Straight to the point strategy guide. Tips from a competitive gamer. More Ark Nova: • How is Ark Nova balanced? Other Guides: • Ruins of Arnak - Strat...
12:55 I found that Release-type conservation projects at the start can be quite valuable: you can very quickly play an animal, release it, get the association worker and card upgrade (plus a bonus reputation which gets you closer to that sweet reputation track card upgrade) from it before first break and get a kickstart that way. Sure, it sacrifices the money income that animal would have provided, but an early card upgrade and having 2 association actions from the very start (if you have the time to use them both between 2 breaks) are worth it most of the times I think.
It can be good but I think it's rare. Rushing association worker is countered by early break which puts you far behind because low income. Maybe taking 5$ could compensate. Release is strong with specific animals that have low appeal to size ratio.
Release conservation projects are essential with the 'Observation Tower' zoo-map, to give you the option of re-using the 2 appeal bonus that you get for putting an animal in an enclosure next to it. There are some excellent animals in the deck that are great to use with those projects, mostly animals that have a really strong action, rewards that are not appeal (like conservation points or reputation) or help you play other cards by providing symbols. Often the best use of these cards is in the mid to lategame, where you already claimed a goal with the animals symbols and no longer need a ton of money.
After 130 games of Ark Nova i have to say I most likely upgrade usually sponsors first, cause playing a lot of sponsor cards bring often a lot of ingame bonusses aswell as additional scoring possibilities at the end of the game. Animals is most of the time the card I dont upgrade cause it doesnt bring so much to the table, and there are so many other ways to get those reputation points.
That is very interesting, different than every other strategy I've heard. I do think sponsors are the most important cards in the game, so I can see the reasoning. The problem is I run out of sponsor cards even playing 1 at a time. Also, sponsors cost 3-6 and without x tokens the upgraded sponsors is power 6. This makes it quite difficult to play multiple sponsors, unless you play the map with 3 H icons that reduces sponsor cost. If I have that map, or find Explorers/Talented Communicator, then I'll upgrade sponsors early. I can't imagine not upgrading animals. Getting the upgrade and worker sooner is very important. Also you don't reach 15 rep without upgrading animals, so you miss out on free conservation, cards, and x tokens. Even if you don't care about the rep, its still a must upgrade because it unlocks eagles, elephants, and other strong animals. Also the ability to play from center row is twice as relevant for animals as sponsors because of card density.
@@aetherllama8398 why should I not get up to 15 reputation without the animals upgrade? It is easily achievable to reach that as there are so many ways to get reputation up. You can also play sponsors from the river with sponsor level 2 if you struggle to get them in your hands, which I just doubt. I usually end up with 8-12 sponsors in play
Smaller sample size, but I have played about 15 games of this against very strong Euro players (including an ex-Terra Mystica world champion, and MSO regular). The games I have not won/scored the lowest are when I upgrade Animals first. I find Association and Sponsors are two of the most important, followed by Cards (to get the reputation track bonuses and more card draw) and then Build (so you can build more than 1 thing and build the specialist enclosures). I find that the Animals that require and Upgraded Animals cards are already prohibitively expensive/have prohibitive requirements, making them less possible to play multiple of them. If you're only playing 1 or, at best, 2 Animals that require this card upgrade... then it feels like a very wasted card upgrade, given the massive opportunity cost. *EDIT*: Having now played many more games, I find Build and Animals are the two cards I upgrade most often. My thoughts, above, are not what I think after having played the game more.
Well done on the video, it includes a lot of pointers that are going to be helpful to players that want some input on what is a good baseline on upgrades, starting cards and sponsor cards. I couldn't find many things that I disagree with, I just have some pointers on specific sponsor cards or on the upgrade path of your starting cards. As for upgrading the Build action card, this is the card that I tend to vary the most on when and if I want to upgrade it. In a lot of games, you need to upgrade it early to make multiple buildings, including important economy stuff like kiosks, all in one action. Though I don't play online, apparently the metagame over there (with a ton of experienced players) is that it is often the first card to be upgraded, to become more action efficient over a longer period of time and always having the option to spend leftover money on stuff. As I said, I tend to vary the most on this card specifically, as there can be games where you are aiming for large animals, that only requires the occasional 5 enclosure on the strength 5 spot and then waiting for it to be all the way back to 5 for your next big enclosure. In those games, I tend to upgrade the card late in the game, or sometimes not at all. In the sponsor cards you had the 'Federal Grants' card on A tier, this is generally considered to be one of the best sponsor cards in the online meta. As I said, I don't play online, but I can see that especially having it early will greatly boost your economy for absolutely no trouble at all. It is the easiest to play economy card, that also generates an easy point and a science symbol. Also cards like 'Science Museum' and 'Medical Breakthrough' can be complete gamechangers when played early. They are rather hard to put into play, but if you can find some symbols early, they pay off in a big way and can generate anywhere from 2-8 points for a single card, which is insane. Also the 'Breeding Program' and 'Global Breeding Program' cards are legit sleepers, which can in most cases win you the race for a common conservation project. They only work twice for that reason, but winning two 5 point goals before other people can claim them will generally win you the game if it is anywhere close between you and the other players. Occasionally they might even give you a point if you happend to score a lot of goals, which is probably a rare thing, but still a nice bonus.
Association rarely needs to be upgraded early. Unless you have a 2nd worker early it isn't as good as animal/build to upgrade early. Usually it is one of the last actions I upgrade. But agreed that playing 2 workers in one association action is strong. But that is a mid to late game action. I would say "build" should be tier A because 99% of games will upgrade build and in the majority of games it is the 1st or 2nd action upgraded. Association is strong, but it often isn't upgraded if you upgrade sponsor (card is the other action I often forgo when upgrading sponsor). (Context: I mostly play 2 player, so the strategy may change with 3/4 players)
I'd probably switch Build and Association now. I won many games upgrading Association first, getting 3 partner zoos, and not upgrading Build. It's more viable than people think, but Build is better in most games.
Thanks for this, I played a whole bunch of solo and multi games. I started prioritizing these cards and find to be winning every time in solo 20 start ticket games.
Glad to hear it! Check out the ARNO solo variant, it feels more like a multiplayer game. Base solo plays a bit different because of the round structure, it's more important to be action efficient and less important to maximize your income.
