March of the Ants: Evolved Edition Board Game

About this product

Build the colony. Evolve your ants. Rule the Meadow.

A rich civilisation strategy game of exploration, evolution, resources and territorial competition.

Grow an ant colony, explore an expanding Meadow and evolve your species as you compete for resources, territory and Colony Points.

Product Description

Spring has arrived, the great thaw has begun, and deep beneath the Meadow a new generation of ant colonies is stirring.

In March of the Ants: Evolved Edition, each player controls a growing ant colony. Explore the unknown reaches of the Meadow, gather resources, evolve your ants into new forms and compete with rival colonies for territory and control. There are many paths to victory, with Colony Points earned through expansion, evolution, Colony Goals and battle. 

Each round moves through four distinct phases. During the Worker Phase, take actions to Explore, Forage, March, Play a Card or Rest. The Soldier Phase resolves battles in contested locations, the Queen Phase lets colonies harvest resources and feed their ants, and Slumber rewards achievements before the next round begins. 

Evolution is central to your strategy. Play Evolution cards onto the Head, Thorax and Abdomen sections of your ants to gain new abilities and bonuses that can influence Worker actions, battle and resource management.

The Evolved Edition revises and upgrades the original 2015 game with new artwork and graphic design, revised mechanics, new Rest cards and Great Tunnel battles, and wooden Ant meeples while retaining its compact 4X-style strategy experience.

At the end of the game, the colony with the highest score rules the Meadow. 

View the March of the Ants: Evolved Edition Rulebook (PDF)

Why You’ll Love It

• A rich 4X-style experience: Explore, expand your colony, evolve your ants and compete for control.
• Create your own species: Head, Thorax and Abdomen Evolutions give your colony different abilities and strategic strengths.
• An expanding Meadow: New hexes gradually build the shared game board as colonies explore.
• Multiple paths to victory: Earn Colony Points through territory, evolution, Colony Goals and battle.
• Interactive turns: Actions can allow neighbouring players to take reactions, keeping everyone involved between turns. 
• Battles for territory: Compete in contested hexes and the Great Tunnel using Strength and Ferocity. 
• Variable strategic depth: Advanced Epic and Ancient Species variants give experienced players additional options. 
• Solo and co-operative play included: The game includes a dedicated Solo/Co-op mat and rules sheet. 

Quick Details

• Publisher: Weird City Games
• Designers: Ryan Swisher and Tim Eisner
• Players: 1–5
• Recommended Age: 14+
• Play Time: 60–90 minutes
• Game Complexity: Medium
• Game Type: Civilisation / 4X strategy board game
• Edition: Evolved Edition
• Solo / Co-op: Included

In the Box

• 1 Great Tunnel
• 13 Standard Hexes
• 10 Starting Hexes
• 5 Beyond the Meadow Hexes
• 13 Rest Tiles
• 1 Active Player Marker
• 5 Nest Mats
• 5 Score Markers
• 6 Strength Markers
• 30 Food Tokens
• 180 Wooden Ants — 36 in each player colour
• 66 Ant Cards
• 6 Reward Tiles
• 1 Score/Round Track
• 1 Round Marker
• 6 Centipede Tokens
• 1 Centipede Size Marker
• 12 Wormhole / Extra Centipede Tokens
• 5 Quick References
• 1 Solo/Co-op Mat
• 1 Solo/Co-op Rules Sheet
• 1 Strength Track

Good to Know

• Standalone game: This is the revised Evolved Edition of the original March of the Ants base game.
• Core game is competitive: Players grow rival colonies and compete for the highest score.
• Solo and co-op options: Separate Solo/Co-op rules are included.
• 2-player rules included: The rulebook provides specific adjustments for two-player games. 
• Advanced play available: The Epic Game extends play to five rounds, while Ancient Species introduces asymmetric abilities and additional complexity.