Arnak Openings: Your First Two Rounds

Lost Ruins of Arnak has no fixed opening. The card row, the idols, and the site tiles change every game. But the first two rounds still follow patterns. The idea under all of them is simple: anything you gain early gets used again later. An item bought in round I can be drawn in rounds II through V. An assistant recruited in round I can be used once in every round from then on. A point scored in round I is just a point.

Read your seat

Starting resources depend on seat: 2 coins for seat 1, a coin and a compass for seat 2, 2 coins and a compass for seat 3, and a coin and 2 compasses for seat 4. Seats 3 and 4 get a third resource, which helps balance acting later in the round.

Coins lean toward items. Compasses lean toward artifacts and discovering sites. Look at your pile and at the card row before you plan anything.

Know your starting deck

Your deck is 2 Funding, 2 Exploration, and 2 Fear. You draw 5 of the 6 in round I, so one card waits for round II.

• Funding gives a coin as a free action, or pays travel.
• Exploration gives a compass as a free action, or pays travel.
• Fear has no effect. Its only job is its boot.

That last point matters. Every Funding or Exploration you spend for travel is a coin or compass you did not get. So when a starting site costs a boot, pay with Fear if you have it.

Two archaeologists, two big moves

Digging and discovering both send an archaeologist from your board, and you have only 2. Treat them as the core of your round plan. Ask:

1. Which starting site gives me what I need this round?
2. Can I afford to discover a site, compasses plus travel?
3. Do I want either archaeologist sitting with a guardian when the round ends?

The first discovery

Discovering a level I site is a strong early move. You get an idol worth 3 points, its reward, and the site tile’s reward, all in one action. And the site is now open for everyone to dig.

The price is a guardian. If your archaeologist is still on that site at the end of the round, you bring home a Fear card. That is often fine in round I: the idol and rewards are worth more than one Fear. But plan for it. Every Fear card in your deck makes your next hands a little weaker.

Research early

Two reasons to research in round I and again in round II:

• Bonus tiles go to the first arrival. Waiting means someone else takes them.
• Assistants pay every round. When your notebook reaches an assistant row, you recruit one. An assistant can be used once per round, and it refreshes at the end of each round. Recruited in round II, it can work four times. Recruited in round IV, twice.

Remember the order: your magnifying glass moves first, and the notebook follows.

What to buy in round I

The round I card row has 5 items and 1 artifact. As the moon staff moves, artifacts take over the row. Items arrive the round after you buy them, so the earlier you buy one, the more rounds it works.

• Buy an item that keeps working. Look for travel icons you lack, or effects that make resources you need for research.
• Match your travel. Your basic cards give you cars and ships, plus Fear boots. An item with a plane, or with the icon your plans keep needing, is worth a lot.
• An artifact early is strong when you have the compasses. You use it right away, and it joins your deck for later rounds, though playing it from hand later costs a tablet.

Exile early

An effect that exiles a card is at its best in round I or II. A Fear card exiled now is one that never clogs a hand again and never costs you a point. A basic Funding or Exploration exiled later in the game makes room for stronger cards.

A good start, roughly

There is no perfect target. As a rough check after round II, a strong start often looks like this:

• Both research tokens off the starting row, ideally with an assistant.
• One or two new cards in your deck that do something you need.
• At least one idol, and a plan for the guardian that came with it.
• No more Fear than you started with.

If you are behind on all four, do not panic. The midgame lesson covers how to catch up. For the bigger idea behind early investment, our guide to engine building games walks through the curve every engine follows, slow start included.