First tier list I've seen. I think that the build action is A tier, mostly because the reptile house is busted! Also really surprised how high the waza program was. But that's why I love ark nova. Lots of very different strategies
Build is interesting because it's one of the best early upgrades, but it's also the card I usually don't upgrade if I need to upgrade sponsors. Waza Program is in the bottom half, do you mean Waza Assignment? Not many sponsors can give you 12+ appeal, it is a high variance card though.
There are a couple of Waza named cards in the deck, to confuse matters further ;) Upgrading build is definitely the quickest way to become more action efficient. In most games you *need* to build Kiosks to get some economy going, in games where you have a lot of small animals, you *need* to build a ton of smaller enclosures. On some maps, you *need* to upgrade the card to get the most out of the special hexes. (Outdoor area for example) It is very important, but can also be a late or a non-consideration as other things tend to outshine it once you don't need to build a ton of small stuff or have an 'Engineer' sponsor making stuff easier.
I am an experienced gamer who has played 50+ games of Ark Nova now. It is interesting to see other opinions. I almost NEVER flip the animals card, and frequently flip the sponsors card first for the double money usage and general game acceleration (turning those workers!) It would be interesting to play against the advisor. :)
Without animals you are below education track which gives you a lot of value so propably not so comepetive players around your tables :D (this is just opinion not any kind of hate) I recomand to check BGA and try it there propably will end up losing
Using the sponsor action for money and breaking is generally a low value or even a wasted turn. Upgrading it certainly makes this better and allows for money generation, but ideally you want your opponents to break the game so you can just keep pumping out cards and valueable actions as much as possible. That said, having the option to play them from the middle row is a really important plus, as is being able to playing multiple. I find though, that as sponsors are the cards that have the most engine-building and gamebreaking effects, in additon to generating extra points at the end, they tend to be extremely hard to get, as every player is gunning for them and only 1 in 7 or so being a sponsor card. Upgrading cards is always very situational and leaving a card unupgraded has so far happened for me for every single action card multiple times and often enough it turned out to be the right call. That said, the sponsor card is still the one I upgraded least, precisely because of the competition for those cards and getting even a single sponsor to play can be hard, never mind getting multiple.
This is well outside my playstyle (in places, most I agree with). Like for example I never upgrade Animals first! Definitely going to try these strategies on upcoming games though.
Yes its a very income focused strategy to play more and better animals. By upgrading Animals and taking 2 universities (3 rep) first, you get a quick upgrade and worker from the reputation track, freeing you up to take $5 income or enclosure income as your first conservation bonus. If you start partner zoos, I'd recommend upgrading Association first, unless you're able to get early reputation from other places. My strategy usually leads in appeal and reputation early, and catches up in conservation later.
I disagree with the evaluation of the card updates. Association is mandatory, but I deem build also as mandatory and in most cases it is my first. The Build action wastes so much power if you can only build one thing at a time when it is on level 4 or 5 and especially early you usually want to go for small enclosures and kiosks. In my opinion this is the greatest boost to action economy. I recently had a win in a 4 player game where I just updated 2 cards, building and association. There was never a time where I thought *urgh, I really need this update*.
Great to see more Ark Nova strategy content! A few comments: Part 1) I disagree completely with upgrading the Animals card early. I do think it's a good upgrade, but I will almost always upgrade Association and Build before Animals and Cards. Association in particular is an incredible early upgrade if you're able to donate 2-3x before anyone else can. Being able to build kiosks and pavilions for early income is also important, and in many games the Aviary/Reptile House are useful, or even necessary. Upgrading the Cards card also brings the ability to snap earlier and more often, and that can be game-changing. I find myself upgrading in the following order almost always: Association, Build, Animals/Cards (about 50/50 on which comes 1st of these last two). Part 2) I think Petting Zoo animals are overrated. Increasing appeal isn't actually a very good way to increase your income, as after the first 5 appeal, the income increases from appeal drop off precipitously. And Petting Zoo animals synergize with so few conservation projects, they're a terrible long-term investment. I also think you underrate the Sponsorship Program conservation cards. They are S-Tier as they enable an easy and powerful Association action right after the 1st break. Getting 2 CP and 2 reputation early is such an enormous boost, I will try to earn it every time I'm dealt one of these cards in my opening hand. On the Open Areas map, it's even possible to support one of these projects before the 1st break, which just feels like cheating. Part 3) Agree pretty much completely. I tend not to fill my zoo, so I wouldn't put Architectural Zoo in A-tier for my playstyle, but I think your bottom 3 are spot on. Very hard to score 4 with any of them. Part 4) Agree with many of these. I think you undervalue Federal Grants, which may be the best sponsor card in the game (possibly 2nd to Side Entrance), and overvalue the special enclosure sponsors like Aquarium. Yes, they give instant appeal and a potential trickle of appeal for the entire game, but they're draw-dependent and require 3 reputation to play, which means they often don't come out before the 1st break. I'd put Technology Institute and Release of Patents in A-tier as well. For the former, it's nice to get X-tokens even when you're not causing the break (and in general, you should try to avoid being the player to cause the break), and the extra endgame point for 3 universities is usually easy to earn. And for the latter, getting 2-3 early CP can either get you the early card flip or help you beat other players to one of the nice bonuses on 5 or 8 CP. Lastly, I'd put any of the animal experts (Ornithologist et al) in S-Tier if they match one of the base conservation projects in play in a 3-4 player game. They provide so much money in those situations, it's almost unfair.
Thank you for the long response and interesting discussion! 1. If I have 4 rep and no easy easy way to get a 5th, upgrading Animals is basically free because it gets you the 2nd upgrade. This comes up a lot for me. It also gives you an extra worker sooner and more bonuses. Association is great, but a lot of people upgrade it first so you can't guarantee getting more than 1 conservation for $2-5. 2. Early 3 petting zoo animals always wins in my experience, 2 early and 1 later is still strong. It puts you so far ahead in income and appeal. The increased income you get means they pay for themselves. It is speculative because you don't always find more, but its worth speculating on an easy win. You're right about Breeding Programs. Since they are fairly rare, it's an important pick up. I was thinking you need to play an animal and a sponsor before the first break, and Breeding Program is like the cherry on top. I'm basically always picking 1 good starting animal, 2 good sponsors, and a breeding program as my 4 if I have the opportunity. 3. It's easy to score 3 with Architectural Zoo, you have to work hard for 4 though. 4. You can always play Aquarium first by taking a university. The upside is higher, 12 appeal compared to $15 for Federal Grants. You are probably right about Release Patents, I just don't like to take the 2 science university early unless I have a lot of payoffs, because it really slows down the reputation track. I could see Tech Institute in B tier or bottom of A tier. Played early the x-tokens are kind of worth 1 extra turn. True for Ornithologist, depends on player count and base projects, S-tier in some games.
