Fathom Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview and Objective
• Components
• Setup
  • First Time Organisation
  • Player Areas
  • Ocean Board Zones and Vertices
  • Round Tracker Board, Player Order Board and Core Species Guides
  • Expedition Setup
  • Sonar Board
• How to Play
  • Overview and Objective
  • Round Structure
  • Ship Phase
  • Sonar Phase
  • Bonus Tokens
  • Submersible Phase
  • Point of Interest (POI) Tokens
  • Ending the Game
  • Expedition Additional Rules
• Scoring: Core Species Guide
  • Coral
  • Schooling Fish
  • Sea Cucumber
  • Crustacean
• Expedition Information
• Expedition 1: A Leviathan Falls
  • Expedition 1 Setup
  • Expedition 1 Quick Reference
  • Expedition 1 Species and Additional Rules
  • Expedition 1 Points of Interest (POI)
• Expedition 2: Covering Every Angle
  • Expedition 2 Setup
  • Expedition 2 Quick Reference
  • Expedition 2 Species and Additional Rules
  • Expedition 2 Points of Interest (POI)
• Expedition 3: Playful Visitors
  • Expedition 3 Setup
  • Expedition 3 Quick Reference
  • Expedition 3 Species and Additional Rules
  • Expedition 3 Points of Interest (POI)
• Expedition 4: Standoff in the Shallows
  • Expedition 4 Setup
  • Expedition 4 Quick Reference
  • Expedition 4 Species and Additional Rules
  • Expedition 4 Points of Interest (POI)

Overview and Objective

Fathom is a tile-laying, pattern-building game of deep-sea exploration. Players have 6 rounds to explore an underwater ecosystem, taking actions with their ship and submersible to place and discover tiles on their ocean board. At the end of the 6th round, players score for discovered tiles - the player with the most points wins!

Components

• 4 ocean boards, each with an undivided side (left) and a divided side (right: 2-3 player side and 4 player side)
• 1 sonar board (6-section side for 2-3 players, 8-section side for 4 players)
• 4 ships (+ 4 spares)
• 4 submersibles (+ 4 spares)
• 4 player consoles + 12 console sliders
• 4 submersible stands
• 4 ship stands
• 4 tile bags
• 8 sharks (+ 2 spares) + 8 shark stands
• 4 octopuses + 4 octopus stands
• 8 player references (2 per player)
• 1 round tracker board + round tracker token (+ 1 spare)
• 1 player order board + 4 player order tokens
• 24 stingray tokens
• 2 core species guides
• 16 advanced species guides
• 8 points of interest references
• 72 core discovery tiles
• 48 advanced discovery tiles
• 16 points of interest tokens
• 20 bonus tokens
• 12 shark location tokens
• 4 sonar beams
• 4 expedition tuckboxes
• 1 scorepad

Setup

First Time Organisation

When you open Fathom for the first time, do the following:

1. Place the following components matching the bag colour into each of the 4 tile bags:
   • 1 player order token
   • 3 console sliders
   • 1 ship stand
   • 1 submersible stand
   • 1 sonar beam
   • 18 core discovery tiles
2. Add the following components to each tile bag:
   • 2 player references
   • 4 points of interest tokens
3. Fill each expedition tuckbox with the components shown on the back of the tuckbox.
4. Store the remaining components separately in the game box (don't put them in the tile bags or tuckboxes).

Player Areas

Each player should:

1. Choose a starting colour and take the matching tile bag (containing the components listed in steps 1 and 2 of "First Time Organisation" above), then choose any team (your choice of team will not affect gameplay) and take that team's console, ship and submersible.
2. Take an ocean board and place it above the console, undivided side up. If the divided side of the board is required, the rulebook will tell you.
3. Shuffle their 4 points of interest tokens and place 1 token face-down on each of the ocean board zones marked "X".
4. Place a reference card into each of the console slots.
5. Place 3 console sliders in the console tracks at the positions shown.
6. Attach the ship and submersible to their stands and place them to the side of the ocean board.
7. Place their player order token and sonar beam to the side of the ocean board.

After following these steps, each tile bag should contain 18 core discovery tiles only.

Ocean Board Zones and Vertices

Printed on the ocean boards are zones (circular) and vertices (triangular); these will be referenced throughout the rulebook.

