BoardGameArchiveFinspan
Explore Finspan’s ocean zones, fish engine, eggs, young, schools and four-week structure, with Stonemaier sources.
Explore Finspan’s ocean zones, fish engine, eggs, young, schools and four-week structure, with Stonemaier sources.
Play fish into three ocean zones—sunlight, twilight and midnight—then dive through columns to activate abilities.
Over four weeks, eggs hatch into young and young can form schools, while achievements and card effects reward different patterns in the growing marine tableau.
Why We Love It
Finspan simplifies the habitat-engine idea into a brisker structure where fish move through depth zones and reproduce. The engine is easier to enter than heavier tableau builders but still rewards sequencing and timing.
About Finspan
Play fish into three ocean zones—sunlight, twilight and midnight—then dive through columns to activate abilities.
Over four weeks, eggs hatch into young and young can form schools, while achievements and card effects reward different patterns in the growing marine tableau.
Game at a Glance
Fill Ocean Zones
Place fish into sunlight, twilight and midnight areas.
Dive Through Columns
Activate fish powers while moving deeper through an ocean column.
Grow New Life
Turn eggs into young and young into schools for later value.
Score Achievements
Build toward public and card-based scoring opportunities across four weeks.
What is Finspan?
Finspan is a marine-research engine builder designed by David Gordon and Michael O’Connell. Players discover fish in the Sunlight, Twilight and Midnight zones of their personal ocean.
The game lasts four weeks and Stonemaier lists it for 1–5 players in 45–60 minutes.
How the game works
Fish cards occupy different depths and generate benefits as players dive through their ocean. Eggs can develop into young, and groups of young can form schools, creating a progression system separate from Wingspan’s habitat rows.
Final scoring includes fish, eggs, young, schools and achievements.
The decisions that define it
The central question is how quickly to convert early card placement into repeated dive value. A fish with a useful power matters most when there are enough future dives to trigger it.
Resource and board-space constraints also make the depth at which a fish enters your ocean strategically important.
Who is it for?
Choose Finspan if you want a lighter, shorter entry in the broader Wingspan family with a marine theme and personal engine.
If you want more complex cave development, compare Wyrmspan.
How to learn Finspan
Each player takes six turns in each of four weeks: place a fish or dive at one of three sites. The first three week ends award achievements; after the fourth, score visible fish, consumed fish, eggs, young, schools and game-end powers. The full rules guide walks through a turn, and the scoring page has the point values and tiebreak.
When you know the base game, the strategy guide examines dive-column timing and population conversion.
Finspan: Sharks & Reefs
The 2026 Sharks & Reefs expansion requires the base game and adds reef overlays, new fish and sharks, coral tokens, achievements and replacement solo components. It adds a coral-building consideration to the familiar dive sites. Start with the base game if this is your first session; see the expansion guide for confirmed contents and scoring changes.
Learn Finspan in depth
Publisher sources & scope
Checked September 15, 2026. This is a researched base-game hub; use the publisher rulebook for exact card and faction interactions.