These posts are very interesting reads and I commend you guys both for taking the time to go a little in-depth and getting some really strong points out. As for most of Alexbove points, I agree with them. The animals card is definitely situational, but being able to play the best animals in the game or getting extra reputation is for sure a good thing. As an example: Just in today's game I was able to put a first round Cheetah in an Observation Tower boosted 5 enclosure, getting extra cards that I could all keep because of my first turn University. I then proceeded to upgrade my animals card as my first one, releasing the Cheetah to a predator conservation project early and put a very early African Elephant into that enclosure for good measure. Having an Eagle or an Elephant is basically a guarantee you need to upgrade your animals card, as the extra tempo or points they can generate is the best in the game. There is a bit of a metagame with our playgroup, where we watch eachother's moves and see when someone is going for the Association upgrade, to try and compete for it. Sometimes it takes multiple card upgrades and almost a game of chicken to see who is trying to go for those easy points first, as delaying it generally is better for early economy and action efficiency. As for petting zoo animals, I think they are far more powerful then most people realize. They are extremely cheap and easy to play, with only the first animal being inefficient for its cost. After that, they generate a lot of appeal, for no additional enclosures, which makes them one the cheapest animals in the game for its cost, without needing anything done besides building that one special tile. Also, the petting zoo enclosure itself is relatively useful, as it is long and covers a lot of distance on the map, allowing you to get to specific bonusses easier. Lastly, they count as small animals, meaning they can benefit from all the cards that interact with it, including the small animals goals and conservation projects and they also are an extra animal type, counting for the goals, conservation projects and sponsors that interact with that part of the game. As stated I like 'Federal Grants' a lot as well, just like the petting zoo animals, it gives a boost to economy for very little investment and having no prerequisites at all to play and also generating an easy point. 'Technology Institute' is similar, having the X tokens is nice, but the endgame bonus takes a bit of work that you don't always have time to do, especially on maps that do not reward you with points for the final university.
Thanks for the video! I have some questions for you unrelated to the tier lists. I've only played a handful of games so I'm eager to learn more! How often are you completely filling your zoo spaces? My initial strategy has been upgrading Build first and using it to spam buildings (at power 5), meaning most games my map is full or close to full. Which map is the best / your personal favourite? Would you ever use an action to get an "x" instead of its main action? I would assume no, but I played against someone today who did it a few times early and it was a close game. How often do you use the sponsor action to initiate a break? From the sounds of it, you try to always have sponsors to play, implying not very often.
I fill the map ~35% of games if there is more reward than the base 7 appeal (sponsors, end goal). My top maps are 1: 2 appeal for enclosures next to observatory. 2: +2 enclosure size because there is a free partner zoo map bonus. 3: income around the center restaurant. Taking an x as an action is inefficient, but sometimes you have to do it because the action card on 5 is in the way. In general I prefer to play a sponsor card. Ending the round early is situationally good if you can deny the opponent income or using their association workers.
I think the Research Conservation card is a tier A starting card. It gives you the crucial 2 conservation points without paying any money for it, so you can develop your animal strategy independently. Once I’ve got it in my starting hand together with the sponsor cards that provided me two research symbols and I had that conservation project out before the first break. Absolutely insane! It works well with the research university, too - even if it’s not that lightning fast.
I could see moving it up about 5 spots. The main thing keeping it down is I don't like taking the 2 research university. If you find an early sponsor with a research icon its great for sure.
Using it in this way to get an early card upgrade is nice, but it also gives your opponents a surefire way to generate some relatively easy points too. Getting research icons is certainly not hard. Even though you can be a bit unlucky by not seeing many on the Sponsor cards, there are always 3 guaranteed ones from the Universities available. I tend to think the easier a goal is, the more I am inclined to save it for later in the game, or even as my last association, so other people have little or no time to also score on it.
I personally think that build is far more important to association. Especially if your bonus for four partner zoos is only one conservation bonus or if getting your third association worker doesn't give you any conservation points or just one. For me Animal and Build are A tear while cards is the third one I always tend to upgrade. The fourth one is between Association and Sponsors, depending on the cards I get early and if I need sponsors. Sponsors can become an A tier upgrade in certain situations and more urgent to upgrade than any other card, but it's very situational and I upgrade it maybe once every 5 games or so. And any donation after 7 coins is pretty bad value so I wouldn't worry about them too much unless you have a strong income. 10 or 12 coins for just 3 points is not really that good. The good thing is that it doesn't take an extra action so if you have the coins to do everything else as well it can be powerful. But I disagree that it would be hard to win without donations. The Release Animal conservation projects can also be extremely good early on. They are the only conservation projects that you can play before the first break, which gives you another association worker and an upgraded card. They are situational, but I wouldn't but them anywhere near the D tier. I also think that the Waza Small Animal program is one of the most underrated cards in the game. It allows you to play three animals instead of two during your turn or two instead of one and you also get a free snap if there is a small animal available on the table. It's incredibly strong if you can combine it with the Waza Special assignment. The data of the best players of Board Game Arena also show that the top players always upgrade Animals, Build and Cards and then the last card is between Association and Sponsors. Association gets picked like 80% of the time while Sponsors does get picked for the remaining games. There's one or two top ranked players who pick sponsors way more regularly though.
Great vid! Would be awesome if you could make a video about how you expect the Marine Worlds expansion will change the effectiveness of different strategies. All the cards have been posted on BGG
I always upgrade Build first...lets you build enclosures, kiosks...pavillions for income....and you can cover bonsuses. Playing big animals early is too expensive. My usual order is build, association or cards, then association or cards, animals....sponsors only if I want to experiment.
Yeah I think that order works pretty well. There are other orders that work well too and its helpful to adapt to your cards and map each time. Build, Association, and Animals can all be the best first upgrade depending on the situation. I think you underrate the reputation from Animals because it can get you a faster upgrade, a worker. and 2 conservation. Especially if you have Favorite Zoo, then its probably 6 conservation instead of 2. The reason I have Build a tier lower is because its viable to not upgrade it at all ~10% of games.
good tips and an interesting take on things , i agree with some of your opinions but have a different opinion about other things that you say (not sure who is right here xD) . I applaud you for making this kind of video because when i started to play Ark Nova i didn't find any really good in depth video about this game so i'm happy that you make this great and informative video . Not sure if you play on TTS as well but if you do i would love to play some games with you :) Goodluck with your channel👍
Thank you! There are a lot of review, playthrough, and rules channels for board games but very few for strategy, so I thought I'd fill the void. I always enjoy strategy discussions so I'm curious to know what you disagree with the most. I love TTS, even used it to make these guides. You can add aetherllama#5701 on discord to set up a game.
