Game of Stones

One might think that the elements strive for balance, to find harmony in all things, with each being represented in equal measure. But that is not the truth of things. In reality, the elements are in a constant struggle for dominance, each according to their own secretive plan. Only from our perspective do things seem balanced, but the fight rages on for all eternity.

Elemental Stones is an abstract tile-placement and pattern-matching game for 2 to 4 players, in which you take on the role of powerful elemental sovereigns by placing and transforming tiles of five elements (fire, water, earth, wood, and metal)—with air as a sixth, wildcard element—in a constant struggle for dominance. Today we want to give you a peek into how the game came to be and what you can expect find inside the box.

Designed by me (Joe Pasini) along with Jason Bulmahn, Elemental Stones is the first release in the Paizo Games line, which will consist of tabletop games designed, developed, and published by Paizo. We’re excited to bring you all-new game expressions that, while inspired by and connected to the rich worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder, explore the opportunities presented by modern games, separate from pen-and-paper roleplaying games.

Elemental Stones began life as an inkling of a game inspired by the Rage of Elements hardcover book, which dives deep into the system of elements in Pathfinder (including two newly supported elements, metal and wood). We knew we wanted a simple-to-learn, highly replayable game that would involve the elemental cycle, placing satisfying objects on a board, and competing for elemental dominance, in the form of—what else—victory points. Early prototypes of a dotted grid with constellation-like patterns grew into a more robust hex-shaped grid and tokens with a relatively simple ruleset. With just a few tweaks along the way, this design allows for nuanced strategy and tactics each time you play.

Of course, as with any idea making its way from concept to concrete creation, there were some growing pains. Various card types were added, patterns shifted and changed, scoring metrics were constantly in flux, and the component list was rather fluid throughout early playtests. For example, we realized players would end up with extra stones at the end of most games and, as a result, would have less meaningful choices when choosing stones in later rounds. We eventually hit upon the idea of awarding points for having majorities in each type of stone as a way to solve two problems with one solution (if only there were a stone-related idiom for that… oh well). Everything about the game went through similar iterations, from the several other ways you can score points all the way to the production side, where we worked diligently with our manufacturer to create tiles that are just the right weight, size, and feel. In the end, we created a game that is quick and easy to play with up to four players in about 30-40 minutes, making it a perfect warm-up to your Pathfinder game night—or you can play multiple rounds for a whole evening of fun.

We’ve had a great time demoing the game at conventions and online, and can’t wait to hear your stories of elemental struggle around the table! You can preorder the game here and check out an explanation of the rules (from one of our streams). And keep an eye out for more news about upcoming Paizo Games, we cannot wait to show you what we have coming up next!

Joe Pasini
Lead Designer of Paizo Games