
2026Gregg Jewell
From BoardGameGeek
It is time to awaken the Ancients from their hibernation! As Warden of the Grove, your duty is to perform awakening rituals on the slumbering Ancients. Each awakening ritual is uniquely attuned to a specific Ancient, drawing its power from a combination of limited Wildseeds. Once awakened, some Ancients may need to consume seeds to restore their vitality. Plan your actions wisely to ensure you have enough seeds to awaken all the Ancients and preserve the grove's harmony under your careful stewardship. In Awaken the Ancients, carefully manage your limited supply of seed tokens to perform unique awakening rituals attuned to each Ancient. You'll strategically move seeds Mancala style around a grid of 8 Ancients, placing them on specific Ancients to match their awakening requirements. Once an Ancient is awakened, it may consume certain seeds for nourishment, removing them from play. The challenge lies in planning your moves to ensure all eight Ancients are awakened before you run out of seeds or it becomes impossible to complete the rituals. Manage your resources wisely and use the Keepers' abilities to control the direction of seed movement, striving to achieve victory by awakening all Ancients. After a win, you final score is equal to the number of seeds remaining in the game. This version of the game also includes the following expansions: Blight and Bother, Starstones, and the Dream Eater. -description from the publisher
Awaken the Ancients has 4 videos from 4 creators: 2 reviews, 1 how-to-play guide and 1 playthrough. They date from April to August 2026.
To learn the rules, start with "How to Play: Awaken the Ancients" by Gregg Jewell Games, which runs 15 min.
For an opinion before you buy, start with "Awaken the Ancients play and review (review copy provided)" by One Stop Co-op Shop. To see it played, watch "Awaken the Ancients | Solo Playthrough - A Mancala Game with Clever Choices" by Sir Thecos.
If you like it, try Galdor's Grip, Blackjack River Research, Merchant's Solitaire and Going Knowhere, also by Gregg Jewell.
From BoardGameGeek:
It is time to awaken the Ancients from their hibernation! As Warden of the Grove, your duty is to perform awakening rituals on the slumbering Ancients. Each awakening ritual is uniquely attuned to a specific Ancient, drawing its power from a combination of limited Wildseeds. Once awakened, some Ancients may need to consume seeds to restore their vitality. Plan your actions wisely to ensure you have enough seeds to awaken all the Ancients and preserve the grove's harmony under your careful stewardship. In Awaken the Ancients, carefully manage your limited supply of seed tokens to perform unique awakening rituals attuned to each Ancient. You'll strategically move seeds Mancala style around a grid of 8 Ancients, placing them on specific Ancients to match their awakening requirements. Once an Ancient is awakened, it may consume certain seeds for nourishment, removing them from play. The challenge lies in planning your moves to ensure all eight Ancients are awakened before you run out of seeds or it becomes impossible to complete the rituals. Manage your resources wisely and use the Keepers' abilities to control the direction of seed movement, striving to achieve victory by awakening all Ancients. After a win, you final score is equal to the number of seeds remaining in the game. This version of the game also includes the following expansions: Blight and Bother, Starstones, and the Dream Eater. -description from the publisher
Designer
Gregg Jewell
Artist
Cole Munro-Chitty
Publisher
Best With 1 Games
Categories
Mechanics