Lost Ruins of Arnak
Lead an expedition through a lost island using a hybrid of worker placement and deck building, then convert discoveries into research progress and points.
Send archaeologists to sites, discover new locations and defeat guardians while improving a personal deck of items and artifacts.
Resources earned from exploration also advance the research track, creating a constant tradeoff between map development and temple progress.
Why We Love It
Lost Ruins of Arnak makes every card serve as both an effect and a travel icon, tying deck construction directly to board access. Research, site exploration and resource conversion compete for a very limited number of actions.
About Lost Ruins of Arnak
Send archaeologists to sites, discover new locations and defeat guardians while improving a personal deck of items and artifacts.
Resources earned from exploration also advance the research track, creating a constant tradeoff between map development and temple progress.
Game at a Glance
Place Archaeologists
Use travel icons to reach sites and gather resources.
Improve the Deck
Acquire items and artifacts that strengthen later turns.
Discover Sites
Open new locations and face guardians for additional rewards.
Advance Research
Convert resources into temple progress and end-game scoring.
What is Lost Ruins of Arnak?
Lost Ruins of Arnak, designed by Mín & Elwen, sends rival expeditions to explore an uncharted island. The game combines worker placement, deck building, resource conversion and a research track over a fixed number of rounds.
CGE lists it for 1–4 players, age 12+, at roughly 30 minutes per player.
How the game works
Cards serve two roles: they can provide travel icons for placing archaeologists at sites or be played for their printed effects. Exploring new sites reveals stronger locations but also introduces guardians that require resources to overcome.
Players also advance on the research track, acquire Items and Artifacts, and improve the efficiency of future turns through deck construction.
The decisions that define it
Arnak constantly asks whether a card should be spent as travel or kept for its effect. That dual use makes hand timing more important than simply buying the strongest available card.
Research, exploration and deck improvement compete for the same limited resources, so a strong plan usually converts one system into progress in another.
Who is it for?
Choose Arnak if you want a medium-weight strategy game with multiple connected systems but a relatively clean round structure.
If you want pure deck-building, use Dominion; if you want a heavier card-and-worker hybrid with more conflict, compare Dune: Imperium.
Lost Ruins of Arnak expansions
Compare all Arnak expansions · Expedition Leaders · The Missing Expedition · Twisted Paths · Surprise Shipment
Focused Arnak rules
Compare Lost Ruins of Arnak
Publisher sources & scope
Checked September 15, 2026. This is a researched base-game hub. Expansion and card-specific exceptions remain governed by the publisher rules.