Crafting the Cosmos: Review
Information:
Player Age: 14+
Player Count: 2 - 4 Players
BGG Weight: 3.00
Time to Play: 60 - 90 Minutes
Year Published: 2025
Disclaimer: A review copy for the game was provided by the VR Distribution
Introduction:
Crafting the Cosmos is a game where players design and fill their own cosmos. This is achieved by using a clever mancala mechanism on the central board where actions aren't granted by the position of the first or last mancala action. Instead, the benefits/resources are determined by the entire state of the main board after the movements have been made.
Game Anatomy:
Main Board:
During this game, players share a main board that will work as a shared state of mancala. On this board, there will be neutral energy tokens (based on player count) and one of each player colour. On a turn, the active player can move the energy tokens up to three spaces. The player has to move their energy tokens by at least one space but if they choose they can also move any other energy tokens (except their opponent's) with the last two movements they have. After this movement occurs, the player will gain benefits based on where their token is, as well as how many tokens are in each of the four locations.
- The light control space (red) will award energy cards. Cards replenish at the end of a turn and players can draw from the top of the deck equal to the amount of tokens at this location. This side will also grant the player three hydrogen stars if the player's energy token is here.
- The chemistry control space (purple) will award proto life tokens based on the energy amount here, along with a carbon star and a Nebula tile if the player's energy token is here.
- The time control space (green) will award a time crystal based on the energy amount here, along with an oxygen star and the opportunity to convert two proto-life tokens into stable life tokens if the player's energy token is here.
- The gravity control space (blue) will award movement equal to the energy count, along with a helium star and a conversion of one star token into a supernova if the player's energy token is here.
Player Board:
Each player will have a personal player board that they will use to place Nebula tiles, stars, power cards, and life tokens. This board will also track each player's points, time crystals, and how much movement, supernova conversion, and stable life conversion they generated and can use in the turn. The board is also split into three sectors: psi, phi, and delta. The borders of these sectors are shown by white lines.
Movement:
Movement is a resource that disappears at the end of each turn. This allows players to move their stars or life (proto and stable) tokens. Each movement will allow one movement to the next available space. This means that if the player has set a connected path of stars or life it allows one movement to reach further, right to the end of the track as the next available space.
Nebula Tiles:
Nebula tiles will score points and flip over if there are equal or more matching stars surrounding the nebula that are determined on the tile itself. The Nebula tiles adjacent to each other will share the stars. When a Nebula tile is flipped, there is a cost of discarding one surrounding star (this can include supernova). The Nebula tiles come in three variations (separate piles) which increase in points but will require more stars to complete.
Star Tokens:
Star tokens come in four types; carbon, helium, hydrogen, and oxygen. Each of these tokens has a secondary side displaying a supernova (wild).
Life tokens:
Life tokens will be used to create advanced life on a flipped Nebula. There are proto (purple) and stable (green) life. To create the advanced life there needs to be no pre-existing advanced life on the flipped Nebula and the Nebula needs to be surrounded by any combination of these two life tokens. When the advanced life is created all proto life will be discarded and the stable life will remain.
There are two groups for the advanced life; group-one has points ranging from 6-8, and group-two has points ranging from 4-7.
Time Crystal Tokens and Track:
Time crystal is a track on the left-hand side of the player's board. When the time crystal reaches six it can be moved over to the right-hand side of the track, gaining the points as well as generating one star of the player's choice. Certain power cards can be gained to create different abilities instead of generating a star. When all of the time crystal tokens are empty, it will determine the last round of the game.
Energy Cards:
Energy Cards all have unique art and feature four colour types (purple, red, blue, and green). Energy cards will be used to activate power card abilities, as well as create new power cards for the players. Power cards are created by players spending 2, 3, or 4 of the same energy cards; drawing that amount of power cards from the matching deck. From those drawn, one is chosen to be placed in the slot next to the player board. Each slot can only have one power card attached. Players may also spend five of the same energy cards, any number of times, to score six points each time.
Power Cards:
There are power cards of the four types (energy, time, chemistry and gravity) on the main board. Each of these power cards has a cost to activate (can be activated multiple times on a turn), and the ability will link back to the type of power they match. This ability could be creating more stars with the red power cards or stabilising life with the green power cards.
Lastly, each power card a player attaches will add a power marker to the main board. This grants the player extra resources of that type equal to the amount of power markers they have there.
