How to Play ARCTICA

How do you play ARCTICA? The rules in brief

ARCTICA is a competitive ecosystem-building game designed by Rémi Mathieu and Sams and published by This Way! Players build two columns of Fauna cards, generate animal tokens on short- and long-generation gear wheels, and eventually release those animals onto a shared Arctic map. Scoring combines Biodiversity earned during play, region-majority rewards and endgame bonuses.

The main turn structure is unusual. The active player chooses a space on the shared action board, rotates one of the two connected action wheels by 90 degrees, then performs both resulting actions in whichever order is legal. Every other player may perform one of those two actions. This means most of the table is doing something on each turn rather than waiting for a completely private action.

Animal tokens do not usually go straight from a card to the map. First they appear on a player’s Generation wheels, where time advances when the wheels rotate. They enter a release area when they mature; a later Colony action lets players spend Flora to put a species onto its legal spaces in the shared map. Positioning can award immediate connection bonuses and contribute to end-of-round regional majorities.

Under the detailed rules currently displayed by Board Game Arena, a game has four rounds, each ending after five active-player action selections. The regional ice, endangered-animal upkeep, potential species collapse and event tiles create important changes at round ends. After round four, add remaining animal, Flora and ecosystem-card points.

This guide is a mechanics-focused walkthrough, separate from our ARCTICA Gamefound and editions guide. It uses This Way’s publisher gameplay explanation and Board Game Arena’s available rules summary. The final physical rulebook and solo rules can have edition-specific clarifications, so use the booklet supplied with your copy if it differs.

Getting ready: a practical first-game setup checklist

ARCTICA has shared and personal components. Your first teaching game will run more smoothly if everyone understands that the two central action wheels are not the same as the player-board Generation wheels. One determines action access; the others determine when newly generated animals become available.

1. Prepare the Arctic map. Assemble the three regions and their ice tiles using the current rulebook’s setup. Later events affect sub-regions and the northern Arctic Circle, so leave those areas visible.
2. Prepare the central action board. Arrange its two action wheels and the action-pawn selection spaces, with the starting alignment defined by your version’s instructions.
3. Give each player a gear-based player board. Identify the long- and short-generation wheels, the release area, personal Flora and the two Fauna-card columns.
4. Separate cards and tokens. The game features 160 unique Fauna card artworks in five groups: marine mammals, terrestrial mammals, invertebrates, birds and fish. Use the prescribed game deck and token supply for your version.
5. Identify round resources. Put the draw deck, event/round components, ice markers and Biodiversity score track where players can see them. The current end-of-round card determines the majority rewards.
6. Prepare each player’s initial engine. Board Game Arena’s rules distinguish two starting Generation Cards from later Fauna cards; those starting cards cannot take the Reproduce action. Use the official setup diagram for the exact initial cards, hand size and placement.
7. Explain the first turn before play. Demonstrate the active player’s two actions and the other players’ one-action choice. Then demonstrate an animal token advancing through a personal wheel into the release area.

Setup precision note: this list identifies the components and relationships essential for learning; it deliberately does not invent the exact initial hand size, starting Flora, action-wheel orientation or a fixed map/ice arrangement. Use the current physical game’s setup diagrams or the automated BGA implementation for those edition-specific starting values. The publisher has also announced optional double-sided region boards and asymmetric Generation cards, which can change setup if selected.

ARCTICA turn order: active player versus everyone else

At the beginning of a normal turn, one active player selects an available central action-pawn space. That space is connected to two of the actions displayed around the central action wheels. The active player rotates one of those connected wheels by one quarter-turn, either clockwise or anticlockwise.

After that rotation, the active player can perform the two actions now associated with the chosen space, in either order. Other players choose one of those two actions to perform. The publisher emphasizes simultaneous play to reduce downtime.

Example: the active player rotates an action gear and reveals Fauna and Draw as the available pair. They may draw cards first and then play a Fauna, if its cost and prerequisites are legal. A different player chooses only the Draw action, while a third chooses Fauna and plays a card from their existing hand. Those nonactive players do not both perform Fauna and Draw.

The key timing trap: rotating the central action wheel to change which actions are offered is not the same as using the special Rotate Wheels player action. The latter advances animals on your own Generation wheels.

The two central action gears: why choosing a space matters

The main action board is more interactive than a fixed menu. Its wheels rotate over the course of play, changing which two actions a location offers. The current active player therefore determines both the action pair for that turn and some of the future action possibilities available to the table.

