- BGG rank
- BGG #11,871
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Shadow Network
- 1–5 players
- 75–90 min
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2023
- BGG rank
- BGG #6,319
- BGG rating
- 6.6
The Alpha
2020
Rules assistance for The Alpha
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 20–45 min
- 10+
- Complexity 1.5/5
Rules assistant for The Alpha
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
The Alpha is a board game released in 2020 for 3–6 players, 20–45 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Ralph Rosario and its main mechanics are Area Majority / Influence and Prisoner's Dilemma.
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About the game
Lead your wolf pack as you claim territory, search for food, and hunt prey. After a successful hunt, you may enter a conflict with another pack. If that happens, you will have to decide whether you want to risk injury by fighting to keep the food for your own pack, or risk giving up all the food found in the region by sharing with the other pack. In The Alpha, players control a wolf pack, leading wolves on a search for food. The Near Forest includes easier to catch, but lower value prey. The Far Forest has larger prey that are more difficult to attack, but if successful can result in great reward. You will lead your wolves through four stages of the hunt: STALK - Send your wolves to hunt in various regions of the forest and outnumber rival packs to become dominant in the area. CHASE – Roll the dice for the region to determine the success of the hunt. RESOLVE – Enter conflict and decide whether to fight or share food with other packs in the region. ADVANCE – Move your wolf on the food track to indicate the amount of food secured during the hunt. At the end of 5 weeks (rounds), the wolf pack with the most food will be declared The Alpha. —description from the publisher
Editions
- The AlphaenGames by Bicycle, The United States Playing Card Company2020
Categories
Designers
Publishers
- The United States Playing Card Company
- Games by Bicycle
Questions and answers
The Alpha supports 3–6 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 The Alpha is 20–45 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 The Alpha 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.
The Alpha has a complexity rating of 1.5 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.
The Alpha belongs to these categories: Animals, Abstract Strategy, and Bluffing. Its main mechanics are Area Majority / Influence and Prisoner's Dilemma. 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 The Alpha are: Ralph Rosario. 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 The Alpha 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.