cost. Like surface cards, they are applied to your species boards and significantly influence the dynamics of the game.

5. Ocean Zones: The game board features three ocean zones: the reef, the shallow, and the deep. The zones determine where species can feed and how much food is available. The ocean zones interact with the game by influencing migration patterns, feeding strategies, and population sizes.

6. Reef and Ocean Tokens: These tokens represent the food resources in the reef and the ocean zones. Players will vie for these resources to feed their species, impacting population growth and survival rates.

7. Player Screens: Each player will have a screen to hide their population tokens. The screen interacts with the game by adding an element of uncertainty and strategy, as players must anticipate their opponents’ moves without full information.

8. Cambrian Explosion Card: This card represents a significant event in the history of life on Earth. When this card is played, it changes the rules of the game, allowing players to draw from the deep deck and increasing the amount of available food.

9. Scenario Cards: These cards represent various environmental effects that can occur during the game. When a scenario card is drawn, it introduces a new rule or condition that all players must adhere to for the duration of the scenario.

Game setup Lay it out, line it up, let’s go

Oceans is an engaging and strategic board game that replicates the deep-sea ecosystem. Let’s take a look at the step-by-step guide on how to set up the game:

Player Roles:

Each player in the game takes on the role of a marine life form. Players will be creating, adapting, and evolving their species to thrive in an ever-changing ecosystem.

Board Placement:

Place the ocean board in the center of the playing area. Ensure that the reef board is placed next to the ocean board. There should be enough space around the board for the placement of species boards and cards.

Initial Resources:

Each player should be given a player screen, behind which they will keep their population tokens.
Each player also receives a species board that they place in front of them.
Place a number of fish tokens in the reef equal to 25 times the number of players. The remaining fish tokens are placed in a general supply next to the board.

Random Elements:

The game includes a deck of 120 surface cards. Shuffle this deck and deal six cards to each player. Place the rest as a draw pile next to the board. The game also includes a stack of scenario cards, one of which should be chosen at random and placed next to the draw pile.

Setting up the Deep:

Take the deck of deep cards and shuffle it thoroughly.
Deal ten cards face up in a row next to the board to form the Gene Pool.
These cards represent traits that species can evolve over the course of the game. They are placed face-up for all players to see.

Now you are all set to start playing Oceans!

Game flow Round and round we go

Oceans is a strategic board game that depicts the interconnected ecosystem of marine life. The game is divided into various phases, and the gameplay unfolds over different rounds. Each player gets to perform certain actions during these stages to develop their species and populate the ocean.

The game begins with the Surf Phase, which continues until the deck of cards is exhausted. In this phase, players take turns performing two actions. The actions can be:

Playing a Trait Card: Players can play a trait card from their hand to a species board, either to create a new species or upgrade an existing one.
Feeding: Players can choose to feed a species from the reef or from another species, depending on the traits of their species.
Aging: Players age their species, which allows them to score points. Every time a player ages, they move a certain number of population from their species to their score pile.

After a player completes their actions, they draw cards up to their hand limit and then the turn passes to the next player.

Once the deck is exhausted, the game transitions into the Deep Phase. The Deep Phase introduces new powerful deep cards that can drastically change the gameplay. In this phase, players perform the same actions as in the Surf Phase, with the addition of:

Playing a Deep Card: Players can play a deep card from their hand, but this requires paying its cost by moving a certain number of population from their species to their score pile. Deep cards are more powerful than the surface cards and can provide significant advantages.

The game continues in the Deep Phase until all the fish in the ocean zone are consumed. At this point, the game ends immediately and players add up their points to determine the winner. Points are scored for the population in a player’s score pile, the species boards they have, and any bonus points from deep cards.

Through careful strategy and clever use of cards, players navigate the complex ecosystem, compete for limited resources, and strive to thrive in the vast, mysterious oceans.

Players'turn One turn to rule them all

In the board game ‘Oceans’, a player’s turn consists of playing cards, feeding, and aging. Here is a detailed breakdown of each step.

1. Playing Cards:

Firstly, a player can play one Surface card from their hand to create, modify, or migrate a species. This can influence the overall gameplay by adding more species to the game, enhancing a species’ traits, or moving a species to a different ocean.

Creating a Species: This involves placing a species board in front of the player and playing a Surface card onto it.
Modifying a Species: This action allows a player to add, replace, or remove traits of a species by playing a Surface card onto an existing species.
Migrating a Species: A player can move some or all population from one species to one of the three oceans on the board.

2. Feeding:

Secondly, the player chooses one of their species to feed. The feeding action is crucial as it helps a species to survive and populate.