Universal Goals:
Universal Goals will end the game when they have all been resolved. Each universal goal will grant the player with the most of whatever is specified six points, and the second-most receives three points. In a two-player game, there is no second place.
Setup:
Main Board:
- The amount of energy tokens will change based on player count; 2/3/4 players equals 6/9/11 time crystals.
- Shuffle the universal goals, there will be six per game with the top goal displayed face-up on the track.
- Shuffle the energy cards and fill the display.
- Shuffle the nebula tiles in their three separate piles.
- Shuffle the advanced life tokens. Group 2 will take up the majority of the pile, while 2-per-player of the group 1 advanced life tokens will be placed on top of the pile.
Player Board:
- The score marker will go to the starting place of the score track (0).
- The four resource trackers will be placed on the supernova, life conversion, movement, and end turn tracker on the board.
- Each player will gain a hydrogen star in the middle of the board.
- Each player will gain a proto life on the white space in a life section on the top of the board.
- Each player will gain a player board, four energy cards, and a time crystal token at the start of their track.
- Each player will gain one of each size nebula and place them on the indicated spot on their board.
- Retrieve each player's energy and neutral energy (four at two players, or else three natural energy). Then, starting with the light (red) space on the main board, place each energy one section at a time. The player who has their energy placed last is the first player.
How to Play:
The game will continue in rounds with every player taking turns until either the time crystal tokens run out or all the universal goals have been scored. On a turn, there will be an energy phase and a craft phase, followed by an end-of-round phase after everyone has had their turn.
Energy Phase:
During the energy phase, the active player can move the energy tokens up to three times. The rules for this are;
- At least one movement has to contain that player's energy token.
- Energy tokens can be moved multiple times.
- Other players' tokens cannot be moved.
- Each location can hold a maximum of three energy tokens. If moving into a location with the maximum energy, the token will move past this space and into the next available.
- Three movements are allowed but not all movements must be used.
After the energy tokens are moved, the active player will look at the energy of the main board. Gaining the left-hand side actions of the location where their energy token is. Additionally, they will gain bonuses on the right-hand side of each location equal to the amount of energy that is in that location, as well as the power markers of that player's colour in each location. The active player will then gain all the resources earned and use the tracker on their player board for any resource tracking that isn't physical.
Craft Phase:
This phase can be done while the next player is activating their energy phase for the players who are familiar with the game. In this phase, the gained resources are spent on such actions as;
- Scoring Nebula tiles
- Gaining new power cards
- Using movement to move stars or life
- Placing stars or life
- Converting proto into a stable life or a star into a supernova
- Use a time crystal that is on the 6th space on the player's track
- Creating advanced life
- Spending five of the same energy cards for six points
Once the player has decided they have finished crafting they will then gain one new Nebula tile from the pile of their choice or convert one proto life into a stable life.
End of round:
Once all players have had their turn the universal goals will move down, scoring if it moves off the track and revealing a new universal goal. Any player with more than 10 energy cards will discard down and the first player marker will pass to the next player (unless in a two-player game). Once all universal goals have been resolved or the last time the crystal token has been taken, the game will end after the current round and the player with the highest points is the winner.
Final Thoughts:
- Unique twist of mandala, where instead of starting or end locations creating actions it's the rondel state of the whole board at the end of the turn.
- For players that understand the game it has zero downtime as the crafting phase can be done in the background.
- Great way of making objectives be revealed slowly but with enough time to plan.
- Each avenue for players to focus on felt balanced, while also allowing for a mix of pathways.
- The only production issue was that the proto and stable life tokens were very small and finicky.
Crafting the Cosmos has a lot going for it. This is very much a point salad game with players having various pathways to gaining points. These include scoring Nebula, focusing on advanced life, focusing on energy cards, or purely chasing the universal goals. All of this is helped by the power cards that give players further avenues and assistance with direction. What makes this game great for me is how the mancala/main board works. Instead of focusing on what locations players start or end their turn in, it is a shared puzzle with players gaining resources based on the entire board's state at the end of the turn. This makes it very challenging at times to manipulate the board to match the chosen path, however, this tactile decision is what makes the game shine for me. Once players understand the game fully there is very little downtime as the craft phase can be undertaken while another player is resolving their energy phase. Crafting the Cosmos is beautifully produced and has earned a Go-To Golden Game Seal.
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