Lands of the Mesozoic

About this board game

Lands of the Mesozoic is a 1–4 player ecosystem-building game with an approximately 120-minute play time, set during the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods.

Players create and manage their own Mesozoic ecosystems using three main types of cards, each representing a different level of the food chain. The game includes more than 120 individual cards, illustrated by award-winning Ukrainian paleo-artist Sergey Krasovskiy.

Begin by laying down Land cards. These habitats provide shelter and generate plant, insect, or fish food. Land cards in play are used to pay for Herbivore cards, representing animals that use the resources produced by specific types of land.

Herbivores can then generate the resources needed to play Carnivore cards. These animals occupy the top of the food chain and control the population size of herbivore species in the ecosystem. All three card types must remain in balance for the ecosystem to be sustainable over time.

• Develop habitats with Land cards.
• Use habitat resources to support Herbivores.
• Build a food chain with Carnivores and manage changing populations.

Competition between species and the shifting nature of Earth’s surface can trigger extinction events. Animals and habitats may disappear, opening ecological niches for new species to appear and spread.

In Lands of the Mesozoic, the game lasts for three periods of seven, six, and five rounds. At the end, players score points for played cards, collected Victory Point Tokens, and completed common and personal goals.

The player with the most points after the final period wins. With its focus on food-chain relationships, habitat development, and changing ecosystems, the game brings the diverse world of the Mesozoic to the tabletop.