Summary

tl;dr

Draw phase

Draw Guardian Animals. If you draw 3 solitary symbols (top-left of the Guardian Animals cards) you cannot draw anymore (unless you've drawn gregarious symbols). You only get to use 1 standard Action (there are ways in the next phase to get bonus Actions). If you stop at a point where you have less then 3 solitary symbols, you get to use 2 standard different Actions. Solitary symbols can be canceled by gregarious symbols . So 3 solitary symbols - 1 gregarious symbol = 2 solitary symbols = 2 different standard Actions.

Action phase

Choose one or more of the following Actions:

• Take a Fragment tile: Take a Fragment tile. It can be played in a future Guardian Animal Phase to destroy a Fire Varan (fire card) or place a Guardian Animal card that you have just drawn back to your personal discard stack, regardless of its type.
• Attract one or more Guardian Animals: Add up the amount of suns you have to take one or more Guardian Animal cards visible in the reserve of Guardian Animals, for a total cost equal to or lower than your number of suns. The cost of a Guardian Animal is visible in the right-bottom corner of the card.
• Extinguish the Fire: Add up the amount of water you have and pick one or more Fire tiles from the Circle of Spirits for a total cost equal to or lower than your number of water.
• Move forward on the Circle of Spirits: Add up the number of spirals and move your Spirit of Nature standee clockwise on the Circle of Spirits by a number of rocks equal to or lower than your number of spirals. Gain the bonus of the rock you land on (may give specific extra Action), take a Victory tile of every player you jump over.
• Plant one and only one Protective Tree: Add up the amount of leaves and take one, and only one, Protective Tree for a total cost equal to or lower than your number of leaves. By placing a Protective Tree on specific corners you gain a specific extra Action.

End of Game turn

It's fully automated, so you don't have to do a thing. Next turn starts after this.

Goal of the game

The winner is the player that fulfills at least one of these 3 objectives:

• Plant 12 different Protective Trees
• Collect 12 Sacred Flowers
• Extinguish 12 Fires

The game stops at the end of a complete Action phase when one of the players has managed to complete one of these. If several players complete one of the three victory conditions at the end of a turn, then they add up the values of all three victory conditions. The player with the highest total wins.

Game turn

Each Game turn includes 3 phases:

1. Guardian Animals (draw phase)

2. Action(s)

3. End of Game turn (automated in BGA)

1. Guardian Animals

During this phase, all the Spirits of Nature (= players) play at the same time.

You draw and turn face up the Guardian Animals cards from your personal draw stack. This way you form your Guardian Animal Help Line.

If you want to draw a new Guardian Animal card to place in your Help Line , but your draw stack runs empty, then your discard stack gets shuffled to make a new draw stack. It is when you want to draw, and not when your draw stack turns empty, that you can make a new one.

You can stop drawing cards whenever you want. However, if you reveal a card showing a third solitary symbol , then you must stop drawing cards. This card closes your Help Line.

Important! A gregarious symbol cancels a solitary symbol. It will therefore be possible to play more than 3 solitary Guardian Animals in the same turn, provided that you have already revealed one or more gregarious Guardian Animals. Note that only the symbol of the solitary Guardian Animal is canceled, the Elements will be taken into account in the Action phase.

You can find both the solitary and gregarious symbol in the top left corner of a Guardian Animals card.

Fragment tiles

Whenever you want during this phase, you can discard a Fragment tile in order to, at choice:

• Destroy a Fire Varan card that you have just drawn. It is put back in the Fire Varan stack.
• Place a Guardian Animal card that you have just drawn back to your personal discard stack, regardless of its type.

After playing a Fragment, you can either stop or continue to draw.

Once all players have finished drawing their cards, the guardian Animals phase ends and you can move on to the Action phase.

2. Action Phase

During this phase, the players play in turn, starting with the player possessing the Sacred Tree. At the start of the game the Sacred Tree is given to a random player. After every Game turn it is given to the next player clockwise.

If your Help Line shows less than 3 solitary symbols (not counting the ones canceled by gregarious symbols), you can then perform 2 different Actions. For example, in your Help Line are 3 solitary symbols and 1 gregarious symbol, then only 2 solitary symbols count and you get 2 Actions.

If your Help Line shows 3 solitary symbols (not canceled by gregarious symbols), you can then perform only 1 Action.

The different Actions:

• Take a Fragment tile: Take a Fragment tile. It can be played in a future Guardian Animal Phase.
• Attract one or more Guardian Animals: Add up the amount of suns you have to take one or more Guardian Animal cards visible in the reserve of Guardian Animals, for a total cost equal to or lower than your number of suns. Place the card(s) on top of your personal draw stack. The cost of a Guardian Animal is visible in the right-bottom corner of the card.
• Extinguish the Fire: Add up the amount of water you have and pick one or more Fire tiles from the Circle of Spirits for a total cost equal to or lower than your number of water. Reminder: having 12 Fire tiles (tiles, not the number on the Fire tile) is a way to win the game.
• Move forward on the Circle of Spirits: Add up the number of spirals and move your Spirit of Nature standee clockwise on the Circle of Spirits by a number of rocks equal to or lower than your number of spirals.

If one or more Spirits of Nature are on a rock ahead of you, jump over them without counting their rocks and take one of their Victory tiles of your choice, whether it originally belongs to them or was taken from another player.

The rock you land on triggers a bonus. This an additional Action, it is added and may be different from or identical to the other Actions you take in your turn.

• Plant one and only one Protective Tree: Add up the amount of leaves and take one, and only one, Protective Tree for a total cost equal to or lower than your number of leaves. Place it in your Forest, on a space adjacent to a Protective Tree already planted. Diagonal spaces do not count. Reminder: having 12 different Protective Trees is a way to win the game.

By completing specific rows or columns you gain extra permanent bonuses on top of the permanent bonuses provided by the Protective Trees. You can take it into account for your second Action and in following Game turns.

Planting a Protective Tree in a corner triggers an immediate bonus Action. This can only be used once per corner.

3. End of Game turn

This phase is fully automated in BGA.

Stage 1: Onibi attacks!

If some Fire tiles remain at the center of the Circle of Spirits, add up their values. Then, each player adds up their value in water . If this value in water is strictly lower than the strength of the Fire, add as many Fire Varan cards to your discard stack as there are Fire tiles at the center of the Circle of Spirits.

Stage 2: Onibi is attacking the Sacred Tree

For each Guardian Animals card taken this turn, a Fire of a corresponding value is added to the Circle of Spirits:

• Level 1: Fire of value 2
• Level 2: Fire of value 3
• Level 3: Fire of value 4

There can never be more than 7 Fires in the center of the Circle of Spirits. If there are no more Fire tiles in the Circle of Spirits after stage 1, a Fire tile of value 2 is added, even if no Guardian Animals have been taken.

Stage 3: The arrival of new Guardian Animals

The Guardian Animals reserve is refilled by revealing as many new cards per level as there were cards taken this turn.

Stage 4: The Return of Guardian Animals

All Guardian Animals cards from your Help Line are moved to your personal discard stack.

Stage 5: Giving the Sacred Tree

The Sacred Tree (the starting token) is given to the next player clockwise.

The next Game turn begins.