
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Ekosystem 3: Sawanna – Hipopotam
- 1–6 players
- 20 min
- 2024

2023
Rules assistance for Ecosystem: Savanna
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 1 player

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Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Ecosystem: Savanna is a board game released in 2023 for 1–6 players, 15–20 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Matt Simpson, Steve Schlepphorst, and Daniel Dávalos and its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Pattern Building.
Be on the prowl in Ecosystem: Savanna, a Serengeti-inspired card-drafting game. Players choose, pass, and arrange cards representing a diversity of organisms found in an African grassland, including zebras, elephants, cheetahs, and lions. Earn points by aligning herbivores with habitable landforms like watering holes or placing carnivores to devour nearby prey. Diversify your food web to maximize your bonuses. Each time you play, you build a one-of-a-kind ecosystem as you strive to balance the delicate connections between all living things. Ecosystem: Savanna is the third standalone game in the Ecosystem series, featuring a new lineup of organisms, including powerful scavengers. Players take turns drafting organism cards and arranging them into a 4x5 "ecosystem" in front of them. Once all players have completed their personal grid of 20 cards, players score their ecosystems using the rules for each card type. Scoring rewards players for building cohesive food webs and exploring the diversity of the Savanna ecosystem. The player with the most points wins! Includes rules for solo play. —description from the publisher
Ecosystem: Savanna supports 1–6 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 Ecosystem: Savanna is 15–20 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 Ecosystem: Savanna for ages 8 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.
Ecosystem: Savanna has a complexity rating of 1.9 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.
Ecosystem: Savanna belongs to these categories: Animals, Educational, and Environmental. Its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Pattern Building. 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 Ecosystem: Savanna are: Matt Simpson, Steve Schlepphorst, and Daniel Dávalos. 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 Ecosystem: Savanna 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.