One of two connected gears rotates 90 degrees. Do not spin both central wheels, and do not rotate the central wheels by an arbitrary distance. In the BGA rules, the rotation may go either direction, so clockwise and anticlockwise are both potentially meaningful.

Good tactical questions are: which pair gets me a useful two-action combination; which single action will my opponents select; and will changing the gear expose a strong action pairing to the next active player? Those questions explain why ARCTICA is not strictly multiplayer solitaire even when everyone maintains their own tableau.

Original teaching example: if two offered actions are Reproduction and Rotate Wheels, a player could make a new animal token and then advance their wheels. That may bring one generation closer to release than the reverse order. Actual placement depends on the wheel slots available and the current Fauna column, so always check legality before claiming an immediate new animal on the map.

Fauna cards: five families, hand costs and Flash effects

The publisher identifies five Fauna families: marine mammals, terrestrial mammals, invertebrates, birds and fish. Their different abilities, generation speeds and placement interactions drive a large share of the game’s variety. The publisher advertises 160 unique Arctic animal artworks, but the exact gameplay card pool can also depend on optional card modules.

To perform the Fauna action, play a Fauna card by discarding the number of cards from hand shown as its cost in the lower-left corner. The card enters one of two columns beside your player board: the black-background long-generation cards go in the long-generation column, while orange-background short-generation cards go in the other.

Immediately resolve the printed Flash banner. A newly played Fauna also generates one animal token of its type on the matching Generation wheel, in the next legal available slot. You cannot play a card if the required animal slot is unavailable. Some cards also require certain printed badges to be present before they can be played.

Example: a Fauna has a cost of two hand cards. To play it, you discard two other cards from your hand, add the played card to its appropriate column, apply its immediate Flash effect and put one matching animal token into the proper Generation wheel slot. The animal has not thereby become a colony on the Arctic map.

Common confusion: the cost is paid in cards discarded from hand, not necessarily in Flora or Biodiversity Points. The specific card text may have additional requirements, which remain binding. See the BGA rules summary for the current Fauna-placement sequence.

Long versus short Generation wheels: animals need time

Each player’s board includes two distinctive Generation wheels. When a Fauna card generates an animal, place a matching token on the wheel associated with the animal’s generation speed. As time passes and the appropriate wheel rotates, those tokens progress through its spaces. Eventually they leave the wheel and reach the release area.

The release area is a staging point, not part of the shared map. Tokens there can become colonies when the player later performs a legal Colony action, paying the required Flora and choosing spaces for the animal family or species. The separation matters because adding lots of cards to your engine does not instantly create a board presence.

The Rotate Wheels + Draw action turns your personal wheels by one step and gives you a card. The Rotate Wheels + Migration action also turns your personal wheels by one step, but provides a movement on the Arctic Circle instead of a draw. Other card abilities may affect generation; resolve each printed effect as written.

Planning example: you have two marine-mammal tokens near the end of a Generation wheel. Choosing an action that advances the wheel can release them, making them ready for a future Colony action. Taking the Colony action before the tokens have entered your release area does not let you teleport those immature tokens onto the map.

There is a built-in risk to generating too much of one type: a wheel can fill, preventing further legal placement, and a later lack of available species tokens can trigger Collapse. Balance generation with release and colony placement rather than focusing on card count alone.

Activate versus Reproduce: cycling your two columns

Fauna cards do more than create tokens when first played. Each player’s two columns form a repeatable engine. The two key actions refer to the top Fauna card in the short- or long-generation column, not any favorite card buried below it.

The publisher explicitly says this top-to-bottom cycling creates timing decisions. A powerful card may take several Activations or Reproductions of other cards before it becomes accessible again. You cannot arbitrarily activate a card hidden in the middle of a column simply because its ability would be timely.

Starting Generation Cards are an exception: the BGA summary states they cannot be used for Reproduction. Avoid counting their presence as a free reproductive species when explaining the first action cycle.

Original example: your top short-generation Fauna has a card-draw ability and the card beneath it creates tokens you need for a coming majority. Activating the top card gains its immediate effect and cycles it away, exposing the second card for a later selection. You may accept a weaker reward now in order to set up the next part of the engine.

All primary action choices in ARCTICA

The action board offers several kinds of rewards. Their availability changes with gear positions, so this is a reference table rather than a fixed list of actions any player can always select at will.

A common teaching mistake is to give active and nonactive players different versions of the same action. The listed action effects are the effects; what changes is how many the player may choose on this turn. The special Colony resolution order is important because multiple players may compete for shared spaces.

