Goal
Grow a swarm of Slimes by feeding them growth tokens. Claim Rites to earn 
. When the last Ripple is drawn, the game ends. Your final score is your Rites plus your Slimes — highest total wins.
Setup
- Each player picks a different starting type (ember, dew, moss, or pebble) and takes 3 Droplets of that type from the Slime deck. Once everyone has their starting hand, shuffle the Slime deck.
- Shuffle the Rite deck. Deal 5 Rites face-up in a row.
- Shuffle the Ripple deck. Keep 10 / 9 / 8 Ripples face-down for 2 / 3 / 4 players. Set the rest aside, unseen.
- Hand the First Player Token to whoever most recently watered a plant.
Your Slimes always stay face-up in front of you. That's your Swarm.
A Round
- Draw a
Ripple and resolve it. If the Ripple deck is empty, the game ends immediately — go straight to scoring. - Discard the rightmost
Rite. Slide the others right, then deal a new Rite face-up on the left. - Pass the Token counter-clockwise (to the player on your right), then take your turn. You still play this turn — the new Token Player will handle the start of the next round.
After the Token Player finishes their turn, play proceeds clockwise around the table. Each player takes one turn. The round ends after the new Token Player has taken their turn.
Your Turn
Free, any time during your turn
Free — either before, during, or after your turn action.
Combine (Droplet + same-type Slime)
Move a Droplet's growth tokens (plus a bonus +1 from the supply) onto another Slime of the same type, then dissolve the source Droplet.
You can do this as many times as you like.
Choose one action — or two if you have a ♛ Royal
Grow
Disburse 1 among your Slimes (any combination, including all on one).
+1 for each Big you control. 0 Bigs → 1, 1 Big → 2, 5 Bigs → 6. Royals do not add to this amount.
Draw
Draw 1 Slime from the deck.
+1 Slime for each Big you control. Same scaling as Grow.
Mutate (Droplet + different-type Slime)
Same as Combine, but the target must be a different type. Costs your action because cross-type fusion is harder.
Move the Droplet's growth tokens (plus +1 from the supply) onto the different-type target, then dissolve the source Droplet.
Split (Big only)
- Return 3 from the Big back to the supply.
- Draw from the Slime deck. Discard non-matching draws until you've found 2 Slimes of the Big's type. Add them to your Swarm. Shuffle the deck.
- Distribute the Big's remaining tokens freely across the original Slime and the 2 new ones.
If the deck runs out, shuffle the discard and continue. If even then there aren't 2 of the matching type, the Split fails — pick a different action.
Royal Combine (2 same-type Bigs)
Claim the matching ♛ crown (one of the 4 in the game) and place it on one of the two Bigs — that Slime is now a Royal. Discard the other Big. All growth on both Slimes is returned to the supply.
Only 1 Royal of each type exists in the game at a time. The bonus action a Royal grants does not apply on the turn you combine.
Claim Rite
If your Swarm currently meets a face-up Rite's condition, you may claim that Rite card and place it in front of you. Slide remaining Rites to close the gap; deal a new Rite face-up on the left.
Claiming consumes only the Rite card. Your Slimes and growth tokens are untouched.
Tiers
A Slime's tier is determined by its current growth tokens. A Big that loses tokens reverts to a Droplet automatically.
| Tier | Definition & behavior | End-game | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Droplet | 0–3 . Becomes a Big at 4+. Can be the source of Combine and Mutate. Cannot Split or Royal Combine. | +1 |
 |
Big | 4+ . Reverts to Droplet if it falls below 4. Each Big you control grants +1 per Grow and +1 Slime per Draw. Can Split. Pairs of same-type Bigs can Royal Combine. | +3 |
 |
Royal ♛ | Has a crown. Cannot hold . Grants +1 action / turn (max +1 even with multiple Royals). Cannot Split, Mutate, or be Dissolved. | +8 |
Royals ♛
- Grant +1 action per turn, capped at +1 total even with multiple Royals.
- Cannot hold growth tokens. Any effect that adds or removes tokens cannot target them.
- Cannot Split, Mutate, or be Dissolved by any effect.
- Only 1 Royal of each type can exist in the whole game.
- Worth +8 at end-game.
Ripples
Drawn at the start of each round (except Round 1). When the Token Player tries to draw a Ripple and the deck is empty, the game ends immediately.
Scope tags on the card tell you who and when:
- ALL Each player resolves it, starting with the Token Player and going clockwise.
- ROUND Stays face-up; the effect lingers until the next Ripple is drawn.
