How to Play Spirit Island: Spirit Phase, Invaders, Fear & Victory
Spirit Island is cooperative: the Spirits win or lose together. Each round has a Spirit Phase, Fast Powers, the Invader Phase and Slow Powers. The central puzzle is to prepare for where the Invaders will Explore, Build and Ravage before damage turns into Blight.
Researched base-game guide. Checked September 20, 2026 against Greater Than Games’ Spirit Island resources. Branch & Claw, Jagged Earth and later expansions add tokens, Events and other systems not assumed here.
Choose Spirits and build the island
Each player chooses a Spirit, takes its panel, Presence and unique powers, and uses the setup instructions printed for that Spirit. Assemble one island board per player and place Invaders, Dahan and Blight as directed by the base-game setup.
For a first game, the publisher provides lower-complexity Spirits and Power Progression cards. Those progressions replace random power-card choices while learning.
1. Spirit Phase: Grow, gain Energy and choose powers
During Growth, choose one of your Spirit’s printed Growth options. Growth can add Presence, reclaim used Power cards, gain a new Power card, move Presence or provide other Spirit-specific benefits.
Next gain Energy from your Spirit’s uncovered Energy track. Then choose the Power cards you want to play this turn and pay their Energy costs. Your Card Plays track limits how many you can use.
Elements activate thresholds; they are not spent
Played Power cards provide element symbols. Innate Powers and card thresholds check whether you have enough of the required elements. Unless an effect explicitly says otherwise, elements are not a resource you spend; the same symbol can help satisfy multiple thresholds.
2. Fast Powers resolve before the Invaders
Resolve Fast Powers in any useful order, coordinating with teammates. Push or gather Invaders, defend lands, generate Fear, damage pieces or prepare Dahan before the Invader Phase.
Range is measured from your Presence unless the power specifies another origin. Target restrictions on land type, Invaders, Dahan or Presence must all be satisfied.
3. Invader Phase: Fear, Ravage, Build, Explore
Resolve earned Fear cards at the current Terror Level. Then resolve the Invader actions shown on the board. Lands matching the Ravage card suffer damage from Invaders; surviving Dahan can fight back after the Ravage according to the combat rules.
Build adds a Town or City according to the base-game priority. Explore adds Explorers to eligible lands matching the new Invader card and adjacency/source rules. Then advance the Invader cards so today’s Explore becomes a future Build and then Ravage.
Blight is the main board-state danger
If Invaders deal at least 2 damage to the land during Ravage, add Blight and resolve cascades when required. Blight also destroys Presence under the base rules. If the Blight supply reaches the loss condition specified by the current island state/card, the Spirits lose.
4. Slow Powers resolve after the Invaders
Slow Powers cannot stop the Invader actions that already happened this round. Instead, use them to damage new buildings, reposition pieces or prepare lands for the next cycle. This delayed timing is one of Spirit Island’s most important planning rules.
Fear changes the victory condition
Damage and card effects generate Fear. Each earned Fear card moves the team through the Fear deck. Terror Level I requires removing all Invaders to win; Terror Level II requires no Towns or Cities; Terror Level III requires no Cities. Earning through the entire Fear deck produces the final fear victory condition.
Know the loss conditions
- Blight: the island reaches its Blight loss condition.
- Presence: any Spirit loses all Presence from the island.
- Time: you need to draw an Invader card and the Invader deck is empty.
- Adversaries and scenarios can add their own loss conditions.
Continue learning Spirit Island
Sources and scope
Checked September 20, 2026. This article teaches the base-game structure; expansions can add Events, tokens and additional edge cases.