Foraging: If the species is a forager, the player takes population from the reef and adds it to the species.
Attacking: If the species is a predator, it attacks another species and takes population from it.

3. Aging:

Lastly, the player ages each of their species, removing population equal to the species’ aging factor. A species’ aging factor is the number of cards beneath it. This action is important as it allows a species to mature and develop.

In terms of strategic choices, a player can decide on the traits of their species, which can impact the species’ survival and growth. For instance, a species with a ‘Speed’ trait can avoid being attacked by predators, while a species with ‘Long Neck’ can forage from the reef even when it’s not their turn. Recognizing the right time to migrate a species to a different ocean can also be a strategic move, particularly when resources in one ocean are depleting.

End of the game All good games must come to an end

‘Oceans’ is a fascinating board game that simulates the evolution of marine species. The game ends when the deck of cards known as the ‘Ocean’ is exhausted. Once this happens, players continue until everyone has had an equal number of turns. At that point, final scoring takes place.

For the final scoring, each player must calculate their points for their surviving species. Points are earned in the following manner:

Population Points: Each player receives 1 point for each population token in their score bag.
Species Points: Each player receives points equal to the size of each of their surviving species. Add up the size of each species and add that total to the player’s score.
Trait Card Points: Some trait cards can provide bonus points during final scoring. These trait cards have a scoring symbol on them. The points are added to the player’s score according to the instructions on the card.

The player with the highest total score is the winner. In case of a tie, the player with the most population points in their score bag wins. If there is still a tie, the player with the largest species wins. If there is still a tie after that, the victory is shared.

Scoring Did you outsmart your rivals?

In the board game ‘Oceans’, the scoring system is quite intricate and requires careful strategy for maximum point accumulation. Here’s a detailed breakdown:

During the Game:

Feeding Points: Whenever a species feeds, it gains population. Each population point will translate into a scoring point at the end of the game.
Attack Points: If a species with a ‘Carnivore’ trait attacks successfully, it gains population equal to the amount of damage dealt.
Population Overgrowth: If a species’ population exceeds its carrying capacity at the end of your turn, discard the excess population into your score pile.

End of the Game:

Population Points: At the end of the game, each player adds the population of their surviving species to their score.
Species Points: Each player is awarded points equal to the total size of their surviving species.
Scenario Cards: If Scenario cards have been used, they may award additional points depending on the situation described on the card.

Tie-breaking Rules:

In the event of a tie, the game has established rules for determining the winner:

The player with the most combined population and size from their surviving species wins.
If there’s still a tie, the player with the most population among their surviving species wins.
If a tie persists, the player with the most size among their surviving species wins.
If there’s still a tie, the victory is shared.

Understanding and strategically navigating the scoring system in ‘Oceans’ is key to a successful game. Remember, it’s not just about survival, but also about growth and adaptation.

Particular Cases and Exceptions Wait… is that legal?

Oceans is a strategy board game that simulates the vast diversity and interaction of marine life. While the game rules are straightforward, there are some special rules and exceptions that need to be considered:

Feeding Frenzy: Normally, a species can only feed once per round. However, when the “Feeding Frenzy” scenario card is active, any species with a forage ability can continue to feed until there is no longer enough food in the reef.

Bonus Points for Biodiversity: At the end of the game, players get bonus points for having a diverse ecosystem. This is not limited to just the number of species; each different trait in a player’s ecosystem adds to their biodiversity score.

Population Limit: Each species has a population limit of 20. If a population ever exceeds this limit, the excess population is immediately lost. This rule is often overlooked by new players.

Migration: During the migration phase, the active player can choose to migrate food from their species to the reef or vice versa. This can be done in any order and the total amount migrated must equal the migration number on the active player’s species.

Scenario Cards: The scenario cards introduce specific situations and exceptions to the standard rules. For example, the “Sun Bleached” scenario card causes all species to lose half of their population at the end of each round.
Deep Cards: These cards represent deep sea creatures and have powerful, unique abilities. However, they can only be played when the oceans are depleted, introducing a new layer of strategy to the game.
Apex Predators: Apex Predators do not follow the normal feeding rules. They can attack any species, ignoring any defensive traits, and get twice the population from attacking.

End of Game: The game ends when the deck of surface cards runs out. However, if a player cannot draw a new surface card at the start of their turn, they must draw a deep card instead, potentially triggering the end of the game earlier than expected.

These special rules and exceptions add depth and complexity to ‘Oceans’, ensuring that no two games are the same. Always refer to the rulebook if any confusion arises during gameplay.