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Fossilium
2025
Rules assistance for Fossilium
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–4 players
- 60–120 min
- 12+
- Complexity 3.0/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for Fossilium
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Fossilium is a board game released in 2025 for 1–4 players, 60–120 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Julia Thiemann and Christoph Waage and its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Pattern Building.
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About the game
Fossilium is a strategic and interactive set collection and tile placement game. As the director of a natural history museum specializing in paleontology, it’s your mission to turn your establishment into the most sought-after destination for fossil enthusiasts. To achieve this, you will send your paleontologists on promising excavations, carefully assemble fossil pieces, and strategically display them in your grand hall. By expanding your museum with facilities like restaurants and auditoriums, you can unlock additional income and powerful bonuses. Always keep an eye on visitor trends, as this can allow you to sell season tickets and gain a crucial advantage over your competitors. The game features a unique blend of competition and cooperation: while you may compete for valuable action spaces, there’s also room for collaboration. In the spirit of scientific discovery, you can assist your rivals in completing iconic fossils like the T-Rex or Stegosaurus, allowing both players to score points. You have 5 rounds to fill your exhibition rooms. Each round consists of four phases : receive income , build and fill your museums, open the doors to your museums and gain prestige, finally, you unearth new fossils and attract returning patrons. After five rounds, the game ends and whoever has collected the most prestige has built the most impressive museum and wins! Fossilium is a science-based game developed in collaboration with the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin (Natural History Museum). —description from the designer
Categories
Designers
Publishers
- Don't Panic Games
- Giant Roc
- 14games
Questions and answers
Fossilium 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 Fossilium is 60–120 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 Fossilium for ages 12 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.
Fossilium has a complexity rating of 3.0 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.
Fossilium belongs to these categories: Educational and Prehistoric. 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 Fossilium are: Julia Thiemann and Christoph Waage. 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 Fossilium 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.