Last Updated on August 16, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team

In Command of Nature, players harness the power of nature to build mighty forces and strategic plays. Using elemental resources and powerful cards, they command the land, weather, and creatures to outwit their opponents. With ever-changing tactics and a focus on growth and adaptation, each game offers a fresh opportunity for triumph.

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How to Play Command of Nature

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Setup

Start by having each player choose a Sage and take the corresponding Sage board and Sage pack.

Your Sage Pack Contains:

• 1 Elemental Sage card
• Sage board
• 3 Elemental Champion cards
• 4 Basic Elemental cards
• 3 Elemental Warrior cards
• 5 Command cards

Each Sage belongs to an Elemental faction (Pebble, Droplet, Twig, or Leaf), marked by a symbol. Once you and your opponent have chosen your Elemental factions, return any remaining Sage boards and Sage packs back to the game box.

Place your Sage board in front of you, then take your level tracker token and place it on level 1 of the level tracker on your Sage board. Locate the Elemental Champions in your Sage pack. Each of your Elemental Champions is marked with a level that corresponds with a number on your level tracker; place each Elemental Champion face down on your Sage board in the designated area corresponding to its number.

Use the remaining Elementals in your Sage pack to create your formation. A formation consists of 3 rows into which you’ll summon Elementals throughout the game.

If You’re Playing with 4 Players:

Row I in your team’s formation has space for 3 Elementals, Row II has space for 4 Elementals, and Row III has space for 6 Elementals. You will set up half the formation using the cards in your Sage pack, and your teammate will set up the other half. Set your team’s formation directly across from the opposing team’s formation.

Start by separating the Basic Elementals, Elemental Warriors, and the Sage from your Sage pack. Take 3 of your Basic Elementals, add 1 into Row I and 2 into Row II of your half of the formation face up, and set aside the remaining Basic Elemental. Next, take your Sage and place it in the center of your half of Row III. Finally, choose 2 of your Elemental Warriors and place them face up to the left and right of your Sage in Row III.

If You’re Playing with 2 Players:

Row I in your formation has space for 1 Elemental, Row II has space for 2 Elementals, and Row III has space for 3 Elementals. You’ll set up your formation directly across from your opponent’s formation.

Start by separating the Basic Elementals, Elemental Warriors, and the Sage from your Sage pack. Take 3 of your Basic Elementals, add 1 into Row I and 2 into Row II of your formation face up, and set aside the remaining Basic Elemental. Next, take your Sage and place it in the center of Row III. Finally, choose 2 of your Elemental Warriors and place them face up to the left and right of your Sage in Row III.

Take the remaining Elemental Warrior, the Basic Elemental you set aside, and the 5 Commands from your Sage pack and shuffle them. Place the stack face down below your Sage board to form your deck. Leave space next to your deck for your discard pile. Draw 5 cards from your deck to form your hand.

Setting Up the Elemental and Command Markets:

Take all Elementals that don’t belong to a Sage pack, shuffle them to form the Elemental Market deck, and place it face down within reach of all players. (Hint: all Elementals that you’ll shuffle into the Elemental Market deck have a gold coin symbol in the bottom left corner.)

Next, take all Commands that do not belong to a Sage pack, shuffle them to form the Command Market deck, and place it face down below the Elemental Market deck. (Hint: all Commands that you’ll shuffle into the Command Market deck have a gold coin symbol in the bottom left corner.)

Flip the top 3 cards of the Elemental Market deck face up to form the Elemental Market and flip the top 3 cards of the Command Market deck face up to form the Command Market.

As a final step, remove all tokens from the box and create separate piles for each type of token (boost tokens, shield tokens, damage counters, and gold coins) within reach of all players.

If You’re Playing with 2 Players:

Once you have completed setup, the player with the most house plants goes first and starts with 0 gold. The second player starts the game with 3 gold.

If You’re Playing with 4 Players:

Once you have completed setup, the team with the most house plants collectively goes first and starts with 0 gold. The second team starts the game with 4 gold.

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Gameplay

Your turn is divided into four phases:

Phase I: Daybreak Effects

During Phase I, you’ll use daybreak effects. If any Elementals in your formation (including your Sage) have daybreak effects (denoted by a symbol), you may use those effects in any order during Phase I of your turn. If you continue to Phase II without using a daybreak effect, you may not use it later in your turn.
Note: You may only use a daybreak effect if an Elemental is already in the formation row that corresponds to that effect when your turn starts.

