- BGG rating
- 7.5
Cosmos: Empires – Culture Clash
- 2–8 players
- 15–45 min
- 2024
- BGG rank
- BGG #19,771
- BGG rating
- 6.0
Cosmos: Empires
2022
Rules assistance for Cosmos: Empires
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–8 players
- 15–45 min
- 11+
- Complexity 1.8/5
Rules assistant for Cosmos: Empires
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Cosmos: Empires is a board game released in 2022 for 2–8 players, 15–45 minutes per game, and ages 11 and up. It was designed by Martin Brandel and its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Income, and Dice Rolling.
Expansions
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About the game
Cosmos: Empires is a 2-8 player, 15-45 minute engine building card game. Jump into the galaxy, choose your strategy and build your galactic empire. Race against your friends, exploiting their economy to your advantage! The game is played with a single deck, from which 10 cards are drawn into the “pool” players can select and build cards from. Each card has a cost, roll value and production value. Each turn, the current player gets 2 actions and then rolls 2 D4 (4 sided dice). The current player can use one of their actions to increase or decrease the total of the two dice by one. Then, each player with a card with a Roll value equal to the new total gets Credits equal to the same cards production value. Finally, the current player can use their remaining actions to build a card from the card pool (or “cycle” it and take credits). —description from the publisher
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Bigger Worlds Games
Questions and answers
Cosmos: Empires supports 2–8 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 Cosmos: Empires is 15–45 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 Cosmos: Empires for ages 11 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.
Cosmos: Empires has a complexity rating of 1.8 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light 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.
Cosmos: Empires belongs to these categories: Card Game, Economic, and Print & Play. Its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Income, and Dice Rolling. 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 Cosmos: Empires are: Martin Brandel. 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 Cosmos: Empires 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.