Flora: generation, spending and upkeep

Flora is a recurring resource with multiple uses. The Flora ×2 action produces two tokens. Under the BGA summary, newly gained Flora normally enters your long-generation wheel, in its next available spaces. If that wheel is full, the gained Flora goes directly to your release area.

Flora is required for a regular Colony action, for protecting animals during certain end-of-round events, for endangered-species maintenance and for some Arctic Circle scoring opportunities. This makes it more than an endgame resource: keeping some available Flora can prevent a painful map or engine loss.

In the published Migration rule, reaching Ice tile #6 allows you to optionally spend one Flora per qualifying animal token, gain three Biodiversity Points and return that token to your release area. The cost is paid separately for each animal you choose to cash in.

At the end of the game, the BGA summary also awards one Biodiversity Point per pair of two remaining Flora tokens on your player board. That gives leftover Flora a modest final value, but spending it earlier may produce more map rewards or protect endangered animals. The game does not treat each single leftover Flora as one full point.

Migration: the Arctic Circle and the sixth ice tile

The Migration ×2 action moves an animal token along the Arctic Circle surrounding the action board, one space clockwise per movement. Each move can give the printed bonus of the destination space. You can allocate the two movements as legally allowed, and the combined Rotate Wheels + Migration action grants just one migration movement.

At Ice tile #6, there is no automatic bonus simply for arriving. Instead, you may optionally spend one Flora for each eligible token you cash in, receiving three Biodiversity Points and returning that animal to your release area. This is a conditional exchange, not a guaranteed three-point arrival reward.

Birds and terrestrial mammals have an additional movement restriction in the rules summary: they cannot finish on a space that lacks an Ice tile. They continue to the next legal ice-covered space and receive only the bonus from their actual arrival destination.

Example: a bird would move onto a space without ice, while the following space still has an Ice tile. It bypasses the ice-free space and stops at the next eligible one, gaining that destination’s bonus. It does not claim the bonus on the skipped space as well.

Colony action: paying Flora and placing animals

Animals in your release area are available to colonize the map. Performing a Colony action costs one Flora in the BGA rules summary. You then select a single species type from your release area and may place as many tokens of that chosen species as you legally can on corresponding spaces of the central map.

1. Pay one Flora. This is the action cost, not one Flora per animal placed under the described basic rule.
2. Choose one species type. You cannot mix arbitrary animal species in a single Colony action.
3. Place matching tokens. Use only the legal spaces printed for that species or family, while checking occupation and other current restrictions.
4. Resolve space benefits. Some spaces give a bonus; others show a cost that must be paid.
5. Resolve connections. When your placement creates a valid link to another animal token, take the printed shared connection reward under the applicable ownership rule.

If the active player offers the Colony action, its shared placement is not simultaneous: players resolve it in clockwise order beginning with the active player. That prevents two players from independently claiming the same contested space at once.

Original example: you have three released fish tokens and one Flora. A Colony action allows you to choose fish and place multiple fish tokens on legal fish spaces, paying any additional printed space-specific costs. It does not let you place two fish and one bird as though all released animals counted as the same species.

Connections, map positioning and Biodiversity rewards

The Arctic map is a shared scoring space, not merely a place to display animals. Regions have eligible animal positions and connections between them. When newly placed tokens create a qualifying connection, the players controlling the connected animals can receive its printed reward.

In the BGA summary, both players receive the connection bonus if the two connected tokens belong to different players. If you connect to your own token, you receive the bonus once rather than claiming it twice for being on both sides of the connection.

Consequently, a placement can serve multiple purposes: it develops your regional majority, earns a space bonus, and creates connections that also benefit rivals. That third feature makes ARCTICA strategically interactive, since an apparently valuable connection may provide points or resources to someone else too.

Illustrative choice: you can place a released marine mammal into a space that improves your presence in a contested region, or another space that creates a valuable connection with an opponent. The second may grant a reward to both players; the first may improve your majority result at round end. The stronger choice depends on the current end-of-round reward card and the opponents’ placements.

Four rounds: five action selections, then a changing map

Board Game Arena’s detailed current summary describes four rounds, each ending after five active-player action selections. During those turns, other players respond through their one-action choices, so every participant can make progress even when not the active player.

The end-of-round procedure is a significant part of the game, not an optional cleanup. Regional majorities are scored, Ice tiles disappear, some species can collapse, endangered animals require upkeep, and Event tiles can alter or damage part of the map.

