Wyrmspan – Dragon Sanctuary Engine-Building Board Game

Build a sanctuary for dragons in Wyrmspan, a strategic engine-building board game from Stonemaier Games. As an amateur dracologist, you'll excavate a hidden labyrinth beneath your land, attract dragons to your caves and develop a sanctuary filled with incredible creatures.

Over five rounds, you'll expand your caves, play dragons, gather resources, hatch eggs and trigger increasingly powerful abilities. You'll also compete for the favour of the Dragon Guild, making every decision part of your quest to create the most impressive dragon sanctuary.

Designed by Connie Vogelmann and illustrated by Clémentine Campardou, Wyrmspan supports 1–5 players, takes around 90 minutes and is recommended for ages 14+.

What Is Wyrmspan?

Wyrmspan is a competitive dragon-themed engine-building and tableau-building game inspired by some of the mechanisms found in Stonemaier Games' Wingspan.

Rather than building a habitat for birds, you are developing a network of underground caves where dragons can live. Your personal player mat begins with three excavated spaces across three different cave types: the Crimson Cavern, Golden Grotto and Amethyst Abyss.

As the game progresses, you'll excavate more spaces and populate them with dragons. Each dragon can provide abilities, resources and opportunities that help you develop your engine and score points.

Although Wyrmspan shares some DNA with Wingspan, it is a standalone game with its own mechanisms and is not compatible with Wingspan.

How to Play Wyrmspan

Each round gives you opportunities to expand and improve your dragon sanctuary.

You'll primarily take actions to excavate caves, attract dragons and explore your sanctuary. Excavating opens new spaces on your player mat, while playing dragons fills those spaces and gives you access to their abilities.

Dragons can generate resources, provide bonuses and create combinations with other cards. The key is to build an efficient engine where one action can lead naturally into another.

You'll also manage meat, gold, crystal and milk, alongside coins and eggs. Timing your resource spending is crucial because your actions and resources are limited.

As your sanctuary develops, you'll work towards objectives and compete on the Dragon Guild track. Guild tiles and objectives provide additional scoring opportunities, encouraging you to adapt your strategy to the particular combination in each game.

At the end of the game, victory points come from your dragons, eggs, objectives, Dragon Guild progress and other achievements. The player who creates the most successful dragon sanctuary wins.

Why You’ll Love Wyrmspan

• Build a dragon sanctuary – Develop your own network of caves and fill it with unique dragons.

• 183 different dragon cards – A huge variety of dragons gives every game plenty of possibilities.

• Powerful engine building – Combine dragon abilities to create increasingly effective turns.

• Excavate as you expand – Carefully decide where and when to open new cave spaces.

• Compete for Dragon Guild favour – A shared guild system adds another layer of strategic competition.

• Manage multiple resources – Coins, meat, gold, crystal, milk and eggs all have roles to play.

• Solo mode included – The game supports one player with an Automa system.

• High replayability – Variable dragons, objectives and guild combinations make each sanctuary different.

• Standalone gameplay – Inspired by Wingspan, but designed as its own game with its own systems.

Who Is Wyrmspan For?

Wyrmspan is ideal for players who enjoy:

• Engine-building board games

• Tableau-building and card-driven strategy

• Fantasy and dragon themes

• Resource management

• Games with cascading card abilities

• Strategic solo games

• Stonemaier Games titles

• Wingspan-style games with a more tactical feel

It's especially appealing if you enjoy watching a personal engine grow throughout a game and finding combinations between cards, resources and objectives.

Build Your Dragon Sanctuary

Your sanctuary begins modestly, with only three excavated spaces.

From there, you'll gradually expand your caves and populate them with dragons. Each new card adds another element to your growing engine, with different dragons offering different abilities and opportunities.

The three cave types — Crimson Cavern, Golden Grotto and Amethyst Abyss — give your sanctuary its structure. Planning when to excavate and where to place dragons becomes an important part of building an efficient tableau.

The more successfully your engine develops, the more powerful your turns can become.

Discover 183 Unique Dragons

One of Wyrmspan's biggest attractions is its collection of 183 dragon cards.

These dragons come in a wide variety of forms, with different costs, abilities and strategic uses. Some can generate resources, while others interact with eggs, other dragons or particular parts of your sanctuary.

Because your available cards and objectives vary from game to game, you'll need to build around the opportunities presented rather than simply following one fixed strategy.

Explore the Dragon Guild

The Dragon Guild provides a shared competitive element alongside your personal sanctuary.

Players can advance their guild presence and pursue the objectives available in each game. This creates an important tension between developing your own engine and competing for opportunities that other players may also want.