- FIRST Only the Token Player resolves it.
- REST Everyone except the Token Player resolves it.
- If a Ripple says "may", you choose whether to do it or skip. Otherwise it's required if able.
- If an effect can't apply to you (e.g. it targets a Big and you have none), skip your portion — no penalty unless the card says otherwise.
- You cannot choose to target an invalid Slime (e.g. a Royal when told to split, dissolve, or lose growth). If there is an applicable Slime, you must target it.
- If an effect calls for removing more than the target Slime has, the Slime is dissolved instead, unless the card says otherwise. You MAY target a Slime with insufficient in this manner even if you have other Slimes that could fully satisfy the effect.
Rites
5 Rites are always face-up. Each round the Token Player slides them — the rightmost is discarded and a new one enters on the left, so old unclaimed Rites cycle out.
To claim a Rite, your Swarm must currently meet its condition. Spend your action; take the Rite in front of you. It's worth its value at the end of the game. Slide the remaining Rites to fill its place. A new Rite immediately enters on the left.
Each Rite is claimed only once. If two players qualify, whoever claims it first on their turn gets it.
If the Rite deck runs out: shuffle the discarded Rites to form a new deck and keep refilling as normal. If both the deck and the discard are empty: keep playing, but no new Rites enter the row — only the Rites still face-up can be claimed.
End of Game
The game ends at the start of a round where the Token Player can't draw a Ripple. Finish scoring; do not finish the round.
| Source | |
|---|---|
| Each claimed Rite | Its printed value |
| Each Droplet | +1 |
| Each Big | +3 |
| Each Royal ♛ | +8 |
Highest total wins. Tiebreakers in order: most Royals → most Bigs → most total Slimes → shared victory.
FAQ & Clarifications
What's the difference between Combine, Mutate, and Royal Combine?
Combine is free, anytime, and same-type only. Source must be a Droplet.
Mutate is the same operation across different types — but costs your action because cross-type fusion is harder. Source still must be a Droplet.
Royal Combine is a completely different action: two same-type Bigs are consumed (all growth lost, one discarded) to mint a Royal of that type. The verb "combine" is shared, but the mechanics are separate.
How big is a Grow or a Draw, exactly?
The base is 1. Add +1 for each Big in your Swarm. So with 5 Bigs, Grow disburses 6 and Draw pulls 6 Slimes. Royals do not add to this — they only grant the second action per turn.
Does a Big revert to a Droplet when its tokens drop below 4?
Yes. Tier is purely a function of current growth tokens. A Big at 3 is a Droplet again — its end-game score, its Rite eligibility, and its contribution to Grow/Draw all immediately update.
What happens on Round 1?
On Round 1 only: the Token Player skips drawing a Ripple and skips the Rite slide — neither has happened yet. They still pass the Token counter-clockwise, then take their turn as normal. Every round after that uses the full 3-step start.
What does "Disburse N growth" mean?
Take N tokens from the supply and place them on your own Slimes in any combination — all on one, spread out, doesn't matter. Royals can't receive growth, so they're not valid targets.
Can a Ripple force me to dissolve my Royal?
No. Royals cannot be Dissolved by any effect.
What if an effect targets a tier I don't have?
Skip your portion of the effect — no penalty. You can't redirect it to a different tier, and you can't pick a Royal as a "safe" target for token removal (Royals don't hold tokens, so the effect can't apply).
When does the Slime deck reshuffle?
Whenever you're told to draw and the deck is empty, shuffle the discard into a new deck and continue drawing.
What happens when the Rite deck runs out?
Shuffle the discarded Rites to form a new deck and keep refilling as normal. If both the deck and the discard are also empty, the game continues — no new Rites enter the row, and players can only claim the Rites still face-up.
Can I claim a Rite on the same turn I create the conditions?
Claiming a Rite is its own action. So if you Grow and that pushes you over the threshold, you'd need a second action (the Royal bonus) to also claim it that turn — otherwise wait for your next turn.
Multiple players qualify for the same Rite — who gets it?
Whoever claims it first on their turn. The Rite is then gone; everyone else has to race for what's left.
Can I Combine onto a Big or a Royal?
You can Combine onto a Big (same type) — the source Droplet's growth (+1 from supply) lands on the Big. You can't Combine onto a Royal: Royals can't hold growth.
If my Big falls back to a Droplet, do I lose a Grow/Draw bonus this turn?
Yes — the bonus is based on the count of Bigs at the moment you take the action. If a hazard demoted your Big before your turn, you don't count it.