• An ocean board zone.
• An ocean board vertex (plural = vertices).

Round Tracker Board, Player Order Board and Core Species Guides

1. Place the round tracker token on the "1" space of the round tracker board.
2. Randomly choose a starting player and place their player order token on the "1" space of the player order board.
3. Going clockwise around the table, add each other player's order token to the next available space of the player order board.
4. Place the core species guides nearby.

The core species guides show the game's core scoring criteria; these will be discussed further on pages 12-13.

Expedition Setup

This setup step will vary game-to-game and will be explained on the relevant expedition page. If this is your first game, follow the setup for Expedition 1 on page 15, then return here.

Sonar Board

1. Place the sonar board within reach of all players, with the 6-section side (2-3 players) up for a 2- or 3-player game or the 8-section side (4 players) up for a 4-player game.
2. In player order, players should place their sonar beam on a sonar board dividing line, such that they divide the board up into equal segments.
3. Place the bonus tokens nearby, face-down and shuffled. In a 4-player game, the 3rd and 4th players should receive a random bonus token now.
4. Each player randomly draws 2 discovery tiles from their tile bag and places each onto a sonar board space; 1 in their segment of the sonar board and the other in the section directly across the centre from the first. Sonar board spaces are the circular green sonar icons. At 2 players, your segment of the sonar board consists of the 3 sections clockwise from your beam. At 3 or 4 players, your segment of the sonar board consists of the 2 sections clockwise from your beam.

If playing with 2 players, ignore the sonar board spaces marked with the circular green sonar icon.

How to Play

Below, you'll learn the basics of Fathom. Once you have read through this section of the rulebook, and before the game begins, be sure to check the Expedition Species for the expedition that you are playing. Expeditions 2, 3 and 4 have additional rules; these are detailed in the corresponding expedition section.

Overview and Objective

Over 6 rounds, players take actions with their ship and submersible to place and discover tiles on their ocean board. At the end of the 6th round, players remove any undiscovered tiles and score for discovered tiles. Then, the player with the most points wins!

Round Structure

Each round of Fathom consists of 3 phases; the ship phase, sonar phase and submersible phase. The actions that players will take in each phase can be tracked using the player consoles and console sliders.

Players resolve the ship phase and submersible phase simultaneously. The sonar phase is resolved in the order specified in that section.

Ship Phase

In the ship phase, move your ship, pass tile bags, draw and place discovery tiles and then flip the tile under your ship.

Move Your Ship

Move your ship to any zone on your ocean board. You may place your ship on top of a tile or token. In the first round, skip this step.

Pass Tile Bags

Pass your bag of discovery tiles to the nearest player clockwise. In the first round, skip this step.

Draw and Place Discovery Tiles

Undiscovered (left; dark background) and discovered (right; light background) sides of a discovery tile.

• Draw 3 discovery tiles from the bag.
• Up to 2 times, place 1 of the drawn tiles, undiscovered side up, into an empty zone under or adjacent to your ship.
  • You may not place a tile into a zone that already contains a tile or token.
  • You are not required to place any discovery tiles.
• Place any drawn tiles you did not place on your ocean board into empty spaces in your segment of the sonar board, undiscovered side up.
  • If there are not enough empty spaces, first remove bonus tokens in your segment of the sonar board until there are enough spaces.
  • If there weren't any bonus tokens, or there are still not enough spaces after removing them, remove discovery tiles placed on the sonar board during previous rounds until there is enough space for the new ones. Return any removed tokens and tiles to the box.

If playing with 2 players, ignore the sonar board spaces marked with the circular green sonar icon.

Flip Undiscovered Tile Under Ship

If there is an undiscovered tile in the same zone as your ship, flip it to the discovered side. Do not flip tokens or discovered tiles.

Sonar Phase

In the sonar phase, add bonus tokens to the sonar board, then take your sonar beam and redivide the sonar board in player order.

Add Bonus Tokens

Draw and place a bonus token face-up into each empty space of the sonar board. During some rounds, no bonus tokens will be added.

If playing with 2 players, ignore the sonar board spaces marked with the circular green sonar icon.

Redivide the Sonar Board

Each player picks up their sonar beam. Then, beginning with the first player and proceeding in player order, they place it on a sonar board dividing line, such that they divide the board up into equal segments. Note that the player last in player order will not get a choice of where to place their beam.

