ORGANISM

We all appeared here at some point - we don't even remember our earliest lives. What does it mean to be an organism? And what unites us with all the other organisms that surround us in this bewildering fabric of life? 

ORGANISM is an exploration of this question, in board game form. 

"Entirely distinct from anything else out there." - Dan Thurot (the legendary Space-Biff!)

Elephant Laboratories has delivered 2 campaigns for the award-winning Sol: Last Days of a Star - this is their latest effort in an entirely new direction (!) Minimal rules with maximal possibilities, the game provides an endless well of discoveries, at any depth you want to venture. 

Part of Elephant Laboratories quest is to find new regions of game space that have never been found before, curate the most fascinating and enduring discoveries, and bring them back to the world. ORGANISM is the latest artifact we have brought back from this infinite realm and we are thrilled to share it with everyone. 

"Seriously one of the most incredible designs of the decade and truly a perfect example of what Kickstarter is for." - Cole Wehrle (designer of Oath)

ORGANISM

ORGANISM is an exploration of the experience of being an organism, seared away to the essential activities - you inhabit from the inside. Every organism can EAT, MOVE, and GROW, and also CIRCULATE nutrients within itself, all while spreading throughout the world and ultimately encountering other organisms like itself - with surprising and devastating consequences. 

You win either by POWER - gained through conflict and holding the center, or PROLIFERATION - simply become three separate organisms (easier said than done!) 

Through simple rules a boundless world emerges. Fates change quickly, and you can go from being wiped off the board to ultimately victorious in a single game. An intense and intricate abstract for two becomes a wild party of scheming and mayhem with up to 6 players (!) 

The core game can be expanded combinatorially with a set of 26 mutation cards - rules that change the game in simple to mind-bending ways, and can be mixed and matched for an unreasonable amount of variety. 

"Mutations take the essence of Organism and multiply it by x1000." - Marceline Leiman, designer of High Tide

The core game comes with a beautiful folding board with custom art from Wyn Tiedmers. You can also choose from two optional additions - a neoprene mat and/or a travel bag + flat pieces, for throwing in your bag and taking anywhere you want to play.

Incubating for many years, the time has come for ORGANISM to emerge into the world. Please join us in the process of bringing forth what has been inside us all along. Endless gratitude (!)

THIS CAMPAIGN

The box you get at the base pledge level is the game in its entire: it contains everything you need to play ORGANISM - the board game. Glorious 3d pieces sculpted in blender over years as Ryan dove deeper into the arcane craft. Stunning and evocative artscapes by the visionary Wyn (he is why this is all so beautiful). A vibrant board that hums with a life of its own. A player aid that beams understanding directly into your mind. 26 mutations for an endless kaleidoscope of possibilities. 

There are two additional items which are available in the higher tiers, optional if you want them: 

• Neoprene board: The box comes with a mounted cardboard board - if you want a more invincible/unbroken surface it is available in the SURFACE tier - entirely optional. 
• Travel bag & flat pieces: This has been a long evolution of us figuring out how we can make it possible to take the game to the beach. With the flat pieces and bag, you can take as many of the other components as you want and it will not blow away in any reasonable wind (I have actually played on a beach and in a bar - would recommend). 

Here is a detailed manifest of the components in ORGANISM - the board game:

The two additional items you can get with the board game are available at other tiers (including one that includes all three!):

• SURFACE: the neoprene board + the board game
• PORTAL: the travel bag and flat pieces (! to take anywhere) + the board game
• UNIVERSE: All three at once! (neoprene board + travel bag and flat pieces + the board game)

STRETCH GOALS!

Thank you to everyone for your feedback on our stretch goals! They are as follows:

Some questions about the 2/3 player board:

• Q: Is it required to play 2/3 player? A: No, you can play 2/3 player on the regular board.... this is just a smaller board where you don't need to ignore as many (any?) rings.
• Q: Is it included in the base game? A: we will add a cloth version for the base game if we hit this level.
• Q: What is on the other side? A: We might make some alternate art???

Can't wait to hit all these! Let's goooooooooooooooooooo

REVIEWS

Space-Biff! The inimitable Dan Thurot has turned his poetic Sauron-eye onto our game! And it is as delightful as you would expect:

• "What this really does for Organism is make every decision matter, both in the micro sense and the larger conflict."
• "....one can look at the board and read the slow-motion topography of its microcosmic battleground...."
• "No matter how it transforms, though, Organism remains truly exciting." 

