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The Table Is Lava
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One Small Step
2020
Rules assistance for One Small Step
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–4 players
- 60–120 min
- 10+
- Complexity 3.2/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for One Small Step
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
One Small Step is a board game released in 2020 for 2–4 players, 60–120 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Gunter Eickert, James Schoch, and James DuMond and its main mechanics are Set Collection, Modular Board, and Team-Based Game.
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About the game
In One Small Step , players lead the United States or Soviet Union Space Agency in this engine building, worker placement, race for the moon eurogame. Play on a team of one or two players where each player on a team controls either the Engineer Workers or the Administrator Workers for their team. Coordinate your actions with your teammate on each of your turns to either place an Engineer or Administrator Worker on board actions to gather the games 9 different resources, draft development cards, increase your media coverage, recruit astronauts, upgrade resources, develop your space flight capability, or spend resources to launch humanity’s first unmanned and manned Missions into space. Which type of Worker you place changes the effect that a board action has. Each board action can only be used once each round, so placing a Worker does not only prevent your opponents from using the action but prevents your teammate from using the action's alternative effect with their workers. Gain the advantage in the media to place your worker first in a round or to gain a media bonus for special one time abilities and bonus resources. Score Victory Points by building cards you drafted or by successfully launching Missions into space. Every successful launch you have upgrades one of the board actions not only for your team but also your opponents. Successfully launch enough Manned Missions to achieve the first manned moon landing before your rivals, gaining you bonus Victory Points and ending the game. The team who has the most Victory Points at the end contributed the most to one of humanities greatest achievements and wins the game. —description from the publisher
Publishers
- Fever Games
- Academy Games, Inc.
Questions and answers
One Small Step supports 2–4 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 One Small Step 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 One Small Step for ages 10 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.
One Small Step has a complexity rating of 3.2 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.
One Small Step belongs to these categories: Educational, Space Exploration, and Aviation / Flight. Its main mechanics are Set Collection, Modular Board, and Team-Based Game. 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 One Small Step are: Gunter Eickert, James Schoch, and James DuMond. 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 One Small Step 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.