I strongly disagree with ranking action cards. Animals is probably the only one I will always upgrade. However which card you don't upgrade and your upgrade order is extremely dependent on the game. While it's less common, sponsors is sometimes by far the most powerful upgrade
Interesting that you rank migration and breeding sponsors so low. The breeding ones I think are definitely A tier in 2 player (and I would think still B in 3/4 player) as they can be critical to getting high-level conservation project spots before your opponent(s). Migration is more niche, but can be huge if there are release projects available. With 2 players, the breeding sponsors are always snapped as soon as possible because getting the project spot before your opponent is such a huge swing. They just aren't a "play first round" sponsor. Which there should probably be two tier lists, one for early sponsors and one for mid/late/anytime sponsors. Since many of the early sponsors are garbage later in the game.
Good explanation of your way to play Arc Nova. Have a few comments though about actions cards. In my opinion: "Build" card is the only tier A action card, "Animals" is B+ tier, "Cards" and "Association" are B- cards, "Sponsors" is C-- card (and I've never upgraded this card) I recommend to upgrade "Build" card first in almost every game. Build-II action let you: - be more flexible in playing animals action (and you will simply not waste Build action points because you allowed to build more than 1 building) - without Build-II you are almost unable to build kiosks, which greatly boost your money income - without Build-II you are unable to build Aviary and Reptile house, which will allow you to play more and more birds and reptiles - lesser reasons such as: being more flexible in collecting bonuses from closing hexes at map and perform it earlier, using X-tokens with Build-II action (with Build-I it has no reason) and more All other cards upgrades are more situational. Yes, Animals-II give you additional reputation and let you play more animals. But you really don't need lot of reputation in earlier game (except gaining first card upgrade at reputation track), and without Cards-II upgrade you can reach 9 reputation limit too early and simply waste your earned reputation. Also, without Build-II you often will not have enough space to play new animals. Cards-II in my opinion must be third or fourth upgrade just because you don't need so much card to keep in your hand if you are unable to play them (except you have strong Sunbathing). Association-II is almost useless unless you have enough workers (I recommend to upgrade it when you have two and earn third soon). Sponsors-II... hmm, I really have no idea how can this upgrade be more useful than any other action upgrade. The only positive side of this upgrade is stronger Break action, but there's lot of other ways how you can increase your money income (I strongly recommend kiosks).
Mostly agree. Animals and Association help you get your second worker, and they are crucial for end game. I only upgrade Sponsors when I play the "H" map or to play Explorers (10 appeal + $20).
I feel like Cards is an undervalued upgrade. Snapping is a HUGE deal when trying to get synergies to work and grab cards that match the conservation projects. The reputation track is also undervalued in its utility.
I do highly value the reputation track, it's the main reason I usually upgrade Animals 1st-2nd and upgrade Cards before I hit 10 rep. I disagree with snapping though. My Animals and Association are upgraded so I play cards directly from reputation range. You can see my latest video for how I win very quickly without upgrading Cards.
I see so many cards at different tiers than I would put... and Im certain my playgroup would agree. Waza special assignment at S? Really? Explorer? Science Library easily tops those. Why Diverse Species Zoo at A?! Instead of Research!? Large animals is one of the harder ones to get full points. More so than small animals I'd say.
Of course we're going to have different opinions when I rate 50+ cards. I score 12 appeal with Waza. Explorer is $20 + 8 appeal. Science Library is S-tier in a 4 player game but not in 2 player, top A tier still one of the best cards. Research is only 1 if you don't find the right sponsors, it can score 4 but its risky so middle rating. I get 3-4 with Diverse Species and Large Animals, less draw dependent.
It's a race card, allowing you to achieve competing conservation projects first. If there is not a race between you and one or more other players, the card generally loses its value. Occasionally though, it allows you to get the final 5th instance of something, that for some reason you can't seem to find. The deck is very big and this narrows the goal down by providing one blank 'Joker' that counts for all the general goals.
Hello, do you ever find yourself wasting reputation going animals first and cards fourth? Seems like you would get to 9 reputation pretty quickly with upgrading animals first.
Usually not. If necessary I'll upgrade Cards 3rd to not waste reputation. If your sponsors and animals give you a lot of reputation, it's probably best to upgrade Association first.
I don't like the chicken ('Native farm animals'), though I've been playing it on rare occasions for the Herbivore icon, or even rarer occasions to combine with the 'Naturalist Zoo' goal. (my absolute least favorite in the game, as building stuff is generally better)
They are all excellent, but I prefer 'Expert on America' most of all, being more impactful than the Asia one for your economy and also having the easiest to score goal, where the card itself helps you achieve it. Similary, the 'Expert on Europe' has the most value, but it is also harder to fill all those 1 enclosures even if you have them. For generating points though, the king is 'Expert on Australia', pouching for 2 appeal is going to add up, though you still have to find the symbols for it and its going to cost you a card that you need to be able to spare.
You have the medical breakthrough card tiered way too low. It’s the most powerful (sponsor) card in the game. Sure, the four research tags are tricky, but you can get those before the third break… A conservation point every break?! Sign me up every time.
12:55 I found that Release-type conservation projects at the start can be quite valuable: you can very quickly play an animal, release it, get the association worker and card upgrade (plus a bonus reputation which gets you closer to that sweet reputation track card upgrade) from it before first break and get a kickstart that way. Sure, it sacrifices the money income that animal would have provided, but an early card upgrade and having 2 association actions from the very start (if you have the time to use them both between 2 breaks) are worth it most of the times I think.
It can be good but I think it's rare. Rushing association worker is countered by early break which puts you far behind because low income. Maybe taking 5$ could compensate. Release is strong with specific animals that have low appeal to size ratio.
Agree, I like early release but it can be tough to pull off.
Agreed - I'd rate them B or C tier for starting cards (depending on how hard it is to get a good animal)
Release conservation projects are essential with the 'Observation Tower' zoo-map, to give you the option of re-using the 2 appeal bonus that you get for putting an animal in an enclosure next to it. There are some excellent animals in the deck that are great to use with those projects, mostly animals that have a really strong action, rewards that are not appeal (like conservation points or reputation) or help you play other cards by providing symbols.
