Last Updated on October 10, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team
Horizons of Spirit Island is a streamlined, standalone version of the popular cooperative board game Spirit Island. In this game, players take on the roles of powerful spirits defending their island from invading colonists. Here’s the official PDF and how to play:
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How to Play Horizons of Spirit Island
Objective:
In Spirit Island, players work cooperatively as powerful spirits to repel invaders, protect the island, and achieve victory through fear or by eliminating all invaders.
Setup:
- Players: 1-4 players.
- Game Board: Lay out the Island Board sections based on the number of players. Each section represents a part of the island, with varying terrains like mountains, jungles, wetlands, and sands.
- Blight Tokens: Place Blight Tokens on the Blight space, adjusting the number based on the chosen difficulty level.
- Fear Deck, Invader Deck, and Blight Cards: Place these decks in their designated areas on the board.
- Choose Spirits: Each player selects a Spirit, takes the corresponding Spirit Panel, Unique Power Cards, and Starting Presence Discs. Place one Presence disc on the “0” space for both the energy and card play tracks on the Spirit Panel. Keep the remaining Presence discs in a personal supply.
- Set Up Invaders: Shuffle the Invader Deck and place it face down. Draw the top card and place invader pieces (cities, towns, explorers) on the board in the corresponding terrain.
- Dahan Setup: Place Dahan (the native inhabitants) in regions as indicated in the setup instructions. Dahan will fight back against invaders when attacked.
- Energy and Power Cards: Give each player their starting energy, as indicated on the Spirit Panel. Players draw four Power Cards from their unique deck to form their starting hand.
- Fear Pool: Place the Fear Tokens in a pool. As players generate fear, they move tokens into the Fear Deck, unlocking Fear Cards that impact the invaders.
Gameplay:
The game is played over a series of turns, each with multiple phases.
Spirit Phase:
- Growth: Choose one of the available Growth options, allowing you to reclaim cards, gain energy, add Presence, or draw new Power Cards.
- Gain Energy: Collect the amount of energy indicated by your Presence on the energy track.
- Play Power Cards: Choose which Power Cards to play. The number of cards you can play is determined by your Presence on the card play track.
Power Phase:
- Resolve any Fast Powers (marked with a red icon) that players have played. These powers are resolved before the invaders act.
Invader Phase:
- Blighted Island Check: Flip the Blight Card if the island has been severely damaged, which may introduce new challenges.
- Fear Effects: If enough fear has been generated, resolve the top Fear Card, which may cause invaders to retreat, destroy buildings, or provide other advantages.
- Invader Actions: The invaders follow the sequence on the Invader Card:
- Ravage: Invaders attack the land and Dahan. Damaged land may become Blighted.
- Build: Invaders construct towns and cities in regions where they are present.
- Explore: New explorers arrive in regions, as indicated by the Invader Card.
Slow Power Phase:
Resolve any Slow Powers (marked with a blue icon) after the invaders have acted.
Time Passes:
Discard played Power Cards and prepare for the next turn.
Victory and Defeat:
Victory: Players win if they eliminate all invaders or generate enough fear to reach the Terror Level required for victory.
Defeat: The game is lost if the island becomes too Blighted or if all spirits lose their Presence.
Tips for Playing:
- Coordinate with Other Spirits: Work together, covering different island parts and combining powers effectively.
- Manage Fear: Generating fear weakens the invaders and brings you closer to victory.
- Balance Defense and Offense: Protect key areas from Blight while aggressively dealing with invaders to halt their spread.
Note: For detailed rules and gameplay instructions, refer to the official rulebook PDF at the top of the page.