Because regions can be altered by Events, the same available animal space may not remain safe throughout the game. If your strategy relies on a majority that will be checked immediately, consult the current affected regions rather than assuming every region scores every round.

Ice Melt: what happens to animals when ice disappears?

At the end of a round, the Ice tile numbered for that round is removed. The BGA rules summary says animal tokens occupying that tile return to the owning player’s reserve. This occurs as part of the published end-of-round sequence before the majority check.

This can change both the Arctic Circle’s available movement paths and the number of animals counted in affected positions. It also makes timing important: putting a fragile animal on a soon-to-melt Ice tile may earn a useful short-term reward but leave it unavailable there for a later scoring opportunity.

Example: when round two ends, the Ice tile marked two is removed. Any animal occupying it is returned as directed; the token does not remain magically attached to an ice-free position. A migration plan that assumed that tile would still be available in round three needs to be revised.

Do not confuse end-of-round Ice Melt with an Event. Ice Melt removes the specified numbered tile on schedule. An Event may alter a particular sub-region of the map and can have a different effect on animals there.

Regional majorities: how area control scores

After the scheduled Ice Melt, each affected region is checked for majority. The player with the greatest number of their animal tokens present in that region receives the highest listed award. Other rewards and ranking positions depend on the current end-of-round reward card.

During rounds one through three, two regions are affected; in round four, all three are affected. This means a player cannot simply count the total animal tokens they placed anywhere on the map and assume they will score every region in every round.

Original example: a region contains four tokens belonging to the blue player, three to the red player and one to yellow. Blue has the most tokens and receives the top reward indicated by that round’s card. The card determines how lower positions are rewarded, and any tie procedure should follow the current rules. We do not invent a universal fixed points table.

Majorities interact with Colony timing. If a shared Colony action is offered when several players need the same spaces, the active player resolves first, followed by others clockwise. That may decide who can occupy a position before the majority check occurs.

Species Collapse: the dangerous supply check

Beginning with the second round’s end, the rules summary includes a Collapse check. If you have no available tokens of a species remaining in your supply, that species may collapse. The BGA rules describe starting with six of each family in the relevant token inventory.

When the stated Collapse condition occurs, you choose three tokens of that type to discard from your map or player board, then gain four cards and two Flora. That is a major ecological setback with compensation, not an optional free reward for emptying a token pile.

Example: over several turns you generate and place every available token of a family, leaving none in its supply when the round-two Collapse check occurs. You must remove the specified tokens and receive the stated compensation. The engine may be stronger in cards and Flora afterward but weaker in animals, connections and regional majorities.

The exact definition of which tokens are considered “available” matters in edge cases. The printed rules and BGA implementation should decide those situations; do not invent a collapse on every temporarily empty wheel slot.

Endangered Fauna: end-of-round Flora maintenance

Some Fauna cards carry an endangered badge. At the end of the round, the published BGA rule requires a player to pay one Flora per endangered badge in their ecosystem.

If the player cannot or does not wish to pay the full required maintenance, they must destroy one card carrying an endangered badge in their ecosystem under the stated rule. This can reduce both their available animal engine and points printed on their cards.

Example: you have three endangered badges among your Fauna and only two Flora to spare. You cannot claim that your ecosystem is fully maintained merely because you paid two. Apply the game’s failure/destruction procedure rather than silently ignoring the third badge.

This is why retaining Flora can be more important than its modest endgame conversion. A single saved Fauna card may generate future tokens or printed points worth more than the final scoring value of a pair of leftover Flora.

Event tiles, sub-regions and fleeing animals

After the other end-of-round checks, a new Event tile affects part of each affected region. The BGA summary divides a region into three sub-regions and says one is randomly affected. An animal in that sub-region may be discarded unless its owner pays one Flora to save it.

Saving an affected animal sends it fleeing to the northern Arctic Circle, where the player gains the printed arrival bonus. If the token was in the central sub-region, its owner chooses the legal destination. Birds and terrestrial mammals may have to pay one additional Flora to reach the next ice-covered space rather than stop on an ice-free one.

The publisher describes events such as tourism, container ships and black tide. These may open new possibilities or remove existing ones. Therefore do not assume the shared map remains a static area-majority scoring board for the entire game.

Original event example: an Event covers a sub-region with one of your animals. You could allow the animal to be discarded, or spend one Flora to preserve it and move it to the Arctic Circle as the rules direct. The second choice saves the animal and may provide an arrival benefit, but consumes Flora needed elsewhere. Resolve the current Event rather than applying a universal hazard to all map spaces.