Often the best use of these cards is in the mid to lategame, where you already claimed a goal with the animals symbols and no longer need a ton of money.
Early release projects are excellent, but you should take the 5-income unless you think there is a lot of time left in the break
After 130 games of Ark Nova i have to say I most likely upgrade usually sponsors first, cause playing a lot of sponsor cards bring often a lot of ingame bonusses aswell as additional scoring possibilities at the end of the game. Animals is most of the time the card I dont upgrade cause it doesnt bring so much to the table, and there are so many other ways to get those reputation points.
That is very interesting, different than every other strategy I've heard. I do think sponsors are the most important cards in the game, so I can see the reasoning. The problem is I run out of sponsor cards even playing 1 at a time. Also, sponsors cost 3-6 and without x tokens the upgraded sponsors is power 6. This makes it quite difficult to play multiple sponsors, unless you play the map with 3 H icons that reduces sponsor cost. If I have that map, or find Explorers/Talented Communicator, then I'll upgrade sponsors early.
I can't imagine not upgrading animals. Getting the upgrade and worker sooner is very important. Also you don't reach 15 rep without upgrading animals, so you miss out on free conservation, cards, and x tokens. Even if you don't care about the rep, its still a must upgrade because it unlocks eagles, elephants, and other strong animals. Also the ability to play from center row is twice as relevant for animals as sponsors because of card density.
@@aetherllama8398 why should I not get up to 15 reputation without the animals upgrade? It is easily achievable to reach that as there are so many ways to get reputation up.
You can also play sponsors from the river with sponsor level 2 if you struggle to get them in your hands, which I just doubt. I usually end up with 8-12 sponsors in play
@@Naomania Maybe your games last more turns than mine. Only 2 in 7 cards are sponsors.
Ditto
Smaller sample size, but I have played about 15 games of this against very strong Euro players (including an ex-Terra Mystica world champion, and MSO regular). The games I have not won/scored the lowest are when I upgrade Animals first. I find Association and Sponsors are two of the most important, followed by Cards (to get the reputation track bonuses and more card draw) and then Build (so you can build more than 1 thing and build the specialist enclosures).
I find that the Animals that require and Upgraded Animals cards are already prohibitively expensive/have prohibitive requirements, making them less possible to play multiple of them. If you're only playing 1 or, at best, 2 Animals that require this card upgrade... then it feels like a very wasted card upgrade, given the massive opportunity cost.
*EDIT*: Having now played many more games, I find Build and Animals are the two cards I upgrade most often. My thoughts, above, are not what I think after having played the game more.
Well done on the video, it includes a lot of pointers that are going to be helpful to players that want some input on what is a good baseline on upgrades, starting cards and sponsor cards. I couldn't find many things that I disagree with, I just have some pointers on specific sponsor cards or on the upgrade path of your starting cards.
As for upgrading the Build action card, this is the card that I tend to vary the most on when and if I want to upgrade it. In a lot of games, you need to upgrade it early to make multiple buildings, including important economy stuff like kiosks, all in one action. Though I don't play online, apparently the metagame over there (with a ton of experienced players) is that it is often the first card to be upgraded, to become more action efficient over a longer period of time and always having the option to spend leftover money on stuff.
As I said, I tend to vary the most on this card specifically, as there can be games where you are aiming for large animals, that only requires the occasional 5 enclosure on the strength 5 spot and then waiting for it to be all the way back to 5 for your next big enclosure. In those games, I tend to upgrade the card late in the game, or sometimes not at all.
In the sponsor cards you had the 'Federal Grants' card on A tier, this is generally considered to be one of the best sponsor cards in the online meta. As I said, I don't play online, but I can see that especially having it early will greatly boost your economy for absolutely no trouble at all. It is the easiest to play economy card, that also generates an easy point and a science symbol.
Also cards like 'Science Museum' and 'Medical Breakthrough' can be complete gamechangers when played early. They are rather hard to put into play, but if you can find some symbols early, they pay off in a big way and can generate anywhere from 2-8 points for a single card, which is insane.
Also the 'Breeding Program' and 'Global Breeding Program' cards are legit sleepers, which can in most cases win you the race for a common conservation project. They only work twice for that reason, but winning two 5 point goals before other people can claim them will generally win you the game if it is anywhere close between you and the other players. Occasionally they might even give you a point if you happend to score a lot of goals, which is probably a rare thing, but still a nice bonus.
Association rarely needs to be upgraded early. Unless you have a 2nd worker early it isn't as good as animal/build to upgrade early. Usually it is one of the last actions I upgrade. But agreed that playing 2 workers in one association action is strong. But that is a mid to late game action. I would say "build" should be tier A because 99% of games will upgrade build and in the majority of games it is the 1st or 2nd action upgraded. Association is strong, but it often isn't upgraded if you upgrade sponsor (card is the other action I often forgo when upgrading sponsor). (Context: I mostly play 2 player, so the strategy may change with 3/4 players)
I'd probably switch Build and Association now. I won many games upgrading Association first, getting 3 partner zoos, and not upgrading Build. It's more viable than people think, but Build is better in most games.
Thanks for this, I played a whole bunch of solo and multi games. I started prioritizing these cards and find to be winning every time in solo 20 start ticket games.
Glad to hear it! Check out the ARNO solo variant, it feels more like a multiplayer game. Base solo plays a bit different because of the round structure, it's more important to be action efficient and less important to maximize your income.
First tier list I've seen. I think that the build action is A tier, mostly because the reptile house is busted!
Also really surprised how high the waza program was. But that's why I love ark nova. Lots of very different strategies
Build is interesting because it's one of the best early upgrades, but it's also the card I usually don't upgrade if I need to upgrade sponsors. Waza Program is in the bottom half, do you mean Waza Assignment? Not many sponsors can give you 12+ appeal, it is a high variance card though.
There are a couple of Waza named cards in the deck, to confuse matters further ;)
Upgrading build is definitely the quickest way to become more action efficient. In most games you *need* to build Kiosks to get some economy going, in games where you have a lot of small animals, you *need* to build a ton of smaller enclosures. On some maps, you *need* to upgrade the card to get the most out of the special hexes. (Outdoor area for example)
It is very important, but can also be a late or a non-consideration as other things tend to outshine it once you don't need to build a ton of small stuff or have an 'Engineer' sponsor making stuff easier.
