Aether Ascendant: Elemental Match-3 Strategy Board Game

What if a Match-3 puzzle powered a strategy board game?

You are a mighty wizard venturing into the elemental plane in pursuit of mastery. Match elemental energy to cast spells, claim relics, and advance along four elemental tracks before your rivals. Or risk your connection to the plane itself, charging your artifact in a desperate bid to ascend directly to victory.

Multiple paths. Deep strategy. Do you have what it takes to master the elemental plane?

Contents

Everything you need to command the elements, build your spellbook, and compete for Ascension.

Component images are prototypes and may change before production.

How to Play

Match the Elements

Make matches on the elemental grid, trigger cascades, and gather elemental energy to power your spells. 

Your initial match can also unlock a reusable spell, which you can cast immediately or save for a future turn at no additional cost. As your wizard grows in power, you can keep more reusable spells charged at once.

Build Your Spellbook

Elemental spells can be cast from your hand or directly from the communal spell market. You can also claim spells from the market to add to your hand for use in future turns. 

Manipulate the Elements

Use spells, relics, and artifact abilities to manipulate the grid. Remove and replace discs to set up cascades or change the direction of elemental flow to increase the energy you gain.

The board above initially has only a single vertical match of 3 water available, with no guaranteed cascades. However, by using relics to remove discs and then alter the direction in which energy flows, the same move will now guarantee a cascade of 6 additional energy, with potential for even more as further discs are drawn.

Master the Elements

Advance along four elemental tracks by channeling energy, breaking seals, and defeating mighty elemental guardians. Become an Adept and then a Master, enhancing your spellcasting abilities as you increase your power level. Earn enough mastery points to claim victory over your rival wizards.

As you advance, you encounter three types of challenges on each track:

• Energy spaces require energy of that element, equal to their power level
• Seals must be broken by damage equal to the power level, but of a different element
• Guardians must be defeated the same way seals are broken, but they also fight back, defeating minions and damaging your wizard's Aether connection

As you advance along the track, your power level increases, boosting the power of various spells and minions.

Race to Ascension

Your artifact offers another path to victory—but pursuing it comes at a risk. Sacrifice your connection to the elemental plane to charge the artifact, unlocking powerful Aether abilities and enhancing your spells. Charge it enough, and you can ascend to victory without completing the elemental tracks.

Every turn begins with a Match-3 puzzle. But turning each match to your advantage takes careful planning, an efficient engine, and strategic timing. Will you master the elements—or risk everything to achieve Ascension?

Check out the current Rulebook!

Why Back?

A Fresh Twist on Match-3
A spatial puzzle becomes the engine behind a deeper strategy game. Every match is an opportunity to generate energy, trigger cascades, and set your next move in motion.

Build Your Magical Engine
Combine spells, minions, relics, and abilities to develop powerful synergies and shape your own approach to victory.

Choose Your Path to Victory
Master the four elemental tracks—or risk your connection to the elemental plane in a race to achieve Ascension.

Every Decision Matters
Manage your energy, time your spells, manipulate the board, and decide when to invest in your long-term strategy or seize an immediate advantage.

Master Different Strategies
Each wizard is attuned to a particular element, with its own strengths and weaknesses. Learning to adapt your strategy to different elemental affinities keeps each game fresh and rewards mastery.

A Designer's Journey

Aether Ascendant has evolved over the past couple of years. What began as a lighter, quick-playing Match-3 game gradually grew into our heaviest strategy game to date.

It's also a departure from our previous designs, which have generally drawn on history, as we venture into a world of high fantasy, elemental forces, and rival wizards.

The journey has been an exciting one for me as a designer. As the different systems came together, I was reminded that the best games have a natural rhythm of their own; something you discover through design and development rather than force into place.

I hope you enjoy playing Aether Ascendant as much as I've enjoyed creating it.

Rewards

Stretch Goals

Reviews

Coming Soon...

Shipping

We are pleased to offer consistent shipping across all game tiers, whether Adept, Master, or Immortality, as follows:

For international shipments, we will do our best to offer friendly shipping services from within the destination. However, the high end figures are noted for destinations lacking sufficient backers, which would be shipped from within the United States.