At 2 players, your segment of the sonar board consists of the 3 sections clockwise from your beam. At 3 or 4 players, your segment of the sonar board consists of the 2 sections clockwise from your beam.

Examples of sonar board division and player segments in a 2, 3 and 4 player game.

Bonus Tokens

Bonus tokens can be collected during the submersible phase. You may spend bonus tokens to gain additional benefits during specific phases. They may be saved for future rounds and there is no limit to the number of bonus tokens you can spend in each phase.

Spend a bonus token to:

• During the ship phase or submersible phase, move 1 discovery tile to an adjacent empty ocean board zone.
• During the submersible phase, perform 1 extra submersible action.
• During the submersible phase, look at any face-down point of interest token on your player board, and then return it to the board face-down.
• At the end of the game, before resolving scoring, flip 1 undiscovered tile on your ocean board to its discovered side.

Submersible Phase

In the submersible phase, take submersible actions, and then change the player order for the following round.

Submersible Actions

Take up to 4 of the following submersible actions, in any combination and order. You may take the same action more than once.

1. Place a tile from your section of the sonar board, undiscovered side up, into a zone adjacent to your submersible.
2. Flip an undiscovered tile or point of interest token adjacent to your submersible to its discovered side.
3. Take all bonus tokens in your segment of the sonar board.
4. Move your submersible up to 4 vertices on your ocean board.

Examples of submersible actions:

• Action 1: This player uses a submersible action to place the blue sea cucumber tile from their segment (red) of the sonar board onto their ocean board. Instead, they could have chosen to take the red tile, as this is also in their segment. The player chooses to place the tile, undiscovered, into the adjacent zone to the right of their submersible. Instead, they could have placed the tile into either of the other adjacent zones (highlighted with dashed lines).
• Action 2: This player can use a submersible action to flip either the adjacent point of interest token or the adjacent yellow tile, as they are both undiscovered. They cannot flip the adjacent red tile as it has already been discovered.
• Action 3: This player uses a submersible action to take both bonus tokens from their segment (red) of the sonar board. If there were more bonus tokens in their segment, they could take them all.
• Action 4: This player uses a submersible action to move their submersible 4 vertices. They could have chosen to stop after fewer vertices of movement, but cannot travel more than 4 vertices in a single action.

Change the Player Order

On the player order board, move the token in the first position to the last position and move all tokens up 1 space.

At the end of the round, reset console sliders to the leftmost position of each track, advance the round tracker token and then start a new round.

Point of Interest (POI) Tokens

Point of interest tokens are placed on your ocean board during setup. You can take submersible actions to flip them to their discovered side. The effects of these tokens vary game to game; they will be explained in the relevant expedition sections. Once discovered, unless otherwise specified, point of interest tokens are removed from the ocean board.

Ending the Game

After 6 rounds, remove any undiscovered tiles and then score for discovered tiles using the enclosed scorepad, according to their scoring criteria outlined on the species guides. Each expedition has its own scorepad sheet, numbered in the bottom left corner.

The player with the most points wins. In the case of a tie, the winner is the tied player with the most discovered tiles on their ocean board.

Expedition Additional Rules

If you're playing expedition 2, 3 or 4, don't forget to check the additional rules on the relevant expedition page (Expedition 2 - page 20, Expedition 3 - page 24, Expedition 4 - page 28).

Scoring: Core Species Guide

Core discovery tiles are used in every game of Fathom. They feature 4 species; Coral, Schooling Fish, Sea Cucumber and Crustacean. Some core discovery tiles feature more than 1 species on the same tile; the number of times an icon appears in a set of 18 core tiles is shown below the images on the species guide.

Scoring criteria for advanced species can be found in each expedition's Expedition Species section.

Coral

• 6 icons per bag
• A connected group of Coral of the same colour scores according to the size of the group:

Group Size	1	2	3	4	5	6+
Score	1	4	9	15	21	28

Multicoloured Coral counts as any single colour of your choice and the chosen colour must be used for all scoring criteria involving that Coral tile. To make scoring easier, you can place a console slider of the chosen colour on the tile.

Example: This player chooses to make the multicoloured Coral red and uses a red console slider to show this. This creates a group of 3 red Coral (9 points) and a single yellow Coral (1 point) for a total of 10 points. If they instead choose to make the multicoloured Coral yellow, it will create a group of 2 red Coral (4 points) and a group of 2 yellow Coral (4 points) for a total of 8 points.