Thanks for the guide. I feel like associations and build are by far the most important upgrades and almost always do rheum first and second
I am an experienced gamer who has played 50+ games of Ark Nova now. It is interesting to see other opinions. I almost NEVER flip the animals card, and frequently flip the sponsors card first for the double money usage and general game acceleration (turning those workers!)
It would be interesting to play against the advisor. :)
Sponsors first is very unpopular from what I've heard. Paradoxically, it's better when you have no sponsors in your hand!
Without animals you are below education track which gives you a lot of value so propably not so comepetive players around your tables :D (this is just opinion not any kind of hate) I recomand to check BGA and try it there propably will end up losing
Using the sponsor action for money and breaking is generally a low value or even a wasted turn. Upgrading it certainly makes this better and allows for money generation, but ideally you want your opponents to break the game so you can just keep pumping out cards and valueable actions as much as possible.
That said, having the option to play them from the middle row is a really important plus, as is being able to playing multiple. I find though, that as sponsors are the cards that have the most engine-building and gamebreaking effects, in additon to generating extra points at the end, they tend to be extremely hard to get, as every player is gunning for them and only 1 in 7 or so being a sponsor card.
Upgrading cards is always very situational and leaving a card unupgraded has so far happened for me for every single action card multiple times and often enough it turned out to be the right call. That said, the sponsor card is still the one I upgraded least, precisely because of the competition for those cards and getting even a single sponsor to play can be hard, never mind getting multiple.
This is well outside my playstyle (in places, most I agree with). Like for example I never upgrade Animals first! Definitely going to try these strategies on upcoming games though.
Yes its a very income focused strategy to play more and better animals. By upgrading Animals and taking 2 universities (3 rep) first, you get a quick upgrade and worker from the reputation track, freeing you up to take $5 income or enclosure income as your first conservation bonus. If you start partner zoos, I'd recommend upgrading Association first, unless you're able to get early reputation from other places. My strategy usually leads in appeal and reputation early, and catches up in conservation later.
I disagree with the evaluation of the card updates. Association is mandatory, but I deem build also as mandatory and in most cases it is my first. The Build action wastes so much power if you can only build one thing at a time when it is on level 4 or 5 and especially early you usually want to go for small enclosures and kiosks. In my opinion this is the greatest boost to action economy. I recently had a win in a 4 player game where I just updated 2 cards, building and association. There was never a time where I thought *urgh, I really need this update*.
Great to see more Ark Nova strategy content!
A few comments:
Part 1) I disagree completely with upgrading the Animals card early. I do think it's a good upgrade, but I will almost always upgrade Association and Build before Animals and Cards. Association in particular is an incredible early upgrade if you're able to donate 2-3x before anyone else can. Being able to build kiosks and pavilions for early income is also important, and in many games the Aviary/Reptile House are useful, or even necessary. Upgrading the Cards card also brings the ability to snap earlier and more often, and that can be game-changing. I find myself upgrading in the following order almost always: Association, Build, Animals/Cards (about 50/50 on which comes 1st of these last two).
Part 2) I think Petting Zoo animals are overrated. Increasing appeal isn't actually a very good way to increase your income, as after the first 5 appeal, the income increases from appeal drop off precipitously. And Petting Zoo animals synergize with so few conservation projects, they're a terrible long-term investment.
I also think you underrate the Sponsorship Program conservation cards. They are S-Tier as they enable an easy and powerful Association action right after the 1st break. Getting 2 CP and 2 reputation early is such an enormous boost, I will try to earn it every time I'm dealt one of these cards in my opening hand. On the Open Areas map, it's even possible to support one of these projects before the 1st break, which just feels like cheating.
Part 3) Agree pretty much completely. I tend not to fill my zoo, so I wouldn't put Architectural Zoo in A-tier for my playstyle, but I think your bottom 3 are spot on. Very hard to score 4 with any of them.
Part 4) Agree with many of these. I think you undervalue Federal Grants, which may be the best sponsor card in the game (possibly 2nd to Side Entrance), and overvalue the special enclosure sponsors like Aquarium. Yes, they give instant appeal and a potential trickle of appeal for the entire game, but they're draw-dependent and require 3 reputation to play, which means they often don't come out before the 1st break.
I'd put Technology Institute and Release of Patents in A-tier as well. For the former, it's nice to get X-tokens even when you're not causing the break (and in general, you should try to avoid being the player to cause the break), and the extra endgame point for 3 universities is usually easy to earn. And for the latter, getting 2-3 early CP can either get you the early card flip or help you beat other players to one of the nice bonuses on 5 or 8 CP.
Lastly, I'd put any of the animal experts (Ornithologist et al) in S-Tier if they match one of the base conservation projects in play in a 3-4 player game. They provide so much money in those situations, it's almost unfair.
Thank you for the long response and interesting discussion!
1. If I have 4 rep and no easy easy way to get a 5th, upgrading Animals is basically free because it gets you the 2nd upgrade. This comes up a lot for me. It also gives you an extra worker sooner and more bonuses. Association is great, but a lot of people upgrade it first so you can't guarantee getting more than 1 conservation for $2-5.
2. Early 3 petting zoo animals always wins in my experience, 2 early and 1 later is still strong. It puts you so far ahead in income and appeal. The increased income you get means they pay for themselves. It is speculative because you don't always find more, but its worth speculating on an easy win.
You're right about Breeding Programs. Since they are fairly rare, it's an important pick up. I was thinking you need to play an animal and a sponsor before the first break, and Breeding Program is like the cherry on top. I'm basically always picking 1 good starting animal, 2 good sponsors, and a breeding program as my 4 if I have the opportunity.
3. It's easy to score 3 with Architectural Zoo, you have to work hard for 4 though.
4. You can always play Aquarium first by taking a university. The upside is higher, 12 appeal compared to $15 for Federal Grants. You are probably right about Release Patents, I just don't like to take the 2 science university early unless I have a lot of payoffs, because it really slows down the reputation track. I could see Tech Institute in B tier or bottom of A tier. Played early the x-tokens are kind of worth 1 extra turn.
True for Ornithologist, depends on player count and base projects, S-tier in some games.
These posts are very interesting reads and I commend you guys both for taking the time to go a little in-depth and getting some really strong points out.
As for most of Alexbove points, I agree with them. The animals card is definitely situational, but being able to play the best animals in the game or getting extra reputation is for sure a good thing. As an example: Just in today's game I was able to put a first round Cheetah in an Observation Tower boosted 5 enclosure, getting extra cards that I could all keep because of my first turn University.
