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Bios: Origins (Second Edition)
- 1–4 players
- 120–240 min
- Complexity 4.2/5
- 2019
- BGG rank
- BGG #5,618
- BGG rating
- 7.5
Bios: Mesofauna
2022
Rules assistance for Bios: Mesofauna
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–4 players
- 90–120 min
- 14+
- Complexity 3.6/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for Bios: Mesofauna
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Bios: Mesofauna is a board game released in 2022 for 1–4 players, 90–120 minutes per game, and ages 14 and up. It was designed by Phil Eklund and Jon Manker and its main mechanics are Area Majority / Influence, Modular Board, and Open Drafting.
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About the game
Bios:Mesofauna is an alternative Bios:Megafauna. That is, it starts and ends at the same time. It follows the same sort of Achterbahn environment, same climate change, same or similar creeples, same VP, same tiles, same card colors, same cratons and drift, same basic and Achterbahn games, same catastrophes, same greenhouse, cloudiness, and oxygen. Same terrestrial settings. The setting is the same, only the animals are smaller. Bios:Mesofauna is a deliberate attempt to reach a wider audience than Bios:Megafauna, by stripping away about half the rules. Monsters, tools, horror plants, kiwi, haustorium, dark heart, Mars, Venus, shelves, blooms, Offshore, and Cheshire Cat have been dropped. More significantly, marine variant and size were also dropped, and these two decisions are worthy of more discussion. The two games integrate with each other making it possible to play a game with a combination of player roles from the two games. —description from the designer
Designers
Publishers
- Sierra Madre Games
- Ion Game Design
Questions and answers
Bios: Mesofauna supports 1–4 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Bios: Mesofauna is 90–120 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Bios: Mesofauna for ages 14 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Bios: Mesofauna has a complexity rating of 3.6 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Bios: Mesofauna belongs to these categories: Animals, Territory Building, and Prehistoric. Its main mechanics are Area Majority / Influence, Modular Board, and Open Drafting. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Bios: Mesofauna are: Phil Eklund and Jon Manker. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Bios: Mesofauna as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.