Schooling Fish

• 15 icons per bag
• Score 9 points per separate group of 6 or more Schooling Fish icons (not tiles).

A group of 12 Schooling Fish will score the same as a group of 6; be sure to keep your groups separated!

Example: This player has 2 separate groups of 6 Schooling Fish (9 points per group) for a total of 18 points. Though this player's board features 12 Schooling Fish, they are arranged in 1 continuous group, so the group is only worth 9 points.

Sea Cucumber

• 3 icons per bag
• The player with the most Sea Cucumbers scores 12 points, second most scores 7 points and so on (ranking values, most to fewest: 12, 7, 3, 0 points).
• If tied, all tied players share the points for the ranks they occupy, rounding down.

Example: The player on the left has 1 Sea Cucumber. The player in the middle has 2 Sea Cucumbers and the player on the right has 3. There are no ties, so the player with 3 Sea Cucumbers will score 12 points for first ranking, the player with 2 will score 7 points for second ranking and the player with 1 Sea Cucumber will score 3 points for third ranking.

Example: The players on the left and in the middle both have 3 Sea Cucumbers. The player on the right has 2 Sea Cucumbers. The players with 3 Sea Cucumbers have tied, and split the 12 points available for first ranking, each scoring 6 points. The player with 2 Sea Cucumbers is not tied with any other player, so scores all 7 points available for second ranking - sneaky!

Crustacean

• 4 icons per bag
• Score 2 points if adjacent to Coral, plus an additional 2 points if adjacent to at least 2 different colours of Coral (maximum 4 points per Crustacean).

Example: This player has 3 Crustaceans on their ocean board. The one on the left is adjacent to Coral, scoring 2 points, but it is not adjacent to at least 2 different colours of Coral, so it doesn't score the additional 2 points. The one in the middle is adjacent to Coral, scoring 2 points. It is adjacent to 2 Coral, but they are the same colour, so it doesn't score the additional 2 points. The one on the right is adjacent to Coral, scoring 2 points. It is also adjacent to at least 2 different colours of Coral, so it scores an additional 2 points, for a total of 4 points.

Expedition Information

There are 4 expeditions in Fathom; each introduces new species and gameplay twists. We suggest that you play through them in order at least once, but once you're familiar with each expedition, you can replay the expeditions as many times as you like, and in any order.

You'll see the numbers 2/3/4 on player consoles; this is a reminder that the corresponding expedition has additional rules that activate at these stages of the round.

Expedition 1: A Leviathan Falls

As talk of Nautilus Leclerc's retirement spreads through Fathom, sparking chatter about who might step into his waders, another piece of news is making waves - a sunken whale has been found just a few miles offshore! This unexpected feast has reportedly attracted a plethora of marine scavengers, and this feeding frenzy could be the perfect opportunity for our eager marine biology teams to dive in and showcase their skills. Nearby, also drawn by the abundance of food, extraordinary creatures formed by giant colonies of organisms are begging to be studied; where will each team focus their attention?

Expedition 1 Setup

• Open the Expedition 1 tuckbox and remove the components.
• Place the Whalefall and Siphonophore advanced species guides below the core species guides.
• Place the points of interest references close to players.
• Then, each player should:
  1. Take the Whalefall tile in their colour and place it, undiscovered side up, in the centre zone of their ocean board.
  2. Add the 2 Siphonophore tiles in their colour to their tile bag.
  3. Place their ship in any ocean zone (we suggest placing it on top of the Whalefall tile for the first playthrough) and place their submersible on any vertex adjacent to the zone their ship is in.

Once you have performed these steps, head back to the Sonar Board setup step and continue setup from there. You'll return here for more expedition-specific information later, so you don't need to read ahead yet.

Expedition 1 Quick Reference

• Starting tile = Whalefall
• 2 x Siphonophore tiles per bag
• Ship starts in any zone
• Submersible starts on any vertex adjacent to ship

Expedition 1 Species and Additional Rules

Whalefall

• 1 per player
• Scores 2 points per unique scavenger species in an adjacent ocean zone.
• Scores an additional 1 point if adjacent to all 3 scavenger species. Scavenger species (Sea Cucumber, Schooling Fish and Crustacean) are denoted by the scavenger icon next to the species name in the core species guide.