I then proceeded to upgrade my animals card as my first one, releasing the Cheetah to a predator conservation project early and put a very early African Elephant into that enclosure for good measure. Having an Eagle or an Elephant is basically a guarantee you need to upgrade your animals card, as the extra tempo or points they can generate is the best in the game.
There is a bit of a metagame with our playgroup, where we watch eachother's moves and see when someone is going for the Association upgrade, to try and compete for it. Sometimes it takes multiple card upgrades and almost a game of chicken to see who is trying to go for those easy points first, as delaying it generally is better for early economy and action efficiency.
As for petting zoo animals, I think they are far more powerful then most people realize. They are extremely cheap and easy to play, with only the first animal being inefficient for its cost. After that, they generate a lot of appeal, for no additional enclosures, which makes them one the cheapest animals in the game for its cost, without needing anything done besides building that one special tile.
Also, the petting zoo enclosure itself is relatively useful, as it is long and covers a lot of distance on the map, allowing you to get to specific bonusses easier. Lastly, they count as small animals, meaning they can benefit from all the cards that interact with it, including the small animals goals and conservation projects and they also are an extra animal type, counting for the goals, conservation projects and sponsors that interact with that part of the game.
As stated I like 'Federal Grants' a lot as well, just like the petting zoo animals, it gives a boost to economy for very little investment and having no prerequisites at all to play and also generating an easy point. 'Technology Institute' is similar, having the X tokens is nice, but the endgame bonus takes a bit of work that you don't always have time to do, especially on maps that do not reward you with points for the final university.
I like build first upgrade because there is so much value in multiple builds and i like getting those kiosks in for income.
Thanks for the video! I have some questions for you unrelated to the tier lists. I've only played a handful of games so I'm eager to learn more!
How often are you completely filling your zoo spaces? My initial strategy has been upgrading Build first and using it to spam buildings (at power 5), meaning most games my map is full or close to full.
Which map is the best / your personal favourite?
Would you ever use an action to get an "x" instead of its main action? I would assume no, but I played against someone today who did it a few times early and it was a close game.
How often do you use the sponsor action to initiate a break? From the sounds of it, you try to always have sponsors to play, implying not very often.
I fill the map ~35% of games if there is more reward than the base 7 appeal (sponsors, end goal).
My top maps are 1: 2 appeal for enclosures next to observatory.
2: +2 enclosure size because there is a free partner zoo map bonus.
3: income around the center restaurant.
Taking an x as an action is inefficient, but sometimes you have to do it because the action card on 5 is in the way.
In general I prefer to play a sponsor card. Ending the round early is situationally good if you can deny the opponent income or using their association workers.
@@aetherllama8398 Very interesting, thank you for the answers :)
I think the Research Conservation card is a tier A starting card. It gives you the crucial 2 conservation points without paying any money for it, so you can develop your animal strategy independently. Once I’ve got it in my starting hand together with the sponsor cards that provided me two research symbols and I had that conservation project out before the first break. Absolutely insane! It works well with the research university, too - even if it’s not that lightning fast.
I could see moving it up about 5 spots. The main thing keeping it down is I don't like taking the 2 research university. If you find an early sponsor with a research icon its great for sure.
Using it in this way to get an early card upgrade is nice, but it also gives your opponents a surefire way to generate some relatively easy points too. Getting research icons is certainly not hard. Even though you can be a bit unlucky by not seeing many on the Sponsor cards, there are always 3 guaranteed ones from the Universities available. I tend to think the easier a goal is, the more I am inclined to save it for later in the game, or even as my last association, so other people have little or no time to also score on it.
thanks for your interesting opinion!
I personally think that build is far more important to association. Especially if your bonus for four partner zoos is only one conservation bonus or if getting your third association worker doesn't give you any conservation points or just one. For me Animal and Build are A tear while cards is the third one I always tend to upgrade. The fourth one is between Association and Sponsors, depending on the cards I get early and if I need sponsors. Sponsors can become an A tier upgrade in certain situations and more urgent to upgrade than any other card, but it's very situational and I upgrade it maybe once every 5 games or so. And any donation after 7 coins is pretty bad value so I wouldn't worry about them too much unless you have a strong income. 10 or 12 coins for just 3 points is not really that good. The good thing is that it doesn't take an extra action so if you have the coins to do everything else as well it can be powerful. But I disagree that it would be hard to win without donations.
The Release Animal conservation projects can also be extremely good early on. They are the only conservation projects that you can play before the first break, which gives you another association worker and an upgraded card. They are situational, but I wouldn't but them anywhere near the D tier. I also think that the Waza Small Animal program is one of the most underrated cards in the game. It allows you to play three animals instead of two during your turn or two instead of one and you also get a free snap if there is a small animal available on the table. It's incredibly strong if you can combine it with the Waza Special assignment.
The data of the best players of Board Game Arena also show that the top players always upgrade Animals, Build and Cards and then the last card is between Association and Sponsors. Association gets picked like 80% of the time while Sponsors does get picked for the remaining games. There's one or two top ranked players who pick sponsors way more regularly though.
Great vid! Would be awesome if you could make a video about how you expect the Marine Worlds expansion will change the effectiveness of different strategies. All the cards have been posted on BGG
Thanks! That is a great idea.
Great video =) Just started playin ark nova. Really awsome!
I always upgrade Build first...lets you build enclosures, kiosks...pavillions for income....and you can cover bonsuses.
Playing big animals early is too expensive.
My usual order is build, association or cards, then association or cards, animals....sponsors only if I want to experiment.
Yeah I think that order works pretty well. There are other orders that work well too and its helpful to adapt to your cards and map each time. Build, Association, and Animals can all be the best first upgrade depending on the situation. I think you underrate the reputation from Animals because it can get you a faster upgrade, a worker. and 2 conservation. Especially if you have Favorite Zoo, then its probably 6 conservation instead of 2. The reason I have Build a tier lower is because its viable to not upgrade it at all ~10% of games.
good tips and an interesting take on things , i agree with some of your opinions but have a different opinion about other things that you say (not sure who is right here xD) .
I applaud you for making this kind of video because when i started to play Ark Nova i didn't find any really good in depth video about this game so i'm happy that you make this great and informative video .
Not sure if you play on TTS as well but if you do i would love to play some games with you :)
Goodluck with your channel👍
Thank you! There are a lot of review, playthrough, and rules channels for board games but very few for strategy, so I thought I'd fill the void. I always enjoy strategy discussions so I'm curious to know what you disagree with the most. I love TTS, even used it to make these guides. You can add aetherllama#5701 on discord to set up a game.