Phase II: Spending Action Points (AP)

If You’re Playinag with 2 Players:

During Phase II, you’ll spend action points (AP) to perform standard actions and faction actions. You can spend up to 4 AP during each of your turns. Unspent AP do not roll over to your next turn.

If You’re Playing with 4 Players:

During Phase II, your team will spend action points (AP) to perform standard actions and faction actions. You and your teammate can spend a combined 6 AP during each of your turns. When choosing which actions to perform, you may look at your teammate’s hand. Unspent AP do not roll over to your team’s next turn.

Standard Actions:

Each standard action costs 1 AP. You can perform standard actions in any order, and you can perform the same standard action more than once on your turn if you still have AP to spend.
Standard actions include:

• Summon an Elemental from your hand to your formation. You can only add an Elemental if there is an empty space in your formation.
• Play a Command from your hand. After you use that Command’s effect, move it to your discard pile.
• Swap the positions of 2 connected Elementals in your formation. 2 Elementals in your formation are considered connected if there are no other Elementals between them; connected Elementals can be in different rows.
• Draw a card from your deck. If you attempt to draw a card but there are no remaining cards in your deck, shuffle your discard pile and place it face down to form a new deck, then draw a card.

Faction Actions:

Each time you defeat an Elemental in your opponent’s formation, you’ll increase your level by 1. As your level rises, you’ll unlock up to 3 faction actions that are unique to your Sage. Each faction action costs 1 AP to perform, and you may only perform 1 faction action per turn. (See page 18 for more details about Sage boards.)

Phase III: Markets and Gold

During Phase III, you may use your gold to buy cards from the markets, sell cards to collect more gold, and refresh the markets.

Buy:

Each card in the Elemental and Command Markets has a gold coin symbol in the bottom left corner indicating its cost. To buy a card from any market, pay its cost by moving that number of gold from your wallet on your Sage board to the gold pile in the center of the table. When you buy a card from a market, add it to your discard pile. If that card is an Elemental, you may spend 2 additional gold to bring it directly into your formation if you have an empty space. You may buy Elementals of any faction from the Elemental Market.
There should be 3 cards available in each market at all times; if you buy a card from either market, immediately fill the empty space with the top card from that market’s deck.

Sell:

To sell a card, simply move that card from your hand to the game box to remove it from the game. You may sell any number of cards during Phase III of your turn. When you sell a card, collect gold equal to half that card’s cost (rounded up). If that card was part of your Sage pack, you’ll collect 1 gold if you sell it.

Refresh:

To refresh a market, spend 1 gold to move all available cards in that market to the bottom of that market’s deck, then flip the top 3 cards of that deck face up. You may refresh multiple times during your turn if you have enough gold to do so.

Phase IV: Hand Cleanup

During Phase IV, you’ll clean up your hand before ending your turn. Discard any number of cards from your hand, then draw from your deck until you have 5 cards in your hand. If you have more than 5 cards in your hand when you reach Phase IV of your turn, you must discard cards until you have no more than 5.

Note: If there aren’t enough cards in your deck to draw until you have 5 cards in your hand, draw any remaining cards in your deck, then shuffle your discard pile and place it face down to form a new deck. Continue to draw until you have 5 cards in your hand.

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How to Win

If You’re Playing with 2 Players:

When you defeat your opponent’s Sage, you win the game and earn the title of Master of the Elements!

If You’re Playing with 4 Players:

When your team defeats both of the opposing team’s Sages, you earn the title of Masters of the Elements!

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Sage Boards

On the left side of your Sage board, you’ll find your wallet, where you’ll store the gold you’ve collected throughout the game. It also features a list of your standard actions for quick reference. On the right side of your Sage board is your level tracker. Each time you defeat an Elemental in your opponent’s formation, move your level tracker token up one space to increase your level. When you reach certain level thresholds (4, 6, and 8), you unlock an Elemental Champion and a new faction action.

Elemental Champions:

Elemental Champions are powerful Elementals unique to each faction. When you reach a level threshold, move the corresponding Elemental Champion from your Sage board to the top of your discard pile. This action reveals a faction action on your Sage board.

Faction Actions:

Once a faction action is unlocked, you can perform it during Phase II of your turn by spending 1 AP. Keep in mind, you can only use one faction action per turn.

Once you hit level 8, you’ve reached your maximum level, unlocking all available Elemental Champions and faction actions.

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Factions

The base game features four Sages, each leading a distinct Elemental faction with a unique playstyle:

• Pebble: Focuses on defense and shield generation.
• Twig: Specializes in offense with boosted damage.
• Droplet: Balances offense and defense, emphasizing card advantage and formation manipulation.
• Leaf: Focuses on deck and discard pile manipulation, balancing offense and defense.