How ARCTICA scoring and the final tiebreak work

ARCTICA awards Biodiversity Points during the game for actions, printed abilities, connections, migration effects and regional majority scoring. These points remain part of your score; you do not start a new tally from zero at the end.

After the fourth round, add the specific final bonuses identified in Board Game Arena’s rules summary:

Example: you finished play with 41 recorded Biodiversity, five eligible animal tokens on your player board, five remaining Flora and seven printed card points. Your final total would be 41 + 5 + 2 + 7 = 55. This is an original arithmetic example; it is not a reconstructed score sheet from an actual match. The fifth Flora contributes no additional point because it lacks a partner.

Who wins? The player with the highest total Biodiversity wins. If players tie, the player with more Fauna cards in their ecosystem wins. If still tied, the players share the victory. There is no additional universal tiebreak using most remaining Flora, most connections or fewest endangered species.

Three original worked turns: gears, animals and the map

1. A Fauna and Draw action pair

Suppose the central gear offers Fauna and Draw after its rotation. As active player, you may draw two cards, then discard the cost required to play an eligible Fauna. That card goes into its short- or long-generation column, resolves its Flash effect and creates a matching animal token on the wheel. Each nonactive player chooses only one of the offered actions. The example illustrates action timing without assuming what actual card you drew.

2. Why Reproduce is not Colony

You choose Reproduction using an eligible top long-generation card. You create one animal token in that wheel, then cycle the used card to the bottom of its column. The token must mature before it is in your release area. To occupy the shared map, a later legal Colony action spends one Flora and allows placements of one selected species type. Reproduction by itself does not score a new regional majority immediately.

3. An end-of-round conservation dilemma

Your region-majority position looks strong, but you have two endangered badges that will require Flora. A coming Event may also force you to spend Flora to save a displaced animal. Spending your last Flora to colonize another species might improve the current majority but create a costly upkeep loss. The rule-based planning question is whether the immediate points justify that risk, not whether “more tokens always means more points.”

These examples are original editorial illustrations built from the cited rules. They do not reproduce publisher card effects or claim first-hand competitive testing.

Player counts, Board Game Arena and optional editions

This Way’s physical-product materials advertise 1–4 players and an official solo option, while Board Game Arena currently lists 2–4 players for its online implementation. That is not a contradiction: a digital implementation does not necessarily include the physical product’s solo opponent.

The publisher’s campaign includes Standard and Collector editions as well as optional systems such as Symbiotic Fauna and asymmetric Generation cards. These add modules beyond the normal base experience; the rules discussed above describe the core mechanisms, not every optional variant.

The publisher also announced double-sided map region sections, allowing different layouts. The combination of optional maps, new cards and module selection means the exact setup of a Collector game can differ from a teaching session with the standard core rules.

For purchase decisions, the official solo contents, campaign prices, estimated delivery and which extras can be bought individually, use our ARCTICA Standard vs Collector and solo guide and the Gamefound project. Do not treat Board Game Arena’s approximate playtime or 2–4-player player count as a final box specification.

Common ARCTICA rules mistakes

• Confusing the central action gears with personal Generation wheels. The central gears choose offered actions; your personal wheels advance animals.
• Giving nonactive players both offered actions. They choose one; the active player resolves both.
• Playing a Fauna card without paying its hand-card cost. Its cost is paid in discarded cards.
• Ignoring required badges or a full animal wheel. An otherwise attractive Fauna may be unplayable.
• Putting a newly generated token straight onto the Arctic map. It normally needs to mature and reach your release area first.
• Using Reproduction from the two starting Generation Cards. The BGA summary explicitly prohibits this.
• Activating any buried Fauna card. Ability and Reproduction use eligible top cards that then cycle to the back.
• Placing several different species in one Colony action. Choose a single species type, paying the required Flora.
• Resolving a shared Colony simultaneously. The published action takes clockwise player order starting with the active player.
• Claiming both ends of your own connection twice. You receive that connection benefit once.
• Claiming an automatic bonus at Ice tile #6. Its three-point exchange requires spending Flora.
• Assuming every region scores every round. Only two regions are affected in rounds 1–3; three in round 4.
• Ignoring Collapse from round two. Empty species supply checks can force token removal.
• Ignoring endangered upkeep. Badges require Flora or a card-loss consequence.
• Awarding one final point per remaining Flora. The rule is one point for each pair.
• Using Flora as the first tiebreak. It is most Fauna cards, then shared victory.

