Ark Nova - Playthrough & Review

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This is "Ark Nova," a board game designed by Mathias Wigge and published by Capstone Games in 2021. This video includes a rules overview.

JUMP:
0:00 - Teach
26:03 - Playthrough Start
45:12 - Coffee Break 1
56:07 - Coffee Break 2
01:17:46 - Coffee Break 3
01:37:16 - Coffee Break 4
1:47:19 - Post Game Discussion
1:51:05 - Review

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[BeforeYouPlay]

PLEASE NOTE: One error we made was when calculating money gained for the kiosk. "unique buildings" are referring to the actual unique buildings gained from sponsor cards lol. Repinning this again because our prior comment is lost for some reason. Happy gaming, everyone!

[zvnetzley]

Without a doubt the clearest and most enjoyable play throughs available. Trying to make certain that a rule book is understood before teaching others is vital and watching you two play and explain the game makes it possible! Yours is the only channel I go to for this type of content, so thank you for high quality productions!

[MrAfricaturtle]

Yours is hands down the clearest and most enjoyable teach and playthrough channel there is on youtube. Thanks a bunch!

[robmangham]

It's impressive how well you guys let games shine on the table without feeling like you need to get yourselves in the spotlight. If there is a complex game I want to understand you guys are my go to because you work through them in such a clear way. 🐺

[Terapiaelukka]

One error I noticed: When playing the greater flamingo 1:23:30, Naveen did not flip over the 3-hex enclosure. He later played a water dragon 1:36:25 and flips over the 3-hex enclosure which should already be occupied by the flamingo.
I enjoyed the video, I have the game and have played it couple of times but I still learned something new! Thanks!

[Guyititian]

My wife and I just recently got into the hobby. As soon as she saw the game online she was instantly drawn to it. When it arrived, she was a little intimidated due to the table presence, but your tutorial was so simple and straight forward I was able to easily do a teach. We completed our first game tonight and this video gave us everything we needed to get started. So much fun! Thank you!

[neox]

Just wanted you guys to know that you helped me tremendously in understanding the rules and nuances of this game. I’ve only played solo so far, but will soon be bringing this to the table with multiple players. Thanks for this video!

[Dehalove]

I pre-ordered this and have watched so many "how to play" videos and your channel is always the one that I fully absorb

[dshannon]

@1:42:37 Naveen is a WHOLE MOOD as he sees the writing on the wall. Great playthrough, thank you guys so much!

[douglatins]

Best gameplay and rules teaching channel, listening to the rules and be able to watch a playthrough really sets the rules in my head

[mosiah.torres]

🐺 Dear Monique and Naveen..! Learning games with you guys is simply the best. You have wonderful chemistry, you're entertaining, and always attentive to the details and nuances of each game! Meeting you both at Airecon last year was truly a highlight for me! Wishing you another year of continued success 😊🐺

[BelleAim]

Thank you so much for this video. Some friends asked me to play with them on BGA and I feel so lost and overwhelmed. They said “straight to the fire!” And didn’t have a beginner mode or peaceful mode or anything. I was inching along while others were combo-ing and leaping ahead. This video gave me confidence to even attempt the game and gives me hope that I’ll really enjoy it after a few plays. Thank you ❤

[timothystanciu]

My wife has been subscribed to the channel for quite some time now. Thank you for providing information, education and entertainment in our household! Our board game collection is top tier because of you! 😄🐺

[goldsmeeth]

Pets are good when you have a horse or have 2 pets readily available. It also puts a lot of pressure on opponent Cards action effectively cancelling it when a pet shows up. The pet shape can be useful on some maps for fast engine build

Tips for Naveen:
- on map A, you want to build across to get the 2nd worker and 10 money. Zoo school is good, but also consider using special sponsor building to help you build faster to chain map bonuses
-sponsor first upgrade is not a good idea unless you have a power card like explorer or plan for slow game
-you should take the upgrade at 2 CP. You dont need 3 workers that early. Unused worker is a dead worker. You can break her worker making it dead and not be penalized for it with your sponsor ii
-you grab the geologist yet you didnt play it soon.
-One of the biggest benefit of sponsor upgrade is strong break control. All her actions are weak while you can play geologist and other sponsors from the board advancing you way faster than she can. Let her push the break 2 herself, as her slump is deeper than yours. She was rock bottom, dont help her
- eagles and rhino are powerful animals. You have a few chances to get it, and also deny her. It score 9 points, plus 5 CP species project for total of 24 points, plus support bonus, and no luck needed top decking
-didnt watch rest of the video, but sometimes the best move isnt playing your best card in hand. You also had chances getting or playing mediocre animals from the card row and saving some playable cards in case of a drought, which the game gives you warning signs of the cards far upstream. Since she hates pets, 9 points for 14 money is an excellent deal. The third pet that showed up would given you either 9 more points, or cancel her Cards action to take it away giving you time to catch up.

[smilingbadger]

You guys are so fun to watch. No cluter just straight play with excellent explanation.

[youreatowel]

This game has been on my "watch list" for some time now. I love the theme and all the mechanics are so flavorful. I gotta say, watching you two play has made it seem much more approachable too. Thanks for the fun videos and letting us in on your thoughts about strategy while you play together!

[Hiterai]

1:38:30 According to the rules I have a kiosk scores for every adjacent building unless it is an unoccupied standard enclosure. Not only unique ones.

1:46:08 You explained the 'connected rule' correctly and then totally overlooked, that the 2nd space of the pond you explained it with is not adjacent to an occupied (as in build on) space. The other pond space is not sufficient.

Enjoyed the playthrough very much. Thanks for it. :)

[maxjay]

This is the best explained rules I have gone through...it's just done in a very natural progression and not rushed....I have visited 3 other video and still couldn't really understand in the way there were just explaining things without correlating to the game board....this was very helpful

[stevenbuck]

Thanks a lot for this tutorial! I found it helpful to briefly watch your set up, and then watch you play the game, before going back and watching the whole teaching section to answer and questions I had from the gameplay. I feel confident in playing the game now and I'm really looking forward to it! ❤❤🥰

[SClarkPharmD]

I keep hearing good things about this game! Thanks for the playthrough! 🐺