Worker Placement

CoLab

The dawn of a new age approaches and we stand at the precipice. The unbridled power of nature awakens something within. Mysteries demand to be explored and the results are not always what we expect. Creepy creatures, dangerous devices, precarious potions, CoLaboratory Incorporated provides a shared laboratory space that is the perfect home for your and your outlandish creations.

Build interesting devices that open new possibilities. Brew potions that grant you fantastic on-demand abilities. Create strange monsters and earn great renown. All while keeping an eye on your fellow scientist and their minions. Scientists bring research into the lab to use on their experiments but they are not the only ones who benefit. Occupy a space adjacent to the research dice held by any minion and you can use it for your own creations.

Collect monster, device, or potion dice to generate more research that can be used on your creations.

Expand the laboratory giving everyone new opportunities.

With each new creation, your collection grows and the placement of each creation in your grid can create new opportunities or gain more renown. Once a player builds their 12th creation the end of the game is triggered and the player with the most renown (points) wins.

CoLab worker and dice placement game with dice collection. Players compete to gain the most renown through building monster, device, or potion cards over the course of the game. Each turn you send a minion to a tower space to gather resources or return a minion. Your minions also hold your resource dice. This resource can be used by players at either adjacent laboratory location. Then you place your player miniature on a laboratory location and either put the adjacent minions to work collecting more resources or build cards according to what is available at that lab. As the game progresses the board expands giving new opportunities for all players who visit that location.

Build a wide variety of monsters, potions, and devices or focus on one type to gain the most renown and win the game.

CoLab employs a series of '“take this”' mechanics where players provide resources, minions, or other opportunities to their opponents in exchange for resources or points. Balancing how much you give away with the opportunities your opponents may create is the real trick to becoming the most renowned scientist in CoLab.

—description from the publisher

Salton Sea

Salton Sea is a unique place located in California, very close to the border with Mexico. The characteristics of this salty lake make it a unique location to generate geothermal energy, which takes advantage of the heat from the planet. In this area of intense geothermal activity, you will drill the ground and extract brine which, once processed, allows us to obtain the valuable lithium and sell it as part of a modern industry, far from fossil fuels, that will allow you to lead the energy transition towards a completely renewable future.

Designed by David Bernal and illustrated by Amelia Sales, Salton Sea can be enjoyed alone or in groups of up to four players in sessions lasting about 120 minutes. During the game, players must manage their geothermal lithium extraction companies to obtain the greatest number of points. The extraction of this material and its subsequent processing will be the driving force of your companies.

On your turn, place one of your four engineers on one of the available spaces to take an action. There are three different groups of actions: industrial actions (which allow you to obtain an exploration license, drill, extract, process or repair machinery), commercial actions (sell, acquire contract and execute contract), and management actions (research, buy shares, develop the business project or finance itself). It is up to you to manage the engineers at each point of the game to get the most out of your company.

However, there is no single path to success. The game will reward you for exhausted land, executed contracts, short-term objectives, company development, or research advances. Will you master the power of the Salton Sea to create the most efficient geothermal company?

—description from the publisher

Karvi

As a Jarl, you travel the northern seas to achieve immortal glory. Under the sails of your own ship, which is built like a karve (Karvi), you‘ll lead a crew, trade with foreign cultures and plunder other lands.

Strengthen the skills of your crew by upgrading your ship and hiring stronger warriors. Whether you wish to establish new trade routes to secure rare goods or battle distant settlements to plunder their riches, your path to glory is yours to choose. But make sure to remember to stock up on beer and bread, so you have enough supplies to outmaneuver the competing clans.

Successful planning will make you renowned throughout the lands, and secure your place in Norse legend as a fearless Jarl.

—description from the publisher

Als Jarl bereist du die nördlichen Meere, um unsterblichen Ruhm zu erlangen. Unter dem Segel deines eigenen Schiffs in der Bauart einer Karve (Karvi) führst du eine Crew an, handelst mit fremden Kulturen und plünderst Ländereien.

Verstärke die Fähigkeiten deiner Besatzung, indem du dein Schiff ausbaust und immer stärkere Kriegerinnen anheuerst. Ob du neue Handelsrouten etablierst, um dir seltene Handelsgüter zu sichern oder ob du gegen ferne Siedlungen in den Kampf ziehst und ihre Reichtümer plünderst, entscheidest du. Doch denke auch daran, dich mit genügend Vorräten an Bier und Brot
einzudecken, um die konkurrierenden Clans auszustechen.

Nur wenn du erfolgreich taktierst, wird man deinen Namen schließlich an genügend Orten kennen, um als Jarl in die nordischen Legenden einzugehen.

—description from the publisher (German)

Rats of Wistar

In Rats of Wistar, you play the role of one of the four rats who organized the escape from a lab. As such, you will have to lead your family to prove that you are the most deserving of leading the entire colony. Thanks to your extraordinary skills, you will be able to explore the Farm until you reach the pantry to be able to grab the appetizing cheese; exploiting the artifacts abandoned by humans at the edge of the Wood, you will create new inventions and expand your lair under the trees, digging new rooms and building new beds. You will meet native rats and mice that you will welcome into your family, and when necessary, you will visit the Alchemist mouse to gain some extra advantage.

The game takes place over 5 rounds (equal to the 5 days in which the challenge takes place) and you will earn victory points (VPs) as follows:

build beds,
excavation rooms,
by solving missions within the Farm,
welcome host mice,
build new Inventions,
claim Achievements.

At the end of the game, the player with the most VPs wins. In case of a tie, the player furthest in the turn order wins.

Note: Rats of Wistar is not affiliated, associated, authorized, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with The Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology.

—description from the publisher

Ierusalem: Anno Domini

Jerusalem, spring 33 AD: A crowd gathers at the city gates to welcome Jesus of Nazareth as he prepares to celebrate the Passover seder with his apostles and followers. With a revolutionary message, he has garnered supporters everywhere but also looks of suspicion among religious authorities. The Last Supper will soon be celebrated, and the fate of one of the most influential characters in human history will be sealed.

In Ierusalem: Anno Domini, we represent one of the communities of followers of Jesus of Nazareth who, coming to Jerusalem from nearby towns and villages, want to approach the place of the Last Supper and position ourselves as close as possible to the seats of Jesus and his apostles. The closer we are, the more points we earn at game's end. We also score for offering tokens and parable tiles we've accumulated.

Different locations are shown on the board: the market, the desert, the mountain, the lake, and the temple. After sending our followers to one of these locations, we obtain stones, bread, and fish, as well as denarii or cards that allow us to do more than one action. Among these actions, players can choose between listening to a parable, going to the table, changing seats, or doing a favor, among other things. All this happens while the patience of the Sanhedrin runs out. When this happens, as symbolized by a tile moving in a marker, the endgame is triggered.

However, the main element of the game is the cards. Each card has a symbol corresponding to one of five key locations in the game. As we play them, we form combinations that allow us to bring the apostles to the table of the Last Supper. The optimal placement of our followers around Jesus and the apostles will also be done through the management of letters, as well as various resources at our disposal.

Behind a very immersive theme, Ierusalem: Anno Domini will not disappoint lovers of good challenges. Players have a wide range of possibilities at their fingertips and multiple ways to earn points. Preparing the best strategies to get the most out of your followers will be one of the keys to victory. Devout gamers don't need to look further: Here is your game!

—description from publisher