I strongly disagree with ranking action cards. Animals is probably the only one I will always upgrade. However which card you don't upgrade and your upgrade order is extremely dependent on the game. While it's less common, sponsors is sometimes by far the most powerful upgrade
Animals build and cards are what winners take most
Interesting that you rank migration and breeding sponsors so low. The breeding ones I think are definitely A tier in 2 player (and I would think still B in 3/4 player) as they can be critical to getting high-level conservation project spots before your opponent(s). Migration is more niche, but can be huge if there are release projects available. With 2 players, the breeding sponsors are always snapped as soon as possible because getting the project spot before your opponent is such a huge swing. They just aren't a "play first round" sponsor. Which there should probably be two tier lists, one for early sponsors and one for mid/late/anytime sponsors. Since many of the early sponsors are garbage later in the game.
thanks alot
Very helpful Video
Good explanation of your way to play Arc Nova. Have a few comments though about actions cards.
In my opinion:
"Build" card is the only tier A action card,
"Animals" is B+ tier,
"Cards" and "Association" are B- cards,
"Sponsors" is C-- card (and I've never upgraded this card)
I recommend to upgrade "Build" card first in almost every game. Build-II action let you:
- be more flexible in playing animals action (and you will simply not waste Build action points because you allowed to build more than 1 building)
- without Build-II you are almost unable to build kiosks, which greatly boost your money income
- without Build-II you are unable to build Aviary and Reptile house, which will allow you to play more and more birds and reptiles
- lesser reasons such as: being more flexible in collecting bonuses from closing hexes at map and perform it earlier, using X-tokens with Build-II action (with Build-I it has no reason) and more
All other cards upgrades are more situational. Yes, Animals-II give you additional reputation and let you play more animals. But you really don't need lot of reputation in earlier game (except gaining first card upgrade at reputation track), and without Cards-II upgrade you can reach 9 reputation limit too early and simply waste your earned reputation. Also, without Build-II you often will not have enough space to play new animals.
Cards-II in my opinion must be third or fourth upgrade just because you don't need so much card to keep in your hand if you are unable to play them (except you have strong Sunbathing). Association-II is almost useless unless you have enough workers (I recommend to upgrade it when you have two and earn third soon).
Sponsors-II... hmm, I really have no idea how can this upgrade be more useful than any other action upgrade. The only positive side of this upgrade is stronger Break action, but there's lot of other ways how you can increase your money income (I strongly recommend kiosks).
Mostly agree. Animals and Association help you get your second worker, and they are crucial for end game. I only upgrade Sponsors when I play the "H" map or to play Explorers (10 appeal + $20).
Thanks you very much!!
I feel like Cards is an undervalued upgrade. Snapping is a HUGE deal when trying to get synergies to work and grab cards that match the conservation projects. The reputation track is also undervalued in its utility.
I do highly value the reputation track, it's the main reason I usually upgrade Animals 1st-2nd and upgrade Cards before I hit 10 rep. I disagree with snapping though. My Animals and Association are upgraded so I play cards directly from reputation range. You can see my latest video for how I win very quickly without upgrading Cards.
@@strategyadvisor5604 I find the extra costs to playing from the row pretty prohibitive early game until you can get your economy going.
@@Silverstreak33 It's a pretty good deal for $3 or less. I focus heavily on early income so I can usually afford it.
So if you upgrade your actions in alphabetical order, you should be good to go! 🤣
Alphabetical happens to be a decent order. Just remember Cards last and Sponsors requires a good reason.
I see so many cards at different tiers than I would put... and Im certain my playgroup would agree.
Waza special assignment at S? Really? Explorer? Science Library easily tops those.
Why Diverse Species Zoo at A?! Instead of Research!?
Large animals is one of the harder ones to get full points. More so than small animals I'd say.
Of course we're going to have different opinions when I rate 50+ cards.
I score 12 appeal with Waza. Explorer is $20 + 8 appeal. Science Library is S-tier in a 4 player game but not in 2 player, top A tier still one of the best cards.
Research is only 1 if you don't find the right sponsors, it can score 4 but its risky so middle rating. I get 3-4 with Diverse Species and Large Animals, less draw dependent.
I love breeding program and it's in D tier here hah
Sorry haha. My strategy is very income focused so I play a lot of animals, and don't really need the breeding program. It's still good sometimes.
I'm in the same boat - I lean heavily on breeding program but I suppose you don't have to as much when you go Animals first.
Yeah interesting. I think breeding program is great and gives tons of flexibility. But then again, I usually upgrade animals 3rd or 4th lol.
It's a race card, allowing you to achieve competing conservation projects first. If there is not a race between you and one or more other players, the card generally loses its value. Occasionally though, it allows you to get the final 5th instance of something, that for some reason you can't seem to find. The deck is very big and this narrows the goal down by providing one blank 'Joker' that counts for all the general goals.
Hello, do you ever find yourself wasting reputation going animals first and cards fourth? Seems like you would get to 9 reputation pretty quickly with upgrading animals first.
Usually not. If necessary I'll upgrade Cards 3rd to not waste reputation. If your sponsors and animals give you a lot of reputation, it's probably best to upgrade Association first.
I don't see chicken in the sponsor tier list.
B-tier, part of the Native Lizards set.
I don't like the chicken ('Native farm animals'), though I've been playing it on rare occasions for the Herbivore icon, or even rarer occasions to combine with the 'Naturalist Zoo' goal. (my absolute least favorite in the game, as building stuff is generally better)
I feel like experts in Africa is D Tier but Asia is S tier
Expert on Asia is better early, Expert on Africa is better late.
ok I could see that
They are all excellent, but I prefer 'Expert on America' most of all, being more impactful than the Asia one for your economy and also having the easiest to score goal, where the card itself helps you achieve it. Similary, the 'Expert on Europe' has the most value, but it is also harder to fill all those 1 enclosures even if you have them.
For generating points though, the king is 'Expert on Australia', pouching for 2 appeal is going to add up, though you still have to find the symbols for it and its going to cost you a card that you need to be able to spare.
You have the medical breakthrough card tiered way too low. It’s the most powerful (sponsor) card in the game. Sure, the four research tags are tricky, but you can get those before the third break… A conservation point every break?! Sign me up every time.
It can be very good, especially when you have multiple science payoffs, but my games tend to have only 4-5 breaks.