Pelagos Sanctuary

Pelagos Sanctuary is a competitive card-drafting and pattern-building game inspired by the real marine protected area shared by Italy, France, and Monaco. Each player manages their own marine sanctuary, expanding it turn after turn by playing cards that represent habitats and management strategies.

During each round, players simultaneously choose one card from their hand and decide whether to play it as a Sea card (to expand their marine area and gain resources) or as a Strategy card (to activate conservation actions or end-game objectives). They then pass the remaining cards to the next player, following a closed drafting mechanism.

Sea cards provide food resources used to attract Marine Mammal cards - whales, dolphins, and seals - while also introducing potential Threat tokens such as fishing, shipping, yachting, or pollution. Strategy cards allow players to mitigate these threats, turn tokens to their safe side, and score additional points through sustainable management.

At the end of each round, an Event card is revealed: if threats are not mitigated, they trigger real consequences like the loss or migration of animals between sanctuaries. After five rounds, the game ends. Players score points for the number and diversity of marine species in their sanctuary, successful strategies, and special recognition. The player with the highest total score becomes the most effective guardian of the Pelagos Sanctuary.

Eco-friendly in both theme and production, the game is printed entirely with FSC-certified and biodegradable materials.

—description from the designer