Read the live BGA rules summary when checking specific action icons or timing. It is a useful accessible reference, while the final printed rulebook takes precedence for physical-edition changes and optional modules.

ARCTICA rules FAQ: action wheels, generations and scoring

How many rounds does ARCTICA last?

Four rounds in the current detailed BGA rules summary, with five active-player action selections per round.

How many actions does the active player get?

Two actions from the pair offered by the central action wheels, after rotating one connected wheel 90 degrees.

How many actions do other players take?

They each choose one of the two offered actions.

Can players perform colony placement simultaneously?

Not when offered as a shared active-player Colony action. Placement proceeds clockwise from the active player.

How do you pay for a Fauna card?

Discard the number of cards shown as the Fauna cost, then apply Flash and generate its animal token if legal.

Are there two animal-generation speeds?

Yes. Fauna go into a short- or long-generation column with a matching wheel.

Does playing Fauna immediately place animals on the map?

No. Animal tokens normally advance on their Generation wheels and later reach the release area.

How do animals leave a Generation wheel?

Rotate the personal wheels through legal actions or abilities until the tokens mature and enter the release area.

What does Reproduction do?

Generates another token from an eligible top-column Fauna card and cycles that card to the bottom.

Can the starting Generation Cards reproduce?

No, under the Board Game Arena rules summary.

What does the Ability action do?

Resolve an eligible top Fauna card’s ability banner and cycle it behind its column.

How many Fauna families are there?

Five: marine mammals, terrestrial mammals, invertebrates, birds and fish.

What is Flora used for?

Colony placement, endangered-animal upkeep, certain event protections and some migration scoring.

What does the Colony action cost?

One Flora under the published basic summary, then you place legal tokens of a single selected species type.

What are connections?

Printed links between animal spaces that award bonuses when a valid new connection is made.

Can I collect a connection bonus twice with my own tokens?

No. When both ends are yours, you gain it only once.

How does Migration work?

Move animal tokens along the Arctic Circle, gaining legal arrival-space bonuses.

How do I score at Ice tile #6?

Optionally pay one Flora for each qualifying animal you cash in to gain three Biodiversity Points per paid token.

What happens when ice melts?

The numbered Ice tile for the round is removed and animals on that tile return according to the round rules.

When do region majorities score?

At round end: two regions in rounds 1–3 and all three in round four.

What triggers species Collapse?

From round two onward, a species with no available supply tokens can collapse under the published rules.

What happens if I cannot maintain endangered Fauna?

The BGA summary requires Flora per endangered badge or destruction of a qualifying Fauna card.

How long does a game take?

The publisher lists about 75 minutes; the BGA implementation displays observed shorter digital sessions. Actual time depends on players and familiarity.

Does ARCTICA have solo play?

The physical product advertises 1–4 players and official solo content; BGA’s implementation lists 2–4.

How do you score at the end?

One point per remaining animal token on your player board, one per pair of Flora and printed Fauna-card points, plus points already accumulated.

What breaks ties?

The tied player with more Fauna cards in their ecosystem wins. If still tied, victory is shared.

Is the game already delivered to retail?

The 2026 Gamefound campaign ending does not establish completed retail fulfillment; check the publisher for delivery status.

Sources, rule-version warning and editorial disclosure

Publisher mechanics: This Way — ARCTICA gameplay page. It explains the simultaneous central action wheels, the Fauna columns, short and long generation, 160 animal artworks, connections and changing regional Events.

Detailed accessible rules: Board Game Arena — ARCTICA rules summary. The current summary supplies the active/nonactive player timing, Fauna costs, Reproduction and Ability cycling, Flora, Migration, Colony and connection rules, four-round end sequence, Ice Melt, Majority, Collapse, Endangered species, Events and final scoring. BGA states that This Way made the digital game available.

Campaign and variants: This Way’s official ARCTICA Gamefound project, October FAQ and double-sided regions announcement. They provide context about Standard/Collector components, optional gameplay systems and expected physical release.

Related site coverage: ARCTICA Board Game — gameplay, Gamefound, Standard vs Collector and solo. This separate article is an instructional explanation rather than a duplicate buying or release-status page.

Edition and scope: Checked 1 November 2026. This is an original explanation of available publisher and Board Game Arena rules, not a reproduction of a copyrighted rulebook or a claimed firsthand playtest. For optional modules, solo mode, exact initial setup and any changes in the final physical edition, follow the most recent printed rulebook or publisher clarification. No ad scripts or third-party card art have been inserted. Our editorial standards explain research and corrections.