Example: This player's Whalefall is adjacent to 2 unique scavenger species (2 points each) for a total of 4 points. It is not adjacent to all 3 scavenger species as Crustacean is missing, so it doesn't score the additional 1 point.

Example: This player's Whalefall is adjacent to 3 unique scavenger species (2 points each; the Crustacean is duplicated and only counted once) for a total of 6 points. It is also adjacent to all 3 scavenger species, so it scores the additional 1 point for a total of 7 points.

Siphonophore

• 2 icons per bag
• Scores 1 point for each adjacent empty ocean zone. Scores an additional 2 points if the tile is in a zone at the edge of the ocean board.

Example: This player's Siphonophore is adjacent to 3 empty zones (1 point each) and is also in a zone at the edge of the ocean board (an additional 2 points) for a total of 5 points.

Expedition 1 Points of Interest (POI)

• Gain 5 points at end of game.
• Gain 2 points at end of game.
• Lose 2 points at end of game.
• When discovered, token must remain on the ocean board.

Expedition 2: Covering Every Angle

Rumours of the budding marine biologists' last expedition have sent ripples across the island, with local fish-alternative company Fish-ish reporting an unprecedented increase in sales of their new Whalefaux Platter and SiphoNOphore Sticks. As a token of their appreciation, Fish-ish have donated a deep-sea camera to each team, and have also issued a challenge - capture footage of elusive anglerfish lurking deep below the waves off Cliffedge Cove. For an extra splash of competition, prizes will be awarded for the most diverse marine photographs; which team will surface with the most spectacular snapshots?

Expedition 2 Setup

• Open the Expedition 2 tuckbox and remove the components.
• Place the Anglerfish and Deep-Sea Camera advanced species guides below the core species guides.
• Place the points of interest references close to players.
• Then, each player should:
  1. Take the 1 Crustacean with 1 Fish core discovery tile from their tile bag and place it, undiscovered side up, in the centre zone of their ocean board.
  2. Add the 2 Anglerfish and 1 Deep-Sea Camera tiles in their colour to their tile bag.
  3. Place their ship in any ocean zone and place their submersible on any vertex adjacent to the zone their ship is in.

Once you have performed these steps, head back to the Sonar Board setup step and continue setup from there. You'll return here for more expedition-specific information later, so you don't need to read ahead yet.

Expedition 2 Quick Reference

• Starting tile = 1 Crustacean with 1 Fish
• 2 x Anglerfish and 1 x Deep-Sea Camera tile per bag
• Ship starts in any zone
• Submersible starts on any vertex adjacent to ship

Expedition 2 Species and Additional Rules

Anglerfish

• 2 icons per bag
• Score 6 points for each stacked pair.
• At the end of the submersible phase, players may move each discovered, non-stacked Anglerfish tile into an adjacent zone. The zone must be empty unless occupied by another discovered Anglerfish, in which case the Anglerfish may be stacked on top.
• Anglerfish cannot be stacked on top of any other tile type and, once stacked, neither Anglerfish in the stack can be moved. Stacked Anglerfish count as the colour of the top tile for the purposes of Deep-Sea Camera scoring.

Example: This player has 2 Anglerfish on their ocean board; 1 undiscovered and 1 that has already been discovered. At the end of the submersible phase, the player may move the discovered Anglerfish tile into an adjacent empty zone. They choose to do so, moving it towards the undiscovered Anglerfish. In the next round, the player discovers the undiscovered Anglerfish. At the end of the submersible phase, they move the first Anglerfish again to form a stacked pair.

At the end of the game, the player has 2 stacked Anglerfish pairs (6 points each) for a total of 12 points.

Deep-Sea Camera

• Scores 1 point for each unique species, unique colour and point of interest in the Camera's line of sight.
• Scores an additional 5 points if all 5 species (Coral, Schooling Fish, Sea Cucumber, Crustacean and Anglerfish) are in the Camera's line of sight.
• The Camera tile does not count towards its own colour / species scoring.
• You may never have more than 1 Deep-Sea Camera tile on your ocean board.
• A submersible action may be used to rotate the Camera's line of sight.