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Types of Cards

Elementals

Elementals are summoned into your formation throughout the game. When you summon one, place it in the frontmost row that has an empty space in your formation. For example, if Row II has an empty space, you cannot summon an Elemental in Row III.

Each Elemental has two stats: strength (STR) and health (HP). STR determines damage (DMG) during combat, while HP represents the amount of damage an Elemental can take before it’s defeated. Elementals, Elemental Warriors, Champions, and Sages all feature an effect near the bottom of the card.

Elementals in the Elemental Market show their cost in the bottom left corner. Each Elemental also has a symbol and border that represent its faction. To activate an Elemental Warrior or Champion’s effect, you must position it in the correct row of your formation, as indicated on the card.

Types of Elementals:

• Elemental Sages: Your Sage leads your formation. If your Sage is defeated, you lose the game.
• Basic Elementals: These Elementals have no effects but are still useful in combat. Your Sage pack contains 4 Basic Elementals, and you can purchase more from the Elemental Market.
• Elemental Warriors: These Elementals have effects activated when placed in certain rows in your formation. Your Sage pack comes with 3 Elemental Warriors, and you can buy more from the Elemental Market.
• Elemental Champions: These powerful Elementals can be accessed by defeating Elementals in your opponent’s formation to reach the level threshold on your level tracker.

Elemental Effects:

• Daybreak Effects: These can only be used during Phase I of your turn. You can use each daybreak effect once per turn and in any order.
• Triggered Effects: These can be activated in response to specific events in the game. The card text will specify when they can be used.

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Commands

Commands are used throughout the game to gain advantages, protect your Elementals, and deal damage to your opponent’s formation. To use a Command, reveal it, apply its effect, and then discard it.

Types of Commands:

• Attack Commands: Use an Elemental from your formation to attack an Elemental in your opponent’s formation. Each Attack Command specifies the damage (DMG) your Elemental will deal, as well as the attack type (melee or ranged).
  • Melee Attack Commands: Allow your Elemental in Row I to attack an Elemental in Row I of your opponent’s formation.
  • Ranged Attack Commands: Allow your Elemental to attack an Elemental up to 2 rows away.
• Utility Commands: Provide various advantages, such as swapping Elementals or dealing damage to an opponent’s Elemental.
  • DMG from Utility Commands cannot be reduced by Instant Commands.
• Instant Commands: These are the only type of Command you can play during your opponent’s turn. They can reduce incoming damage or provide other strategic advantages.
  • Instant Commands don’t cost any AP to play.

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Tokens

There are four types of tokens used in the game:

• Gold Coins: Used to track your gold. Each coin has two sides: one representing 1 gold, the other representing 3 gold.
• Damage Counters: Used to track damage dealt to your Elementals. Each counter has two sides: one representing 1 DMG, the other representing 3 DMG.
• Boost Tokens: Added to Elementals to boost their strength during attacks. Each token has two sides: one for 1 boost, the other for 3 boosts.
• Shield Tokens: Reduce incoming damage. Each token has two sides: one for 1 shield, the other for 3 shields.

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Combat

To initiate combat, play an Attack Command. Your opponent can respond with any number of Instant Commands to reduce damage or gain an advantage.

To calculate the damage (DMG) from an attack:

1. Start with the damage specified in the Attack Command.
2. Add 1 DMG for each boost token on your attacking Elemental.
3. Subtract any damage reduction from Instant Commands your opponent plays.
4. Subtract 1 DMG for each shield on the opponent’s Elemental that you attack.

If the resulting DMG is greater than 0, add damage counters to the opponent’s Elemental equal to the damage dealt. Remove all boost and shield tokens as applicable.

If at any time the damage equals or exceeds an Elemental’s HP, it is defeated.

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Cleanup

Once you’ve tasted sweet victory or bitter defeat, it’s time to pack up! While the Master(s) of the Elements gloat, the defeated player(s) must follow these clean-up steps to make the next match easier to set up:

• Return any cards in the game box to the center of the table.
• Collect all cards from your Sage pack and place them in a pile.
• Collect all cards from your opponent’s Sage pack and place them in a pile.
• Return all Elemental Market cards to the Elemental Market deck, then place it in the left compartment of the game box.
• Return all Command Market cards to the Command Market deck, then place it in the right compartment of the game box.
• Place the Sage packs in the game box on top of the market decks.
• Place all tokens in their respective compartments.
• Finally, place all Sage boards on top, place the rule book on top of the Sage boards, then close the box.

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Command of Nature FAQ