I hope you enjoy as much as we did: https://spacebiff.com/2026/09/17/organism/

Cole Wehrle's Bluesky post! 

Cole gave us a heartfelt shoutout on the Bluesky - right before the campaign propelled into being funded: https://bsky.app/profile/colewehrle.bsky.social/post/3mvnzdaci4s2q

• "Struck by the absolute clarity of the design. It was as if someone had taken off the hood on a game like Hive"
• "To win the game, you have to think like a designer."

To hear this coming from such an unrivaled master of the craft is a true honor - we are thankful for his savvy and insight, the world is a better place because of people like Cole. 

GAMEPLAY

ORGANISM - a board game for 1 to 5 players - where the fundamentals you already live/breathe/know/embody every day become an infinite tapestry of strategic possibilities. 

Being an organism means being a connected group of elements: one of EAT / MOVE / GROW. Surviving means your organism has at least one of each of these fundamental components . 

These are also the actions! The more of that element you have, the more actions that organism gets on its turn! 

EAT / MOVE / GROW - (and CIRCULATE, a universal alternative action) - It all reduces to this essential basis. 

Ryan made a gameplay video! If you want to go deep into how the game works take a look here: 

EAT

EAT is how your organism receives food from outside. It draws it in from an adjacent space (and always gains 1 extra!)

MOVE

MOVE is how your elements move from one space to another - they must start out next to a MOVE element! (mobile) and must also contain at least one food (fed). They do not consume the food, they only require it to move. 

GROW

GROW is how you add new elements into your organism. It costs food from your grow elements and the cost is how many of that element are already part of your organism. The new element is placed next to your existing GROW elements. 

CIRCULATE

CIRCULATE is how food flows from your EAT elements to the rest of your organism. You always circulate half (rounded up!) from one element to one other element. 

TWO ORGANISMS

If you have more than one organism on your turn, you take a whole separate turn with each one. Each are able to take a different action. 

CONFLICT

If you move an element next to another player's element they are in CONFLICT - it is resolved according to EAT > GROW > MOVE > EAT in a circle forever. This is one way you get points! (5 points to win) The other way is by starting your turn with an element in the center. 

INTEGRITY

If your organism is missing one (or more!) of the three element types the entire organism is lost (!) Any lost element leaves food behind for other organisms to eat later. 

POWER

POWER is tracked for each other player's element you capture in CONFLICT, any time another player's organism is lost to INTEGRITY on your turn, or whenever you HOLD the center at the start of your turn. 5 power to victory! (OR players can agree to any power threshold)

THREE ORGANISMS

If ever you have three living organisms on the board (living = at least one of each element) you IMMEDIATELY WIN! Power level is entirely irrelevant. It is great to be able to pull off if you can.... we call it the PEACEFUL victory (or GROWTH victory)

GAMEPLAY EXAMPLE

This is a whole game example (!) all of the principles are demonstrated. The camera flies around.... at random? it is beautiful. We love you. 

Actually it gets pretty dramatic at the end. 

6 PLAYERS!

The game was designed for up to 6 players (actually we've played it up to 11 - it is open endedly large). In order to have a lower funding goal we are starting with 5 players and will add the 6th into the campaign for no additional cost - and we hit that goal! So this will ship with all 6 players. 

RULEBOOK

Want to learn more? We have the rulebook (still WIP) on our website: https://elephantlaboratories.com/img/organism/organism-rulebook.pdf and more information here: https://elephantlaboratories.com/organism

PEOPLE

SHIPPING

• Timing: We won't know the actual cost of shipping from China or how tariffs will be until closer to fulfillment. To make sure your support of this project is respected, we'll charge you as close as possible to the actual fulfillment date, once we have real numbers. 
• Limit: We are not going to make any money on shipping (probably the opposite!).... you will only be charged what it costs us to ship to you. These costs will vary based on region and will be communicated as uncertainty is reduced!
• Partners: We will work with region specific partners (like VFI and Spiral Galaxy) to ensure the unique challenges of shipping around the world are handled by those that do it best.
• Communication: These costs will be managed through the pledge manager, and we are committed to clear communication on this and everything else in the campaign (and beyond!)