Example: This player has 1 discovered Deep-Sea Camera on their ocean board. In the left image, the Camera has no tiles or tokens in its line of sight, and would not score any points. However, in the final round of the game, the player uses a submersible action to rotate the Camera's line of sight, and also discovers a point of interest token. The Camera now has 5 unique species in its line of sight (1 point each + 5 points bonus for all 5). It also has 4 unique tile colours (1 point each) and a point of interest token (1 point) in its line of sight for a total of 15 points.

Expedition 2 Points of Interest (POI)

During this expedition, discovered points of interest are not removed from the ocean board, and they can boost your Deep-Sea Camera score.

• Gain 4 points at end of game; remains on the ocean board.
• Gain 3 points at end of game; remains on the ocean board.
• Gain 2 points at end of game; remains on the ocean board.
• Gain 1 point at end of game; remains on the ocean board.

Expedition 3: Playful Visitors

The island isn't just a top-tier travel spot for human visitors; it's also a favorite destination for marine life. During spring, the waters surrounding the archipelago farms to the southwest are a hotspot for tentacled tourists. Blooms of jellyfish drift along the seashore, forming beautiful patterns to be admired and documented. Octopuses also swim in, mischievously investigating and upending everything they encounter. As our teams set out on their latest expedition, they'll need to plan carefully, paying attention to these playful creatures unwittingly undoing their hard work!

Expedition 3 Setup

• Open the Expedition 3 tuckbox and remove the components.
• Place the Jellyfish and Octopus advanced species guides below the core species guides.
• Place the points of interest references close to players.
• Then, each player should:
  1. Take the 1 Crustacean with 1 Fish core discovery tile from their tile bag and place it, undiscovered side up, in the centre zone of their ocean board.
  2. Add the 3 Jellyfish tiles in their colour to their tile bag.
  3. Place their ship in any ocean zone and place their submersible on any vertex adjacent to the zone their ship is in.
  4. Attach an Octopus to an Octopus stand and place it on any vertex adjacent to the vertex their submersible is on.

Once you have performed these steps, head back to the Sonar Board setup step and continue setup from there. You'll return here for more expedition-specific information later, so you don't need to read ahead yet.

Expedition 3 Quick Reference

• Starting tile = 1 Crustacean with 1 Fish
• 3 x Jellyfish tiles per bag
• Ship starts in any zone
• Submersible starts on any vertex adjacent to ship
• Octopus starts on any vertex adjacent to submersible.

Expedition 3 Species and Additional Rules

Jellyfish

• 3 icons per bag
• Score based on group shape:
  • A line of 2 Jellyfish scores 6 points.
  • A triangle of 3 Jellyfish scores 12 points.
  • A diamond of 4 Jellyfish scores 20 points.

Example: A line of 2 Jellyfish scores 6 points, a triangle of 3 Jellyfish scores 12 points and a diamond scores 20 points. The shapes can be orientated in any direction on the ocean board, but each tile cannot count towards more than 1 scoring shape.

Octopus

• 1 per player
• Does not score.
• At the end of the submersible phase, players must move their Octopus 2 vertices. The Octopus cannot visit the same vertex in a round, and it cannot share its final vertex destination with the submersible, but it can move through the submersible. When the Octopus' movement ends, all 3 tiles adjacent to the Octopus are flipped. Point of interest tokens are not flipped by the Octopus.

Example: It's the end of the submersible phase and this player must choose where the Octopus moves. The Octopus must move 2 vertices.

Example: If the player chooses to move the Octopus this way, it will flip a single tile.

Example: If the player chooses to move the Octopus this way (through the submersible), it will flip 2 tiles but will not flip the point of interest token.

Example: If the player chooses to move the Octopus this way, it will not flip any tiles.

Expedition 3 Points of Interest (POI)

• Gain 8 points at end of game.
• Octopus moves 1 more vertex this round.
• Octopus moves 1 less vertex this round.
• Choose how many tiles the Octopus flips this round (1, 2 or 3; must flip at least 1 tile).

Expedition 4: Standoff in the Shallows

As summer arrives, fevers of stingrays glide into the sandbanks along the island's northwest shore, preparing for the arrival of their pups in autumn - but they're not alone. Drawn by the promise of an easy meal, hammerhead sharks prowl the waters, undeterred by the stingrays' sharp barbs. Fortunately, finless soles drifting through the shallows release a chemical that irritates the sharks' gills, helping to keep the stingrays and their young safe. As each team performs the island's annual stingray census, they will watch this dramatic spectacle unfold - how will the population fare by the end of the season?