The result is a game where your personal tableau matters, but so does paying attention to what everyone else is doing.

Main Mechanics

Engine Building
Create combinations of dragons and abilities that become increasingly powerful as the game progresses.

Tableau Building
Develop your own three-cave sanctuary by excavating spaces and placing dragons.

Resource Management
Carefully manage meat, gold, crystal, milk, coins and eggs to maximise your available actions.

Card Drafting & Hand Management
Work with your available dragons and caves to find the combinations that best support your strategy.

Objectives
Pursue shared and personal scoring opportunities to increase your final score.

Track Movement
Compete for progress on the Dragon Guild track and make the most of its available rewards.

Solo Play
The included Automa system provides a dedicated way to play Wyrmspan alone.

Games Like Wyrmspan

If you enjoy Wyrmspan, consider:

• Wingspan – The obvious comparison, with birds replacing dragons and a different engine-building system.

• Viticulture: Essential Edition – Strategic worker placement and engine development from Stonemaier Games.

• Earth – Engine building and tableau development with a huge variety of cards.

• Everdell – Woodland-themed tableau building with resource management and card combinations.

• Ark Nova – Heavier strategic tableau building with animals, conservation and multiple scoring systems.

• Apiary – Stonemaier's worker-placement and engine-building game with a science-fiction theme.

• Everdell Duo – A more compact option for players wanting strategic tableau building at two players.

Game Information

	Details
Game	Wyrmspan
Publisher	Stonemaier Games
Designer	Connie Vogelmann
Artist	Clémentine Campardou
Players	1–5
Playing Time	Approx. 90 minutes
Age	14+
Game Type	Strategy / Engine Building / Tableau Building
Mechanics	Engine Building / Resource Management / Card Drafting / Hand Management / Track Movement
Theme	Dragons / Fantasy / Exploration
Release	2024
UK RRP	£59.99
SKU	STM850
Barcode	850032180788
Language	English

Current UK distributor information lists Wyrmspan at £59.99 RRP, with SKU STM850, barcode 850032180788, 1–5 players, approximately 90 minutes and age 14+.

What’s Included?

The Wyrmspan box includes:

• 1 Dragon Guild board

• 4 double-sided Dragon Guild tiles

• 183 dragon cards

• 75 cave cards

• 1 card display board

• 1 round tracker board

• 10 double-sided objective tiles

• 5 player mats

• 10 double-sided quick-start guides

• 1 score pad

• 45 coins

• 25 meat tokens

• 25 gold tokens

• 25 crystal tokens

• 25 milk tokens

• 55 eggs

• 20 multiplier tokens

• 1 round marker

• 1 start player marker

• 5 adventurer pieces

• Player markers and guild tokens

• 17 Automa cards for solo play

• Rulebook

The current Stonemaier component list confirms 183 dragon cards, 75 cave cards, 55 eggs, 45 coins, 4 Dragon Guilds and 10 objective tiles, alongside the player pieces and solo components.

Wyrmspan FAQ

How many people can play Wyrmspan?

Wyrmspan supports 1–5 players, including a dedicated solo mode.

How long does Wyrmspan take to play?

A game takes approximately 90 minutes.

What age is Wyrmspan suitable for?

The recommended age is 14+.

Is Wyrmspan like Wingspan?

Wyrmspan is inspired by mechanisms from Wingspan, but it is a standalone game with its own systems and is not compatible with Wingspan.

Is Wyrmspan a standalone game?

Yes. You do not need Wingspan or any other game to play Wyrmspan.

Does Wyrmspan have a solo mode?

Yes. Wyrmspan includes an Automa solo system.

How many dragons are in Wyrmspan?

The base game contains 183 dragon cards.

Is Wyrmspan suitable for Wingspan fans?

Yes, particularly if you enjoy card-driven engine building and tableau development. However, Wyrmspan introduces its own systems and should be considered a separate game rather than a dragon-themed version of Wingspan.

Is there an expansion for Wyrmspan?

Yes. Wyrmspan: Dragon Academy is an expansion that adds new dragons, caves, Dragon Guilds, objectives and training mechanics. It requires the Wyrmspan base game.

Buy Wyrmspan from Roll The Dice Cornwall

Wyrmspan combines dragons, engine building, resource management and strategic tableau development into a beautifully produced Stonemaier Games experience.

Excavate your caves, attract incredible dragons, build powerful combinations and compete for the favour of the Dragon Guild. Whether you're playing competitively with friends or taking on the Automa solo mode, every game gives you a new sanctuary to develop.

Build your sanctuary. Discover your dragons. Create your legend.