Finspan Dips its Toes into the Ocean

The boardgame Wingspan has a large fanbase all over the world. The nature inspired game consistently recieves glowing reviews from across the boardgaming world, and for good reason, making it a staple game in many tabletop collections.

Finspan is the latest addition to the Wingspan games from Stonemaier, and is designed by David Gordon and Michael O’Connell, (with a helping hand from Wingspan creator Elizabeth Hargrave). Finspan delivers a familiar-yet-fresh experience which explores marine life. You could call it Wingspans aquatic cousin if you like!

Let’s have a look at what we can expect from Finspan and its newest expansion: Sharks and Reefs.

Wingspan is one of those games that needs no introduction, especially for the regulars at our Chaos Cards Tabletop Gaming Store in Folkestone or our online community. It is, quite simply, an engine-building masterpiece that has captured the hearts of gamers and bird lovers across the world.

But the world of Wingspan is flying higher than ever. Alongside popular regional expansions like Asia, Americas, and Oceania, the franchise recently took a mythical turn with Wyrmspan, which is essentially Wingspan, but with dragons instead of birds. This variation of the game was perfect for myth-lovers, and introduced the Dragon Guild mechanic. The new mechanic made the game more challenging for confident gamers and was well received within the Wingspan community.

Marine life is the next topic for Stonemaier games to explore in Finspan, where you play as a a marine researcher exploring three oceanic layers: the colourful Sunlight Zone, the ghostly Twilight Zone and the pitch black Midnight Zone. You trigger powerful benefits the deeper you dive in to the game.

To expand your research, you'll visit dive sites that let you:

• Grow your collection of unique fish.

• Discover freshly laid eggs.

• Hatch and consolidate young fish into schools.

We actually think Finspan is a little simpler to learn than Wingspan and Wyrmspan, making it the perfect entry point into this universe. It's unique, beautifully thematic, and even includes a built-in Automa solo mode!

Finspan (Base Game) Components:

• 152 cards (57x87mm)

• Large player mats (530x284mm)

• A built-in plastic tray to perfectly hold all cards and tokens

• Full Automa solo mode included

• Box Specs: 296x296x70mm, weighing in at 1.9 kg

For those of us that want to carry on exploring the marine world, the newest expansion Sharks and Reefs means you can explore new coral reef habitats and bring new shark abilities into play. (You will need the Finspan base game in order to play this expansion.)

• Nurture Coral Reefs: Build healthy reefs across your dive sites to unlock powerful reef fish, boost abilities, and score end-game bonuses. The game includes 5 coral reef overlays.

• Apex Predators: Sharks will scatter schools of young (helping you form even more schools elsewhere) and leave behind handy food scraps for your other fish to consume.

The game takes place over a four week time frame, with each dive specialising in expanding your research. The winner is the player with the most points gained from fish, eggs, schools and achievements. The Sharks and Reefs expansion integrates really well into Finspan and adds a dynamic dimension to the base game, without changing the game too much.

The expansion is designed by Michael O’Connell and illustrated by Ana Maria Martinez Jaramillo and Catalina Martinez. We love that the FSC-certified eco friendly components fit neatly into the core game box. Don’t forget that all the parts in the game are covered by Stonemaiers lifetime replacement parts service as well.

Sharks & Reefs Expansion Components:

• 75 fish cards plus 5 starter fish cards (57x87mm)

• 90 wooden coral tokens & 5 reef overlay mats

• 1 scorepad, 1 achievement board, and 3 tiles

• 2 rulebooks (multiplayer and solo)

• A folding box (300x206x50mm) with an organizer tray designed to fit seamlessly right next to the original game's card tray

If you love beautiful board games, Finspan and it's expansion Sharks and Reefs will not disappoint. We think it’s slightly simpler to pick up than its predecessors, making it perfect for welcoming new players to the franchise. Plus, the 5-minute setup means less time organising the board and more time playing! Designed for 1–5 players and wrapping up in under an hour, we can already tell this is going to be a big Chaos Cards favourite. It feels like it is perfect for those laid-back, summery evenings with friends. We can’t wait to get playing.

Don’t forget to browse our Wingspan accessories over on Chaos Cards now! There's plenty available to upgrade your setup and build on your gaming experience. This seems to be the season of nature related games as we also have a Harmonies and Forest Shuffle expansion to look forward to as well! 

Are you ready to dive to the deepest parts of the ocean? Let us know if you'll be adding Finspan and Sharks and Reefs to your collection!