Expedition 4 Setup

• Open the Expedition 4 tuckbox and remove the components.
• Place the Finless Sole and Shark advanced species guides below the core species guides.
• Place the points of interest references close to players.
• Then, each player should:
  1. Flip their ocean board to the divided side.
  2. Take the 1 Crustacean with 1 Fish core discovery tile from their tile bag and place it, undiscovered side up, in the centre zone of their ocean board.
  3. Add the 3 Finless Sole tiles in their colour to their tile bag.
  4. Place 6 Stingray tokens on their ocean board in the positions shown.
  5. Place their ship in any ocean zone and place their submersible on any vertex adjacent to the zone their ship is in.
• Shuffle the 12 Shark Location tokens face-down, then place 1 above and 1 below each of the 6 rounds of the round tracker board. Place the round 1 tokens face-up and tokens for rounds 2 - 6 face-down.
• Each player should then attach 2 Sharks to their Shark stands and place them next to the regions revealed for round 1. If the same region is shown on both tokens, move 1 of the Sharks into the next region clockwise.

Once you have performed these steps, head back to the Sonar Board setup step and continue setup from there. You'll return here for more expedition-specific information later, so you don't need to read ahead yet.

Expedition 4 Quick Reference

• Flip ocean boards to divided side
• 6 stingray tokens per ocean board
• Starting tile = 1 Crustacean with 1 Fish
• 3 x Finless Sole tiles per bag
• Ship starts in any zone
• Submersible starts on any vertex adjacent to ship
• Set up Shark location tokens and place Sharks in revealed regions.

Expedition 4 Species and Additional Rules

Finless Sole

• 3 icons per bag
• Score based on how many are on a player's ocean board:
  • 1 Finless Sole: 2 points
  • 2 Finless Soles: 6 points
  • 3 or more Finless Soles: 12 points
• While undiscovered, Finless Sole prevent Sharks eating Stingrays in the same region as the Finless Sole tile.

Example: A Shark has appeared in region 2. At the end of the submersible phase, it would normally eat all Stingrays in the region but this is prevented by the presence of the undiscovered Finless Sole. This Finless Sole will need to be discovered to score points at the end of the game, but doing so will remove its ability to prevent Shark attacks; timing is key!

Stingray Tokens

• 6 per player
• Each Stingray token is worth 2 points if still on the ocean board at end of the game.
• At the start of the submersible phase, you may move up to 2 Stingrays, each up to 2 zones; they cannot pass through discovery tiles or other tokens.

Example: At the start of the submersible phase, this player may move this Stingray token to either of the 2 zones shown; it cannot go anywhere else as it cannot pass through species tiles or other tokens. This player may also choose to move another Stingray token. Stingrays that remain on the board at the end of the game are worth 2 points each.

Sharks

• 2 per player
• Do not score.
• Each round, after ships have moved, flip the Shark location tokens above and below the current round on the round tracker board. Each player should place their Sharks near the regions revealed. If the same region is shown on both tokens, move 1 of the Sharks into the next region clockwise.
• At the end of the submersible phase, Stingrays in the same region as a Shark are eaten and removed from the game.

Example: In this example, the Shark location tokens show that sharks have appeared in regions 2 and 5. All Stingrays in those regions will be eaten at the end of the submersible phase, unless they are moved out of the affected regions or protected by undiscovered Finless Sole tiles.

Example: In this example, the Shark location tokens both show region 2. In this situation, 1 Shark appears in region 2 and the other is placed in region 3 (the next region clockwise).

Expedition 4 Points of Interest (POI)

During this expedition, discovered statue and wreck points of interest are not removed from the ocean board, and can be used to help Stingrays escape from Sharks.

• Wreck: During Stingray token movement, Stingray tokens adjacent to this token may teleport to an empty zone adjacent to the wreck point of interest. Remains on the ocean board.
• Gain 5 points at end of game.
• Lose 2 points at end of game.
• Statue: During Stingray token movement, Stingray tokens adjacent to this token may teleport to an empty zone adjacent to the statue point of interest. Remains on the ocean board.